5 hour practice

My brain in mush. I'm exhausted but we are growing more and more solid every time. Long way to go but every day is another baby step. If anyone tells you that musicians don't work hard then I want you to personally kick them in the balls. If its a girl then just make fun of her shoes for me.

Great weekend. too tired to write about it.

nasty nasty friday night

rather than go out, i think Ill stay in and write to myself.

Met with Daniel for about 5 minutes because I lost my ipod in our practice room somewhere and I reallllly want to hear some tracks from it right about now. Broken Social Scene will have to do for now. Could be worse. The bassist search is going to be difficult. I might have to scrape a warm body from the streets of Austin and say put your fingers here. now pluck the strings like this. Im not freaking out yet. The show is a month away.

Rather than be eloquent I think Ill let Nada Surf do it for me. Yes the same Nada Surf that had an MTV hit back in my high school days. If you recall Popular than you are familiar with Nada Surf but way the hell off. The album Let Go is just damn amazing and this is from the final track on the album. Steal it if you have to but listen to it. Then go to their show to make up for slightly ripping them off.

Damn I love this song. Funny story. I met the lead singer accidently during SXSW one year. I didn’t even know it was him. When I found out I just sort of said “Hey man Im a fan. Really love Paper Boats.” He said “Thanks man. It was fun to record. The ending part that sounds like a piano is actually a very rare stringed instrument. Its huge.” I said “Cool.” He then said “well nice to meet you” and walked off. It was very anticlimactic. But for some reason it was exactly how I would have wanted it to be.

Paper Boats

sit on a train, reading a book
same damn planet every time i look
try to relax and slow my heartbeat
only works when i’m dead asleep
been thinking and drinking all over the town
must be gearing up for some kind of melt-down

all i am is a body floating down-wind

”what’s wrong?”
”nothing”
”are you sure nothing’s wrong?”
”yeah”
”but you’re sad about something?”
”yeah.”
”so tell me what.”
”i don’t know.
i can’t tell you”

all i am is a body floating down-wind

as the express train passes the local
it moves by just like a paper boat
although it weighs a million pounds
i swear it almost seems to float

and as we pass by each other
our heads all full of bother
we can’t look, we can’t stop
we can’t think, we can’t stop
because we’re stuck in our own paths
and it’s the way it always lasts
and i need something more from you

instead of Starbucks....

Living in North Austin

Sometimes I wonder what I am doing here. My work being 2 minutes away is one thing. So possibly its the proximity. But today I honestly could not remember how I got here.

The collared shirts and khakis of the locals bore me to no end. Everything is too perfect with geometric master planned blocks of various shopping and restaurants laid out as far as I can see. SUVs with the same 30 somethings driving with the same expressions. Even the trees feel strategic.

Conversational prisons. Its always about the same shit. I have nothing in common with almost everyone I meet around here. Too much sanity. Which as we all know is simply some sort of really hidden repression. Please stop talking about your job for 3 seconds, I am going to strangle you.

My days are corporate. My nights are either recovering in a daze watching the discovery channel or escaping through music or beers/ cigarettes. sometimes sex. not near enough sex.

Maybe its why i gravitate towards the weird people. If I meet someone who strikes me as slightly crazy I am instantly inspired. I want to know more. I want to join in the fun. I love the surrealism they bring.

And I think about a woman I cant quite make out, but I feel her radiance. I see bits of her in different people. And its enough for now.

coming along nicely...

got together with the guys. the set is coming along nicely and if we can continue this level of progression then the January 15th showcase is going to be good. We have about 3 songs that are 95-100% complete. We just need about 6-7 more. God when you think about like that.....

been listening to the band Cousteau a lot lately. It's like 1930s detective movie meets loungy brit rock. Ive been enjoying Sirena for a couple years now. No one I show it to likes it for some reason but i have spent many a lazy Sunday bouncing around my apartment singing along with Heavy Weather and Damn These Hungry Times. I am not ashamed.

Thousands Of Santas

So last night was interesting. Apparently, Austin has some thing where tons of folks dress up in Santa costumes and go out. I went to a what I thought would be a quiet bar to meet some friends and it turned out to be full of people in Santa costumes dancing their asses off to very bad techno. I snapped a photo but I am currently without the cable to upload so Ill try to get them up soon. Pretty cool.

My phone died so I never got to meet up with the guys successfully but I met two cute ladies who I ended up hanging out with. Next thing I know I'm loaded, dancing my ass off with one of them in a gay bar and smoking way too many cigarettes. This woman was married and completely insane. She was sticking straws up her nose, drinking heavily and continually telling me the same stories over and over again. Needless to say, she was a riot. I lost her in the evening somehow. I have no clue how she made it home.

PS there are tons of single ladies in gay bars gentlemen. If you are not a homophobe its a veritable cornucopia of available women. Just check for adam's apples first.

First Thursday

Heading to check out 1st Thursday on South Congress. While I'm gone here is a picture of a door with a doorknob in the center. enjoy.

