In a Sea of Blue and Green

This is the first song I’ve actually completed at the studio. Only took me two years. It’s unmastered, but that’s something I’ve yet to learn. I’m pretty happy with the mix. Probably one of the most chill and intimate songs I’ve done, but let me know what you think. You can also check it out on my MySpace.

In a Sea of Blue and Green

Bathroom wall of a restaraunt we ate at on the way to Riobamba.

Nice blue house in the Ecuadorian countryside.

When we pulled to the side of the road to watch Mt. Tungurahua in it’s smoking volcanic glory, a few kids went to relieve themselves near the train tracks, only to be caught off guard by a few teens invading their bathroom time.

I ate great food…

…in Ecuador. Here is some more from my trip.

Chuchucurro, or pork, pork rinds, empenada, fried banana, potatoes and popcorn.

View from a restaraunt I ate at one the way to Riobamba.

Dinner my first night there. Ecuadorian fast food. Some sort of shrimp and cilantro soup with fried plaintains and popcorn. They put cilantro in everything. It was great. The Fanta was also heavenly. It’s made with real sugar there. It makes all the difference.

Tunguraua Smoking

At the Eq(c)uat(d)or

Death Cab, anyone?

In honor of their (Death Cab for Cutie) new album (Narrow Stairs) being released today, there is a certain demo I’d like to post. I feel like this is me trying to be like Death Cab for Cutie. Although it sounds fairly different, the piano riff and drum beat remind me of them. The distinguishing aspect: Vibraphone! I hope you enjoy it. I feel like this song will one day shape up to be pretty darn sweet.

Piano

Quito dissolving into the Andes.

View from my bed the first night in Quito.

As I arrive in Ecuador.

I recommend this man.

His name is Rebelski. Look him up and listen to his music. Fun, imaginative and original.

Other than that, here are some more remnants of my trip to Ecuador. A little video action this time around. Today’s content is centered around my 3rd day in Quito. In the afternoon, we drove to the top of Quito. In the middle of the city is a giant hill, and atop it is a monument of the Virgin Mary. There was also some sort of dance festival up there as well.

View of Quito from the top.

Brother and sister at the festival.

Little boy about to wreak havoc on Quito with his paper airplane.

Riding to the top of Quito.

View from atop the monument.

Upbeat Indie

That’s the name of today’s clip. When I demo an idea, I give them lame names like “piano”, “fast”, or “upbeat indie”. I came up with this riff and programmed a quick drum beat underneath it. The song was upbeat and sounded a bit indie (whatever that really means. Probably an independent band, which really doesn’t lend itself to any certain genre, but I’ll use the term anyways). It reminds me a lot of Nada Surf, although a bit happier. This song hasn’t grown into anything more than you are about to hear since I demoed it about 3 months ago. That’s the cool thing though. I’ll probably stumble upon it this summer and add more.

Upbeat Indie

Elizabeth and Ryanne in the Old City of Quito.

A local working one of thousands of food stands.

Window shopping.

A new direction.

Since I never consistently update this thing, I thought of a way that might actually give me material. For one, I have some photos and videos from Ecuador I can share. But more importantly, I have my music. People know I record, yet they don’t hear much of anything from me. This is because I am afraid to release any of my recordings because they are not as polished and pristine as the best recordings. I have realized this is lame. I will post some things I have done. Keep in mind, most of are unfinished, and some ideas.

They will be short. They will be rough. They will be slightly off key. They will be somewhat out of time. But such are demos, roughs, and takes at ideas. These will give you an idea of where I am musically. I feel like since high school I’ve grown alot. There are numerous ideas zipping around my head, and hopefully these give you some glimpse into where I am going. Let me know what you think.

Maybe this new direction will lend itself to more material for this uber popular blog I maintain

I will also post a few pictures or a video from my trip to Ecuador whenever I update.

This song is called Blood Red Tie. I wrote it with my friend Mike Berg. He actually wrote the chord progression, and we took it as a team from there. We headed into the studio one day back in October 2007, I believe, and began tracking. I have yet to record vocals. We tried once, and I couldn’t hit a single note that day. Anyways, here is the rough. I’m definitely a big fan of this song. Oh, and here are the words as well.

Blood Red Tie

seems all the time
that I get by
just letting the air take me
and i ride
the orange sky
until i find a place…

and the passersby
they get so high
off this blood red tie
while the world stands tall
and the fools fall
all the good minds hear the call
of the blood red tie

a place to be
just simply be
and play with all I see
the moon hangs well
the wind it tells me of
of a world that’s well

I’ll beat and wear it in
wear those threads damn thin
and as tattered as I am

I’m sure that I can stand

We attended mass here on Palm Sunday.  The interior is mostly gold plated.

This is the Presidential Palace in the old city of Quito.

Passersby during a large Palm Sunday outdoor concert in a city square.

Hello Mother

I actually recorded a song today. I always tell people “Oh, I’m going into the studio to record” or something like that.  I’d be rich if I had a penny for every time I said “I’m going to record”. I’ve had an obsession with recording ever since I started learning about it in the 8th grade.  The more I learn about recording, the more I learn I don’t know.  Maybe I’m more obsessed with the notion of documenting this idea in my head in the perfect way.  That’s why I rarely finish recordings. I’m so set on polishing them.  I get so lost in the process, and I’m so afraid of putting out something that is not perfect.

So today, I scrapped that notion.  I sat down and hammered out a song I’ve written over the past month or two in short spurts.  It’s not perfect, but that’s part of rock n roll. It lends to the organic quality of the song.  Now that I’ve listened to it a billion times, I’m quite happy with it. Besides, I like to think my songs are good enough in and of themselves that the quality of the audio is not so important.  That’s something I’ve always wrestled with.

I even tracked a few rough takes for a new song idea.  I’m curious as to what images this song conjures up in people’s heads.  Music is so image based for me.  I wonder if what image I based this song off of is anything similar to what it puts in others.

If  you’d like, the song is called Hello Mother at myspace.com/thecloudmachinemusic

Or listen here.

Hello Mother

I’ve been restless.  I need to trek and traverse lands I’ve never seen.  That would calm my soul.