Once is Not Enough -- January Edition

"XXII La Isla", a poem of Easter Island, by Pablo Neruda. The poem is from Pablo Neruda's "The Separate Rose", translated by William O'Daly. 
Permission has been granted by the Pablo Neruda Foundation. 2009
Composer: Pamela Illanes-Tatsuoka.
Performed with the composer's voice.
Dedicated to Kikumi.
I am honored and excited that the video for this song has been posted on the Apech channel:
https://youtu.be/rKmS6qIbfhM

"XXII La Isla" (poem by Pablo Neruda)

PSYCHALOVIC SONIC ENERGETIC INDIE ROCK - MEETS CLASSIC

Don't miss the music video and give us a like and a follow on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QCF2pa80-A

With: Andreas Jäpel (vocals)

Words And Music By René Methner, Recorded and Produced by Para Lia, Mix By Para Lia With Thommy Hein, Mastered By Thommy Hein In The Thommy Hein Tonstudios Berlin.
Cover Artwork By: Georgia Moschogianni @tzo-moschogianni
P&C 2023 PARA LIA UNDER EXCLUSIVE LICENSE TO ABOUT US RECORDS GMBH

'IN CLASH WITH THE ZEITGEIST' - The New Album - 25.08.2023
PSYCHALOVIC SONIC SONGS FOR LOVERS AND SURVIVORS
paralia.lnk.to/Clash

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good evening mr. perry, i hear you sing the blues
you are a bit down today, but don't forget
we always have been fools
like david versus goliath, we are limited but cool
we’re just an indie rock band
always on the loose
no record contract and no budget,
no plastic music to get fooled
killed by the radio drabness,
we were reborn in our multicolored shoes
our currency is passion, our brand is a distorted chord
we are not dealing with the mainstream
being authentic - this is what we are
don't let you down
and get off the ground
life is an opera
behind the curtain we all are stars
good evening mr perry, we understand the rules
we‘re just a niche product between all the glossy brochures
of the music industry
we won’t change our attitude
we’re just an indie rock band
always on the loose

Mr Perry

On May 13, 2015, my brother-in-law Eduardo Fortuny Loret de Mola was killed in a road accident, to the great sorrow of all who knew and loved him, in particular his widow and two sons. I wrote this song in the aftemath of his all too soon passing away, but the time never seemed right to try and record it ... until now, when Enna, his wife, read the lyrics and expressed her wish to hear a recorded version. It would also have been his 60th birthday this year. I took both as a sign that it was time, and thanks to the monumental musical and production abilities of Sergio Aguilar, not to mention the wonderful backing vocals of Beto Quintero, here it is.

The song, needless to say, but I will say it, is dedicated to Eduardo, and all who loved him.

Hallelujah is a transliteration of Hebrew: הַלְלוּ (hallū yāh), which means "praise ye Jah!" (from הַלְלוּ‎, "praise ye!" [8] and יָהּ‎, "Jah".)[9][10][11] The word hallēl in Hebrew means a joyous praise in song. The second part, Yah, is a shortened form of YHWH (Yahweh or Jehovah in modern English).
~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallelujah

“In traditional Christian thought, the final transition from life on earth to life in heaven is symbolized by crossing the Jordan River."
~ https://jesusway4you.com/2020/06/24/signs-and-symbols-of-the-bible-jordan-river/

“For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun? And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.”
― Kahlil Gibran, artist and poet.

"The song is ended
But the melody lingers on
You and the song are gone
But the melody lingers on."
~ Irving Berlin, songwriter.

“Do you not know that a man is not dead while his name is still spoken?”
~ Terry Pratchett, English author.

