Filed under: Uncategorized
Today wraps up Infinite Love and Crystals completely. I’m so sick of hearing my own voice!! Gotta take a break from recording for a bit. I’ll continue mixing the songs at random… I ended up writing a new song today. It was divine inspiration, so I swear it’s gonna rock. Also, this instrumental I made? I created the demo for it today and added some drums… holy balls it’s going to be amazing. It’s like… This Will Destroy You meets uber coolness. I dunno, I just want to REST. I’ve already invested so much of myself into these songs and can’t remember the last time I just stared at a ceiling. I swear you miss being able to do it after a while…
Recording technique: make use of proximity effect when you need bass in your vox. Yes… makes perfect sense.
I’ve got three songs I can definitely work on at any time I see fit.
Until then… lataz.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Admittedly, there’s nothing to report today! Going away for the weekend. Thought of some new rhythm/strumming ideas for Infinite Love. Playing around with song ideas for Sar Chasm. Thinking of revisiting old riffs I never used. Will continue with updates again when I return!
Filed under: Uncategorized
Today was a lot more productive than I’d imagined. I was able to get drums down for Crystals and Wait On Me and even got the basic guitar parts completed on Crystals. It’s hard to appreciate Crystals right now only because it’s a song I’ve been playing for over two years now. Only the finished product will really wow me. I feel a weird emptyness today. Something’s missing. Something’s not right. For whatever reason I wish I could just break down and have a good cry. Guess I’m holding in a lot more emotional baggage than I care to admit.
A lot of the music I find comes from movies/shows. Let’s analyze what I’ve been listening to lately and how I found it: The Pillows? Came from the anime show FLCL. Just about all the JPOP I listen to? Anime, in general. The techno I’ve been listening to lately? The Animatrix. What’s super important in the film we’re watching in Cinema and Comp? The music. What’s my favorite piano piece from? The movie Kikujiro. Moving image productions are a goldmine for priceless music! The artistic world is one that can be enhanced with many parts of the same whole.
What do I mean by this?
A movie can be great because of the story (writing), the cinematography (photography/directing), the music (music), the costumes (fashion), the acting (theatre/acting) and so much more. Video games can be great because they blend art, music, writing, design, and so much more as well. Like, every element of the artistic world can stand alone… art can be good as is. Acting can be great on its own. A story can be remarkable as just a story. Etc. etc. But when you take all these parts and put them all together, something magnificent is produced. I think that’s something very interesting to ponderl…
I dunno, I’ve got a slight headache so I can’t focus on my thoughts very well. But I love how the most creative works are pieces that take the whole world of art and combine them into one. So many different pieces of a puzzle coming together to form a masterpiece.
Brilliant!
Filed under: reviews | Tags: angel, enemy, jack johnson, sleep through the static, what you thought you need
The laidback, summer vibes of Jack Johnson came at a perfect time… right in the dead of winter! (Please note the sarcasm) When I picked up this album last week upon its release, I was eager as ever, dying to hear some music I was definitely craving. In Between Dreams was a beautiful escape I’d never witnessed before on a music cd and I was hoping Sleep Through the Static might find a way to trump the masterpiece, especially since Zach Gill’s presence has now been officialized (he’s the amazing singer/pianist that was featured on In Between Dreams and played big parts at his concerts ever since).
When I first popped in the cd, I was skeptical. Things started off really slow… almost in a bad way. But then halfway through the song you realized that it was actually a near-perfect tune that brought you in so wonderfully. So once I accepted Jack’s slowed down nature, I unwinded in my bed and made my ears attentive. What would ensue would no doubt be a pleasurable experience, but one that falls short of greatness.
The first song, All At Once reels you in, and Sleep Through the Static follows which continues things in one nice, fluid segway. The immediate thing about JJ is that he never compromises his style for no one. When you want mellowed out tunes to relax to, Jack will always be available. But I suppose that’s where his downfall is… While listening to this album, I always wanted to go and lie out in my hammock. Sadly, it’s a frozen paradise outside and I can’t do any such thing. So the full amazinginess of this album may never be realized until it can be warm out and the aesthetics of nature can enhance the listening experienced.
That’s not to say Sleep Through the Static isn’t awesome though.
While maybe Sleep Through the Static came out at the wrong time of year (at least for those of us who have to deal with, uhm, cold weather), it still has a lot to offer and is totally worth the $10 it might cost you.
There are two songs that kinda go together, Angel and Enemy that knocked me off my feet. Angel contains some of the most romantic lyrics I’ve ever heard in a song and Enemy is a very, very cool stand-out song. Then another song, What You Thought You Need was another tune I heard and had to listen to again because I thought, “Wait, did I really just hear something that awesome?”
