Starving Artists Pictures

Butch Walker at The Great American Music Hall

2015-06-18T17:49:00.000-07:00

Originally published @ http://www.circlesixmagazine.com/2015/06/18/butch-walker-at-the-american-music-hall/

I’m am forever in awe of people that can take a stage and captivate an audience with just their voice and an instrument. It’s a strange kind of voodoo that happens – a mass hypnosis really. But it’s why we go to see these live shows. It’s because of this connection (for lack of a better word) that we cannot experience anywhere else. All we can do is take our places in anticipation for something to happen, never quite sure that it will – and then the artist we paid good money to see takes the stage. And it’s magic.

I first heard Butch Walker back when he was in a band called Marvelous 3. They wrote catchy songs with amazing hooks and interesting lyrics that were dripping with unusual depth and sarcasm; I became an instant fan. Butch Walker might be one of the main reasons I am so passionate about lyrics. He’s also the reason that I want to pull the hairs out of my head when someone tells me that they don’t listen to the words of a song, they listen to music for *gasp* the beat.

I know that music isn’t everyone’s thing. Music is my drug, but lyrics are constantly becoming a part of my evolving lifelong philosophy to find meaning. Because “it’s all about culture and art, but the truth of is that it rips me apart…”

Before I saw him at The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, It had been several years since I last went to a Butch Walker concert. The last time I saw him play was in Pomona, CA to a half capacity audience on a week night. This was post Marvelous 3 Butch Walker who walked onto the stage and seemed content to just play no matter how many people were or weren’t there. And boy did he put on a show. A few years later I’m on the phone with Stephen Christian of Anberlin and talking about their new album Dark is the Way, Light is a Place and I bring up Butch Walker, who worked with him a few years earlier, and he implored, “..if anybody has ever seen his live show, oh my gosh, just mind boggling. That guy is a genius, not only a great writer, but just a great performer.” I get giddy whenever I run into someone that even knows who Butch is…the best kept secret in music (that shouldn’t be a secret).

The show in San Francisco is at the tail end of his current tour. If you saw the set list, you knew that you were in for a subdued and maybe even slow paced show. He’s touring off his new album Afraid of Ghosts – a tribute album of sorts dedicated to his father. Much of the album is somber and introspective. When Butch takes the stage it’s a very different Butch from the one I watched in Pomona. There is no band. The stage is nearly empty save a piano, a few guitars and a bass drum. Like I said at the beginning of this, I am forever in awe of people that can take a stage and captivate an audience with just their voice and an instrument. The concert is a very eclectic blend of old and new songs that feature mostly Butch playing on just a piano or a guitar exclusively (and maybe an occasional backup singer) to fill in the spaces. As he plays his set list – the experience this time was like being a very emotional story about his life as an artist and his relationship with his now deceased father. While there were many light moments, the overarching story is one that left the audience waiting to exhale as he ends the show by playing the songs his father loved the most. It’s an emotional ride I haven’t experienced since seeing the Civil Wars in concert (back when they were a thing). As the lights come up there is not a dry eye in the house. It’s been a while since I’ve felt that thing that happens in the air – that connection between performer and the audience. You know it when you feel it, but there’s no way to ever capture it otherwise. It can only be described as a strange magic that eventually fades, sadly.

As I write this I know that you’re not going to care about Butch’s music quite the same way that I do. And that’s okay. I can only hope that you find your own experiences and favorite artists. Now roll up your sleeves, dig into their lyrics and wrestle with what they were really trying to say with their songs. I hope whatever it is that you find amazes you and leaves you as awestruck as I often am when I do the same.

Paul Stamat

Funny Asian video

2014-04-14T14:45:00.001-07:00

HOW TO GET YOUR ASIAN CARD! (Test Yourself!): http://youtu.be/e995c3uNelA

Hanging out at the Boba store...one way to get your Asian card!

Disney and Chemical Trails

2012-09-08T13:40:00.001-07:00

Disney and chemical trails aren't exactly related. Or are they? I was working at Disneyland today and could not resist taking a picture of Goofy big brother style. They are marketing geniuses as can be seen by looking at almost every inch of the Downtown area.

As for the chemical trails as seen down 300 miles of I-5...does anyone know what that is? I know I smell it. So what is it? If you know, let me know.

Return of the Pocket Blog

2012-09-04T17:01:00.001-07:00

I keep meaning to update my blog. Since I am feeling a little schizophrenic these days I have put much of what I used to do on hold in the name of "figuring" it out. So anyway, and for now, blogging from my smartphone will be one of the ways to keep practicing the craft. I promise to pocket dial as often as I can. So until next time, chew on that.

Stryper Interview

2012-06-12T09:20:00.001-07:00

It’s hard to think back on certain eras of music without thinking about how those eras were branded. The sixties brought us free love, the seventies groovy acid rock and progressive rock, and the 80’s sort of combined the sixties and seventies and took its love affair with sex, drugs and rock and roll to new heights and gave it all to us in excess. In some ways the 80’s were so self indulgent that the negative stigmas and calamity born out of that time, especially when we remember bands that made headlines, were worn proudly like badges. The music you identified with most was your symbol. If you were a metal head, the Devil, wasn’t just a major character in the scene, but was a unifying symbol for rebellion and your disdain for the mainstream. For metal fans the devil was their a badge of courage and their unifying force. So while darkness proved to be a dominant theme in that genre – Stryper proved to be the one band that survived the calamity of that era by continuing to embrace something that they always believed was just a little bit stronger than the evil that some groups claimed to embrace: God.

