Bonnaroooo in 3 days

Super excited. Time for inspiration, time for meeting old friends.
I feel very balanced.

Gallery Showing

Tonight was the opening night of our gallery exhibition. Both Amber and I have pieces showing, and our art was selected out of quite a large group. I'm pretty excited about it- I think it's indicative of where we are headed and all. It was great to see our stuff actually in a gallery and watch people wandering in and looking. It's certainly gratifying to see the fruits of the labors. Also now we each have something to add to the CV and pieces for portfolios.

Cirque du soleil last night was sweet; a relaxing distraction; a celebration upon learning our artwork got accepted in the gallery; an inspiring, rejuvenating experience ;)

Also excited for summer; replacing school time with music time; hanging out; hiking and related etcs.

Also: Amber is a genius.

That is all :)

:P

Sweet bonnaroo in 17 days! The schedule is out and we've been mapping out our plans which we will probably only loosely follow- exciting!

We are we submitting our artwork to be juried for a gallery on wednesday! Then wednesday night after thats stress is lifted, cirque du soleil!

Still have a photo project to complete. 2 more days of actual classes. 6 if you count finals. oh stress be gone! :)

Electric Yikes

Quickly working our way through this quarter! We are now preparing for our final projects for photography, photoshop, and acting. Kind of a lot of work all at once... It's cool though, we're pulling through (and not working much at our jobs ;) ) Soon it will be time to submit our work for the juried exhibition and I think that's when the pressure will start to cook us. Still, I think we know where we're headed 'for real' now.

We've got so much stuff packed into everyday. We have more art projects than humanly possible going simultaneously between school and stuff we are privately working on and our music, etc. One of these days I'll catch up on everything. I'm stayin up late just to vent all this out. I gotta say, though, I love staying busy like this. It may feel like there's not enough time for everything, but that's cause a lot is getting done. It's pretty satisfying.

I'm so proud of amber, too. The artwork she's been producing is amazing. She's really learning a lot and she's finding out a lot of new things about how she likes to create that art. I think she's surprised herself. It's a really cool time for her.

We have a ton of shows to go to in just the next month alone. And lots of theatre: thursday the childrens' hour, next thursday mary stuart, next next wednesday cirque de soleil, and THAT shall be the grandest!

Just after finals are over we are packing up for the grandest event of the year: bonnaroo!

-thats not all, but all i have energy for-

May Day

,.-~'(_mayday_)'~-.,

A magical adventure, and a time for fond remembering :)

Beautiful day today, and we closed the night by doing some recording with our new equipment which I must say is quite 'pimp'. I think that means sweet. Anyways class tomorrow and then we're gonna blow some money probably. Haha.

Happy Spring

Everything is going so well!

P.S.
websites are almost up for evolumusic and newroadcallling... finally!

First Show!

We had our first show on thursday! I guess it was a long time coming, too. We played mostly new material. Since it was at a coffee shop on campus, there were people reading and whatnot, but luckily we had a great group of folks who came and listened and supported us ;) We were both kind of nervous, and I felt like a sort of robot/ape playing the lead part for the first song: stiff and clumsy, but amber's vocals began coming out more and I loosened up and we got a pretty good flow going. People loved it. Amber sang beautifully. We did a 45 min set of originals, and then a jam complete with dulcimer, didgeridoo, drums, and various percussive instruments. I think someone has pictures of the whole set.

Afterwards we went to a party and everyone was so super cool to us. They all said they really dug it and they want to come see us next time we play out. They even went on about how they loved the lyrics, which is awesome. I love that some people really listen! We couldn't have hoped for a better reaction.

Afterwards, it seemed (just as I knew it would) so much easier than it had been. We put a lot of work and a lot of time into our music, but always behind closed doors. We were always too afraid to share it. We pushed ourselves in the direction so many times, but something always stood in our way. Now it really seems like the seal has been broken and all that fear is conquered. I'm sure we'll still get nervous sometimes, but nothing as overwhelming as the first time.

A bit of symbolism here: We got tattoos about 2 weeks ago partially for this occasion and Amber's tattoo was pretty scabbed over and looked crazy (not normal). She was afraid that she had a reaction to the thicker pigments or something and that it would be scarred underneath. She simultaneously began freaking out nervous about the show. As the tattoo healed, her attitude became more positive. The entire tattoo was revealed, however, when the final piece of scab was ripped off about 5 minutes before our set when she reached in a bag to get out a setlist or something. I told her it was sort of like a band aid, or jumping in a pool. Now she can move on past the fear and express her true self.

