A Day in a Drive

The map above is a reference guide. The beginning of of the red line is approximately where the pictures begin. The last picture is taken facing the Astral Drive sign, where the red line stops. Handy.

A while back I did a little blog about my drive home from work, which I am really rather fond of, so yesterday while participating in my drive home it occurred to me that I might one day like to look back on parts of it again, so I drove a bit slower than usual on one small section and took 7 pictures. They are placed in order as they appear on my drive.


I feel some people take blogging as some defined activity, that must in some way fulfil a duty of entertainment value to any humble bumbly that might happen upon it, I simply don't agree. I think that blogs are so numerous, that perhaps one should possibly ignore the urge to blog about the new Nine Inch Nails record and instead cover the intensely specific. Such as how the light happened to look one afternoon as one certain individual navigated a white van through a canyon road with a cell phone camera hanging out the window.

I don't take work home with me, I've been quoted as saying that I don't take my work to work with me but that's another blog, and putting forth the extra effort to enjoy a short journey home is a big part of leaving work at work. I like to look for a route to and from my place of employment that packs in the most exciting and pleasing imagery possible, the kind of route where you see something new every day. I connect with sotres and houses and trees and hills, and checking on them from time to time then takes a certain amount of my thought processing power.

Where after leaving work one day I might have been tempted to continue to think about a call I ran out of time to make or an invoice I should have typed It's not long before I'll hit an interrupter, such as a new pink wig in the wig store window that I pass. I see the wig and soon I'm thinking "Wow, that would look really cool on Amy." Then I wonder "how much does a wig like that cost at that store."
The idea is to enjoy my free time of mind. To have thoughts that I would have for free. About things that would look good on the heads of people that I love, and stop thinking about things that I should only think about because someone pays me to. If a person has enough things like this in life, and their work is in a basic sense fair, then the transition from someone else's time to your own should be automatic. it goes like this: I'm thinking about work undone, then I see a wig, then I see a tree that maybe had a branch fall down in the high winds of the day, how windy did it get anyway? I bet it would be easy to steel that sign.

The Ivy on the side of this hill grows in solid for nearly 200 yards, it's about 20 to 25ft high. I had been taking this route for several months before I'd even noticed it. Now I wait for it, it's a favorite feature. When I see it I often think that my mother would probably go wild to have a big hillside covered with Ivy next to her house, and that my father would take a great deal of pride in the fact the Ivy is surly the best on the block. I don't even know if it's actually Ivy.

My small document of a section of a drive home and the thoughts it conjured ends here, at Astral drive, but somewhere at the top of Astral drive a trail is just beginning. I think about that trail often when I pass Astral Drive, I've never seen it, but I know it's there because I've seen it on a map. One day I'll have a blog about hiking on that trail, and there might even be pictures.

A Candles Last Gasp

Last night, after rehearsal and a busy weekend spent burning candles at all ends a small group of friends gathered at our apartment to enjoy food, fellowship and dramatic entertainment. We ordered pizza and salad, from Brick dome Pizza on Santa Monica Blvd., an establishment that I would recommend. The evening's viewing was a new Showtime show called "Master's of Horror". I had never heard anything of the show but they have weekly gore-horror shows, of about one hours length.
The show we watched was an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Black Cat", with the twist of the adaptation being that it was set as if the story happened to Poe Himself. I write this quick blog in tribute, as Poe was an early favorite author, and because I was shocked to learn that no one else in the room had read "The Black Cat", which I thought to be a fairly common Poe tale.
So for those who have an interest in what I consider to be the hidden nuggets of the Poe catalog, here is my small list. Let it be known, that I really shouldn't be regarded as anything near an authority on any of this, I haven't dabbled in that catalog in many years and I've never found that a great number of people agree with anything I write down... ;)

"The Angel of The Odd" I don't recall a great deal of this story, only the strange phonetic way the Angel spoke, and that part of it happened In an air balloon. I also had the feeling it was set in the future.

"Silence: a Fable" I must have read this one a hundred times. Still Love, and I bet I can find it online... It's short. I'll have a look.

I found it, I'll copy paste it here after my last selection. As a special notice to anyone who might be familiar with the S no S catalog, the title and titular line of the song "sigh One" comes from this piece...

"Never Bet the Devil Your Head" My all time favorite. I just always found it so funny. Faustian if you will. A good ending, just not for Mr. Dammit, your main character with a bit of a gambling problem.

So to end this little tribute, here you go in it's glory:

Silence - A Fable
(1837)
by Edgar Allan Poe
(1809-1849)


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

'Eudosin d'orheon korhuphai te kai pharhagges'
'Prhones te kai charhadrhai.' ALCMAN. (60 (10),646.) The mountain pinnacles slumber; valleys, crags and caves are silent.


"LISTEN to me," said the Demon as he placed his hand upon my head. "The region of which I speak is a dreary region in Libya, by the borders of the river Zaire. And there is no quiet there, nor silence.

"The waters of the river have a saffron and sickly hue; and they flow not onwards to the sea, but palpitate forever and forever beneath the red eye of the sun with a tumultuous and convulsive motion. For many miles on either side of the river's oozy bed is a pale desert of gigantic water-lilies. They sigh one unto the other in that solitude, and stretch towards the heaven their long and ghastly necks, and nod to and fro their everlasting heads. And there is an indistinct murmur which cometh out from among them like the rushing of subterrene water. And they sigh one unto the other.

