17th
Más Guitarras: Día ∞
Jordan and I stayed at the Berkeley Hostel over the past weekend, and experienced more Indian food at a place around the corner from the hostel. How nice to get back to something I grew up with :) Two musicians served as entertainment for the night: a sitarist, and a man playing the tablas. The two performed beautifully, providing a welcome contrast to the sounds I have been near for the past two weeks. The drums held pitch with the pieces played, changing chords with the sitarist, and serving as melodic and percussive instruments simultaneously. I am consistently amazed at how every ethnic group has developed tenancies toward scales, melodies, and rhythms that are distinctly “theirs.” Truly a beautiful variety.
The next day, Jordan and I trekked to San Francisco via the BART to spend some time in Market Square. I have not done so much walking in a while. We eventually ended up in the middle of the square to enjoy a bellini (I just learned you can’t say “Bellinis”). Seated between the likeness of an Italian espresso bar and an outdoor ice rink, we sipped our girly cocktails of champagne and peach nectar, planning the rest of the night. Our plans found us seeing Quantum of Solace near Powell. Daniel Craig is the man. Awesome man date.
Anyway, today marks another day of guitars at the studio, and I will be last to lay down the majority of my parts, so I continue with lyrics.
Here’s something interesting. This may not surprise you, but the studio can be pretty frustrating at times. Why? Well, making and documenting music for a solid month is living the dream (at least for me), as well as living in close quarters with my best friends. However, when the tape is rolling (figuratively, of course), everything you perform really must be PERFECT. This can take hours of playing the same five seconds of material. It’s pretty humbling because you find out how good you really are, and there is usually a disparity between that and how good you thought you were. Thankfully, Aaron (the engineer) brought good advice to me during a moment of frustration. He tells me the most professional players he has met are typically classical musicians who nail their parts with very few takes. This is (partly) because they time their breathing to the pulse, or general movement of the piece and go into something of a trance while playing it. When I thought about this, it made sense that timing the basic functions of your body would allow the rest of your body to more readily follow. I tried it, and not only does it work, but you really become more a part of what you are playing. It’s a truly unique experience. So much of the time I over-think, and the worry alone causes mistakes. Best hypnotize myself next time.
Guitars will soon see completion, and more interesting posts will soon follow. Next is bass, then keys, then programming, then voice, then assorted instruments (percussion, accordion). With about two weeks left, this will prove a race against the clock. Thanks so much for all your comments.
Listening:
Frengers, by Mew (Dangerous guitar sounds. Straight up.)
Thriller, by Michael Jackson (The vocal melody to “Baby be Mine” = among best jams of the 80’s)
Love,
Dryw
Meet our newest additions.
My new jeans
Consider the Thief: On Ice
Dangerous as Daniel Craig
