The atmosphere at Banana Row was very relaxed although not quite as relaxed as its past (when customers included Eric Clapton and Steve Miller, not that they can remember). When I arrived I was greeted by Evan, who would be my superviser for the week. Originally it was Fraser, the manager, who was supposed to be my superviser but he was in Nigeria. He'd been playing a corporate gig for an oil company when he was arrested (along with his band-mates) for having expired visas. Although their Visas were in date it took a week for this to be 'verified' which, according to the organiser of the gig, was pretty common for white people in the area.
My hours were ten until four, but all I had to do was vacuum and mop the rehearsal rooms in the morning. After that strenuous fifteen minute job I spent most of the day playing guitar and watching Nick, the Sound Engineer. I once had to go to Tesco to buy milk and tea which, being a vegan, led to a minor moral dilemma. When Evan said I could keep the change I soon decided that, as I was only buying milk and not actually drinking it, my immortal soul would be un-blemished. The only other task I had was to help set up for a corporate dinner in Mansfield Church (just around the corner from Banana Row). This involved setting up stands for instruments and microphones, programming the sound board (a fairly simple task as I'd picked up quite a bit helping school productions) and trying to get the caterers to stop touching our equipment. Again, this wasn't exactly strenuous but it was good to see what goes on behind the scenes at events like these.
In my opinion it was watching Nick record and mix that was most interesting and useful. I got to learn how to use the expensive, handmade effects equipment (although just touching it would of voided many warranties) and use the bespoke software that he uses to put tracks together and record. There were many things that I already knew of and knew what they did but had no idea how they did it. For example a kick drum and electric bass occupy the same frequency range which means you can only hear one at a time (usually whichever is louder). An equaliser can make both audible by removing alternating frequencies so that the two 'mesh' together.
During my time at Banana Row there was not many customers. A few (honestly) terrible bands came into practice which I expected but there was quite a lot of good bands to, although no famous ones. One of the most surprising things was the amount of mentally disabled and/or ill customers there were. Many of those who had mental illnesses from birth came in to simply bang on drums to relieve the frustration and aggression which built from their inability to function normally. However there was one man who had dementia (I think, Alzheimers is another possibility) and couldn't remember basic information but could still play the drums perfectly.
There were only two bands recording during my week at Banana Row. The first was a terrible indie band who had won recording time in a competition (my theory is that they either cheated or no one else entered) and tried to play songs they had written themselves. These avant garde musicians had taken the concept of playing in key and thrown it out the window. Sadly, in the rush of the moment, they had also thrown all their talent and sense of perspective out of the window. Nick tried to talk them into playing covers (suggestions included 'Ba ba black sheep' and other childrens songs) but they had decided that what they were doing was 'Good' and were having none of it.
The other band was possibly the polar opposite of the first. They were a touring blues band who've played since the early 80s and had success at festivals and opening for other acts but had no luck getting signed. This was to be their first album since the 80s and they were set on doing it right. As an example of their dedication, the female vocalist spent 8 hours in one day just recording her parts. It was interesting seeing the difference in Nick's attitude between the two bands. For the first he had done what he had to but, when the time was up, the time was up. With the second he stayed on mixing the album long after their time ran out. I think this is a good time to point out that, on top of an annual salary, Nick gets GBP200 a day when he is recording. On average he spends 4 days recording a week. To do what you enjoy and find easy for 4 days a week and walk away with what most people earn in a month in one day is, to put it succinctly, brilliant.
I learned a lot about what I want to do after school at Banana Row. I've now decided that a degree in sound creation is best for me beacuse it covers sound engineering like at Banana Row but also covers scoring for TV, Films and Video Games and creating sound effects. After two years you can then specialise in one of the three and by that point I hope to know where I want to go. If I had the oppurtunity I would go back to Banana Row, but any jobs there have a long list of applicants, most with many years experience in the industry so it's unlikely.
However, in spite of the good time I had at Banana Row and the direction it has given me in life, I would say that the most positive thing about the week was that it convinced my mum that dropping maths at higher would not lead to a life on the streets cursing my lack of foresight and wishing I could calculate the exact amount of shame that I had brought upon my family but unable to because I hadn't taken maths. For this it was a godsend and I shall be eternally grateful.