I recently got an opportunity to chat with Michael Sweet of Stryper and find out how he felt about some of the negativity the band faced for not embracing the darkness as well as what they are doing now. So sit back and check out the conversation. It just might surprise you how normal some Christians can be.

C6M: I wanted to talk a little bit about the history of the band. I mean it’s a pretty long and extensive history, and a couple of my questions revolve around kind of what it was like during the early days of doing the little clubs on the Sunset Strip, but also I wanted to combine that with the fact that you guys were also kind of doing churches as well. So, talk a little bit about that and sort of the differences between the two, I guess, realms of playing.

Michael Sweet: Well, I mean we kind of — because we were an LA street scene band, you know, we grew up on Sunset and Santa Monica playing all the clubs, Troubadour, Gazzari’s, Whiskey, and that’s — those were our roots, and then we decided to take a different path and commit our music and our band to God and — but yet at the same time, in doing so, we didn’t want to be classified or labeled a Christian band, although we consisted of Christians and we’re made up of Christian guys, we didn’t want that tag. We always — our vision was to always reach out to the people that didn’t go to church, you know, that weren’t interested in going to church. So, that was our whole thing, and it still is really, but because we were made up of Christians and we got a lot of press because of that and a lot of controversy and buzz-worthy notes, you know, we kind of got — that label got pinned upon us, and therefore we were contacted by a lot of churches to perform. And we performed at a select few, but we always try to make it our goal to not do that. It was never really our thing as a band, as Stryper to go and play churches. It was more our thing to go play festivals and clubs and whatnot and reach out to those people that don’t go to church. So, you know, it’s kind of — it’s a double-edged sword, I guess, so to speak. We get offers and requests from people of all walks of life, churches, mainstream. I mean it’s kind of interesting sometimes, but we do have to kind of keep a limit on how many churches we’ll do, we try to.

C6M: Sure. Obviously you alluded to some of the misconceptions about who you guys were. I mean did that sort of — like you were saying, a double-edged sword thing. Did that sort of play into how like some people would want to play with you or not play with you just based upon the idea that you guys were four Christian guys in a band playing music? I mean did they have this idea that like possibly if they played with you, you guys might like turn water into wine on stage and float and do all kinds of weird stuff?

Michael Sweet: Yeah, I think so. I think unfortunately people’s perceptions of us, not all the time, but a good portion of the time, are just so ridiculous. And that’s from all sides. You know, from the Christian side, the church side, they think that we’re radicals and we may not really truly be Christians, and we’ve heard the term wolves in sheep’s clothing and all this kind of stuff. And then from the mainstream side, we get the fear of “Oh, my god, yeah, they’re Christians. No, we can’t play with them. We can’t tour with them,” and it really limits us a lot of times when we’re trying to get on a package tour or whatnot. And we’ve heard those comments from management and from labels of “Oh, no, no, no, it’s the Christian guys. No, we can’t do that,” and it’s like, “Well, why not?”

C6M: Right.

Michael Sweet: “Have you seen us? Have you gone to a Stryper’s show and seen that we’re just a rock band, you know, that goes up and delivers and puts on a show and entertains people and rocks it?” And I think it’s a huge misconception, because we just played Monsters of Rock Cruise, Cinderella, Tesla, a number of other bands, Night Ranger, and just all these bands. And because we were stuck on a ship, it was kind of cool, because all the bands had the opportunity to see the other bands for the first time in their lives. And we had a lot of people coming out to see us, and that was the talk. The people came up to us, the guys in Tesla, the guys in Cinderella, they’d come up to us and say, “Man, we had no idea. You guys really killed it. It was amazing.” You know, and it’s like I wanted to say, “Well, what did you think it was going to be? Did you think we were going to be like preaching and having church?” And I think that’s what people think a lot of times.

C6M: Yeah, yeah, definitely. I mean I remember back in I guess the late 80s, yeah, it did seem like the funny part would be that you couldn’t win for losing sometimes. You know that you had this perception of being sort of the clean pretty boys of rock and then you’d have Jimmy Swaggart attacking you for being completely of the devil.

Michael Sweet: Yeah.

C6M: And yeah, it just seemed like wow, you know, how do you break out of that mold? I guess getting into that, I mean, one of the things that I thought was really fascinating, just speaking about that whole, I guess, dichotomy of who you guys were, was the fact that you guys sold better in the secular market than you actually did in the Christian market. I don’t know if you knew that but…

Michael Sweet: No, no. Yeah, we’ve done all the stats and it’s true, we’ve sold — most of our sales were mainstream, two-thirds roughly give or take were mainstream, the rest were Christian market based. And nowadays most of the sales, although they’ve depleted all around the board for all bands, but ours have as well obviously, and we’re mostly mainstream as far as our sales go. And it is really weird. It’s very strange to be getting it from both sides, but we try not to cry about that or moan and complain. I mean that’s just the way it works, that’s the way it is, that’s the way this world is. I think they fear anything that’s Christian based, a lot of times you’re going to be a target board for the darts. I mean people are going to throw the darts, man, and it’s just the way it is, regardless if it’s music or cinema or — it doesn’t matter what it is. You make a stand for God, man, look out. You better put on the armor, because people are going to attack you man, and that’s just the way it is.