"But there is a boundary to their realm--the boundary of the dark, horrible, lofty forest. There, like the waves about the Hebrides, the low underwood is agitated continually. But there is no wind throughout the heaven. And the tall primeval trees rock eternally hither and thither with a crashing and mighty sound. And from their high summits, one by one, drop everlasting dews. And at the roots strange poisonous flowers lie writhing in perturbed slumber. And overhead, with a rustling and loud noise, the gray clouds rush westwardly forever, until they roll, a cataract, over the fiery wall of the horizon. But there is no wind throughout the heaven. And by the shores of the river Zaire there is neither quiet nor silence.

"It was night, and the rain fell; and falling, it was rain, but, having fAllan, it was blood. And I stood in the morass among the tall and the rain fell upon my head --and the lilies sighed one unto the other in the solemnity of their desolation.

"And, all at once, the moon arose through the thin ghastly mist, and was crimson in color. And mine eyes fell upon a huge gray rock which stood by the shore of the river, and was lighted by the light of the moon. And the rock was gray, and ghastly, and tall, --and the rock was gray. Upon its front were characters engraven in the stone; and I walked through the morass of water-lilies, until I came close unto the shore, that I might read the characters upon the stone. But I could not decypher them. And I was going back into the morass, when the moon shone with a fuller red, and I turned and looked again upon the rock, and upon the characters;--and the characters were DESOLATION.

"And I looked upwards, and there stood a man upon the summit of the rock; and I hid myself among the water-lilies that I might discover the actions of the man. And the man was tall and stately in form, and was wrapped up from his shoulders to his feet in the toga of old Rome. And the outlines of his figure were indistinct--but his features were the features of a deity; for the mantle of the night, and of the mist, and of the moon, and of the dew, had left uncovered the features of his face. And his brow was lofty with thought, and his eye wild with care; and, in the few furrows upon his cheek I read the fables of sorrow, and weariness, and disgust with mankind, and a longing after solitude.

"And the man sat upon the rock, and leaned his head upon his hand, and looked out upon the desolation. He looked down into the low unquiet shrubbery, and up into the tall primeval trees, and up higher at the rustling heaven, and into the crimson moon. And I lay close within shelter of the lilies, and observed the actions of the man. And the man trembled in the solitude; --but the night waned, and he sat upon the rock.

"And the man turned his attention from the heaven, and looked out upon the dreary river Zaire, and upon the yellow ghastly waters, and upon the pale legions of the water-lilies. And the man listened to the sighs of the water-lilies, and to the murmur that came up from among them. And I lay close within my covert and observed the actions of the man. And the man trembled in the solitude; --but the night waned and he sat upon the rock.

"Then I went down into the recesses of the morass, and waded afar in among the wilderness of the lilies, and called unto the hippopotami which dwelt among the fens in the recesses of the morass. And the hippopotami heard my call, and came, with the behemoth, unto the foot of the rock, and roared loudly and fearfully beneath the moon. And I lay close within my covert and observed the actions of the man. And the man trembled in the solitude; --but the night waned and he sat upon the rock.

"Then I cursed the elements with the curse of tumult; and a frightful tempest gathered in the heaven where, before, there had been no wind. And the heaven became livid with the violence of the tempest --and the rain beat upon the head of the man --and the floods of the river came down --and the river was tormented into foam --and the water-lilies shrieked within their beds --and the forest crumbled before the wind --and the thunder rolled --and the lightning fell --and the rock rocked to its foundation. And I lay close within my covert and observed the actions of the man. And the man trembled in the solitude; --but the night waned and he sat upon the rock.

"Then I grew angry and cursed, with the curse of silence, the river, and the lilies, and the wind, and the forest, and the heaven, and the thunder, and the sighs of the water-lilies. And they became accursed, and were still. And the moon ceased to totter up its pathway to heaven --and the thunder died away --and the lightning did not flash --and the clouds hung motionless --and the waters sunk to their level and remained --and the trees ceased to rock --and the water-lilies sighed no more --and the murmur was heard no longer from among them, nor any shadow of sound throughout the vast illimitable desert. And I looked upon the characters of the rock, and they were changed; --and the characters were SILENCE.

"And mine eyes fell upon the countenance of the man, and his countenance was wan with terror. And, hurriedly, he raised his head from his hand, and stood forth upon the rock and listened. But there was no voice throughout the vast illimitable desert, and the characters upon the rock were SILENCE. And the man shuddered, and turned his face away, and fled afar off, in haste, so that I beheld him no more."

Now there are fine tales in the volumes of the Magi --in the iron-bound, melancholy volumes of the Magi. Therein, I say, are glorious histories of the Heaven, and of the Earth, and of the mighty sea --and of the Genii that over-ruled the sea, and the earth, and the lofty heaven. There was much lore too in the sayings which were said by the Sybils; and holy, holy things were heard of old by the dim leaves that trembled around Dodona --but, as Allah liveth, that fable which the Demon told me as he sat by my side in the shadow of the tomb, I hold to be the most wonderful of all! And as the Demon made an end of his story, he fell back within the cavity of the tomb and laughed. And I could not laugh with the Demon, and he cursed me because I could not laugh. And the lynx which dwelleth forever in the tomb, came out therefrom, and lay down at the feet of the Demon, and looked at him steadily in the face.

THE END

Paradise Awaits, I'm underwater

We had a good rain this morning in North Hollywood as you can see. It was nice, I was tired so it the grey matched my sleepy feeling. This puddle, a spare yawn and few good clouds are all that remain. The forecast is for more, and I have a feeling the rain will be coming back, and I'm fine with that because I've spent most of my afternoon thinking about going back, all the way back home, to my very first home in Paradise, Kansas.
This time next month Devin, Dylan, Amy and I will all travel back to Kansas to pat my wee sister Adrienne on the back. My wee sister isn't so wee anymore, but when we all hop in that car after our arrival in Kansas City next month and drive west to Paradise I will be able to remember her as a I first came to know her. A little person full of spirit and often ridiculous amounts of joy. Always up for any silly make-believe game you could play. Dad's workshop could be a gas station, or the recliner in the living room a hair dresser's chair (Tammy, your 3 O'clock is here). Some days you just want to put on a slip and a t-shirt and hula hoop on the front walk.
I'm looking forward to reliving a lot of those memories, but more than that I'm looking forward to making some new ones.

