Entries in pop (18)

Monday
Dec122011

Scorecard

One of the problems with making short communications (Facebook, Twitter, etc) is forgetting what I’ve actually said.  In looking back over what I’ve said for the past few months, I realize that for all the referencing of the projects I’ve done I haven’t really said much about them.  So, with that in mind, here’s where all the projects stand.

* Shai Azul

Infernal Divine – our second compilation – is 95% tracked.  We thought we were done a few weeks ago, but then we got the clever idea of trying out our new female alto (call her hitch) on one of the songs.  That gets done tonight.  We have a guest guitarist emailing us a few guitar solos as well.  We started mixing last week; that’s an interesting time.  It’s when you take everything you’ve been working on so carefully and diligently over the course of months and throw half of it out.  Not that it was bad, mind you.  Just too much stuff going on.  Album photography was completed earlier this year.  Beginning work on the art/packaging.  Still not sure if we’re going to press any CDs or whether this will all be digital.  Early 2012 looks like the release date.  Work on the 3rd album is already in progress, with about 6-7 song ideas being bandied about.  With our present lineup being pretty stable, I’d sure like to be talking about pressing CD number three this time next year.  Awfully ambitious, that.  But it could happen. 

* Redshift Heretic

Vic and I have combed through about 14 different scratch tracks and have landed on about 7-9 of them to start producing.  I still want to have a few more songs in the 85-120 bpm range, but we have plenty to work with as is.  Once Infernal Divine is mixed, this project is going front burner.  If you don’t hear from me between December and February 2012, I’ll be easy to find.  Just look in the home studio for the guy with headphones on.  People still keep asking us what the difference between Shai Azul and Redshift might be; after all, the music has a lot of crossover (techno/industrial/metal/pop/rock).  In short – the lyrics in Shai Azul have emotional weight and significance.  In Redshift, the lyrics are less about content and more about ‘does this sound cool?’.  It also lets us try out things like spoken word, wildly effected vocals, narration, and other ideas that don’t necessarily fall into the typical realm of sung melody/harmony.  For that matter, some Redshift songs are straight instrumental. 

* Starspawn

Oily’s solo project continues to evolve and write.  So far we have 3 songs solid in addition to intros and outros; we’d like to have 5 actual songs on the first outing.  Oily is working on the overarching story and arrangements.  I, on the other hand, am working my extreme metal chops, which is something I am really enjoying.  I didn’t get a chance to play in any metal bands until I was older, so this is like unwrapping musical Christmas presents every day.  First half of 2012 looks good for this EP. 

(Quick crash course in extreme metal.  Thrash=Metallica prior to the Black Album; fast, riff-heavy, intense.  Death=similar to thrash, good luck understanding the lyrics. Black=see Death, add overtly Satanic imagery, tremolo picking, and simpler production.  Doom=see Thrash, slow it down by 300%.   Starspawn has elements of all these.)

Time to head back into the studio; I just got a new keyboard module that has me rethinking the synth tones for ALL the projects…

-anoN

 

 

Wednesday
Feb162011

Work.

It’s been weeks since I reported on Shai Azul.  Which is lame.  There’s lots going on.  We go into the studio next weekend to lay down vocal tracks.  The instruments are done.  Vic, Oily, and I are already talking about CD number 3 and side projects.  We’ve decided on a new image for the band which, while not wildly different from the present look, fits us way better. 

I’ve just been too exhausted of late to write, blog, or Tweet about it. 

Like most aspiring musicians, I am presently working a day job.

And like most aspiring musicians, there’s a part of me that hates it.

It’s not like working a day job is anything new.  Being a full-time musician, for most of us, is taking a vow of poverty.  Sure, the top-earners are wearing Versace and vacation in Paris. Ain’t reality for most of us. Even a top-drawing local band is only making play money in the grand scheme of things.  And music costs money.  Want a guitar that doesn’t go out of tune?  Pony up $600 at a minimum.  Want a good, reliable amp?  Kick in a grand.  And don’t get me started on studio costs. The second disc is going to set me back about 3-5 large.  And that’s with the friend discount. 

So yes, after almost three years, I have returned to corporate America for a while.  By choice.  I’m in a situation where I don’t “have” to work…but the extra income is the tipping point in my little family.  Even if I were to walk away from the job right now (that won’t happen), it’s generated enough resources to pay for the next recording and upgrade some gear.  I dig my new synth.  It’s going to be all over CD number 3. 

