im lost in thought...thought we was gonna be together forever THOUGHT WRONG

thought wrong! (WE BROKE UP :(

Everyone’s a victim of some shit these days
Lost in their addiction or latest malaise
Or some new craze I’m amazed our days ain’t hazier than this
It seems to me our dreams are broken
Tragic scenes ain’t left unspoken
They’re cracked open in the hoping
other folk can find the bliss
How has it come to this 
But when that like lights on 
It doesn’t feel so wrong 
So I guess I’m gonna have to join the wrong song club
And spill my guts
But that’s the way we’re programmed 
Put the shit aside I’m guessing no man really can decide if it’s really wrong or right any time of day or any time of night

Join the club

sonic structures and silent stretches
https://soundcloud.com/sonic-textures

Open collaboration based on Jo's  Poem, vocals, and drumbeats
https://soundcloud.com/sonic-textures/nettle-seed-lyrics-for-an-open
I added some synthezisers 

Photo: H Skeneby  - Laxbäcken i Kopparberg

nettle seeds (copyright Jo Richter)

he got locked out of her garden
before this springtime's floral bloom
as he saw her soft glance harden
saw different patterns on her loom

he found some fallow, barren wasteland
on a hill of thistles, nettles
to cultivate defiant plants and
to get scarred by willful brambles

go feed on nettle seed
thistle oil and fibre weed
there is nothing else you need
nutrient rich and bittersweet

haggard, thin and somewhat healthy
his medicine was on demand
to overcome fatigue and palsy
when there is nothing left to want

go feed on nettle seed
thistle oil and fibre weed
there is nothing else you need
nutrient rich and bittersweet

sonic structures and silent stretches and well   -   nettle seed

A new song........ "If we desire a society of peace, then we cannot achieve such a society through violence. If we desire a society without discrimination, then we must not discriminate against anyone in the process of building this society. If we desire a society that is democratic, then democracy must become a means as well as an end."            Bayard Rustin

Lyrics:

Precious are the words we whisper in the night
Freedom and democracy the promises of light
They hang in quiet corners of every day
Like old porch flags folding when the children run away
Before we even notice, they can slip from our hands
Slipping like the shoreline, changing where we stand

Hold them close, don't let them go
Sing them loud when the winds of doubt blow
Freedom and democracy fragile burning sparks 
Tend the embers in your palm, keep them bright against the dark

Many fought and fell on fields we hardly name
Letters in a drawer, and photographs in frame
Many live without the chains that once bound the rest
Because someone kept the vigil and gave their very best
Taken for granted by carelessness and the cold
But worth the stories told, worth the blood and worth the gold

Teach your children gently how to guard the flame
How to argue with kindness, how to call a name
Cherish every small right, tend the garden with your hands
Don’t let silence be the landlord of these promised lands
Before the dawn is stolen, before the bell is broken
Let every honest heart be heard, every vow be spoken
                                                    
                                   Precious are the words, say them like a prayer
Carry them like candles through the cold thin air
We are the keepers of the light; we are the chosen ones
To protect them and cherish them, before they are gone, before we lose them

Mastered Track: Distrokid Mixea
Music and Lyrics by Len Bennati FM Folk 2025
Image: Mikhail Nilov

Freedom and Democracy

Industrial 2

Another blast from This Elegant Chaos this track was the first single from our second album Magino Line. 
Tells the tale of a  Kaleidoscope relationship that was to dangerous  but some things you just cant get enough of !

A brief history about the band.
The band were formed  in 1997 by Simon Bayliss and myself .
Simon a bassist and me a vocalist we had a handful of songs that needed a band of seasoned musicians to bring them alive. I recruited former band members of previous projects Lee Hughes & Rob Adams (guitarists) and Dave Robins (drums). 
Within months the band were recording and playing live with several labels showing an interest. 
Our first deal was with Holier than Thou Records but we left without releasing anything due to financial reasons. 
Our first release was a  7 Track 
EP “Hello Thane” on Quicksilver Records, quickly followed by our  debut album Virtue Circle released on Underground label Music & Elsewhere, which became a best seller for the  label. 
The album was then remastered and re-released back on Quicksilver Records in cd format, re-intitled “Virtue Circle Revisted”, M&E dealing with distribution.
Probably the best work to date was the final album Magino Line also released on Quicksilver Records. Unfortunately Simon had to leave before the second album due to work commitments with Artist Naomi of Gut Records. This lead to ‘Sarge’ Mark Sargent taking over bass duties. 
This Elegant Chaos bowed out in 2001 after the previous years sell out gig at Ronnie Scott’s. It was a wonderful time to be in a band with such talented musicians. 
Early 2020 we were released again on Music & Elsewhere to celebrate the labels 30th anniversary. This was a collection of the labels favourite songs in a download format.
This Elegant Chaos gives you ……
Kaleidoscope Spiral