After listening to the album in full, there were a couple of tracks that bored me… and I was kind of upset at this. But when I thought about it, Jack has never made a flawless album in my opinion. There are always a handful of tunes I don’t like- In Between Dreams was the first and only cd of his where the whole package interested me. And on this album, there’s only like, 2 or 3 songs that I could have done without. So after analyzing it, Sleep Through the Static is my second favorite Jack album, but is totally necessary for any Jack Johnson fan. There are some songs on here too good to pass up.
The verdict? 8/10.
It’s not perfect. But it’s still better than anything you’re listening to right now (except Dallas Green’s new album: expect a review very soon). and let’s face it, we all need more laidback grooves in our life.
I came to the realization today that I’m tired of playing guitar. I’m tired of writing songs with a guitar in my hand and I’m bored of coming up with lyrics. I love writing bass lines and drum parts and organizing songs. I also love coming up with harmonies. That’s what I love to do musically.
Songs like Shine by AD and New Bang by Appa are like, two of my most favorite songs ever I’ve been apart of… because I had a hand in writing them, a huge hand really, but I didn’t write the guitars or lyrics. I got to sit back and add my own flair to the song. I like that kind of power. Being able to collaborate. But being able to just enhance… not necessarilly create.
For Shine I wrote the bass and drum parts. I wrote the second verse lyrics and added harmonies. I pretty much organized the song. That was off the hook.
For New Bang I wrote the piano part and the bass part and will be adding harmonies to it and I helped in the arrangement.
I realized this today as I was thinking about writing new music and how I believed in AD and Appa songs so much more than my own. Not necessarily because they’re better… but just because I feel more comfortable with those songs. They’re much more exciting for me. I also realized how empowered I felt holding a bass tonight at lessons. It’s just one of those things in life that feels so right. You can’t always explain it… but you understand it deep inside your soul.
So… am I putting up the guitar?
Possibly. At least… for a while.
So I’m… rather depressed right now.
No, nothing bad has happened. It would seem that something miraculous has happened, actually.
Now you’re lost, aren’t you?
please allow me to explain.
Yesterday Glenn came over and we did some recording: got vox to Twilight Princess down, finished guitars for Shiro and started Yours Truly. It’s the song Yours Truly that really gets me. For so many different reasons it moves me so much inside.
First of all, it’s rather moody and totally epic. It’s basically designed to get under your skin. Then there’s the fact that it’s the last AD song we’ll be recording for the album. It’s the last song we’ve written and includes, easily, my best drum work. It’s going to be best showing of my recording abilities. Yours Truly is all these amazing things and I dunno, it just really makes me think, makes me feel a lot. Without even really trying it’s this 6:46 song that is just incredible, in my opinion. I can’t stop listening to it. Glenn and John are worried about it being so long… I say fuck it. If a song is really long, who really cares? Yours Truly is highly entertaining the whole way through. That’s the thing about really long songs… they’re not bad. They’re only bad when they clearly just aren’t that great… when there’s maybe like, just a bunch of really long solos or just a thousand different parts that keep changing… I dunno. The “epic long song” can be done very well, and this one is. Shieet. I can’t talk right now. I’m just not in the mood to do anything right now, but I wanted to say this.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: apollo's dream, appastar, making music, new bang, shine
Today was Appastar practice. We focused on practicing for the acoustic show we’ve got on March 15th at Mojoe’s Hot House and writing new material. This new song with the working title, “New Bang” has so much promise. After being inspired by Sono Mirai Wa Ima by the Pillows, how can the song go wrong? It actually blends both the Pillows and the Honorary Title quite seamlessly/perfectly. The whole first 3/4 are very Pillows-esque… then the very end breaks into something that sounds straight from the track “Along The Way” by THT. I gushed hardcore when that happened.
But yeah, about writing music. Appastar has finally honed in onto what I believe is the best method of writing songs: JUST JAMMING. You take someone’s idea and run with it. Whether it’s a pre-meditated idea or one that just springs out from nowhere, I think the best way to write something is to jam on it and start going “Hey, this is cool… now let’s do this…” etc. etc. and before you know it, you’ve put together a really cool song that takes everyone’s specialties/creativity and throws it into one. It’s this joining up of creativity that is the best part about making songs this way. Take it from me: having a solo project is awesome and all, but everything, after a while, starts to feel the same, because one person can only write so many songs alone before his own creativity begins to run itself into circles. I did the math… I’ve written over 200 songs in 3 years. Over a hundred of those are easily distinguishable… but I’m definitely starting to hit a time in my life where things run into each other. But yeah, back to my main point: this new song is easily my favorite song of ours… Apollo’s Dream writes in this same fashion… and idiot ambush did too. It’s just the way to go. All three of those bands mentioned are original and have/are gained/gaining a lot of notoriety. It’s also the most fun way to write music. It feels so organic and the sense of accomplishment associated with it all afterwards is unbeatable.
