I've Moved!

Yup, I've decided to move my blog. Blogger is rad and everything, but Living Music has a lovely new home inside the new version of my website. I feel a link coming on...

www.GaryMelvin.com

Click on over and give it a look! The paint is still drying, but she's fully-functional and chock-full of lov-el-y content and things to do. I'd describe all these wonderful features to you here, but it's much more fun to discover everything yourself!

So if you've checked in here to read my posts, and would like to continue to read about what I do, please re-direct your clicking to my website (subscribe-able via RSS & email!), as this will be my final Blogger post.

Thanks for the start, Blogger, but it's time to move on to new ideas and endeavors. See you at GaryMelvin.com!

Recording a New Album -- Part 4: Photography

Well, whaddya know? It's Part 4! This covers my trip to St. Louis to work with photographer, Rob Mizell.

Recording a New Album -- Part 3: First Rehearsal

The process continues! Here's part 3, which covers the first rehearsal with the band in preparation for recording:

Recording a New Album -- Part 2.5

A lot of things have happened in the process of recording my new album since my last update. Since they are all things that mainly involve me and not other people doing stuff, I decided not to sit down in front of a camera again just to shoot me talking. So this update is a non-video one, purely for you readers out there.

The image above is how I organized and kept track of all the song fragments that fell out of me in December. I used the lovely ability of my iPhone to record over 150 voice memos, which I then had to go through in order to work from. The songs all came together very fluidly, but in order to stay in the creative space I wasn't switching gears to record them. Thus paper, pencil, and iPhone all got together and organized where audio snippets of verses, choruses, bridges, etc. were to be found.

After finishing the writing process (which is where I left off with Recording a New Album -- Part 2), the next step was to record rough, acoustic demos of the songs. The idea was not to create a concrete arrangement, but rather to sketch the song, putting the different pieces and sections from my memos together into a starting form. This allowed me to get an idea for what each song sounded like in it's entirety, as well as the whole group of songs as a unit.

It turned out that the arrangements that fell together from my notes worked out pretty well. I only spent about an hour recording each song, but the initial arrangements felt good, and worked as a good place to start. This is also allowed me to share the songs with those whom I needed to, which brings me to what happened next.

I contacted a producer, who I learned about through a friend, Derren Raser. He had recorded his last record with this producer, and I was blown away by how good it sounds. This producer's name is Chris Hobson, and we spoke about the possibility of working together. I told him about me and what I do, and he did the same about himself. We've been working out details and logistics, and while we haven't signed anything just yet, I'm about 99% sure Chris will be producing.

I also nailed down a rhythm section. My good friend Robin Everhart, who played bass on "Spare Time," will be joining me once again, and another good friend, Chad Wright, will be playing drums. I've made charts for all the songs, and the three of us will be getting together next week for our first rehearsal. Together we will start to figure out how to approach each of the songs from a band's perspective. While I have a general idea for how to approach most of the songs, my plan in leaving the songs raw with the demos was to allow this rehearsal period to shape the songs and the record into something that each of us influence. I'm choosing the producer and band members purposefully -- picking guys who's input and creativity I respect and admire. After a few rehearsals, Chris will be joining us for the final rehearsal before we track bass and drums... which gets talked about next!

Another accomplishment was finding a studio to record "basics" (aka bass and drums). A friend introduced me to a great studio here in L.A., and after confirming dates with everyone, two days were booked for the end of February. On those days, the three of us will go in and lay the foundation for the record. I'll be playing guitar and singing, but they won't be "keepers." The focus will be on drums and bass (which require the bigger studio setup to do live, which I wanted to do), and everything else will be done in overdubs at various locations where a large room and setup is not necessary.

As if all that wasn't enough for me to be doing, I also thought ahead to what other content I would need to go along with the release of this new album. After realizing I needed new photographs taken both for album art and promotional use, I contacted a photographer who I've worked with before and admire greatly: Rob Mizell. Rob lives in St. Louis, and thanks to my large collection of frequent flier miles, I will be flying out there in early February for a couple days. We have a basic direction for the album cover, and we'll also be shooting a bunch of other stuff for me to use on the web and for promotional materials. Speaking of the web...

