Strung Up

I finished out the year with a handful of shows, and began this one with a small handful more. Now I’m taking a short break from the stage.

I neglected to mention on here that I started playing with The High Strung in December. I learned their new record I, Anybody and performed with them at their record release party a couple weeks ago at the Magic Bag in Ferndale. I’m learning a few more older tunes and will be playing with them again next Saturday, Feb. 1st at Planet Ant in Hamtramck. How this pans out will be left for the multiverse to decide…

Additionally The Walking Beat has almost wrapped up our full-length. I laid down several keyboard tracks recently and all that’s left is a couple more, some overdubs and vocals. We’re taking a month off and will be back at it late February, and will be playing out again by March.

The Counter Elites had a lovely wind-down of our very first year of existence to the day. Our first show was Jan 12, 2013 and our last one (for now) was Jan 11, 2014. In the two weeks before, Brett Callwood at Metro Times listed our full-length the 3rd best album of the year (ahead of both Eminem and Danny Brown, admirably on the heels of Scott Morgan and Bootsey X) and the week of the show ran a 2-page feature on our “punk rock theater”. We had a fantastic show to cap our year-one and will be on break from playing out until April. In the meantime, I’ve almost finished writing our second full-length The Pledge of Aggrievance and have a third of it demoed, and we will soon start chipping away at it.

I also recently started playing keyboards with Yes Wait No, which is Carl Larson from Blase Splee’s new band, with Dave Wisbiski on bass (Blase Splee, Fordirelifesake), Mike Dilaura on guitar (The Cause) and Kyle Czarnecki on drums (DAD 1000). It’s a very huge sounding band not unlike Pixies or Weezer but with more interesting chord progressions, though just as catchy with lots of harmonies. We’re developing a full-length out of Carl’s best songs stretching from Splee and beyond, and will be playing a good block of tunes that I always regretted we never had the time to work out in that band. We’re hoping to play out this spring.

A few days ago Ryan Looney, drummer of Songs From The Moon and The Walking Beat and I entered Woodshed studio and recorded drums for a new 4-track EP that will serve as the follow-up to my Carpe Vita Quadrumvirate. I’d planned on recording it 100% solo but the simple fact is that he’s an incredible drummer and I’m more than happy to have him play on everything I make. So this record will be credited to “Jon and the Loon from the Moon” and will be called the Why Would She Want To Be With Me? Quadrilogy.

1. Sailing Stones (Redux)
2. Why Would She Want To Be With Me?
3. Setting Sun
4. Fear Of Light

It’s my third suite, and will follow the same formula of the Quadrumvirate and The Lucky Suite, with instrumental introduction/intermission tracks and a mostly-instrumental closer, extending a 3-minute pop tune into a 13-minute movement. I’m going to let this one come naturally, but with Ryan’s drum tracks finished I have a hell of a blank slate to work with.

Songs From The Moon is still very close to finishing our EP Blood For Power. All we need to do is bring Shaun in sometime to record guitar for “Third World America”, record vox and overdubs for it, and the record will be complete. It’s been on the shelf for a few months so we’ll see when that’ll happen.

Next Friday I’m getting together at the Shed with the rhythmic half of SFTM, Ryan Looney and our bassist/producer Ed Sertage, to work on a fresh batch of tunes. We’re kicking around the idea of firing off a 7-song EP as a no-bullshit rock ‘n’ roll power-trio, executed very quickly, in the interim of finishing the more orchestrated and multilayered SFTM EP. If the stars align, we could theoretically get all three EPs of Moon music out in quick succession by summer, with Walking Beat and Counter Elites full-lengths out around the same time.

That is, unless the world doesn’t explode before then…

Oh and Shaun and I are changing the name of our record label and are planning a big “branching-out” for 2014. But that’ll be a separate update.

block partyin’

This Thursday I’ll be performing for the 3rd year in a row at your friendly neighborhood Woodland Park Association Block Party at Maplehurst and Livernois in Ferndale. I’ll be providing some between-band entertainment, playing some solo tunes as Jon From The Moon between J. Walker & The Crossguards and The Audionics.

