kaigex

Excellent evening out with w/ c & d to Paradise Rock Club.

We arrived late enough to miss the opening band, but arrived just in time to catch the opening song of AWOLNATION. As they're new enough to only have one album, I knew all the songs they played and they played most of the songs I'd hoped to hear (notably omitting Knights of Shame, which is understandable since it's a long song that spans a variety of styles). Was fun and energetic and excellent. d liked that they ended with a few measures of Rage Against the Machine's "Freedom".


However, top amazement for the evening certainly goes to Neon Trees. I'd bought the tickets to the show to see AWOLNATION, not knowing who Neon Trees were. Due to c's saying they were good I grabbed an album, but still, I knew little about them. Was blown away. The singer reminded me of a more subdued Jimmy Urine (of MSI) with his zany hair and unbridled energy, and there was a bassist and two guitarists, but what really caught my attention was the drummer. She was excellent, and sang in a few songs as well, and I more-or-less watched her for the whole show and thereby appreciate that Neon Trees has some awesome drumming. I really liked a number of songs, though was surprised to find I wasn't nearly as enamored by their wicked-popular song (which I hadn't heard before) as the rest of the set. Mid-concert I bought their album I didn't have; they'll certainly be getting more listening. Great night!

Updated whenever I make it to a concert...

AWOLNATION
Neon Trees

( extant list )

Missing numerous opening acts, bands heard in bars et cetera, and bands watched for a few songs at festivals.

First concert of the year! Out w/ ch and j, neither of who were sure who Kasabian was, but both of who decided concerts are fun and came anyways!

The opening band was called Hacienda (Spanish for estate), which I think was these guys: http://haciendaonline.net (there appear to be multiple bands by this name). They were a guitarists, bassist, drummer with a small kit, and synthmaster. The synth sounded very synthy, and stood out pretty strongly across a bunch of songs. The bassist played rather fast.



Kasabian (British) went completely ridiculous with the lights. Colors scintilating everywhere, variously in time to the music or accent changes in tempo or just tracking around. They played a really long set, covering all the tracks I cared about on West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, though the timing felt off in Underdog. Two guitars, one bass, synth, vocalist, and drummer with a big fucking Zildjian gong... though I missed where it got used.

Albums listed in order of discovery.

Arctic Monkeys: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
The Killers: Sam's Town
The Fratellis: Costello Music
The White Stripes: Icky Thump
Oysterhead: The Grand Pecking Order

Notable also-rans:

White Rabbits: It's Frightening
Franz Ferdinand: Tonight
Red Hot Chili Peppers: I'm With You
The Zutons: Who Killed the Zutons

last year's list

Recorded the first attempt at a melody set to lyrics. Though it is but the first germination of an idea, having something to work around both confines possibilities and opens up paths forward.

Got from laptop-is-in-the-other-room to recording guitar through amp to capture within 10 minutes.

Working title is I Once Knew A Girl.

It was a curiosity that when I began playing with the guitar I found the guitars in recorded music came to the forefront, even in songs I've known for years; I found myself becoming less interested in those lacking guitar parts. This was both disorienting and exciting, as my principle interest has always strongly tended toward the lyrics. It was surprising because this hadn't happened with the keyboard, but then, in retrospect it's probably because I hadn't spent enough time with it.

As I explored the bass I found a similar effect, and again with vocals, and again with the drums. And now I listen to the music and the lyrics are sometimes the most distant component, hidden behind all the rhythm and melody. And if caught in the right turn of mind I can pick apart all the pieces at once and see roughly which instruments are playing when and where they coincide and contrast. The edges are fuzzy and the senses very approximate, but I can only assume this improves with practice and attention. The interplay of reading theory here and psychology of musicality there on listening is more subtle, but promises perpetual permeation.

I realized just the other day that the guitar can fill in for a verse or a chorus or both without much trouble. This is not only great fun but cuts down on necessary singing!

And to think, at first the interest in music was largely about neural plasticity and the appeal of embracing musical metaphors. (and, of course, about a girl, cause how could it not be?)

Now have drums. Next, learn to play everything sufficiently to produce music. At present I think my competence is roughly:

Guitar > Drums > Bass > Keyboard > Vocals

The music room now contains Roland TD4K digital drums, a Fender Strat w/ humbucker bridge, a Dean-made Gibson knock-off that I got used and that has a crack in the headstock, an Epiphone Les Paul Special bass, a Fender Mustang Special "Pawn Shop" with pick-up selectors, a Casio WK-200 keyboard, a ukelele, and a Sennheiser microphone Dad had in the basement. Amps are a Roland MicroCube, a Roland MicroCube Bass RX, an 8" Simmons DA50 drum amp, a Fender Mustang II modeling amp, and two Mackie MR8mk2 monitors. It includes also a Whammy Pedal, a Crybaby, and a TU-2 tuning pedal. And a Roland OCTA-CAPTURE USB2 audio interface.

Last night I played the drums w/ my brother, and he said I'd clearly gotten better.
I have the same essential problem I do with bass - I don't like playing in too long a repeating pattern, so I fail to provide an authentically rhythmic backdrop, despite basically keeping time.

Need to be able keep opposing beats in my head at the same time.
This will be good for music also.

So much to learn.

Løs is the world resolving the final triplet of the main story arc.
It is the last Realm.

