i saw a youtube video this morning. just a scenster party. there was a girl screaming at this guy about the songs he writes. eventually she gets to the point: "are you just gonna write five more songs about how some girl broke your heart?" (insert bratty annoyed scenster girl pouty face). i cringed when i saw the guy turn red and not say another word, just sort of curled up in a drunken fetal position on the kitchen floor. what else would this kid write about? obviously neither one them are socialists or anarchists, poets or painters, so no politics, no metaphors, no imagery... just some kids at a party drinking high life. so what are songs suppose to be about? anything you want of course, why are they about lost loves so often though? my english professor in college would say the creation of art is the act of recapturing the past, or recasting the past even. i tend to agree with this, but why is a song about a lost lover so poignant, while being so cliche, predictable and trite? its the loss we all relate too, and a common experience? i've tried writing love songs about people i know, i usually fail when i attack directly, so metaphor and english degree help a little. i guess loss = love song, you can make lover metaphors out of anything: bicycles, boogers, farting camels in the desert, old t-shirts.
leonard cohen on songwriting:
http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/zollo.htmlParis is Burningit needs a few more verses
you told me you're heart was paris and burning
with one eye sown in a whorl
dancing with pepper labeija in drag
as the fires they set themselves burning
when did it become so important
to dance for the boys on a peg
standing behind a palisade with severed arms
with frayed tapestries in your hands
i never saved you
it wasn't me
it wasn't charles de gaulle
la da da la da da da da da
so you want to know if paris is burning
we just burned your effigy in the street
and your one eye in a whorl has come undone
and the whole ideal is full blood
the cauteries with your name are full rust
paris is burning
paris is burning
paris is burning
-c
our third show was totally awes0me. we played heather's housewarming soiree this evening [or last, really. if you wanna be technical. saturday night, just for the record.] we were sounding really great. everyone was owning their instrument. a real energy was circulating between the [6] six of us. third song in, we decided to take a breather. it was hot & everyone needed some air & a refreshment. [water for some, alcohol for others. aaron : "this jell-o™ shot is 70--no--80% vodka."] next thing we know, a police officer walks in, assesses the "situation" & tells us [in no uncertain terms] to cease & desist. we all just stood there, our jaws to the floor. "are you serious?" "is that a costume?" "you're not kidding, are you?" & "are you sure that's a real uniform?" were just a few questions that i'm sure came to mind. i couldn't believe it. we were actually being shut down by the cops. the man was trying to keep us down. hahaha. how cliche is that? but then again, how f*cking PUNK ROCK. i'd say, it was...wait for it...leg-end-ary.
this weekend was [2] two days of non-stop recording craziness. many, many hours spent micing, recording, re-recording, brainstorming, sweating, re-re-recording & hi-fiving. lots & lots of work, but i enjoyed every minute of it. "south dakota farm" is close to being finished. 
here's an alternate flier that i made for the ole mug show on saturday, 12 april 2008. 7 PM.
