Music....MAN

So it has been like a million years since my last update. I have no reasons other than I am a teacher. Simply put, it is a busy job and, as you can tell, I'm aging quickly because of it!

So far school is going well. This year's seniors were my first class. I taught them as freshmen and now they are going to be leaving. At first I was pretty bummed about that but now I am happy for them (“I am happy for them” is code for “I want them to leave” he he. Not really but I think they will be ready soon and I can’t wait to see what they can accomplish). I moved my offices into the same area and now the Yearbook and I can communicate better. We also designed a killer cover for the book. It is pretty daring and edgy and may draw some criticism but I think it rocks. My yearbook staffs are amazing and creative.

The recording and mixing and recording and mixing etc… has continued for Seven Years Absence. We have been working on a soundtrack for a film being filmed in Chicago. Another song was recently picked up for a film being shown in Spokane at the FOX theater. That song is the one which has had the time pressures recently. It has been fun and a huge learning experience. I have heard the new song 1 second at a time about 300 times (pretty close to reality). I still like it and I think that is a good sign for the success of the band. It really is nice to work with such a great band. And the dog is getting used to having drums in the house. She’ll even hang out in the studio while we record some drum parts which almost inspire one to have an out of body experience.

There is some music which has lit my head on fire recently. Three albums in specific. Falling Up's new remix CD “Exit Lights” is mind-blazingly genius. Just when you think there is no other style or creative way of presenting their material they pull a quick remix that would make almost any other band's remix sound like pennies in a dryer on a cold January morning in the middle of a pond (translation: it makes other bands sound really lame).

Another project making my ears scream for more is the new Skillet album. After "Collide" I wasn't sure where they would go. It was a departure from their "techno-ish" effects mixed with a pretty burly rock part. Collide opened a whole can of brilliance in the use of guitars, vocal effects, and string parts. “Collide” is Skillet's "Joshua Tree" or "Abbey Road". However, the new album "Comatose" has some phenomenal songs on board. It has a similar feel to "Collide" but a bit more commercial. It seems that Skillet is realizing their niche market and is catering to that market with snappier more polished work. It seems obvious that they know how critical "Collide" is to their career and "Comatose" seems to be an attempt to defend their market space while making a few tweaks to their style. All in all a solid effort and one I will be listening to repeatedly for a very long time (translation: until I go blissfully deaf by listening to it with the volume at 50+).

So the love song king wrote another "pop" album for all the love struck college girls out there (insert uncontrollable screaming here). John Mayer released “Continuum” a few weeks ago and I have had many good listens of his new project. John's music has decidedly changed. This is his first effort at producing as well as writing and recording an album. With that change comes a more mature sound (sorry college ladies). I think it is a nice change for him. He continues to appeal to the love sick but throws in a few brutal guitar riffs to keep everyone awake. It is a good album in that he breaks a few rules (i.e. writing music that will be worn out on superficial pop stations the world over). His new music is like the work of old: Some solid music for the sake of music and to make an album a whole work which is not intended to be sold in pieces. It is nice to see an artist do the old school (even his cover is old school). Oh, and John Mayer has inspired me on his blog. He has started making his own guitar effects pedals. This is a plan of mine as well. I am working on the design for the circuit boards and making a list of parts. I'll let you know how it goes (if i don't electrocute myself to death).

So I did the face recognition thing at myheritage.com which compares your face with celebrity faces. The program run all sorts of tests on the geometry of my face etc... and here are the results. I thought they were funny but finally my students are justified in calling me one of these celebrities (can you guess which one?).

Well, enough boring writing. Remember...you might be a redneck if your last physical was aboard a UFO.

Cheers,


GreekSpeedo