Of Haze and Hiccups

January. If months of the year felt like days of the week this would unequivocally be Monday.

The "Weekend is over" month, the "Diet starts Monday" month.

The time where you assess where the weekend left you and get your proverbial together. So we did exactly that and decided to pinpoint where we could improve the full house package. "Lights! Haze! Atmosphere!" We thought, good idea. So off we went to buy a new bigger, better lighting rig and a smart new haze machine.

Our first gig of 2017 was a lovely winter wedding up in Durham Castle, a unesco world heritage site and an honestly breathtaking building. The groom had requested haze specifically to add to the vibe of the dance floor in the great hall and we gladly obliged, keen to try out our new toy. As it turns out smoke detectors are set up to be quite sensitive in 11th century castles and after 15 minutes of our first set we were firmly told to stop playing as everyone had to evacuate to the courtyard. The fire brigade had been called. Oh dear.

We sheepishly trudged outside.

Cue a visual scan of the crowd for a white dress and a sharp suit, we needed to know just how badly this had gone down. With the previously happy couple nowhere to be seen our imaginations conjured up worst case scenes of tears and anger, apologies and justifications to the agent. At this point, James pointed to the nearest fire engine and started laughing, there they were! Gleefully posing for photos in the truck as if this was some expertly coordinated surprise. Phew.

The thing is, there are problems at weddings. You throw various teams of workers together who have most likely never met, may never have set foot in the building and don't really have time on the day to liaise with each other. There are bound to be hiccups while everyone pulls together to make your day as special as it can be, it might even *gulp* rain.. Add everyone you care about and several hundred litres of champagne into the mix and well... you get the point.

The most harmonious weddings we see aren't necessarily the ones where the sea is the calmest but ones where the couple roll with the waves a little. After all, it will only be as fun as you make it!

Alex Karban

Bass player for The Tricks

www.thetrickslive.com