Lyrics
Last night I dreamed my brother strode with Jesus by his side
With heavenly strength to move them on, they walked the ocean tide
I cried, “Dear brother, hold your haste, we all must journey home.”
“Jordan calls me,” was all he said, I knew myself alone
I knew myself alone

Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu

Last night I dreamed my brother rode in tandem with James Dean
Along the streets and the highways that to this world are unseen
I cried, “Dear brother, promise me, you’ll meet me when I come.”
He smiled his smile, and raised his hand, I felt my world undone
I felt my world undone

Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu …. Hal-le-lu

Now I’m awakened, oh, let me dream that dream once more
Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu … yah

Now I’m awakened, oh, let me dream that dream once more
Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu … yah

And take me over Jordan, see my brother walk upon its shore
Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu … yah

Yeah, take me over Jordan, for I am tired and so heartsore
Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu, Hal-le-lu … yah

Credits
Music: Michael Sellers; Sergio Aguilar
Lyrics: Michael Sellers
Vocals: Michael Sellers; Beto Quintero
Guitars & bass, piano; musical arrangement, & production: Sergio Aguilar
Drums: Rodrigo Uribe
Album Cover photo: Michael Sellers
Cover design: Loretta Sellers Fortuny

One Singer Left to Mourn

I Dreamed I Saw My Brother

Buy on Bandcamp

I Dreamed I Saw My Brother FT Beto Quintero (UKSC: Star Rating: 5 Commended Entry 2023)

Spinning Out Will & Nikerty

New Orleanian Ham Sandwhich

The Sacred Door

All rights reserved December 5, 2023
Music composed and performed by Todd Brown

Life, drives you to the ground
Kicks you when you’re down
Wants to wear your crown

Love, comes as no surprise
Right before your eyes
With truth instead of lies

Stop explaining
Days are waning
Then you realize
That it’s your time to fly

We have travelled through this life 
Through the tears and strife
To the other side

Dreams, elude us when we sleep
And rivers run so deep
The secrets they will keep

Lives are taken
Plans, forsaken
Then you realize
That it’s your time to fly..

It may be we’ll never understand
Building castles in the sea and sand…

Love, comes as a surprise
Right between the eyes

For the Love of Life

I Got A Bone To Pick With You

This song started out as an attempt to cover the mostly instrumental "Sweet Florence" by the French Caribbean guitarist and originator of zouk, Jacob Desvarieux. I added lyrics and a rock-funk breakdown in the middle, and it became its own creature.

In October 2023 I went to a fantastic live show of the band Say She She in Washington, DC. Before the band came onstage, as is typical of most concerts, music was being played as the crowd chatted in anticipation of the show. A song started playing that immediately enchanted me: a deep synth bass line followed by a funky slow beat that resembled reggaeton, with a beautiful and haunting guitar solo and various synth touches. I tried using the app Shazam on my phone to identify the song, and it kept failing to hear it properly amid the loud ambient noises of the theater. I was running out of time to identify the song. As the band came onstage, and just as the song started to fade out, my phone identified it on the third try as "Sweet Florence" by Jacob Desvarieux. In the coming weeks I listened to the song over and over, and I felt that desire that musicians have to create my own version of it, to cover it.

I was unable to reproduce the wonderful synth of the original since my keyboard doesn't go that low, so I had to change the octave of one note. I also had to layer several synth basses over each other to add to the deepness. Making this song was also a lesson in sound quality; I am not able to replicate, with my current setup, the deep sonic quality of the original. Trying to play the guitar hook made me realize how skillful Mr. Desvarieux's playing is. My version is less funky than the original but interesting and rhythmic nonetheless. Rest in peace, Jacob Desvarieux, and thank you for such a fabulous song.

Here is a link to the original:
https://soundcloud.com/jacobdesvarieux/sweet-florence?si=849b37fd215648d688807694c94241fd&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

Lyrics:
It’s easy to believe
When your brain's been washed and the privilege won
It’s easy to achieve
With your fingers crossed and they’re on the gun
Ain’t hard to see the signs
Of a deep conspiracy
If you don’t read between the lines
And don’t learn the history
It’s easy to believe

Solo

You signed yourself up 
‘Cause they’re filling up your bank account with cash
You got sugar in the cup
And the lies you tell are the latest fash-ion
It’s effortless to see
When you take a big gulp of the sweet kool aid
You see the enemy
Just beat ‘em to a pulp, bow your head, and pray
And it’s easy to believe

It’s easy to achieve
When your mind’s made up and you live in fear
It’s easy not to leave 
When the only place you know is here
The only place you know is here 
It's easy, easy to believe

Music by Jacob Desvarieux and David Wagoner
Lyrics by David Wagoner

Easy To Believe (aka Sweet Florence)

Sometimes it's good to climb the hill and look at life from beyond the daily grind.

