Hi My Gentle Readers, it's been a while. I'm not sure if I can still do this but I'll give it a try. I'm not going to write about a great concert I went to, or my adventure with my neighbor that got hostile when I asked him to not smoke in the hall, or the messiness that's going on in my meds and therapy craving brain. I'm going to ease myself back into writing with doing what I find the most fun, creative writing. I'm going to think it's brilliant and funny, but you might find your mileage varies. This is what my meds and therapy craving brain needs.
As a DJ I get lots of music sent to me. It's been so long since I've blogged that you might not know that I'm a firm believer in Sturgeon's Law, 90% of everything crud. That includes folk music. It would be nice if there were a shortcut for wading through it. The one thing I have to go on other than following some link and listening or downloading the music is to read the blurb that goes through it. Sturgeon's Law does not hold for song/artist blurbs; they are more like 95% crud. That's not because artists and radio performers are bad at writing blurbs; it's because it's difficult to describe music in words. When Isadora Duncan was asked what her dance meant she replied; "If I could tell you what it meant, there would be no point in dancing it." I don't think I could write a good blurb for someone as great as Paul Simon or any of his songs. There are some blurbs that are so quotidian that I won't bother to even follow the link. Might I be missing a great song? Perhaps but I put the odds at less than the 5% baseline.
There are some artists and some songs that are so out of the ordinary that they whet my appetite. A great description does not necessarily mean the artist is great. The artist who had perhaps the best bio I ever read turned out to be odd, but not very good. I'm going to give one real life example of a description that got me to want to see an artist. Pete Kennedy described The Sons of the Never Wrong as a cross between Moxy Fruvous and Dave Carter. That was enough to get me to take the 2-hour trip to Washington's Crossing NJ to see them.
That's all a set up for the actual blog, blurbs that would get me to check out the artist or song they are promoting. Musicians feel free to reinvent yourself to fit the description of any of these or to write the songs.
Artist 1: When describing a singer with a beautiful voice people will often say "She sings like an angel." Artist 1 does not sing like an angel, she sings like a pagan goddess; a voice with the sweet flavor of forbidden fruit. She hints of secret truths unknowable to those not initiated into her cults mysteries. She sings not of the world that is but of the world that only she makes possible.
Artist 2: The most banal of compliments for a singer is, "he has a good voice." Artist 2 does not have a good voice, at least as is usually imagined. He can sing the right notes, but his voice is raspy. That cannot hide his genius, not just as a songwriter but as a vocalist. He grew up in rural Arkansas before moving to New York to be an actor. A friend invited him to an open mic and that eventually led to moving to Nashville. Each of those places left an indelible mark on him. When he sings of the world there is none of the perfection of artifice, there are the genuine emotions of someone that has gone through the wear and tear of existence. He does not just sing songs, he sings truths.
Song 1: Imagine Monty Python trying to write a song in the style of Dar Williams? You can't, but that's the effect of Song 1. It's simultaneously uproariously funny and emotionally honest. It's the contents of a self-aware mind that can't help but laugh at itself.
Song 2: It's easy to write a protest song, just take a position criticizing reality that all the people in your audience agree with. Throw in some sing-along applause lines and you have a hit. What's hard is to write a song that makes the listener question the position she hold. No matter what your current opinion on Gaza Song 2 will have you seeing it from a new angle.
Artist 3: Most folk musicians make their mark with the singing and lyrics. While there are bands whose appeal is in their music it's harder for a solo artist, especially one playing acoustic guitar. There are some that can dazzle us with their technical virtuosity but there are far fewer that can do what Artist 3 does, command our attention and create drama with her musicianship. Most guitar solos are so long as to become boring, I can sit through a two-hour concert by Artist 3 and leave wanting more.
Game of the Veep imagines vice presidential debate between J.D. Vance and Tim Walz in the form of a series of games, Trivial Pursuit, Barrel of Monkeys, Chess, and Sumo Wrestling.
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