"Muse" - ings on Rock & Life

Today was a day for discographies. At least, for me it was. I finished off one (Uncle Tupelo) and started another (Justin Townes Earle). Having seen JTE open for the Decemberists, this step was a logical one for me. As for the Uncle Tupelo, it probably would've taken me quite some time to notice I was missing one of their records had R. not asked me the other day if I had everything they had ever done. When I discovered that I was missing their all acoustic 3rd album ( March 16-20,1992 ) and happened to notice that it could be mine for ten bucks, I ordered it. Now I have all of Uncle Tupelo, and all of Wilco. All that remains is the rest of Son Volt (I already own Trace). Played a bit of electric before work this morning. It's been a long week, and for me, it's more than half over. The musisc is pushing me through this week, and that's about all that's doing it.

Today was an interesting day, music-wise. It started early, with me continuing to go through some of the stuff I had been sorting from the night before. Very quickly, however, it turned into a day for discussions on the emotional meaning of music. I had a conversation, if, that is, you can call something a conversation that happens via text message and e-mail, with R. regarding a song ("Goodbye Horses") that was originally rumored to be on the new Airborne Toxic Event record... I know, I've mentioned it practically every day this week. Anyway, she found some info on the song (which didn't make the record), and proceeded to e-mail me the link. It prompted an e-mail response from me that felt like a big moment for me as I was writing it. Here's the original link: http://www.theairbornetoxicevent.com/news/goodbye-william.html and here is my reply: Wow... He's right, you know, regardless of what we all feel we know (or don't know) about each other, we al

So, it took me a while after work, but I finally got around to just diving headlong into all of the collected musical "stuff" that I've set aside, or tabbed for use in my ever-evolving plan for learning/eventual teaching. Last night's posting must have gotten through to me, or something. I got tired of being pulled in so many directions. It dawns on me that feeling pulled is different from doing things on many differing fronts. It all comes down to owning it, and making sure that everything needing to be focused on actually has a bit of attention paid to it. Listened to some of the Dawes record, and some of the Middle Brother as I was sifting through the piles of musical goodness. I guess the acoustic phase continues. I'm trying to be deliberate and objective in the choosing of the materials. It's sort of working thus far. The tiredness is settling in. Hopefully I can get a bit more done before I pass out. Another mid tomorrow, so again I can hope to get s

I did manage to get up early enough this morning to spend at least a few minutes playing before I had to run off to work. In spite of the new Airborne Toxic record, I've still been listening to more acoustic-based stuff than anything else lately. In that regard, I'm trying to make sense of what to use in the acoustic side of my official practice plan. Still, I've found myself sitting with the electric at the end of the day. I'm feeling myself being pulled all over the place musically, of late, in case it wasn't obvious. I know there's so much to do, that I get stuck looking at it all and wondering where to begin, as opposed to just diving in and getting started on everything. Despite the work schedule this week, I still feel like it can set up well for me to actually get somewhere concrete by next Wed./Thurs. (my next days off), so I'm going to challenge myself to think less, worry less, and do more between now and then. Because if I can make that happ

Picked up the new record by Airborne Toxic Event today. Listened to the whole thing in the car after I bought it. It's good stuff. Sounds like them, but lets their sound grow a bit. There's a bit more synth in the new record than there was in the first one, and there is definitely more of an acoustic presence on the new disc. Where the first album was a blast of energy from beginning to end, the second album seems to flow a bit more, and have some more distinct shifts in feeling and tone. It does what a second record ought to, maintain the identity of the band, while opening up what is musically possible. I spent some time with the acoustic this morning, running some scales, playing a few cover songs, and just relaxing, and then spent some time tonight with the electric side, doing some of the same, but trying to bring in a few ideas from the Haynes DVD. I have yet to go back and examine the DVD in its entirety, but I am enjoying focusing on the concepts he presents early on,

I finally cracked open that Warren Haynes DVD tonight. I've only watched a little bit of it thus far, but it seems to be quite excellent. He takes things slowly, and talks them through as he goes, and the examples are both tabbed out (in the corresponding booklet) and shown in a few places on the screen. I've played along on acousitc tonight, because it was the closest guitar to me, but just in following along for a bit, it's helping with control. Can't wait to crank it up with the electric tomorrow! Also, stopped at Half Price Books today to trade in the single disc DVD of I Am Trying To Break Your Heart . Didn't need it anymore, since I now have the deluxe edition with the bonus disc. While I was there, I thumbed through their music reference stuff, as I always do, and found Rikky Rooksby's book on creating guitar riffs. I've already got his stuff on songwriting and alternate tunings, so this should make a welcome addition to my music book library. Just

