Live at Muddy River Jam Fest VI - Background

If you missed the Muddy River Jam Fest show I played back in 2010, you missed one of the most unique shows I have ever been a part of. This is years later, but in light of the release of my live album from that very show, I thought it might be good to give some background on the performance, the song selection, and anything else that is unique to that show.

It all started after the release of my first album, Deconstructing the Temporal Lobe. With my release through cdbaby, I got a 6 month free subscription to Sonicbids, a pay-to-play gig finder. I was young and naïve and thought this was a great idea (I have since grown to oppose the pay-to-play model) and a great chance to get in front of some audiences that I had never played in front of before. One of the big problems I had was that no one is looking for percussive fingerstyle guitarists; mainly because no one knows what we are or why someone would want to listen to instrumental music (“wait, so you don’t sing?”). So I stumbled upon this festival, Muddy River Jam Fest; they sounded pretty diverse, ranging from jam bands to DJs, and it looked like a place where artistic, instrumental music could fit in.

I submitted my press kit to them and heard back shortly thereafter. A few negotiations went down and eventually the details were ironed out. Basically, it ended up being for “exposure” (also, pointing to my naïveté) and gas money (which I never got) (Later on, the live recording got thrown into the mix, ultimately making it really worthwhile). It was exciting; one of my first festivals to be playing an actual stage. Accordingly, I prepared like crazy as the date approached. I was a bit nervous. I mean, a festival means lots of people and lots of other music to compete with, right?

Well, not at 10am. So I show up at this festival around 8:30-9am, with Kelly and Brad. Tents are everywhere, littering the fields, but not a single person is awake; no one is at the gate, which is locked. So I call all the contacts I have. No answer. Everyone is asleep. I keep trying to call and, finally, by 9 I get a hold of the organizer. By this time a line has formed behind me; mostly other artists, I presume. We finally get in at 9:30, giving me half an hour to find the stage, unload, park, set up, and do everything else associated with playing somewhere you’ve never played before. I’m a little frazzled at this point, but just trying my best to help things run smoothly.

Half an hour later, I was all set, save a quick sound check. However, the sound guy had only just arrived from his late night of partying, drinking, and drugs. He actually hadn’t gone to bed yet; cocaine and ecstasy apparently were the drugs of choice for festival goers… Not exactly my normal associates. Needless to say, it took him some time to get around to the sound check.

So the sound checked out alright and I began to play. To no one. You’ve got to come down, I suppose, and if you’re up until the sun rises, in some drug induced stooper, you don’t come back until the sun is at its peak. It was 10am; of course no one was out.

But shortly, a boy emerged. Wearing boxers, an open-faced Hawaiian shirt, and sunglasses, he wielded his red solo cup, dancing and cheering all on his own. Another couple passed by, but the crazy kid, drinking at 10am in the morning, was the only one to stay for the duration of the set. From the stage I could see the sea of tents packed into the adjacent field. This kid and the couple were literally the only festival-goers who were even awake. At that point, I didn’t feel bad about playing to a small crowd. I like to think that the rest of them were enjoying the tunes from within their tents, too hung over to will themselves out of bed.

So I played my set for Kelly, Brad, the sound guy, and the hippy kid. With probably over 50% of the coherent festival-goers in attendance, that’s not bad. The hippy kid, especially, was into it. I’ll post separately on the songs themselves and why I chose them for the set. This is just the story behind the show, for now.

So I played my set. I was told that I had a 45 minute set. The recording ended up at 44 minutes and change (the CD had some stuff cut out), so I think I planned pretty well. Regardless of how perfectly timed things were, when I got done with my set, I got blank stares from the sound guy. When I informed him that I stopped because another act was up at noon, he looked baffled. I think they either must have changed things (like my set time??) without telling me, or had a no-show; there didn’t end up being anyone back at that stage until after lunch.

After my set, I packed up and we wondered around the festival a bit. It was still rather quiet at that point, but you could tell that people were beginning to emerge from their tents to start their day. As we wondered around, we stopped by boutiques selling everything from tye-dye blankets to drug paraphernalia to hippie instrument shops; there was even a glass blower there, sculpting glass …items, right there in front of you. It was definitely a neat little artisan area they had set up; completely different from the art galleries and festivals I’d ever played before.

