hey everyone! this is a place where we'll be sharing various thoughts from the road and beyond. We'll be updating these rather often, so keep checking back here for more thoughts 'n' things.
z
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Zac
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When Jason (our wonderful, dedicated, hard-working, grossly underpaid manager) informed me that i now had a blog on which to post my various musings, i thought "great... now i need to think of something to say." My first thought was to put together a list of various ventures from other artists that i think people would enjoy*, but then my day took an interesting turn when i rented two movies, which turned out to be wonderful companions. The first, a beautifully frightening fantasy of the not-too-distant future -- the second a beautifully frightening (factual) account of the not-too-distant past. Both films revolved around the central theme of two peoples' rebellion. Both films raised many questions that i will likely be taking on in my future songwriting.
My double-feature began with a second screening of the Wachowski Brother's epic, V for Vendetta. The movie takes place a couple decades from now in a time when "The Former United States of America" is beset with disease and civil war, and Brittan has fallen victim to a fascist regime. i won't go into details because i really think that this is a great film that people should see, but it paints a bleak, but all-too-fathomable picture of what the future could hold. The film made me long for a rebellion against not just our government, but against many of the values which we, as americans, are taught to hold dear from the moment we start watching TV. We have become pacified by the flashing luminescence, and taught to hold material objects in far greater regard than actual experience -- but that's another story altogether.
After feasting on a delicious venison burger courtesy of G's brother Kenzy, I made my mind right and sat down to watch The U.S. vs John Lennon, a Yoko-Authorized account of John's huge influence in American politics during the '70's. The title comes from the immigration case which began in early 1972 when Senator Strom Thurmond sent a letter to President Nixon suggesting that if John were deported, he wouldn't be able to hurt them politically. It painted a picture of the quintessential artist cum activist, and after V... made me long for a fantastical rebellion, it showed me one that, albeit less dramatic, was very real, and very inspiring.
Both of these films brought to mind an essay entitled "Enlightened Rebellion" by Osho, a contemporary Indian mystic, in which he writes "Rebellion is individual action; it has nothing to do with the crowd. Rebellion has nothing to do with politics, power, violence. Rebellion has something to do with changing your consciousness, your silence, your being. It is a spiritual metamorphosis."
I believe that there is something to all of this... i don't know what exactly it all means, but i do know that from this moment, i will work to encourage and nurture my rebellious nature.
Because the world needs more rebels.
Because that's what rock'n'roll is all about anyway, isn't it?
until next time....
be well,
z
"i believe that time wounds all heels"
-j. lennon
*That'll be the next one... i promise.
Posted by:
Zac
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So we just finished up playing 5 shows with the Terrapin Winter Jamfest 07 with Moonshine Still, The Bridge, The Pnuma Trio, Elemental Harmonics, and a couple of DJs. It was a good experience both musically and socially; we got to perform in some really nice venues, and we got to know some other bands pretty well along the way. It's always interesting to hang with other bands and pick their brains, and the most obvious place to do this is outdoor, multi-day camping festivals. The thing about fests, however, is that all the bands are being rushed around like crazy, and then usually off to some other part of the country. So I felt that playing a bunch of venue shows with the same bands provided us all with more time to relax and hang out, and more time to really get to know each other's music. So in that way it was a unique experience.
It was also unique because it was the first time we had people travel from several different regions to congregate in a region far from all of them - some by plane no less. It was so much fun to be in North Carolina and see friends and fans from NY, MA, TN, and even Chicago all there to support us. We're used to people traveling a few hours to see us, but 12 hour drives and traveling by plane easily files under the category of hardcore. I believe that this is definitely the dawn of a new era for us, and we couldn't be happier about it.
I'd like to thank the Terrapin Beer Company and Moonshine for hooking us up with the tour - it was a blast! We had a really good time with those guys.
peace!
Rob
Posted by:
Rob
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