Green Day It Up

I guess I've been going Green Day crazy lately. Eh, it happens. Here's the video for the new single "21 Guns" that I mentioned yesterday. Go ahead and Green Day it up, it's a great tune and a bullet riddled video. Rock on!

Green Day - "21 Guns" - HD

Green Day Vid Premiering Tonight on MySpace

Music videos aren't what they used to be. Not that they aren't great quality, creative and worthy of the songs that they portray, it's just that no one seems to care as much about them anymore. Maybe it's just me, I don't know, but there always just seemed to be a buzz around music videos when I was a kid, back when MTV focused on playing videos instead of reality shows that people just can't seem to get enough of. (Shows that I can't stand by the way.)

So it's nice seeing some buzz around a music video again. This time it's focused around Green Day's new single "21 Guns". The track is their second single from their new album 21st Century Breakdown which I wrote about in my earlier post, Celebretory Green Day - New Album, 21st Century Breakdown. As I said before, I think it's a great album and I definitely dig the new single "21 Guns" much more than single number 1, "Know Your Enemy". (That's probably mostly because they play the heck out of it on the radio while I listen at work. I hate it when that happens because it still think it's a good tune, I just don't want to hear it anymore.)

The new video has gotten some significant buzz on the radio as I've been listening at work and also at MySpace.com where the video will be premiered tonight at midnight. (You can check a little clip of behind the scenes footage at Green Day's MySpace page.)

I can't say I'm excited about it or anything, it looks like it's going to be a straight forward video featuring the band and probably some significant imagery, but it would be great to see videos become more important, like they used to be. (Again, that's just from my view point. Maybe they are still big and I'm just leading a sheltered life.)

The whole idea behind music videos has always fascinated me as well, because a handful of the songs I write come to me in images before words and sounds. I always thought it would be great to do the whole deal, writing, performing and creating my own videos. But we'll take it one step at a time, music first.

Don't forget to check out Green Day's new vid on MySpace after midnight tonight. Rock on!

I'm Alone Again I'm "Away"

Here I am, alone again. Not in the grand sense of the word, just here alone in the apartment like the countless days I spent being a bum, trying to make online riches and music in vain.

It feels like I've been super busy. I know I haven't been, no more than any other 9 to 5 schlub out there. But after a year of being unemployed and pushing hard for the first 3 weeks at the new job, I'm not going to lie, I'm exhausted. And to top it off, just as I was getting used to the 7am-3:30pm gig, our schedules got switched up and I'm working 6am-4:30pm, 4 days a week. That leaves me with another day off, which is great, but unfortunately, it happens to be Tuesday.

I really can't complain, it stinks having Saturday and Sunday, working a day and then having another day off before going 3 straight days, but I'm insanely grateful to be working and earning a good paycheck so it doesn't really matter. As long as I'm getting an opportunity to bring in dough and work my tail off I'm happy.

The extra day off will also give me some good alone time that I didn't even come close taking advantage of during my months of sitting here without a job. Today, however, all I've managed to do is eat some cookies for breakfast, drop my guitar (while moving it with my right hand and holding two cookies in my left), catch up on some late night shows (I'm addicted to Conan and Jimmy), and get sentimental about some of my old tunes.

I'm not afraid to say that I'm very proud of a lot of the stuff that I've created in the past. In fact, I'm more proud of most of the tunes that I wrote 5 or 6 years ago than anything I've created in the past couple of years. It's weird to think I was in my prime back then when I was first starting to get into writing, playing and singing. But it was a different time back then, I was in a band, I was cruising through college, I didn't have very many worries in my life and all I wanted to do was make some good music.

Here's to old tunes. (Although, old to me probably new to you.) I've been especially enamored with my song "Away". I can't find the notebook in which I first jotted down the lyrics but it had to have been at least 6 years since it popped into my head. As much as I've messed around with this song, trying to make it a band tune or possibly make it better, I've never been more satisfied than am I with my old recording.

Feel free to listen to all my tunes (the recorded ones at least) down below. I only hope to be able to make some songs in the near future that I can be even close to as proud as I am of most of these songs. Rock on my friends!

Missing The Old Days

Being at a new job I've been taking advantage of introducing everyone to my old band, Now Transmission. (Everyone at work seems to be in a band, very weird.) In turn, it's got me thinking about the old days.

I'd have to say I miss all those road trips around New England, the smoky bars (at first, then Maine passed no smoking laws, yeah!), eating crappy food, playing in front of 5 people (1 the sound guy, 1 the bartender, and 3 random drunks or girlfriends), screaming my lungs out, feeling like a rock star, constantly writing and recording, hanging out with the guys, and just not giving a crap and having fun.

Of course, it was a little simpler back then, being in school with a lot less responsibility and screwing around and not doing school work as much as possible was the name of the game.

I can't help but get a little frustrated handing out copies of our latest EP knowing it's promoting something that doesn't exist anymore. (We got hundreds of discs printed and broke up a couple of months later, not giving us a lot of time to unload many of them.) Sure, I was the primary songwriter and I'm still here writing, but a lot of things have changed since then, I feel like I'm taking a different route musically, and I don't have a band. (Yet.)

As I've said before, I have a lot of tunes rolling and I'd like to get a group together sometime in the near future. My stage presence will sure need a kick in the pants, it's been a while since I've played in front of 2 people, let alone 50 or 500. I'm sure I could find the confidence of my college days, it would take some doing, but it could be done and I revel in the challenge.

Getting a job was the number one goal. Bringing back a little of the NT, college, great music days is number two. In the mean time I'll just reminisce...ahhhhh. Rock on!

Music Is My Fuel

It's been a week at the new job and I gotta say, I'm exhausted. It's been 6 straight days of 3rd shift (10pm-6am) trying to get a huge order done by today. We still didn't get it done by the time I left this morning, that's the frustrating part. But I'm not complaining, it feels crazy good to be working, bringing home a paycheck and not feeling bad sleeping in the middle of the day because it's perfectly reasonable with this weird shift.

I'm moving to a more normal shift tomorrow, 7am-2pm (or something like that). It'll be great to start learning some more stuff but at the same time I think I'm going to miss the 3rd shift a little bit. Oddly enough, I kind of enjoyed the weird hours, the repetitive work and the empty building. Being only two of us for 8 hours we can just crank the rock music and roll on.

Truly, music is my fuel. I don't know where I'd be without music. Everyday I was driven on by the beats and the pumping guitars. Music keeps me in my zone, makes me oblivious to pain and annoyances, keeps me happy and singing, strong and energetic.

I've been especially enamored with 98.9 The Rock out of Kansas City. They play a great mix of old and new rock, from Korn to AC/DC, that keeps my tank full and kept me kicking during those late night shifts. (Although it was exceptionally depressing hearing all the talk about their Rockfest show that happened last Saturday that I didn't buy tickets for when I had the chance. I wrote about "dropping the ball" back in April.)

Hopefully, the move to the day shift won't mess things up too much. I'm digging work so far and I'm looking forward to using my extra time work on my pathetic guitar skills and my half done songs, my motivation to get through the day. Rock on!