It's the end of 2011 as we know it (And I feel fine)
2011 has been over for over a month now.
It doesn't mean stuff didn't happen, though.
How do artists spend their downtime? With music, of course! I think music has a huge effect on my art, and it helps me get through the day. I'm the type of person who hears a word or phrase spoken, and a song pops into my head. Or I see something, and it reminds me of a song. Or the obvious, music reflecting how a moment or the mood you're in is what you feel.
A few of our friends and I went to the Velvet Teen/Minus the Bear in Sacramento. I waited a while to post on this, because the music was fantastic, but the experience sucked. I got body humped by sweaty attendees on "e" and a guy punched me. So yeah, not fun. We tried to make the best of it. All of Sacramento seemed to have shown up, but starting a mosh-pit to Minus the Bear? I guess it was a hipster thing? It was "ironic?" Either way, not cool. Here are the good times, though:
Jaron and I eagerly awaiting the Velvet Teen act. This is hands down one of my favorite bands from Santa Rosa. I saw them back in 2004 when I was invited to a show at the Capital Garage (R.I.P.) A guy we were standing next to had driven all the way from San Jose to watch this set. WOW! That's dedication! I'm glad I stayed for the set way back when. Now I share the music with my friends (and husband). If you hadn't heard of them, I highly recommend looking into this band.
The sound wasn't fantastic. Maybe more sound check next time? The video was taped right next to where we were standing. The "Whoo!" is my Jaron. (YAYYY!) Standing in cowboy boots for an hour was worth it.
Minus The Bear's performance was beyond amazing! Too many strobe lights, I think. The venue was packed, and my brother-in-law's girlfriend bribed her way to get backstage. I guess it was worth it, because she had a blast. Oh, and she's up on the stairs/rafters to the far right.
I've seen Minus the Bear twice before this, and this was BY FAR the best performance they've done. I don't know about you, and it might be biased because I'm a new-bassist, but I couldn't get my eyes off of him. Mmmm...
If you mute the video, you'd think that Minus the Bear was a lumberjack country-rock band from the seventies and not a indie-rock band from Seattle.
A week later, I called my friends from school and invited them to Drink N Draw
If you're not familiar with Drink N Draw, it's a time and place where a bunch of artists who get together and hang out a pub (or bar) and draw. It's a great way to meet other artists, network, and of course, have fun! This is Rheyman and Kadie. I usually meet people at school and get along, but these folks have really drawn me in with just being genuinely cool. They're artists without the snobbery, and we had a blast studying and talking art together. I heart them.
Thanksgiving was un-eventful. (Thank God!) Jaron and I got to spend some time together, and sleep in. I was getting ready for finals (ugh) and was ready for my birthday and a six-week break off of school.
The Creative Call came to an end, and it was a wonderful journey. It was great to be a blessing to other people and great to see them discover what creativity can be just more than a simple gift. I made some great friends and it's so exciting to see where this takes us.
Little known fact: I sing.
I don't really, due to much discouragement. My dad hated it when I sang. I was in choirs all through elementary school and always at church. I could read music and I wrote songs, but my father loathed me singing. It was okay that everybody else sang songs, but for some reason if I did it, it was bad. He said I had a horrible voice. So I went from performing in concerts and then completely stopped. Yes, I'd sing to the radio and sing low in church, but it was time to get over what one person said and be true to myself.
Our inspiration came from this band, The Opiate Mass
. From a response of a Sigur Ros Scott Erickson's blog:
"What they found is what had stood out to them most of all was how profoundly spiritual the concert was. They even felt like it was one of the most spiritually enriching experiences they had ever been to. These are Christian worship leaders asking why was it so profound? And why wasn’t there anything like that in Christian worship? They wrestled with this idea for many weeks until finally one of them said, “Well, maybe we’re supposed to make it.” So for the next year and a half, every Tuesday night they got together and tried to create the music they knew should exist. Now this wasn’t sponsored by their churches. No elder board gave them permission and their blessing. They just did it. They went into that place together to try to ease the tension they felt in their spirits. And a year and a half later, they had a body of work. The first event they put on was called the Urban Hymnal. They held it at St. Marks Cathedral, one of the biggest most beautiful cathedral-like churches in Seattle. They also invited visual artists to bring artwork based on a theme and display it on stage with them. The evening was a worship service but it was unlike anyone attending had ever experienced. The songs were long and crescendo-ing. There were times of corporate silence. It was the manifestation of what they had believed should exist in worshiping God…. and it was profoundly impactful. They kept writing new songs over the years and had 3 more Urban Hymnals, all including art installations and held at visually stunning sacred places."
We thought to ourselves, "Why aren't we doing something like this??? Why can't we do music like this in OUR church?" Our answer came to us when our friend, Owen Myers asked if we'd like to sing with him in his annual Christmas concert. The first half was him singing along with his sister, then Jaron (on guitar) and I singing. Oh, yeah! It was also my birthday, so there was dinner and cake following the performance with family and friends, so that was pretty much amazing.
Since this goes up to the season of Advent, I'll post a seperate blog about the Hell-idays. I mean, holidays. ;)
Thanks for reading!
