Rock N Roll Dropout

I finally finished recording my new album, Gravedigging For Two.
Ten songs that I'm really proud of, that have evolved from sketches, through a few different iterations and styles, to a cohesive package.

Now it should be time to mix and master the project, then putting it out in the world for sale/ consumption.  SHOULD...

Along with music and my wife, I have a huge passion for sailing.  And I'm not a rich man.
If I pay to have Gravedigging mixed and mastered, that will take a huge chunk of cash away from my sailboat fund (that will actually come into existence once my credit card debt is paid).
I waver on my choice daily, but for today I'm planning on doing a rough "monitor mix" of Gravedigging For Two.  Something I can listen to on my headphones, but not put out to the world.  Then, I can get closer to buying my sailboat and feeding THAT side of my soul.

I'm also planning to spend the winter re-recording Love Isn't Enough, and possibly Overture and Reflecting The Broken Mirror.  Other albums that I've written and am really proud of, but which had less-than-stellar recordings.

For now, I guess I'm climbing back into the woodshed to be a musical hermit.  But I'll be back!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

Sorry, it's been a few months since I've been in touch.  But what a few months it has been!

First, my studio PC died suddenly.  It had lived a long and prosperous life, but I was waiting a little longer to replace it.  I waited too long...
Luckily I save my data to a second hard drive (VERY IMPORTANT TO DO!!!).  This kept my musical projects saved safely, when the primary drive died and locked away everything on it.  Unfortunately, this included my collection of music from everyone other than myself.  All my MP3s were killed!
Since I'm a paranoid geek, I planned ahead and backed up everything on another external drive.  So imagine my surprise when that drive died as well, while copying my music collection onto another computer!  It got from Abba to Prince before failing.
So lost is my discography of Rolling Stones, Roxy Music, Stereophonics, Yazoo... you get the picture. 

Luckily I still had most of them tucked away as DVDs in the basement.  For the rest, I downloaded bit-torrents.  While I usually avoid downloading torrents (i prefer to pay the artists for their work), since I had actually purchased these on DVD, i think i've covered my obligation...

At this point, I should have been ready to just replace my studio PC and get back to writing and recording, right?  Wrong.  Since my studio PC was on Windows XP (and had not been online in 6 years), I also have to replace my IO Interface and recording software (Sonar DAW). 

I checked out my options, and priced out the best products to suit my revamped, basement home studio.

Suddenly, my wife and I decided to buy a condo and move out of our rented townhouse!  Luckily, I hadn't yet bought all the new gear for my studio.  Since now I won't have a studio per se... 
The new studio setup will be a  Windows 8- based 17" laptop, a Focusrite IO Interface, and headphones.  As for software, I'll be upgrading to Sonar Platinum.  I've been a big fan of Cakewalk/ Sonar since dipping my toe into PC-based recording in 2003, with their HomeStudio line of DAWs.  Platinum will require a learning curve, as there have been 3 major releases in between my Producer 8.5 and the newest Platinum.  That'll take some time to get used to, but I'm sure it will be worthwhile - from what I've seen this upgrade should really streamline my processes.  And hopefully ease the transition from a dual-monitor PC with lovely (speaker) monitors to one laptop screen and headphones....

Stay tuned, I'm still here! 
I swear...

Little Black Dress Fundraiser

I don't know if I've mentioned it, but my wife (Kate Kudelka) is an actor and playwright. Her company (along with partner Lise Maher) Little Black Dress, is hosting a fundraiser to help cover costs for their upcoming piece "Ladies In Waiting." It will be performed in the Toronto Fringe Festival this summer.

LBD has put together a great list of gifts for a raffle (including 5 guitar lessons from yours truly). Quilts, vocal lessons, gift certificates from local establishments, and much more are all up for grabs.

Details are here - check it out! http://www.littleblackdresstheatre.blogspot.com/. All proceeds go to a great cause - the artists, actors, and writers that give Toronto such strong live performances.

OPM - Other People's Music

This weekend I had the rare opportunity to spend the entire time alone at home (except for drinks, pool, and a cool jazz quintet on Saturday night).

Without much to do, and not feeling rushed to work on the new album, I spent hours playing acoustic versions of some old favourites. I haven't had so much fun in ages, and only stopped when my voice started giving out.

As a brief sampling, the setlist included With Or Without You, Heroes, Working Class Hero, Wave Of Mutilation, Irish Heartbeat, Let Me In, and about a dozen others. All simply one acoustic guitar and one vocal.

When I was learning to play the guitar, it was a huge help to learn a multitude of covers. Since I started writing my own music in the late 90s, for the most part I stopped playing others'. I may have to change that...

Tonight: Slow Show (of brilliance)

My plan for this blog is mostly to document what I'm doing, but I also want to express what I think about other musicians.

Tonight I'm going to see one of my favourite bands, The National. A year ago I saw REM and Modest Mouse, and The National was the unknown opening act. I couldn't have cared less about them, when I knew the headliners that were coming up.
About 30 seconds into their first song, Fake Empire, I was captivated. They were by far the highlight of the night. I went out the next day and bought their Boxer album. And in the 12 months that have passed, I've only occasionally been able to listen to anything else. Occasionally I feel a tear coming on as I revel in the tracks on this disc.
They've inspired me to style 'Overture' the way I have, using more organic-sounding instruments than in the past.

So tonight they're playing at The Koolhaus. And I'm VERY excited.

Here's an example of their greatness:
Feel free to turn off my music on the right, just for this...



Slow Show
Standing at the punch table swallowing punch
can’t pay attention to the sound of anyone
a little more stupid, a little more scared
every minute more unprepared
I made a mistake in my life today
everything I love gets lost in drawers
I want to start over, I want to be winning
way out of sync from the beginning

I wanna hurry home to you
put on a slow, dumb show for you
and crack you up
so you can put a blue ribbon on my brain
god I’m very, very frightening
I’ll overdo it

Looking for somewhere to stand and stay
I leaned on the wall and the wall leaned away
Can I get a minute of not being nervous
and not thinking of my dick
My leg is sparkles, my leg is pins
I better get my shit together, better gather my shit in
You could drive a car through my head in five minutes
from one side of it to the other

I wanna hurry home to you
put on a slow, dumb show for you
and crack you up
so you can put a blue ribbon on my brain
god I’m very, very frightening
I’ll overdo it

You know I dreamed about you
for twenty-nine years before I saw you
You know I dreamed about you
I missed you for twenty-nine
You know I dreamed about you
for twenty-nine years before I saw you
You know I dreamed about you
I missed you for twenty-nine