I Submitted My Last Assignment With A Triangle Choke!

It's about time! After reluctantly dragging my carcass to complete my Writer's Profile for my English class, I'm finally done with school. Not sure if I'll be able to afford going for Winter quarter, but we'll see.

Now it's time to focus on some much needed extra-curricular activities, such as: writing lyrics and rehearsing bass and vocals in order to complete the DP EP; holiday baking; leisurely reading; and working out like a mofo!

Kathleen and I purchased each other personal training and nutrition services with the ol' coach, Steve Maxwell, for Christmas! So far, the workouts are ass kickers and the individual nutrition programs are working wonders -- for both of us. This is a three month endeavor, so it'll be interesting to see what fitness and health inroads we've both made by March. No perfect time to kick ass on a new program than the holidays, I say! It's a big ol' kick to the nuts of the holiday tradition of gaining a few lbs during the holidays. While I normally love to partake in egg nog, shortbread, fudge and Alaskan Winter Ale, there's no room for extraneous fuel right now, so fuck off and talk to the sledge!

Clint

Recording During the Hours of the Undead

Last night, from 11:00PM until 3:30AM, I laid down drum tracks for the AGS EP. Paul and I decided it would be worth recording during these ungodly hours mainly for the purpose of preventing bleed from neighboring band rehearsals. It turns out that it really doesn't matter what time you think is the most beneficial time, because there will always be a band rehearsing at whatever time we need to be recording.



Example: For the DP drum tracks, we figured that early Sunday morning would be beneficial, as it would be very unlikely for anyone to be rehearsing--wrong! It just so happens that an aspirant Metallica-meets-DragonForce band (-80 skill points) was practicing directly next to us! Last night was no exception. We were able to go a couple of hours without interruption, but then a Hawaii Five O on LSD group starting performing at about 1AM and continued throughout the night/early morning. Oh well . . . the band served as our amusement, and the input levels were low enough that we didn't pickup any detrimental bleed.

The recording process itself went really well, despite being fairly exhausted and still reeling from a bit of post-migraine brain decay. We recorded four main tunes: The Way We Are, The Gift, Tumbling and Windows; and one improv/studio written tune that we decided to hammer out as a potential instrumental/album closer. It was thrilling to experiment with this tune--tentatively entitled Gory C*ntasaurus--as we were able to effectively convey an improvisational vibe that is truly the core of our work together. When Paul and I get together to play, it's always natural and effortless, and there's certainly never a shortage of new ideas. Hopefully this AGS EP will be a foundation for which we continue to create additional material.


Sound wise, we're both stoked with the raw tones captured--especially the snare, kick and overheads. The toms sound great, too, but there's something meaty and everpresent about the kick and snare, which are the backbone of a good drumsound anyway. Major props to Paul for providing a relaxed, efficient and fun recording experience. His schooling is really paying off!


Next up, guitars, bass and vocals. I'll also be laying down bass and vocals for the DP EP hopefully in the next few weeks (prior to Xmas would be grandiose).

It's about time . . .

To some, I'm a fairly quiet and shy dude; while to others that know me fairly well, know that I can yap, yap, yap my pie-hole with the best of 'em -- especially in written form! So why in the heck haven't I started a blog until 11/22/2008? I don't know, but I'm starting today.

Rather than focusing on one specific interest, whether it be: family, music, fitness, nutrition, art, aikibudo, mma, college studies, science, politics, philosophy, current events, entertainment, etc., this will be a veritable hodge-podge and blabbery of my life. I do many things that define me as a human on this earth, so it would be neglecful to not divulge an honest representation of what makes me tick.

One regret I have is that we didn't create a blog coinciding with the pregnancy, birth and development of our daughter. Sure, we have plenty of pictures, videos and memories, but time really flies by way too quickly, and now I'm challenged with gathering data over the past 18 months and documenting said info into some collected form of reviewable media. Once Fall Quarter is over and I can take a deep breath, I'm going to see about producing said media.

Watched WALL-E last night. Great flick! Pixar never disappoints.