It doesn't mean stuff didn't happen, though.
How do artists spend their downtime? With music, of course! I think music has a huge effect on my art, and it helps me get through the day. I'm the type of person who hears a word or phrase spoken, and a song pops into my head. Or I see something, and it reminds me of a song. Or the obvious, music reflecting how a moment or the mood you're in is what you feel.
A few of our friends and I went to the Velvet Teen/Minus the Bear in Sacramento. I waited a while to post on this, because the music was fantastic, but the experience sucked. I got body humped by sweaty attendees on "e" and a guy punched me. So yeah, not fun. We tried to make the best of it. All of Sacramento seemed to have shown up, but starting a mosh-pit to Minus the Bear? I guess it was a hipster thing? It was "ironic?" Either way, not cool. Here are the good times, though:
Jaron and I eagerly awaiting the Velvet Teen act. This is hands down one of my favorite bands from Santa Rosa. I saw them back in 2004 when I was invited to a show at the Capital Garage (R.I.P.) A guy we were standing next to had driven all the way from San Jose to watch this set. WOW! That's dedication! I'm glad I stayed for the set way back when. Now I share the music with my friends (and husband). If you hadn't heard of them, I highly recommend looking into this band.
The sound wasn't fantastic. Maybe more sound check next time? The video was taped right next to where we were standing. The "Whoo!" is my Jaron. (YAYYY!) Standing in cowboy boots for an hour was worth it.
Minus The Bear's performance was beyond amazing! Too many strobe lights, I think. The venue was packed, and my brother-in-law's girlfriend bribed her way to get backstage. I guess it was worth it, because she had a blast. Oh, and she's up on the stairs/rafters to the far right.
I've seen Minus the Bear twice before this, and this was BY FAR the best performance they've done. I don't know about you, and it might be biased because I'm a new-bassist, but I couldn't get my eyes off of him. Mmmm...
If you mute the video, you'd think that Minus the Bear was a lumberjack country-rock band from the seventies and not a indie-rock band from Seattle.
A week later, I called my friends from school and invited them to Drink N Draw
If you're not familiar with Drink N Draw, it's a time and place where a bunch of artists who get together and hang out a pub (or bar) and draw. It's a great way to meet other artists, network, and of course, have fun! This is Rheyman and Kadie. I usually meet people at school and get along, but these folks have really drawn me in with just being genuinely cool. They're artists without the snobbery, and we had a blast studying and talking art together. I heart them.
Thanksgiving was un-eventful. (Thank God!) Jaron and I got to spend some time together, and sleep in. I was getting ready for finals (ugh) and was ready for my birthday and a six-week break off of school.
The Creative Call came to an end, and it was a wonderful journey. It was great to be a blessing to other people and great to see them discover what creativity can be just more than a simple gift. I made some great friends and it's so exciting to see where this takes us.
Little known fact: I sing.
I don't really, due to much discouragement. My dad hated it when I sang. I was in choirs all through elementary school and always at church. I could read music and I wrote songs, but my father loathed me singing. It was okay that everybody else sang songs, but for some reason if I did it, it was bad. He said I had a horrible voice. So I went from performing in concerts and then completely stopped. Yes, I'd sing to the radio and sing low in church, but it was time to get over what one person said and be true to myself.
Our inspiration came from this band, The Opiate Mass
. From a response of a Sigur Ros Scott Erickson's blog:
"What they found is what had stood out to them most of all was how profoundly spiritual the concert was. They even felt like it was one of the most spiritually enriching experiences they had ever been to. These are Christian worship leaders asking why was it so profound? And why wasn’t there anything like that in Christian worship? They wrestled with this idea for many weeks until finally one of them said, “Well, maybe we’re supposed to make it.” So for the next year and a half, every Tuesday night they got together and tried to create the music they knew should exist. Now this wasn’t sponsored by their churches. No elder board gave them permission and their blessing. They just did it. They went into that place together to try to ease the tension they felt in their spirits. And a year and a half later, they had a body of work. The first event they put on was called the Urban Hymnal. They held it at St. Marks Cathedral, one of the biggest most beautiful cathedral-like churches in Seattle. They also invited visual artists to bring artwork based on a theme and display it on stage with them. The evening was a worship service but it was unlike anyone attending had ever experienced. The songs were long and crescendo-ing. There were times of corporate silence. It was the manifestation of what they had believed should exist in worshiping God…. and it was profoundly impactful. They kept writing new songs over the years and had 3 more Urban Hymnals, all including art installations and held at visually stunning sacred places."
We thought to ourselves, "Why aren't we doing something like this??? Why can't we do music like this in OUR church?" Our answer came to us when our friend, Owen Myers asked if we'd like to sing with him in his annual Christmas concert. The first half was him singing along with his sister, then Jaron (on guitar) and I singing. Oh, yeah! It was also my birthday, so there was dinner and cake following the performance with family and friends, so that was pretty much amazing.
Since this goes up to the season of Advent, I'll post a seperate blog about the Hell-idays. I mean, holidays. ;)
Thanks for reading!
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