I even really like the place I am working at and the people I am working with.  Learning lots of useful skills and staying out of trouble.  Being a contractor, however, isn’t so much fun.  Ever wonder why companies are reporting record profits and unemployment is still at 9%+?  Part of that, in my less than humble, is that many entities have discovered that they can get the same amount of work out of a contractor for half of what an employee would cost.  My Other (another contractor) encounters this at her workplace as well. Contractors don’t get much in the way of benefits, and sometimes, it almost feels like your nose is getting rubbed in it. It’s also hard to shake the occasional feeling that people in other departments know I have a limited shelf life, and maybe aren’t as civil as they normally would be because of it.

Still.  My immediate co-workers are a hundred different levels of awesome, and they take care of me.  And I reciprocate the best way I know how – work hard, solve problems, and kick ass.

I am reminded, though, of how hard it is to balance full-time work and full-time musical aspirations.  Work demands brainpower, focus, and attention to detail.  Music demands creativity, forward motion, and technical excellence.  And last time I checked, there was still only 24 hours in a day. 

I used to work a full-time job and be in 4 bands.  My Other and my friends also remind me that I was miserable, prickly, and never had time to do anything fun.  And that was also 10 years ago.

You know, I can’t really complain.  All things being equal, things are good. Shai Azul is moving forward, I can pay for it, I get to work at a place I’ve always wanted to work at, and I’ve even figured out how to cycle in (at least to downtown) a few times a week. Even if that does mean a 5:15am alarm.

But if you and I are at a party, and I should nod off on you…nothing personal. Just tired.  That alarm goes off awfully early most days. 

Because, like most aspiring musicians, I am presently working a day job. 

-anoN    

Tuesday
Dec212010

Dark.

It’s always dark now.

That’s not figurative or metaphorical.  That’s literal.

It’s dark when I wake up.  It’s dark when I travel to my temp job at a game company.  My cube is in the middle of the office; I have to stand up and walk to a window if I want to see daylight.  And there hasn’t been much of that recently.  It’s dark when I leave.

As I type this, I’m reminded that it’s winter solstice today.  Shortest day of the year.  Darkest, too.  Beginning around 4:30pm. 

Not trying to be depressing or imply anything here.  It’s just how it is in the Puget Sound in the winter.  It’s the price you pay for long beautiful summer days. 

Many say that the light shines on and reveals the truth.  But I have found that the darkness can be a mirror as well.

For if the light is certainty, the darkness is uncertainty.  And I have found that uncertainty is often minted in greater quantity.

It’s in times of darkness (this time both literal and figurative) that you find out what you really are.  Anyone can be bold and brash in the daylight.  But the sun goes down, it gets harder to see…and be seen.  What are we in these times when nobody’s looking?  Do we hold fast to our sense of honor and integrity?  Or perhaps we cheat a bit.  After all, it’s dark.  Nobody can see us. 

The darkness reminds us of what we fear.  Also not a bad thing.  We should have a healthy caution for what we cannot see, understand, or control.  But does the fear instruct you, or consume you? 

Yes, you can hide many things in the dark.  But you can never hide from yourself for long.  Eventually, the darkness forces you to look at things you’d rather not look at. 

Because there are times when we all feel small.  Alone.  Naked.  Afraid.  The question is not why… that part is inevitable.  The question is… what will you do with it?  What will you do in SPITE of it?  What will you be when all you want to do is cry, run, or vanish quietly into the earth?

This is the gift of the black, I think.  The opportunity to meet your frailties and weaknesses face-to-face… and by doing so, gaining power over them. 

It will be dark soon.  But that’s okay. 

-anoN

Tuesday
Dec072010

Throwing it up against the wall.

I won’t lie.  I was nervous about our session back in October.

Not that we don’t have the right chemistry.  We do.  It’s just that when you get that many artistic people in a room together, things can go off the rails.  Egos can get bruised.  Ideas can fly so fast and furious that nothing really ends up sticking.

That was the concern I had going into the first combined session for the next Shai Azul compilation.  I’ve been working with everyone in ones and twos for some months; this time, I wanted to get everyone together in the same room.

