A DALE musician has used the Covid-19 lockdown experience as an opportunity to produce a new EP.
John Marriott, from Startforth, collaborated with Cotherstone drummer Maddy Forsyth to produce the EP called Meanwhile, with each working from their respective home studios.
Previously they had been part of Andy Yeadon’s popular band About The Humans, and Mr Marriott also produced the music for a production of MacBeth by The Castle Players.
The Covid-19 collaboration has resulted in a collection of instrumental electronic rock tracks that capture the mood of the lockdown.
The EP’s title Meanwhile and the artwork of gold and grey, make direct reference to the current situation.
Mr Marriott said “It was a golden opportunity to do something, but there was still this greyness and jeopardy – Meanwhile life goes on and we have to get on with things.”
The musician, who studied towards being a sound technician at Derby, used recorded samples on many of the tracks, including a raging thunderstorm during the height of pandemic.
He said: “You get these low rumblings in there. It is fun to explore sound and use it as a sort of tool or paintbrush. I like to play with effects and mess with sound.”
On another track, called Cinder, Mr Marriott has woven in a speech by Neville Chamberlain drawing parallels between what people endured during the Second World War and the situation faced during the Covid crisis.
Although Mr Marriott produced the EP as something to keep himself busy during the lockdown, he has posted it onto the Bandcamp website and has produced several physical CDs.
He said: “I like projects and I like concepts and when I start a project, I like to finish it. To have this in physical form I feel is important to me and I think it puts a full stop on it and I can move on to the next project.”
To listen to the EP visit barriott.bandcamp.com/album/meanwhile.