Last year, Shaun Wisniewski, Danny Kanka and I did a set of JFTM/SFTM and Matilda songs, with a cover of the Who’s “Boris The Spider” and called ourselves a variety of renditions of “Matilda and Jon From The Moon and Friends”:

by Neil Koziara

And the year before that, we dragged a large heavy electric piano across town to plant it in the driveway and performed a full set as the inimitable Songs From The Moon:

by Jeff Milo

Thanks Jeff Milo for the chance to fill the neighborhood with music once again!!

Dawn: day 6

Been jampacking every day with work, band practice, recording, bike rides, a little bit of reading, yard- and housework, general cordiality, mild socializing, lighthearted haberdashery, 80s movies and Beatles documentaries. I’m totally behind in e-letters to friends but have been avoiding the digital multiverse for the duration of most days, and have felt younger–or like I’m living in olden days–because of it. Secretly I miss the days before the age of immediacy, the omnipresence of screens, the thousands of channels and millions of choices and billions of voices all screaming at us at once, and the friendly neighborhood surveillance. Really, I like to live as disconnected from the grid as possible, do my own thing, ride my own pony, check in with mom occasionally (but businesses never), pay in coins and rollick in the wilderness, and I can really feel the difference in how I think and breathe by spending most of my days away from hyper-technology, social media and the bottomless tubes.

Anyway aside from rambling into journals and devices, lately I’ve been making music. The other day my Simple Living Ferndale cohort Shaun and I packed the coal carts and fired up the engines on The Counter Elites‘ full-length Are You A Counter-Elite?, brought the band into the studio and tracked drums for 8 of the 26 tunes–with one microphone. Got a rock-solid start, and I truly feel this record will take no time to make as it’s such simplistic music made by two guys (whoever they are–we still don’t know) who really seem to have these tunes down. Essentially, it’ll be made with four tracks, or maybe a couple more, with all the drums on one, the bass split between two (bass-amp bass and guitar-amp bass) and vocals on one, with the occasional overdub, doubling, or sound effect added for texturization or controversiality. Really though, I’m super stoked, and we hope to have it out by September.

I got back into the Carpe Vita Quadrumvirate today. I recorded piano tracks for pts 1, 3 and 4. Part 1 “Tempus Fugit” is an instrumental with eleven piano tracks and huge drum-and-cymbal swells greatly influenced by Philip Glass. Part 3 “Disce Pati” is a quiet, lazy, loungey, minimalistic instrumental break that will follow the powerhouse rocker single (which is just about complete), part 2 “Carpe Vita” which I believe is the closest I’ve come to a Pete Townshend composition–replete with busy-bass work; Moon-esque drum fills; huge classic-rock-style A and D chords; a twisting and turning solo made of a blend of two electric guitar and two synthesizer leads; pinch-squeals, a fist-pumping, mantra-shouting outro and boundless, uncompromising energy throughout. Part 4 “Memento Mori” will close the EP with big, deep, fat-handed punchy chords, elephants-marching style drums, and a hearkening, or stylistic reprise, of the mantra-chant and similar chords of “Carpe Vita” but with an entirely different feel. Phew! I can’t wait to hear what it’ll sound like when it’s not just .wav file bits and pieces or a jumble of sounds in my brain.

But it’s coming together. I have 14 days til the first day of summer and my target release date. Will I make it?

bikeage

I’ve been riding the shit out of my new bike lately. I’ve taken short trips around town almost every day, and had a several 10-mile runs, and a series of longish jaunts – 18, 27, 43 and 57 miles each, respectively. For a couple of those adventures I’ve had my camera with me. Click below for some random scenery.

drawing “blood”

Eddie Sertage and I put in some good Woodshed hours yesterday on the Songs From The Moon EP Blood For Power. I laid down the main vocal track for “If I Could I Would Annex Other Planets” and Ed layered some acoustic and 12-string electric guitar. He sent out a mix and it’s really opening up and sounding very nice, and as a more lazy, pretty, poetic, groove-driven tune, it really balances out the heaviness of the first half of the EP and the total power-pop of the third track “Third World America”, which is all that really needs to be wrapped up at this point. No release date yet – but we’re getting closer every day.