On Mirror Darkly, I introduced the vocal parts to the singers in the morning and we cut the tunes in the afternoon.  With this go-around, I wanted more of their input.  Just because I came up with the melody doesn’t mean that it’s the best idea for the tune.  I’ve always known this.  But knowing it and giving the singers time to wrap their vocal chords around it are two different things.  It was also a first to have pretty much the whole band there… Tanya, Oily, Anthony, Vic, and Chris.  All we were missing was Kelly.  Something about small children needing attention or some such thing. 

I shouldn’t have been concerned.  I couldn’t have asked for a better idea session. 

We kicked off at around 10 am with just myself, Tanya, and Chris.  We set the rhythm for the day with the first song; spending some time listening to the tune, me singing the melody (big thanks to Tara W, my vocal coach, for giving me more training and confidence than I have ever had), and then turning the singer loose for about an hour.  As more people showed up, more conversations and ideas were thrown around.  But rather than just being a chaotic jumble, it seemed like every idea was a touchstone for forward motion. 

In fact, at one point, there were six of us working on one song. Vic, with tremendous artistic humility, said “Guys, I don’t know where to take this.”  You don’t often hear someone say that about their own tune.  So we all dived in.   And the song turned out better than we could have imagined for it. 

Lather, rise, repeat.  9 songs later we had gotten through the whole disc (or as much of it as we were going to get done that day). 

We now have a disc full of vocal ideas.  Sorry, you don’t get to hear any of it yet.  We used the time as a musical sketchpad rather than trying to get melodies set in stone.  So if I played it for you it would sound pretty scattered and random.  We got what we wanted - tons of ideas and direction.  It’s taking longer than I hoped, yah.  But this is all about making the best music we can.  If it takes longer, it takes longer. 

The work is in the vocalists’ court for a season.  And I am glad for the break. 

This disc is gonna kill. 

-anoN 

Sunday
Nov142010

Space

Sorry about the silence.  Been kinda busy recently.  Took on a temp job which should run through the end of May 2011.  Hey, the recording won’t pay for itself.  And it’s actually a good time for this since right now the bulk of the development work is with the singers.  Has been liberating to save all the musical data to hard disk and put it away…in advance of the next project.  And there will be more.

The job is a good one; helping out with event planning, logistics, and management.  It stretches an existing skill set and adds new ones.  I like the people I work with and I still have time (although less) to do Shai Azul stuff. 

Thing is that it’s about 20 miles away, and I hate driving.

I take that back.  I like driving.  Some of my most recent fond memories are of long trips in the trailer down to SoCal.  I hate COMMUTING.  That ever so vexing time of day when everyone is trying to get to the same place as you.  Right now, it takes me about 50 minutes from my front door to theirs. Less than 22 miles. Blech. 

Now, I think I may have a plan.  There’s a bus that gets close enough to the office.  So the present plan is to ride the bike to downtown Seattle (about 6 miles), lock it up at this really neat bike storage place/shop, walk 2 blocks to the bus stop, and let Metro worry about everything else.  It will add about 40 minutes to the commute, but I’ll get exercise and won’t be burning gas.  All good things. 

I was reminded, though, as I rode the route this week, of the general lack of awareness people seem to have regarding the physical space they occupy.

Lest you think I am just calling out vehicle drivers, I have noticed this of pedestrians and cyclists as well.  I have been run over equally by things with 2 wheels, 4 wheels, and boots. 

I am not sure whether this is a Seattle thing, an American thing, or just a people thing.  Maybe we’re just used to having a lot of (literal) space here in the west.  Or maybe it’s just that we’re a busy people; lots going on in our heads.  It takes us out of the here and now, perhaps distracts us. 

Whatever the case may be, it’s oftentimes a little disconcerting to be on my bike and to see a car/pedestrian/what have you and to know, from personal experience, that all of my lights, reflectors, wild gesticulations, slowing down, and vocal prompts of “Passing on the left, please!” will go unheeded.  And one of us is going to have to make a drastic yield.  It’s usually me. 

Hey, I’m not perfect at this either. I am guilty of spatial cluelessness as well.  But being a cyclist has made me far more aware of my surroundings.  It’s also made me aware that BEING aware of one’s surroundings isn’t something that comes naturally to such as us who to live where we do, when we do. 

Let’s make a deal.  I will watch out for you.  You watch out for me.  Cool?

Cool. 

 -anoN