‘Freeze Frame’ is the new four-track album and first official release in 2026 by Mark Aynsley Hay and songwriting partner Chris Morris (ex Paper Lace guitarist). Both have featured on this site – Chris in May 2025 and Mark in March that year.

‘Chris will be 72 this year and I recently reached the grand old age of 80. In my head I’m still 21, but a few health issues persuaded me I am really 80. I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my back and neck which – excuse the pun – can quite literally be a pain in the neck. Still, c’est la vie as they say in France.’

Explained former Teessider Mark who for the past 14 years  has lived in the French town Pays De La Loire with his wife Alison.

‘We’ll have been together 50 years this June. We first met in 1976 in Aberdeen, Scotland, when I was performing in a cabaret club called Jay Jays. ‘76 was the height of the oil boom in Aberdeen and the nightclubs were thriving. Jay Jays had been the Gaiety Theatre and like many venues then was converted into a nightclub to suit the changing market particularly with the large number of American oil workers in the city.’

‘For album ideas my songwriting partner Chris suggested that we write a romantic ballad built around a theme called ‘Freeze Frame.’ Bringing those two ideas together gave us a broad and flexible creative direction.’

‘My thoughts immediately turned to early relationships and those first, overwhelming impressions—the wow! The one moment when I responded to attraction and sexuality. That realisation inspired the lyric “Love is not what we first see.”

‘The song centres on a couple navigating midlife crises that affect them in different ways. Although their love for each other remains strong, they decide to separate temporarily to give themselves space to breathe. The man longs to reunite, while the woman feels the timing isn’t right.’

‘In essence, he is writing a love letter in song expressing his devotion and vulnerability, yet at times he feels stuck—trapped in a kind of ‘Freeze Frame’, facing it alone.’

‘Things That Make Up Life was born from a conversation between Chris and myself. Chris mentioned he had an idea for a theme designed to embrace a wide range of life’s moments. That idea quickly sparked a flurry of rhymes and melody.’

‘As the lyrics evolved, so did the chord structure, and the song began to take shape. While the initial version showed promise, a change in tempo and a pop rock feel brought it fully to life — delivering the sound and feel we were aiming for.’

‘I delved into the myth of the three rabbits, a quest that led me to a very interesting discovery of facts on Google. I found fascinating facts about old folklore, superstitions, and myths, each with origins rooted in ancient beliefs, observations of nature, and attempts to explain the unexplainable.’

‘I mentioned to Chris that with such lot of material, we have enough to write another new song titled Weird Old Superstitions.’

‘Attentive observation of our everyday habits and dependencies became the inspiration for Addiction Holds the Reins. I’m referring to our daily reliance on laptops, tablets, and mobile phones.’

‘A few weeks ago, Alison and I were socialising with a group of friends. One of the younger people jokingly commented, “Older people are always criticising the young for constantly being on their phones—but look around. There are five older people here scrolling through their screens, completely unaware of what’s happening in this room.” Unfortunately, he was absolutely right—and I was one of the guilty ones.’

‘I became increasingly observant of how often people browse their phones—in hospitals, doctors’ surgeries, waiting rooms and even while walking down the street.’

‘We don’t converse to each other just text or message mainly irrelevant topics that have no real significance to personal or worldwide situations. This isn’t meant as criticism – I’m equally at fault.’

‘Recently the British government have been discussing whether schools should be mobile-phone-free by default, including the possibility of a complete ban for children under sixteen. This policy has already been implemented in Australia and is currently under consideration in Sweden.’

‘I also came across a report from the United States in which primary school teachers noted that many children are starting school unable to read or write their names, yet are already able to swipe on a phone. I’ve incorporated that observation into the song.’

‘While working on this song, I became more aware of my online habits and tried to scale them back, a difficult task when research plays such a big role in songwriting.’

‘As for our hopes for the album, they’re much the same as they’ve always been with our original music. We’d love for it to be picked up by a producer, a publishing company, or perhaps a well known artist who doesn’t write their own material. It’s not really about the financial side although a bit of extra income never hurts.’

‘More than anything it’s about having your work recognised and valued. I often find myself reading your North East Culture site and thinking that’s interesting or I’d never have considered that before – that kind of acknowledgement means a great deal.’

The four tracks are available to stream and download on most major online music platforms.

Alikivi February 2026

‘Addiction Holds the Reins’

‘Weird Old Superstitions’