Day light savings is a joke.
Everyone argees to do things an hour earlier so more can get done. That's it. There's no miracle there.
Stupid.
I'm moving back to Arizona. They don't change the clocks forward or backward. They don't believe in day light savings time.
People need to take more naps and have longer vacations.
That's the solution.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
more crap
Crap art is a new movement in art.
From what I've found it revolves around the idea that art creation is an exploratory process of discovery. It holds a disregard for common opinions of what art should or shouldn't be, and that quantity not necessarily quality should be the driving factor. The overall idea revolves around cranking out as much art as possible. Crap art follows the 80/20% rule: "If only 20% of the effort is needed to get 80% of the quality, then by spending only 20% the effort we can create five times as many artifacts at 80% quality!"
The underlying factor: Crap Art motivates people to actually do something. They put down the remote, they drop the game controller, and become productive. I know I've talked about this before but I was reading something and it brought me back to the the concept of Album a day (AAD).
Let's be honest here. How hard is it to make a full length album in one day? At first thought, churning out a CD is a lot of work in itself. Hooking all the wires up, checking the levels and connections is a feat in itself. Depending on the concept of the album, it could take weeks, months, or years to finish. I guess the idea is developing a consistent system to compose music. While many of the AAD's are pretty freaking weird, I've found a few that really hit the mark and make you wonder... "Am I capable of making something this good in one day?"
I've really been thinking about making new music this year. What I lack in motivation I make up for with weird ideas.
Not Album a Day, but something similar is Podington Bear. This bear makes a song every other day and is good. His podcast can be found on iTunes.
Some links:
Crap Art
Podington Bear
From what I've found it revolves around the idea that art creation is an exploratory process of discovery. It holds a disregard for common opinions of what art should or shouldn't be, and that quantity not necessarily quality should be the driving factor. The overall idea revolves around cranking out as much art as possible. Crap art follows the 80/20% rule: "If only 20% of the effort is needed to get 80% of the quality, then by spending only 20% the effort we can create five times as many artifacts at 80% quality!"
The underlying factor: Crap Art motivates people to actually do something. They put down the remote, they drop the game controller, and become productive. I know I've talked about this before but I was reading something and it brought me back to the the concept of Album a day (AAD).
Let's be honest here. How hard is it to make a full length album in one day? At first thought, churning out a CD is a lot of work in itself. Hooking all the wires up, checking the levels and connections is a feat in itself. Depending on the concept of the album, it could take weeks, months, or years to finish. I guess the idea is developing a consistent system to compose music. While many of the AAD's are pretty freaking weird, I've found a few that really hit the mark and make you wonder... "Am I capable of making something this good in one day?"
I've really been thinking about making new music this year. What I lack in motivation I make up for with weird ideas.
Not Album a Day, but something similar is Podington Bear. This bear makes a song every other day and is good. His podcast can be found on iTunes.
Some links:
Crap Art
Podington Bear
Monday, February 26, 2007
iPod
Random music on my iPod
1. The Pillows - I've liked this band since watching the anime cartoon "Fooly Cooly" on Cartoon Network one night 3 years ago. The Pillows are a fine example of 90's Alternative rock at it's
best. I wish I knew Japanese. With catchy guitar lines and awesome dynamics I find myself humming their riffs throughout the day. What makes them great are the random bits of Engrish that they throw into their songs.
2. Radiohead "Live from Astoria"(concert circa 1994?) - I like this concert mainly because it bridges the gap between Radiohead's first album, Pablo Honey, and their second, The Bends. When they play material from The Bends the crowd doesn't react, like they're hearing it for the very first time. Some notable performances are "Just" and "Maquilador". Seeing Thom Yorke with shaggy yellow hair was interesting as well... "My Iron Lung" was recorded during this concert and later appeared on The Bends.