We also started writing a really cool song that starts with bass I was gonna use for Apollo’s Dream, but since John shat all over it and said he didn’t like it, Appastar got it. And I must say… John’s a fool for getting rid of this one. It’s going to turn into a stellar song.
Today I showed Melinda “Shine” by AD… and we dissected it into three different parts: the first part, where the song stays the same feel until the bridge is the “Infatuation” stage of a relationship. Everything is really explosive and happy! Things start off great… you dig it… then things just keep getting better and better. Finally we reach the bridge and you start thinking, “Is this love, maybe?” because things get mellower and actually, things get really mellow and almost romantic. But then everything explodes out again and it’s the part where you’re all “Yes.. this is TOTALLY love! and its the BEST thing EVER!”
So yeah. I gotta do my damn homework.
Peaceizzle.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: amazon.com, angels and airwaves, best buy, cds, circuit city, city and colour, dan kennedy, flogging molly, gift-giving, green day, itunes, jack johnson, LPs, music, record sales, rock on, rolling stone, weezer
Kids,
there’s a huge problem that is right in front of us that no one seems to care about. I first heard about it in Rollingstone: cd sales are plummeting, affecting the music industry in a harsh way. Everything is digital… or everything is downloaded. Very few people go out and buy records anymore. You may say, “why is it a problem if things are digital?” Well… how many albums do you buy online? How many singles do you buy online? Yeah. People are giving up a dollar for one song (or maybe a few more) and ultimately not helping the artists in much of any way (seeing as digital profits don’t exactly affect the real artist so much, if at all). Now I feel the need to write about this after I read the book Rock On by Dan Kennedy. It addressed the state of the matter concerning record sales and the lay offs/cut backs occurring at record labels. So how do we help this once monumental part of our economic system get revitalized? We start buying more cds!
Haven’t you ever listened to an album and gone, “I wish people could feel what I’m feeling now.” Or how about, “That harmony right there is so sick, I wanna show everyone I know this!” Well… start doing so! When you’re thinking about what to get a friend (or just anyone) a gift (For whatever occassion), think about the last great album you heard and consider giving that person a rather cheap, but exciting gift by supplying them with that said album! Really, music is a powerful and fulfilling thing in life… and instead of just giving someone a giftcard, why not give them something that can really show some thought? I gave my girlfriend “The Everglow” by Mae for Christmas. Why did I do this? Among personal reasons, I was aware that she enjoyed the band Mae and The Everglow is, in my mind, one of the most amazing albums ever created… so I wanted to share that excellence with her. For her birthday, my friend and I got our mutual friend the new Angels & Airwaves album, I-Empire. Why? Because we both were amazed by it and felt we should share the glory. I’ve given cds as gifts plenty of times and will continue to do so because I believe whole-heartedly that artist’s really do need our support. If an interest in buying LPS can be restarted, maybe we can all really make a difference in the struggling music community.
Let’s face it, owning an actual cd is awesome. There’s the case, the artwork, the sleeve filled with cool info, the actual cd itself; I love having the authenticity of an album in my hands. A burnt cd just cheapens the whole experience in my book. And you know, most people can’t deny the words I just said. So when you buy an album for someone else… they might hold the cd in their hands, realize how awesome it feels, and maybe go out and buy the next cd they were thinking about instead of burning it/downloading it. This isn’t just about buying cds for other people though. Go out and buy them yourself! I can’t wait to pick up Weezer’s, Coldplay’s, Jack Johnson’s, and City & Colour’s new album within the next couple months. Flogging Molly is coming out with one and apparently Green Day too? Gosh, people, go out and spend some cash on a product that is totally worth it. Music is eternal. A good album can stay with you until you die. And cds usually don’t cost more than $12 if you buy them within the first week of their release.
It’s great if you go to concerts, buy merch, etc. etc. It helps out bands a lot. But the one thing that is failing miserably are record sales and I just don’t see why… I anticipate cd releases like I anticipate the next time I get to see my girlfriend: i just can’t wait.
Seriously. Best Buy and Circuit City- great places to buy cds. And if those don’t work? Amazon.com is baller. If you spend over $30, there’s usually free shipping involved when dealing with cds.
Music is priceless, so stop caring about the money in your wallet and change your life with some new music.
