mostly david ephgrave

I didn’t intend to listen to tonight’s episode of In Your Inner Ear as, to be honest, I was a little sick of my own voice and thought processes (I’d spent a few hours, trying - and failing - to write), but I’m glad I did, as it cheered me up. That wasn’t meant to sound arrogant. What I enjoyed was hearing back the banter from my two favourite funny friends (glib) Glyn and Stephen, and the sense that, however unplanned it may be, it comes out sounding like a show. I’m often nervous before the programme airs, because I haven’t heard it. We record it in real time in a two-hour block, as the station no longer supports a live broadcast, with no time to do a retake, so there’s always a risk that it might be shit. It’s yet to be that, but watch this space: [                          ] My favourite part of tonight’s show was the least prepared bit: m...

I'm absolutely shattered today. I don't know what's going on. I don't seem to be able to catch up. I even had to have a little power-nap in the afternoon, before meeting up with my friend Steve for a truncated ve rsion of one of our 'Old Man Pub Crawls'. I probably made for quite a sight, asleep on the sofa with the cat on my lap. Seldom will one creature snooze on another in the wild, so I don't know why it's acceptable in my house.  Thankfully, today hasn't been particularly busy, save the frantic tweeting of pictures to accompany this week's episode of In Your Inner Ear, which we recorded on Thursday. I started out with the intention of doing some housework, but that didn't happen. My power-nap helped me perk up a little bit, but I'm now back to my exhausted self. I'm struggle to stay awake as I write this, so I can't imagine it will make riveting reading.  ‎ I enjoyed listening to tonight's In Your Inner Ear...

We prerecorded Sunday’s In Your Inner Ear tonight at Doggett & Ephgrave HQ (A.K.A. our midget office). The show's topic was ‘Stupid’. Literally...in the sense that we shared examples of the countless times we’ve seen or done something idiotic (with most of our stories inevitably falling in the latter category). I enjoyed the recording more than last week's show, as I felt more relaxed and in the swing of things, whatever that means. By the end of the programme, the three of us were laughing uncontrollably, mainly at Glyn’s anecdote about the time he thought he was dying because his hands had turned an unnatural shade of blue. It took a couple of hours of sheer panic - imagining all kinds of ominous symptoms – for him to realise it was just dye that had rubbed off of his new pair of jeans; I’d like to remind you that the man is now a FATHER . Recording at the office instead of the radio studio is a cozy little arrangement. The ro...

I listened to this week's In Your Inner Ear when it went out tonight, tweeting relevant pictures and comments along with it like a man possessed.  It's much easier to do this when the show isn't live, as it gives you a chance to do the job justice. That said, it's still a little frenetic as, even though I know the gist of what was discussed when, something always takes me by surprise. I wrote here on the day of recording of how I was concerned that the tiredness and incoherence I felt as we did it would show. Thankfully, it didn't. It always surprises me how well the show holds together, even when one or all of us aren't feeling our best. We sound at ease with what we're doing, and keep good pace. It's satisfying to listen back to. I just wish it was getting more exposure, as it's frustrating not knowing if anyone's listening; the cynic in me always assumes that no-one is.  I had hoped some of the se...

I’m often surprised by how well Glyn’s and my radio show holds together when I listen back to it, compared to how I feel as we were doing it. That’s not to say I usually think it’s going badly, as I’m generally pretty happy with it, but in the case of this week’s show (which just went out), I didn’t feel in the right mindset at the time of recording, so was relieved to discover it flowed well when I heard it tonight. The problem is I’m hypercritical, particularly about myself, so if I’m not firing on all cylinders, I'm the first to negatively judge what I (or we) have done. I’m my own worst critic, which may come as a surprise when you read what others have said about me; the bastards. What I like about In Your Inner Ear is the freedom we have while we do it. There’s no-one to answer to, except ourselves, and I like to think we have good judgement. The format is simple, but seems to work. We draw up a pie chart, with the slices divvied ...

