"Muse" - ings on Rock & Life

First things first... finally got the ipod charged up and loaded with all of the new music I've imported in the last week.  Feels good to have that done, it's been on my mind for the last few days. Got down to business on the resource bookshelf today.  Initially, I tried to find a box (we're moving in a month and a half, there are a lot of them in the house right now) that would hold my file folders that I picked up yesterday.  Was unsuccessful in that regard.  Everything was either too shallow or not quite wide enough.  What I'll probably end up doing is just buying a file cabinet once we get to Dubuque.  Saw some cheap-ish ones (price-wise) when we were out yesterday.  Besides, why buy it here and then have to turn around and move it?  Still, I managed to sort through a lot of the magazines that were on the shelf, and some obvious categories (i.e. stuff on lead guitar, rhythm guitar, etc.) started to come forward.  Moved some of those things from the shelf to an ext

I got my song ideas transferred over from the legal pad that got destroyed into the notebook from last fall's Grohl Challenge.  Now everything is all in one place, which, ultimately, will be a good thing for my songwriting. The other big thing that had been on my list for the day was to go through everything sitting on my bookshelf of resources, and try and put things into a more solid semblance of order that would help me in the next month and a half, but also going forward into the new studio in Dubuque.  Well, I didn't get through the shelf, but I did get out and grab myself some file folders to assist in the organization process.  The added bonus here is that I've got the entire day tomorrow to work on putting those file folders to use. Other things on my list for tomorrow: 1) A solid practice session 2) More reading of guitar mags 3) Finding a good place to temporarily store all of the music I've picked up recently 4) Research on the future recording setup

One of the things on my list for today was to start wading through the guitar magazines I've picked up recently.  Got that process started tonight, and in so doing stumbled across a column in the latest issue of Guitar World that fits in nicely with some of the stuff I've been working on lately.  Written by Andy Aledort, it's a column on incorporating scales into your practice routine. One of the things on my list for the weekend is to do more sorting and sifting through all of the resources I've got here, and try to get things into feasible groupings for study.  I've started doing this before, but have never made it through everything. Did some more looking into Pro Tools today.  More research (and perhaps more saving) needs to be done before I solve it exactly.  I need to make sure that everything I get ties in with everything I already have. One other thing to mention tonight.  You know that old phrase, "if you always do what you've always done, yo

So, I remembered to email that bit of lyric to myself today.  Still liked it this morning when I saw it on paper, and that is always a litmus test for me. Got to sit down at the end of the day with a guitar for a bit, too, and try to work through some musical ideas that have been festering for the last 36 hours or so.  To my great joy, I found that the things that had festered were ideas that actually worked. I also discovered that one of the cats got sick all over the legal pad I've been using to jot down song ideas since the beginning of the year.  It's going to be salvageable, but I haven't taken the time as of yet to re-copy everything into a different notebook. Have I mentioned, however, that I am beyond ecstatic to soon have a room for my musical endeavors that they can't terrorize?  Hooray for what will be a peaceful, and well organized space for the creation of rock & roll. That's really all for today.  So glad that tomorrow is Friday, and that I

 I started writing lyrics today.  Got a couple of lines in my head on the way to work, and had to keep muttering them to myself until I got to my station and could write them down.  I bet my co-workers thought I was going insane, but I don't care, because I like the lines I got.  My only downfall was leaving them written down on the legal pad at work instead of bringing them home so I could work on them some more.  It was just a few lines, but it spoke to something larger that I think will show up quickly when I actually sit down to work it out. Taught today, too.  The student that I really wish would take lessons on a weekly basis, because progress seems to come easier in smaller chunks.  I scaled back what I'd normally give her this time around, just to see if the progress is improved next time. I realized something amazingly nerdy about myself today as well, and it needs sharing here, because, well, it's musical.  I love the essays in the liner notes of "Greates

Taught today.  My student was a lot more focused this week than she has been for a while, which was impressive to me.  We covered a lot of ground, and I ended up giving her a lot to work on in the next week.  One of my favorite moments of the week got a chance to happen tonight: while my student was unpacking her guitar and getting her stuff in order, I had a minute, maybe two, to sit and play with whatever chords happened to be underneath my fingers at that moment.  Tonight it was a progression that had the capo at the 7th fret.  The back story here is simply that we had been taking a look at "Here Comes The Sun" last week, and so that seemed to me like a logical place to begin.  Anyway, I found a cool sound in an A minor shape that led into a G chord.  Another one of my patented flashes of something that has yet to be fleshed out in a concrete manner. Played a bit of electric tonight, too, once I got home.  It was nice to have both the acoustic and the electric in my hand

