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Songs From Scratch Contest

Hey, so I spent all day working on this song for the Current's Songs from Scratch contest. Check it out HERE and you should totally submit it to be featured on the MPR site HERE just scroll to the bottom to check out featured videos. Hope you like it! I spent all freakin' day, and forgot to eat because of it. Now I am going to go eat a lot of foodstuffs.

My absence

Forgive the lack of updates recently. I have been rather distracted by a number of things - life if you will. I have been doing some sketching though. Trying to get the style I really want to use for the ARO down. I need to make sure I can keep it consistent. And the only way to accomplish this is to practice, practice...practice. But I believe I am getting closer to achieving my goal.

On top of writing countless ideas for lyrics and music for the ARO, I have also set out to enter a 89.3 the Current song contest. I have the music for it - now I just need the lyrics done. But it must be finished and recorded by the 31st. So I pretty much need to finish it this weekend. Then I would like to get started on one of the animations for the ARO - but I need to write a script and record the voice work. And I'll need Dan for that. One step at a time.

I played at one of my Director's Son's wedding reception this past weekend. Tony was out of town, so I took the job solo. There was stress galore before hand, and I almost went nuts and snapped - but I made it, and it was a beautiful reception, and I'm glad it is over. Having to learn cover songs is a totally bad idea for me. I just don't feel comfortable with it. I can't connect, and I get all nervous about screwing it up. And I only had a couple of my own songs to play (at least I had some, thank god), because lets face it - my song writing is not particularly of the happy-ever-after variety. They may be love songs, to a degree, but they are definitely...um...depressing. So I had to pick carefully - and even change some lyrics for the occasion. Anyhoo, like I said, it's done. And I think it went well, at least that was the feedback I got.

But I have a new goal with the writing process! Happy songs! =D Maybe it is something I need to expand and become more inspired. I mean, we do have some happy/fun songs too - but I need more of them. So this will be interesting.

In the mean time, I'll keep cracking away at whatever it is that I do and try to remember to post anything special that comes my way. I'll definitely add the 89.3 song on here, and I think I have some video from our release show I need to upload as well. Laters!

Here's a few...

All free hand - all out of my head - obvious influences.

Thank You's in order

I just wanted to thank everyone who came out to the show and made it quite a success - we couldn't continue to make music if it weren't for all of you who support us! It is turnouts like that, especially in small venues, that make every moment of running around like a chicken with my head cut off worth it. And also a big thank you to Dan Olmshenk for helping us whenever we need it. You rock man. Like I said, it was a wonderful success for planning a larger show - that keeps me very optimistic that it is possible for us to do this. We'll probably have a little break here to recuperate and get a few things in order - hopefully write some new material, and also get more of the rock opera put together. I'm also trying to throw together a showcase like show at the Acadia Cafe, with a bunch of fellow musicians - including Eli Ratner and Aaron Blum (who both did an awesome job btw).

In other news, I am also working on a series of digital drawings/paintings that will hopefully lead to some kind of gallery showing. Nothing big, just a nice little side project to show what I'm interested in (on top of every other freakin thing I'm working on). So of course there is no finish date set (although I hope it is by the end of the summer), I just can't commit enough time to side projects to ensure their completion in a timely matter. But I will throw a few preview sketches up here in a moment.

SO MUCH GOING ON! BUT THANKS AGAIN FOR YOUR SUPPORT =)

Screen Shot!

Here is a quick sneak at some of the cover art I am working on for the Rock Opera. Hope you like! =) It's all still IP

June 27th - CD RELEASE SHOW!