Eventually, we made our way to the recording trailer, tucked away at the far end of the fairgrounds. I picked up my recording, thanked them, and went to listen to it in my car, baking in the mid-summer’s heat. I don’t recall if I listened to everything at that point or not, but I was pleased with how it turned out. In spite of most everyone being stoned and/or hung over, the recording came out quite well.

The rest of the day we spent listening to jam bands and DJs. I’ve always been fond of jam bands, though only getting to see DMB and Robert Randolph and the Family Band, but I had never really gone to “see” a DJ; it was a new experience. Some were definitely better than others. My opinion is that if you’re going to be a DJ, you should be manipulating the tracks live, not just hitting “Play” and pumping your fist.

The highlight of the bands we saw was definitely this band, Fikus. They’re definitely worth checking out. The hippies were real into them. Notably, there was some sun child hippie girl, dreaded hair, body paint, and with more body hair than me, who was laying down some of the most bizarre dance moves I’ve ever seen. There were also several people with hula hoops, streamers, and all sorts of other strange garb. They were quite the sight, but it was really great to see people so into the music. And they were all really nice; lots of other people are not nice.

We ended up leaving the festival before it got dark. That is, before it went too crazy. After hearing about the previous night, it was probably in our best interest. It was already getting a little crazy and people had barely been awake 5 hours, so I’m sure as the night drew on, we would’ve been in for quite the treat.

Considering most shows I go to are metal shows, singer/songwriters, or experimental guitarists, the whole atmosphere was drastically different from anything I’ve ever experienced. Fun, but really bizarre from an outsider’s prospective. I haven’t gotten to play many festivals in a while and I miss the unique blend of people they bring out. Definitely the highlight of the experience was getting the live recording, but after that it’d be the atmosphere and the unique perspective it provided on the jam band and DJ subcultures.

The album is giving me some more time to sort out the second studio album and will help to keep fans held over until then. Up in the near future will be a breakdown of the songs on the album!

PRG Rope Burn

This past weekend, Kelly and I went to the Philly Rock Gym Oaks and competed in their Rope Burn competition. It was actually her idea. The comp was open to all skill levels, so we went in as novice, expecting there to be tons and tons of competition. After all, neither of us had ever competed before and when the guys ahead of us said they climbed 5.10s and 5.11s, they were only placed in as intermediates. We may have climbed a few 5.10s, but not more than a handful and definitely no 5.11s.

I’ll get right to the punch with this one – we both won first in our level and were told we should try intermediate next time. Kelly would have placed in intermediate with her score, but I would have fallen short by a few hundred points… It’s something to work towards, but not too bad all the same.

It was a great experience and definitely a new view of climbing. One thing that really stood out, though, was the number of young climbers there. We’re used to Reading Rocks where the kids there are either with boy/girl scouts or birthday parties. The regulars are college aged and older. Naturally, we figured there’d be tons of adults in the comp. Instead, we were outnumbered by the youth – and those were only the youth that had made it to the final round. We later found the score sheet from the youth comp, which was 2 pages of names in about 8 point font; probably about 150 kids or thereabout.

I think it shows an interesting shift. When I was a youth, kids played team sports. Unless you were practicing with your team, you really weren’t able to practice the sport. Sure, you could practice juggling a soccer ball, but without others, you couldn’t practice playing soccer. It’s not quite the same.

With things like cross country it’s a bit different. You can run on your own and, ultimately, no one cares about your team’s performance. And maybe that’s a good comparison because I think that these kids were also on teams, where there was a team score, but you worked for your own individual score. The team performance is a great measure of the caliber of your training, but that’s all.

What it seems like is that we have this changing definition of what a team is. We now have climbing teams in the way that we have snowboarding teams. You’re no longer reliant on the rest of the members of a team to be successful.

