"Every little piece of your life, well it means something to someone......."
Well, what a weird 48 hours this has been. I'm writing this with the Cuttings disc from the limited edition of the Back Room playing. Just to remind me.
Band members leave groups all the time. I know this, you know this. In general terms you know that bands only have a certain lifespan. That nothing is forever etc etc. Sometimes though, it takes a split or band members leaving to make you aware of the depth and level of fondness you had for that group and the players within it.
Of course, alongside that wonderful realisation comes a lot of questions, which you suspect it may take a long time to find the answers to. Why did Chris leave? How long has he been unhappy etc etc. Sadly, I think that the remaining Editors will find themselves fielding an awful lot of "Chris Questions" from the media, when they embark on the next round of promotional duties for album 4. All we know for certain is that it's a done deal, as painful as that is. Chris is no longer in Editors, and weirdly enough the Unedited box could now be viewed as a snapshot collection of his time in the band. Who knew?
To me, the most important thing "Editors Mk 1" had was that the four souls involved had undeniable chemistry, and I'll be interested to see how the dynamic changes now that 1/4 of those elements isn't there. Sometimes different styles/approaches and the friction that brings can cause sparks that produce great music. Will the new songs be noticably different because Chris, and his input in the songwriting process, has gone? Was he involved in the recording of album 4 at all? If so, will his contributions appear on the finished record? Again, there's just lots and lots of questions and nothing we can do but speculate wildly.
Chris leaving Editors is genuinely really, really sad but I think that it should act as a motivator for you to go backwards, to listen to the songs from Back Room onwards. Remind yourself what he brought to the band, and then say "Wow". Those riffs and hooks...wonderful stuff. I don't want this to sound like a eulogy for Editors, because I really hope they carry on and produce more music. It'll just be...different from here. There's a process of adjustment that everyone has to go through, including the fans.
See you later, Chris ("goodbyes" are way too final). It was an honour to be able to watch you work, to hear you play and I hope we see you involved in music again real soon. You've clearly got a talent there and it would be criminal not to share it. To Tom, Russell and Ed, I hope you continue to soundtrack our lives and I'm looking forward to whatever happens next.
drew :) x