Adrienne told me yesterday that she was feeling stressed because she hasn't found a job yet. She's not done with finals. A new life for her is coming up fast, she will find a great job and she'll be great at it. She will add a wealth of new experiences to her already wonderful herstory, and I look forward to being a part of as many of them as I can.

Don't be in such a hurry to get to the next part of your life Adrienne, I want to see you again as a student, and help you celebrate your achievements and your being.

Sometimes it doesn't rain for months, then one day you find your parking lot full of water. The future is in the future, Paradise awaits.

Duct Tape

Congrats to my Mother and Father, On this day in 1973 they made a commitment to one another. There have no doubts been moments of small selfish fits between them, but they've done a good job of not showing it and obviously never letting anything take priority over their union for very long. I am proud of my parents, much love all the way around.

Devin Session

Last night around 9 pm I packed up Vincent Free Sound studio and headed to Devin and Dylan's apartment where Devin was waiting to record keyboard part to a new song we are working on. I mentioned the song last week is possibly titled, Trance Ego, as you can see from the LCD screen on my fostex 16 track recorder. This is the tiny screen I end up staring at a great deal more that I should.
I usually insist that Devin comes to me, because I like to control my environment, and have all my available tools near by. I went to last night to Devin's because he was actually using his Garage band Software as a sound module for his synth. I was happy to oblige this because I wanted to see what it sounded like and to lend the track it's own unique character in the cannon of SG work.
Here is Devin now, listening to his own demo of the song on his computer so as to remember what notes he played. Devin has become quite capable at producing good quality work on his own set up, this means that I'll have to pay extra attention and take special care when I get into mixing this track because I don't want to find my services obsolete.
Devin is a very efficient player, he usually is well prepared and capable. He has excellent musical memory and I think he even counts in his head so he knows where he is at all times, that is useful, I should maybe start doing that. This is Devin playing the keyboard part that is very busy in the second chorus. I am very tempted to use a crazy delay timed to the beat on it, thus making it even busier. We shall see. This blog is probably incredibly boring for anyone that isn't Devin or Brandon. I suggest you just look at the pictures and enjoy.
This is your last picture of the Devin Session. I think this picture has some significance in that you can clearly see him playing his ancient concertmate keyboard that he used in all the Singe songs except "microscope", which has been unanimously voted as the worst Singe song of all time. Here's to squeezing a little more magic from the Concertmate.

More than Zero

Check the Odometer, Zeros And Ones. A central theme of the brand new Nine Inch Nails album, "The Year Zero". I'm just this second listening to the last dying notes of the album, as played from start to finish and I must say I'm thrilled stunned and more than a bit confused. The thematic content of the record is very strong, and at times not very easy to deal with when its taken as a back drop to the violent times we are being so frequently reminded that we live in.
There is beauty hidden under the layers of distortion and rapid not runs and slides. The active panning is massive. I get the feeling that square wave synths and smooth wave synths represent different sides of an essential conflict on this record. WOW. I'm pretty stunned free of coherent thought. I like.

Busy Bugs

This weekend was perty fun, and perty busy. Friday we attended Friday's off the 405, an event at the Getty Center that was really quite fun, if not over all together too quickly. There is a DJ who spins in the main museum area and there are a couple bars set up for your enjoyment. It was really enjoyable. I hope to attend again only hopefully leaving a bit earlier. The views are astonishing and the parking is free, gotta love it.
Saturday was a restful day. Amy and I watched something like 12 episodes of Sports night and ate Los Tacos.

Sunday was another busy fun day. We attended a Death Hag Gathering at Grandview cemetery, which was marred a bit by over-reaction, on the part of a select few folks who probably specialize in over-reaction. Still fun to look around a cemetery in the news. Amy snapped this fab pic of me reflecting in a mausoleum window.

After the Cemetery fiasco cooler head headed over to the HMS Bounty, where drinking had been planned. The Bounty is always a good time. I noticed the had a postcard from Pitcairn Island, my favorite Wikipedia bizzarrity. The post card exists in the bar obviously because of the link between the name of the bar and the ship of mutineers that settled the Island.

Sunday evening we traveled to Malibu to hear progress on the tracks for what is now being called the Sidesaddle Sweet Talk ep. I'm very excited now to have them finished and be able to show them off to people.

This weekend we will be checking out what I hope will be a drummer we can utilize when needs be. I'm very excited about the prospect. Also the Electric 6 is coming to town, and since Amy has now struck up a friendship with their lead crooner, Dick Valentine, we will be hopefully having a little more fun than usual at their show on Friday! Super YAY!

Front Door Weather

Yesterday was a nutty windy day in LA. I stepped out my front office door and snapped this picture when the wind began.

If you haven't noticed, I like pictures of weather taken from the perspective of the front door. For some reason it always please me. I thought there was going to be some serious deep philosophising going on with this blog, but there's none. It's just not here. I've gone to the well, and the well is dry.

Here are more pictures. This first one was taken by Amy, right near here work.
She works in a beautiful neighborhood above Wilshire Blvd. so it really makes us sad to see it lose a tree like this.
This one was in the valley by my work. I snapped it on the way back from the bank. The valley is too ugly to lose anymore trees, so it's sad for that reason.

It's the weekend. Buck out.

Dischief Roundup & Re-occurring Dreaming

Here is a photo taken through the window of Mel's Diner on Sunset. I'm using it because I had it in my phone and it seemed like a pretty way to start this post.

