Narrowing It Down

I’ve noticed a bit of a shift in how I’m approaching music lately.

Nothing dramatic. Just a gradual change in how I’m thinking about the work and where I’m putting my time.

Becoming a dad has definitely played a part in that. You suddenly have less time and less headspace, so you stop throwing it around quite so freely. It makes you look a bit harder at what’s actually worth doing.

For a long time I said yes to pretty much everything. Gigs, projects, bits of work that might lead to something else down the line. Some of that was useful, especially early on. Some of it probably wasn’t. Either way, it becomes a bit of a default setting.

I don’t think I’m in that place anymore.

I’ve been a bit more selective, and more aware of the standard I want things to be at. Not in a perfectionist way, just in terms of whether something feels like it’s been done properly.

That’s come through quite a lot in performance. Playing at events, it’s easy to think your job is to be “on” all the time. Filling space, keeping things busy. I’ve definitely done that. These days I’m more conscious of just fitting what’s already happening. Sometimes that means doing less. It’s actually harder than it sounds.

You have to pay attention in a different way. What people are doing, how the room feels, whether it needs anything from you at all. When it works, it feels a lot more natural. Less like you’re trying to impose something on the situation.

Teaching’s gone in a similar direction. I’ve slowed things down a bit. Spent more time on the basics. Being clearer about what the point of something is before moving on. It’s not the most exciting way of working day to day, but it seems to stick better.

I think overall I’ve just become a bit less interested in doing loads, and more interested in doing things well.

That has meant saying no to a few things, which isn’t always comfortable. There’s still that instinct to just keep everything ticking over. But I’m starting to trust that being a bit more focused is probably the better long-term move.

I wouldn’t say anything’s completely changed. It’s more that things feel a bit more settled. That’s probably the best way of putting it.