In case it isn’t painfully obvious…My inability to follow through on my ideas has caused me to cease posting on this blog-ish. I might revamp it at some point, but for tunes and new tunes, I’ve decided to dominate the space of my.
A new Repelican album called “Don’t Mumble the Manifesto” is near completion. I think I’m going to put up a big RAR file on rapidshare with the entire discography. It’ll be at the Repelican myspace. Also, a Jonathonian W. Ehrenkranz (formerly “Thone”) album is in the works. The Art Department is playing Baltimore a bunch, and I’ve been playing with a DC outfit called The Religious Tongues recently. Tis all.
One of the more bizarre songs from the first Repelican album. I really wish I could remember how I got that vocal sound, but I can’t. Reminds me of when I used to scream like I hated that bitch. When I first started “singing” my instinct was to fucking scream my head off whenever appropriate. I didn’t think twice about it. For a long time, every song I did had screaming in it. It wasn’t conscious at all. Now whenever I try to scream, I feel kind of ridiculous, even though I still think screaming is awesome.
A comment on a recent post mentioned this song. It was my first attempt at a piano tune, and is probably the most accessable and least unaccessable (ha!) song on the first Repelican album, recorded between 2001 and 2002, released on January 1, 2003. The album is VERY rough around the edges, which I liked at the time, and like for nostalgic purposes now. But, many had a difficult time wrapping thier heads around the crappy sound. This song closed the album. People kept saying it sounded like Anthony Kedis was singing, which I found depressing at the time. Also, I don’t think I would have included the mouth noises had I recorded the song more recently, where I have become a better musician and do not feel the need to throw in wierd shit to puzzle listeners. The lyrics are biblical in nature (Old Testament, none of this “New Testament” shit), and my friend Haley likes to point out how dorky they are becuase it sounds jewy and “Hebrew Schooly.”
Below is an email sent to me by a guy from Madagascar (the country, not the band) who I met at the Guitar Center. The track 13 he is referring to is the track posted above:
hey John, this is the guy you met at the guitar store.
I listen to your CD and i like #13. most of the people
love to listen music like #13. It’s very a big step
that you made a CD but the recording is not good. The
name of your band is excellent.
I made a logo for you guys to make your band different
and big from others. It looks like scorpion and
spider. you have to come out different and big in
order to break through easly. I suggest you to look
for an excellent vocalist to make the band powerful.
It’s good to have your own recording studio but make
the sound clear and heavy. Then promote yourselves on
flyers, go to the local radio station, schools, and
places…remember! people listen to music. But you
have to make good music. That’s the only key. it’s
fine if it takes you longtime to write good songs. You
always can sell more after. I have a song called “Tell
me why” that is ready for you guys. It can be one of
your hits. I have to record it on tape to make it
easier to learn. When I’m ready, I set up a time to
meet your band. “Everything is possible.”
Tovo
This song is a re-record of a song from last years “Failed Ygriega” project, in which I attempted to record 10 songs a month. I only had one mic at the time and was recording in a pretty spooky practice space. I liked the song, but thought I could milk the rockiness a little more, thus this version of the song. The lyrics are vaguely about my disappointment in education.
This song was the first in my ill-fated attempt to record 10 songs a month. The project inevitably failed, as a self-imposed deadline is likely to fizzle out once the ispiration that sparked the idea faded away over the following 3 months. This is a bizzare song that was initially going to be its own band, but ended up just being this one song.
