Thursday, November 1, 2018

November 2018 update!

Well it seems like I should write something?

It has been a while ...three years I think?

Music...

Currently working on an EP for Waves of Mercury. It's working fake name is "Hipster Doom"
It started as heavy doom songs, but we turned off the distortion and they became a lot more interesting. That's not to say there is no distortion within the four songs, and they do get heavier as the EP goes on. Antony Johnston is writing lyrics for this one again, so that is a great help.

There are a few singles or EPs for The Fairly Secret Army, but those are slow going.

My solo stuff is coming along slow but sure. I have about three or four songs ready to do final mixes on.

Does anyone read this? Did anyone before?


Tuesday, September 29, 2015

2015 IS SUSPECT ...AT BEST!

So 2015 has been a year of woes...physically and financially that is.

It started with back pain, then drop foot, then fear of heart problems(which wasn't the case...but maybe 20 hot sauce packets on 5 tacos is not a good idea?), then three blood clots, then more back pain. And that's just me, not any of Barb's foot problems.
Yeah, I should lose weight, but that doesn't seem to come easy, especially since walking is probably my best bet (for exercise) and with foot problems that's not easy.

Financially...well, we luckily didn't refinance the house, because saving $90 a month is nothing compared to the $74,000 extra we would have paid going back to a 30 year loan.
So I luckily used math to my advantage there!
But now we have to figure out how to get the money for a $3200 Rav4...because the car I got from Brandon almost 8 yrs ago will only drive in reverse one time a day to back out of my driveway!
The transmission is about $1900 to replace on a 1998 car with 189000 miles, so it's not worth it.
It's been a good car and it was free, so I can't complain, it's just that I don't want a damn car payment every month...or at least not one that will make it so instead of $3200 it would be more like $5000!
And Barb has her student loans that she's trying to figure out too...we're crossing our fingers for her financial person to work some magic or something.

Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket? Nah, I'll save my $2.

2015 has been good for a few things though!
I got Married TWICE! Once on January 31st and the second time on May 30th!
The actually union of our love by involving the Government was because we knew we were going to have the wedding in May, but I needed to go to the doctor asap. Had we waited till May, I might be dead right now.
I also love my wife so much that I may just marry her again before the year is up!

Ben Maier and I may be rekindling our friendship? I am hesitant, but hopeful it will be a good thing. I know it won't be the same, but I don't think either of us would want it to be the same as before. I also think we've changed in ways that needed to be changed, but couldn't happen if we were around each other. Sometimes you need a break from a relationship so you can come back and hopefully be better friends and people?

My motto about my life: "I have hope...I always have hope."

So let's talk about music, which is what this blog is actually about...

I'll start with my own music and projects I am in!

My Famous Mistake is on hold until we can have schedules that work together.
I think Glen and I work well together, so I want to do another ep at the very least, but real life can be bothersome. I hope to pick up where we left off, but change it up a little bit more and have a more organic (yep, I just used organic) feel,sound and playing style...and I don't know what the fuck that means? I do know I would like to do vocals like Sly and the Family Stone did them, where verses are taken by multiple singers (or at least the two of us).

Stolen Picassos "Why Lovers Never Wait" is almost done. We had to have two recording sessions this year and I think it helped this album a lot. What doesn't help is that there are 17 songs!
The next one will have a lot less...probably 10-12 songs. Hopefully that way we can have time to focus on the vocals instead of rushing to get them done?

Fairly Secret Army has been brought down to just a singles project...ie. I hope to have the first two song release on bandcamp soon, but it's not been a high priority since the release of "Bombs Away" earlier this year. It's just me doing everything now, so it's a slower process than before.

Waves of Mercury is finished. There was talk about re-recording the first A Thousand Suns cd again, but Greg has three kids now and I really have no interest in metal anymore ...especially playing it.