Kaleidoscope Spiral -This Elegant Chaos

Some nice sounds with my Friends, 
so good that i have a Team like that,
Schmitt - Guitar
lofi Menta - Bass https://soundcloud.com/user-672449547
Joerxworx - Saxophon https://soundcloud.com/joerxworx
Ratzzz - Keys im Fuchsanzug

Lunatics 248 the lucky Strike / lofi Menta - Schmitt - Joerxworx & Ratzzz

Ok, so I had to use Garage Band to layer in the vocals and have a more realized version of this great song. I used a Roland vocoder, and had a blast making it. I want people to have a blast listening to it.

Clearest Blue w/ Vocals(Chvrches cover)

We're waiting for the right moment to get back to making music in the garage with three friends like we've been doing for a long time. The time is ripe, and in a few weeks, we'll start again 🤗💪⚘



https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=iVgvh-FxDjs&si=zxqy0sSROz_ORZ7f

https://open.spotify.com/album/5vNgNNVwtoDGtw2Pf9xy5U?si=ct9oeIHKThOp7XWclToFdQ

https://music.apple.com/us/song/si-ricomincia/1845970955



Si Ricomincia.mp3

Pulling us under

I had left the pastorate in 1985 but many friends remained in the little town of St. Francis, Kansas.  One of them was a woman who found love again after the death of her spouse.  I composed this song for them and officiated their wedding and as far as I know, they lived happily ever after.  
Then came the wedding of my oldest daughter and she requested the song be done for her and Thor (yes, his real name;) That was 27 years ago.  
This past summer, I had suggested the song to Axel and after hearing my rough, 35 year old demo, he loved the song straight away, but wanted to change it up a bit.  The song I had written was done in a more devotional 4/4 meter, he wanted to bring to it the flavor of a Celtic dance.  Enter Mike Fox who gives the lyrics a definitive voice and excellent guitar to the backing track.  I loved the track art Axel had created because it resembled the wedding of my 2nd granddaughter Grace at the end of September, a lovely garden ceremony in Oklahoma City.  It resembles it right down to the kilt another son-in-law wore by request.  They didn't use the song as part of their ceremony, but I dedicate this new version to Grace and Ethan and wish them a lifetime of happiness and fond adventures together.
Thank you Axel and Mike for lavishing your talents on my songwriting efforts.  I am truly honored.  Hear more of their fabulous music creativity @soundcloud.com/axel-m-501052973, and @soundcloud.com/michael-fox-925325997

Gathered--Lyrics:
 What are we gathered here for, what have we come to see?
Two people who believe that a better life
Is lived together not separately.
Father we ask you blessing upon the union of these two,
That the vows they are both confessing
Will bind their hearts to each other and You.

Bridge:
And it's more than just "tying a knot" and it's more than just getting "hitched"
We're seeing two hearts being sewn together,
We're witnessing it stitch by stitch.
It's the miracle of seeing two become one,
Though the two are really not the same,
Like the paint and the canvas are separate until 
The Artist joins them in a beautiful frame.

Instrumental Interlude

Repeat Bridge

Repeat Verse:
What are we gathered here for, what have we come to see?
Two people who believe that a better life
Is lived together not separately.
Father we ask you blessing upon the union of these two,
That the vows they are both confessing
Will bind their hearts to each other and You.
Will bind their hearts to each other and You
Will bind their hearts to each other and You.

Gathered-A Wedding Song (Axel Menningen, Mike Fox, David Dunham)

New music every month (love it hate it enjoy it :) 

My artistry comes from 6 personas in my head
These personas heavily influence each song

jo$hy - rap freestyle king (Highly likable in Rap)
Call out on Fridays - a Britpop band staring Jo$h
Josh- (introspective) rock, pop afro beats any genre (Josh loves to take risk)
JO$HUA! ( angry 70 percent) (100 percent) (grunge) (more so a flow or delivery )
josh from Flatbush (I'm Using all 5 personas) (very rare)
young jO$Hy & Young PATEK (Rap Gangsta, High ego, Expensive clothes)

my ad libs are "yeahhhhhhhh" (like im floating in Jupiter)
"whaaaaaaaaat?" (like im confused In Jupiter)

thought wrong! (WE BROKE UP :(

Jo$h From Flatbu$h