Learned, or rather uncovered, something I should have just known tonight. Having raved for over a month now about the Middle Brother record, I finally got a friend of mine hooked on it. We were going through (or trying to, anyway) the lyrics for the album tonight, and discovered that one of the songs ("Portland") is actually a Replacements tune. Considering that both of us worship at the altar of Paul Westerberg, how we both missed this fact is beyond me. I'm thinking that the next couple of days (both off) will have some electric in them. Firstly, because I am STILL needing to delve into that Warren Haynes DVD. Secondly, because I really, really need to work on both the old solo stuff and the hard rock stuff. And thirdly, because I want to squirrel away some time for Vai's 30 hour guitar workout. Maybe not the entire 30 hours in one shot, but still... Also, I really hope that at least a bit of that Haynes DVD gives me some insight into how he plays "I'll

There are exactly 100 days remaining before the end of the first year of this experience. Somehow that doesn't seem entirely possible to me. Picked up the one Jason Isbell record I didn't have today... the order finally came in. Now all I'm waiting for is the other two Decemberists records, the live Brandi Carlile album (which isn't due out until the 3rd of May), and the lone Uncle Tupelo record I don't have yet. Also, the new record by the Airborne Toxic Event is due out Tuesday, so I'll likely be snapping that one up as well. As far as the playing goes today, I had time for a few minutes here and there, mostly this morning, but nothing terribly concrete. Tomorrow after work is shaping up to be the first run through of the Warren Haynes DVD, though, so that should be cool.

I got that music delivered this morning, AND managed to make it to Guitar Center. They had the Warren Haynes DVD, so I picked that up straightaway, and was intending to head home tonight and pop it in the player. I wound up hanging out with a friend who was in from out of town after work tonight, so the DVD hasn't been checked out yet, but I'm positive that it will get at least a cursory watch before the weekend is out, and I can almost guarantee that it will be more fully explored Monday & Tuesday when I am off. Today, admittedly, was another long one, with almost no time to myself. This translates into the fact that I didn't have all that much time to play today, aside from a few minutes before I left the house. It's been a bit of a rough patch lately, time-wise, I know. On the plus side, I DID get to listen to Wilco's most recent record all the way through in the car while running errands today, so that was excellent. Oh, and R. saw The National & A

Why does it seem like the days I try to plan out for maximum music time never seem to go the way I plan them? I stayed late at work today, trying to solve a problem I couldn't solve, then I had an urgent errand to run that took time away from the Guitar Center run I had hoped to make after work. I ended up spending some time burning CDs for a friend taking a road trip tomorrow, and playing a bit of acoustic. That said, I didn't get to enough music for my blood with my afternoon off, so I'm going to attempt to restructure yesterday's hopes for today into something that might work for tomorrow. Here's the plan: 1) Get up early enough that I can work on a bit of Satriani's 30 Hour Guitar Workout. 2) Drop off CDs for said friend in the morning (hopefully between 9 and 10). 3) Swing by Guitar Center on the way back, but before work at noon. 4) Sort those CDs after I get done with work at 8:30. Long day... time to go listen to something quiet and try to fall as

I worked late today, which gave me the morning to do a little bit of playing before going in. It was more Decemberists stuff at first, and slowly evolved into a bit of playing in an attempt to write something. Admittedly, the whole writing thing didn't go so well today, but I suspect that's because I'm still in some sort of post-show hangover. I want to write, I'm inspired to write and play, but I'm terribly leery of having everything come out sounding like the show I just attended. That said, I have tomorrow afternoon/evening completely free, and if I'm smart, I really ought to make time to go back through my old solo stuff, so I can have a solo/some solos to send off to J. I keep meaning to work on that, and keep getting subsequently distracted by other things. Other things I ought to do tomorrow afternoon include: 1) Going to Guitar Center to see if that Warren Haynes DVD is still there. 2) Sorting in, or trying to find space for all the new stuff I

Wow. Just wow. People had been telling me about the Decemberists for years now, and they were always on my list of bands to "get around to." It seems they ended up getting to me first, but I guess that's okay sometimes. I don't know exactly what I was expecting going in, but it wasn't what I got, by any stretch of the imagination. It was better. Somehow, I wasn't expecting Colin Meloy to have such fantastic stage presence. I knew that they had a multitude of multi-instrumentalists, but we got fiddle, slide guitar, dobro, accordion, organ, both acoustic & electric guitars, and both electric & stand-up bass. Oh, and drums. Musically, they were astounding. As posted online after the gig, here's what they played: SETLIST - 4/18 - University of Iowa - Iowa City, IA Oceanside Calamity Song Rox in the Box Rise to Me The Soldiering Life The Sporting Life The Wanting Comes In Waves/Repaid Grace Cathedral Hill All Arise! Down by the Water Thi

Off to Iowa City for the Decemberists... not sure when I'll get home, and wanted to post something for today. Concert review to come!