Last night was good. Devin and Marc came over. We worked on a new song called "Trance Ego", it's a very electro type tune. I'll work on it some more tonight while Amy is off getting a massage and Devin is busy seeing Grindhouse. The Tune was originally called "Dischievious", which gives this round up post it's name. It might in the end be called "Trance Libido"

Yesterday at work was good too, I managed to tackle a few things I haven't yet been able to tackle, leaves me feeling good about today.

I've been having a strange re-occurring dream, which I have been reluctant to type here, because it's odd and it might get me branded an enemy combatant. So let me state this again, this is a dream I had, not like the kind of dream you have where you envision yourself one day doing what you've always wanted to do, but as in "I was asleep and played no real conscious part in the movie my mind was showing me, dream"
Here is what happens in this Re-occurring dream:
It's only a dream:
I'm living with my brother in a small town with a family that is not our actual family. We are apparently back in High School of some kind, but we seem to be the age we are today. We have a mother who is not our real mother, and a sister who is not our real sister, and a grandmother who is nothing like either of our real grandmothers. Grandma is running the show, we are a family of guerrilla revolutionaries and we have a major beef with the government (Again, this is a dream, I love government). We live on a quiet residential street, it's tree lined and green. There is an elementary school at one end of our street a block or so down. The only odd part of the school is that there is a large 2 story McDonald's in the front of it.
The dream begins with some casual planning and what not around the house, but it's mainly what I consider dream exposition, but it really starts every time when I pull my old Mazda Mx3 into a parking space across the corner from the school, and promptly lock the doors and walk away. I walk causally back home and wait for what I know is coming.
The Car soon explodes, it's amazingly loud. Once I had the dream in a fairly lucid state, in that I was aware that it was a dream but I wasn't in control of the events, in that version I was also wondering if the explosion would sound right or not, thinking there was no way that a dream could pull that off, but it does, it's HUGE and loud and sounds like what I might imagine a car bomb sounds like.
Debris flies everywhere. The MacShack is pretty well toast but I'm happy to know the school is fine. I'm sure the children in my dream are rather scared, but non of them are harmed, I'm still a nice guy even when I'm having a strange violent dream.
Soon the block is covered by police and and fire trucks, soon there after major media vans.
Sometimes the dream ends because the explosion wakes me up. Odder still about this dreams re-occurrence is that when I fall back asleep I usually fall back into the same dream, in the correct time line. If the explosion wakes me, I will fall back in post explosion in the aftermath.
The aftermath always has the family circling the wagons, preparing for the onslaught of investigation we know is to follow. In the meantime we can't be bothered to stop our anti-government ways. We are planning more attacks. The last part of the dream is always Devin coming back in the house saying he was pulled over with some type of explosive in his trunk and that they have impounded his car but set him free. After this my memory of what happens either fades or I wake up.
The last time I had this dream I woke up when Devin botched the explosive transport job but when I fell back asleep I entered the dream again, only this time before the explosion and instead of from my point of view, it was from my pretend sister's POV, who was a plant inside the actual McDonald's. Why she was planted there I'm not sure, but she is an employee and she had a safe zone in the restaurant where we had calculated she would be safe during the explosion. I am not actually her in this version of the dream but I'm observing as if invisible and elevated above her, but sometimes I'm seeing her direct perspective.
In this part it begins with her taking orders in a very busy rush. At one point in the middle of taking an order at the register she looks at her watch and then excuses herself to the back room. She positions herself behind a large cement wall with a sink and waits... BOOM! She sees fire rip through the ceiling and all sorts of holes appear in the walls around her. She is relaxed and confident she will not be hurt. Then the dream faded for a bit and I pick up my memory of it a bit later in the street.
A young man is coming home to the chaos on his block to find his house and his neighbor's house are completely destroyed. I get the feeling he is in a band and he's upset that all their equipment is gone. End Dream.
I've had this dream at least 5 times, all different versions combined and I'm closer to 10. I don't know that it means anything. I think it reflects what's going on in the world and that's just sad. I chose to chronicle the dream here because I don't want to have it anymore, I'm hoping that works. Why do the good ones never re-occur?
I don't want to end this round up post on such an ugly note so I've provided this picture that I snapped of the historic "The Lotus" apartment building in west Hollywood. It's just below Sky Bar on La Cienega Blvd..** I'm not sure why it is an historic building but I think it has something to do with the Gardens surrounding it. I tried googling it with very little luck. I snapped the picture on our way to eat at Mel's and isn't this where we came in?



**Did you know La Cienega was built to 1940's freeway standards as part of the never completed Laurel Canyon Freeway which would have extended the 170 freeway south passed the 101 over the hill and smack through West Hollywood. How that would have changed things around here.

