The Sidelines

Yesterday Justin came over and we spent the day tracking some drums for this new record I’m working on… This is the first time I’ve ever recorded drums at my new place.

We set up the drums in the main room, so Justin and I could jam through parts and work on last-minute edits on the spot.

Justin layed down some great grooves, and I did my best to take a few videos. I’ll make something with them later down the road, when the record starts to come together a little more.

We managed to get all the drums done for the entire record, all in one day. I had planned on taking at least 3 days… So I’ll be spending the next few days in the studio tweaking these drum tracks (Jess calls it nerding out and being antisocial).

Toward the end of the day, Justin came up with an idea for one of the more vibey songs. We stuck a spare snare drum in front of the port on the kick drum head, and opened up the snares. I placed a small diaphragm condenser on this snare. It added a pretty cool effect to the groove.

I’ll be spending the next few weeks working on this new project. I’m pretty excited about where these songs are heading… I don’t have a name for the record yet, but it’s not going to be under the name “Fox Run”, like my last one was. This will be the first time I’ll put out a record under my own name. Scary, I know. haha.

I’m shooting for a release in early December. It will be available as a digital download through my own website. I may release a physical copy down the road, along with iTunes, etc., but I’m going to start out doing everything in a more underground way.

Also, I’m planning on putting together a small EP with a few of the songs, and releasing that for FREE… the full record will be under $10.

Thank You all for all your encouragement and support… I’m looking forward to sharing these new songs with you!

j.

I’ve been spending a lot more time in my little studio in the last few weeks… It’s so fun to be able to roll out of bed in naught but my knickers and make music.:)

Justin is coming down to record drums here in a few days. I’m starting the recording process of a new full length record of my own… and I’m really quite excited about it. I’m recording this one right in my own home.

Since Justin won’t be down for a couple days, I had some free time… so I decided to remix a song I wrote a few years ago. I never released it on anything, so most of you have probably never heard it… I guess that means it won’t be much of a “remix” to you… Ok, it’s just a… Mix.

This is absolutely nothing like the record I’m working on at the moment, but I thought it was a fun musical tangent to explore…

Thanks for listening…

j.

This morning I got up at 6am to find gas for our car. Seriously… 6am. This is the sight that greeted me.

So I left my beautiful wife asleep and embarked on a perilous journey to find gasoline in Spring Hill, Tennessee… all the while preserving the highest possible Miles Per Gallon. I figured I could drive about 15 miles on the gas I had left.

These were the sights that greeted me.

A few stations had Premium only.

Finally, some luck.

I filled up the tank, and the spare 2 gallon jug we use to fill up our lawn mower… I’ve never appreciated a full tank of gas as much as I did right then!

This is something I’ve never really experienced before. It reminds me just how dependent we are on readily available refined fossil fuels. We’re so helpless without gasoline. People stop going out. People stop spending money at the mall. People start stockpiling. I’m no different… Jess and I did our biggest grocery shop ever, just in case things get crazy over the next week.

A couple days ago I read that this problem was isolated to the Nashville and Middle Tennessee region. Now I’m reading stories of empty pumps in Georgia, Alabama, and various other places in the South.

In some ways, this reminds me of the East Coast blackout of 2004… In Barrie where I lived at the time, power was out for 2 days. It fundamentally changed the lives of everyone in the city. I met some of my neighbours for the first time… we all sat out on our front lawns and interacted. It was a fascinating couple of days to watch peoples’ reactions. From panic and fear to excitement and adventure…. Everyone had their own take on it.

I hear that it could be more than a few days before gas becomes more available in our area… So it’s going to be an interesting week!

j.

Nashville is out of Gasoline.

I just flew in from Dallas, to find that nearly every gas station in Nashville is out of gasoline. Apparently, in the wake of Hurricane Ike, supplies were running short, but were going to last without too much trouble… that’s until the local media (read: amateur hour journalists) reported to that Nashville was only hours away from being out of gas.

So what do the lovely people of Nashville do? They ALL head to the pumps and fill up their tanks. By the time I landed tonight, EVERY station was empty. That’s what we like to call a self-fulfilling prophecy. Thanks, the Tennessean!

So, this is what I did when Jess and I got home… I stole gas from my lawn mower gas can. Times are desperate.