3. The New Pornographers "Twin Cinemas" - Listening to Twin Cinemas has really opened up a new chapter of music to me. My friend Jethro let me in on them and I'd have to say they fall somewhere in between what my dad listened to in high school mixed with Fleetwood Mac. I'm not trying to offend any fans of the band, I just think that musicians draw their influences from bands they like and The New Pornographers sound like they stole 70's rock and got a better drummer. Songs like "Use it" really keep me going.
4. Phantom Planet - I remember watching the video to "Big Brat" thinking "what the heck am I listening to?". Their songs are sound different every time, and makes them stick out like a sore thumb. It marks a big contrast between their earlier work and the stuff they crank out today.
5. REM "UP"- I think I like REM because they seem to put out album after album and continue to make great songs. "Daysleeper" is a good example of how REM are still viable today years after the death of Alternative music. The album is a departure from works the band has made over the years- the first without their long time drummer Bill Berry.
1. The Pillows - I've liked this band since watching the anime cartoon "Fooly Cooly" on Cartoon Network one night 3 years ago. The Pillows are a fine example of 90's Alternative rock at it's
best. I wish I knew Japanese. With catchy guitar lines and awesome dynamics I find myself humming their riffs throughout the day. What makes them great are the random bits of Engrish that they throw into their songs.2. Radiohead "Live from Astoria"(concert circa 1994?) - I like this concert mainly because it bridges the gap between Radiohead's first album, Pablo Honey, and their second, The Bends. When they play material from The Bends the crowd doesn't react, like they're hearing it for the very first time. Some notable performances are "Just" and "Maquilador". Seeing Thom Yorke with shaggy yellow hair was interesting as well... "My Iron Lung" was recorded during this concert and later appeared on The Bends.
3. The New Pornographers "Twin Cinemas" - Listening to Twin Cinemas has really opened up a new chapter of music to me. My friend Jethro let me in on them and I'd have to say they fall somewhere in between what my dad listened to in high school mixed with Fleetwood Mac. I'm not trying to offend any fans of the band, I just think that musicians draw their influences from bands they like and The New Pornographers sound like they stole 70's rock and got a better drummer. Songs like "Use it" really keep me going.
4. Phantom Planet - I remember watching the video to "Big Brat" thinking "what the heck am I listening to?". Their songs are sound different every time, and makes them stick out like a sore thumb. It marks a big contrast between their earlier work and the stuff they crank out today.
5. REM "UP"- I think I like REM because they seem to put out album after album and continue to make great songs. "Daysleeper" is a good example of how REM are still viable today years after the death of Alternative music. The album is a departure from works the band has made over the years- the first without their long time drummer Bill Berry.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
guitar 1
I'm going to detail the building of my new guitar.I've decided to piece together a guitar, so I can get what I really want. Every time I go to a music store it seems like they have the same row of Fender, Gibson, and Ibanez guitars. They're all the same made in Japan copy of some instrument that was made 20 years ago. Going from what I've studied on the internet, I think I'm capable of putting together a good instrument made from parts from here or there.
This is the plan:
1. Telecasterish guitar.
2. Olympic White paint
3. Tortoise shell pick guard.
4. String through construction.
5. Fender Strat headstock (just to be different).
6. Relic hardware.
I've got some other ideas for this guitar... I want to incorporate some onboard effects and try some other things... This is just another experiment to see what happens. If everything works out this time I'm going to try and piece together another guitar, like a Gibson or a Jazzmaster.
I've got all the parts together and everything came in the mail just fine.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
current
Status:
1. I'm in school.
2. I'm in a band?
3. I'm building a weird guitar.
4. I'm married to an awesome super wife.
5. My wife is sick.
6. I got a new phone.
That's pretty much it.
1. I'm in school.
2. I'm in a band?
3. I'm building a weird guitar.
4. I'm married to an awesome super wife.
5. My wife is sick.
6. I got a new phone.
That's pretty much it.
