The rhythm guitar was written first. The words came a few years later. It’s about someone who has a stressful life that they are numb to. They have normalized an unhealthy lifestyle from a mental perspective. Their relationships are detached and they leave no time for deeper meaning. During the lead guitar on the chorus, sometimes I change the note while it’s fading out. This might have been the first time I used that technique. It has become kind of a signature move of mine. You’ll find it on the bridge and ending of Mildred and at the last note of Connectivity lead parts. Christopher Galen of Colorado is the vocalist for this song.

Expeditions

I'm on Overload

I'm On Overload

The music for the verses, pre-chorus, and chorus were written in order but with several years between each one. Given the type of chord progression for the chorus, challenges were overcome in regard to layers of the final choruses being well-tuned with the just scale and equal temperament in mind. Even so, it was fun to put together the counter melodies that were engineered to harmonically fit like a glove. If you think you’re hearing an opera-style singer near the end, that’s the real deal. Not typical for a reggae rock tune, I would say. Vocalists are R. Reese, Ilya Mirosh of Poland, Mailen Blanco Arriola and Martina Perez of Argentina.

Fallacies

In honor of my grandfather’s banjo being 100 years old I incorporated it into a song called Hole in the Mountain. It’s kind of a mix between rock and old timey folk. Lead vocals are performed by Nick Russ of the UK. In the lyrics Tubal Cain is mentioned. He is the oldest known blacksmith according to the bible and was a character in a movie called Noah (2014) with Russell Crowe. Tubal Cain is also the name of a copper and manganese mine in the Olympic Mountains that was started in the early 1900s. It goes over a quarter of a mile into the mountain. I’ve hiked there several times and gone all the way in. There’s water flowing out of the mine and at one point you have to walk through a waterfall inside the mine to access the inner shafts. In the winter I’ve seen Townsend’s big-eared bats hibernating. The bridge part of the song is in the key of Bm. It’s the relative minor of D, the key for the rest of the song. So having “relative miner” in the lyrics is a play on words.

Hole in the Mountain

The chorus has two sections. The first section from “No Waypoint” to “on this quest” has a progression that might be my all-time favorite. I started with the idea that a minor 4 chord is similar to a sus4 chord. In this case comparing a Cm to a Gsus4. There’s only one note difference. Some songs like Pinball Wizard (The Who) use sus4 chords repeatedly, so I thought why not do the same with minor 4 chords: Cm to G then Gm to D. This became Cm6/G to Gadd9 and Gm6/D to Dadd9. That started everything going: the rest of the progression, the rest of the song, and rebirth of song writing for me in 2023. Connectivity is a mode shifting beast with the key changing a lot! It toys with one key, then leans to another. Before the words were written I thought of the piece as the “Gm Tease.” With a capo on the 5th fret, this could be translated to the “Cm Tease.” It borrows chords from the key of Cm repeatedly but is never really in that key. The progression that starts with Cm6/G-Gadd9-Gm6/D-Dadd9 does a major to minor transition twice with the second time being Dadd9 to Dm/B, also known as a B half-diminished 7th chord, a transition used by Paul McCartney in Penny Lane. In both songs, this makes the return to the root major chord soon after sound uplifting. Like in other songs, lyrics were inspired by various adventures in the Olympic Mountains. Connectivity vocalists are Dee Wolf of Italy and Clay Collins of Texas.

Connectivity

Mildred is about the difficult hike to Mildred Lakes in the Olympic Mountains. I’ve completed this route as a day-hike three times. In addition to the steepness, the trek seems to present new challenges each time. I know people who were actually there during a landslide. Hornets, losing the trail, and hiking in the dark are all real experiences. There are zero major chords in the verse and chorus. The bridge, on the other hand, has all major chords but mode weirdness keeps the mood fitting for the subject. The chorus has a D(add b5). This dissonant chord can also be found in Wake Up (Rage Against the Machine) which is played at the end of the first Matrix movie, and also in the bridge of Waiting for Our Time (Styx). Christopher Galen of Colorado is the vocalist for this song.

Mildred

The chord progressions were originally written on a keyboard in an 80s pop style. They were later slowed and rearranged for guitar and cello. Inspiration was taken from various science fiction and Eleanor Rigby (Beatles). It’s interesting to think what forms of life or even intelligent life may have come and gone during the billions of years that our vast Universe has existed. Vocals are performed by Felicia Hallen of Sweden. Other musicians are Polina Faustova and Iryna Markevich of the Ukraine (cello and violin), and Andrea Figueroa of Agentina (viola).

Death of a Star

The Emergence of You is about the idea that the Universe is like a computer simulation. The first verse has references to Star Trek, The Matrix, Galaxy Quest, and Row Row Row Your Boat. Is life but a dream? In the bridge, “Any way the wind blows” is a nod to Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen). Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? The synth lead sound in the intro was used by The Cars. An ascending line cliché is found in many of the chord progressions. In the verses it’s G, G augmented, G6, and G7. This pattern continues with a C chord followed by a bass ascension up from F. Similar techniques are used in the bridge where there are also time signature changes that support the idea of time control in the lyrics. Vocals are performed by Daniel Marin of the Netherlands.

The Emergence of You

The intro and the second instrumental section were an instrumental piece by themselves. The rest was an older version of the song. Seems the two pieces were meant for each other. The song format is unorthodox with no chorus. The three verses have what I think of as a pre-verse introductory line. There’s a descant (counter-melody) during the verses. The descant could be considered like a chorus. It just happens to be simultaneous with the verses. The time signatures also make it unique as some parts shift from 4/4 to 3/4 or 6/4. The lyrics are inspired by my experience walking under an old-growth tree canopy. It gives me a sense of peace and is especially beautiful when the sun is low and the sunbeams go through the trees. The last verse was inspired by TS Eliot: “… and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” Guitar was performed by Vladimir Gapontsev of Thailand who is a prize winner of many international competitions. Mandolin was performed by Nicolas Sokolic of Argentina. The ney was played by Ido Romano of Israel. Vocalists are Viktoria Sunshine of Romania and Greg Van Kerkhof of South Africa.

Tree Canopy

Some of my songs are about my adventures in the Olympic Mountains

Tree Canopy

Decajoule