Most of what I've talked about so far has been done with phone calls and scheduling, but this next thing I've been up to is more creationism: I've been working on redesigning my website. Thanks to massive help and wisdom from my good friend, Cameron Mizell, I've been learning how to use WordPress and at this point have a new site design that is about 85% finished. Once I have new pictures, I'll be able to finalize a color scheme and finish entering content. Originally I thought I wouldn't have the new site ready until after the new album was done, but it's been going so smoothly I think I might launch the thing within a month or so. Rad.

So there it is. A lot has happened, and I'm excited about everything that's coming up. It appears as though I did enough thinking ahead to get this new album recorded and released in a pretty efficient time frame, including a new site... not bad. Stay tuned for more updates, some of which will be in video form, complete with other people in them and everything!

This is fun... I'm glad I'm doing it.

Dear 1999

*** The guys over at www.MusicianWages.com came up with the wicked idea for this blog topic, and asked a bunch of people to participate, if they wanted to. So if you're reading this via a link on MusicianWages.com, that's rad, and you already know how much MusicianWages.com and the guys who run it kick ass. ***

So it's the last couple days of 2009, and we're about to leave the land of the single-digit-2000's. New decades are interestingly cool, for some reason. I'm not sure why, but things tend to get divided that way. We know that on January 1st, 1970, the hippies didn't all turn in their flower power for disco balls. Changes happen more gradually than that, but looking at a decade's identity can be informative, if not fun.

So after having lived the last 10 years, what advice would I have for myself back in 1999?

That's a damn good question. I could get reeeaalllyyy deep and say that I wouldn't want to tell myself anything, because then it would alter who I was and thus change who I became which would make 2009 me no longer exist... but that's too geeky. Let's assume the question is of philosophical and perhaps even spiritual nature, and now we'll see what I got.

In 1999, I finished up my 2nd year of community college (taking GE classes and practicing a lot) and transferred to the University of North Texas as a jazz guitar major. That's when I moved out of my parents' house in central California and moved to Denton, Texas. It was a lot to handle all at once in several departments, but I was confident and plowed through. I'm not going to say it wasn't difficult (in fact it was hard work and lots of challenges), but it was a great experience.

Undergrad in Texas led to moving to L.A. and a Masters degree at U.S.C. That led to developing gigs in L.A., to playing in several bands and making a few records, to touring the U.S. extensively. And that led to doing my first solo record, and that led me to now... I'm making a second record under my name.

So if I was going to give advice to myself back in 1999, knowing what the next 10 years would be like, I would tell him this:

----------------------------

Here's the deal... the next ten years are going to have a lot going on in them. Up's, down's, this way, that way and everywhere in between. I'm not going to bother trying to explain anything in detail, except this:

In the next ten years, you will learn A LOT about life, about music, about yourself, etc. By the end of the decade, it will all boil down to these three things:

Integrity
Determination
Perseverance

This isn't the secret of life, or a guarantee for happiness, or anything like that. It's a mantra -- a way to approach life.

Integrity: Know who you are, what you believe, and what you want. Do not sacrifice or ignore your integrity for anyone.

Determination: Motivate yourself to achieve, no matter how big or small the goal. Your life has a purpose -- seek it, and honor it.

Perseverance: Life is full of obstacles, difficulties and challenges. Learn to deal with them while staying as positive as possible. Integrity and determination can easily falter without perseverance.

There ya go. Enjoy the decade, kid.

----------------------------

Now, I was starting down the path to that idea back in 1999, but if I had heard that back then it probably wouldn't have meant that much to me. I didn't arrive at the understanding of what all that meant to me until after having the experiences over the last 10 years, so hearing the advice wouldn't help much... but I guess that's not really the point, is it?

Giving advice to yourself ten years ago asks you to "sum up" the last ten years of your life, kinda like how we assign identities to each decade... so I guess that's what I just did. It's not an end-all-be-all statement or conclusion -- if the exercise teaches us anything, it's that in life we always have the opportunity to change -- physically, mentally and spiritually. In fact, it's nearly impossible to avoid change, even if you really don't want it to happen. So, in 2019 will I still believe my mantra? Or will I have evolved it into something else, or abandoned it completely? It's hard to say... fortunately. I like the experiencing part -- it kinda happens all the time and there's no replacement for it. At least, that's how I feel about it today.

Recording a New Album -- Part 2

I'm documenting the process of making my 2nd album -- this is part 2:

My First Re-finish

So this is a bit guitar-geeky, but I enjoyed doing it, so I'm sharing the experience.

