You're Too Wonderful

Can't Think Right

Underground

My new running song dedicated to my amazing runner brother Mathew.
 
Because it is a running song, I intentionally made time signature 5/4 so that if you run in time with it, you will be alternating which foot hits the downbeat, and if you breathe using traditionally running breath rhythms, the song will help you switch between starting your in-breath/out-breath on your left and your right foot. I also made the BPM suitable for a good easy running cadence.

Lyrics:
Run straight 
End hate
Run gay 
Every day
Run tall
Kick back
Run Laps 
Hand claps

Run because you can
Run because you’re strong
Running is a dance 
Running is a song…

Run pain
Run fun
Pain’s fun
When you run
No wheels
Glow feels
Even keels
Vegan meals

Run because you can
Run because you’re strong
Running is a dance
Running is a song…

Run to be more alive
Run to see the sun…

Run to be more alive
Run for the sun

Running Is A Song [1]

Do we fall in love, because love is gravity? 
Like the other demo tracks I did everything on this track myself, and my mix is rough, but it is liberating to create a song from start to finish fast. The concept behind this song is the connection between love and strange force of gravity ---Like love, gravity is very mysterious to science, no other force in physics only attracts, gravity is the only force that only has a positive and no negative charge, so although it is called the weak force it is cumulative. I hope this song inspires someone to think about the parallels between love and gravity.

can I understand you, 
will you know me too?
but who are we though,
will we ever know?

the sky is blue
the earth is brown
love or gravity
which one is gonna take me down

gravity is probably made of love
it is a mystery just like us
attraction holds everything together
gravity hugs us all forever

can I understand you
will you know me too?
but who are we though
will we ever know?

your jeans are blue
your skin is brown
love or gravity
which one is gonna take me down?

gravity is probably made of love
it is a mystery just like us
attraction holds everything together
gravity hugs us all forever

Love and Gravity [3]

I was on an eight week streak, completing a song every week, then my mental health got in the way, but after many bumps I finished a new one, the production for this track was not easy, but finally I can move on.
I was digging holes in the garden, to plant roses, when I found God. I found God underground…




Mastered on LANDR.

I Found God Underground [9]

This “on hold” loop is about a teddy bear who walks to a sweet shop at night, it is a long way, and we all know that it will be closed when the teddy bear gets there, but it is the walk to the sweet shop that counts, and that feeling of dreaming about a sweet happy place is really what these simple “on hold” loops are all about.
I play the wood sticks and the shaker with my stereo microphone which really gives the track lots of space.

Teddy Bear Walks To Sweet Shop At Night

This “on hold” loop is about evoking the liminal space where being on hold suspends you. I recorded my finger snaps while moving around my stereo mic, and the melody is distantly evocative of something by The Stranglers. I was going for an ambient punk vibe, thought what I achieved I am not sure, it has a moodiness that is very much like me.

Hold On Darkly

I used these jangly nuts that rattle for the rhythm part, I think they are from Mexico. I wanted to evoke the longing of a houseplant that sits by the window and dreams of being outside, in the soil that connects it to every other plant on earth, but does not know that out there it is winter, and all the plants are frozen or dormant. I take good care of my houseplants, but they are hard to please.

Eternal Longing Of A Houseplant

For percussion I used a small plastic shaker egg and moved it round and round my stereo mic. I imagined I was a purple turtle murmuring soft tunes in the moonlit ocean as I bob rhythmically on the waves.

Murmurs Of Purple Turtles

I made this “on hold” loop with a jaw harp made from bamboo that I bought a long time ago from someone who carved them on a beach in the Dominica Republic. I laid down chords and noddles on my True Temperament guitar played through an amp that I built myself. For the vocal part I thought of when I was in England with my siblings and Janeen was saying wowowow to calm me down when I was getting stressed, it really helped and I really appreciated that feeling. Janeen said it comes from a popular Korean drama on Netflix. I imagined Janeen leading a lying down guided meditation but only using the hand gesture and the sound wowowow, I feel calmer already.