Passion for the Beyond

I wrote this track in 2009 together with a Drum Beat by A. Meloni thinking to a complex behavior behind human dualism, what emerges in any human culture is the profound complexity we are one but we are many ones at the same time, Evils or Angels ? It depends 😏.......

A Due Act

The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

Reworked this, just on instinct.

@rick-4-1 Cov Drums
@phil-mcwalter The Other Cov Stuff (inc vinyl mix)

Fun and games

Spotify

Fun and Games

A real joy to have Karin-Maria Brunner join me on this song. She has really done an amazing job with my basic track. My grateful thanks and deepest appreciation to you, Karin-Maria. (@user-53145152-479345033)
https://soundcloud.com/karin-maria-brunner

K-M: Epic pad, Vintage synthesiser strings, harp, violin, viola, cello, crash, bass, processing, mixing and mastering 
Me: vocals, guitars, drums, keyboards

Promise Me (Brian Peters)

It's hard to believe
Takes courage of man to admit it
There's a memory within me
The sound of your name recalls it

We're living in days
Dancing too close to the heat
There's pockets of fires
Scattered all over the streets

*Promise me baby
You won't let another come between our love
Promise me baby
You won't imprison the dove*

They tied up the servant
They killed the messenger
Made a home explosive
Marked it ‘return to sender’

There’s a crack in the conscience
A finger of light in the skies
There’s bug on your telephone
Your windows are full of eyes

It’s the day of the aliens
Night of the UFOs
They took all the war brides
The baby boomer girls

There’s halls of illusion
Perverted sex on the screen
Young minds in confusion
Old men with adolescent dreams

The prophet is dishonoured
Especially in his own home
I’ve been reading Borges
Listening to Leonard Cohen

There’s sex on the telephone
A hundred iniquity dens
But the women are sexless
There are no real men

There’s blood on the doorposts
The angel of death is near
Speak softly, darling
Even the walls have ears

There’s a place in the hills
It’s like the top of Masada
It’s the gateway to paradise
Or the scene of a murder

Well, the world’s getting smaller
It’s like a one horse town
But the circle gets faster
As it spirals down

And the more things are changing
The more they are the same
And I sound like my daddy
I guess he felt the same

Promise Me

From the Album: "The Curse Of A Good Looking Ghost" (2023)
Lyrics:
It's a nitroglycerin bomb sniffing skirt
That's a lollipop night stick
She only hits you where you need to hurt
A Marie Laveau shotgun shack
Don't ya know there's gambling in the back?
In a shotgun shack
I'm reading the tea leaves  by the smoke stack
We've all been bitten by the maharishi's baby teeth
It's hotter than a Sacramento summer
(And I don't mean that as a bad thing)

I'm gonna have to lay real low for a while
My trouble follows me
I'm waist deep in the marsh
That's been thickened up with
Gumbo voodoo mule skin starch
I hear the Hellhounds on my tail
And I don't know what their motivation is
Maybe it's the Mississippi hog maw fizz?
If you think you know me
It's because I'm the guy that shows up
And all the trouble begins
Hotter than a Sacramento summer
(I don't mean that as a bad thing)

I'm down at the racetrack
I'm sleeping on a mattress made of blister packs
It's hotter than a Sacramento summer
(I don't mean that as a bad thing)

Oh, I'm up on the rack
The executioner is sharpening his ax
He says: the world is ruled by fools
"And I'm sorry, man, but I don't make the rules."
It's hotter than a Sacramento summer
Wherever I'm going
I'm looking forward to what the cool weather brings...

