dscpln

I've gotten a little lax in the last two days, yesterday waking up late and doing a fair amount of working but ultimately playing more than working. It's always a mix, but the key concept I'm concentrating on today is "discernment". Per a suggestion from my conversation with the medical intuitive the other day, I am too open to whatever possibilities come my way, whether they be styles of music to write or people to meet. Be more discerning. I then told her about my concept of "say no to say yes," which seemed exactly like what she was talking about.

So I did have coffee today, but I used it as an incentive to get out of bed before 9 (Michigan time). [This should make Laura nostalgic; I'm sure she's missed the presence of coffee in our recent conversations.]

I'm realizing that I have a decent amount of ideas, but I should spend more time organizing them. I did that a little yesterday, going through my files that I've created up here and storing the fragments of ideas in one folder, the more completed, useable ideas in another. Keeping files organized is helpful for both computers and memories.

I need more songs to cover. I've already got the usual Radiohead, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Smiths, Daft Punk. It's funny, for as much as I liked Jethro Tull when I was in high school, they really weren't saying anything with their songs. Their songs are stories about other people, and they are simply the minstrels telling the story. No, not black face; like old, old minstrels. So while Aqualung is fun to play on the guitar, it's not saying anything I need to say. To be honest, though, the songs I am covering aren't necessarily expressing things I'm feeling now now, but I at least have emotional access to those sentiments through the past.

But the past is gone; this is now now. Whatever is happening now is happening now.


I'm relistening to my remix. I still kind of like it, so I'll make a radio-friendly edit so you can all hear it more easily without sifting through the garbage.

I may give up on the orchestra piece. I can't see it getting accepted to this program taking me to where I want to go. It may be one of those things that I either do later or not at all. I'm honing in on an album - or several - but I think that's where my passions are, probably, too, my "path".

I'm still listening to the remix - it's that long - and although it is not, itself, what I want to spend all my time doing, it certainly helps me to put together the pieces of a sound that I'm looking for. Then, maybe, with the sound in mind, it will be easier to write originals. Which is also, in a way, what I'm doing with the covers. I know a lot about music, but most of it comes from classes and theory; it's nice to learn about it through performance. Especially since I always struggle with the vocal parts of songs - meaning I either omit them or write shitty ones (see "Someone Else").

So a quick teaser of what I'm thinking for the album.
* Embody the Struggle (formerly known as Hypernova Requiem)
* Bike Salute (but completely redone)
* You are part of we (song for sister's baby, Lincoln)
* The electronic thing I did with the guitar solo
* Someone Else (which I apparently took off myspace)
* Some song called now called Suddenly
* A song I started writing about some German girl last year
* A cover. Right now leaning towards Needle in the Hay
* Maybe another cover like How Soon is Now

And probably a couple others. I'm making lots of lists these days.

Oh, an Ableton Live keeps crashing but only when I'm doing certain things. Doing the remix project, it didn't crash at all, but then in some projects it crashes every 5 minutes. Hopefully they get back to me soon.