Kept on importing music tonight.  Got the live Isbell record, the Dishwalla single, and the Ted Leo disc loaded into itunes tonight.  I'm going to have some serious listening to do in the next few days.  What I know for sure, in that regard, is that the Kurt Vile disc is going to be required stereo listening.  The songs are long-form, which doesn't scream "car record" or "ipod listen" to me at all. Started in on a list of songs and influences from early in my playing years.  A lot of that stuff (Simon & Garfunkel, Sister Hazel, Buddy Holly, etc.) has gotten pushed to the wayside over the years, and with the new space coming in a few months, I really want to be able to touch on everything that inspires me in the new studio, make it all accessible so that it all gets focused on. One of the things I forgot to mention over the weekend was the Guitar Center Sessions episode that featured Alkaline Trio!  The performances were awesome, but it was even coole

Started getting some of the new music imported tonight.  Got the new Isbell, and the new Kurt Vile dropped into itunes.  I'm kinda pumped about everything I've picked up recently.  Heard great reviews on the new Isbell, and Kurt Vile is someone I've heard hyped for a while now. In other news (that I forgot to mention the other day), I have seen the future music room, and I know (at least somewhat) how everything is going to be set up!  The closet in said room is big enough that I will be able to put a couple of bookshelves inside of it to hold all of my music resources.  One wall will have all of the CDs, and one corner of the studio will have the recording gear/computer setup.  Somewhere in there I need to find room for a work table and a TV to watch all of my music DVDs on.  I'm positive it can all be done, but having at least a few of the details out of the way is a good feeling. I teach twice this next week, Tuesday & Wednesday.  That'll be great, but I&

So, I've been playing guitar since the mid 90's, and I've been experiencing something the last week or so that I had never run into before: guitar tuner envy.  One of my students has one of these guitar tuners that you can clip onto the headstock of your guitar, and they were so awesome that I had to go out and get one of them for myself. We hit Sioux City today, and I found new issues of Guitar World and Guitar Techniques.   I also snagged an acoustic blues DVD and booklet pack that GT put out recently.  Acoustic blues is a genre that I don't have much on, so it's cool that I now have at least one resource on that. B&N had there "buy 2, get the 3rd one free" sale going on, so I picked up a couple of albums and a DVD: 1) Mule Variations - Tom Waits 2) The River - Bruce Springsteen Also, Living In The Material World , the George Harrison documentary done by Martin Scorsese. Then at FYE I snagged the Drive-By Truckers best of that came out tw

Just got in from Dubuque.  Exhausted.  That said, here's what I found at Moondog: 1) Southeastern - Jason Isbell 2) Wakin' On A Pretty Daze - Kurt Vile 3) Counting Blue Cars (CD Single) - Dishwalla 4) Yeezus - Kanye West and I ordered 5) Blunderstone Rookery - Stephen Kellogg which they are shipping to the house, and should be here in the next few days.  Not too bad, all things considered. That being said, I'm beat.  More tomorrow, and better, as always.

The Mrs. Chided me today for doing too much reading and not enough playing.  She threatened to take away my access to all books, and put me in a room with my acoustic and not much else.  I’ll be honest, I’m sorta having a hard time finding the downside with this plan.  How many times have I stated that, if left to my own devices with a guitar, a notebook, and a pen, I could have at least the music for a full record done in fairly short order. I’ve finally decided to hold off on importing anything music-wise until at least the end of the weekend.  Trips to Dubuque and Sioux City will offer a chance to find more music, and therefore have more to upload.  Makes sense, at least on some level, right? Heading straight out after work tonight, so there won’t be much time for playing tonight.  I promise, though, that there will be an update tomorrow night when we get home.

So there's finally a release date for the new Deer Tick record.  The new disc, titled Negativity , comes out September 24th.  The review at Direct Current has me pumped for the album... not that it would take much to get me up for a Deer Tick record.  Still, here's the review: http://www.directcurrentmusic.com/dc-music-news-feed/2013/6/18/deer-tick-feeling-the-negativity-on-september-24-album-strea.html We head to Dubuque tomorrow for a short excursion.  In said excursion will be a stop at Moondog Records, where I hope to find two things: 1) Southeastern - Jason Isbell 2) Blunderstone Rookery - Stephen Kellogg Didn't get much else of note accomplished tonight.  Had great expectations, and nothing concrete ever materialized. Family in town this weekend, but I'll do my best to be productive.  More tomorrow.