Apparently today is Beatle-y in nature. Discovered something cool on Netflix. It's a 3 hour documentary on Lennon & McCartney and their songwriting from '66-70. I watched a little bit of it before falling asleep in the very early morning hours, and it seems really cool. Maybe Tuesday I can actually sit down and watch the whole thing. Also, chatted with B. tonight, and the Beatles came up. She, apparently, has been listening to the White Album of late. That record was a puzzle for me when I bought it as a kid, but the older I get, the more amazing it becomes. Now that the turntable is fully operational, I should drag out my LP version of that record. Decemberists tomorrow. I probably ought to be listening to them instead, haha. Oh, I did pick up the acoustic for a few minutes before work, but it wasn't enough time to make a dent in much of anything. It was however, enough time to make my fingers happy, albeit briefly.

I've been sitting with the acoustic a lot in the evenings this week. It makes sense, I guess, I'm trying to put myself in the frame of mind to write songs, and the acoustic is the natural instrument for that. Got a couple of phrases that might make their way into some lyrics in the near future too. Electric stuff has seemed loud in my head lately. I'm sure that has something to do with it. It's okay for the car of late... I've got There Is Nothing Left To Lose by the Foo Fighters in the CD player, but other than that, anything loud has been too much. Inside the apartment, or on the ipod, I've been listening to the Isbell stuff, Middle Brother, acousitc Black Crowes, and old Tom Waits. Mumford & Sons fits in there too. What's weird is that, I really want to work on my lead stuff and my electric playing. I've started diving into the Decemberists stuff a bit, and I'm really enjoying it. R. had said that it was more about sound than it was about

So, R. stopped by work tonight to drop off the two Decemberists discs she has, so that I can listen this weekend. Can't believe that show is Monday already! From what I understand, there's no opening act, so that'll be... odd. I'm excited for the show, but curious as to the listening. I've never really heard much of the Decemberists stuff, so this ought to be fun. I got done with work at 8:30, but R. and I sat in cafe until 9:30 or so talking music. She, like me, can't get "Codeine" out of her head. Guess I'll be burning the Jason Isbell stuff for her. Ordered the one solo record of his I don't own today. Now I just need the records DBT made while he was in the band. I've been sitting with the acoustic since I got home. Not necessarily trying for any album stuff, but I wouldn't turn it down if it showed up either. Mostly, I've been strumming the chords for "Codeine," and waiting for inspiration to strike. Mis

Oh, Thursday, how similar you are to yesterday. Got home from work early today, and after a nap, I grabbed the acoustic, found the list of ideas for the hard rock stuff, and took a look at one of the progressions. It's an A minor progression, with a capo at 3, and it's something that I know will be cool for the band with a few adjustments. The more I sit with these ideas, the more I think that, when it's all said and done, we've got some interesting things that will make up a pretty cool record. Hopefully I'll be able to spend a bigger chunk of time with multiple ideas soon. Still no word from B., which may afford me a little bit of time, but still, I want to make more progress than I have before we really get started. Picked up the new Foo Fighters record today, as well as There Is Nothing Left To Lose, which was the only other one I didn't have. I've only checked out a few of the tracks on the new record, but it seems like the heaviest thing they have

It's funny, the way the pieces for this hard rock project are falling together. Falling together slowly, mind you, but falling together all the same. I was messing about with the electric this morning, and got what I originally thought to be a cool guitar riff. Upon further reflection, it was better suited to be a bassline, and I recorded it as such. Small bits that will eventually make something greater than the sum of their parts. Or so I hope. I haven't sat down with the acoustic yet to see what chords might go underneath said bassline, but tomorrow afternoon is looking wide open, so hopefully that will afford me a bit of time to do so. Come to think of it, I haven't really sat with the list of songs ideas for this project in quite some time, I really ought to do that tomorrow. Ooh, AND I ought to see what ideas the solo section from that old solo stuff provides me after god knows how many months off. I listened more than I played today, and at the end of the d