C6M: That’s interesting though. I mean because like you were saying, you get it from both sides, but then there are people that kind of come out and they’re not afraid to say that they’re fans of the music, that they’re fans of what you guys were doing. And an example of that, I mean there’s a couple that I wanted to throw out there. I mean one of them is — Eddie Trunk is a big advocate of you guys. He definitely goes to bat for you guys all the time.

Michael Sweet: Eddie Trunk — and he is. He really is, and then even more so Jim Florentine is a huge fan. You know, he actually came to see us play back in the day and he’s told his story. And not to interrupt you, but yeah, there’s guys like you know, Dan, Larry the Cable Guy, and not that he’s the most controversial character out there, but certainly wouldn’t expect him to be a Stryper fan. And there’s guys like Chris Jericho and there’s guys like on the other side of the map musically speaking. Twiggy, I found out that in the past few years that Twiggy was a big fan. He came to see us play in LA and he got a picture of himself dressed up as a Stryper member in high school. John 5, guitar player for Zombie, he still has a Stryper bible he got at a Stryper show. The drummer for Disturbed, he came to our Chicago show and was singing the words to every Stryper song, grew up on Stryper. So, there’s a lot of bands and “dark bands,” a lot of band members and these bands that are supposed to be evil and as hardcore as it gets, blah, blah, blah, and then you find out they’re Stryper fans. And it’s kind of cool. I mean it’s humbling. It’s really great to hear that and see that, but I don’t know what the fear is to admit. I think sometimes there’s a fear in admitting that you’re a Stryper fan.

C6M: Well, again it’s funny. I noticed that Rob Halford even had some very nice things to say, and you guys did a cover album and you cover a Judas Priest song Breaking the Law. I had a chance to talk to Rob myself and he is a very genuine, very nice guy and very — I guess that’s what I’m coming down to in the statement here is that a lot of the guys can appreciate good music when it’s good music, because he had nothing but nice things to say when he was just referring to your cover. So, has anyone else mentioned how they were honored by you guys doing an album of cover tunes?

Michael Sweet: Well, yeah. I mean we’ve got a ton of positive comments from everybody, and that’s not why we did it, but we did it just because we wanted to have fun and do something different and show people that, you know, it’s not about putting rules and regulations on Christianity. It’s not about saying you can do this and you can’t do that. I get really sick and tired of that stuff, and I just think it’s baloney and we wanted to kind of show people that and break down some barriers and some walls by making that record. But you know, people like Rob Halford, who I’ve heard that he has a deep faith in God, and there are so many people out there in this business that do. They have a deep faith in God and they believe in God and they pray to God, and you know, in their private lives they go to church, but yet they’re in these dark bands and it’s interesting. It is really interesting, and it’s almost like they have one side of themselves they want to show or people to see, and then they have another side. And I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. I’m just saying we’ve chosen to not let there be boundaries in who we are or lines or separation. We’ve chosen to, from since 1983, to make a bold stand and say, “This is who we are. You either accept it or reject it, but it’s who we are and we’ll go to our graves being remembered for taking a stand, a bold stand for who we are.”

C6M: And that is an interesting statement that you make, because I’ve had a chance to talk to so many people in the industry, and I’ll bring up the issue. For instance I got to talk to Zakk Wylde — and Rob Halford’s another one, and a few others, where you know, I talk about like the themes of their music. I got to talk to Dave Lombardo of Slayer, and you know, they sort of like chuckle a little bit and say, “Well, you know, it’s more like we’re creating a horror novel or something like that and trying to recreate that on stage.” Where Stryper sort of — you were sort of singing about your lives in a way that was a little more sincere. I find it interesting years later looking back, because those were all the bands that were like scary and you’re really like “Oh my goodness,” you know, and it’s like years later they’re like “Oh, well yeah, it’s just an act you know, just having fun or whatever.”

Michael Sweet: And why is it — well, here’s the funny thing — and two points. First point being why is it okay for “satanic bands” or at least satanic bands is regarding the imagery, and it’s a show as they say. Why is it okay and cool and accepted for that to be okay, but yet, a Christian band putting on a show for God, they’re doing it for the devil, we’re doing it for God, but yet we’re put under the microscope and it’s not okay, because it doesn’t go with Heavy Metal. And it’s like I always find that very interesting and really pretty — pretty silly, because the way I view things is God is the creator of all things, and these people that live for the devil or support the devil or speak for the devil, they’re so quick to say that there is no God and Satan rules, but yet at the same time they believe in the devil but they don’t believe in God, and I find it very — I find it contradictory. I think it’s pretty silly. I mean if you believe in the devil, you got to believe in God, you got to believe that there’s a God, like there wouldn’t be a devil without a God in my opinion. You know, that being said, I think God’s the creator of all things. He created the devil, you know, Lucifer as an angel, and it’s like I just believe that you know we have every right just as they do to portray our faith and our beliefs and put on our show, as they say, as much as they do, as much as the next guy.