A couple weeks ago my good friend forwarded a Craigslist ad selling an '89 Carruthers S6 (strat), which is something I've been wanting for a while. There were EMG pickups in it, but the guy had the original pickups that came with it, Seymour Duncan SSL-1's. It had a pretty psychedelic paint job, the neck felt a little funny (like its back had been sanded down), and the clear pickguard had been badly damaged, but the price was a steal so I bought it. My thoughts were: buy a new neck from Carruthers, replace the pickguard with a black one, take the paint off and make it a natural finish. After that, I would have a John Carruthers S6 for less than half of what it costs to order one new.

I didn't jump right to that idea -- I did bits and pieces slowly to see what was worth going ahead with. In hindsight I could have done things more efficiently, but I wanted to make sure each step I did worked and felt right after it was done before doing anything else. A little cautious, but smart, I felt.

The first thing I did was to play the guitar a lot to decide if I really wanted to invest in a new neck. I A-B'd it with the neck on my Carruthers tele, and headed in to John's shop after a couple days. They quoted me a new neck (which I got to pick out, btw), a new pickguard, and a pickup replacement (after putting the SSL's in I had discovered one was dead). It felt right so I put down a deposit. A week later I came back to pick up the guitar. While I was there I also probed Carruthers about how one might go about removing the finish. He told me to sand it down with 220 grit... for a long time. Sounds fun.


I successfully forgot to take a picture of the guitar in the condition I bought it in, but here's a picture of the guitar with the new neck and pickguard on (and the old neck next to it):


Next, I played the new neck and got acquainted. It felt great, so I started contemplating the finish. It had a "thing," I guess you could say, but the overly craziness of it was simply too much. I thought about how much work it would take to re-finish it myself, and decided that I was capable enough to do a decent re-finish to a natural finish. Plus, it sounded like it could be a fun project. I went out and bought some materials and sanded a test area on the back of the guitar.


After about an hour of sanding by hand I had barely made a dent, and I decided a new tactic was needed. I borrowed a powered palm sander from a friend and planned on taking the guitar apart so I could go to town with the power sander. Before diving into tearing the neck off, I called up a friend who used to work at Carruthers to ask him for any cautions or pointers on taking the guitar apart. He gave me his advice, which included taking the body itself back to Carruthers to have him run it through his planer. This thing could remove the paint off the flat surfaces in only a couple minutes. He suggested I then ask John what kind of paint stripper to buy to take the rest off. Lastly, he told me what kind of lacquer to get (Bar Top) and how to finish it myself.


Excited about the prospect of saving myself a lot of work, as well as being stoked about the fact that I might pull this off, I took the guitar apart. I left the entire pickguard assembly together since there was no need for it to be taken apart. I also took measurements of pickup and bridge height to make sure I was able to put it back together just as it was. Hopefully it wouldn't lose the brand new setup it had just gotten when I bought the new neck.


I then took the body back to Carruthers shop, exactly one week from the day I picked up the new neck. I got some funny looks from one of the guys (understandable -- I just took apart a guitar they had set up), but after a quick inquiry about using the planer, John took me into the shop and I watched as he worked his magic. He had the front and back completely sanded down just below the paint line in about 2 minutes. Then, he took it over to a large belt sander that he used to remove the large areas of paint on the contours (that bit saved me another hour of work at least). He recommended a paint stripper for me, and I thanked him for the help and headed to the local paint store. I picked up some lacquer, sandpaper (600 grit), steel wool (#0000), and some black spray paint to paint the red, blue and yellow pickup covers and knobs.

When I got home I set up a little MacGyver-inspired rig so that I could strip the remaining paint. I wish I had taken a picture of it, because it was pretty awesome. I took a hanger and ran the hook end through one of the screw holes in the neck joint, and hung it on a mic stand. Yup. Pretty cool. It took a couple of hours to remove the remaining paint, and it was relatively painless (however very chemical-y). I didn't do the best job with the paint stripper, so the wood got a little discolored in places, and scraping the paint made some divots, but I started to like the idea of it not turning out all slick and clean. It was going to have character, and I was okay with that.


