To keep myself occupied, I started asking around about songs I should cover. I began playing around with a few things here and there, and finally settled on three songs to record and release as a mini-EP. I set out on the incredibly intimidating task of recording some of my favorites by a few of my favorite bands (and singing frogs).

After obtaining the licenses – I sincerely hope SOPA doesn’t become law, but if it does I wouldn’t want to become a felon overnight – I can finally release an almost entirely un-promised collection of cover songs. I have presumptuously titled it “Fabrications, Vol 1″, but judging from my prior record, I wouldn’t hold out hope for Vol 2. Unless that last sentence counts as some sort of reverse-jinx, in which case you SHOULD expect a Vol 2. Unless that last sentence… oh never mind.

ENJOY. Tell your friends. And merry happymas.

At some point today, if my good intentions aren’t derailed by procrastinating and chores and testing out travel-aiding sedatives on my dog, I will post a video from the show.

Thanks again friends, let’s do it again some time.

UPDATE: While I did do some procrastinating and chores and monitoring my drug-addled pooch, I also managed to upload the video. Enjoy:

Thanks to word-it-out.com for building a word cloud generator that’s customizable enough to let me do this. The rest all stripped the #s and (b5)s and all that.

*9th chords, for me at least, are extremely awesome and extremely difficult to use properly. That’s why you only see a couple. Major 7th chords, however, are basically my songwriting crutch.

Me too. It started to get embarrassing how many times I had to say “No really, just a few more things, it’s really close.” Well, now it’s here.

The earliest idea on this album dates to the fall of 2004. The last song I wrote for this album was sometime in December of 2010. In between I’ve had lots of ideas, good and bad, as many forgotten as I remembered to write down. Ultimately, these fifteen songs, while somewhat – what’s a nice word – eclectic, have captured pretty accurately the musician I’ve tried to become in these six years. I’m not a great singer, I’m not a great bassist, I’m not by any means a piano player or a drummer. I can make a guitar do most things I have half a mind to do, but by no means am I as good as I feel I ought to be. But I do these things well enough to capture my ideas, and I’ve spent a long time making them sound as good as I am capable.

So please enjoy my album. It’s been a lifelong ambition, and the 18 months I’ve spent recording it have been quite a ride.

Oh, and a note about commerce: I will charge for this album, but not until July 5th. Soon after July 5th, after I work out the kinks, I will offer a paid digital-only version, and an-ever-so slightly-more-paid version with an actual, physical compact disc that I will send you in the mail. Probably with my autograph or something and a note thanking you for being my fan. And all, well at least some of, the love in my heart.

I haven’t thought about the prices for these different options, and don’t want to right now. But I would highly encourage you to download the album for free in the next few days. Seeing people download and enjoy my album will matter to me much more than the money you would pay for it anyway. Until next week, when I sell out and get greedy.

You can listen to the album here, or by clicking on the “music” link above.

Trick answer: Uh, none. One of the most recognizable Beatles songs (Naaa na na NANANA-NAH!) was, as was customary at the time, released as a single but never repackaged on an album. This is true of many of our favorite songs from the 1960s, when record companies had the decency to not ask us consumers to buy the same song multiple times.*

Therein lies, I think, one possible answer to the question posed here, paraphrased as “why release an album when people only buy one song at a time?”

I agree wholeheartedly with Jonathan’s answer to the question. Albums are more interesting than singles. Albums, even when they are not “concept” albums, reveal patterns in the artist’s abilities, emotions, and influences at a certain point in time. As a whole, this collection of patterns, usually digested in 35-55 minute doses, provides a snapshot – frozen in time – of who the artist is. A string of “singles,” released at random and with no connection to each other, is like replacing a photograph with an assortment of sketches.

I usually avoid arguments that involve the phrase “we live in an age of…”, but here goes: we live in an age of tragically short attention spans. In other words, Twitter is great and all, but jesus god some things can’t be said in 140 characters. Anyway, the argument goes something like this: “The Twitter generation can’t pay attention to your 35-55 minute opus. They don’t have time. They get bored. So no albums. Release a song, go viral, jump in a swimming pool full of fleeting fame, rinse, and repeat.”

Here’s my problem with that. One of my favorite Beatles songs is “Your Mother Should Know,” on what I think is the most underrated Beatles album – Magical Mystery Tour.** “Your Mother Should Know” reflects the heartfelt emotion and nostalgia of the songwriter (Paul), who famously adored old-timey music (see “Honey Pie” and “When I’m 64″). It’s a simple little tune, the same lyrics repeated a few times over music that establishes a theme, varies it, and never ventures too far away from the core idea. It’s a brilliant song, because it is a simple, almost forgettable statement. But it was an important enough statement for Paul to make that he sat down and wrote it. And I’m thankful that he did.

“Let’s all get up and dance to a song that was a hit before your mother was born.”