C6M: Sure. So, getting back to your music, you guys were sort of trailblazers in a lot of ways. I mean because in a way you guys crossed over — well not really crossed over. Like you were saying, you kind of decided that you were going to basically have your band be your band and your message be your message. But in a lot of ways, it did sort of create a path for other bands to follow. And I don’t know if anybody has ever come to you 20 years later and said anything, but I mean I sort of feel like there wouldn’t be an Evanescence or a Devil Wears Prada or an Anberlin sort of without a Stryper. Even though the music’s different, you know, there’s scripture in their lyrics. They mention Christ and things like that, and it’s just something that I think for whatever reasons you guys got the baseball bat for it, and it’s almost a little more accepted, because you sort of trail blazed for them. I mean has anyone ever come to you and sort of thanked you for at least making it a little easier?

Michael Sweet: A few people. I mean a few bands have, but not many and that’s okay. I mean we just happened to be in the right place at the right time, and back in ‘83, ‘84 and we were able to fortunately be a part of that movement, if you want to call it that, and kind of as you put it, trailblazing and leading the way, and to look at it that way is pretty cool, pretty amazing. It also makes me feel really old, you know. But man, yeah, it’s awesome. It’s awesome to have been a part of leading the way and then to see all the bands follow suit afterwards, obviously just a few years after us, and then now, you know, 30 years after us. It’s pretty crazy. It’s very cool though, exciting to see, man. I just listened to this band called Blessed by a Broken Heart. I don’t know if you’re familiar with them much, but just checking out some of their YouTube videos and it’s really wild, because it’s like the vocals aren’t exactly like Stryper vocals. They are similar in the harmonies and whatnot, but the guitar parts — and there’s so many flavors that I hear that are similar to the old Stryper tones and records, and it’s really cool to see things come around full circle. That’s the ultimate compliment. It’s very cool.

C6M: Yeah, I noticed that and I mean not just for Stryper. I noticed that everything has its cycle. I was listening to Avenged Sevenfold and thinking the same thing with the dual guitars and that kind of stuff. I’m thinking to myself “Wow, that’s Iron Maiden, that’s Stryper, that’s all of that coming back again,” you know.

Michael Sweet: Exactly and for the longest period of time that wasn’t popular, and so much so that it affected us when we made the record Reborn. It came out in 2005. We didn’t do any solos on it. We purposely tried to stay away from doing solos, and especially harmony solos. And I’m thinking this is crazy. After the fact I thought this is crazy, because that’s who we are. You never shy away from who you are. That’s the ultimate mistake, biggest mistake.

C6M: Sure. So, now that you’re back and you’ve been around playing again, getting back into the groove of the new music scene, I mean a lot has sort of changed. You mentioned a little bit about how the sales have gone down. I mean we’re in a new age of music. We’re in the new age of digital download and you know, it started out with the Napster thing, but now iTunes owns everything and things like that. So, how do you feel about how things have changed, because it’s totally different you know?

Michael Sweet: It is. I mean speaking of — it’s funny that you say that, because I’m doing live performances now in this site called Stageit. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it. It’s called Stageit.com and bands from Bonnie Raitt to just — you can go in there, and there are just tons of people in there, rock, soul, R&B, country, whatever. And they’re going in and they perform in their living room or in their studio and people purchase tickets and they watch them on their computers, and that’s technology. You know it’s crazy. It’s really — we’re going down a different path here because of technology and it’s definitely different, but it’s definitely very cool. And I think the more we accept it and go along with it, the better off we’re all going to be regarding musicians and bands, because it’s a new day. It’s not about selling records anymore. The days of selling for bands like Stryper of selling a million copies of a record, those days are gone. They’re long gone. It’s all about downloads and even the downloads by comparison are a lot lower in numbers. It’s more about going out and performing and finding new and unique, interesting ways to stay afloat and to survive. And you got to follow technology’s lead on that, man.

C6M: Sure, sure. It shows you how — it’s weird, but you know, the whole social media revolution, I mean that whole Stageit thing is a part of it, because the fans sort of demand like instant access to everything. I mean sometimes the news of bands breaking up, you know, hits the social media before the band even knows that they’ve broken up.

Michael Sweet: I know. It’s crazy.

C6M: It is crazy.

Michael Sweet: Because anybody can go in on their computer and make it live, you know, and then it’s all over the internet, exactly. So, you can say whatever you want to say even if it’s not true. It’s crazy.

C6M: True, true. So, let’s close by talking about what’s going on now and what’s going on in the near future, what do you have coming up in terms of albums and also touring?

Michael Sweet: I got a lot of stuff going on. I just finished a solo record and that’s really a big deal for me right now and obviously a big push. I’m excited about it. I got Kenny Aronoff drumming on it. I got a few guest players. I got Kevin Max from dc Talk singing on a song with me. I’ve got Doug Aldrich, the guitar player for Whitesnake, playing on a song.

C6M: Awesome.

