Archived Posts

08/09/06 Delays, Delays

So I've failed at mastering the album for the fourth evening in a row.  Ken has volunteered to take on the job.  He'll work on it this weekend and see what he can do.  So, the links and everything should continue to go nowhere for a week or so.

On a side note, I pulled out the annoying guitar and replaced it with a bit of piano in the song for Syd.

08/08/06  A Complete Album 

Alright, now we're getting somewhere.  I finished recording How to Sleep this weekend.  I don't feel too comfortable clustering it into the genre of "ambient,"  as there are still the occassional melodies, progressions, and modulations that aren't too commonly found in ambient music.  There is an ambient track or two on this album, but most of it is mild music and/or morphing sounds, in no hurry to get anywhere. 

I seriously reccommend only listening to these tracks sequentially, and as you are falling asleep, staring at a fire, clearing your head, getting a massage, or meditating.  Some examples of times you should not listen to this album include: at work, while driving, getting the party started, when you want to show your friends what Dave Hughes sounds like, to get pumped, when on a mission, expecting amazement, while eating tacos, while thinking about music, while discussing how stupid the delay pedal is, during a game of monopoly, while excersizing, during a drinking contest, while doing complex math, while watching sports, around Dave Hughes, after listening to a real ambient album, and  of course, while arm wrestling.

The cd will be available as soon as I figure out exactly what I'm doing when equalizing and compressing.  I'm getting there.

08/01/06  Another Bassline

Still, the bass is new to me (for the second time) and I'm having a hard time adjusting to bass-first method of writing.  But I busted out with a bassline I really like last weekend.  I had the oppurtunity to "jam" on it with Scott this last weekend.  I think this bassline is going to go somewhere.  In this minute-long version, I'm not quite sure what happened.  I think the treancy crecsendo made me think I was making an entierly different sound than I'm used to - and so I continued in that mind set - it didn't work.  I don't like where it went at all, but I do like th bassline and the intro guitar and I though I'd share it with you: Seven Again

07/18/06  Listening to Streams

I'm going camping for a few days.  Listen to streams - get it?  Cause you know...there's these streams now too:  Scott & Dave   Pope       

Tony and Lino have both completed one track each for their respective ambient albums...or towards a collection of ambient works from our friends.  Ken, Russ, Scott, and Joel have all expressed some degree of intrest as well.  Well?

07/17/06  Russ Came Over

After hearing the ska version of Syd Barrett's Baby Lemonade, Russell Johnson came to my place on Friday evening to record some saxophone. After figuring out the strange melody and adding it in, it was time to fix the rest of the song (there was a couple of things that bugged me).  So here is the final version of our homage to Syd.

The next morning, we waited for Sushi Boom to open, so that we could have the very appropriate sushi breakfast.  With time to kill, we decided we should probably record something. 

We revisisted a 2-year-old idea for a chord progression.  The original attempt was to answer the question of "How do you write a Locrian progression?"  Our progression modulated every three chords, so, there really was no strong hold on any particular mode long enough to say we really answered the question.  Continuiong the ska-making feel, we took this very interesting chord progression and made perhaps the most unpredictable dub song I've ever heard.  Should you hate the lattar half of this, it's not Russ's fault.  Should Russ hate what I did to it, sorry bro. 

Since that now makes 7 songs of this genre, I figure I might as well go all out and finish up an EP.  This is not done yet, but have a look here.  

07/14/06  Will You Please Keep on the Track

Syd Barrett died last Friday at the age of 60.   The man was brilliant.   Have a listen to this rearranged version of one of his more unique chord progressions.  Baby Lemonade is made up of six different chords, though all are major.  And for those who are unfamilar with Syd's work, he was not a ska musician - that's just what happens when I do a cover.  (By the way, a very late RIP to Desmond Dekker as well)

I wish I had some of the tracks recorded from the one-time-only Loading Dock performance of the Syd Barrett Tribute Act back in 2000.  I was joined with Davey Duarte (guitar and vocals), Ken Lyon (bongos), & Joel Reis (bass) as we performed the same set that Syd had from his 1971 performance on the BBC.  I was facing the piano at the time, so I have no idea what the crowd's faces looked like as I sang "I know what you are / you are the gigalo aunt / you're the gigolo aunt!" 

I recently acquired a bass guitar (thanks Kathy!) and feel a bit more complete.  Naturally there is much more to acquire, but then again, when does it ever stop?  

Here's a couple of things I've toyed with that have stemmed from a different direction: bass first.  I haven't done this kind of writing since I first picked up the bass in the eighth grade.  I'm not quite sure where these tunes are going (big suprise) but I am excited about their development.  Both concepts have a certain familiarity about them.  They sound like some things I've already done - which is good.  Enough of these little ideas, and I'll have a handful of songs to begin working on, as if I didn't have plenty to finish already.  You may think that the familiarity is because some of this is reminiscent of Tortoise, Pinback, or Do Make Say Think (who, by the way, just cancelled their tour for this fall due to complications with the new album's release), but I've been trying not to let that kind of thing bug me lately.  Regardless, this probably won't be the last you hear of these little interludes: Eleven Twelve