Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

I’d like to take you up on it,
on that video call.
I’ve been taking it easy, baby,
in case it’s nothing at all.

You gotta take it slow.
You gotta let her know:
you got time, and time’s for the taking.
You got some news for her.
You got the blues for her.
You got time, and time’s for the taking.

And my camera was propped up
against a bottle of ink,
and as it started to slip down, softly
you said, “I’m falling, I think.”

You gotta take it slow.
You gotta let me know:
you got time, and time’s for the taking.
You got some news for me.
You got the blues for me.
You got time, and time’s for the taking.

And I’ll call you on it
and pick up on your line.
You’ve got what I’ve been wanting, babe,
and I’ve got the time.

Time's For The Taking (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

Pizza for breakfast,
pizza for breakfast.
I’m so upset I
could go back to bed.

Pizza for breakfast,
pizza for breakfast.
Hey, what the heck is
food when you’re dead.

Pizza for breakfast,
pizza for breakfast,
pizza for breakfast,
cheese and bread.

When I’m feeling reckless,
some pizza for breakfast
is good ‘nuff to get this
out of my head.

Pizza For Breakfast (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

I’m not gonna die on your hill.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.
I’m done with all your mouthin’
and what you’ve made a mountain.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.

I’m not gonna bully or kill.
I’m not gonna bully or kill.
Take the low road, if you must.
I’ll be kicking off the dust.
I’m not gonna bully or kill.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.

I’m not gonna bend to man’s will. 
I’m not gonna bend to man’s will.
You may call me heretic,
but I don’t really care a lick.
I’m not gonna bend to man’s will.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.

I’m not gonna fight for the thrill.
I’m not gonna fight for the thrill.
I’m not getting stuck with you.
I’m not gonna fight with you.
I’m not gonna fight for the thrill.
I’m not gonna die on your hill.

I'm Not Gonna Die On Your Hill (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

Went out to see the bees about their buzz,
since all is passing, like it always does,
since winter’s waning with the brightest shoots,
and there’s not much time left for wearing boots.

I saw the worker bees about their biz,
since all is passing, like it always is,
since flowers flounder from their little roots,
and there’s not much time left for wearing boots.

There's Not Much Time Left For Wearing Boots (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

You were sad when we first met,
days of dial-up internet,
sleeping by the TV set,
pillows from the couch.

You said your favorite color’s blue.
It’s my favorite color too.
Already enmeshed with you.
You were just the same.

Smiling back at half a moon,
tying down a red balloon
before it drifts away.

With your brother having fun.
You used to have another one,
your mother’s first-begotten son
before you two were born.

Why weren’t you at church Sunday?
Tried my damnedest to explain.
Kids at school would call us gay.
They don’t really know.

I won’t love you any less,
trade with me your new address
before we drift away.

Got your family’s Christmas card,
knit together in the yard.
Something ‘bout it broke my heart.
Everything must change.

Nobody knows why it does.
Parents always say because.
I am older than I was,
still I wonder why.

There’s a kid inside of me
clinging to your memory
before it drifts away.

Before It Drifts Away (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

I lied awake
in the silence and shade,
counting the hours as they passed.

Was it all just a loss,
a game, a coin toss,
if all of this stuff doesn’t last?

If it leaves, I will rake it.
Don’t think I can take it.
It’s alright if you take it easy.

It’s a beautiful day
to stay home and play,
and that is okay, if you ask me.

I’ll be home at last.
I’ll be finally friends with the quiet again.
Feel at home at last
with myself.

My head’s a clenched fist.
I’ll hit you with it,
but I only hurt myself trying.

I’m sorry I fight you.
You said, it’s alright, you,
but I can’t forgive myself this time.

I stopped to stare
at my face in the mirror,
and I’ve got a headache from crying.

I said, I forgave you.
I couldn’t hate you,
and trust me, for years I had tried.

I heard that sound,
and you know I got down,
way down to the bottom of it.

And now I’m so glad
I know to be sad,
‘cause sadness has taught me quite a bit.

I thought I’d gone mental.
My mind was an echo
of all of the things I regret.