Also got the ball rolling today on a Counter Elite weekend. Big news hopefully coming soon on that front.

Dawn: day 5

Music got in the way of music, which I generally have no problem with as long as it’s not something else like homework, or yardwork, or work-work getting in the way which really bums me out. The last week or so saw really fun shows with The Counter Elites and Songs From The Moon in addition to The Walking Beat halfway-moving into our new studio rehearsal space. We’re in the building at least, the Music School in Detroit (formerly Malcolm X Academy) but are temporarily sharing a space with 3FT as we’re waiting for our room to open up, and have had a series of very enjoyable and productive early-morning rehearsals with our new drummer Ryan Looney (aka Ratso; Loon From The Moon) and big giant cardboard boxes of coffee.

Four of the last seven days have been fantastically musical days, and I couldn’t be happier about music being the main focus of my spring/summer. Also, I just got a new bike and have been so excited about biking that I’ve been going on awesome long rides in the evenings instead of working on music. Last night I rode 28 miles, the night before 19, and on Monday Danny Kanka and I rode around Detroit for the afternoon until we got rained out.

Anyway, tonight, though I was quite winded and beat, I had a block of time free and it was raining so decided to hit the Shed to begin pre-production for the rest of the Quadrumvirate. I made some good progress even though I wasn’t really in the mood to work on it. I dialed in the click tracks for pts. I, III and IV, boosted the EQ on them so I could play super loudly along without drowning them out, and laid down bass tracks as foundations to build from. So the ball is rolling, the whole structure is finalized, and I’m feeling pretty confident that I’ll be able to make my first-day-of-summer deadline for its release.

supermoon post

I just posted this to facebook and thought I’d post it here too.

Apparently I was on Fox News last night. I was leaving work yesterday (at Oakland Community College) when I spotted Charlie Langton pestering people in the atrium with a cameraman in jean shorts. I hung out for a few minutes and watched him repeatedly attempt to cram lines down the throats of the few people he targeted, mostly janitors and cafe workers rather than students and professors, about the benefits of requiring teacher pay to be decided by the results of standardized tests. I noticed he was framing his questions in ways that would most likely result in answers that fit their script. My blood started to boil a bit and I almost yelled “scumbags!” and walked out, but then he spotted me. He bounded my way, and without asking whether he could film me, told me to “stand up against that pole! Yes! Look casual!” and attempted to feed me an answer to a heavily loaded question. I don’t remember what it was exactly but I made it clear that I was against any form of standardized testing whatsoever and said that I believe education works best when tailored to students’ individual qualities (I thought of saying how teaching to standardized tests is no different than programming drones, but thought against it, as I kinda wanted to end up on TV). In a way I’m surprised he continued to question me, but I stuck to my opinion, and told him that the state cannot dictate “success” across the board without lowering the standards overall. Then he got so close his nose hairs tickled my chin and asked me, with a smirk and a wink, “what… you don’t trust… the STATE?” and the cameraman brought his camera so close to my face I could feel my breath bouncing off the lens. I told him, “in many respects, I don’t,” and said something about how no matter where students are, in the city, suburb, countryside, that the only way they can be successful is if they all have access to the resources they need, which the state should provide if need be, but that education should be left to the educators to formulate depending on the strengths and needs of the individual students.

They didn’t ask for my name or if they could air what I said, so I doubt I’ll see any royalties for my performance, and I’m sure they cherry-picked whatever words or phrases fit their dialogue. I didn’t see it – I don’t watch television, and when it aired I was at Small’s, singing along with The Counter Elites about busting up corporate media and concentrated influence. The only reason I see Fox News getting behind the standardization (aka dumbing-down) of education is because they’re nothing more than fear-mongering toilet paper salesmen spewing corporate ideology between commercial breaks, and don’t want teachers getting in the way of their creation of a mindless and heartless society of selfish zombie consumers.

