“Exception to the Rule” by Elastic No-No Band
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In December 2008 -- about halfway through the 2-year process of recording and compiling the massive Fustercluck!!! album -- Elastic No-No Band started to lay down some basic tracks for this song. As was the usual procedure for many of the band’s songs up to that point, I laid down an acoustic guitar track, plus scratch vocals, over which Preston and Doug recorded bass and drums.
The result of these recordings was lifeless. I had just played it too damn slow, and all Doug and Preston could do was play along. I didn’t have the creative wherewithal to find a new approach to “fix” it or the money to replace it, so the recording was just abandoned. After all, I already had a sense that the album was going to have over 40 songs. No one was going to miss this one.
But the song has percolated in the back of my mind throughout the 10 years since the Fustercluck!!! double-album was released. When I got my own keyboard, “Exception” was one of the first things I figured out how to play. When I discovered the time compression capabilities of certain audio software, I started editing and manipulating the old “Exception” tracks to see if I could pep them up a bit.
Still, I figured I would actually get around to recreating my imagined improved “Exception to the Rule” at some later future point. I even demoed the song again, as a possible inclusion for my next Duck the Piano Wire record.
Well. It’s 2020. I figure it’s been long enough. While it’s kind of bittersweet to finish the track without Herb playing the keyboards, and without John playing electric guitar, I’ve edited and completed the original Elastic No-No Band track 11+ years after it was started. And, listening to it now, I don’t think the process could have gone any other way.
Starting this process has also caused me to think back on those other Fustercluck!!! recordings from a decade ago, and to reflect on how my relationship to those songs and those performances have changed over time.
In some cases, I look back fondly. In others, I don’t.
Because of that, this single will not be the last you hear of the old Fustercluck!!! sessions. I’ve got some new ideas -- and a bunch of old ones -- that I want to share with you real soon. So keep your eyes peeled for more commemorations (and manipulations) coming down the pipeline!!