Michael Sweet: And you know we’re talking to a few other guests about possibly being on the record, but it’s really — it’s a very eclectic, diverse record, consisting of real edgy songs and then going to the extreme and opposite side of real — there’s a song that’s almost the Southern Rock vibe. So, it’s real different for me, but I think in a good way and it all makes sense. It feels good. It’s a really great sounding record. I’m excited about that and I’m working on a book that’s going to be released roughly around the same time the record is released, so sometime this year.

C6M: And what is the book about?

Michael Sweet: It’s just an autobiography about my life — the good and the bad, the ups and the downs and how I got into the music business, the family I come from, joining my brother’s band, the success of Stryper, walking away from Stryper and the low and high points of that, my wife passing from cancer, Kyle remarrying, joining Boston, I mean just all the kind of whirlwind details of my life, and it’s really turning out great. I’m excited about it and it’s going to be a little different from a lot of books you read. It’s just an open, honest book, no pun intended, and most likely will be called Honestly.

C6M: Oh, nice.

Michael Sweet: So, that’s coming out this year. And then working on a rerecord Stryper record, which to most people might not be anything new, but the reason why we’re doing that is we signed a publishing deal and we want to make it easy for them to go after film and TV, and we kind of wanted the challenge of rerecording a lot of those old songs. So, we recorded 14 old classics and two brand new songs.

C6M: Oh, very cool.

Michael Sweet: And that’ll come out this year as well, probably the latter part of the year, and then we’re going to start on a brand new all-original Stryper record probably around January of ‘13.

C6M: Oh, very, very cool. That’s very…

Michael Sweet: So, we got a lot going on. We’re touring. We got a bunch of Stryper dates on the books right now, so far about 24 dates, planning on maybe 10 to 15 more, and then I’m planning on a solo tour. That’s going to be a surprise. I’m talking to a band right now about opening and them being my band for the solo tour, and it’s I think going to be a shocker for a lot of people.

C6M: Very cool, look forward to the surprises.

Michael Sweet: Yeah, people will be like, “What the heck?”

[Laughter]

C6M: Yeah, but isn’t that — that’s the summation of your career, right?

Michael Sweet: Yeah, pretty much.

C6M: So, that’s very, very cool. Hey, thanks so much for taking the time out of your day. I know you’re busy, but I really appreciate to be able to talk.

Michael Sweet: All right, brother. Take care. Great talking to you and be safe, okay?

C6M: You too, all right. Talk to you later. Bye.

Michael Sweet: Take care. Bye-bye.

As I reflected on our conversation, I am reminded of my younger years when I would not just buy every new album that was released, but I would buy it and then absorb it – absorb it all. I stumbled upon Stryper at The Wherehouse, picking up the In God We Trust album and just being blown away by the production value alone. It was a very big contrast to what was out there, but I was starving for something different and they really filled that void. I immediately purchased To Hell with the Devil and everything that came before it. Maybe I was just tired of the same old thing. In reflecting upon it, I can’t say much has changed except that record stores are now a thing of the past much like my youth. Despite this, Stryper still makes it on my yearly play list. It just reminds me of the days when I was desperate for something else in life and I just need something else to fill that void. Sometimes that means I need to inject a little God into my ears because the truth is that the devil is still big business. Even all these years later, I still think about Stryper in this context of God versus the devil as they continue to rock for values that sometimes bring them more ridicule than praise. It’s admirable and makes me appreciate speaking to Michael Sweet as Stryper continues to don the yellow and black attack for another opportunity to rock a new audience. You have to admire them because at least they are still rocking it their way.

If you get a chance, check out their new albums such as The Covering and catch one of their upcoming shows as they tour America this summer. And if you get a chance to chat with any of them members, let them know that Paul sent ya.

by Paul Stamat

Hiatus

2011-10-27T23:23:00.000-07:00

It's so strange how I can be so gung ho and then get so bogged down with "life" that I completely neglect my blog. It's weird because I continue to consider myself a writer despite the fact that I can't really call myself that at all. I feel like I have been doing anything and everything in order to survive. But surviving simply isn't cutting it.

So where have I been? Working mostly. I have been learning new trades, practicing my Spanish with native speakers and wondering when I will ever find time again to write more than a paragraph. I have no idea when that will be.

In other news, and this is just how crazy my life can be, YouTube made me a "partner" during my biggest creative dry spell ever. I find this funny too. What can I say? My life is, if nothing else, full of interesting ironies. So there's that too.

Anyway, I promise that I'll try harder to be more interesting. I had this feeling that if I didn't freaking write "something" here that I would never get around to it. So...yeah...baby steps I guess. Also the story of my life. See you guys on the flip side.

What Are You Doing?

2011-08-16T22:49:00.000-07:00

This was an inspiring video if for no other reason than because of his passion and belief that you can make a living doing whatever you want. Is it true? Can you do whatever you want and still get paid? According to Gary Vaynerchuk you can. Watch this video. It's inspiring.

Are We That Lazy?

2011-08-15T22:34:00.000-07:00

There were some interesting debates recently among the Google Plus boards about whether or not Google Plus was on the rise or nearing the end of its beta fascination and hitting a major lull in activity. The idea was written by Paul Tassi in Forbes magazine that argued that since he wasn't seeing very much activity in his stream that the conclusion was that his experience was a reflection of the entire population of Google Plus users. This created an uproar of comments responding to the contrary - sort of proving that there actually was an active community. Mr. Tassi quickly responded with a surprise rebuttal of his own which you can read here: The Rise of the Google Plus Faithful where he argued that if one must try harder to be interesting then it clearly wasn't a social media tool that was ready for mass adoption because the reality was this: people are lazy. He didn't use these words, exactly, but that is in essence what he was saying. And the truth is that I can't disagree.

