2011 Holiday Single

Just in time for the holiday of your choice (well, the holiday of my choice, perhaps), it's the 2011 Holiday Single.  Now available at Bandcamp, it's got the rockin' A-side Judah and the Maccabees and the traditional song Sevivon as the B-side. 

I'd've done We Are Santa's Elves or the weird psychedelic song Jessica sang as she was falling in love with Santa, but I didn't feel like starting 2012 by being sued.

Still available at my Bandcamp site are November 2011's Local Technique EP and the reissue of 2000's The Red Album.

Down On Vesta on 5 Song Set Podcast!

I'm pleased, flattered, and a bit surprised to report that Down on Vesta from the Local Technique EP has appeared on a weekly music podcaast, 5 Song Set.  The episode with the song focuses on geek/nerd/science songs, which I suppose isn't surprising.  Go listen!  And thanks, Felicia!

Local Technique Released!

The four-song EP Local Technique is now available for download at my Bandcamp site.  The songs include a new, gimmicky one (Down on Vesta), a new, not-gimmicky one (Middle of May), a 20-year-old, rearranged one (Pastoral #2), and an even-older, instrumental one (Katrina and the Zen Master). 
 
Enjoy!

A Pre-Thanksgiving Cover

So, I think I'll post the EP on Bandcamp next week. I'll put a link here, too.  It's looking like it'll be four songs. 

Meanwhile, I heard (I'm Always Touched By Your) Presence by Blondie and was moved to whip out a quick cover version.  One take, wobbly tempo, at least one flub. Take it or leave it. :)

Here's my version: (I'm Always Touched By Your) Presence

Further Coming Attractions

January marks 19 years since I finished In-Jokes With Myself, my second effort at a DIY album. I'm planning to post the whole thing at Bandcamp in January to mark the anniversary, but for now I'm posting a 35-second teaser, a breccia if you will, composed of short snippets of the songs on the album.  I made it years ago while playing around with some program or another, so I figured I'd put it up on my Bandcamp site here.  Click on the "In-Jokes Teaser" on the right when you get to that page, or, heck, just click here if you're that lazy about it.

Download is free since it's, you know, 35 seconds long and composed of other songs.

Katrina and Coming Attractions

I've been planning on getting a new album put together for a while, but it's clearly not going to be done in 2011.  Probably sometime in 2012, hopefully in spring.  To fill the much-anticipated gap (or something), I'm thinking I'll put an EP/mini-album out in late November/early December.  I'm planning on putting it on Bandcamp, as I recently did with The Red Album (and as I'll eventually do with the other albums).

So consider this something of a coming attractions post.  The track list isn't totally set but will almost certainly include:

Middle of May (the "single")
Katrina and the Zen Master

and will likely include two of the following:
Autochirophobia
Pastoral #1  (available in demo form here)
Dear Kate Bush (available in instrumental form here)
Down on Vesta

To get the one or two of you who'll read this psyched up (or "psyched up"), here's a rehearsal version of Katrina and the Zen Master.  The real version is recorded better and is a bit more produced.  It was originally written in 1988 or so and called Fomalhaut, then I wrote lyrics and it gained its current name, which it kept even after I ditched the words.  Enjoy!

Live from Minneapolis!

Song at the bottom of the post today!

Following up on the Hawaii, Seattle, and LA posts, here's one from my current location: Minneapolis, Minnesota (I also had two weeks in France in the interim, but no guitar with me and too little familiarity with Edith Piaf or Jacques Brel). I'm here for the Geological Society of America meeting and gave my talk earlier today.  Lots of great bands from Minneapolis:  Hüsker Dü, The Replacements (this Replacements song has been in my head the whole trip), The Jayhawks (this cover by the Jayhawks was nearly the one recorded for this post).  But in the end, there was no denying His Purple Majesty.

Since I'm in a good mood I banged this one out (this is actually a second take for once) and am slapping it on up now, just before I go purify myself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka (NSFW!!!):

I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man