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
relic
I've come across some interesting ideas while researching for my next music project. Tying to find the right sound was one problem, but listening to a Smashing Pumpkins CD the other day gave me a push in the right direction. "Siamese Dream" is my favorite Pumpkins disc and despite their expansive library of songs I keep coming back to the simple riffs and guitar layers that made "Siamese Dream" such a great CD. I looked into why it sounded different from subsequent Pumpkins CD and stumbled upon the sound of the Electro-Harmonix guitar pedal called the Big Muff Pi. I've seen this pedal before in catalogues and on the web but just brushed it off as just another lame distortion pedal. Electro-harmonix is known for their interesting pedals and the artists that have supposedly used them. But the key to the Smashing Pumpkins sound was the Big Muff distortion that was quite popular among early 90's grunge/Alternative bands. I know I've heard that sound elsewhere and found out that bassists also use the same pedal for fuzzy bass lines. Examples of such can be found on Ben Folds Five and Muse albums. For being such an analog synth fan, I found that I was really dumb when it came to analog guitar effect pedals. I just figured that they were all the same and that anything could be fixed or effected later on the computer. I was so impressed that I ordered a Big Muff Pi and it came in the mail last week. I was not disappointed. Now I just need to find a Tremolo.
In my search for the perfect sound, I've also been looking for a new guitar to use for recording and live shows this summer. Guitars are expensive. There's really no way to get around it. But I may have found a way... I can piece a guitar together from spare parts, and have the ability to customize it to fit my needs. There are also some Do-it-yourself kits on the web that turn out ok when assembled and painted. Its probably the primal urge inside of me to build or cut something, but this is something that I've wanted to do for a long time. So I've looked and looked at pieces and parts and decided that I'll need a Fender Telecaster or a Gibson Les Paul to finish this project. The Strat copy I have is really noisy, and the Big Muff doesn't help with the hum either. The problem is shielding the electronics from interference and the single coil pickups are just noisy to begin with, making recording a guitar a nightmare. So I'm still looking.
I've also run into some interesting sites that make "Relic guitars". Guitars that look and feel like they've been played for decades. There are some interesting ideas floating around on the internet about how to damge and ding up a perfectly new guitar and make it look 40 years old. Bill Nash and his guitars are really impresive, and expensive. Making a guitar look convincingly old is an art in itself, and its something I would like to try if I can get my hands on some guitar parts in the not so distant future. The Guitar Attack website also has many restored guitars and the some useful hints on refinishing a guitar. They post guitars that people have made or fixed as well. Project Guitar pretty much has everything you need to make or break your guitar.
The information is out there!
Links:
Electro-Harmonix
Nash Guitars
Guitar Attack
Project Guitar
In my search for the perfect sound, I've also been looking for a new guitar to use for recording and live shows this summer. Guitars are expensive. There's really no way to get around it. But I may have found a way... I can piece a guitar together from spare parts, and have the ability to customize it to fit my needs. There are also some Do-it-yourself kits on the web that turn out ok when assembled and painted. Its probably the primal urge inside of me to build or cut something, but this is something that I've wanted to do for a long time. So I've looked and looked at pieces and parts and decided that I'll need a Fender Telecaster or a Gibson Les Paul to finish this project. The Strat copy I have is really noisy, and the Big Muff doesn't help with the hum either. The problem is shielding the electronics from interference and the single coil pickups are just noisy to begin with, making recording a guitar a nightmare. So I'm still looking.
I've also run into some interesting sites that make "Relic guitars". Guitars that look and feel like they've been played for decades. There are some interesting ideas floating around on the internet about how to damge and ding up a perfectly new guitar and make it look 40 years old. Bill Nash and his guitars are really impresive, and expensive. Making a guitar look convincingly old is an art in itself, and its something I would like to try if I can get my hands on some guitar parts in the not so distant future. The Guitar Attack website also has many restored guitars and the some useful hints on refinishing a guitar. They post guitars that people have made or fixed as well. Project Guitar pretty much has everything you need to make or break your guitar.
The information is out there!