Also, our projects for photography and digital were due this week. I'm pretty proud of mine; especially my digital project. It was very well received and I have a feeling I may be chosen to take this one to the gallery exhibition in May. Way too soon to tell, though.

I'm just so glad that everything is taking off. It feels wonderful for us both to be doing all of these amazing things.

Tattoo Week

Yes this week was the first week of school and I must say I feel so invigorated! My energy level is really through the roof! Oddly enough I ended up becoming "theatre people", oh yes I have declared a major in theatre and at a later time I will probably double it up with communications and stick in a minor in vis comm design.

Other than chilling out, freaking out, and getting super emotional all at the same time, amber and I went to evolved and got tattoos together. They look sweet and I think they will serve to remind and inspire us :) They aren't quite healed yet so maybe pictures of them later.

Have some design projects to work on today. But oh how the rent sneaks up on you. Well maybe I will empty my thoughts tonight after I've done my work and gone to work.

Warm Weather, Good News

It was in the 70's outside today: freakishly warm! Everyone was out and about walking, laying on their roof, etc. It put everyone in summer mode. Too bad it's still early March and I'm pretty sure we wont get out of the month without more snow. Ran into an old friend while out walking on High St. and we talked about Bonnaroo and a couple other festivals this summer.

Anyways, on to the best news: I'm starting back to school in roughly two weeks. I am super-stoked. I'm going to try to take the same classes as Amber this quarter; an acting class, a dig media class and a dig photography class.



Our 1st show is also coming up in about a month. We decided to play all originals, and we don't quite have enough material to fill the set yet, but we're writing quite a bit. It would be nice to have enough material to be somewhat selective and still fill the 2 hours. I think we are doing a really good job managing ourselves and planning things for the band, but right now time is so tight that the practicing is a bit too scarce for our taste. Once I start back to school, I won't be working 50 hr weeks anymore and we will have almost every night to work on things.

Artist Steev Richter is soon coming back to Ohio and we plan on running back to Mansfield to catch a show. Steev was one of my original inspirations for becoming a musician.

The Walkmen are playing at Little Brothers tomorrow night and it will be awesome. Its a small enough venue to make the show a bit more personal.

Still haven't got the Evolu website up. Feb is always our poorest month, with Jan at a close second. Soon we'll pay all those looming gas bills off and we'll be back on track (meaning we will still have no money, but it will be a more flexible state of poverty) and we will be getting things done. A change of priority is in order and this summer, we will have to live humbly so that we can travel and put both time and resource into our music and art. It will also help to get those student aid refund checks back from the school. Yeah, those are great. Anyways, website, myspace, sonicbids, etc. will hopefully all be done before our show. We are also eye-ing a new mixer and some better mics for recording. There is a slim chance of getting a PA for touring this summer, but this may prove to be both unattainable and unnecessary. We are also anticipating the arrival of our screen printer and we've got a good source for clothing.

Amber and I seem to be getting a better idea about where we really want to go with our schooling and are starting to compile some long term goals. Seems like everything is a lot more within our reach and we seem to be making the right contacts and advancing. We don't feel so much like outsiders in the scene and we aren't in anyone's shadow. It feels good and hopeful.

Freezing

It is crazy cold outside. It's been single digits by day and less by night and in our apartment it has been getting down to like 62. It's kind of blizzardy outside at the moment. I'm actually sitting in the coffee shop where amber works because its much warmer and more comfy here than at home. I'm listening through headphones to a long and inspiring recording of a jam that we held the other night. We kind of locked ourselves in this weekend and played, etc. We set up the living room as the studio and wrote some new material, jammed, basically just had an all together agreeable and enjoyable time. Listening closely to these recordings, makes me want to go back and replay some of this crazy stuff in sobriety.

Oh other news- we've got a gig in April (acoustic) so we have focused our energy on writing new (and revising old) acoustic material. We're building up a 2-3 set comprised of nearly if not all originals. We are probably bringing back some material we wrote in Toronto and maybe one written in West Virginia, but the bulk of the set will be new stuff (yay!)

Anyways, were still 'on the verge' of getting the website up. Really the whole thing has been designed It just needs like more words, and oh yeah we need to pay for it (money issues always getting in the way).

