Almost skipped an entire season...
I can't believe I almost skipped the entire fall! God there is so much to write about. I don't even know where to begin, as it's been so long since I wrote anything. I probably say this a lot unfortunately, but I REALLY shouldn't wait this long in between postings, and I'm gonna do the best I can to make sure huge gaps like this don't occur.
Well, in a brief nutshell shortly after the "clunk" incident, I made a trip to AZ for a week. Basically just a visit to catch up with friends and family, and also to be around for my Mom's birthday. As has been the case on my last few visits, I managed to see a good number of people, but not everyone I wanted to. At this point I realize that it's an inevitability to some extent when I make these visits.
Just a few weeks after that visit (early September), my sister, Chris (her fiancee) and my dad came out for a weekend. My dad hasn't been to NJ since our fabled move from NJ in 1993. We caught up with my Aunt who lives out here. We went to NYC to see Ground Zero, Strawberry Fields, the music stores of course, and the 25th anniversary Asia concert (and CD signing afterwards). We also made a trip to Great Adventure. Also went to Liberty State park on the night of 9/11 for an awe inspiring view of the twin beams for the 5th anniversary memorial of the attacks.
Between then and now, there hasn't been too much exciting as I've been basically doing my thing. Teaching has been going pretty steady and I've managed to make it through the fall "schedule change" period fairly painlessly. Been playing a lot. Here's a quick rundown of the status on my musical projects...
James and I are still jamming with Mikey P. on the progressive stuff. Things have been moving along fairly well, and the most notable bit here is the recent acquisition of a bassist! Yes, after WAY too long, we've managed to find someone who can fill the big shoes of "appropriate" bassist for this venture. James bumped into Reggie Strazzella at a party next door, and about 2 weeks ago he came down and jammed with James and I. He has a distinct aggressive/technical style that lends itself well to what we're doing, adds more unique colors, and fills in the holes tonally in a unique way that seems like it will work quite well. He jammed with us once with Mike which also went well, and we went over some tunes yesterday together. Mike is currently on the road for a few weeks with another project to make some connections and most importantly, make money! But with the addition of bass to this, expect some more news to follow soon. By the way, check Reggie out : http://www.myspace.com/reggiessolos
Mike Blair and I are still working on his concept piece. Things are moving along steadily, despite awkward schedules. We have some more tunes put together for this that are really pretty kickass. Also, the need conceptually for a female vocalist has arrived. We have worked a little with my good friend Beth who has a terrific voice which blends with Blair's in a soothing, yet haunting way.
James and I are still jamming off and on as a power duo occasionally in between other projects.
The most interesting piece of news in recent weeks is this. A few weeks ago I get a call from a girl named Alena. She said she was a singer and was looking for a band. She got my number from Ken Limeri at Sam Ash. After a long phone call discussing fundamentals, we met up last Saturday. We hit it off extremely well. Apparently we have the ability to chat incessantly. But she is an amazing talent, extremely fun, and has some very good ideas about music, marketing, etc. (Interestingly enough she is a vocal teacher) This coincides with what she is looking to do. Without spilling beans on this, the plan is this... Through her ventures she has mustered up a great deal of....um.....let's say powerful contacts. They have some valuable insight on the industry. They know what she is capable of and they are looking to make a splash. I wish I could be more detailed, but as of now I can't, this may even be saying too much. (*shakes fist at the business*) But we have been working a LOT this past week, and let's just say things are going extremely well with this also. It's also nice to know that her intentions aren't self-centered, but for the good of everyone involved, and globally as well. All in all, this could lead to some very exciting stuff in the grand scheme of things if all goes well. More on this exciting story as it happens ;^)
Other than that, things are things. The Sentra is still down, but I'm looking to get it running soon as the plethora of things the All-Trac needs just doesn't seem like it will be feasible and/or possible to make it a daily driver that's winter ready. Although, it's getting me around in the meantime.
I've also been doing a lot of computer work in the last few weeks. I bought a new 250GB hard drive (for 60 bucks!!!) and have setup a computer downstairs in the practice room for recording purposes. Also have been experimenting with using multiple soundcards for multitrack recording, and other geek things of that nature.
Things are going extremely well at the new place. Well, aside from the fact that at the current moment we have no heat. That will (better be) taken care of soon. But that aside, no complaints.