Got the Mellencamp/Stephen King/T-Bone Burnett soundtrack to The Ghosts Of Darkland County imported into itunes today.  First step in assimilating everything that was purchased a week ago.  A week ago .  I've been slacking this week. Taught a wildly unfocused student today, but got through to her a bit at the end of the lesson, with a classic Beatles tune.  Was good to get through to her, even if it took a little while. Played tonight when I got home, too, and was able to sort out the song idea I had last night!  At least when it came to the music for the verses.  Not sure if it'll work with the lyric I stumbled onto yesterday, but that will come when it's ready to.  It was still nice to be able to sit down and play at the end of the day and feel like I made some progress. No lesson tomorrow, but lots to do.  Still, I'll find a way to do some playing and get a little farther down the road to my goals.  Might even get a bit more music imported, too.

Today was an interesting day, not necessarily in terms of how much got done music-wise, but more in terms of what I got out of today. Lyrics have been so very hard to come by for months now, and to get anything at all, even the couple of lines that I was able to string together today, feels like an accomplishment at this point.  Is every single bit of what I got today perfect?  No, of course not, but one of the lines is dynamite, I think, and that's where it starts, with a single flash of an idea.  Something that can be a building block for the rest of the song. Considering the lyric, one would have thought I'd find the time to sit down with the acoustic tonight, see if the words would lead to anything musical in nature.  For whatever reason, that didn't happen tonight.  I teach tomorrow, though, so if nothing else I'll steal a few minutes before my lesson starts to try and work on it. All told, today could've used more playing, and more listening than I got a

Today was a somewhat productive day that, at the end of it, just felt... weird. I finished watching the Brandi Carlile gig from Red Rocks.  The rest of it was just as amazing as what I watched yesterday.  It really does need to be released on DVD at some point, because I need to own it.  Sitting and watching truly takes you back to actually seeing her live, and that, to me, is what a great concert film is supposed to do. Started my morning with a bit of listening.  My mornings go so much better when they start with music. Spent a lot of tonight with the acoustic in my hands.  At first I was playing through some of the chord progressions that have made their way into the beginning of songs of late.  I really like what I have, but it's obvious that I haven't spent as much time writing as I need to in the last couple of months, because getting something from the pieces I have to being anything resembling a finished song just wasn't happening.  The spark is there, but the

Finished the Springsteen biography today.  In the end, it was a little light on the years since The Rising was released in 2002, and even that album got what felt like the short end of the stick.  Somehow, it feels to me like, if you're writing a book on Bruce Springsteen, you should get as many pages as you need to have in order to do everything justice.  The first 90% of the book I had no qualms about whatsoever.  The last 10%, I could've used a little less rushing through, and a little more back story.  Still, though, a pretty good read, and a lot more informative than the last bio of him that I read. Watched some music on TV today, too.  The Brandi Carlile performance at Red Rocks.  Got through about two thirds of it, and it's amazing.  It needs to be released as a DVD at some point in the future.  I'll definitely be finishing up the rest of it tomorrow. Also on the schedule for tomorrow: more listening and playing than has been done in the last couple of days,

Up past page 300 in the Springsteen bio. Recorded a few concerts off of DirecTV tonight.  One by KT Tunstall, who has a new record coming out sometime this year. The other is Brandi Carlile performing at Red Rocks!  Can't wait to watch this.  Didn't do it tonight, if only because I was worn out after work and wanted to save it until I had more energy and focus. I work in the morning, but I'm hoping to find a bit of time in the afternoon to not only finish up (I hope) the Springsteen book, but also to put some time in with a guitar in my hands, working through song ideas. Aside from a few moments to sit and listen today, there wasn't much going on music-wise. Tomorrow afternoon needs to be awesome.

So, one of the things about this Springsteen bio that has been a lot of fun is reading about his writing process.  The constant drafts that everything goes through (lyrics, mostly, but music as well in certain spots).  It's gotten me in the head space to watch his documentaries on Darkness On The Edge Of Town and Born To Run again.  So many scenes in those films have Bruce sitting with an acoustic guitar, just playing through little bits of song, and talking about the motivation behind the songs.  It got me to pick up the acoustic for a bit before work this morning, and that's always a good thing. Truthfully, I feel bad for the acoustic.  Most days, it sits in the stand, half hidden in the corner, hoping to be picked up.  I know I've said it before, but it bears repeating.  I need to be better about not always reaching for my Strat.  One of the reasons I'm excited to have a studio space in Dubuque is simply the chance to have a room to set up the way that it needs to