Baby, you are gonna miss that plane

I remember a specific conversation I had once with my mother, it happened in a car when we lived on a farm in Western Kansas. I would have had to have been under 11 years old. We were listening to the radio and I was a premature angry young man, I made the comment that I hated popular radio because all the songs are about love. I then proceeded to prove my startling point by counting how many songs in a row appeared to be about love. At that time I had no interest in romantic love, at all.
Years later I remember a series of conversations that I would have with many of my friends late one night. I was living in Kansas City, KS, and it suddenly occurred to me that more than anything in my life, my dream and desire was to be madly in love. I proceeded to then call many people I knew and proclaimed as much to them. I was no longer such an angry young man.
I was thinking about these two separate versions of myself because last night I viewed Richard Linklater's "Before Sunset", which is a sequel to "Before Sunrise". A movie, which I might be moved into admitting maybe helped me open up to the appreciation of romantic Love.
I saw the First film sometime around my Junior year in High School, about the time I somehow lucked into having a real relationship with an actual female. This would have been around 1996-97. I was instantly moved, and I will admit to having watched the film no less then 5 times. "Before Sunrise" is about a young American man who meets an female French student on a train from Budapest to Vienna. The American Man, played by Ethan Hawk, is disembarking the train in Vienna in order to catch a flight back to the States. The French student played by Julie Delpy, is staying on the train en route to her home in Paris. They meet cute and a notion takes hold that she should get off the train with him and they can continue to keep each others company until his flight the next morning. The movie ends with an impossible promise to see each other again in 6 months at the same train station which begins our movie. No last names nor phone numbers are exchanged, the fate of their love rides on one big promise. The story in Before Sunset picks up 9 years after the story in Before Sunrise with the same two characters, and with an explanation of what has happened to them in the time that has passed, they have changed in some ways, but also have essentially remained themselves.
It was very interesting for me to realize that I've lived 9 years since I saw the first film and last night when I saw the second. I've now lucked into a real life relationship with a real life woman. I can remember some of the things I used to think and the way I think about those things now. It's really remarkable to experience a time line that effectively. It had me thinking about the 7up series of films which moved me so completely, and how the possibility for that type of life long work is set up with these two films. I hope so, I think it would be of value for me to look back on my life with films this good as a window of examination, it could be solidly helpful, and might help prevent me from becoming a bitter old man.

Park Anywhere You Like

Friday night as I neared my home I saw this lovely parking job at the Whole Foods Market by my house. I couldn't help but laugh. I'm not sure where they thought they were going to put that thing once they got into the parking lot anyway, A person can't even fit a Geo Metro in the parking spaces at Whole Foods. I drove by several hours later and it was still stuck, at least this time they had a tow truck there too.

Friday Nights gig after this was okay. We played well I thought, but the crowd could have played a little better than they did. They were busy eating I guess, which always annoys me. I don't like to see people eating when I'm playing.

Today I've been running a Craigslist ad to hire a drummer for LA pride. Many good responses so far.

Buck Out.

End Work Week

Nice! It's a pretty happy day for me. I've accomplished a whole bunch at work, and I've listened to some great music while I did it. This is important, let us never forget that listening to music you like while doing anything you maybe don't, makes it all the more tolerable.

After yesterdays post about Roger Clyne and The Arizona Peacemakers I decided to check the progress of their new album and wouldn't you know the have a myspace page with new songs! I really really like the 4 songs previewed. Makes me happy.

So tonight we travel to Long Beach where we play a really cool pizza place. We've played there twice before and It's always a great time. I think tonight will be no different. Here is the Flyer... I'm outta here...



Tonight At:





Cover: $8. Show will start at 7:45

ALL AGES Show ALL NIGHT LONG!


DiPiazza's, 5205 E. Pacific Coast Highway Long Beach, CA 90804

***Shitting Glitter is on at 10***




405 Fwy North or South take the 7th Street off ramp, Right on PCH, Go to Anahiem St.
Click on photos for more info!


I blogged every day this week. ;)

I did roger harmonica

Roger Clyne Released the album "Sonoran Hope and Madness" in February 2002, I was lucky enough to see him and His band "The Arizona Peacemakers" shortly there after. This would be my second time seeing them live at the same venue, "Davies Uptown Rambler's Club" in Kansas City Missouri.
The way I see it I owe Roger for a couple of things. The first one is for his music, and that it basically taught me to play guitar and sing at the same time. I told him that much and he laughed and said "that's cause my songs are easy!" I think he meant that more as a dig to himself than to me, but you can take it how you'd wish. For that I feel I've been pretty generous, and that I've paid my debt and then some by buying albums, spreading the word and keeping the music alive.
My other debt, and the real reason I was thinking about writing this, is not as easy to pay off. Nope, it's worse, it's a 10 commandment violation, and no, I never coveted his wife. I stole his Harmonica, which I believe is commandment number 5. It was a shitty thing to do and I will use the excuse that I was wasted. Really wasted. I could prove how wasted I was that night if I could somehow conjure pictures of the beast I ended up making out with at the close of the set, but that would be far to unpleasant for all of us, and I need not admit all my sins in one blog.
The set was over, I was excited, I saw it sitting on a monitor and I grabbed it. Horrid Behavior. This is an indie band, not a major label band. It's okay to steal from major label bands. Thou Shall Not Steal from Indie Bands is the third Commandment, I broke 2 in one shot.

My point is this, I owe Roger a Lee Oskar F# Harmonica, and I've decided next opportunity to pay it back with a brand new one. And the other thing I decided was that if I stole it I had better learn to play it. I sort of did at first, I would play it and I learned a few songs, but since then I've sort of slacked, until last week. Last week I found it and one other at my house, and I decided to take it up again. But when do I have time you ask? On the way to and from work. It only takes one hand to drive, and the was I see it, one hand to hold the harmonica. Sure I can't do any of those fancy blue's traveler type things, but I can play a few things. In fact, here's what I've figured out thus far.

"The Red River Valley"
"Good Night Ladies"
"Wasting Away" by the Brian Jonestown Massacre
"Mary Had A Little Lamb" - which doesn't really count because it's part of good night ladies
"Swing Low Sweet Chariot"
and I'm so close to learning "Pink Flamingos" by Electric Six.

I should also note, that this very month in 2002, I was hard at work on an album for my solo project, S no S, the album, "May April". On that cd there was a small snippet of Roger Clyne's Harmonica, played poorly by yours truly. The Song was called "A taunting re-occurrence"... And it is.

Again, Roger, I'm sorry.