We prerecorded the seventeenth episode of our internet radio show ‘Doggett & Ephgrave: In Your Inner Ear’ tonight in our office, ready to go out on Sunday. The show’s topic was ‘What?’, in the sense that we discussed things that have shocked or confused us. The theme was broad enough for us to talk about anything, as when you’re seventeen programmes in, you start to run out of ideas. It begs the question whether the next three episodes will be ‘Where?’, ‘How?’ and ‘When?’; I hope not. I enjoy recording in our office more than in the studio, as we have a more relaxed set-up. We’re in control of what we’re doing and know how to use our own equipment. The audio quality is also better, which makes the show more enjoyable to listen to (or that’s what I keep telling myself). While I enjoyed the show, I wish I’d taken more time to get to grips with the stories I’d chosen to tell before we started recording. I spent much of the afternoon finding appropriate what-related song...

I discovered today, perhaps unsurprisingly, that it's best to not attempt to sing a top Ab   Immediately after a large fried breakfast. (After  eating  the fry-up, I mean; it hadn't just sung an Ab itself.) The reason for the post-meal screech was I'd decided to pop to the office to record the jingles for next week's SG1 Radio show after a spot of petit déjeuner (French) with my wife (English). While the timing wasn't perfect, it was still easier than last week's 'session', when I had barely recovered from losing my voice; it seems my vocal range is less hindered by a stodge-coated gullet. (Pleasing image.)  The theme for next week's show is 'WHAT?!', in the sense that we'll be discussing the things we find ridiculous, or don't understand. While I like the topic, I hadn't accounted for how hard it would be to sing the word 'what' twice in quick succession, without the second one sounding like 'twat'...

We recorded a new episode of In Your Inner Ear tonight (which goes out tomorrow) that was new in more ways than one. Firstly, it was a new show; secondly, the topic of the show was ‘new’, and thirdly, it’s the first time we haven’t recorded the programme at SG1’s studio, opting to use our office instead. We came out of the session far happier with the sound quality than we’ve been since IYIE began. It’s always been the thing that’s let the show down. It helps that we have a better grasp of how to use our own equipment than theirs, but the fact that a lot of our stuff is better quality played a factor. It was also, bizarrely, more comfortable to do, despite the comparative lack of space. Our office isn’t designed to fit three people, let alone all the mics, stands, computers and the audio desk required, but we somehow managed to pull it off. Now we know we can do it at D&E HQ, we’ll probably record most of our other shows there in future. The majority of the music feat...

I listened to tonight’s In Your Inner Ear ( which we prerecorded last Monday ), so I could tweet the photos we took in the studio to accompany it. Ephgrave, Halliday and Doggett embody Christmas spirit. I was pleased with how the show came across. It’s surprising how cohesive it sounds once the music glues together our dialogue. We sound comfortable and relaxed. It’s a better vehicle for mine and Glyn’s personality and humour than any of our other current projects as we’re pushed to the forefront, so it frustrates me that the nature of the set-up and the lack of promotion will mean very few people get to hear it. David watches Stephen's 'weird science'. I guess I have to enjoy it for what it is. It’s a chance to hone our radio chops, if that makes any sense. It forces us into a room together, which is difficult these days with our individual commitments. It's also been a springboard for some of my solo material, as listening ...

We prerecorded Sunday’s episode of In Your Inner Ear tonight; confusingly the show that would have been gone out last week if I hadn’t lost my voice. The theme was Christmas, which as it will be broadcast the day after Boxing Day should still feel relevant by then. While it started much the same as our other programmes, it became increasingly haphazard as things went on, as we introduced various props and presents we’d brought along to assist proceedings. I don’t want to let out any Star Wars-style pre-show spoilers, but the fact that Stephen came armed with a small bottle of port helped to grease the wheels, so to speak. I’m pretty sure it was an amusing show, though that could be the alcohol speaking (albeit a miniature split between three). A lot of Christmas songs were played, inevitably, though there were a few unusual selections in the playlist. Tune in this weekend to hear for yourself (though it’s best to have a glass of port at your side....