Mole's Guided Wowowow

This is my funeral dirge for a cute minotaur doll who has fallen asleep forever, please don't cry. In case you were wondering, their name was Minotaur.
I used my violin bow on an electric guitar to get the eerie swells. I sang a four part harmony that modulates using seventh and minor chords between the keys of A and C, so it has a major scale tonality wrapped up in an atmosphere of strangeness.

Requiem For A Minotaur Doll

For this yawn meditation I was able to get Aja to make the sounds of a sleepy creature and to that I added the vocalizations of Moflin who is our Japanese comfort robot. Originally I pictured this as a dormouse snoozing in a hanging planter as it sways in the evening breeze. After Moflin came in and I added more parts it opened up and started to feel like a spa for soft robots, after all, robots can relax too. 
The first sound I started with was the ringing percussion chime, which is a wooden spoon that I tap on the edge of a large teacup. Only a few parts loop, most of this is played for the full ten minutes. I whistle some harmonies, which were intended to feel like the sounds of sunny evening breezes, but then I realized that whistling is a good breathing meditation because it requires so much long sustained out-breath, and that really slows my heart rate, so it is a whistle meditation too.

Soft Robot Yawnitation Spa

I wrote the chord progression out first, as an exercise in long slow key changes. I start in A major then go to D, then F and then back to A. 
At first I imagined a bear on a long walk through forests and over mountains, then I thought of long hikes in the mountains near where I live in Santa Fe, and I thought about how I sort of become the vistas, and I change as the terrain changes around me and that is a magical thing because it can really change how I feel, for a short while at least I become the mountain, maybe I become the clouds, and as I ascend I become lighter in myself, like the sky.
I went outside to get some some nature sounds, and I recorded myself climbing up a rocky arroyo, I repeat this bit...

Long Walk To The Clouds

This started as an exercise in making a very very slow composition feel warm and positive, because often just the slow tempo of a song can make it feel sad or melancholy. So I wrote a chord progression that moves between three keys A, D and G major and because it only uses major chords in each key, it feels warm even though it is ridiculously slow. I actually had a hard time working on it because it made me so sleepy that I could not work on it for long. I recorded the birds, chickadees, outside my home in Santa Fe. The middle of this piece has a pause where you can hear the birds... The reason it is called pause, is that I wanted a word I could sing, and while on a run with Aja she reminded me of how much I need to take pauses during my day, just to breathe or take stock of things. I think taking intentional pauses is a wonderful strategy for not getting sidetracked, or just giving myself a moment to assess what I am doing, what I need and if I am on track with what I planned. So I am singing the word "pause." I sometimes sing it in the English way and sometimes in the American, because my accent is often drifting from one to the other. I really wanted this loop to feel like it builds and settles, leaving you feeling like you are ready to take a deep breath, a yawn or a mental pause. 
This is the only time so far in these "on hold" loops that I used sampled drum sounds. The singing was a lot of work, because I wrote out the vocal parts and it took some practice to get them right and sing them in time. In the section after the bird singing pause I sing harmony with myself, I wanted to sing a harmony part that does not have a lead, so it really recedes and does not demand any attention, just makes chords sort of like a chant.

Mental Pause

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Background Guitars, Keys, Samplers, Effects, etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar and additional Bass
Adam Benham: Drums
Jeremy Kay: Bass
Rafaël Leloup: Accordion (composition, arrangement, and performance of accordion part)
Dave Ahl: Glockenspiel
Aja Tahari Marsh: Backing Vocals
Recorded in Brooklyn by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future and Engineered by Pablo Arraya with assistance from David Stoller at The Samurai Hotel.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Gerardo Giraldo, Rafaël Leloup and Jon Bell at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn.

LYRICS:

EIGHT TWO MINUS THREE


Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight

No way to find it, ’cause it is the way

Skyline silhouette
Yellow brick mode
Turning inside on the insight
There’s an upside drowning 
Of diving deep down
Close the rubber wet suit all over 
For electric diving school
Drown me gently for international teatime
Take these pills to feel sane
But hallucinations drug free that’s insanity
Pills to feel sane
Pills to feel sane
Feel sane, feel sane, to-to–to–feel sane
You’re too wonderful
You’re too wonderful
You’re too wonderful
Too wonderful

Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two 

No way to find it, ’cause it is the way

Love if you're willing, you can make me 
Love if you're willing, you can make me 
Love if you're willing, you can make me
Love if you're willing, you can make me clean!
 