David Edward and the ???? ...well, between health problems and having a lot of work to do on the Stolen Picassos album, I have not had a lot of time for this project.
There are ideas for about a dozen songs and the rough drums, bass and keys have been recorded for one song, but I wanna record them again.
I want to do as much of it on my own, but I also will have to use the services of a few guitar players I know. Hopefully my brother John and I can do something with a few ideas I have. Maybe Chad Holm will be finally up to the task? I am very excited to get Chris Martin to play some guitar, I think he has a lot of potential and could be a new partner in crime musically? There are a few more, but I won't hold my breath. ;)


What have I been listening to?
Well this has been a great year for finding old things and new releases!
I got some really awesome new cd shelves and I don't want to fill the empty shelves soon, but I'm heading in that way!
Recently I got all 14 studio albums of PINK FLOYD...yep, the same band I have said bored me is now my new jam! I love David Gilmour's guitar playing and sound! I should have never listened to their hardest stuff to get into first back in 2010, because I sold them all, but on the plus side, I actually made money selling them back then and now I have the 2011 remastered versions!
I picked up the first Gilmour album and liked that, then I started listening to full albums on youtube to see if I wanted anything...and in typical fashion i went to get three albums and bought them all!
Maybe that's why I never have money? But bill are never ending, so I am going to enjoy life the way I love to...by listening and owning great music!

Barb gave me a gift card for my birthday, and I finally pulled the trigger on getting all the remastered versions of GARY MOORE stuff! I have never owned any of them on cd(except an old version of Wild Frontier), so it was a good buy and well worth it! The cds sound great and the lyrics are included with bonus tracks! I wish there were a few liner notes, but oh well.

I found the first seven two cd versions of the BLUR discography. They are a more acquired taste for me, but I had been listening to a lot more Brit Pop and 80's New Wave at the time, so it was a good find at the right time.

I also picked up the whole AIMEE MANN discography over the course of a few weeks. She's someone who is good in smaller doses, but when I'm in the mood, it's great!

New stuff that has been release this year...The new MY DYING BRIDE kinda bores me. The GLEN HANSARD is also a let down after the greatness of his first solo album. The new VINTAGE TROUBLE is a pleasant surprise! Their last one didn't pull me in as much as I wanted, but this one has some catchy stuff on it.
I hope the new GRAVEYARD is good, but my Pink Floyd obsession made it have to wait.
The new CLUTCH album is something I am really looking forward to...and if you go to their facebook page, there is a $2 off coupon for Best buy, so I will be getting this cd Friday!!!

I also hope that the two new McCARTNEY remasters (Tug of War & Pipes of Peace) come out in the 2cd versions, but I will have to wait if they come out Oct 2nd.
KING CRIMSON "Thrak" has been newly remixed and remastered by Jakko (the new singer/guitarist of King Crimson) and will come out Oct 16th in a CD/DVD version (thank you for not doing a Blu-Ray only release!), so I am excited to get that and have a 5.1 listen, which will lend itself well to the double trio.
GENTLE GIANT are to release a new remix & remaster of Octopus on Oct 30th. This was done by (of course) Steve Wilson. I am probably only going to get the single disc version, because I don't have a surround sound Blu Ray and well, i just don't think it'll be that great as surround anyway!

Ok, until next time...
DOOPUM!





















Sunday, January 18, 2015

THE SHOW MUST GO ON!

Wow!

 

It's been so long since I wrote on here. I guess because I know not a lot of people read it, but that shouldn't matter really. I mean, there aren't a lot of people listening to my recorded music either, but I still do that all the time. I want to do this at least weekly, so we'll see?

So far 2015 has been pretty shitty.

I am having back pain, leg pain and my foot has lost half it's movement! And my insurance (if I kept it) would have went from $170 a month to $320 a month! Fuck that noise!
I was ok with being with insurance for a little while, but then the whole back/leg/foot thing happened, so now there is more of a rush to get insurance again.
So we'll see how that goes!

How's Work?

I can't complain. I go to a job I like being at, have a great boss and co-workers, the owners are super cool, and the customers are awesome! I have met a lot of really great people in that store. My life would be totally different if I didn't work there. A lot of my friends are people I work/worked with or came in as customers and got to know. I have no idea what I would be doing for a job if I didn't work there, so I am really grateful for that.
The pain makes things a little difficult these days, and there have been a few weeks of problems with sickness or vehicles being a pain in the ass, but we get through and work together like a family...a slightly dysfunctional family?

Hmpf!

I haven't really talked to Ben since the "friend divorce", but I do still read his blog when he does it. It's funny, because I have stopped hanging out with friends before, but never really been "dumped" by a friend, so it's a weird feeling even two years after it happens. I know we'll never be friends again, not because I didn't try to patch things up, but because sometimes you just have to know when to quit.

My super awesome girlfriend is still super awesome! I think I'll promote her soon! 

