The Past Recedes

Chapter 15

Nika was fascinated as she watched her father play. His long dark hair flew around his face as he bobbed his head and his lips parted, his eyes slightly shut. His long fingers picked the strings and then flew up and down the fretboard as she watched with curiosity. She then turned to face Josh and watched a his skinny pale arms pounded the drums. His long brown hair peeked out from under his black beanie and his pale skinny arms were graceful as birds' wings as he used the drumsticks to manipulate the sound of the drums.

"Did you like that, Nika?", asked John.

"Yes, very much. I've never seen music performed live before," she replied.

"Wow, live music is awesome. I've seen so many shows, my first concert was New Kids on the Block in fourth grade, Young MC opened. I was your age, actually, I saw them at Long Beach Arena", said Josh.

"Those guys sucked so bad, but you were a kid, so I forgive you", teased Bob as Josh blushed.

"My first concert was Black Flag at some VFW Hall in the Valley", said John.

"Your first concert was a lot cooler than mine. I did see Pearl Jam at the Forum in '93 and you guys on the One Hot Minute tour. But I normally don't go to big concerts, I prefer going to little places", said Josh.

The group played some more as Josh moved over to the keyboards. He played a few chords on the keyboards to warm up and then the actual song as his long pale fingers flew over the keys. Nika had stopped reading by now and just watched them perform, especially her father. He was normally so laid back and easygoing but playing guitar he was a demon, his curly dark hair flying about his shoulders and his mouth open. She wished she could play with such abandon but knew she couldn't, it wasn't in her nature.

"Now we're going to the studio, I want to get the song done", said Bob.

The studio was just down the street but they still had to pack up their equipment in Josh's truck. "My studio isn't big enough, mine can only fit two people", John explained.

"Yeah, and it isn't cool as yours", Josh laughed.

This studio had none of the hominess of John's home studio, but instead had the charm and warmth of a dentist's office. The interior of the studio was a blinding white not softened by the use of harsh fluorescent bulbs, the sterile interior smelling of bleach. "Next time, we'll try to use your studio", said Bob in distaste.

Nika was surprised when Josh joined John in the control booth. "I'm learning to be a producer, I want to produce so we don't have to use outsiders and pay extra", he explained.

"I thought you just push buttons to record", said Nika.

John laughed. "Producing can be as simple or complicated as you want, with my solo records I use a more old-fashioned style on analog", he explained.

Nika watched as the men set up the tape to record while Bob went to smoke a cigarette. "Mr. Forrest, how did you get to know Dad?", she asked.

Bob chuckled as he took another drag. "I'm friends with Anthony going back to the 80's, our bands played together a lot. I remember when your dad auditioned for my band, then Anthony poached him for his band. But there's not hard feelings, my band was a mess. I helped him out, I had problems too and I knew how John would want to get better. We needed to get the perfect place for him, or else he would have been a goner. As you can see, your dad is in great shape", he said.

Nika wondered exactly how bad her father's health had been. He seemed healthy enough now but he always wore long-sleeved shirts and smoked cigarettes, wondering if he had some sort of cancer. "Your dad was really messed up, I've been there. He'll tell you in time, it's not something easy to talk about", said Bob.