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Monday 30 May 2022

Six Months

Isaac died six months ago today. I'm not sure what this means- the marking of dates and passing of time have a special significance, I'm always aware of them. On the one hand, six months seems like quite a long time when written down, it's half a year, give it another six months and we'll be about to see December in. On the other hand, it all seems very recent, it could in some ways have happened only a few weeks ago. The thought that just over six months ago we could talk to him, hold his hand, go out for a walk and stop off somewhere for a pint and some chips... it all seems very real and yet, he's definitely gone, we've accepted that. On a day to day basis we can operate and function, we can go out and see friends, do 'normal' things, have fun even. When we go to his grave it all seems very huge, the enormity of it all, his death and his absence. The time we've travelled since he died and the coping with it prove that only time can make the difference and that the Nick Cave quote that I've mentioned a couple of times holds much truth for me. On his blog Nick said 'in time, there is a way, not out of grief, but deep within it'. Every day, each day we go forward in time, Isaac is a day further away physically, but in lots of ways he's always there. In the end we just learn to live with the grief. So, six months is both significant and also just another day. It still hurts- it always will. We go on. 

It seems appropriate to pay tribute to yet another musical passing. Last Thursday news came through of the sudden death of Andy Fletcher of Depeche Mode. Depeche Mode's run of singles and albums from the early 80s and into the 90s is the stuff of synthpop and then stadium electro goth legend and I've grown to appreciate them and their music in recent years. On top of that no- one seems to have a bad word to say about Andy, a genuinely nice man, happy to talk to fans, popular with his peers and seemingly the glue that held the group together.

R.I.P. Andy Fletcher. 

A while ago I saw a clip of Depeche Mode performing Never Let Down Again on a TV show and I can't remember what TV programme it was but this one, somewhere in Europe in 1987, will do instead. Huge groove, killer tune, leather jackets, somewhere between industrial, New Beat and synth pop.


And seeing as Rich himself has been sharing this since Thursday I thought I'd help spread it a little further- Rich's own edit of Enjoy The Silence, a recent dance floor oriented update on the 1989 single. 

Enjoy The Silence (Rich Lane A&E Cotton Dub)


6 comments:

Khayem said...

Thinking of you and the family today, Adam, best wishes.

C said...

Thinking of you all too, SA, your heartfelt words are beautifully written.

I think I saw the same clip of DM that you mention a little while back, it was a really great performance and I remember being mesmerised by it especially having not fully appreciated the song at the time of its release.

Swiss Adam said...

Thank you both.
C- I think we may have discussed the DM clip elsewhere it rings a bell now. I definitely didn't fully appreciate the song or the album it came off at the time.

Rickyotter said...

Sending love and strength to you and the family Adam. Perfectly encapsulates how time is never the same when you lose someone special

Tom W said...

All anniversaries are hard, my mum remembers dates from 48 years ago. Hope it's been okay.

JC said...

I'm heading over to Ireland in a couple of days time, accompanied by Aldo. It'll be the first visit back to my brother's memorial stone since 2019, and having missed the 10th anniversary in 2010, this will be a poignant one. I know that I'll also be thinking of Isaac when I get there...

If my experience is anything to go by, it does get a bit easier as time moves on. But the memories never fade.