Before we became friends I actually did work experience at the recording studio/rehearsal rooms where Owen worked. I know I was just work experience but it's safe to say he went a little power mad. Although overly strict throughout the week work experience, there was one instance that sticks in mind: we had to set up one of the rehearsal rooms for a full band (drum kit, couple of guitar amps, P.A. etc.), and once we set up the room Owen told us that the drum kit wasn't right - he made us completely take it down and move it one foot over.
After work experience we then worked together on two EP's from our good friend Lewis Shacklady. Our studio schedule was a little different to most - Lewis and I were college students so couldn't afford to pay studio fees for regular sessions so instead we used a local studio overnight. We arranged to meet at the studio at 11pm, but Owen's timekeeping is appallingly bad so Lewis and I would end up sitting in my car for an hour or so while we waited for him. Once we were all in, we'd be at the studio until about 6am. Although we got a lot done and are immensely proud of the 2 EP's we made, working those hours would at times drive us insane - Owen once started eating an orange and remembered a supposedly funny orange-related story but was so tired that he just got in hysteric fits of laugher any time that he attempted to start telling us the story. If anyone has seen Owen in his "full" laugh, you'll know it's a sight to behold, he cries and wheezes, but the best thing is that his laugh becomes tenfold funnier than whatever it was to begin with.
For the first EP Owen played drums, engineered the sessions, and did the main bulk of the mixing and editing - Lewis and I were just finishing our Music Tech A-Levels and Owen had way more experience than us. By the time we started the second EP, Lewis and I had both started Music Tech degrees. For this one Owen would unlock the studio (as before), didn't play drums on it, and we pretty evenly shared the editing, mixing, producing roles - we all had our stronger areas and although Owen's ears were still far more receptive than ours, he was painfully slower than us on the computer (despite us trying to teach him keyboard shortcuts). We always joke that if we were to ever make a 3rd EP, Lewis and I would have far overtaken Owen and his only remaining jobs would be to unlock the door and make us tea.
Over the years that we've been friends we've had such a vast array of conversations, on a plethora of topics, some of which we're both fascinated by, some of which only one of us is knowledgable in but the other is keen to learn, and some of which to anyone apart from us would be so dull that they would switch off mid conversation. I know for a fact both Owen and I strive to become polymaths and conversation with Owen is definitely helping me move in that direction.
NOTE: When filming I had Owen's dog Luna jumping around on my lap - as if I wasn't struggling enough to keep the camera stable while we were driving.
Filmed in London, UK.
Known for 9 years and 2 month at the time of filming.