Let the eighth sea tow me under 
Go with the eighth sea love tide undertow
Let the eighth sea tow me under
Yeah . . . under under under under
Let the eighth sea tow me under
Go with the eighth sea love tide undertow

Oh yeah
Want to listen to everybody
Does everybody want to be permanently distracted?
Want to learn

Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight

We know that we deserve to win
We know that we may never win
We know that we deserve
We know that we may never

Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight
Eight two eight two eight two
Eight two eight two

Exhibition

Eight Two Minus Three

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Piano, Background Guitar, Soprano Recorder, Whistling, etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Electric, Semi-Acoustic, Acoustic and Nylon-String Guitars
David Muller: Drums, Percussion and Bass
Rafaël Leloup: Celesta, Organ, Electronics, Cymbals and Arrangement for String Orchestra
Jon Bell: Tremolo Guitar
Recorded in Brooklyn by Toshi Yano and David Muller at Melody Lanes, and by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Gerardo Giraldo, Rafaël Leloup, Dave Ahl, and Jon Bell at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn. Production Services by Stepwise Sound LLC.

LYRICS:

I CRY (from Exhibition by Eight Two)

Lately when I get home

I have everything I need
So I don’t know why
I have yummy food to eat
I have a bed where I can go to sleep
I have things to do with my life
But I feel like crying
When I walk in the front door 

I am standing on an island
If you still want me 
Send me a message in a bottle

When I walk in the front door 
I break down
I sigh and fall on the floor
I don’t know what I’m crying for
I feel like dying
I don’t know what I’m living for
Do you feel like dying?
Do you know what you’re living for?

I cry...

My watch is a calculator
I’m pretty cool and astute
I’m kind of plain but my mind/brain is cute
Oh, yeah

Lately when I get home I cry
There are places in New York 
That I still haven’t been, and I want to be
Yeah but none of those places 
Are going to make me feel any better
And that’s out of tune by the way
I’m trying to be sad here 
This is about how I cry, you know 
And I really do cry
I fall down on the floor and cry

I am, standing on an island
If you still want me 
Send me a message in a bottle

I cry...

I am standing on an island
If you still want me 
Send me a message in a bottle

You send me

I Cry

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Electric Guitar, Ukulele, Electribe, Vocal/Guitar Effects, Sampler, etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Acoustic Guitar
David Muller: Hi-Hat, Congas, TR-626 and Bass
Jeremy Kay: Bass
Rafaël Leloup: Piano
Steven Plummer: Electric Guitar
Jon Bell: Additional Guitar and Synth Pad
Recorded in Brooklyn by Toshi Yano and David Muller at Melody Lanes and by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Rafaël Leloup, Gerardo Giraldo and Jon Bell at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn.

LYRICS:

PYGMALION (from Exhibition by Eight Two)

How does she hear
How does she feel
How does she know
What's real

She doesn't sleep
She lives a dream
She doesn't eat
Except ice cream

She's an escape
Honey of hope
She'll throw us a rope
To the stars

She's a space alien
She doesn't know the meaning of man (the only one)
If love's a decision can I shun a collision
With the dangerous body she's on (the only one)
Nine six one eight nine Pygmalion

If I go with her

After the end
With no world to mend
And no bitter end
To defend

But what do I gain
If I go insane
With no wind and rain
To blame

Will life be a lie
A tomb in the sky
Is it better to stay 
And die
 
Love has hope
Love can make me cope (You are going to make me sorry)
Love can get me through (If my mom knew she would worry)
Love has hope
Love can make me cope (You are going to make me sorry)

A rope
Watching the sun go down

There's a way, there's a hope
There's a way, there's a hope
There's a way, there's a hope (When I put my hand)
There's a way, there's a hope (When I put my hand)

There's a way, there's a hope (When I put my hand down her throat)
There's a way, there's a hope (I can feel her heart, I can feel it beat)
There's a way, there's a hope (When I put my hand where)
There's a way (I can feel her heart)

She's a space alien
She doesn't know the meaning of man (anyone)
If love's a decision can I shun a collision
With the dangerous body she's on (the only one)
Nine six one eight nine Pygmalion

Make me blind!