Days End

This are gonna work out. I'm certain of that fact. Today is drawing to a close, I'm very okay with that. I'm a bit tuckered out. Tonight we will go look in on Marc's kitty and fishes. They are lonesome with no one there. I really don't know what it was that made me log back into Blogger. I have no real thoughts. Maybe I've got a picture some place. I'll look. Damn... Nothing.

I've not written a poem here in a while, and while it is inadvisable to do so when inspiration is at the dry end of the bucket, I'll try one anyway.

Don't expect all the surprises to come when you're not looking
sometimes they are already on the line
don't get up early if you went to bed late
it's simple math and a stupid mistake
be weary of warnings, impulses and proclamations
try to wear clothes with pockets or at least carry a bag
let the room be dark when you sleep, or put something dark over your face
don't eat it if you are just going to regret it

cars can go a lot further on empty than they tell you
there must be a reason for that
don't fuss
don't get ruffled
carry on and out
it's easy
people don't live long enough to really regret things so don't let that be the thing that guides you
let the fact people don't live very long be the thing that does.

as opposed to a bed resting on the floor

I'm listening to Peter Gabriel today. I never really bothered before, If it was on MTV or the radio I would just kind of brush it off because it was just Peter Gabriel. What a dunce I was. In listening today for the first time with real attention, I'm stunned, Loving these sounds.

Yesterday, for unbloggable reasons started bad and stayed that way for most of the day at work. I got home and slowly things got better. It culminated with a fabulous pick up from the craigslist free section. Check it, a new bed frame, head and foot board.

For free! Woah! What a world, seriously. A person puts up an advertisement on this Craig guy's list and then you write him, then before you know it he calls, he lives less then 5 minutes away, and he just gives us this great head and foot board, also a fan, and we are then on our way. Lovely!


Notice the unfinished paint job on the wall, we are getting goofy artistic in there. I like it.

There is really something about raising a bed off the floor that adds to the sleeping experience. Of course it adds a bit more spring action, but psychically it seems to provide a rest from the pull of gravity. Does gravity lessen by any degree the furthur a person gets from the earth, even if it's only a few feet? I should check into that. Would it then mean that sleeping in a high rise would amplify that effect? Lets all think about that.

Do you think Henry and Arthur were pleased with the new bed? Does this psychic gravity relief work for them too? It would appear so. Really though, less than one hour after getting the bed set up and ordered and these two kitties who normally prefer to play the game we call "let's kill each other" are wrapped up in each other sound asleep.

I had a thought last night about Cellphone Camera's. They are often put down as being practically useless, but I on the other hand have really come to embrace them as usefully practical. People get really caught up in the amount of megapixle gigabyte doo dads in technology, and those things are important, but there is also a great deal of value in an item that has managed to incorporate itself into availability in daily life without obtrusion. There is nothing gained by having a higher resolution to a picture you couldn't take because you didn't have your camera handy. So while your camera may be better, my camera is ready.

Get in the booth

It's the Pitz

Friday I left work a bit early, waited half an hour for a bus while I watched the Hollywood Hills burn and smoke. It was rather bizarre, the Helicopters were dropping water, and I was able to watch from about 2 miles away, and we all just for the most part went about our day.

After arriving Amy and I took my brake less van into the shop to make it stop. The people at the repair shop love Amy and her pink hair, so I felt good about dumping a van that doesn't stop into their laps.

I rushed home after the shop and started to gather the equipment that makes our band make noise. I decided since we were to play outside that we'd need to be loaded for bear, which means I had to make many steps down the stairs carrying heavy items! I enjoy that part almost as much as I enjoy carrying those same items up those same stairs many hours later and much less excited. I do it for the love.

Amy and I then drove across town to pick up Von, our guide for the drive. It took about an hour to get across Hollywood to Von's and then down to the 101. Traffic was sux, but could have been much more so. We hit the 10 just after 6:00 and soon traffic opened up, destination, Pitzer College.

We had been contracted to play an event by Von's girlfriend, and SG cinematographer Jessica Lawless. We were all super stocked to pull up to the campus, to see the house who's porch would serve as our stage. I borrowed this picture from wikipedia, but I did it with love:




The place had a wonderful feel and nice rustic quality. The students were all super kind in helping out and setting up sound, even providing wonderful Vegan food, and you know it had to be good if it were Vegan and I still enjoyed it. Tofuud all around.

Our set went without hitch and with great audience participation. I even notice people trying to sing along. That was pretty cool. Weather it was the cold, the beer or the band the people were dancing, and that just makes me feel good.

A good time had by all.

Saturday when Amy and I crawled out of bed around 2 we had messages from Angie and Marc that a trip to El Coyote was in store. We picked up the van, Devin and Marc were soon on our way. The van was in perfect working order, the Food was delicious and we all had a great time.

Afterwards we went back to Devin and Dylan's, where we watched his few clips on the new Addams Family DVD. Devin has been pretty hard on himself about his appearance, and for no reason at all, he provided several good comments and looked pretty darn good doing it. Hats off Bro. Hopefully he will blog about it soon, and save me the trouble of further explanation. hint hint.

We then headed over to the special store on Vine, where many pretty things can be purchased, such as this butterfly hat which I passed on. We did get some nice rings and jewlery for Amy's face.

Saturday Night we had a party at our apartment, it was a rather low key affair but it did manage to stretch into the wee morning hours. Amy eventually ended up cuddling with noon, and all was good.