Fox, NBC, CNN etc sell us competing corporate interests and nothing more than an illusion of choice. Just like Coke or Pepsi – made of the same poisonous ingredients, and taking up the whole goddamn aisle. Be your own media and ignore these a-holes.

check it out

also I got a new bike today!!

spring set lists

Had a real fun jam tonight at Woodshed with Songs From The Moon. It was our first practice in a very long time. Maybe a year? Maybe almost a year? We’ve seen each other quite a bit lately but every time we meet up we’ll lay some shit down for our record which only involves one person playing at a time. But it was awesome to rock these songs together again. Here’s what we’re thinking of playing on Saturday May 25 at the Phoenix Cafe (update- at 7pm at the NEW WAY in Ferndale):

The Prologue
Lucky To Be Alone (Again)
The Appendix
The First Amendment
Phossy Jaw
Get To Know Mine
Watchin’ The Orioles
Morning Sun
We Are All Being Followed
Ball Of Thread
Third World America
If I Could I Would Annex Other Planets
Brave Iranians

This’ll be the second time we’ve played The Lucky Suite in its entirety and the debut of our next single “Third World America”. It was great to blow the dust off the rest of our tunes.

Since I’m in the mood to post set lists, here’s what the Counter Elites are thinking of playing on Thursday May 23 at Small’s (I only know this because the bassist and I share some kind of psychic connection that cannot be put into words):

I’m A Counter Elite
Privatize It
Too Much Of Everything
Who’s On The Other Side?
Gone In A Boom
War In The Streets
Bust ’em Up
Goin’ Hierarchical
Choices
Skin And Bones
All Talk, No Action
I’m Followin’ You
Quality Control
I Could Like That (But I Don’t)
We Are All In This Together
Natural Light
I’m Comin’ Home (To My Baby Tonight)
Compartmentalized
The Hands Of Evil
What Happened?
Dystopian Daydream
Are You A Counter Elite?

Also this morning I ran into Jeff Milo at the best coffee shop around (Java Hutt – where I’m currently at for the second time today) and chatted about this year’s Woodland Park Association Block Party at Maplehurst & Livernois on Thursday June 13. Shaun and I have played the last two years in a row (2011 with Songs From The Moon and 2012 as “Jon From The Moon and Matilda and Friends” w/ Danny Kanka on drums) and this year I’ll be performing solo between bands. I’m thinking of playing:

Brave Iranians
Morning Sun
Yours
Are You Gonna Beat Around The Bush?
Jordan Haircut
Your Holy Ghost
Carpe Vita
Get Your Dues

That’s all she wrote. No work on Dawn today but I started sharing “Carpe Vita” with friends and am super excited to stick it in the inter-tubes. I’m thinking of releasing the Quadrumvirate on the first day of summer, Friday, June 21. We’ll see how it goes, I s’pose…

Dawn: day 3

Just a little synth-work from home today. I’m beat from late nights mixing and a day of yardwork, and beautiful weather forced me outside ’til sundown. But I made more progress on “Carpe Vita.” All it needs now is a bit of vocals and maybe a tiny guitar part and it’ll be done-done.

Also had to dig the Counter Elites out of carbonite today for a just-announced show this Thursday at Small’s. As their producer/co-manager it’s up to me to make sure they’re able to comply with SLF corporate protocol. The fact that I don’t know their names makes them particularly difficult to work with, but I think they’re on to something.

Dawn: day 2

I mixed til 6am this morning and had to wake up at 8am so I wasn’t sure if I’d have the steam to hit the stude today, but after doing chores all morning with music on my mind and then getting back to mixing, by early afternoon I was excited about what was coming together and headed back to the Shed. I spent the afternoon adding some electric guitars to “Carpe Vita”. Some parts are subtle and the guitar solo is a foundation I’m going to add synthesizer and maybe some other wackiness to. I was able to retain year-old rhythm guitar, piano and vocal tracks and recorded a bass part a few weeks ago, so with the drums and lead guitars it’s really sounding huge already. All it needs is some swirling synths and some oohs and ahhs and it should be right as rain.

Now that I feel able to play drums I have a really good idea of how to move forward with the whole project, but before diving into the rest of the full-length I’m gonna cut my teeth on the Carpe Vita Quadrumvirate and hopefully get it to the ears of the world as soon as summertime.