Updated Beasts of Burden Songlist

Oh, the hunting we will go. The following list was compiled with updated info about songs being developed for the next Beasts of Burden record. This hot off the presses.

Songs (Demoed at least once with lyrics)
1. Weapons
2. Anthem (Money Apple)
3. Red Rabbit
4. Williamston
5. Drop in Temperature
6. Ponchartrain Causeway Driving
7. 1000 Years
8. Photographs
9. Filthy Grin
10. Wanderer
11. Howling Wind
12. A Tiny Place
13. Wings

(?) Songs (demoed but not with vocals recorded)
14. Fifth Amendment
15. Raise the Dead
16. Silence (Brush)
17. I’d Be Green

Still needs some stuff...
18. So What What [lyrics, melody, further form development]
19. Cilantro [lyrics, melody]
20. 21 Bar [another part, opening melody, lyrics finished]
21. New Funk [lyrics, melody, further form]
22. Spooky Funk [lyrics, melody, further form]
23. Slagle’s 9/8 Funk [lyrics, melody]
24. Slagle’s Piano Thing [lyrics, melody]
25. F# Minor Thing [lyrics, melody, further form]
26. Motown Groove [lyrics, melody]
27. Satie-like Chords [lyrics, completed melody]
28. Troubador (Folk Demo #8) [lyrics, melody, further form]


So work is happening all the time (that is when I have time)!

Give Up the Funk

This is all about Bootsy, but I'd rather talk Worrell. Woo.

pitchfork, clinic

Reading the Pitchforkmedia's review of Noah Georgeson's new record, which from a production standpoint alone sounds quite alluring, I was struck with how silly it is to describe music in a literary fashion. Most of it ends up being namechecking, vague wax-poetic yarn-spinning, and the occaisional musical term.

In a music course a few years back, the professor had mentioned that the entire premise of music criticism started around the idea of artists discussing art, so you'd get some composer/performer commenting on the other composer or performer...eventually the general press took interest in the details of musical criticism, and ever since there's this obsession with which side of the fence the writer is on. A lot of writers like to discuss certain things so that they end up on the "artist" side of the fence, and it is possible, I suppose, that with the invention of individualized listening experiences, more than a little amount of the art is now handed over to the listener.

That means that as musicians, we make a piece of music and hand it over to be appreciated in whatever way the listener deems acceptable. This makes sense to me. However, when ownership of skills or terms become fought over by the listener, it makes me start to wonder whether or not listeners shouldn't get total control over art. Because an honest person should just admit a lack of musical understanding, rather than come back with a huge one-two punch of literary descriptions that mean very little.

And with that, art becomes some kind of monetary possession where the listener becomes more of a consumer rather than a human being appreciating music. So, somebody who doesn't really comprehend the musical complexity or redundancy of a piece of music ends up talking about how the guy's socks were made, or where he lives. It'd be better off to not describe it all, sometimes.

I do know that some reviews are filled with an absence of musical description, and I'm not sure how much more reading I can do from people who seem less interested in describing the music and more interested in explaining a scene everybody already knows about. And I already knew that freak-folk was created by Pitchfork. Jeez. Get your gloat on. I read it everyday because I like it. Or do i? I want to make it clear that the reviewer and the review today weren't what pushed me over. It's just been on my mind, I suppose. The review was pretty insightful overall, but there have been plenty in the past that haven't been. So, since I've just blabbed about reviewin' a CD, let's REVIEW A CD.

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I picked up a copy of Visitations by Clinic recently. They used to be one of those bands where I listened to their records weekly, but something happened, most notably the release of Winchester Cathedral. The rumored departure from their usual sound which was that record actually was a sneaky joke. For a long time I completely ignored listening to them. Then, one day a few months ago, I pulled the record out and listened to it straight through. It was slowly revealed itself in that listen. The new record came out before my interest in the band had flared up again, so by the time I bought the record a few days ago, I was pretty excited. Like Stereolab, variations on a theme tend to be the main focus of the band, and since I've accepted it, I really enjoyed the record.

