Blind Date

Rip It Up, Issue 51, 1 October 1981, Page 10

Blind Date

Duncan Campbell

Blind Date have been going since February of this year, and have already established themselves as a very hot live act, combining their dynamic three-piece sound with a fine feeling for melody and a firm commitment that music is there to be enjoyed. They comprise former Street Talkers Mike Caen (25 years old, eight of them as a professional muso) and Andy MacDonald (26 and a good seven years of playing under his belt), and Lyn Buchanan (just 20, and already one of the hottest live drummers you'll see around). After Street Talk called it a day, towards the end of last year, Mike spent a good three months mooching around, deciding what to do next. He takes up the story. "The splitting of Street Talk was a very natural thing. Our music was taking very different forms, as everyone who saw us live realised. It came at a good time for everybody, because I was glad of the opportunity to do my own stuff. "Songwriting for me is the best part of the whole thing. It's the most private, creative part." During those three months, Mike wrote about a dozen new songs, which form the basis of Blind Date's current live set. It also includes four or five numbers from the Street Talk days. "We've actually had a lull since the band started, with the pressure of promotion and keeping things going generally. I've only just started writing again. Once we've got a few more down, we'll be able to drop those old Street Talk songs, or just keep them as an encore." Working as a three-piece has its limitations, but as the Jam point out, they're only there if you acknowledge them. Mike certainly doesn't feel restricted. "We try to keep a smoothness running through. We're more interested in the continuity of beat, which people find easy to dance to. Personally, listening to the radio, I find that's a characteristic of all overseas music." Getting that solid rhythmic 'bottom' to the sound is the hardest thing to achieve, Mike points to that incredible drum beat on the Pretenders' 'Message Of Love' as an example. Blind Date's debut single, 'Don't Let It Get To You/Apache', worked well, but there have been problems recording the follow-up. The band has been working with Paul Crowther, but isn't satisfied with the two tracks so far recorded. They'll probably end up as B-sides. "That first single got us a lot of airplay, but not a lot of sales. It's done what we expected it to do." Having decided that they've got better songs to record, Blind Date will be returning to the studio shortly to have another go. Having convinced Aucklanders, they're now off around the country to persuade others. It's a period of education for Mike as well. "The thing that is a struggle for me personally is changing roles in the band. I'm not a frontman, as a frontman is supposed to be, and I sometimes have trouble coming to terms with that. But otherwise, it's been pretty straightforward."