Friday, October 31, 2014

7. Sex Tard



I could describe this tune, but it's probably easier just to listen to it.

Thursday, October 30, 2014

6. Off



Hellish travel builds character.  I know.  I've got character to spare-acter.

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

5. The Unified Theory



Whoops!  I missed another day!  Well, I hope this tune makes it worth the wait.

Monday, October 27, 2014

4. Your Hair Smells Like Bacon



This is a song for our times.

Sunday, October 26, 2014

Your Sunday Squirrel

I think it might be time for a new camera.  This fellow chewed on that peanut forever and I was able to take at least a dozen photos of him, but this is the most in focus of all of them.  And it's not that much in focus.  So unless I can convince the focus-bot to do its job, I may have to upgrade my equipment.

Pumpkin Bash

I went to the Pumpkin Bash at the zoo this weekend.  Here are just a few photos:
This is a not-very-good picture of a hippo eating a pumpkin.  You'd think that such a large animal would make quick work of a gourd, but no, there's a lot of chomping involved.
Here are the otters with their pumpkin.  They don't eat them; the zookeepers put fish inside them and the otters have to get them out.  Their pretty hilarious little beasts.  Even without the pumpkins, they're very entertaining.  They caper around and swim and suddenly, they all collapse in a heap and take a nap.

The giraffes below didn't get pumpkins, but I did catch them at a moment when they looked noble and sad.  Plus they were gazing out in different directions.

Storm Damage!

This is just right outside of my building.  It seems that it came off of the pear tree.  Of course, I heard nothing last night.  I slept through the whole thing.  Unfortunately, the tree that I absolutely hate, the cedar right outside my window, is still intact.

3. Mile 359



This is a pleasant tune about positive things.  I always want to believe that my best work is ahead of me.  I also want to believe that life actually gets better.  This tune reflects those notions in its own mellow way.

Saturday, October 25, 2014

2. Guilt Free



Whoops!  I missed a day.  Well, it was bound to happen.

Thursday, October 23, 2014

1. A Catchy Tune Proves Nothing



It begins again!  Here's the first album from this year.  My point with this tune is that one infectious track doesn't mean much without the heft of consistency.  Write a bunch of catchy tunes and we'll talk, OK?  I did make the correct prediction that this album was the first of two for the year, but that's not exactly the same thing as Babe Ruth calling his home run way back when.  I mean, I had a plan and a budget and things turned out right.  In the perfect world, it would have been three albums this year and every year, but since nobody buys anything I make, that limits what I can do.  Anyhow, here is Untitled Vanity Project.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Unobscure at Last - Entire Album

Here's the whole damn thing.  Is anyone listening?  For me, that's the eternal question.  




Tuesday, October 21, 2014

14. Predators, Pt. 4



This is the fourth installment in a song cycle that will continue for years, assuming I don't go utterly broke or give up out of frustration or anything.  Of course, I'm only estimating, but I think the whole thing may comprise of 25+ tunes.  

Monday, October 20, 2014

13. A Little Fight



It's a space-age blues with real horns.  Fun!

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Your Sunday Squirrel

I saw this fellow on Thursday.  He was nice enough to hold still while I crept closer and closer to him.  There were a lot of other squirrels running around, too, but they were really skittish.  They ignore you until you get a few feet away, then they freak out and head for the nearest tree.  As they get older, though, they get friendlier.

Well, the Bikes Have Arrived...

This is what they look like.  I went to the Pronto site to see where all the stations are and you know something?  The bikes are only available Belltown/Downtown/Capitol Hill and in the U-District.  So if I wanted to ride out to Fremont or Ballard, I'd be totally hosed.  Still, it seems like people are riding them.  That's something, I guess.

12. Basically OK



A glum tune about amazing (and fictitious) things.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

10. OCDelight



This song is intended to drive nearly everyone with various kinds of audio OCD completely nuts.  You've got dissonances, odd phrases, a slice-and-dice form and lyrics that don't quite make sense.  But it's still very funky.  Enjoy!

Friday, October 17, 2014

Breaking News!

This is what they're doing to the side of Vain, formerly the Vogue.  What does it mean?  Hey, it's art; it doesn't need to mean anything!  Seriously, I think there's much Seattle-referential stuff.  But some of these leave me a little mystified.  In any case, there is a lot going on here.  Well, I can't wait till it's done.  I'm pretty sure they'll be working on it tomorrow.  It's on 1st, between Lenora & Virginia.

3rd & Bell

This morning.

9. Big Wet Mess



I've always wanted to write a song about a hurricane.  One day, I did.  And this is it.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

8. Yoga for Embezzlers



This is a tune about stealing money and getting away with it.  And all the while, it's very danceable.