Bad dreams and the Muse is a Cocktease

so I had this dream I was about to go on stage for a very high profile show. I could hear a lot of people waiting for our entrance and I was excited and happy to get out there. Suddenly a woman runs up to me with a piece of paper in her hand and tells me shes sorry to tell me this but kevin was killed. He was hit by a car. What a time to tell me my best friend is dead. Thanks lady.

I got down on the floor and just laid there face down in front of a crowd of backstage people. It was a terrible dream and I need to call him and make sure everythings alright. For some reason I'm thinking it was while jogging so I texted him this AM to be careful. I think some dreams should not be ignored.

In more cheerful news, Craig is coming down from Houston on Saturday. I think we'll try to get some frisbee golf going. I hope the weather holds up. For those that have not experienced a pretty Austin day, I pity you. Its damn nifty.

Ive been thinking about deja vu today. It seems I have it more frequently when I am enjoying my life. For instance, now that I have crawled out of my 2 year creative coma, I feel in touch with the unseen more than usual. I guess that explains my recent creative hurricane; as anyone in the arts will tell you is a mysterious and sometimes surreal feeling. Like you don't really write the songs/paint the pictures/etc. Its more like snagging the muse as she flies by. After a week passes, it feels like I am playing someone else's song.

This sort of helps me keep my ego in check because I never really feel like I am completely responsible for my material. That and the other 3000 shitty songs I have written. Seriously I think the ratio is like 1 good song for every 1000 shitty ones.

The muse is a cocktease and I am always chasing her down.

Is it just me...

or is the show Man Vs Wild the shit? I cant tell you how many times I needed to gut a dead camel and crawl inside the carcass to protect myself from sand storms.

Mr. Wrinkles

On my trip to Barcelona I had the fortunate opportunity to meet the coolest dog in the universe. While walking back from dinner one late afternoon, we came to a corner where some guys were standing around and hanging out enjoying the night air (It’s something Spanish people seem to like to do and I really appreciated that about them).

Well, standing beside these guys was a little dog that seemed very focused on what was going on up the street. He had a stance of poised readiness and stood motionless staring straight ahead. I stopped to pet him and he sort of ducked from my attempt, only to return back to his watchful gaze. The dog seemed to have an almost erudite quality about him. Almost as if he was above acting in typical, slobbering dog fashion. He had a goal...Looking out for someone or something coming up the road.

This little dog completely captured my imagination. What was his deal? Why did I want to stick his cute little head in my mouth? He was almost snobby in a way but I instantly fell in love. I quickly named him Mr. Wrinkles. His real name was “little wrinkles” in Spanish but Mr. Wrinkles seemed more apt for such a debonair little guy.

Every day I would come back to the same street and I ran into him several times. I wanted to take a picture but I was embarrassed to ask the owners, being the big tough looking gentlemen that they were. Every time I saw Mr. Wrinkles, he was doing the same thing. Waiting. He became a running joke of my trip. “I wonder if Mr. Wrinkles read the paper today.” “Maybe he knows a nice restaurant we can go to for dinner”

My final day there I glanced up the road near Marta’s flat and there he was again. Same corner. Same stance. I grabbed my camera and ran up the street. After realizing I might never see him again, I got the nerve to ask for a picture from his owner. The guys were cool about it and made some joke about me giving them money for it. So I snapped this photo of Mr. Wrinkles. I reached down and got a good pet out of him but he still didn't seem too interested.

It turns out he was a she and they were planning on breeding her soon. Several little Mr. Wrinkles’ running around. Or should I say waiting for something important. I hope she's doing okay.

Beautiful Day In Austin

So the open mic went very well. I was offered a showcase spot January 15th. A full band is allowed so this gives me incentive to get the guys together and work on a 45 minute set. We'll see if we can pull it off in time. Regardless I have the spot solo or with a band.

Today is gorgeous here in Austin. Perfect weather.

I've been thinking that I want to go look at the moon through the UT telescope again. If you get a chance to do it, go. Its free and the moon looks incredible that big. The last time I went the speaker in the observatory had to hold the telescope for everyone due to some mechanical failure so I didn't get to check it out like I wanted. I'm going back and that thing better be fixed.

Dali Museum

I should have paid more attention at the Dali museum. Its kinda far away. Maybe Ill make it back sometime. The word absurd reminded me of it.

Truly weird shit. And no way to be pretentious about it and say you understand where he was coming from. If you are near the southern tip of France, head down into Spain and check it out. Do drugs if you get the chance. I think your head would explode.

first post ever

in typical "me" fashion, I finally jump onboard something long after its even remotely cool. This is a blog. Start the party.

I'm hitting up on open mic tomorrow to try to meet musicians and just get back into performing again. Im actually looking forward to it. Music seems to be the shining moments of a weekday full of mental pacing for me. I think Ill play 'even you' and 'something to say'. New songs I probably should not be showing an audience yet but that seems to be how I like to do things.

Still blown away by the stars album set yourself on fire. Still think I should start investing in mutual funds.

so....first blog. yeah.