The world exists on the interior surface of the great sphere, Kurnugi. It is said that beyond the sphere is only dead space, inert and lifeless detritus exhausted by the passing of prior Realms. Within the sphere is little better, being mostly expanses of barren badlands and desert, broken at intervals by towering mesas wreathed in dense jungles full of horrors. The world is illuminated by the glow of the Chaos Seal, conceived as a perfect bronze sphere covered in inscriptions and set at the center of the encompassing world-sphere.

The remaining Solarians - Kaige, Saigel, and Rehtika - are each imbrogliod within the confines of the Seal. Kaige is powerful enough to annihilate and subsume either Saigel or Rehtika individually, but together Their power is sufficient to nullify His. So the three are held in tense equilibrium, their combined power churning Patterns through Chaos, the tumultuous effects of which induce the containing sphere's glow, as if a star were burning in at the world's center.

But sometimes an imbalance emerges.

---

The main characters are

Book I - Zumru

The book of the physical hero. Zumru lives upon the plains, and the events of his being drive him to seek of Wise Elders in slumber deep within the horrific jungles that surround the world's mesas. There are 144 mesa's, and within each a Wise Elder dreams, though Zumru knows none of this as he is set upon the desolation. He is ultimately the son of Saigel.


Book II - Mudutu

The book of the intellectual hero. Mudutu lives in one of the cities that ride upon the backs of They. His task is in the understanding of the world and how it fits together and what's going on. The events of his being lead him to stir turmoil and seek to awaken They, though it would destroy most all of the world as the Cities fell from Their backs and Their feet left ancient paths to trample the nations of the plains. He is ultimately the son of Kaige.


Book III - Shi

The book of the spiritual hero. Shi is among the very few that remain of the culture living upon the tops of the mesas. At one time, before the coming of They, the world was theirs. Even then, with their wisdom and cunning, they'd lasted for awhile. They had elaborate rituals dedicated to the Wise Elders in their slumber, and so controlled They. But no more. All ruins. The events of her being lead her to revive ancient lore, and to discover the truth of the Seouls and journey to Ezzeru, finally bringing to a climax the war of the Solarians. She is ultimately the daughter of Rehtika.

All three books run simultaneously, and various events are seen from the different vantages.

---

They are 144 horrific abominations upon Løs, each with a city upon its back. There was a time before they bore cities, and at least some cities do fall.

The Wise Elders are 144 ancients in slumber, each within its own ritualized tomb. There was a time when they fought as men surrounded in shining forms ranging from giant dragons to scorpions to whatever else, each unique to the bearer. At least some awaken.

Both are but forms of The Blessed and The Damned, the remnants of the unsealed Watchers, and so their dreams and nightmares comprise all of everything that's gone before.


Sumerian ::
Body - ZUMRU
Knowledge - MUDUTU
Life - SHI

Had a multi-hour "voice session" with my friend N today. The great part about knowing very little about a subject is how easy it is to radically expand your understanding of it.


We started with an overview of the physiology, then went through basic vocal concepts like chest-voice and head-voice. Then there was a whole bunch of holding notes and doing ascending/descending scales, and she determined my range to be approximately Ab2 - Bb4, but said I could extend the high-end a bit with practice.

I tried singing: TWS - Seven Nation Army; TWS - The Denial Twist; Speechwriters LLC - Acetate; Tom Petty - Yer So Bad; Tom Petty - Wildflowers; The Raconteurs - You Don't Understand Me; Jack Johnson - Breakdown; Modest Mouse - The World At Large; The Killers - Sam's Town; and Tool - Hooker With a Penis.

Her general feedback was that I was basically singing in the right key, with good timing and tone, and generally following the proper melody. She felt I most needed to work on maintaining even volume, avoiding unintentional scooping, and being able to purposely move in better controlled scales, but that generally I just had to practice more.

Ah, practice. So easy for so many hobbies, so difficult as soon as your want to do anything involving percussion waves.

Again to stand before the all-loving hand and be sonically accosted, this time by Reel Big Fish and Streetlight Manifesto w/ lady c ('twas her birthday). That was an awesome concert. And not just cause it further confirmed that concerts are intrinsically funner when accompanied by dancey, punky girls. So much shiny brass and so many fast chords.

As we arrived, Rodeo Ruby Love was on stage. DBLR + synth, with male/female harmonizing vocals; very fun and bouncy. They lead into New Riot, an English punk-ska band. The lead singer had a mohawk, and there was a trombone. They were pretty good, but I liked RRL better.


Then came Streetlight with drums, bass, semi-hollow guitar, trombone, trumpet, and two (yes two!) large saxaphones. I was surprised to find I recognized fairly few of the songs they played, but that's okay cause just listening to them was splendid. And, importantly, the songs I did recognize were FANTASTIC - A Better Place, A Better Time and both SkyScraper (Bad Religion) and Such Great Heights (The Postal Service)! (there were a few more I knew, but I'm blanking on the names)

Reel Big Fish was, well, Reel Big Fish, and I did just see them last November and last July. Of note was that Aaron (lead singer/guitarist) was playing the Gibson that C==t is clearly a knock-off of, and was wearing exactly the same shirt and sungalssses as the previous shows. That said, wow is Reel Big Fish still fun stuff live. I don't even listen to their albums that much, but halfway into their shows lost in a chaos on the floor is probably the closest I ever come to dancing.