You made me blind

Why do things always go bad
Why do things always go wrong
Why does the government have to mess it up 
And go out killing people again
No more killing sprees Mr. President
Let's make love it's more fun...

Pygmalion (She's A Space Alien)

Pygmalion (Shes A Space Alien)

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Electric Guitar, Electribe, Organ, Samplers, Sound Effects, Tambourine etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Acoustic and Spanish Guitar
Ezra Oklan: Drums
Jeremy Kay: Bass
Lila Benaissa: Spanish Vocals
Rafaël Leloup: Piano and Percussion Accompaniment
Matt Decker: Mandolin
Recorded by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future and Jörg Krückel at Talkin' Rocket Studio, Brooklyn.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Gerardo Giraldo, Rafaël Leloup and Jon Bell at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn.

LYRICS:
SHA NA NA NA - from Exhibition by Eight Two

Sha na na na na...

Llama!

Sha na na na...

Llama!

Sha na

No te vayas!
Quédate!

Sha ba da ba ba...

Aquí estaré

Sha na na na...

Llama!  Aquí estaré
Ven pues que te estoy esperando hace rato!

Sha na na na...

Aquí estaré

Sha na na na...

Si no me llamas, te mato!

Shhhh
Sha na na na

Estaré aquí mismo!

Sha na na na...

Quédate!

Sha na na na...

No te vayas!

Sha na na na...

Sha Na Na Na

No Matter What won the best Love Song award at the Independent Music Awards.

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Electric Guitar, Suitcase Piano, Organ, Electribe, Samplers, String Arrangement etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Acoustic and Semi-Acoustic Electric Guitar
Adam Benham: Drums
Jeremy Kay: Bass
Jon Bell: Bridge Guitar, Piano, Wooden Finger-Drum and Bar Percussion (chairs, cutlery, foot rail)
Rachel Wardell: Accordion
Recorded by Misha Bittleston and Gerardo Giraldo at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn and by Pablo Arraya, assisted by Daniel Imana, at McSorley's Old Ale House, NYC.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Gerardo Giraldo, Dave Ahl, Jon Bell and Rafaël Leloup at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn

LYRICS:

NO MATTER WHAT - from Exhibition by Eight Two

No matter what I do
I will always love you
No matter what you do
I will always love you

You can't take the truth, I'll be your lie
You go straight to jail, I will be your crime 

You're a frightened rose, I'll be your thorn
You're the end of the world, I'll be your bomb

You're a silent ghost, so I'll be your boo
You're a fuzzy bee, I'll be your honey

No matter what I do
I will always love you
No matter what you do
I will always love you

I take you, you take me, I do
I take you, you take me too
I take you, you take me, I do

For you I'd do anything, for you I'd let you go
For you I'd be anything, for you I'd be alone
For you I'd give everything, for you I'd leave you be
For you I'd love everything, for you I'd set you free

No matter what I do
I will always love you
No matter what you do
I will always love you

Ahh, ahh, ahh, ah-ahh
Ah ah, ah ah, ah ah ahh

No Matter What

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Synths, Weird Guitar, Effects, etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Acoustic and Semi-Acoustic Guitars
Ezra Oklan: Drums
David Muller: TR-626 and Bass
Nick Dragisic: Clean Guitar
Simon Plummer: Dirty Guitar
Shira: Outro Guitar
Dave Ahl: Piano, Glockenspiel, Xylophone and Percussion
Jon Bell: Backing Vocals
Rafaël Leloup: Sonic Wizardry
Recorded in Brooklyn by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future, by Toshi Yano and David Muller at Melody Lanes and by Pablo Arraya at Audio Piranha.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Dave Ahl, Gerardo Giraldo, Jon Bell and Rafaël Leloup at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn. Production Services by Stepwise Sound LLC.