After some sanding and wiping, I got the lacquer out to do the first coat. I taped up the neck joint so as not to possibly change the dimensions with layers of lacquer. I also taped up the spring plate and screws on the back, as well as the ground wire soldered to the bottom of the electronics chamber. My rig from stripping the paint translated over to applying the lacquer, and it was pretty easy to do. This picture is what it looked like with a fresh coat of lacquer drying:



For a while the process was to apply a thin coat of lacquer, let it dry for a few hours, then sand lightly with the 600 grit before the next coat. I repeated this process for a couple days before arriving at what looked like a decent satin finish (I went with satin over glossy -- wasn't feeling the shiny factor). Also, while waiting for coats to dry, I painted the pickguard covers and knobs, and after they dried I put them back in the pickguard assembly. I most likely will want to buy a new set of black knobs, however, because while the spray paint worked well on the pickguard covers, it didn't work as well on the knobs.

Before putting the guitar back together, I used the steel wool to buff the finish a bit, and then wiped it down to remove any steel wool dust. The bridge went in first, then the springs, then the pickguard (with the ground re-soldered), the input jack, the neck, and finally the strings. I tuned her up, plugged her in and she played beautifully. Everything felt like it did before I disassembled it (close, at least), so I was relieved.


I'm very happy with how it turned out. It definitely isn't perfect, but I still think it's cool because I did it myself. I'm looking forward to playing it a lot and having it age along with me. I'm also interested to see how it records. In my opinion it's really hard to beat a Carruthers guitar. John just knows what he's doing, and it shows in how well they play. I'm sure she'll be used several times on this new record I'm going to start tracking for soon. In the meantime, she'll be getting used to looking so damn good.

Creativity

I believe I mentioned a while ago that I had started writing for another record... well, I think that was almost a year ago that I started, but I had a brief pause in my life that didn't allow for many new songs. I assembled a lot of ideas as voice memos on my phone, but it wasn't until a couple of weeks or so ago that complete songs started materializing.

I believe I know why it took until a couple weeks ago, but I'm not going to pretend to understand how creativity works. What I can say is that these few weeks have been an incredible experience, and I feel very fortunate to be in it right now.

Around the end of November I looked ahead to December and saw that I had very few commitments or responsibilities to fulfill, and I sorta made a choice to let go of everything for the month and see if any songs come out. I didn't have any expectations or fears about it -- just let go and see what happens. By the 2nd or 3rd day I was in possibly the most relaxed and weightless vibe I have ever been in. Then, little bits of song and lyric ideas start coming out here and there, and songs are coming together, appearing out of nowhere. Believing heavily in "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" I've continued to let go, and the creativity and vibe have kept flowing.

I feel pretty blessed to be able to do this right now. It's truly amazing how much joy creativity brings me, and to be as far in it as I am is quite a treat. I continue to refrain from having expectations, including about how this 2nd record is going to turn out, but I do acknowledge and respect the opportunity that I am enjoying right now. I'm doing my best not to take it for granted.

It's a little sad when I realize that the month is going to be over before too long, and responsibilities will return, but fortunately I also believe in "this too shall pass." Nothing lasts forever, and that's okay. In fact, I wouldn't want it any other way. (I rhymed just then... that may end up in a song) I remind myself that appreciating every moment doesn't have to stop January 1st. Plus, it appears as though I will have enough material for the album, so I'm excited about moving on to the recording portion of the process.

I definitely appreciate what I get to do... I'm a lucky dude.

Recording a New Album -- Part 1

Some Music of Mine on TV

Hello, Internet.

I haven't had much to say for a while, but today I'm happy to type the following message:

A song that I co-wrote and performed will be part of a well-known and long-running television show in a couple of days. On Tuesday, September 15th (2009), on an episode of "The Young and the Restless" entitled "Daniel Proposes to Amber," you'll be able to hear me singing and playing a song called "Taking Over Me" that I wrote along with talented composer and performer, Brett Boyett (he's also responsible for getting the song onto the show... thanks, Brett!). It's a simple acoustic song that was a joy to write, and we're fortunate enough to have it airing on national television.

So if you like the soaps, or if you simply want to hear the song coming through your TV, tune in Tuesday morning to CBS (check your local listings -- it airs at 11:30 am here in L.A.) and sing along :-)

Perspective

It's been about a year since I finished my first (and only) solo record, and I've experienced a lot since then. I've done a lot of things, been a lot of places, met a lot of people, heard a lot of music, seen a lot of movies, and breathed a lot of air. Now I'm starting to think about a second record, which to me means that I've started working on it.