Links:
Electro-Harmonix
Nash Guitars
Guitar Attack
Project Guitar
Sunday, January 7, 2007
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
dark
I was about to go to bed when my wife stepped out of the shower and turned on her hair dyer. There was a snap sound and all was dark. I didn't think there was a problem- Some one must have hit a phone pole or maybe I forgot to pay my electricity bill. It was late and the darkness surprised me for a moment, and I stood there like an idiot, wondering if I had a flashlight. Or batteries for a flashlight.
After a few more seconds we managed to locate a candle and something to light it with. I ran downstairs to see if everyone else's power was out- but was again surprised to see that every one's lights were OK. Great. I guess I didn't pay the electric bill. On the way back up stairs I smelled something that made me almost gag. It was a smell that I've only encountered a few times in my life: taking garbage out to a dumpster, finding a dead mouse or bird in the garage, and passing roadkill along Utah roads. Images of dead animals brought into the house by our neighbor's yappy Chihuahua, or better yet, the dead Chihuahua filled my head. I went under our stairs to look for the dead body or whatever was the source of that death smell. Nothing. With power outage and a nasty smell floating around our apartment I knew that some thing was wrong.
We figured that we must have tripped a breaker somewhere when the hair dryer was turned on. Finding a breaker box in a hundred year old house would be interesting to say the least. A small door on the stairs opened up to some water pipes. Looking around the outside of the house didn't yield any results either. With all the wires running around the walls of our house, you'dl think that there would be a box somewhere connecting it all together. Running around our creepy old house in the dark makes you feel like you'd see the kid from the Grudge at any second. I looked up at the windows expecting to see a dark face looking inward at me. I'm always looking over my shoulder like some chainsaw massacre was going to happen at any second. Nope. No bloodshed, no creepy Grudge kid. Just me and my wife, and the neighbor's yappy Chihuahua.
So after calling our landlords they mentioned that our fuse box was located on the stairs leading up to our apartment. Indeed there was a small grey box that I had previously ignored (not knowing what the crap was inside it was). I opened the box and found that the rotten dead animal smell was actually from a blown fuse and oily melty wires. After a quick stop at Home Depot I changed the fuse and like magic all of our appliances beeped back to life. Hmmm.. One fuse for the entire apartment. That makes sense.
After a few more seconds we managed to locate a candle and something to light it with. I ran downstairs to see if everyone else's power was out- but was again surprised to see that every one's lights were OK. Great. I guess I didn't pay the electric bill. On the way back up stairs I smelled something that made me almost gag. It was a smell that I've only encountered a few times in my life: taking garbage out to a dumpster, finding a dead mouse or bird in the garage, and passing roadkill along Utah roads. Images of dead animals brought into the house by our neighbor's yappy Chihuahua, or better yet, the dead Chihuahua filled my head. I went under our stairs to look for the dead body or whatever was the source of that death smell. Nothing. With power outage and a nasty smell floating around our apartment I knew that some thing was wrong.
We figured that we must have tripped a breaker somewhere when the hair dryer was turned on. Finding a breaker box in a hundred year old house would be interesting to say the least. A small door on the stairs opened up to some water pipes. Looking around the outside of the house didn't yield any results either. With all the wires running around the walls of our house, you'dl think that there would be a box somewhere connecting it all together. Running around our creepy old house in the dark makes you feel like you'd see the kid from the Grudge at any second. I looked up at the windows expecting to see a dark face looking inward at me. I'm always looking over my shoulder like some chainsaw massacre was going to happen at any second. Nope. No bloodshed, no creepy Grudge kid. Just me and my wife, and the neighbor's yappy Chihuahua.
So after calling our landlords they mentioned that our fuse box was located on the stairs leading up to our apartment. Indeed there was a small grey box that I had previously ignored (not knowing what the crap was inside it was). I opened the box and found that the rotten dead animal smell was actually from a blown fuse and oily melty wires. After a quick stop at Home Depot I changed the fuse and like magic all of our appliances beeped back to life. Hmmm.. One fuse for the entire apartment. That makes sense.
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