LYRICS:

MOTIVATION - from Exhibition by Eight Two

I want your love to motivate me 

Heal me, heal somehow, baby heal me, hold my hand
Hold me, hold me down, baby hold me, hold my hand
Have me, have command, baby have me, hold my hand
Help me, help me now, baby help me, hold my hand

I want your love, want your love, to motivate me 
I want your love, I want your love to motivate me 
I want your love to motivate me 
I want your love, I want your love to motivate me
  
Heal me, heal somehow, baby heal me, hold my hand
Hold me, hold me down, baby hold me, hold my hand
Have me, have command, baby have me, hold my hand
Help me, help me now, baby help me, hold my hand

Be nice or get out 
Be sweet or hit the street 
Be nice or get out
Be sweet or hit the street...

I want your love, I want your love...
Be a robot of love let go move on and forgive

Love, motivate me
Your love, is pretty amazing 
I want you, love is pretty motivating
I want your love motivation 
I want your love

I want you, I want your love
I want you, I want your love
I want your love motivation

I want your love, want your love, to motivate me
I want your love, I want your love to motivate me
I want your love, want your love
I want your love
I want your love, I want your love to motivate me 
 
Heal me, heal somehow, baby heal me, hold my hand
Hold me, hold me down, baby hold me, hold my hand
Have me, have command, baby have me, hold my hand
Help me, help me now, baby help me, hold my hand

Motivation, motivation, motivation

Motivation

Misha Bittleston: Vocals, Vocal Effects, Drum Programming, Background Guitars, Synths, Rhodes, Samplers, Field Recordings, etc.
Gerardo Giraldo: Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Nylon-String Guitar and Tenor Guitar
Jeremy Kay: Bass
David Muller: TR-626 Analog Drum Machine
Jon Bell: Backing Vocals and Acoustic Guitar
Aja Tahari Marsh: Backing Vocals
Rafaël Leloup: Backing Vocals
Recorded in Brooklyn by Misha Bittleston at Apartment Four The Future and by Toshi Yano and David Muller at Melody Lanes.
Edited and arranged by Misha Bittleston, Gerardo Giraldo, Jon Bell and Rafaël Leloup at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn.

LYRICS:
IT IS (THE BEST REVENGE) - from Exhibition by Eight Two

If you feel low, you should get down
Dance is the best revenge
If you feel low you should get down
Dancing is the best revenge

It is! It is! It is! It is!

If you feel, down
Dance! Revenge!
If you feel low, you should get down
Dance! Revenge!

It is! It is! It is! It is!

There is nowhere, to go to
And there's no time, to get there
There is no time, you should get down
'Cause dancing is the best revenge

It is! It is! It is! It is!

The best revenge
The best revenge
The best revenge
Is the best revenge!

Go wrong, at getting it wrong
Live wrong to love strong!

What is is!
The best!

It is! 'cause is is!  
The best, is!
The best, it is! 
The best revenge, is what is!

It is! It is! It is! It is!

It Is (The Best Revenge)

VENUS

New York define me
New York colliding
New York I’m climbing

You

Wondering if you think of me

If you think of me

Dada down da dadada dada down

Wondering where you are now
Wondering where you are now

Wondering about you
I
Wondering if you think of me

I f'you now don't know wh' th'ell you are
entered you no' don't know y'r number now

I fell so hard and you fell so far
I dented your car you totaled my heart

Wonder around the city

Every girl I love goes
Every girl I love goes crazy from me

Wondering about you
I wander through New York City

I feel alone
I feel alone

Wondering
Wondering (Wondering where you are now, wondering)

I wonder where you are
Wonder where you are
Wonder where you are
Where are you?
Wonder where
Oh where
I wonder where are you now

--------------------------------
CREDITS:

MISHA BITTLESTON vocals, guitars, synths, effects, drum programming, string arrangements, field recordings

DAVE AHL piano, organ, electric piano, glockenspiel, drum programming and string arrangements