And that’s what we’ve seen in music in the past decade. You no longer need ANYONE. Whether you’re a band or a solo act, you no longer need a “team” to succeed. As technology has advanced, more and more is able to be DIY. You can record in your bedroom, do your own publishing, book your own shows, and publicize your own material. It’s a full time job, but it’s the full time job of an individual, not of some corporate entity.

This aligns well with the ever fleeting need for a label. It used to be that that was the only way, but now it’s common knowledge that you don’t need them. They can enable a lot of neat things – organizing tours, collaborations, etc – but are not necessary. You can succeed without them.

But to succeed, you have to dedicate your life to it. While we were there, we talked to the one kid’s dad about the youth programs. They were from North Jersey, but would travel all over the place to compete. The previous weekends, they had been up in Massachusetts for competitions. For climbing competitions?! On top of an almost certainly grueling training schedule, this kid is traveling up and down the east coast. And all of the kids there were pretty much like that from what I could gather.

These kids are competing. So are you. You may not be lined up next to your competitors, but know that you’ve got every other musician out there vying to flood peoples’ airwaves. And there will always be someone who will do it for cheaper or for free. You have to be the best. And that takes no team.

Natural Disasters

So within one week, we've got an earthquake and a hurricane?? The biggest earthquake to hit the area in like 100 years, as well as a hurricane that's projected to be an effective "100 years storm." Bizarre.

As one of my friends mentioned the other day, “It’s been a great few days; just perfect out. And that’s why we had to have an earthquake.”

Things in life won’t go your way. You’ll meet sure successes with puzzling failure. You’ll have good days ruined and bad days made worse. It’s part of life. Whether you want to call it karma, bad mojo, or just rotten luck, these things happen. Natural disasters strike in many forms beyond just their typified weather patterns.

So I thought I’d give some insight into the top 5 things that I’ve run across in my music career that have acted as “natural disasters,” and maybe even give some ways to deal with them. It helps to know a little of what you can get yourself into and how you can deal with it. Sure there will always be idiots who will take shelter from storms under trees, but hopefully these stories and tips will help you to be better prepared for your gigs.

1. Children – They’re the effective twister of gigs. They’re unpredictable and reckless and you can’t do anything about it because discipline is “abuse.” I don’t care how cute you think they are they can still screw stuff up. Also, they really aren't all that cute. And they’re stuck with this level of deniability, too, that keeps their actions completely unchecked. Add the pandemic of bad parenting, and suddenly children are demon-possessed monsters.

I’ve had to deal with kids playing with my pedals and spare guitars during gigs and even had one throw a ball at me while I was playing. If you know me, you’re probably surprised that these children are still alive. Me too.

So how do you deal with them? Well, you can’t hit them. You can either ignore them or try to demoralize them. With one such pedal pesterer, after he/she/it(?) decided to turn a volume knob the whole way off, I simply stopped playing for a second, looked down and said, “Look what you’ve done,” and then fixed it and went on. True story. With kids like the one that threw the ball, you just pray that their parents take care of it. This is not to discount all children, however. Jeremy Bentley’s daughter danced around while I played and afterwards said, “Thank you for playing that song for me.” And other kids are just put into a trance and are mesmerized by the music.

2. Weather

Be it a tornado, hurricane, or even rain or snow, weather can be your gig’s natural disaster. If the weather doesn’t result in a cancellation, it can drastically impact the turnout. And it doesn’t have to just be “severe” weather, keeping people locked up in their homes. There are also days when people would rather take advantage of nice weather outside than sit and listen to music. That’s common in the spring and fall.

What do you do when the weather has sabotaged your gig? I’ve had gigs cancelled due to snow and have had gigs on nice days when no one wants to be inside. Those times are hard and I’ve suffered through many gigs like that, having the wrong attitude. It is important to remember, no matter how big or small your audience, that they are taking time out of their day to see you. That may mean that they survived a rainstorm to see you or that they are sacrificing a nice bike ride to be inside.

What made me realize this was what ended up being one of my favorite gigs. It was at Live @ The Hub, during severe thunderstorms (old blog post), complete with flooding and tornadoes. There may have only been 8 people there, but they were there having come through nasty storms and knowing that they would have to go out in them later. Even with knowledge of a tornado that had touched down near the venue, people stayed.