Tonight, we pre-recorded a new episode of our radio show In Your Inner Ear, after a ridiculously long hiatus. I knew it had been a while since the last new programme went out, but it wasn’t until I saw the filename of a jingle I’d recorded for it that I realised it was originally meant to air on the 23 rd of August. That’s nearly four months ago, which doesn’t quite live up to our intended weekly remit. In truth, it couldn’t be helped, as the studio has had to move premises, but it’s a shame to have had such a gap, when we were just getting into the swing of things. Despite arriving at the studio for 7:00pm, with Steve joining us at 8:00pm, we didn’t actually start the recording until 9:30pm, due to technical problems, which was a little frustrating for a two-hour show. Once we’d got going, everything worked, which was a relief. I had visions of us pulling an 'all-nighter'. While we certainly weren’t as slick as we were a few month...

Thanks to prerecording Sunday's 'Doggett & Ephgrave: In Your Inner Ear' tonight, I have the Air song Sexy Boy stuck in my head.  There are more appropriate ditties to have swimming around your mind before bed. That’s not to say that it’s a bad song, as it isn't; it’s just a little man-centric. Oh well. I’ll just commit to it as my Earworm of the Moment. The reason I have Sexy Boy on the brain (please read this carefully) is we kicked the programme off with it. The topic of conversation - as I established in yesterday’s blog - was ‘hate’, which bore no relevance to our opening song choice. You might think this subject would make for an aggressive two hours' worth of radio, but I believe we managed to strike the balance between laughter and loathing. We were enjoying ourselves, which will come across. We also tried to approach the topic lightly so it didn’t turn into a rant. We’re lucky to have the creative freedom to do what we want on the...

When I recorded the jingle for this Sunday’s 'In Your Inner Ear' today I nearly burst. I’ve mentioned this self-created predicament here before. Each week, we tackle a different subject on our show, and each week, I record an acapella sting (not Gordon Sumner) to accompany it. The theme for this week’s programme is ‘hate’ (as in “I hate Gordon Sumner”) – and, thanks to me deciding to make my jingles go up in semitone increments, the highest note in the latest one is a top C. Despite fearing I’d rupture something in the process, it took fewer takes than usual; either the notes are getting easier to reach or I’m starting to care less. It’s hard to tell. Whatever the case may be, I can’t see me going higher from here on in. When you’ve spanned an octave, it’s probably time to come back down again; resorting to falsetto would be a coward’s way out.

I’m currently sitting on my sofa with my cat on my lap, about to enjoy a celebratory Mr Kipling Mini Battenberg and a mug of Sainsbury’s own-brand camomile tea, after successfully pre-recording this Sunday’s In Your Inner Ear. Tonight’s topic of conversation was 'cool’: more specifically, the very few times in our lives when we’ve felt trendy, funky, with-it or hip. Judging from our previous content – and that list of words – you might think this would have made for slim pickings. Surprisingly, we had a lot to discuss, though whether our stories made us sound cool or not will be in the eye (or ear) of the beholder. It’s strange to have reached our twelfth show so soon, though it makes sense, as we’ve been doing it for twelve weeks. We’ve settled into a comfortable format. Our co-host Stephen mentioned before the recording how his mum listened to the show for the first time the other day, by streaming a little of episode one. I cringed inwardly as I thought of how much ...

Last night, we prerecorded the next 'Doggett & Ephgrave: In Your Inner Ear', as I have a gig on Sunday. It’s both worrying and impressive to note that, on completing the recording, we’d reached a total of twenty-two hours of us wittering on. That’s a lot of blabbering, in anyone’s books. By a week Sunday, there’ll be a day’s worth of In Your Inner Ears available to download from the SG1 website. I can only imagine the force behind the fist of the person who’d want to punch me in the face after listening to them all in real time. I wouldn’t begrudge them hitting me; in fact, I’d condone it. The topic for last night’s show, as I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, was ‘life’, which was suitably vague. It gave Glyn, Steve and me another chance to vent our collective spleen over the many ludicrous situations we find ourselves in in everyday life. Steve’s stories were particularly entertaining. I never knew that the handlebars came off his bike d...