DAVID MULLER drums and percussion

DICK FURY bass 

Produced by DAVE AHL

Recorded at Melody Lanes, Brooklyn, by Toshi Yano
and at Apartment Four The Future, Brooklyn, by Misha Bittleston; additional recording at Stepwise Sound, Brooklyn, by Dave Ahl

Arranged, Edited, and Mixed by Dave Ahl at Stepwise Sound, Brooklyn

Art by Misha Bittleston

Written by Misha Bittleston and Dave Ahl
℗ 2010 Tenderghost (ASCAP)  
© 2010 Electric Diving School

Wondering (Remix)

Wondering (remix)

This pre-release clip is from LITS (life is too short). A dreamy, rambling song about how we would care more about the planet if we lived long enough to reap the consequences of our environmental abuse. The thesis of this song is that the longer we live the more long term our ethic must be, and this ultimately leads to a state of enlightened harmony.

Excerpt from LITS - M4L

A clip from my yet to be released song "Be Your Own Father" -  
"You can be your own Father, 
you can be your own boss, 
you can be your own savior, 
you can be your own God"

Excerpt from Be Your Own Father - M5L

This clip is from an instrumental song about a magic flute player who can summon the north wind. The flute part was improvised by a friend, I built up the other elements around the flute.

Excerpt from Flute Of The North Wind - M11L

This clip from POV Rhapsody is the build into the final chorus vamp. It has the energy of longing to heal the world - it walks the tightrope between uncertainty and hope.  
"There is a massive hole in hope.
Can you pass through, do you dare?
Do you care enough about truth, 
to undo it?"

Excerpt from POV Rhapsody - M3L 23

Stop worshiping youth and Love Your Life! Song about aging with grace.

Excerpt from Love Your Life - M4L - 04

This excerpt from 'The Blue Pearl' off of my upcoming album, starts with a simple bluesy guitar solo which I played through my Fargen Duo Tone - to get this sound I amped the guitar so loud that I it rattled all the light fixtures on the ceiling, which added to the thick dirty tone. 
This track is a pirate pop song about how finding the treasure of self realization parallels the journey of insight that both our individual selves, and our small shining blue planet, are one being - interdependent and interconnected. 
"We are all a point of blue,
you are me, 
and I am you."

Excerpt from The Blue Pearl - DFT M4L - 08

BAROCK is four Baroque arias arranged for a five piece rock ensemble with modernized lyrics. 
Recorded live on March 27 2015 in Brooklyn

Red Love
"Regne, Amour" - Aria from Pigmalion Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)

Dad
"Schafe Können Sicher Weiden" - Aria from BWV 208 Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Lift Her
"Waft Her, Angels, Through the Skies" - Aria from Jeptha, HWV 70 George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)

Where You Walk
"Where'er You Walk" - Aria from Semele, HWV 58 George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)

Misha Bittleston: Vocals
Rafaël Leloup: Accordion
Adam Benham: Drums
Jacob Owen: Guitar
Aiden Moore: Bass

Todd Carder: Recording Engineer, The Bunker Studio, Brooklyn
Mark Wilder: Mastering Engineer, Battery Studios, New York

Concept, Lyrics, Production and Artwork by Misha Bittleston
Arrangement and Music Direction by Rafaël Leloup
Project Coordination and Design by Aja Marsh

Very special thanks to Tommy Wazelle for vocal support and Chris Mirto for being there.

After all the years it took to make the last record, I wanted to try an experiment in expediency. Could Eight Two put out a short unpolished record in a matter of weeks or just a few months?

I had felt embarrassed about my love for baroque music, but somehow Jimi helped me make the leap.

I asked my friend Rafaël Leloup to arrange four Baroque arias for rock ensemble, I rewrote the words so I could feel natural singing them as myself. We had two rehearsals in Brooklyn and then we showed up at 10am and recorded, all playing and me singing together, no overdubs.

Playing together was stressful, but emotional and each take was a messy performance. We played music, and in between takes there was some fun and magical improvisation, the energy was that what each of us put in, would be there. I wanted to make the mix as unproduced as possible. No tricks. But not being able to rely on post production to fix and improve things made it a high pressure experience.