Ride it on, Slide it on

My van is still not stopping, because I've yet to take it into the shop. This of course puts my commuting life all out of whack. I'm subject again to the whims of others in my daily transport process. This is not all bad, in fact, it proved last night to be down right good. After leaving work, instead of dropping me at the subway, my boss borrowed me to help him retrieve his 5 dogs from the pet salon. I love the dogs, so this wasn't really a chore. After we took them to his house he told me that rather than ride the subway I should just take his truck and then pick him up in the morning. I thought this sounded grand, so I did.
I got behind the wheel and headed down the block. I called Amy to let her know where I was at in the journey, and that I'd be late, because I'm thoughtful and co-dependent. I turned on the radio, to AM 1150, to hear some fine progressive talk. Bad Idea. I'm really annoyed with their new 5:00 o'clock guy, this MR. K, he annoys me for many reasons. The point being though I didn't want to hear him drone on so I started to think about alternatives, and then I remembered, that there is always a copy of SG's CD maxi-single "Ladyslipper" in the CD player. I turned it on and settled into my drive.

I played it all the way through on the way home, and all the way through on the drive up this morning. It had me remembering things and thinking about others, and it occurred to me that we are very near Ladyslipper's 2 year anniversary. Being that to me, that CD will always have a special significance, I though I would try and commemorate it's 2 year mile marker with a blog about it.
I went back in my blog to find it's actually release but sadly I realize I didn't post anything to mark it's actual release. Checking our website I find that it was officially released in May of 2005, but I did find this to be of significance, on March 31st, 2005 I posted this:
"I did finish mixing the single last night, by far my favorite project thus far!! And in going further I have taken many steps to get someone to master the thing."

Exactly 2 years ago today I finished my first mix of the Ladyslipper Maxi single. Neat huh? My internal calendar was working well.

You'll notice the second sentence of that quote refers to getting some one to master it. (Link here for info about his process) My desire to have someone to master this thing, and my complete lack of a budget to pay them to do led to what I think of as one of our bands greatest breaks, our relation ship with Hoagie of Seamonster sounds (who is even now slaving away on yet another project of ours).

I have now dug into my email, and I've come up with the original craigslist ad where i rather pathetically ask someone to Master our work:

5 song single needs mastering on the cheap

Date: 2005-03-31, 9:54AM PST

I have a 5 song single ready to be mastered, however the budget to
do so has run pathetically low. So if your looking to gain some
experience in the field of mastering send me a reply and we can
talk. I could muster about $50 for a job done well, I'm sorry if
this is insulting to any ME's out there but times are tough, and it
ain't easy with that son of a bitch George Bush in the white house.
The songs could best be described as Electro psychedelic pop, I have
mp3's for the emailing if you're interested.
Thanks, Brandon

I got to hand it to myself, I love that reference to Raising Arizona as applied to the current political climate.

Here is the first response to the ad I got, edited to remove any identifying factors:

Hi hows it going? Are you just looking to have your single mix down wav files mastered or a whole multi-track project in protools or the like? If its just single wav files I may be able to help you.

Like I said, if its just mastering whole songs as single wav files I can work with the compression to increase loudness, boost and cut high and lows where needed for clarity, etc. Let me know the details and maybe I can help.

Notice, no interest at all in hearing any of the songs... or really asking for any detail whatsoever.

second response:

I can do this for you.

If you don't like the work you don't have to pay.

This third one at least had some pizazz:

Hey Man,

Yeah, fuck George Bush (King George the II)!!!
I am a BMI songwriter who has a home studio, so I master my own shit
all the time.
You could swing by and I'll help you out, no problem.
Peace

Funny Huh?

Fourth:

Hey Brandon,

If you have not yet found anyone, I am interested in mastering this project with in your budget. I have mastering software and experience as well. I am versatile and creative, I have critical ears and attention to detail. I am looking to expand my skills outside of my own music.

Not a bad response, but notice, still no real interest in hearing the songs...

I don't know what this fellow wanted, I didn't Respond, but here is the Fifth response:

Do you do a live set?

That's it... Nothing more from that one. Hmm...

It should be noted here that Hoagie's reply was not the last one which I received, I list it last for dramatic build:

Hi Brandon,

I'd be interested in hearing what you'd like to have mastered. I
have a great deal of production experience and I "master" my own
stuff and others, but I haven't (yet) made a specialty of it. So if
I like your stuff, then $50 would be a great deal for both of us. I
also have a few friends who are well-respected ME's, so if we hit any
slippery patches, we could get some righteous advice. FWIW, I'm on
the westside.

Please send me one or two mp3s via email (my account has a tight
limit), or post a web link to it.

Cheers,
Hoagie Hill

Wow! Someone wanted to hear the music before they decided to take my meager budget?! As you can see, I had no real problem choosing who to go with on this one, the choice pretty well made it self.

I am tempted to go and post all of the communications between Hoagie and myself, but in the interest of privacy, and because in just now reading through it I doubt it would be that interesting to most folks (very techy at times), I will keep that private for now. Just wait till the 10 year gold release on Warner Brothers.

I will note that our agreeing to work together took very little time and from there it kept going, till where even now when i checked my email for this blog I found one from him giving me an update on our current project. The relationship that has developed between Hoagie and our band, and Hogie and each one of us as individuals has proved fruitful, and on this anniversary, let me just say I'm grateful to have the opportunity to work with such great people.

I had a great time last night and this morning listening to the songs we recorded back in early 2005, so I'll begin my wrap up with some thoughts on each track:

1. Ladyslipper - this song has always been special to me. It's weird, I love that in a song. I've always felt that it pulls our band together closer when we play it live. We can sometimes get to a point in a gig where we are rushing ourselves too hard, and pulling in different directions, but for some reason, whenever we play ladyslipper we always get back on track.
I think of this song as a prayer of sorts (not in any organized religious sense) but more as a whisper to the universe to keep us all safe and together. It's like asking for a little lee way, to be allowed to complete what we have to do. That's kind of how I see it anyway.