I've got one new song that I wrote recently, and several little ideas for others, so I'm definitely at the beginning stages as far as writing is concerned. However, I'm finding myself contemplating a thought that I've experienced many times before, so in some ways I feel like it's not really a beginning stage, but rather a continuation of where I've been into where I am that happens... well, daily.

Instead of calling this thing a thought, it's probably more accurate to call it a perspective, and that perspective is this: when creating or writing music (or any art for that matter), you are a part of a very unique viewpoint in that you will never experience what you are creating from a first-time listener's standpoint. This, simply, is because you are the one who created it, and you experienced every step of the process, no matter how long or short, simple or complicated, exciting or dull. No listener can have that perspective, just as you can not have theirs.

This may seem rather obvious, and maybe even matter-of-fact, but here's what intrigues me about it: what does Paul McCartney think of "Blackbird?" What does Led Zeppelin think of "Stairway to Heaven?" What does Jimi Hendrix think of "Purple Haze?" What does Pink Floyd think of "Dark Side of the Moon?" Mozart? Elvis? James Brown? Louis Armstrong? Kurt Cobain? Miles Davis? John Mayer?

When you create something that influences, moves, and affects so many people (like everyone in the previous paragraph, and many others, have done), do you view it or experience it on anywhere near the level that others do, or is it just "a little song I wrote?" And did any of these influential artists have any clue while they were writing that their creation would have that kind of impact?

I've read a little and watched a little about this subject, and in fact David Gilmore of Pink Floyd addresses it directly in the Classic Albums DVD on "Dark Side of the Moon." In the film, there is of course discussion about how popular and influential the album became (hence being part of the Classic Albums series), and when talking about it, Gilmore admits that he didn't get to experience it fresh, for the first time, in one complete listen-through. He was involved in creating it, so he doesn't know what it's like to hear it for the first time, and it makes me wonder... can he understand fully how much it affects other people?

It's strange to think about and analyze the writing process, wondering if there is any common thread amongst all those who have created largely popular and influential works. I prefer to keep the writing process as natural and organic as possible, but it's one of those things that pops up regularly: "Is this song I'm writing going to move people like 'Blackbird' did/does?" And for that matter: "Is it important that this song moves people like 'Blackbird' did/does?" "Does anyone ever intend while writing to move people to the degree that the final creation does?" I think the answers to those questions are: it will do what it needs to do, not necessarily, and probably not (respectively).

I find quite a bit of solace in the idea that most influential music (or other art) does not start with that as its desired goal. You write because you're compelled to, not because you know you're going to affect the entire world. You might hope that people are into what you're doing, but there's never any way of knowing what will or will not move people, and trying to predict that is a game you can't win. I like the thought of Paul McCartney saying "Yeah, 'Blackbird' was fun to write. I'm glad lots of people like it, but I would've written it even if they didn't."

It can be challenging to write without thinking about whether what you're writing is good or not, but I guess the conclusion here is: #1 write what you feel and are happy with, not what you think others will be happy with -- it's the only way to call the music yours; and #2 stop thinking about what others think and get back to writing.

So I'm going to try and keep that perspective while I embark on writing a second album. I'm going to write whatever comes out, and see if I can't say some things creatively with songs. Maybe some people will like it... maybe not... but that's not the point.

I've Been Blogged

Yeah, I do blogs, but I recently got blogged myself (is blogged a verb?).

MicControlBlog.com is a cool music blog dedicated to "unheard and unsigned" artists and bands. There has been a strong movement on the web towards this specialization, and Mic Control is one of the better examples. It's nice to see real people with a real passion for real music, and the wonderfully world wide web makes it possible for these people to share their thoughts and connect with others who share that passion.

I am happy to say that I am now a part of this hip blog with a recent post called: "Gary Melvin: An Artist Who Deserves Your Spare Time." Click on over to miccontrolblog.com to check out the post, and be sure to check back often to hear/read about more new music/bands/artists.

Mute Math

I recently was out on the road playing with Frankie Valli and a new band member introduced me to some new music. The band is called "Mute Math" and the video clip he showed me (from a live DVD filmed at the El Rey in Los Angeles) was more than enough to spark my interest. Upon returning home I headed out to Amoeba to pick up the album (among others on my list), and after a few listens I must say I am definitely a fan.