So, I was successful this morning in my attempt to have a guitar within reach at all times. I played for about 45 minutes before work, some scales, and some chordal things. I found an old scale primer that had gotten lost in the shuffle, and discovered it's actually pretty cool. It's a fun and easy way to dive into this whole lead thing, with the chord, the scale, and the arpeggio that is involved with each scale. I picked up some Jason Isbell tonight at work. He used to play guitar in Drive By Truckers, and is now making solo records (There are 3, I now have 2). It's always fun and dangerous to go through the new releases on a Tuesday. 1) Here We Rest 2) Sirens Of The Ditch Haven't gotten through both records yet, but there's an awesome song on Here We Rest called "Codeine" that's a highlight thus far. I previewed the new Foo Fighters record too, and that seems pretty spectacular. Dave Grohl is almost too disgustingly talented/lucky for wor

I started working through the lead guitar DVD tonight. I know I had played around with it some time ago, and it was nice ot get back to it. The first half an hour made my fingers loosen up more than they have been in a while. I did notice that, once I got a bit further into the exercises that are showed on the DVD, my fingers weren't fast enough. To me, that means I need to take the exercises at my own speed, and gradually increase it until I can match the DVD. I listened to almost all of the Florence + The Machine today while running my errands. It's good. A bit odd in places, and definitely something I want to spend some time with on the home stereo with the headphones, as opposed to listening in the car when I'm not totally focused on the record. One of the managers at work said that Florence was like "Taking Tori Amos and magnifying the weirdness by 10." I'm not sure I agree, but there were definitely some interesting moments. That album, at lea

So, I finally remembered to bring home that copy of "Lungs" by Florence + The Machine! Added something to it, as well. Another co-worker had bought "On Tour, Featuring Eric Clapton" by Delaney & Bonnie a few months back, taken it home, and decided they didn't like it. They passed it off to me, because I, as they put it, "collect" music. A quick note about the practice plan: One of the major things that will form the base structure is Steve Vai's 30 Hour Guitar Workout. I've had that at my disposal since 2004, and haven't really put it into use. I've always wanted to, but somehow it's never worked. It will work this time. Among other things that will be used are: the lead guitar DVD I got from Guitar World, and the article on the CAGED system that was in the latest issue of Guitar Techniques. Also, I want to cover my bases stylistically as well. I'm hoping to toss in some blues, classical, and definitely some sw

The highlight of my day, musically? That would be listening to Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in its entirety on a drive with a good friend. It's such a great record, and one that doesn't get experienced wholly often enough in my life. Makes me want to watch I Am Trying To Break Your Heart. I haven't done that since I found the deluxe edition. I feel badly that I didn't have much time to play today. I did pick up the acoustic this morning for a little bit, but not long enough to feel like I did anything of note. Picked up a couple of CDs... probably been doing too much of that, lately, but still. 1) Ode To Sunshine - Delta Spirit 2) North Hills - Dawes (it finally came in) Both of those purchases have stemmed from the discovery of the Middle Brother record. Also, they just put out a soundtrack from the first 5 seasons of Mad Men... pretty awesome if you ask me. It's an eclectic mix of music, but it's a great listen. If the show is half as good as the mu

It's been a very, very long time since I busted out a formal Top 5 list, but I think today is the day. Here's why: I finished going through all of the burned CDs tonight after I got home from work, and man oh man, was that ever a blast! I found stuff I hadn't heard in a long time, and a few things I completely forgot about, so, without further yammering, here's my Top 5 coolest things uncovered from the huge pile of burned CDs... in no particular order, as always. 1) An epic acoustic version of Ednaswap's "Torn" 2) Hank Williams Jr. & Kid Rock singing "In Country Music You Just Can't Say The 'F' Word" 3) "Jesus Just Left Chicago" by Gov't Mule... 9 and 1/2 minutes of solid awesome. 4) A complete album that I had recorded for a friend of a friend's band like, a decade ago. 5) The earliest possible hard rock demos that B. & I recorded. And finally, 6) Demos of song ideas that I don't remember

I feel better about today than I did about yesterday. Didn't get to Guitar Center for that DVD, but I did get some of the other stuff from yesterday done. Polished off the itunes project, got the burned CDs sorted and put away, and have spent a lot of the day at least pondering what to include in my practice plan. What else happened today? Ah yes, I sent off a message to J. this morning about getting started again, and heard back from him tonight. His message sounded positive. I suspect he could use the studio time, just the words in his message seemed stressed. He recapped where we sit... I'm due for some solo work, but he also said that he wanted to do a different mix, as he has burned himself out on the one we had. For me, this means that I really need to get the practice plan in order, and that it needs to include a lot of scales & lead work... as if I didn't know that already. Either way, now that it's been confirmed that both projects will require me to d