Taught today.  Teach again tomorrow.  Should be a fun couple of days in that regard.  Working through chords with my Wednesday student.  She's making progress.  Somewhat slow, but definitely steady.  I think a lot of that has to do with only having a lesson every other week, but as with all things, we make do with the opportunities we are given. Curious to see progress in tomorrow's lesson, as well.  Rescheduled from Tuesday this week. Started the day off with some of the Springsteen bio.  Very nearly halfway through that, which is pretty good considering I didn't pick it up at all tonight. Haven't imported any of the new stuff I found in Sioux City yesterday yet.  Hopefully tomorrow, more likely this weekend. Sat down and played for a little bit, but it wound up as noodling more than anything approaching coherence.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better for that as well.

Today was an interesting combination of things I found musically, and things I didn't. The Found: 1) A capo for my student who has a lesson tomorrow 2) A live record by Jason Isbell 3) A record by Ted Leo 4) The soundtrack/DVD combo for the long-awaited John Mellencamp/Stephen King musical The Not Found: 1) Southeastern , the new studio record by Jason Isbell, that came out today. 2) Fretboard Roadmaps for Guitar (they had one for bass and one for mandolin) 3) Any sort of guitar magazine.  Seems like it has been long enough for new issues, but I guess not. Just a weird hodgepodge of a day.  Got farther in the Springsteen bio, though.  Almost on page 200. Hopefully tomorrow has a bit more structure to it.

It seems like, with every day that goes by, one more piece of my musical puzzle just drops into place.  Today it was a series of resources that I got when I took lessons with a guy in Kaukauna, WI about 10 years ago.  He was primarily a jazz guy, but he hooked me up with a lot of good resources, and helped give me a push when I needed it.  Had I been able to keep taking lessons from him, who knows where my playing would be right now. Anyway, one of the really cool things he passed on to me was a chart that he had made up, showing all of the scale degrees in about 25 of the most important scales.  I stumbled across it the other day when I was sorting through some stuff and practicing some scales.  It immediately went into the binder of stuff I want to focus in on. New releases this week that might be awesome include records by Jason Isbell, Black Sabbath, Joseph Arthur, and Goo Goo Dolls, among others.  Got tomorrow afternoon off, and we're headed into Sioux City, so a stop at B

Busy day today.  That means a list of things tonight, instead of the usual format. 1) Helped out with that recording project at the church today, except that, instead of running the board, I wound up doing some voice work instead.  It was fun.  The Mrs. said I was "incredible," so go me. 2) Got through another 50+ pages in the Springsteen bio.  Really enjoying that. 3) Had a good chance to play today.  Worked through some scales, and then made my way through a bit of a big lesson on the CAGED system from an issue of GT .  It was a great day for playing that could've used another hour in it. 4) Had time for some listening as well.  Probably about an hour, all told, but I spent a lot of it jumping around from artist to artist.  It was nice to have more patience for the playing side of things today, as opposed to the listening side of things. On the downside, I didn't really get to anything songwriting-wise today.  Oh well, there's always tomorrow. 

So, I've been saying it for a couple of days now, but today was the day I finally made a substantial dent in the Springsteen bio I checked out from the library in Sioux City.  I had read another, lesser biography on The Boss a good number of years ago now, but what amazes me so far about this one is the level of detail that the author put into it.  Only about 100 pages in right now, but Bruce by Peter Ames Carlin is a great read so far. When I didn't have my nose in a book today, I either had headphones in my ears, was watching something music-related on TV, or had a guitar in my hands. I saw a bit of a Guitar Center Sessions episode this afternoon that featured One Republic.  I'm not familiar with their music, but the performances I caught really struck me, and the interview segments were really stellar.  Very well spoken, and good stories.  I'll have to investigate them a bit, I think. Played some today, as I mentioned, but didn't really work on my own song

Today was a hodgepodge sort of day, where a lot of little things came together to form a day full of musical awesomeness. 1) Downloaded a free album by a band called Green River Ordinance.  I've heard them mentioned a lot in the last year or so, but haven't sat down and listened to any of their stuff as of yet.  I figure that a free record is an invitation to die in and see if I like what I hear. 2) Got an email from Acoustic Guitar today that has a clip of Kaki King playing and discussing her approach to tunings, among other things.  I've been fascinated with her music since I discovered that she played all of the guitar parts in the movie "August Rush."  I've only eer picked up one record of hers, but I love the musical ideas that she puts forth. 3) Speaking of downloads, American Songwriter sent me a link with a code for 7 days of free downloads from a website called Video Blocks.  I'll have to do some investigating, but it seems like there might