It’s hard to sing a top Bb discreetly in a tiny room in a shared office building without drawing attention to yourself. I say “sing”, when I in fact mean “screech”. The reason for my repeated attempts to hit a note that's a tone out of my vocal range was I was putting together a jingle for this Sunday’s In Your Inner Ear , which we’re prerecording tonight. It wasn’t a pretty sound, I can tell you. It didn’t help that I was trying to achieve the impossible task of singing both full out and quietly at the same time. It's a good job there wasn’t a mirror in view, or I’d have been subjected to some strange facial expressions in the process. The other people in the building must have heard me. It would have been hard not to. They probably wondered what the hell I was up to. “Why is the socially awkward half of those two blokes who rent that broom cupboard as a workspace shouting the word ‘life’ at the top of his voice?” they'd have thought (or words to that effect)...

Tonight saw the tenth episode of In Your Inner Ear; a small milestone that's suddenly crept up on us.  ‎ Bizarrely, less than an hour before the show started, we weren't entirely sure where to go to broadcast it; the station is about to move home, and we couldn't get hold of the guy in charge to find out if they'd changed location yet. I can't imagine them having a similar problem at Broadcasting House. We ended up driving around the outskirts of Stevenage with forty minutes to go, trying to find a DJ's house to pick up a key for the studio, which it turned out hadn't upped sticks yet; it's the one of the few times in my life I've felt an affinity with Anneka Rice on Treasure Hunt (in public, that is). Despite the confusion leading up to it, the show was enjoyable to do. As with last week, it was very relaxed. We had to plan it independently of each other, as we hadn't had time to meet up to discuss it. This didn't matter. It gave th...

Tonight’s episode of In Your Inner Ear was the most relaxed one to do. Maybe it’s because our chosen topic for the evening – being dull – is very close to our hearts, be it intentionally or unintentionally. Or perhaps, now we’ve reached our ninth programme, we’ve got into the groove of what we doing enough to not be flustered by it. Whatever the reason, it felt good to do. It was less like making a radio show, and more like having an enjoyable conversation, without tipping so far off the scale as to become self-indulgent (though I’ll confirm this when I’ve listened back to it). The only frustrating thing is the quality of the broadcast, which is very variable. This is something the owner of the station is aware of (as I’ve mentioned previously) and is trying to fix. The studio moves to different premises shortly, possibly before next week’s broadcast, which will allow the chance to look at the set-up from scratch, and improve it. Either way, the st...

Singing a one-word five-part harmony of a minor seventh chord has been a weekly event for the past few months.  The reason I've been unleashing my inner-Beach-Boy is to record jingles for our new radio show; one for every topic-of-choice, going up a semitone each week. While the results are amusing, I can’t help but think I’ve created a rod for my own back. The first chord was a Cmin7, with a top C as its highest note, which was easy enough to reach. The chord for Sunday’s show (episode nine) is a G#min7, featuring a top G#, which is a semitone higher than the peak of my official vocal range. If I carry on like this, by September, I’ll be singing notes only dogs can hear; dogs, not Doggetts. Perhaps I’m being over-dramatic. I can use different chord inversions in future to prevent any unnecessary screeching; either that, or come back down the scale. I’m the one making the rules here, damn it. Having said that, I like to challenge myself. I won’t stop until ...

I listened to last night’s In Your Inner Ear when it went out and was pretty pleased with it; particularly considering the show was recorded the day after a late finish at Hitchin Mostly Comedy . We’re definitely getting more comfortable doing it. We’ve settled on a simple format that works for us. I was surprised by how direct our conversation was when were all shattered at the time; I guess that’s what comes from working together forever (or pretty much). The main thing letting the side down at the moment is the quality of the broadcast. A fault in the studio’s set-up is causing electrical interference, which runs underneath everything going out. I suspect it’s either to do with the power source, or one dodgy lead touching another, but it’s frustrating, as the hum masks the detail - and gets very irritating in the process. They’re trying to fix it, but until it’s done, we sound like an AM station coming through a battered radiogram that’s been po...