Hotter Than A Sacramento Summer

A big Thank You to eddyoffline (https://soundcloud.com/user-705706912) for providing this wonderful guitar 

The picture shows an extract of:
„An operation for stone in the head“ (1563) Oil painting by a follower of Jan Sanders van Hemessen (1500-1566). Source: Wellcome Library, London

Cut In Ego

1
1 had a vision
But it was only a hallucination.
1 had a vision
But that was only a fantasy.
1 had a vision
But it was only a figment.
1 had a vision
But that was only a pipe dream.

ref 1
Its end shall be dramatically
But until then
1 can try to stand,
Gain solid foothold again 
And that eventually
Until the end

Take the reject and
Try to reflect that
Cut in ego

2
1 had this vision
But it was only a big misconception.
Thought to be on a mission
But that was only an aberration.
How 1 was wishing
that it had another destination.

ref 2
Its end designed dramatically
But until then
1 can try to stand,
Gain solid foothold again 
And that eventually
Until the end

Take the reject and
Try to reflect that
Cut in ego
Cut in ego

3
1 had a vision
But that only turned into a nightmare.
There seemed this mission
But now there is no time left to spare.

ref 3
Its end will be dramatically
And until then
1 can try to stand,
Gain solid foothold again 
And that eventually
Until the end

The end just fatally
And until then
1 can try to understand,
Regain solid mindset again,
Adapt the stand
Until the end

Take the reject and
Try to reflect that
Reflect the act and
Accept the fact, a

Cut in ego
(A cut in ego, at the right time, now…)

Cut In Ego (wt eddyoffline)

This song was created as a result of a musical collaboration with Ed Bejzak (also known as @getupbass on soundcloud).

Enjoy the music and Thank You for listening. Your continued support is most appreciated!!

Lyrics

Even Fail
By Ed Bejzak and David Husted

V1
Wave sharpens
As it readies to pound
Under ocean canopy
Once again smooth
A tired refrain

Ch      
You can jump
I'll be there
I will be your safety net
You can jump
Even fail    

PreVs
V2
Crackle of fire
drizzle of rain 
cold and distant thunder
Now silence
Again and again and again

Ch2
You can jump
I'll be there
I will be your safety net
You can jump
Even fail    

V3
Falling, floating
Air rushes past
Sensation unfamiliar 
All stop 
Never and ever again  
Ch2
You can jump
I'll be there
I will be your safety net
You can jump
Even fail    
Outro
Even Fail
Even Fail
Even Fail

Even Fail

The Treehouse

A Coin In The Wishing Well

This is the lead track from the set of songs that I began with Wou-Wou & the Wormling during the start of the turmoil and chaos brought upon by the pandemic. This is also the first part of four tracks within the album directly based on Wou-Wou’s comic, The Shrike. It has been incredible working with Bitzone and Stricknice throughout the project as well. It is always cool when the everyone in the stag heard works well togehter and brings distinct yet complimentary ideas to the mix. Big thanks also to Weighty Tree for introducing his groovy style of neopsychedelica to the rut! 

May everyone be victorious at their turn during the rut.

Track Credits:
The Weighty Tree: Guitars
https://soundcloud.com/theweightytree
https://theweightytree.bandcamp.com
Stricknice: Intro Guitars, Samples and Sample Work, Keys
https://soundcloud.com/j-nice-6
Bitzone: Drums, Orchestration, Mix, and Master
https://soundcloud.com/bitzone
www.bitzones.net
Wou-Wou & the Wormling: Reverse Guitar, Bass, Mellotron, Synths, Original Demo Track, Song Art
https://soundcloud.com/wouwouandthewormling
wouwouandthewormling.bandcamp.com
www.youtube.com/channel/UCy0rEOgxbaIcWbZZuxAKVmA
the Couch King: Lyrics, Vocals, Ending Samples, Production
https://musiciselation.bandcamp.com

Lyrics

Intro
Several weeks after the events of The Great Scurry, all had returned back to normal in the autumnal forest. Nature has a way of quickly shaking off the traumas of the past and returning to its most basic of desires. You see, all of life yearns to mate and procreate, and while most that experience defeat from the stronger or rejection from those seeking the fitter, muster the determination to get back up again, some take their spurning to heart, as if they were more deserving than nature intended, where it festers and begins to grow a new grotesque life of its own.     