You can either look at it upset that you aren’t packing the venue, or you can look at the sacrifice that those who are there are making. The more that you appreciate people who see you, the more likely you are to make lasting fans.

3. Other Events – these are largely unforeseen. I’ve accidentally scheduled shows near school, not realizing that there were other events happening on campus. We ran into that with First Friday’s quite a few times this past year. I’ve had other gigs in towns where that I am less familiar with, but during times when a community fair or something of the like was happening. These things kill your potential draw.

It sucks. As a small act, competing with a well established event is near impossible. And it can be demoralizing thinking that everyone else is at a concert or party that you’d rather be at. My advice? Wear on. You’re there for 3 hours tops, so smile and just enjoy playing. I’ve used times like this to experiment with new material or to just practice improvising. And, of course, if there are any people there, make them feel like you are there playing just for them. Engage them in conversation and lighten the mood. If you’re in a bad mood, people will walk out. You don’t want that.

4. Forgetfulness – Let’s face it; if you blow off a gig because you’ve forgotten about it, you probably won’t be asked back. I’d recommend a calendar. However, there are plenty of other things that you can forget that will only trip you up a little bit if you are prepared for it.

Common things that can most easily be forgotten can be broken into three main categories: instruments, equipment, and merch. Forgetting any of these things can be devastating, depending on the specifics of your gig. Even merch, despite being insignificant for the performance, is extremely important for the people you are playing to.

I’ve approached combating forgetfulness from a few different directions.

1. Consistency. Have unique sets, but have them so drastically different from one another that you are constantly taking and leaving different gear. For a while I gigged with 3 guitars. At first, I would vary between 1, 2, and 3, so there were times when I would end up forgetting an extra guitar that I had meant to bring. Once I was in the habit of brining 3, I consistently had 3 at every show.
2. Organization. This is a good life skill, beyond the realm of music. Being organized and knowing exactly where your gear is will help you to not forget it. When I first moved up to Reading, one of the things I focused on was organizing my gear. Now that it's organized, everything I need to gig is in one place. Occasionally I'll forget something minor, but I haven't done anything really stupid.
3. Simplification. Do as I say, not as I do. The less stuff you take, the easier it will be to remember. It will also cut down on your setup time.
4. Have a backup plan. So you forgot a guitar? Who in the area do you know with a guitar? Forget your looping pedal? Have a backup set that doesn't use looping or alternate versions of your songs that don't use it. Forget your amp? Have a way to plug into the PA direct. Forget your merch? Have an online store and smart phone or, if you're local, hand out business cards and tell them where you'll be next or when you'll be at that venue next.

Forgetting stuff happens to everyone. Once, while recording at MR.STUDIO, I forget all of my pedals. It sucked, but I made the most of the day and got a few really great recordings out of it because I had an alternate plan. Be prepared.

5. Faulty Equipment




Sometimes it's just a broken string. Other times, it's malfunctioning electronics. And in a small percentage, there is actual damaged gear (broken headstock, neck, etc.). None of this is good. At all.

Like I mentioned earlier, it is best to have a backup plan. Bring a second guitar, have a set planned without effects, or be able to plug direct into a PA.

I had all of the electronics crap out on me in my Taylor at a gig once. I borrowed another persons guitar, but didn't have the money to get the Taylor fixed. I ended up taking a condenser mic I had laying around and rigging up an internal miking system. With the exception of loud places and boomy rooms, it worked great for about 6 months or so. Now I've got a backup acoustic and some nice new pickups in it. But for an economical fix, the innovation paid off.



No matter what your disaster is, you need to know how to combat it. Don't let anything screw with your gig. If your fans see that you're persevering through something, it will reflect well on you.

Good luck battling the hurricane this weekend!

Implications of Life's Recent Changes

In a post last week, I shared some of the craziness of life over the past few weeks. The main points are that I graduated, got a full-time job, and moved. Welcome real life.

 

The question that remains is: what does this mean for my music? By no means do I have everything figured out, but I can give you an idea of what I'd like to see.