Fast forward to today. You’re releasing one song at a time. Every release is important, because of the energy and social media capital spent cajoling your followers to spend 3 minutes listening to your new effort. Does “Your Mother Should Know” ever get released today as a single?

Ah-ha. Turns out we have a analogous situation here. As I explained, artists in the 1960s released certain songs as singles but did not put them on albums. “Hey Jude” was, and is, a perfect single (though a bit long by today’s standards). It was released as a single. A song recorded during the same sessions, like, say, “Rocky Raccoon,” is not exactly single material. But I adore that song, and you probably do too, and can you imagine the White Album without it? Without “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill”? Without “Why Don’t We Do It in the Road”? The White Album is full of wonderful songs that probably wouldn’t have been released, or even created, without the album format to give them a home. And it’s not just the White Album. Every artist, on every record, has songs like this. It would be a shame to see them go.

Okay, it’s today again. Digital distribution has made it easier than ever to buy your favorite songs and skip the skippable songs. People are buying music a la carte, while artists stubbornly release music on set menus. It doesn’t make sense, right? The album is dead, long live the single. Regularly releasing a song or two, instead of 10-15 every two years, will shorten the promotional cycle, reduce costs, and keep artists from getting washed away by the tides of shifting attention. It’s just the new reality. Right?

Probably. But I still love albums. I love everything about them, even when there is usually a song or two I skip through. And I always, ALWAYS*** buy complete albums instead of cherry picking songs. So, soon****, I’m going to release my own album. I will have the temerity to hope that some people will pay for it – the whole thing – and at least once listen through it all in one sitting. Then, I’m going to record and release some new songs as singles. Then, when it feels right, I’ll record another album, and I won’t even put the singles on it. The new reality, maybe, should just be the old one.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

*This would change late in the Beatles’ run, with some songs being dual-released (single and album) even before “Hey Jude.” But for more examples, look up almost any song on their “Past Masters” compilation. Except for a few tracks (mostly alternate takes or different edits), those songs were all singles that were never released on an album (until the Past Masters were compiled in 1987 to keep people from needing to buy all the singles).

**A small clarification: Magical Mystery Tour is a strange Beatles album. It was originally (in Britain) a six-song EP, but in the United States it was repackaged with 5 singles and sold as a full-length album. That means, yes, my argument is based on a song on an album that kind of destroys my argument. Just blame it on America.

***With notable rare exceptions.

****Soooooooooooooon.

The full release will contain 15 tracks. Some you’ve heard before, but all the old songs from “The Fortnighter” have been/are being scrubbed up, re-mixed, and re-mastered. Seriously, you may have heard these songs before, but you’ve not heard them like this. There’s a reason this thing is taking so long.

Here’s the album art, which I’ve had finished since December and nearly unveiled about 75 times because I think it is the best piece of visual art this not-visual-artist has ever accidentally created:

(Click to embiggen)

And here’s the new song. Hope you enjoy, and tell a friend.

On the last song of the album, I hope to be joined by a chorus of lots and lots of voices. They can be young, old, trained, amateur (like yours truly), shy, or bold. As long as they are numerous. And then I thought, “Hey! There are literally numerous people on the internet! Maybe they can help, and have fun too!”

It should be pretty easy to participate. There are 9 8 words in the part, and you sing it twice. It should take less than five minutes. All you have to do is download the zipped file here and read the instructions. If you have any questions, let me know. I’ll find some neat way to list all the names of the wonderful rockstars who helped me out.

Thanks, and get to singin’!

Here’s the link to the file again.

[Quick note for the skeptics: this is not a paid advertisement. I paid my own real money to buy this guitar, and though I have freakish brand loyalty to Godin/Seagull guitars, they don't do anything for me but make amazing instruments for me to pay my own real money to buy.]

I’ve been going through a miniature crisis for the last few months after first discovering a buzzy fret, then a collapsing soundboard, then a separating bridge on my guitar. It’s really hard to play a guitar that is falling apart, and especially hard to play a guitar that spent about a month in the shop. So, in the meantime, I started looking for a new guitar, in case the old one was irreparably damaged. Spoiler alert: it was.

The shop, and constant humidity, brought the guitar back to good enough shape to be a playable backup. But I needed to buy a new guitar, especially one more suited to playing live and recording. My criteria were: cutaway body, built-in pickup, semi-gloss finish, all solid wood, semi-gloss finish, less than $1,000. I’m as certain as I can be that I bought the only guitar available that fits that description. And it looks and sounds amazing.

Anyways, if you’re curious, it’s a Seagull Maritime, with spruce top and mahogany back and sides. It’s strikingly gorgeous, but simple. LIKE ME, PERHAPS? I don’t know. Anyways, there are some pictures below.

Also, this means I can start recording again. Three songs to go. Woohoo!

[Show as slideshow]

This morning, instead of virtuously studying for my finals, I decided to redo the drums of that section with the new kit. It’s not done yet, but I’m so excited I have to share. Behold:

How freakin’ cool is that?!?