So much to say
Well, as I may, or may not have mentioned, I am working on a new recording project. It's piano and drums. Tori Amos rocks, kind of thing.
We laid down 11 tracks over two weekends and now our engineering genious, Reid, will pull the mix together. It sounds great and we had the good fortune of top-line equipment in a killer studio on Music Row. I'm guessing we'll have a show sometime toward the end of December.
The picture on the right is from our photo and video shoot last weekend. A friend described it as Hullabaloo style, which I'm not too familiar with, but essentially I think it means simple and very stripped down. I guess it fits since we are a two person rock-n-roll show.
I will unveil much more as the days go by, but right now it's all sort of...I'm not sure... but too early to define.
My buddy Mike was in town over Thanksgiving weekend and he is sold! He's moving here in January to pursue his dream of being a songwriter. He has always written country songs and I really believe that if he can dial it in with the right writers, something will happen.
I should say that he's not banking on being a songwriter. He just likes the idea of being in the environment. He's a great photographer too (he actually took the shot above), but just wants to get out of his God-forsaken-Florida-lifestyle. He will like it here. It's an awesome place.
My new condo should be ready in a couple of weeks. I am pretty stoked about that, but not the payment. It may force me to change my lifestyle.
I was talking about that to one of my co-workers today. I said I'm gonna have to suck it up and watch my money. She's like, "Yeah, and get on a budget like the rest of us." I said, man, I'm not hip on budgets.
What will I cut out? Hmm... I'll probably have to start cooking at home a little and maybe bringing a lunch. That shit adds up... I drop 10 bucks at will for lunch. Need to cut that in half. Probably put down beer for a while too. That doesn't really bother me, though. I've been on the cusp of giving it up anyway. I have too many things to do and far too much to say. It kinda strangles my goals.
Other than that, I don't spend a lot of money. I'm pretty simple except for an occasional splurge on drum equipment or clothes.
Damn, this is a fucking boring blog. I think I'm getting boring... ok... that's gotta change... Hang with me my two or three readers.
Coming next.... I have a little mouse in my apartment and Michael Jackson's "Ben" is on my turntable.
A creative stance
It all started on Wednesday night when I went to see a friend's band. They're called IDE and they sounded awesome at Mercy Lounge. I'm not sure how to describe they're music, probably something simple like, new rock, but it has nice texture and they have good feeling in what they do. My friend Mark is the drummer and he wears cool black wristbands. I'm predicting that he will bring the trend to mainstream within a year.
Blake, the photographer, blogger, activist, world traveller, was also there. He is IDE's go-to-guy and was taking
Ok, I'm back
It's time for me to write again. I have been reading a lot of blogs and depresses me that I am not involved.
So many things happen to me on a daily basis that are "blog-worthy" and I typically let them fade away. Don't worry, though, they are still in my brain somewhere and you will soon get the goods.
What has happened to me lately. I have become a work-a-holic. Doing my part to save a struggling company. I have been recording music. I have been entertaining wild friends. I have been preparing to move into my condo. I have been in a daze. I have been writing music (much of which has, for some odd reason, been country music lyrics). I have been sleeping better. I have been struggling with relationships. I have been thinking about taking days off. I have been myself more often. I have been hating pro football as usual. I have been very content in Nashville.
Yes, there is a lot going on at work. I am charged with marketing several different products and saddled with doing it by myself. My work is in public eye for hundreds of thousands to see. It is never good enough. It is never bad enough. It is very disposable. It just is. I am coming to terms with that.
I have recorded two cds this year. Both for different bands. One is with my old band from Rockford, IL (home of Cheap Trick and thousands of disgruntled blue collar employees). There is a good music scene there, but most of the bands are content fighting to be the big fish in a small pond. That's probably the case in many places and in many arts. Art is a tricky game and artists are very sensitive. That's why in some ways I found it a lot more enjoyable to "talk about having a band," rather than having one. Now it's real and if I "fail" that will be real, too.
None-the-less, I am going to go for it. It is my dream, my passion, my being. I have to see what happens when I put my face right in the thickest of shit. Dive in and see if I resurface. What's the worst that can happen? Nothing... Only if I could always remember that. Life is perfect in that way. There are always doubts and struggles that we face, but that makes the successes that much more enjoyable. Brilliant, this life is.
I want to continue these thoughts later tonight. I'm going to see a friend's band at Mercy Lounge.