Here I was taking a huge leap. Who was I to record these timeless arias? But with Rafaël's arrangements they quickly took shape and we each played the songs in a way that was natural to us as contemporary musicians, the musicality of these compositions on the one side and our rock music sensibility on the other, we walk a fine line.

Why do this project? It is a challenge-- everyone who worked on it felt that.

-----------------------

LYRICS:

Sheep may safely graze serenely
Where a farmer guards them well
Children safely grow strong and free
Kids grow up knowing who to be
Dad beside them where they fell

Where their fathers guard them well

So a nation run with wisdom
Knows and shares the elevation
Which both peace and plenty brings

So a nation run in wisdom
Knows it shares the same foundation
Many blessings, knows and shares
The blessings which both peace and plenty bring

He may safely play serenely
Where his father guards him well
He may safely grow strong and free
He'll grow up knowing who to be
Dad beside him where he fell

Where his father guards him well


℗ & © 2015 Electric Diving School/Tenderghost (ASCAP). All rights reserved. Licensed with permission from: Electric Diving School Music. Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA.

BAROCK

https://twitter.com/EightTwo

This track is about learning to look inward for worth, it is an anthem for all of us who fight to value ourselves for ourselves, and strive to define success and approval on our own terms. 

I deeply care what others think of me and yet I so strongly wish to be free from this social anxiety and just be my weird self.
This song is also for everyone who wants to be liberated from the prison of approval.

I love you all.


Lyrics:
VALIDATION SONG - from "Truth and Fun" by Eight Two

Why should it bother me what critics say of me?
Why should it get to me that they just look through me?
Why’s it admissible for tin gods to judge me?
Why should it get to me that I’m invisible?

Why does it matter what rich people say?
Why should I worry?
I don’t need no one’s approval
To be whatever the fuck I wanna be

I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I’m okay with me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I approve of me, I validate myself

Why should it bother me what labels think of me?
Why should it get to me if I’m invisible?

Why does it matter what celebrities say?
Why should I worry?
I don’t need no one’s approval
To be whatever the fuck I wanna be

I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I’m okay with me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I approve of me, I validate myself

My freedom is unattainable
While I’m governed by what other people think of me
My liberty is laughable
If get my sense of worth from other people

Why does it matter what the fortunate say?
Why should I worry?
I don’t need no one’s approval
To be whatever the fuck I wanna be

I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I’m okay with me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I approve of me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I’m okay with me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I approve of me, I validate myself

I validate
I validate
I don’t give a fuck
I validate myself
I validate myself
I validate
I validate myself
I validate
I don’t give a fuck what you think of me
I’m okay with me, I validate myself
I don’t give a fuck

Credits:

from Truth and Fun, released July 20, 2020
Lyrics and Music by Misha Bittleston
Everything recorded, produced, arranged and performed by Misha Bittleston a.k.a Eight Two at ET Studio, Santa Fe, New Mexico

Mixed by Darrell Thorp

Mastered by Emily Lazar at The Lodge, NYC
assisted by Chris Allgood

Drawings by Misha Bittleston

Design by Janeen Jang

Truth and Fun

Validation Song

Hey, I'm Eight Two (they/them)—a nonbinary, queer, neurodivergent genre fluid singer-songwriter and self-taught visual artist carving out my own space in the world of art rock. My journey began in the vibrant streets of Brooklyn in 2008, where I found solace and inspiration in the power of music.

As a multi-instrumentalist, my primary tools are the guitar and my voice, weaving together melodies that speak to the soul. From thought-provoking philosophical musings to uplifting motivational anthems, my songs are a reflection of my quest for creativity, connection, and meaning.

Despite navigating the world without social media or a phone, I'm here to share my sonic journey with you. Whether you're a fellow oddball, a seeker of truth, or simply someone looking for a bit of inspiration, there's a place for you in my musical universe.

So join me on this adventure as I craft my next album, fueled by authenticity, vulnerability, and a whole lot of heart. Together, let's explore the depths of our creativity, forge meaningful connections, and celebrate the beauty of being unapologetically ourselves.

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