It took me a while to get started on my day, but when I did, I got a lot done. Didn't finish any one thing on my list from the other day, but I did get started on a few of them. I started sorting and trying to organize the burned stuff, I got most of the way through the album artwork/organizing in itunes, and I started debating on the organization for the practice regimen. I'm hoping to work on it some more before I fall asleep tonight. Starting a notebook to collect my thoughts and take note of which sources I want to use to form the base of the plan. I don't think I own enough Gov't Mule. I've always really enjoyed Warren Haynes' guitarwork, whether it was with the Allman Brothers, The Dead, or the Mule... and I absolutely love Warren's solo acoustic disc, Live At Bonnaroo . The reason I mention it tonight is because I discovered that he has a couple of instructional DVDs out there on electric blues & slide guitar. Allegedly Guitar Center has one of

So, a co-worker hooked me up with a copy of "Lungs" by Florence & The Machine today. Needless to say, I was pumped. Somehow, while that album has been on my radar, and on my list of things to check out ever since it came out in 2009, it hasn't yet made its way into my collection yet. Plus, I'm off for the next two days, so I would have had plenty of time (in between crossing things off my list) to absorb the greatness that everyone I know proclaims the album to be. Therefore, I was less than thrilled when I got home, only to discover that I left the CD at work. I've been sitting with the electric since I got home. Just noodling, nothing concrete yet practice-wise. It's been a busy stretch at work, so I figured I'd use tonight to get my fingers moving again, and start in on the hardcore practicing tomorrow morning sometime. I can't wait to actually set a routine in stone. I've been thinking about it all week. Now, I'm off to finish up vo

Is it bad that I'm already looking forward to tomorrow night? I've got this list in my head of all the musical stuff I want to get done during my Wednesday & Thursday off. Here it is. 1) Organize burned CDs and get them put into a case of some sort. 2) Go through everything I've bought new that hasn't yet been organized, and see if I can't find someplace to put it all. Then, find the vital stuff & import it. 3) Go through the iTunes for all the cover art that's still missing since the transfer, and all the albums where the track order is messed up because of the transfer. 4) Get in touch with J. & B. and see where things sit. 5) Work on the practice plan. 6) Work on the demos. With or without assistance from the other parties. That seems like a lot of stuff. Here's hoping I'm up for all of it! Oh, and.... 7) Put together a mini-set list (5-7) songs to mess around with.

Broke down and learned "Million Dollar Bill" today. I figured that, if I'm going to listen to it 25 times in a day, that a) I probably know it through osmosis, and b) if that's the case, I might as well just go through the song officially. It's a fairly easy song, but then again, the great ones always are... which kind of makes me wonder why it is that those of us writing songs always spend all this time dreaming up weird chords that never quite seem to end up working out. If we'd just stick with the tried and true, we might have more songs. Oh well. Sent a message to a friend today, saying that I'd discovered the "most heartbreakingly sad love song of the year," and then discovered that she had been listening to "Me Me Me," which is the single from the Middle Brother record. Weird, huh? Took some time tonight to go through all of the CDs that have wound up piled next to the racks that are already filled to overflowing with music. Most

Let's see, what went down today... I printed off guitar tabs for "Ol 55" and "I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You" Didn't have a lot of time to mess around with them, but played for a bit. Definitely songs I want to learn. So is the other one I printed out tonight, after hearing it on an in store play at work. The song's called "Million Dollar Bill," and it's on a record by a band called Middle Brother (I bought the album). It's three guys from other bands... John McCauley from Deer Tick, Taylor Goldsmith from Dawes, and Matt Vasquez from Delta Spirit. I'm familiar with both Deer Tick and Delta Spirit, but am not familiar with Dawes, although I will have to check them out, because "Million Dollar Bill" was written by Vasquez, and it's probably the saddest love song I've heard in a long time. Also, the new manager caught me singing as I was clocking out tonight, and said (sounding serious) that, instead

Lots of very random musical stuff today. Apparently, I hadn't sync'd my ipod since I got the new computer, so when I decided an hour before work that I really wanted to take the Tom Waits I just added to itunes with me, my ipod thought I should sync it with the "new" music library. Long story short, it did the whole 13,000+ library, and I felt very odd going to work sans music. Aside from that, I had fascinating discussions with my brother about some of the things he's been working on learning (mostly classical), and he went so far as to send me some mp3s of songs he's trying to learn, and name dropping the book he's learning from. This is helpful for someone who works in a bookstore. Just saying. Also, it got me thinking about my desire to learn a bit about Brian Setzer's playing, and his styles & approaches. He does some really cool stuff with swing, jazz, & blues, and it would be awesome to incorporate some of that into my playing. And