 

To start, this is the first time in ages that I have had access to all of my guitars. This means thing like experimental 12-string bowing can happen. This also means that I can have guitars readily available in different tunings - more of a convenience thing. With some additional room and time, I'll be fixing my Strat sometime in the near future (it's been down with some wiring issues for maybe 8 months).

 

And with the extra room, I'm hoping to bring my Kora and start playing around with that. And my dad's bass is already there, but it needs a new battery right now...

 

Gigs:

Unfortunately, I don't have many lined up right now. Not knowing what was going down after graduation, I just left the summer empty. Most of the places that I normally play are still within a reasonable distance, but I'll be reassessing that as well as searching for some new places near the Reading area. So far I haven't been able to find anything worthwhile - no open mics or anything...

 

So...

 

If you know of places to play around here, CONTACT ME. If you want me to play a private house concert, CONTACT ME. If you're a musician and need some support for a gig, CONTACT ME. If you have any contacts for gigs or any other ideas, let me know. Serioiusly.

 

I've already gotten some help from a good friend of mine, Joseph Strider, with a supporting gig and I'm trying to pressure my friend Suzi Brown into the same, so there are some great opportunities that may present themselves.

 

Recording:

With the cost of living and my pay, I don't quite have the freedom that I'd like. Hopefully I can save some up to be recording in the fall? Every time I look at my budget it sucks, but I'll make the best of it.

 

Streaming/Video:

It's in the works. I'll be experimenting with using my Boss GT-10 as an interface sometime in the next week or two. Unfortunately, my other interface doesn't work with Windows 7...

 

Blogs:

There may not be as many, but I'll continue to write in my free time (lunch) and hopefully be able to get some good content out of those times.

Graduating, Moving, and New Job

So here it is, the long awaited post on how drastically my life has changed over the past few weeks. This first post will be all of the changes. The post to follow this will be about what that means for my music.

 

 

 

It all began back in the fall of 2007. I had decided to go to Messiah College for Mechanical Engineering and was beginning my studies there. Move ahead about 4 years and my time at Messiah has come to a close and life just starts to go crazy.

 

I graduated a few weeks ago on May 14th. I had an interview set up with Alcon Labs, right outside of Reading, PA, where I basically already knew that I got the job. However, I was told it'd be a few weeks after my interview before I could start. After graduation I was supposed to have a nice relaxing few weeks to move out of my apartment, find a place to live, and move again.

 

Then comes the interview, Monday morning. Suddenly people are talking about having me start the following Monday. But it's alright. Kelly's (my girlfriend) dad works at the company and knows a guy with a huge house and a room he could rent to me.

 

But it's not alright. The guy is doing some house rennovations, installng centrail AC, so the whole house is torn up and won't be able to be lived in for quite some time. There's another guy who has a two bedroom apartment that I could rent a room from, but that's kinda cramped for me. I mean, I'm at 7 guitars right now. That takes up a lot of room - more room than a room in an apartment has.

 

So I hop on craigslist that night to look for something. I see a room for rent for a flat fee (covers utilities, cable, etc.) and decide to shoot the guy an email. 20 minutes later I get a call and the guy asks if I want to check it out that night. I check it out.

 

This place is pretty unbelievable. I didn't know there was a nice part of Reading until this. The neighborhood is in the +$250k range with a mansion thrown in here and there. So the house is pretty great with plenty of room for my guitars and even a hot tub. The guy is nice and his dog is too. It was what I was looking for in the time frame I was looking at, so then on Thursday, only a few days after finding the place, I moved in.

front of the house

some of the guitars and equipment

 

The following Monday, May 23rd, I started. Alcon is a pharmapseudical engineering company that works primarily with eyecare products. I'm currently working on a glaucoma shunt that's being brought over from Israel. You can see a video of it here (warning: graphic - it's an eye surgery).

 

Anyway, here's a broken down timeline:

May 14 - graduation

May 16 - interview

May 16 - find housing

May 19 - move

May 23 - start working

 

It's been crazy. I'm not sure what all this means for my music yet, but that will be explored more in the next post.