I managed to find a station that has gas, but is closed for the night. Jess and I are getting up at 5am to hit up this station…. It’ll be a lovely morning that, I’m quite sure, will bring the two of us much closer. :)

I’ve been talking about peak oil, energy crises, and oil depletion for years. Sure, Ike threw us off, but we wouldn’t have a problem surviving it if our demand for gasoline wasn’t scraping the ceiling of what we can make available to the public…. Not to mention the HUNDREDS-OF-BILLIONS-OF-DOLLARS of taxpayer money that was used to prop up the entire structure US Economy, but that’s another rant.

Stay tuned to our Gasoline adventure tomorrow morning!

j.

Tyler Johnson, everyone…

j.

This is Fafi.

Fafi is one of Tilly’s dear friends. We had her over a few days ago, and I watched her while Jess went to work. I had to mow the lawn, and I wanted to keep an eye on her, so I put her out on the front lawn.

Within 30 seconds she had managed to put herself in this position. She wrapped herself around the green utility post, and then somehow managed to hook her line back onto the lawn peg. This left her about 8 inches to move around…. I unhooked the poor girl, but she managed to get herself right back into this position within another minute or two. We went through this process 3 or 4 times, and I eventually just gave up unhooking her! She enjoyed about an hour on the lawn with a very short leash.

:)

j.

My friend Randy and I were discussing the VMAs the other day, and I realized that something in my thinking has changed over the last few years… We were talking about all the teen-stars of the current music landscape, and how there seem to be so many super-young artists in the spotlight recently (I use the term artist fairly liberally). Some of these kids have some serious talent, but most of them lack a certain… authenticity. Everything about them is produced, calculated, and choreographed. To some degree, if it works, good on ya… but watching the VMAs, I was disappointed by the lack of genuine performances. Even the showings from Rihanna and Christina, who have HEAPS of talent, seemed to be more like a cirque de soliel than a live music performance. Rihanna’s singing took a back seat to her makeup, attire, and choreography. Christina didn’t sing at all… I barely recognized her. I spent the first 3 minutes trying to figure out if it was Christina or Brooke Hogan.

I thought Paramore and Pink were both awesome. I’ve always liked Pink. I love that she ignores what others are doing, just does her thing… and let’s be honest, she rocks it. She can really sing, she can really perform, and she has a casual irreverence about her that I really enjoy. That being said, Paramore was the only real band on the VMAs. Woah is me! Is the era of the BAND over? Is playing guitar for Gwen Stefani the best I can hope for in my own future?

But back to my original thought… My change in thinking… When I was growing up, I used to be inspired by young successful musicians… I loved hearing people say, “Oh, and he’s only 17!” These days, it’s the veterans that inspire me. People that have been doing it for years and years… I love seeing the thick skin, the varying levels of educated ignorance, and the complete disregard for others’ opinions. I am SO inspired by people who truly DO NOT CARE. Apathy is freedom, in this case, and it’s the cynical veteran that gives me hope for my future tinkering with music.

Below are of some of my favorites:

I’m sure I could make a much longer list if I thought about it, but these are a few of the jaded heroes of mine, and I wanted to share them with you. These are people that make me feel good about getting older… In some ways, I’m looking forward to it.

j.

Fresh off a few days at home, the guys and I played a show in Columbus, Ohio, at a Columbus Crew soccer game. It was our first time playing at (or even visiting) an MLS soccer game. The Crew were victorious, and we played a show after the game.

The show was actually a ton of fun. Justin sure enjoyed it because just a few short weeks ago, his hero Carter Beauford rocked the same stage with the Dave Matthews Band. He apparently wore a Crew jersey for the show, so, of course, Justin did as well.

We’re going to be back in Columbus in just a few short days, for the beginning of the Revolve Tour. We had a blast on the Revolve tour last year, and I think this year will be a great time as well!

I’ve tried to avoid writing about politics in this blog, but I’m allowing myself one political post…. hopefully I can contain myself to just this one.

I wholeheartedly believe that it’s every citizen’s duty to vote. I know sometimes it seems that your vote is like a drop in the sea, but it’s more than that. It is your opportunity to have a say as to what direction you want your country to go.

I cannot vote in this upcoming U.S. election, but I have been following it closely for the last year. I’ve got to admit, I’m hooked. I really do wish I could vote in this election… But even after a year of following all the gritty details, I’m still not 100% sure who I would vote for if given the chance. Oh, sure, I have leanings and opinions, but they don’t lead me to any completely satisfying conclusion.

Maybe it’s because I’m a foreigner, but I’m shocked by so many people who support candidates for reasons that, to me, seem…. flimsy. This is true of some folks on both sides of the aisle.