The band is a foursome (vocals/keys, guitar, bass & drums) from New Orleans with an energetic sound and a reputation for even more energetic live performances (Alternative Press Magazine named Mute Math as the "#1 Band You Need to See Live Before You Die"). It's easy to hear several influences in their music, from The Police/Sting to The Sea and Cake to Bjork to The New Deal... but the resulting combination is truly beautiful and quite addictive. The songs are hooky, the beats are mesmerizing, and the musicianship is stellar. Several of the songs on the album (which was released in 2006 and gained so much momentum it was re-released in 2008 with a bonus live EP) are separated by ethereal interludes that lean towards drum and bass or electronica. This is not your typical band, and it's definitely the kind of music the world at large needs right now: real, honest, organic and incredible.

Word on the street (and by street, I mean their website) is that they are currently working on a new album that is scheduled to be released sometime during the summer of this year, which will be followed by a tour in the fall. I for one am adding Mute Math to my list of shows I gotta see.

Thumbs up, boys. Thanks for helping save the world with some great music.

It's been a while...

... since my last blog, and when I think about why that is, here's what I come up with:

There are times when it is good to share your ideas, beliefs, opinions etc. with others; times when sharing those things feels like it could be beneficial to some -- not just sharing for the sake of expressing yourself in order to extract high opinions from others, but sharing in order to help someone other than yourself.

Then there are times when it doesn't feel right. Maybe this happens because you don't feel people would benefit from hearing what you have to say, or maybe it's because you aren't confident it what you have to say and need time to marinate on your thoughts in order to present them properly. Or maybe it happens because you simply don't have anything to say and want/need to be silent.

I'm not sure why I've been silent on this blog for a while, but since I'm writing this today, it seems as though the silence is over... at least for now.

And with that I'll transition into a thought that is very exciting to me:

Last night I got together with a friend of mine I hadn't seen in a while, and she took me to a bookstore called the Bodhi Tree here in Los Angeles. In addition to being a store of spiritual and metaphysical books, they also hold lectures and talks (most of them free) on a variety of topics. Last night was my first time there, and we walked in on a talk already in progress. The man was speaking about oneness, and the pervasiveness of love, and the importance of Now, and the limitation of definition and division, and lots of other things that came to him. The wonderful thing about the evening was not just the things he spoke about, but also the fact that the room was filled with people. Mind you, it wasn't that large of a room, but there were probably 50-60 people there, many of them with smiles on their faces, or their eyes closed in deep attention, or with their palms together and against their chin, mouth, nose and forehead.

The ideas and concepts that this man spoke of are not new. They have been around for centuries, and I am sure that he would be the first to tell you that. So it is not fantastical newness that is so special, but rather the fact that places like the Bodhi Tree exist, and people, in large numbers, are open and ready to receive these ideas.

More and more people all over the world are coming to these ideas and concepts in what appears to be a massive shift (and many believe a heightening) of consciousness. I am seeing examples of this everywhere -- my experience last night is one example, and another big example is the phenonmenon that we all experienced this last Tuesday morning.

The inauguration of Barack Obama was unprecidented on so many levels that you can't help but recognize a change in our human perspective. The sheer number of people involved in the ceremony, both in Washington itself and around the world in front of televisions, is impressive by itself, but when you include the overwhelming sense of joy and love that these people projected, you discover just how truly special this event is (I mean to say "is" and not "was" for the moment will live through history and remain important always). President Obama was calm, patient, unafraid, humble and determined to make a difference when he took the podium, and when an incoming U.S. president speaks of love in his inaugural speech... well, you know things are changing.

I'm not sure how many other people agree with me and feel that we are living in exciting times right now, and I don't know how many people are on board with the concepts of oneness and the Power of Now, but I suppose I don't have to know these things in order to stay excited and in the Now. Everyone receives the ideas/concepts/beliefs that they need in the time and fashion that they need, and trying to force it any other way strips the meaning from the experience.

That is the beauty of what is happening right now in our world: this massive, sweeping shift in consciousness has been slowly building up steam for years and years now, and it's been happening without a central figure beating a drum and waving a flag pronouncing the supremeness of the cause from the top of a self-righteous mountain. There is no team to join, no side to choose, no jersey to wear expressing how right your organization is, because there is no organization. We're very used to dividing up into groups and arguing for centuries how we're right and you're wrong, so this new movement is quite unfamiliar and unique to us. Maybe that's why it's so powerful, and maybe that's why it's working...

thezeitgeistmovement.com

I believe it is highly important that everyone watches these two films. Awareness is our greatest tool for change. Watch and listen with an open mind.