I have had friends ask me why I would even give up Facebook for Google. They ask because they wonder why I could be fascinated with anything that would remotely look like it took work. The funny thing is that I would encounter the same scenario over and over again from people that were sincerely confused. Why give up on a social media website that doesn't require us to put any effort into it? Why indeed? It's not hard to post thoughtlessly - just to occupy space on the internet. That's easy. I could write, "I am pooping." The reality is that, even if I used to write similar posts whether true or not was contributing a kind of internet sewage that served almost no purpose except to remind people that I was here. But is that what I want my legacy to be? Do I want people to know that I somehow lack the imagination to contribute nothing else but passing thoughts and frustrations? For me, the answer is no. That is not what I want my legacy to be.

You see, I believe that we are not common. I believe that we have something to say and something to contribute that can be conversational, yes. But I believe that there is something to trying harder. The proof of trying harder is using this as a model for understanding what it means to be successful. The most successful people are the ones that understand that our contributions to not just the world, but those immediately around us are the direct result of our desire to pour ourselves into what is around us. It's true in relationships, it's true with entrepreneurs and it's true in the social media. The most successful people are the ones that understand the idea that if we don't give we will never receive.

Is this a scary thought? Of course it is! It's scary because there is a sedintary part of us that wants to experience life with as little effort as possible. We take the stimulus that is around us. We lurk. We watch television and movies simply because doing something else would require effort. Not long ago I equated my participation on Facebook kind of like the equivalent of watching television. It was passive in the sense that whatever I may have posted (at times) took no more effort from me than it does for a person to take a dump. "I am pooping." That really wasn't me being interesting. That was me being lazy. So the question that I posed in the title of "Are We That Lazy" is very much rhetorical indeed. We know the answer because Paul Tassi is right! But what is doesn't mean that it always should be. That's a thought that keeps me going. I exist to create. But what I create must take thought or I am wasting everyone's time.

Be interesting. BE INTERESTING. BE INTERESTING!

Is there any hope?

2011-08-08T22:29:00.000-07:00

So it's probably not a huge secret that I've been doing a lot of "soul searching" lately. I'm not sure we shouldn't be doing this periodically just to keep ourselves sharp. Anyway...

So there are a couple of quick thoughts that I wanted to share as it pertains to the world (and how the world continues to relate to the internet). One is that news travels extremely fast and I was surprised how quickly social networks report news. If anyone has been paying attention. The world is a messed up place. Riots in London - remind me to avoid London. And the Economy.

The one thing that I would like to remind us all is that it's important to never give up on hope. But hope alone means nothing...because it costs us nothing. What we should always remember in the midst of everything bad that happens is that there's always hope. But hope by itself means nothing because it must cost something for us to change the world. It begins with us. So my question to you is: if you can do one thing to give someone else "hope," what would it be?

What Motivates Us?

2011-08-02T16:39:00.000-07:00

I think this video essentially outlines this joke that my business partner and I have about the issue of money. We often joke about how much I hate money. It isn't that I hate making money in order to sustain myself, but what motivates me certainly isn't the money. It's the desire for purpose combined with the need to express that purpose. Check out this video and discover some interesting facts about humans and the need to transcend chasing a carrot. There may be hope for us yet - all it takes is a little effort from us to get there.

Creativity Plus

2011-08-01T22:27:00.000-07:00

I feel like I'm on the edge of a revolution. The thing about a revolution is that it's often a small group of people that end up making such a frenzied and passionate noise that the rest of the world cannot ignore it. But like the beginning of all revolutions that same group of frenzied and passionate people are also considered all manner of nuisance to those that don't quite get it.

Some of my friends are still confused as to why I dumped Facebook entirely. I continue to receive the entire gamut of notes and requests via Twitter, text and even an occasional snipe from a Facebook friend who would log onto Google Plus to make a snide remark and disappear back into the blue biosphere of Facebook (I can only assume). When I left I could give you a long list of reasons why it was necessary for me to quit Facebook. Again, it's not a mandate for everyone. But the bottom line for me amounted to not feeling satisfied with my online experience combined with a sense of social media fatigue. I was trying too hard to be social. And in the end...it's just a website, right? Right?

I guess I'm surprised that some have taken my departure personally. Let me be clear, some, but not all. Some respect this choice even if they think I'm a little over zealous. At first I thought that maybe I'm just placing too much of allegiance to Google the way that some may blindly evangelize about their faith or their computer...or whatever. But then I came across this post from Tom Anderson that reiterated my new mantra of being interesting. Thoughts from my friend on myspace.

I want to inspire as much as I want to be inspired. I want to create as well as celebrate what others have created. And based upon what Tom Anderson wrote, it seems that I'm not the only one who sees things this way. And maybe this is what happens when you give a bunch of crazy people a forum to voice their creativity. If everyone begins to share in this mantra of being interesting. People begin to censor themselves - not because they are afraid to express themselves, but because they want to express themselves perfectly.

