Since I moved to Los Angeles over a decade ago, returning to Toronto is always a form of transmogrification, like a slow moulting of all the pretense and defense mechanisms and enterprising mindfulness that I adopt when out West.

It is just as painful, I would imagine, as a lobster shucking off its hard shell, and just as vulnerable in the aftermath. But that is precisely why I come back.

It isn’t anything about Toronto in particular, other than that it is where I am from and the friends I grew up with, literally, learned about the world and its sordid alleys, alongside, they are here to remind me of distant sentiments and exposures.

I saw Peter Devlin, the original guitarist for Blue Dog Pict -the kid who used to play Hendrix solos behind his head etc. Now it’s 17 years later and we are doing the same thing – drinking, being stupid, playing guitar. Damn, I didn’t think it could feel so good to just trade stories about this or that amazing or whack musician or musical experience we have encountered along the way. What a long way it has been.

Anyway, after a couple of days of catching up, Josh Joudrie, sound man for BDP and my co-producer on Spindly Light Und Wax Rocketines (Constant Change Music 1996) comes over and joins us, and we set up the laptop, the audio interface, the extra LCD monitor, the keyboard amp etc, out on the porch and spend the day tracking Pete’s guitar tracks out in the beautiful summer breeze under the sun, and in the shade of pine trees.

It isn’t so much about your plan, as it is knowing the precise moment when to hit record. That is all that matters. Getting to the moment and then capturing it. Pete headed back off to Owen sound to play a concert and I remain here, listening back to all these new moments, these new guitar moments, like polaroids, and wondering what the hell to do with them.

Wicked.