Zeitgeist:



Zeitgeist: Addendum

Leaf Blowers Suck... I Mean Blow

I live in an apartment. My apartment building is small. My apartment building is also close to other residential buildings. The owners of these buildings employ gardeners to maintain the landscaping. These gardeners use leaf blowers. Leaf blowers are loud.

Normally I might just whine a bit and then try to go back to sleep after being woken up by one of these monstrously loud contraptions, but this morning after it happened again I remembered that I have a blog and now I can share my idea to start a petition to ban leaf blowers worldwide.

What the hell is the point of a leaf blower? It's supposed to move leaves, dirt and other debris out of certain areas and into others, but it really sucks (or blows, if you wanna throw in a pun) at doing so. How do I know?

1) Because the gardener spends about 20 minutes using the thing to clear less than 2,000 square feet of courtyard and walkway, and makes several passes in order to attempt to do so.
2) Because several times I have walked around the "grounds" of my small apartment building after the weekly assault on our eardrums and noticed *gasp* leaves, dirt and debris still intact in several places.

Here's how a leaf blower works: a very loud gas-powered motor strapped to your back propels a variable-speed fan (the faster the speed, the faster the motor, the louder it gets) through a plastic tube not unlike a vacuum cleaner that spits fast-moving air at stuff on the ground and sends it flying. The idea is that it's supposed to move it along the ground and out of the way, but what really happens is a large amount of it ends up in the air (which happens to really suck for allergy sufferers) and then back onto the ground about 20 seconds later. So you either double back and hit it again, or forget about it and chalk it up as collateral damage.

So if the damn thing don't work no good, why the hell are they being used?

Because people are lazy.

Ever heard of or seen one of these things? -------------------------------->







<--------- Or perhaps one of these?







Since when is it sooooo hard to use a damn broom? Seriously, let's get some scientists and physicists together, because I swear that a damn broom is a lot more efficient and effective than a leaf blower. Not only does it clean better, kick up less dirt and debris into the air, and work faster and more controlled, it doesn't run on gas and it's quiet!

You'd think that gardening companies would want to cut down on costs and not have to buy gas, but I guess they ran the numbers and figured that doing fast, sloppy work with the leaf blower makes it possible to take care of more clients in one day... or some crap like that... Nope, I'm sticking with complete laziness. Oh, and stupidity.

I don't even have to get into the whole "green" issue and environmental concerns -- I guess it's warranted in order to allow a lazy dude to stand there and point a hose while his job of cleaning up the ground is done poorly by a wasteful and obnoxious travesty of an invention.

So if you feel like signing my petition to ban leaf blowers, let me know. I think Obama will put it high on the priority list along with the economy and Iraq and stuff.

Next time I'll rant about the other gardener gem: watering the concrete ground.

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

This album has been out for a while, and I bought it a long time ago too, but it wasn't until recently that I started listening to it... and now I'm really into it.

I came across the Yahoo! Nissan Live Sets footage of the Foo Fighters, and after watching all the videos decided I needed to pull out, unwrap and actually listen to their newest album, which also happened to win the Grammy for Best Rock Album in '08 and Best Rock Performance for "The Pretender."

I've always dug the Foo, but I was a fan of songs more than albums. What I mean is I liked a handful of their songs, but wasn't on board with full album composition most of the time. You could say I'd be happier with a "best of" compilation than owning all their records. This changed with "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace."

The Grammy was well deserved. These guys are really tight -- evident both on the album and live in concert. I almost want to say they're approaching progressive rock, but they stay much closer to mainstream, which makes for just enough brainy or technical flare to set them apart from most other rock bands. There is a very solid level of musicianship and interactivity, and each player's parts compliment both the song and the hipness of the band. Songs like the single, "The Pretender," as well as my other rockin' favs, "Let It Die," "Long Road to Ruin" and "Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running)," show their ability to shove you around with heavy guitars and screaming vocals. But they also show another side of the band, stepping away from their typical hard rock mainstay and into the realm of singer/songwriters with "Stranger Things Have Happened," "Statues," and especially "Home."