I see too many people ready to blindly vote Republican because some think “that’s what Christians do”. It’s not because they necessarily want to vote for John McCain, it’s because they think that electing a Republican will mean the government will be more likely to share their Christian values. Many are willing to overlook nearly every other issue.

I also see too many people ready to blindly vote for Obama because he is at the head of a sweeping movement at the moment. It’s easy to get caught up in. He’s a young, eloquent, exciting candidate that the liberal media adores. Many don’t have a clue about his policies or plans for our country.

Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of folks out there who really do know their stuff, and there are educated voters on both sides of the debate. I applaud these people. I wish there were more of you out there.

To tell you the truth, I’m dissatisfied with both candidates… I wanted 2 GREAT tickets for the American people to choose between. That’s what I wanted the people to have, but I don’t think that’s what they’re getting.

Obama is a wonderful speaker, but something about the experience argument at least partially hits home with me. Plus, his policies are quite liberal. In truth, I really like Obama as a candidate. It’s the first time that I feel like “our generation” has had a candidate. He embraces the internet and technology in a way that speaks to young people. It’s his political leanings that make me nervous. Coming from a much more liberal country, I see many dangers if the U.S. goes in that direction. I’m not certain that more government, more taxation, and more welfare and social programs is the way to move forward.

On the other side, McCain is a 72 year old man who would be the oldest man ever elected, should he win. He believes we should continue to have an interventionist foreign policy… This is the foreign policy that led us to invade another sovereign country 5 years ago, and has since turned our military into a foreign police force. He is a candidate from another generation. Watching the Republican convention reminds me of peeking in on a rich old uncle’s dinner party. The “Grand Old Party” really is an accurate name. They don’t seem to have much to say about themselves… they just endlessly attack Obama. They accuse him of being all rhetoric and no substance… but they spend more time attacking his “rhetoric” than they do defining themselves. I’d like to know more about YOUR candidate.

I knew the vice presidential picks were going to have a big impact on my thought process… and they certainly did.

Obama picked a man who helps him in the “experience” area. Joe Biden was one of my favorite candidates during the primary, partially because he really seems to embody the “straight talk” label that McCain is always trying to place on himself. During one of the primary debates, candidates were squabbling about how quickly to withdraw troops from Iraq, and Biden cut everyone off and said the following, “Let’s get something straight. It’s time to start to tell the truth. The truth of the matter is: If we started today, it would take one year, one year to get 160,000 troops physically out of Iraq, logistically.” Every other candidate was refusing to get specific about this issue, or simply saying “Get The Troops Out Now!”

In truth, I actually like Biden more than Obama, and while I understand why his own presidential bid failed, I am happy to see that he’s on the ticket. He has tons of foreign policy experience, he is a fierce family man who has conquered personal tragedy, and he really does speak simply and to the point… sometime to a fault. He brings experience and transparency to the table. Obama chose him because he would make an excellent vice president, not just a running mate for the election.

On the other hand, McCain’s VP pick wasn’t about who would be best for the job of Vice President… it was about choosing a candidate that will get him elected. Are you really telling me that a 44 year old first term Governor from Alaska is the most qualified candidate out there? I was appalled at this decision. Is McCain trying to appease female voters by choosing a woman, and simultaneously trying to appease conservatives by choosing a staunch right-winger? To me, this choice is short-sighted. Instead of looking for a Vice President, he chose a running mate.

He also seriously compromised his best argument against Obama: experience. He chose a younger, more inexperienced person than Obama! Sure you can argue that her 2 years of executive experience is more than Obama has, but if you argue that, it must be pointed out that it’s also more than McCain has himself! He may not have eliminated the “experience” argument, but he has made it far more complicated.

I could go on and on about this VP thing, but I’ll have to digress. My point is that choosing a VP is the first major decision that these candidates had the chance to make, and to me, these choices say a lot about their decision making abilities.

I’m not here to convince you one way or another, or spark a flurry of argumentative comments. I just wanted to throw my perspective into the sea of perspectives out there… just like the vote. This is how I see things…

So on November 4th, if you are able to, go and put your vote on that ballot. When you do, don’t vote for the wrong reasons, and don’t vote blindly. Decide WHY you are voting for your candidate. If you’re not happy with McCain or Obama, then research the write-in candidates. There are more choices than you think.

The 2 major candidates have VERY different ideas about what direction to take this country in, it is up to the people to decide which direction is the best one. Be a part of that choice.

j.