Verse
Word 
Yo
As antlers crashed with the desperation of lust 
And the scent of musk in the air
I couldn’t help but take notice there
Was a sweet smell of autumn 
Carried in the gust 
Of wind  
It is a beautiful time of the year
When the does come into estrus 
And there is only one thing on my mind
I must get some of that behind 
I find
Times like these to be harbingers 
That linger
I could count times like these on my fingers
If I didn’t have hooves 
And wasn’t crashing to the ground 
With the sound of defeated dreams 
Of games of hard to get
And multiple days of getting wet 
I let the overwhelming excitement of rut
Get the best of me 
And now am crest fallen to see
The Doe that I thought was mine
Walk away with the buck that brought me down to the twines
Uh

The Shrike Pt. 1

The Weighty Tree, Stricknice, Bitzone, Wou-Wou & the Couch King - The Shrike Pt. 1

A past lover keeps showing up in my dreams and reminding me of my failures.
From my new LP " Low Profile". My best tracks from 2023. Thanks for listening!

Lyrics:
I get my melancholy straight from the IV drip
A Xanax, a red eyed flight on the sky ship
That's when you appeared
I'd been gorging myself on 
Televised violence
It's like synconized swimming
You were grinning while the plane was rapidly descending
(You smiled all the way down)
The atmosphere was colorless
Odorless
Void of all surface and all texture
I'm reveling in my psychosis
You reminded me I never finished my
Junkyard magnum opus
You still show up in my dreams

We were entering into 
An impressionist painted landscape
With a language that we just didn't understand
You reminded me that I'm a big believer
In blindly believing
And I need to start drinking in
A little bit more in what I'm seeing
We're like suburban dadaist
Coming in, out of the rain
My mind was racing
Like those 808 beats
There all the same
Well, that's the way the Goddamn wheel rolls
You headed off into the night
You never told me to change the angle of the light
You still show up in my dreams

"You never even had it even when you had it your hands,"
You've got to bring it right down
To where the sideways ends in the light
I'm digging down deep
I'm digging down slow
I'm striking oil 
Or the fires down below
You still show up in my dreams

You Still Show Up In My Dreams

℗ © Copyright Ian Stokes. All Rights Reserved
Recorded, mixed and mastered in Logic.
Guitar played: Taylor 714CE in standard tuning (Capo 4th Fret) 
Photography: Thanks go to Nigel and Libby Hume at Hume Photography.
Lyrics:
The blind man lay down his walking cane
And rested by a stream
He thought he heard a minstrel sing
Or was it just a dream
A voice so calm and gentle
Full of love and full of grace
The air so sweet as if there was
Some magic in this place

The blind man sat contentedly
To hear the minstrel play
His words painted a picture
Of the dawning of the day
The rising of the morning sun
The light now giving shade
Such things he saw, such images
How could they ever fade

The minstrel played his song
And let the blind man be
At peace with at all the wonders
That his minds eye could now see
The oceans and the mountains
An eagle flying high
The colours of a rainbow 
Across the evening sky

He gathered up his walking cane
And softly bid farewell
My thanks to you kind minstrel
For the stories that you tell
Out there now ahead of him
A new path somehow lay 
As the minstrel’s voice began again
To sing and light his way

If all the stars could tell their tale 
What stories there would be
Of all that makes this universe 
Including you and me
What lies unseen beneath,
Beyond beginning with no end
For all we think we know 
What do we really “know” my friend

The Blind Man

There is so much talent and variety here, and most of the people are pretty cool too. I love being part of this community. Listening to your music and being heard in return is enough.

Still reading? OK I'm gonna muse a bit. It's hard to fully convey how much this forum has meant to me. There are people I've never met that feel very much like old friends -- and in a very real way they are.
If I follow someone I make every effort to listen to and support their efforts. It's certainly not a transactional relationship but I do tend to limit my follows to people who engage in mutual listening and engagement. If you listen and leave a comment I always try to listen to *your* music when responding! If you follow at random without any feedback I hope you get something out of that too... ; )

Once is Not Enough -- January Edition

Jeff Roberts