I think I might be a little late to the party about the Foo Fighters doing some lighter stuff, seeing as how they mention an acoustic tour they did during the Yahoo! performance, but I'm glad to see there is more than one side to these guys. They have certainly proved their muster on the hard rock front, and after watching/listening to acoustic versions of "Everlong," "My Hero," and their new album, it's obvious that they don't have to turn the gain up to 11 to make a song work.

Kudos to the Foo Fighters -- I am now a full-fledged fan.

What a Weekend

This is where I spent my weekend:



I can't get over how incredible it was. It started as a trip down to the Lake Forest area to see my good friend Robin's band (The Pleasant Return) play, which was followed by some friends going with me to Laguna Beach for a night, which turned into none of us wanting to leave... ever. It's amazing what can happen when really good vibes are bouncing back and forth between people -- nonstop happiness and joy ensued, and it's nothing any of us planned on or expected to happen.

These kinds of experiences keep me reminded of how amazing life can be and what living in the Now is all about. It's hard to express the kind of bliss that occurs, but that just means it was genuine, profound and very special. It's one of those times when you wish it would never end, but I'm happy to have the memories and friendships that will continue to inspire and bring about new experiences.

Good friends, good times, good God.

Wow, I didn't realize Kanye West was so humble

Yahoo! posted a short little story this morning about an interview with Kanye West. Check it out and then come on back:

http://music.yahoo.com/read/news/15348921

I was laughing my face off when I read it. Kanye has said and done some silly things before (his infamous outburst on live t.v. during hurricane Katrina; getting booed at Bonnaroo for going on 2 hours late at 4:30 am; adamantly complaining about not winning a Grammy in '06 and '07), but this has to take the cake.

The "voice of this generation???????" Really??? Now to me the really funny thing about this has nothing to do with whether or not the statement is remotely accurate. I'm sure there are lots of people on either side of that discussion, and I don't find it necessary to state my opinion about him as a producer/musician/performer (although if you ask me I'd be happy to tell you straight up).

The point here is that he proclaimed himself as such the "voice of this generation." *Ahem* One order of humble pie for Mr. West, please! This goes against a very basic understanding of manners that applies in even the most basic of social situations. You simply don't talk about yourself like that, unless you want to be viewed as egocentric or self-absorbed. And what's more, in the world of music, every single artist or band who has ever been widely influencial and/or had a massive affect on the society or culture at large (i.e. Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, James Brown, Michael Jackson, etc.) was dubbed as such by other people, not themselves. Sure, some of these influencial people were prone to be very self-confident and carried a bit of an ego, but they never assumed such a state as to proclaim their incredible importance to an entire generation while still in the middle of their career. I mean c'mon, the guy has only been around since 2001. Isn't there a statute of limitations on when you can become the "voice of this generation?"

Yeah, I know, hip-hop and rap artists have the reputation of being very forward and even obligatory with their egos and their confidence in themselves, but this is going a little too far. A word to the wise, Kanye: a really good way to ostracize both your fans and everyone else is to become really full of yourself. Someone who might have been considered musical and artistic can lose their positive luster when pompous attitudes and self-righteous behavior taint their persona.

Who knows... maybe he wants everyone to think he's a dick.

Rest in Peace, Mitch Mitchell

Today we lost the last living member of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. We lost Jimi in 1970, bassist Noel Redding in 2003, and now drummer Mother Goose, a.k.a. Mitch Mitchell.

I have to say, as a guitarist who is massively inspired by Hendrix, almost as influential as Jimi himself are the incredible musicians who played with him, and Mitch is definitely no exception to that. While many would argue that Jimi's years with the Band of Gypsys produced the more artistic and progressive music of his life, it is without doubt that the Experience was involved in the majority of Jimi's "hits," and therefore created the stardom for Jimi that allowed him to progress into the Band of Gypsys.

Mitchell played on so many of Jimi's massive songs: Foxey Lady, Manic Depression, Fire, Red House, Voodoo Chile, Crosstown Traffic, All Along the Watchtower... the list goes on. He played with Jimi for that historic performance at Woodstock, and he played on my favorite Hendrix record, "Axis: Bold as Love."

His bombastic style and rock-solid groove was the perfect match for Jimi's revolutionary sound. I simply can't imagine Hendrix without having Mitch Mitchell in the same thought. It's sad to see him go, but that doesn't stop the music from continuing to inspire.

Cheers, Mitch... you'll be missed.