the changing seasons...

So I think it's been about a month since I've put anything up on here. I realize that I started this blog with the promise of frequent posting and I think I really tried to give it a good run for a while there but my digital expression seems to have fallen on hard times. I guess I just got tired of blogging about where I am and what I'm doing but I must be getting over it. That being said, I'm trying to finish writing a blog about my parents and I's trip to California last month. I wanted to put a bit more effort into it and am finding that anything I don't finish in one sitting will ultimately take forever. I am nearly finished but I still need about an hour in which I'm really in the mood to work on it so until then, I will leave you with a small update.

I'm in North Mississippi playing for a student event with my friend Jason Cox. It's at a School/Church so we're playing both mornings and evenings and even get to put in an appearance at the football game on Friday night. I hate football and I've heard some treacherous rumors about the national anthem. I am enjoying myself though so please don't think I'm reluctant to be here.

I haven't been to the movies much lately. The last film I saw was Michel Gondry's "The Science of Sleep" which I thoroughly enjoyed. Like his other movies, it's a charming combination of emotionally fragile characters and creative images. Gondry uses no computer generated visuals and relies on stop motion animation among other devices to craft a number of brilliant dream sequences. He's also a master of manipulating lighting and cameras to avoid the use of digital aid. Other than that, I can't say I've seen anything, unless you count Monsterfest on AMC which I've watched compulsively for the last ten days. No matter how many times I see Hellraiser, I still wonder why in the world I'm watching it. Those nasty Senobites!

I have collected an assortment of new records, however, as I am trying to compensate for nearly three months of no new music. I'm enjoying all of them and rather than describing them at length, I'll just give a quick summary. Mogwai's "Happy Songs for Happy People" is a nice mood record, Elliott Smith's "Figure 8" is the master multi-instrumentalist and songwriter at his best , HEM's new album "Funnel Cloud" is simple and beautiful, and MuteMath's debut rocks and is remarkably creative, especially for a "Christian" band. I'm presently listening to The Grays, a band formed in the mid 90's for one album by Jon Brion and Jason Falkner of Jellyfish fame, and I am completely hooked on it. The songs are brilliant, the sounds are brilliant, and unfortunately the record is out of print. I did find it on Amazon, however, after some joker on eBay wanted $45 bucks for a copy. I also picked up the new Deftones record on a recommendation and it's fantastic. I've never listened to them before and all preconcieved notions of the band as one of those useless "New Metal" groups were way off. The record sounds incredible and the songs are beautiful and passionate; it's good stuff.

It's so nice to be sucked into some new records after so many months of just not getting into anything. The Grays make me want to start a band, Elliott Smith makes me want to write, HEM makes any kind of day beautiful, and the other records, combined with these three, are all really encouraging me to reapproach the way I play the guitar. I've recently noticed a stark shift in the way I'm playing. It might not be noticable to other people but I've been trying to muster the courage to revolt against the post-U2 worship guitar playing that's been so expected of me the last few years. I'm tired of playing the way people think I should play in the circles I walk in; no more "Sound like this guy and you can play here". I'm conciously trying to revamp the way I approach a new song rather than defaulting to the safest path. With the help of this Grays record, I've been settling back into some albums that reflect the kind of player I really want to be and for the first time in a couple years am approaching the guitar with a completely new set of influences. Other key records in this process have been Jellyfish's "'Spilt Milk", Aimee Mann's "Lost in Space", and Patty Griffin's "Flaming Red", the latter two of which I've owned for a while but have never really taken the time to get into the guitars on those records. If God has truly called me to this profession, which I believe he has, I must constantly strive to be my best technically, sonically, relationally, and creatively. I confess to letting myself go the last several months but I feel that season coming to an end.

So here's to new beginnings. Just because the leaves are falling doesn't mean I cannot experience a season of growth. Keep watching for a short essay about my trip to California; it wont be long, I promise. Thanks to all of you who keep checking this blog in spite of little to no posting, even if it's only my dad and my girlfriend! Okay, I know that's not true but they're dependable people so what can I say! Cheers!