I want what I have to say to resonate a little longer than it used to just as much as I want to have what others have to say resonate within me the way that Tom's thoughts did just after I read them. Maybe sometimes these things all happen just so that we begin this revolution understanding one thing: this is not a place to leave our ideas. This is meant to be a place (at least for me) where ideas springboard into bigger and better things outside of a social media forum - the way that it is meant to be. In the end that's the difference. Be interesting. BE INTERESTING. BE INTERESTING!

404 Error

2011-07-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

Nosh: 404 from Firespotter Labs on Vimeo.

If you were searching for me on Facebook (and I have no idea why you would). This is what you might find...a brilliant little video from the guys from Firespotter Labs. Have a great weekend everybody!

Happy Friday (It's The End of the World As We Know It)

2011-07-29T09:20:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid I used to spend hours thinking about the end of me. I would think about things like where I would go after I died, etc. I know. It's morbid. But I have to say that I owe some of this to my Evangelical upbringing that grows more complicated when you start to really delve into other ideas and how those idea apply to a reasonable person as they traverse this thing called life. However that's neither here nor there. What keeps me going these days is the idea that I really don't know. And what I do know is very small in comparison with ideas such as the ever expanding (or contracting) universe. Check out this video from Rocket Boom. It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

Google Minus

2011-07-28T08:50:00.000-07:00

So I just finished reading a Google Minus article by Tech Crunch that was talking about how Google plus was already losing interest from its users. Which is an interesting thought and probably proof of how fast and fickle we are as Social Media users. Is it true that in less than a month people suddenly could care less? Probably. Of course they care less! I could have told you that the minute after I left Facebook! People need to be impressed by what they see for them to even consider change - people don't change for change sake! They need to be compelled by the same Jesus walk on water miracle juice that can only be found in a big tent revival. And that's not something you'll see by reading random posts on the internet, at least I hope not.

All of this had me thinking about my recent mantra - be interesting. BE INTERESTING. BE INTERESTING. That's a tall order and something that I'm not sure everyone can do. Being interesting takes thought. It takes effort and, for some people, it takes everything that is inside them to resist talking about how they're updating their status while sitting on the toilet. This is weird because in the new era of social media networks the weirdo is the one that goes counter culture and doesn't plug into the most popular social network like Facebook and write pedestrian comments on an hourly basis. And this is strange because up until four years ago there was no Facebook.

So if the slow down of users is due to a lack of user enthusiasm, should this be a surprise? What is Google + anyway? It's a social network. It was my theory, recently, that people are starting to experience social media fatigue. The entire reason I left Facebook was because I no longer wanted to be plugged in and checking everyone's status every time I logged on to my computer. I no longer wanted to update anything - unless I was being interesting or put more time into my posts than a few seconds to think up some "clever" post. But this brings me to my point. We as a society are starting to operate under the assumption that any social network is going to somehow magically change the way people view the world just by its existence whether it be Google +, Facebook or whatever. And, if you think about how no one was doing this just a few short years ago, makes the notion of a website taking us all hostage pretty silly. I mean, if we're going to be enthralled by something new it's not going to happen by posting the same things you would have posted on Facebook. No. Facebook is Facebook. Google + must be different. So the mantra shouldn't be what it isn't, but what it is...

Be interesting. Be different. But in order to do that. We have to think different.

Novacut Advocacy

2011-07-27T10:01:00.000-07:00

Novacut is really close to getting funded through the Kickstarter campaign. I found this video last night and am glad that they are finding advocates in the filmmaking community that really believe in the revolutionary idea of cooperative filmmaking. Check out this video and don't forget to donate (if you can) to making films on a global scale.

Just a little humor to start your day

2011-07-26T09:28:00.000-07:00

I've had a few conversations lately that sounded like this video. The end of this video is kind of creepy in that Borg assimilation sort of way, but the thought of being able to use all of the stuff I already use was the entire reason I like Google + better than Facebook. But just know that I already know that Google + is not for everyone...but apparently, at least according to this video, if you don't choose Google +, you will be assimilated.

Saying Goodbye to Facebook (for now)

2011-07-25T15:43:00.000-07:00

I'm an early adopter. I don't think it matters what it is. Maybe it's because I'm all about the bright shiny object. But there's just something exciting about being on the precipice of technology as it moves forward. I like to think it means that I'm a trailblazer, but I really fear that makes me more of a casual annoyance to you than "friend."

When I first adopted Facebook as a way to reconnect with friends and family, I thought that it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. I was all in. I have to admit that I loved all of it. I think most of this enthusiasm was related to the idea that Facebook could do no wrong. But over the past year I started to notice that there was a diminishing return when it came to my participation on Facebook. At first I thought that his was just something I was imagining and the information slow down was more because of a general lack of enthusiasm, but then I realized that it wasn't as much me as it was Facebook.