So that's a snapshot of the huge chunk of time I apparently left everyone in the dark for. I wasn't trying to be like that...honest! But I hope everyone else is like, you know, rocking on and stuff. As always, I am! Happy Mischief Night!!! (And Halloween too)
Well, in a brief nutshell shortly after the "clunk" incident, I made a trip to AZ for a week. Basically just a visit to catch up with friends and family, and also to be around for my Mom's birthday. As has been the case on my last few visits, I managed to see a good number of people, but not everyone I wanted to. At this point I realize that it's an inevitability to some extent when I make these visits.
Just a few weeks after that visit (early September), my sister, Chris (her fiancee) and my dad came out for a weekend. My dad hasn't been to NJ since our fabled move from NJ in 1993. We caught up with my Aunt who lives out here. We went to NYC to see Ground Zero, Strawberry Fields, the music stores of course, and the 25th anniversary Asia concert (and CD signing afterwards). We also made a trip to Great Adventure. Also went to Liberty State park on the night of 9/11 for an awe inspiring view of the twin beams for the 5th anniversary memorial of the attacks.
Between then and now, there hasn't been too much exciting as I've been basically doing my thing. Teaching has been going pretty steady and I've managed to make it through the fall "schedule change" period fairly painlessly. Been playing a lot. Here's a quick rundown of the status on my musical projects...
James and I are still jamming with Mikey P. on the progressive stuff. Things have been moving along fairly well, and the most notable bit here is the recent acquisition of a bassist! Yes, after WAY too long, we've managed to find someone who can fill the big shoes of "appropriate" bassist for this venture. James bumped into Reggie Strazzella at a party next door, and about 2 weeks ago he came down and jammed with James and I. He has a distinct aggressive/technical style that lends itself well to what we're doing, adds more unique colors, and fills in the holes tonally in a unique way that seems like it will work quite well. He jammed with us once with Mike which also went well, and we went over some tunes yesterday together. Mike is currently on the road for a few weeks with another project to make some connections and most importantly, make money! But with the addition of bass to this, expect some more news to follow soon. By the way, check Reggie out : http://www.myspace.com/reggiessolos
Mike Blair and I are still working on his concept piece. Things are moving along steadily, despite awkward schedules. We have some more tunes put together for this that are really pretty kickass. Also, the need conceptually for a female vocalist has arrived. We have worked a little with my good friend Beth who has a terrific voice which blends with Blair's in a soothing, yet haunting way.
James and I are still jamming off and on as a power duo occasionally in between other projects.
The most interesting piece of news in recent weeks is this. A few weeks ago I get a call from a girl named Alena. She said she was a singer and was looking for a band. She got my number from Ken Limeri at Sam Ash. After a long phone call discussing fundamentals, we met up last Saturday. We hit it off extremely well. Apparently we have the ability to chat incessantly. But she is an amazing talent, extremely fun, and has some very good ideas about music, marketing, etc. (Interestingly enough she is a vocal teacher) This coincides with what she is looking to do. Without spilling beans on this, the plan is this... Through her ventures she has mustered up a great deal of....um.....let's say powerful contacts. They have some valuable insight on the industry. They know what she is capable of and they are looking to make a splash. I wish I could be more detailed, but as of now I can't, this may even be saying too much. (*shakes fist at the business*) But we have been working a LOT this past week, and let's just say things are going extremely well with this also. It's also nice to know that her intentions aren't self-centered, but for the good of everyone involved, and globally as well. All in all, this could lead to some very exciting stuff in the grand scheme of things if all goes well. More on this exciting story as it happens ;^)
Other than that, things are things. The Sentra is still down, but I'm looking to get it running soon as the plethora of things the All-Trac needs just doesn't seem like it will be feasible and/or possible to make it a daily driver that's winter ready. Although, it's getting me around in the meantime.
I've also been doing a lot of computer work in the last few weeks. I bought a new 250GB hard drive (for 60 bucks!!!) and have setup a computer downstairs in the practice room for recording purposes. Also have been experimenting with using multiple soundcards for multitrack recording, and other geek things of that nature.
Things are going extremely well at the new place. Well, aside from the fact that at the current moment we have no heat. That will (better be) taken care of soon. But that aside, no complaints.
So that's a snapshot of the huge chunk of time I apparently left everyone in the dark for. I wasn't trying to be like that...honest! But I hope everyone else is like, you know, rocking on and stuff. As always, I am! Happy Mischief Night!!! (And Halloween too)