In listening to the recording I remember that there is acoustic guitar, played on Ellela, the first guitar I ever bought new, and it's the acoustic guitar I always turn to to write on.
There is also some e-bow guitar going on. I also noticed that the bells going on at the end, appear later in the single at the end of Time (clock of the heart).
There are so many things that changed between the mix on this single and the album, that I would be a fool to try and list them all, suffice to say that Hoagie did a great deal of work on the remix of this one, but I only point it out here because to me one cool thing about this mix is the hidden third verse. I don't think it made it into the album version, at least I've never heard it, but there is a ghost verse on the single, that comes in during the final part where amy and devin are singing "wear your lady slipper, slide it on" at some point amy peaks in and says something like "spank the living spit out of my bad temper, dip your perfect scoop into my fudge". I always like that part in this version.

2. Nutragen - This song was originally called "Columbo". I love it cause it seems like Detective Columbo. I don't have a lot more to say about it, other than I love it and I'm glad it's on this cd. I remember Hoagie saying he really liked the Distortion on the vocal in the chorus section, that pleased me very much.

3. Zero Cool - This song was a bear, with a rattle snake riding on it's back. It was a horrid bitch to mix and in the end I know Devin ended up unhappy with it. The guitar is way over compressed and sounds totally modeled. I was glad that I ended up playing an e-bow on the chorus, it at least was fun to me, and provided my favorite playing moment in the song, during the breakdown when I have a bit of an orchestral moment.

4. Time - I barely knew this song at the time, I love it now. It was a bitch for me to learn a part but finally I did. Amy's voice sounds Huge, I love that. Devin's back up vocals are so great too.

5. Luscious Mag - We had tried to record this song so many times, even doing a big poppy program at one point, but it never worked. This version works extremely well. Hoagie saved me by counseling me into not having the HUGE rain sound running through out the entire song, like I had done in the original mix. It took some convincing, but in the end he was right.
The rain sound itself came late one night, as we were wrapping up recording on the tracks. We were all horridly drunk and ready to call it a night when it began to storm, It was raining so loud that I had to stop what I was working on. Since I wanted something else to blend with the track I just stuck our microphone in the bathroom and cranked the gain with the window open. Hoagie impressed me on this track, in talking about that sound he described it as A rain sound... or maybe it's a shower... which it was actually rain, recorded in a shower. Nice.

Ladyslipper did a lot of good things for us, we printed 100 copies, and up until we discovered 5 of them hidden they had sold out. So if you don't have it, buy it now, before they are gone for good.

I'll let a few reviews do the wrap up for me:

FRONTIERS MAGAZINE REVIEW 7/5/05

Shitting Glitter
Ladyslipper (Decadrisco)

Los Angeles electro-rockers Shitting Glitter might not be as well known as some of their more famous counterparts, but their latest self-released EP should help remedy that. Whether conjuring up the trippy musings and melodies of the Cocteau Twins (the dreamy title track) or tackling Le Tigre-worthy arrangements (“Nutragen”), the three-member outfit makes a strong showing on their new album, paying tribute to their many influences (Bowie, Berlin, Thompson Twins, etc.) while crafting their own sound in the process. A pleasantly wistful but unnecessary cover of Culture Club’s “Time” might be a bit too obvious for those tapped out on nostalgia, but on original cuts like the mod-rock ballad “Zero Cool,” these children of the ’80s do their generation more than proud.

Ken Knox



from Church of Girl Radio Stars, June 2005


Ladyslipper
received 05.05

shittingglitter.com
self-released
Beautiful Three

We have so much love for this band. Their music is suPer – and we love their sense of activism, purpose and community.

If you didn’t already know, Shitting Glitter stands firm in the belief that Rock and Roll should include some rebellion or subversion. Repeatedly, people tell the band to change their name. They won’t. We know why, too, it helps to sort through those who might not be “equipped to deal with the bands liberal views and wild stage show”.

Shitting Glitter’s latest release, “Ladyslipper” is a softer listen than we expected, and we LOVE every one of the songs. We truly could not choose which songs we liked best, or thought you would like best, so we will be airing all of them on Church of Girl Radio! We hope you will purchase your very own copy of the CD from their website.



Miscellaneous news postings from SG.com, regarding the work and release of Ladyslipper:

10 February 05 Wear Your Ladyslipper Don't miss Shitting Glitter tonight at The Anarchy Library! It will be your last chance to purchase "The Incomparable White Six" CD single as it is virtually sold out! The next single, "Ladyslipper" will be released in April and will feature remixes and exclusive b-sides. A big thanks to Jeremy at Sirius OutQ Radio for playing "Makes Sense." Shitting Glitter has been getting some good airplay lately all around the globe. Call and request them at your favorite local or internet radio station!

14 March 05 Lastly, a beautiful soul has left this earth; Devin and Brandon's grandma Eva May Strecker passed on Saturday, March 5. She will be missed. The single "Ladyslipper" is dedicated to her.

13 April 05 Shitting Glitter is currently in the studio working on their second album "Free Alongside Ship." The album will be preceded by a single "Ladyslipper" released next month. The band will be announcing summer show dates soon. Welcome to the new website! This is a work in progress, and new things will be popping up left and right.

6 June 05 Ladyslipper is Released!!! Shitting Glitter is currently in the studio finishing up their second album "Free Alongside Ship." The next single will be "Mondo di Corpo" which will be released at the same time as the album. Click HERE to order the 5-track maxi-single "Ladyslipper"
The single is also available on The Woobie Bear Music Store and Zero Youth Distribution.

I meant to end before now, but I really wanted to mention how important it was to dedicate the Ladyslipper single to my Grandmother Eva, she was such a wonderful person, and I felt the sound of Ladyslipper and my personal feelings behind it's meaning couldn't have fit together better.

Thanks for everything, everyone.