In 2018, I started collecting songs I heard out in the world to a playlist. Anything that resonated in the moment, new or nostalgic. Obviously, the world was quite different when I started this habit. Like most folks who weren’t essential workers or selfish assholes, I spent most of 2020 at home. No concerts, no…Continue readingMy 2020 Playlist
I started a thing last year where I add songs that are resonating for me — for whatever reason — to a playlist named for the year. Hence: My 2018 Playlist. I kept it up through 2019, with a bit more gusto, so I’ve got an even bigger list this year. With a bit of…Continue readingMy 2019 Playlist
Been writing songs with my buddy Jon for a few weeks now. Our songwriting sessions keep reminding me of the money laundering scene from Office Space: I can’t believe what a bunch of nerds we are. We’re looking up money laundering in a dictionary. As you can see in the above photo, I resorted to…Continue readingWhat a bunch of nerds we are
Brian, one of the organizers of the open mic I attend now, issued a songwriting challenge last week. The input/theme was “stand up”. I started scratching out lyrics in Drafts on my iPad right away that same night, and finished them up on Saturday afternoon. Jon, my music partner, came over Sunday and we hashed…Continue readingA joyful capacity
I’ve never really dug into the B-52s catalog, despite having done Love Shack at karaoke at least a dozen times now. I love how unapologetically weird they are. I’ve got Whammy! on vinyl, but this isn’t on it: The songs where only Cindy sings don’t seem to get as much airtime, which is too bad…Continue readingGive me back my man
Early in the year I started an iTunes playlist called 2018. I added songs to it as it occurred to me. I didn’t really have a plan, but it ended up creating a portrait of my year. Many tracks are new music that resonated with me. A few are old favorites that had particular relevance…Continue readingMy 2018 Playlist
Clearing out some old notes and found this card from a Nels Cline lecture at Music University back in 2013: “Show up on time and have your stuff work.” Nels Cline He was speaking in the context of being a studio musician but pretty good advice for just about any gig (especially public speaking).Continue readingShow up on time and have your stuff work
Listening to this Bodega track on repeat thanks to my friend Jess. I don’t know anything about them. Tranquilized bears, falling from trees to trampolines. That’s all. Art that overcomes barriers, literally. Humanity detected a star whose light is 3/4 as old as our entire universe. Kyle Kinane is episode 3 of season 2 of…Continue readingLinks of late | 2018-04-17