I'm also, after having set aside a chunk of money for awhile now, thinking of getting an ibanez RG3550MZ. But of what manner of looks?

( This )

I made these in a facebook "random fake album cover" meme. But now I am intrigued...



( and )

5. Miss Pennyfarthing
4. Mrs. Featherbottom
3. Professor Fluffenstuff
2. MTX-1132
1. Lady Periwinkle

Track of the Day for October 16, 2008 (ooo, the future!!!)

The subject line is not false humility. The track I posted, "Fires That Scortch The Desert," was a love-it-or-leave-it song. I figured the reviews would be polarized and they definitely were. I chose to post that track in particular because I was really curious what people would say. Anyway, I'm starting to think garageband picks out tracks of the day randomly, which would be odd considering all the work they put into their ratings system.

So why did I post this? Well, I've never gotten a "track of the day" before...

(as for what on earth is going on in the song- I was inspired by the guitar chaos in Marnie Stern's songs, along with a little bit of the Sonic Youth. I think it came out more Ministry-esque, though. I'm firmly aware I don't hold a candle to Stern's mad skillz.)

It took a long enough time, but I got a myspace page working for the infamous Five Songs That Would Make Carol Walk Up Stone Mountain.  I lost that bet, but I finished the songs anyway.  They are at

• write down all the particulars of every instrument setting used, because otherwise I'll never be able to find them again for re-edits and new parts
• don't try to fit in a note on every beat; I didn't realize I was doing this on some songs until I had put the whole thing together
• if drum programs are used, make the tempo changes in the drum midi before even thinking of recording everything else; should've been obvious, but I was amazed at how hard it was to change tempos later
• the Sonar recording software has a lot of tools to make life easier- use them
• if something sounds boring, mute the track and try to record a completely different take; trying to jazz up a track with filagree and synths doesn't work, at least for me

My next step is to take this lessons are write and record some new songs.  Hopefully I'll see some improvement.

I am trying to remember the last time I washed my car.  I think it was June 2007.

* I have Coldplay's new album and the re-release of Dennis Wilson's Pacific Ocean Blue all crammed into one playlist on my ipod.   I've had that playlist on loop throughout the day.  I'm honestly having trouble telling which of the two albums is playing, and I'm not sure what to think of that.  They both have this multi-instrumental over-produced dad-rock thing going, though when Wilson's album came out, those dads were in their teens.   They both even have an ersatz Roger Waters-style song (a heavy, clunky rhythm that creates an unsettling feeling, but no sense of melody or flow), though I think in Wilson's time a lot of bands were doing that.  It's kind of amazing I haven't managed to put myself in a soft-rock coma by now.   So far, the Wilson album comes out slightly ahead, with a few inspired moments and interesting song twists, and its dated sunny 70's sound actually gives it a bit more flavor, but they're both... eh. 

* I have two songs that are done enough that I've mixed them down to mp3's.  Once I finish and mix down the third, I'll burn a disc and send it to Eric (hi, Eric!) and I'll tinker with them myself.  For the third, I need to re-record from scratch, but fortunately I know exactly how to do it.  It should just take an evening or two.  I had screwed up the passage from verse to chorus, and no amount of editing could fix it without creating hiccups in the rhythm tracks.   This bet thing could literally come down to the last minute.  Exciting!

* The release of the brand-spankin'-new *ahem* Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition has me incredibly nostalgic for ancient times o' gaming.  I'm reflecting on all the campaigns  I ran, the scenic mental vistas and heroic ridiculousness.  Maybe only 1/3 of those memories actually involved D&D specifically- I was more into Rolemaster and Battletech- but, whatever.   I wonder if there's any room for that sort of thing in today's gaming environment.  I've heard that the new edition is a complete re-write, focused almost entirely on combat and war-game-style tactics (miniatures being shoved around a gridded map, overlays for area effects et cetera).  Really, it sounds like a table-top version of World of Warcraft.  Again, I don't know what to think about that.  It's probably good that they're moving on and trying to appeal to a new audience, but it feels like all the gaming I did was in a bubble, now untranslatable and disconnected from anything current and relevant.   Well, in part for old-time's sake, in part out of genuine curiosity, I've ordered the 4E Player's Handbook.   Broken-heartedness is sure to ensue.

So Carol has quite the lead right now.  Curse my insistence on quality over quantity!  :-)  That's okay, tho... the bet was really just motivation for both of us.  I don't know how much motivation Carol needed over what she already had (i.e. finish thesis, get on with life), but I definitely needed the kick in the butt.    There is still even the outside chance I can win this, depending on when Carol's committee gets back to her.

Here's where I'm at.  I'm adding an instrument track to each of three songs that I think are going somewhere.  I'm going to mix them down and send them to Eric (a.k.a. the person who reads this blog who isn't Carol) in a few days.   He can add and modify at his leisure, while I figure out how else to polish them up and fill them out.  They need a lot of work, but the guts are there.   And that's five songs, which I'll start putting up on garageband after I've -ulp- paid the price (to post songs for review on garageband, you have to review other people's songs- I think it's still 20 reviews per song posted, so that's a lot of reviews).

And now to work...

Hola, amigos. I know it's been a long time since I rapped at ya, but thing have been crazy.   Work has been work, man.   You know how it is.   I've been plowing through the books I bought, one on Melody, one on guitar techniques, and I think I've skimmed enough to get some good ideas.  I've already learned two guitar soloing patterns and am working out a third.  This is no mere vanity in terms of the bet- I want to lay down the best guitar work I can, and I think using actual technique is the way to do it.  We'll see if it pays off.   Anyways, here's where I'm at.  Muchachos. 



There you have it.  The time is drawing near...