Nuff said!

Music music I hear music, music I hear music music, music oh oh oh lord! Music over my head!

 By the way, all the recordings are available for "name your price" on bandcamp...but feel free to download for free! We'd rather have people listen for free!!!


The Stolen Picassos ...are here to stay! 

 http://thestolenpicassos.bandcamp.com/album/the-stolen-picassos
https://www.facebook.com/thestolenpicassos?ref=bookmarks
This is a recording project masterminded by Dave "US" Martin and helped see the light of day with me on long weekends with Dave driving in from Illinois to have intense recording sessions before the weekend is over!
The first album is finish (see the bandcamp.com page) and the second is going to be recorded in April...probably?
There is also talk of a third one also being recorded in 2015...because we're either on fire or crazy ...or both!

My Famous Mistake


https://myfamousmistake.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/myfamousmistake/info?tab=page_info
Glen and I have finished the first ep (also available on bandcamp.com) and I think we may be finished with the second?
I don't know, because right now he's on some cruise ship getting scurvy.


The Fairly Secret Army 

 
  http://thefairlysecretarmy.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Fairly-Secret-Army/212116618857529
Well, it was a good run. We have one last album (still working on those damn vocals) and then that is done.
Greg now has three kids, so I won't be doing any music with him for at least 12 years.
The last album "Bombs Away" I think may be the best? It will have an awesome cover by Bernie Mireault, so what's not to like? Oh yeah, you haven't heard it ...believe me, it's gonna rock!

Waves of Mercury

 
 http://wavesofmercury.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/wavesofmercurymn
There was talk about re-recording the Thousands Suns album, but kids and my non-interest of metal has ended that.


David Edward & the Same Difference

Yep, I choke Bears!
 
This is the "solo" project! It's slow going, but I have one song finished and about five or six partial songs written.
This is so new, it doesn't have a facebook or bandcamp page!


Stay tuned.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

WAVES OF MERCURY "AS SEASONS FLEET" NOW AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD!

Available now for download! On bandcamp.com http://wavesofmercury.bandcamp.com/album/as-seasons-fleet

AS SEASONS FLEET by WAVES OF MERCURY

Four tracks for a pay-what-you-want digital album.
This is our collaboration with British writer Antony Johnston, a New York Times bestseller whose work includes videogames like "Dead Space" and
"ZombiU", and comic books such as "Daredevil" and "Wasteland".
This is the first, but hopefully not the last album with Antony, who wrote all the lyrics, worked with David on vocal arrangements and also designed the cover and booklet.

Monday, August 26, 2013

GATHERING HORSES SINGLE NOW AVAILABLE!

Download it for free at bandcamp!


http://thefairlysecretarmy.bandcamp.com/album/gathering-horses

Friday, August 23, 2013

New Fairly Secret Army single and Waves of Mercury ep almost done!!!

The artwork is now done for the Fairly Secret Army single "Gathering Horses"

One of my favorite comic artists, Bernie Mireault (The Jam & Grendel...and his great new graphic novel To Get Her) has finished the artwork for the single and it's amazing. It really captures the mood of these two songs...and there may be a third song...a cover song! But I won't hold my breath.
Bernie is also providing the art for the next full length FSA cd called "Bombs Away." I look forward to see the finished image, because he was going to alter the original to suit this album.
It's amazing when someone you admire is willing to provide such great talent and also is a super nice guy!

And speaking of super nice guys, Antony Johnston (writer of the Wasteland comic,and the upcoming Umbral series with artist Christopher Mitten) not only wrote all the lyrics for the Waves of Mercury ep "as Seasons Fleet", but he's also been hard at work with cover layouts. We've kind of hit a bump, because I am (as Greg called me) a "picky bitch."
We thought we had a cover image, but I thought we should maybe look more.
The image and layout is good, but it just doesn't have that "wow" factor for me...yet?

I just finished adding vocals for the Autumn and Winter songs, and I hope they sound good loud and without headphones, but it's really late and I can't crank music when my roommate is sleeping...yet my dogs just started barking for no reason?

Until next time...

STAY ROCK!

Sunday, May 19, 2013

SOMETIMES THINGS AREN'T QUITE WHAT THEY SEEM?

I could say a LOT of stuff here, but I won't.

Change is healthy.

And sometimes you just need to walk away from things.

That is all...




...until I get snarky.