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In working/playing in the studio,  It’s easy to forget the actual moment of the song’s original beginning.  The writing and performing flow together into the production, and it feels as though the song always existed…we just give it a form in which to express itself.

DaVinci said his sculpting was to free the form from the stone, rather than to create it.  Music is the same way.  The creative process is often one of discovering rather than invention.

And there’s a cycle to any creative process – if you’re an artist, writer, musician, or whatever your creative path, you pretty much have no choice but to go with the cycles.  You can’t force it.

Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the actions stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living.
- Anais Nin

We were in the studio last night with a friend from out of state, listening to the songs that are nearly mixed and a couple that are just awaiting mastering…and he suggested  changing up the cowbell in Looking Glass Road.  We’d already mixed it, but we went ahead and laid a track with a different feel – what a great idea!  It instantly brings the energy up to just where we wanted it.  So now we have a touch of additional remixing to do, but it’s really sounding quite…Psychanautic.

UPDATE:You can hear the new Looking Glass Road mix  – and, as always, visit the music pages here at ScarletJinn.com, or Psychanaut.com to check out more tunes.

The song “Arriving” has rarely been performed live yet, and even rarely played in rehearsal, so it’s been a bit nebulous to record.  It really needed big harmonies, which we didn’t have in Rock Scarlet, and I’m hoping to add extra background singers with Psychanaut to perform this one live. 

the song is a bit laid back in energy, kind of hypnotic and spacy.  Initially we recorded very basic tracks for it, to allow us to develop it’s energy and see where it takes us.   The drums were really simple, no fills or frills, and we used a slide guitar for the lead riff.

I’ve recorded the vocal tracks in almost every style, from big and loud rock to soft and breathy before deciding upon the approach that best suited the song.  Usually I know  right away how I want the vocal, but this tune is unique.  It’s one that really encompasses the hybrid style that is Psychanaut.

We’ve been on this one for several days in a row now.

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A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. ~ Robert Heinlein 

I keep thinking of this quote lately!  “Specialization is for insects.”  These evenings in the studio continue to be both fun and intense.  It used to be somewhat frustrating to be both musician and engineer; switching from right brain (creativity and spontaneity) with performing to left brain (precision and deliberate focus) for engineering and editing. I can recall the guys in the band and I all having difficulty with it not so long ago.  But it’s getting easier to just shift from one to the other.  It used to drain the creativity right out of me to have to do analytical work on the computer.  This more flexible feeling is so liberating!  It feels so empowering to be able feel confident about various skills. 

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Several of our older songs and almost all of the new ones fall into the Labyrinth Collection that will be featured on Psychanaut.com.  It’s a musical story (although any song can stand on its own too) of Universal Consciousness taking physical form, and having a myriad of life these experiences on the way to remembering itself.  These last days in the studio working on the songs for this collection have been super productive.

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Yes, I’m getting all your emails and messages on myspace and facebook asking “when is the next show?”  Some of you are worried, some of you are a bit annoyed, and some of you are just really wanting the music and miss us.  We miss you too.   I love hearing from you, it really touches me that so many of you care enough to write…

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The newest song we’ve completed writing and recording is Gravity Well, and it’s almost ready to mix.  Once that’s done, we’ll post it and I’ll announce that it’s available.  We had a lot of fun recording the harmonies for this one, it required projection of a certain attitude that could only be achieved by singing the harmony parts in a unusual voice.  We should have videoed that session, it would’ve made you laugh.

My favorite part of this song is the chorus, “The game is hide and seek till I find myself, hidden in illusion at the bottom of – the gravity well.”  the music is played a bit heavier to portray the gravity. 

And of course there’s nowhere to go from the bottom of the Gravity Well but up.

It’s part of the Labyrinth collection that will be featured in a new section on the Psychanaut website.  Many of the songs in the Labyrinth you’ve already heard at Rock Scarlet shows…such as Wayside, Egypt Eyes, Oracle & Alchemy Waits.  What’s been missing is a format to present them and let them tell a story. 

So adding this piece is going to help bring it all together.  Of course, if you don’t want to venture into the Labyrinth or play with ideas, and you just wanna rock — you can still get the songs directly from the download page… but eventually, the Labyrinth will be a cool way to preview the tunes while visiting some cool imagery within the Labyrinth.

PS)I’m looking for artistic people to help with creation of  the Labyrinth artwork.  If you’re interested or  want to help out, contact me either from ScarletJinn.com Psychanut.com or Rock Scarlet.com.

We’ve finally posted a live video from last summer’s CresFest in Creswell.

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this is a bit more on that article at Huffington Post.  One of the reader’s comments contained this nugget:
"Can an artist truly develop if they are trying to book all their own shows, market themselves, manage their myspace, facebook, twitter, etc.? When exactly do you have the solitude to write? And who provides the guidance – the "editing"- that some of the great music producers and executives provided to our generation’s best artists?"

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Brian and I are back at work mixing, dong a few overdubs here ‘n there, with Richie giving some eq input on the drums.  Between us we’re getting better at mixing all those tracks we have already recorded.   We have all these tunes close to completed and now’s the time, while it’s so cold outside!  It’s sounding really nice and we’ll be posting stuff again soon. Read the rest of this entry »