Taught a make-up lesson tonight for Tuesday's missed lesson.  It wound up going on a bit longer than any of us had expected, but in the end that was okay considering we had missed the last two weeks between the two of us.  Having gotten my student at least somewhat comfortable with the basics, I'm now trying to impart the importance of dynamics and touch into her playing.  Not sure I was successful tonight, but I'll get there.  Took Grinning Streak in the car with me for the trip to and from work.  Still loving it. I've got a chance to help out with a recording project this weekend.  They need some voices recorded for a play that's happening at the church next week, and the pastor is unavailable to help with recording, so we're tracking the spoken lines using my studio, presumably on Saturday. So glad to be off at 5 tomorrow.  I need to spend some time playing and reading and studying this weekend, and having the two full days of the weekend to make some p

So, yeah, Grinning Streak showed up tonight.  After I got home from work, but hey, at least it showed up today.  I put it on the stereo after dinner... first time I've done that with a record in a very long time.  When their last album came out, three years ago, I thought it was okay, but not up to their usual standard.  Looking back, that was understandable.  Steven Page had just left the band, they were undertaking the transformation from a 5 piece group to a 4 piece group, things were just flat out heavy for them at that point.  "Wait for the next one," I told anyone who would listen, "the next record will be epic."  Well, it took them three years, but they proved me right.  The new disc is a major return to form, with a good number of acoustic flavored pop numbers mixed in throughout the albums twelve tracks.  Favorites among those include the lead single, "Boomerang," "Odds Are," and "Give It Back To You," the last of whi

Didn't end up teaching tonight.  After being sick last week, my student had to miss tonight's lesson because of illness.  It's a shame, too, I was excited to show her the picking pattern for the verses of "Set Fire To The Rain," that would help to differentiate it from the choruses (which, to my ear, need to be more fully strummed).  They're hoping to reschedule for later in the week, fingers crossed that whatever they have is easier to kick than what I've had. Read a little bit more of the Springsteen bio tonight, but have still barely scratched the surface on that.  I'll need to shift into higher gear if I'm going to make a decent dent in it or finish it by the time it's due back. Didn't sit down with all of the song ideas tonight, but I sat down and worked out verses on the latest of the ideas.  It's coming together slowly, but only because I haven't spent all that much time with it the last few days.  I keep saying it over a

Finally got around to starting that Springsteen biography I checked out from the library in Sioux City.  I've only had it for a week already.  Truth is that I sat down today to look at what my reading goals were for the month, and they are lofty.  The Boss felt like a good place to start. Just got confirmation that my copy of Grinning Streak , the new BNL disc has shipped.  Allegedly it will be here on Wednesday.  It's not quite release date, but it's close enough at this point, considering I've got to work on the day the record drops. Didn't really have a ton of time to play tonight.  That will change tomorrow, what with lessons and all.  Can't wait to die back into teaching.  Being sick last week makes it feel like it has been forever .  My student was working on "Set Fire To The Rain" last time we got together, so we shall see how that's coming along. Voice performances were pretty great tonight, too. More tomorrow, and better, I promise

Today was a day that some would say I "slipped up," or "dropped the ball," but I'm trying not to look at it that way. We got a lot done around the house today, and in the process, I cleared out and organized a few spots that had been on my list for a long time.  Found some CDs that I had almost forgotten about, as well as some pretty cool music resources I had sent away for, and a couple of guitar magazines that I never got the chance to page through before they got swallowed by the runaway area that has become my desk.  For that reason alone, I'm glad we're moving to a place where a whole room will be dedicated to my music.  I'm so excited to have the chance to set things up and organize them the way I want to. I did manage to get in a bit of playing tonight, but it was far from the extended block that I had been hoping for. My thought right now is this: before we move in August, I want to have the music nailed down for what, at that point, wi

Tonight was one of those great nights where I sat down with the guitar for maybe half an hour, and knocked out a couple of song ideas that have me pumped up going into tomorrow.  It was one of those days where a few breaks here and there have me excited to be feeling mostly better, and with a full day off in front of me to sit down and play/sort through everything I had hoped to shore up last weekend . For what was supposed to be a "short" week coming off of a holiday, I sure feel like nothing has gone according to plan all week long, both from a musical perspective and otherwise. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, when I can start my day with some listening, and then move from there into practicing/playing/songwriting.  Either way, tomorrow needs to have a solid chunk of what in a few months will be more aptly titled "studio time."