"A More Perfect Union". Issue #42

Thank you to everyone who came out for the COLLIDER show and had a good time on Sunday night at the Showxbox Sodo Lounge! The band and I have been getting some really positive feedback on the new material, and I think I even saw some mouths moving in the crowd. That's a good thing, both in that our live songs we put up here have been getting some listens and that it helps me should I forget the words...


The Alex Nackman band flew in from NYC on Saturday night, and set up camp at my place for the weekend. If you've been reading this blog for a while, you probably remember the show we played together in July when they flew in last was the freak weather week where we were claiming highs in the late 90's! It was hot as hell, so you can imagine this time was a much more comfortable situation...

I've included some pictures below of the show, but wanted to keep the text short and sweet this week so anytime you would have spent reading a much longer blog could be spent on watching the video on the top of the page. Last week, Obama gave a speech entitled "A More Perfect Union" on the state of race relations in America that I truly feel should be REQUIRED viewing for any citizen in this country. Regardless of your political preference, this is one of the rare "political" speeches that applies to everyone and our shared humanity. It's a bit long (37 mins.), but very much worth your time as it hits on all angles and is more than fair in the way it addresses one of the more sensitive topics in American culture. Not only does Obama offer perspective on how we can move even more forward towards shared racial understanding, but also offers his unique observances from having been raised in a biracial family environment. If you haven't yet seen it, I hope you feel as inspired as I did afterwards...

Good Stuff,

KS

Hunt For Eggs...Find The ROCK. Issue #41

Hey Everyone! First off, COLLIDER and I will be appearing this Sunday @ The SHOWBOX Sodo Lounge with our good friend ALEX NACKMAN from NYC as he begins his West Coast tour to support his new album, "Still Life Moves". For those of you who missed the last COLLIDER show you can catch this one and feel free to wear your best Spring dress because yes.....it's EASTER! Here's the 411 on the night...


Sunday March 23rd
In the Lounge! Showbox presents
ALEX NACKMAN
COLLIDER - WARREN ACUNCIUS
$10.00 ADV / DOS & at the door
Doors at 8pm - 21+

Showbox SoDo - 1700 1st Avenue South


This morning I had a meeting with the video director for "Sparkle And Fall" Heather Canik to get a look at the 1st rough edit I've had a change to see since the shoot.
I can't wait for everyone to see this! It was pretty surreal to look at all the hours of shooting crammed into 3 minutes and 33 seconds, and we hope to have the final product to view sometime in mid-April!



I spent a good chunk of last week getting in contact with a lot of the major fairs and festivals in the state with hopes of performing at a few this summer when the season starts. Anywhere there's Gyros and strawberry shortcake, you can bet I'll be there and the thought of rocking with the band and having dessert all over my face would surely give me an aneurysm of delight right then and there. Playing outside is the best, and I hope to get a couple of these dates on the calender in the near future.

My friend Matt is strong OBAMA supporter like myself, and finds the time to send me videos he finds in support of the Clinton campaign on The Youtubes. I can't look away from a car crash and so below is my favorite one so far if only because of how awkward it is....cringe-worthy...and subliminally racist. HILLARY CAN'T THINK THIS IS GOOD. It also gave me more reason to not use the word "bling" anymore. Should I have been using it at all? Hmmmm....


I don't know about you but I'm FINALLY really excited about a new R.E.M. release. "Accelerate" is the name of the new album and it's a return for the band to what made them heroes in the first place; good vibes, jangly huge guitars, and the soaring vocal melodies of Michael Stipe and bassist Mike Mills. Ever since drummer Bill Berry left the band, the songs have revolved around electronic sounds and drum machines leaving the albums lifeless and not at all resembling what is one of the best live bands in the world. "Automatic For The People" is a record that greatly influenced what I consider to be the the definition of good melodies in the first place, and I can hear the influence the band has had on my music all time. I can't wait to get my hands on it, and since they say the only thing as Americans we love more than to bring our heroes down is to build them up again so should you.






See you at the Showbox!

KS

Drawing The Life. Issue #40

I've been reading and hearing a lot in the media and from friends who have passed me books lately about the "Power of Intention" which basically states that what you focus on will materialize as your life. Common sense tells us that if you work towards something with intent you will more than likely reach your destination. The "Power of Intention" says that as long and your intent is there, the details will work themselves out as long as your end goal is strong in your mind. As I've looked into it further, I've found that the theory is that our past thoughts actually shape what our lives consist of RIGHT NOW.

This is a pretty powerful thing, and even more powerful if you buy the idea that actually "feeling good" is the generating core of all positivity in our lives, even if feeling good when things aren't may be the hardest thing to do of all.

Dwell on shit? You get shit. Generate good feelings and emit frequencies of positivity? Get more.


I don't want to get preachy or try to sound like I'm spelling it all out (just learning myself), but if anyone is interested in finding out more I suggest checking out "The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire" by Deepak Chopra and "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne.

This isn't religious dogma or the or the 10-Steps of XENU The Lava-God (sorry, Scientologists), but something I wanted to share if anyone is looking for some new thoughts or perspective.


This is life stuff.


Thanks for reading,
Kyle

COLLIDER Debut/ RPM Challenge 2008 Wrap-Up! Issue #39

GRAT-I-TUDE |'grate,t(y)ood|
noun
The quality of being thankful; ready to show appreciation for and to return kindness.
ORIGIN Late Middle English: From Old French, or from medieval Latin gratitudo from Latin gratus 'pleasing, thankful.'



A huge THANK YOU to all the fans who came out to see my new band, COLLIDER, at The SHOWBOX last Saturday for what was one of the biggest shows I have done in recent years. The SHOWBOX is an amazing venue and I appreciate all the feedback I've received on the band and the new songs. As I've stated many times before, COLLIDER is the harder rock outlet for my music and it felt good to crank up the amps in such a great space with everyone's good energy to receive it. We couldn't have asked for a better debut show, and if you missed it and/or want some new music you can check it out and download live Mp3's of the show HERE!
Once you get familiar with them you can join us at our next show on March 23rd for a night with my good friend ALEX NACKMAN (NYC) at The SHOWBOX Sodo Lounge.


Saturday was also the day I shipped my RPM Challenge 2008 album off in the mail thus closing a month of insane recording and songwriting. I say insane because never before had I thought I write and record a whole album (10 songs) in 29 days. What started off as a slow process really picked up halfway through the month as melodies and song ideas started to flood my little brain faster than I could get them down (if you don't believe me, then know that this weeks goal will be to learn HOW TO ACTUALLY PLAY THEM.)
Having no expectations, I can say that it turned out WAY better than I could have hoped it would and gave me some new perspective on what I can achieve in a short period of time with focus (and a lot of pressure)! Surprisingly, I feel that it is some of my best work, and what was to be just for me as an experiment has come together as a group of songs I'm in love with and want to get out to people to enjoy as well. I had no previous plans on getting a new album out so soon after SONGS FROM THE ORANGE ROOM, but I may have to rethink that...I'll keep you posted.

Before I go I want to report that GIGI EDGLEY's new album "...SO IT SEEMS" (which I produced and co-wrote) has finally made it to iTunes! If you haven't yet checked it out, I think you'll like it...


Enjoy the Sun!

KS