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

7. Unobscure at Last



Here's the title track!

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

6. Adult Situations



I've always been both fascinated and somewhat revolted by bedroom soul.  It's alluring but also completely ridiculous.  It's idealized malarkey that calls for levels of passion and earnestness that cannot be accomplished in the real world.  My solution?  Make romance sound as dry and boring as possible.  I realize that my voice is well outside the bedroom soul norm, but I acquit myself well enough thanks to a big, punchy arrangement and (once again) some excellent performances by the band.

Monday, October 13, 2014

5. Gentlemen Know the Difference



This is the most badass tune I've ever written.

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Your Sunday Squirrel

It looks like leaves are sticking out of the side of this fellow's head.  Except for that, this is an OK picture.

4. The Exalted Brotherhood of St. Judas

Saturday, October 11, 2014

3. I Can Fake It Now

Friday, October 10, 2014

2. Hairy Back


Hey, I remembered to post!  Good for me.  OK, so this is track 2.  It's just a goofy commentary about how we've managed to go from millennia of hairiness to total twinkdom in just a few short years.  Remember when the manliest of men had the hairiest of chests?  I sure do.  Everybody was allowed a certain amount of body hair.  It was a fine time for the people of Earth.  But all that changed in the late eighties and early nineties.  And now it's fairly normal for a guy to shave his chest.  I'm not saying that we should all look like cavemen and women; it's just that there's a happy medium between caveman and complete hairlessness.  In the tune, I'm calling on an unnamed arbiter of fashion to support me on this.  So there.  Also, I'm playing saxophone on this.  

Thursday, October 9, 2014

1. Creeps


A year ago, if somebody told me that I would write a very funky song about the theft of intellectual property, I would have accused them gross stupidity.  I mean, that's not what you write songs about, right?  Well, here it is a year later and there's this tune.  There's a little more to it than just intellectual property.  It's basically about how the true makers and innovators are constantly being undermined and ripped off by lesser lights, aka "creeps." I don't want to over-describe it, because it speaks for itself quite well.  The performances are superb all-around.  And best of all, like almost every track on the album, it's very danceable.  Enjoy.

Here Goes...

OK, here's what I'm gonna do: I aim to post every tune I've ever recorded each day until I'm done.  I think that's around 74 tracks total, so I should be done by Christmas or so.  Sure, I'll still have all the squirrels and Belltown weirdness that you've come to expect, but I'm going to showcase full tracks from all albums.  Of course, it's all on the CD Baby player, which is built to sell music.  If you wanna buy, great.  If you just wanna listen, even better.  I'm not to the point where I can just give my music away - I mean, Apple's not paying me $100 million+ to offer my music for free - but you can listen to it as many times as you want on this crappy blog for no charge.  I'll post the tracks individually and then put up the entire album once all the tracks are up.  Why?  Because it seems right.  Plus, by the time I'm done, I'll be ready to record my next album.  That's going to contain a whopping 46 tracks.  It's going to be expensive and I'll be quite broke by the end of it, but I need to record it and move on to other projects that will me even more impoverished.  

I'm gonna start with the latest first, as I just recently released it.  Then I'll work backwards and end up with Greater Seattle.  I really hope I can remember to post every day.  Wish me luck.       

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Your Sunday Squirrel

Here's a guy from this week.  He was mostly interested in eating these helicopter-things that fall off of maple trees.  Peanuts were not on his menu.  The picture below is when he took a break to chew on his foot.  It looks like some sort of tragic accident befell him, but no, he really needed to gnaw on his foot for a second or two.  And then he was off to eat more helicopter-things.  


Centuries from Today...

...they'll say this was a temple of some sort.  No indeed, it's a new bike share kiosk.  They're popping up all over the place.  This particular one is in front of my building.  Pay no attention to the random clothes strewn all over the sidewalk.  It's normal.

Here are the particulars:
I don't know.  This doesn't seem like such a great deal.  You've got to get where you're going in 30 minutes.  I mean, what if I want to ride to Fremont or Ballard?  That would probably take more than half an hour.  So basically, you can't get anywhere significant in the allotted time.  I've got a bus pass and that makes way more financial sense.  Plus, it gets me where I need to go.  If I need exercise, I get up early and run.  I just don't see how this is going to be useful.  Sure, it would be kind of fun to ride downhill to Pioneer Square, but why would I want to spend eight bucks to do that?  I'll take the bus tunnel, thanks.  

Hello, Handsome!

On 2nd, between Wall & Vine.  As simple as this is, it's far better than tagging.