The record is noisier and more dissonant than previous records (although similiar in dirty haze to Internal Wrangler), and there are a few new chord progressions added to the Clinic style, but not many. Overall the record is pretty fierce for them, and when you combine this with the odd incessant floor-tom sound of the drummer, it makes for an enjoyable record. Default car music recently. After listening to it a few times, I've made a decision that the snare drum is over-used in rock music, and more songs need to implement a "no-snare" rule. The drummer from Clinic is never given credit for being a fantastic groovesetter in the band, but this record proves it in david spades. These days my most respected drummers are the ones that make use of certain restrictions and minimalistic patterns, not those who fill things up like caulking.

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The new record is almost totally mastered. Preorders and full album stream coming soon.

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Early Minor Quintet, etc

This last friday (the 26th), the first live performance of Early Minor Quintet occured at Magdalena's Tea House along with a performance with the Beasts of Burden and I. It was a wild performance, purely primal, impulsive... and great. I hope the audience enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed doing it. It felt at times as though we wandered into complete chaos and then wandered back to some kind of cohesion. I suppose that's how it works when it's 100% unscripted. Eventually, I think the group will start sculpting the chaotic parts more often and have a little bit more intention rather than just going.

I talked to David about the show yesterday breifly and it definitely seems like as a group we could just keep going until somebody passed out, but of course, as he said "whether the audience would want to hear us or not is another story." In any case, I think it's time we do a more shows as we promote the release of this record.

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The electro-acoustic instrumental release is being delayed a month or so, and will be released in March. The record has been called different things, most often called something close to "You Would Be Happier if You Stopped Lying to Yourself," but I've settled on a shorter, less ridiculous title.

The record will be called "Medicine," and will be released March 20th. Here's some info about the record.

First off, the record has a slightly altered tracklisting from previously suggested posts, also some of the titles have changed.

1. [16:05] Canadian Rockees
2. [06:06] Medicine
3. [03:50] Piccolo Sample
4. [03:39] You Would Be Happier If You Stopped Lying to Yourself
5. [07:31] Sunset Through Trees
6. [05:20] Mustard
7. [01:46] Hydrate Level 4 Please
8. [06:30] Practice Theory Theory Theory
9. [08:30] Rainin’ and A-Rainin’


It is being mastered right now. More info soon. Full album stream too!

ice storm.

PLEASE NOTE: I would be blogging often if it weren't for the new version of blogger having a bug with my ISP hosting FTP. If this post works (and occaisionally they do), then this message has been attached to help everybody understand why I've been so delinquent. I may switch over to a new "custom domain" hosting option where blogspot hosts my files.

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supposedly a big ice and snow storm is coming tonight. major danger according to the national weather service. This is what the National Weather Service had to say

"Statement as of 10:08 PM EST on January 14, 2007

An Ice Storm Warning remains in effect until 12 PM EST Monday.

Freezing rain and sleet will develop through 11 PM and become
heavy at times overnight. Up to a half inch of ice accumulation is
likely by mid morning Monday before the precipitation changes to
occasional light snow.

An Ice Storm Warning means severe winter weather conditions are
expected or occurring. Significant amounts of ice accumulations
will make travel dangerous or impossible. Travel is strongly
discouraged. Commerce will likely be severely impacted. If you
must travel... keep an extra flashlight... food... and water in your
vehicle in case of an emergency. Ice accumulations and winds will
likely lead to snapped power lines and falling tree branches that
add to the danger."


Well, so that spells fun.

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Monday is a holiday in the Lansing area for many buisnesses and the Lansing School District as they celebrate Martin Luther King day. This respect and reverence is only diluted by the fact that some buisnesses don't have it off, and many of the surrounding school districts don't consider it a worthwhile holiday. Lame.

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Major corporations stealing from cool website people. That's the problem with today's reality. Watch this movie...

http://www.7secondsoflove.com/ninja/


Ok, now watch this clip...


Kind of reminds me of this.

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In other news, my personal journal has started up again.