Goodbye to the hoopla,
hello felix culpa.
I’ll no longer be just a marionette.

Hello Felix Culpa (Demo)

Arend’s latest work, “Demo-Listen Derby 2020,” began as a biweekly demo series on Patreon and has evolved into a three-volume EP-set and an ongoing yearly project. For Arend, “Demo-Listen Derby” is an exercise in anti-perfectionism, following after self-recording heroes such as Richard Swift and Sufjan Stevens. Each song from the set is one-take, recorded on one-mic in his home studio, and resultantly, the sonic aesthetic is not unlike ‘60s and ‘70s guitar-and-voice folk records.

Arend Lee Jessurun - songwriter, vocals, guitar, producer, mixing & mastering engineer, artwork

Close the curtain
so none can see
the show is over
for you and me.
I’ll be hurting,
I’ll be strong,
and by the morning
you’ll be gone.

Take your flowers.
Take a bow.
It doesn’t matter
anyhow.
There are showers
in the spring.
There’s a time for
everything.

You’ll make it big
when you die
in that great gig
in the sky.
The show is over,
you’re lying there
in your favorite
rocking chair.

Once I saw you
in a dream.
“How’d you like it?”
you said to me.
I tried to call you
by your name,
but the words just
never came.

And when I woke up
I wasn’t sure
what was real
anymore.
I was so broke up
that I could die
if just to see you
on the other side.

The show is over
my dearest friend.
I paid the cover
and my respects.
The show is over,
just like you said,
and I will see you
in the end.

The Show Is Over (Demo)

Electro-Voice RE20 Colin

Ohma Motif Condenser Colin

Ohma Motif Condenser Jessica

Recorded and mixed by myself. Mastered by Jesse Tebay.

Rose Petals - S. Carey Cover

Arend Lee Jessurun on vocals, guitars, & bass. 
Produced, mixed, & mastered by Arend Lee Jessurun. 
Artwork by Arend Lee Jessurun. 

Why don’t you call anymore?
Are we close at all anymore?
In the long haul anymore?
Tell me what for.

I’ve been up walking the floor,
trying my best to ignore
maybe you find me a bore.
Tell me what for.

Did something I say make you sore?
I didn’t hold open that door.
This, that, or both, either, or?
Tell me what for.

I’m sorry if I overbore.
Is it my imagining or
maybe you love me no more?
Tell me what for.

You don’t like my posts anymore.
Gone as a ghost anymore.
Are we even close anymore?
Tell me what for.

Things were much simpler before.
We had such a lovely rapport.
Now you don’t seem quite as sure.
Tell me what for.

I’m here to listen if you’re
wanting to settle the score.
Come talk to me, I implore.
Tell me what for.

That is what friendships are for,
sharing the apple and core.
So open to me a bit more,
and tell me what for.

Tell Me What For - Single

Tell Me What For

Arend Lee Jessurun on vocals, guitars, bass, & keyboards. 
Produced, mixed, & mastered by Arend Lee Jessurun. 
Artwork by Arend Lee Jessurun. 

When are you free? 
I haven’t seen you since last fall. 
My shift starts at three, 
and I can’t do August at all. 
Maybe September, 
if I can remember the date. 
I’m the befriender 
seeking a friend in LA. 

All of my friends 
have gone out live their best lives. 
I’m in my bed 
by ten or eleven each night. 
I feel offended. 
No invite extended to play. 
When work has ended, 
I’m seeking a friend in LA. 

My phone to my ear, 
it might be a faulty connection. 
I couldn’t hear 
a word that you said to me just then. 
Return to sender. 
I moved once again yesterday. 
Write me a letter 
seeking a friend in LA.

Written, performed, recorded, and mixed/mastered by Arend Lee Jessurun.  Artwork by Arend Lee Jessurun.

Seeking a Friend in LA - Single

Seeking a Friend in LA

(AIR•end lee JESS•ur•un)
Singer-songwriter, producer/engineer, music educator, quiet coyote 🤘🏻

Arend Lee Jessurun

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