So there I was spending more time on Facebook, but engagement with my fellow users had actually gone down. And the reason had less to do with me and more to do with the fact that Facebook was changing the way that the average Facebook user used Facebook. Users who knew how to use Facebook were affected as much as the casual users because the casual user did not know (or want to know) how to change settings in order to view and interact with friends by creating lists etc. Over time this meant that the average user was going to interact with a list that was based upon what Facebook thought they wanted and not who they actually wanted to interact with. Why is this important? It's important for the same reason that people aren't enthusiastic to embrace new social media networks such as Google +. Nobody wants to learn new things if they don't have to. And as long as they were already heavily invested into Facebook they were/are living under certain presumptions such as the fact that they have a fair understanding on how to use Facebook from the ground up. This might be an incorrect assumption, but again, the average user doesn't care about how to be better...they just want what they want. Period.

Now I'm not trying to be insulting. Yes I am aware that there are users that know how to use lists. But the majority don't. That's just a fact. Not only do they not know, but they do not care. And it's the majority that we as users are interested in interacting with because we are essentially casual part time users ourselves. Casual part time users spending far too much time on one social network. But all of this brings me to this: I came across this post on Google Plus from Tom from Myspace.

https://plus.google.com/112063946124358686266/posts/8U9q99Ws1ic

Tom Anderson's analysis made me feel better about leaving Facebook altogether. This isn't what he was advocating by the way. But I was feeling like I had reached a point of disconnect when it came to Facebook. The truth was that I wasn't connecting anymore and that meant that I needed to deactivate and unplug. So yesterday...after being very vocal about my dissatisfaction with the way that Facebook worked or rather wasn't working for me anymore, I unplugged quietly. Nobody noticed. Nobody cared. And really, so what?

I was ultimately okay with being in a minority that left. Ultimately, this meant that I could go back to doing all the things I used to do before Facebook. Like spend time on my blogs, write for Circle Six, edit videos, etc. In the end it wasn't Facebook, it was about me and my need to exercise my right to leave.

4K on a Budget

2011-07-25T10:15:00.000-07:00

This is a brilliant little technique for shooting 4K with your DSLR camera from the guys over at Neumann Films. You need to know a little bit about how to use After Effects, but if you know how to overlay frames on a bigger (4K) template, it's really kind of interesting to think about how much cooler your shots might look with a little compositing. Definitely also try to check out their website here for other tutorials on how you can support these filmmakers: http://neumannfilms.com

Tweeter Karma

2011-07-24T23:33:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for a user management system for Twitter, check out Tweeter Karma. Click on the link and read on.

Novacut

2011-07-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

This is probably one of the more exciting "open source" projects that I've seen in a while. What is Novacut? Novacut is a free "Professional" editing suite for Linux users. Why should you support open source editing? Well for a couple of reasons. This project, other than being ambitious, is trying to start a global community of film making from the ground up and eventually to the cloud and into infinity. This means that the potential for projects to truly reach a global scale makes it possible for those of us on the outside looking in to get our projects finished. Because we all know how annoying it can be when you're waiting to see a work in progress. With cloud based editing - that long wait to see how things are going can potentially become a thing of the past.

Novacut is currently on the Kickstarter phase and looking for people to help fund this project. However, you can also check out what some parts of the NLE will look like by visiting the Novacut blog. In any case watch this video!

Delivering Happiness

2011-07-23T17:55:00.000-07:00

Finished reading an excellent book on the art of customer service and finding an identity as a company called "Delivering Happiness." It's one of those books that isn't particularly well written or slick, but it doesn't have to be. It definitely made the art of doing business more than just being about "money." Although you get the sense that if you focus on others rather than on yourself that the dollars just might follow. It certainly reshaped the way I thought about my entire business model or more accurately the lack thereof. Stay tuned, though...you know its never too late for a comeback.

My Friend Erick

2011-07-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

One of the things that I miss the most about living in Southern California is the music scene. If you have ever gone to the Sunset strip, then you know what I mean. So many of my memories growing up were going to see bands on the Strip and around Hollywood: this includes bands like Extreme, Counting Crows, and others. One of the regular players on the strip back in the day was my friend Erick. Recently he got to perform again after an absence from the scene while creating his new album. Anyway, check out this funny cover of Ke$ha's Tik Tok.

Orland + Humidity = Icky

2011-07-17T19:32:00.000-07:00

Just updating because I'm committed to writing more than I have in recent years. I'm currently working in Orlando, FL and I have to say that the humidity is crazy. It's not just crazy it's like a Sauna. No, not like a Sauna...Orlando, FL is a sauna. Yes, it has Disney World. But clearly it's not exactly the happiest I've ever been and I've been to a lot of places.

Top Travel Destinations so far in no particular order: Vail, CO, Nashville, TN, and San Diego, CA. Bottom of the list: Orlando, FL. But that's okay. I'm here to work. So there's that.

Off to Orlando, FL

2011-07-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

Taking a little break before heading off to bed. Heading to Orlando in the morning for work. It's my first trip to Florida. I guess that means that I get to scratch one more state off my list. I think I only have 10 states left before I've seen them all. If you going go anywhere in the states where would you go and why? I think I still need to do everything to the right of Texas and north of Kansas and then there's Oklahoma and only two things come out of Oklahoma. :-)

New Google + News Site

2011-07-14T23:49:00.000-07:00

Here's a link for you guys (and according to latest statistics one girl) who are on Google + here: Google + News. It has some interesting updates on the latest for that site. You can download the app in the Chrome Web Store too. Until tomorrow...