Also more good news- I've found myself a lot more centered lately and much less bitter about things that have come and gone. Much cooler to not have anger directed toward an entire subculture, especially one that I used to be a very devoted member of. I know now (I've known all along) that I really need to embrace ALL things that are a part of me. Good things developing all the time :)

Tired enough to have spelling problems

The other night Amber and I stayed up all night listening to all of our old lo-fi recordings from Toronto, which were of the first songs we had written together. We were delighted and inspired and upon all of this I think we are really beginning to lose the resentment we hold toward West Virginia, hippyism, and the way we used to be in general. I think that even though our style has evolved considerably we are once again seeing the value and wisdom in the people we once were.

Amber's birthday came and I bought her a vintage Fender Telecaster so that she may rock out on it instead of on her teleacoustic or folking on her full body acoustic. Amber also wrote a song yesterday and it was quite a bit like our earlier stuff, very folky and bright with a kind of carefree sound. We sat in the living room and jammed on it all afternoon.

I finished reading Kerouac's the Dharma Bums. I started out pretty indifferent toward it, but about halfway through I got in to it. There was a particular part near the end that referenced an old Chinese fable as depicted visually on several panels. Here's the gist of the fable: A young man leaving town, going out into the wild mountains, taming a bull and riding it, leaving the bull to meditate, then there is a blank panel, a panel with blossoms, and finally the man is old, fat and has returned from the mountains to town to drink and be merry. So he is actually leaving society to tame / ride his own mind and does so successfully, but upon doing so realizes he doesn't need to feel anxious, look for himself externally... he really doesn't need to do anything. He obtains 'nothing', and the blossoms come and he is happy and wise and old. I think this really stuck out to me because it reminded me quite a bit of the adventure Amber and I had with going to the mountains. I think really the beast to be tamed was our own anxiousness. We certainly came back with nothing, and I've been down some for the last couple months because I felt like I was just working all the time and not creating any, but I think the healing process is beginning and just as spring is coming I think the blossoms will come and Amber and I will be able to recognize the good that came out of the situation on all levels. I'm glad that we are finally finding peace with things again. :)

Tired now and must go to sleep. Peace to all.

New School

So, a new year and new ambitions. Amber is attending school and hopefully I will soon be doing the same. We've been working on some original material and getting a set together to start playing live with. I'm also super stoked about getting into doing house concerts. Glad to see a lot of hard work really taking shape. We've been putting a lot of planning and work in and it's really going somewhere. I notice that we're really meshing musically, and Amber is really coming forward with the lead vocals. I think we will have the website up in the next week or two :) Super exciting stuff!

Ooh: also getting a screen printer, so I can start printing some of my designs on a variety of surfaces; mainly t-shirts and bags. Between Amber and I we'll be able to design our entire wardrobes.

Anyways happy new year! Here's to all things new!

And A Good Day To You, Sir

So since july i got second job at a coffee shop, we went to new york, then i quit the second job and now we are both going to attend OSU in january for film studies.

Our trip to new york was fantastic. Not very relaxing, but full of excitement. We stayed at a pretty nice hotel near washington square park. we kind of hung out in greenwich village; coffee shop hopped; bar hopped. It was an awesome and inspiring time.

I think we are getting pretty super serious about all of our goals, I think we are tired of all the talk and anxious for the pursuit. Musically, we do have a show of our own lined up and so we are working madly on that. Our music has also undergone a major style change and so we are reworking a lot of things at the moment. all wonderful and exciting, and also sometime soon we will get a number of websites up, one for each of our artistic endaevors. the first up, more than likely to be for Evolu.

Also exciting: an awesome election day for us this year. everything from the local issues and races up to the senate, house, and governers went our way.

Well that's all for now.

Closing July

So July is closing up and our place is coming along quite nicely. We've been painting and creating so the place will have a real vintage victorian feel. We still are not quite settled in yet, so we haven't really been creating much lately, especially musically. That's actually ok though, because we have a lot of ideas, and we want to spend some time setting our place up to be a space for creating in. Somehow I couldn't figure out how to word that last sentence any better so I'll just leave it like that.

Home Sweet Home

Signed a lease Wednesday and now we are the proud new renters of an apartment not far from the one we left a year ago! We have the first floor and basement of an old victorian house- a step up from the attic of a victorian house! We are going to paint this coming week before we get any stuff moved in. I think we are only going to bring in a few things that we have used in the past: couch, stereo, kitchen appliances. We are going to try to get new stuff for a new start. Stuff that more accurately represents our personalities and styles now.