Endless fun working with @TexMex-Shaman on these "Texas Tea" songs and wow this is possibly one of my favorites of the 14(!) songs we've done to date. Check out the full playlist here: https://soundcloud.com/texmex-shaman/sets/texas-tea-sea

We're considering doing a wider release of our favorite tracks on Spotify etc. soon, maybe BandCamp as well. Stay tuned and I hope you enjoy this epic high-energy genre fusion!

The Texas Tea Industrial Bluegrass Experience

The Hunchback of Notre Dame – The Gargoyles
January 2025
Duration: 2:55
Listen to more music for the ballet: https://soundcloud.com/bruce-klepper-1/sets/the-hunchback-for-notre-dame
Inspired by the opening theme of “Chout” by Sergie Prokofiev
Music for Danse Etoile Ballet (www.danseetoile.org) who will be performing The Hunchback of Notre Dame June 6th and 7th 2025 in Colorado.
For strings, flute, clarinet, english horn, bassoon, contra bassoon, cathedral bells, timpani and percussion

The Hunchback of Notre Dame - The Gargoyles

Reworked version of "Glitchout", 

lyrics:

Were you someone, I have to be asking
grew up serene, away from the struggle
and strife now presented that never did touch you
but words of deception that make you believe
that the world was on fire, injustice abound
right at your doorstep to take all your freedom?
but just close your eyes, there was never a real threat
other than the ones of split tongues and venom!

wired up, side on break the violence
fired up, ride on, hear the silence

tell me again who you were once ago
when the future was open and dreams were allowed
think of exactly who told you the difference
between cats and dogs and the hits that were misses?

the tales that were spun on a landfill of gaps:
all cognitive bias we need to unlearn!
projection, reflections, deflections, the point is
we all want our freedom and peace with the world

wired up, side on break the violence
fired up, ride on, hear the silence

Glitchout (wokey wokey version)

You get on the internet and you initiate a chat
You  might think you're talking to a dog but its actually a cat
You strike up a conversation with someone who seems real nice
But when you're surfing on the internet you're rolling the dice

You just who you're dealing with on the internet 
You try to be skeptical but it's easy to forget

It used to be if you wanted to con somebody you had to get out of your chair, but now you can do it from the comfort of home while you sit in your underwear

A window pops up on your screen, there's a prize , it says you've been selected, so you click on the link and your computer gets infected
You get a fake email from your bank asking you to update your account
And when you log in the next day your balance shows a zero amount

You just who you're dealing with on the internet 
You try to be skeptical but it's easy to forget

It used to be if you wanted to con somebody you had to get out of your chair, but now you can do it from the comfort of home while you sit in your underwear

People giving all sorts of questionable  advice about how you can eliminate bedbugs, acne and lice.
If you're bald as a cueball, don't worry, they can regrow your hair
but when it comes to the internet it's buyer beware.

The internet can be a crazy place, for all you know you could be chatting with an alien from outer space.
There could be an alien ship on the dark side of the moon
Trying to steal your credit card so they can get an amazon prime order soon

You just who you're dealing with on the internet
You try to be skeptical but it's easy to forget

You just who you're dealing with on the internet 
You try to be skeptical but it's easy to forget

You Just Don't Know

Cast of Characters:
Joe Stroffolino-- @joseph-stroffolino -- Taylor 114ce acoustic guitar, main vocals, harmony vocals, lyrics, composition 
Llanpsych -- @llanpsych -- Tez – Fender HSS Telecaster electric guitar
TexMex Shaman–@texmex-shaman –Stephen– Tom Anderson Custom T electric guitar, mix, mastering, and production
Mistermark-- @user-432503709 -- Mark – piano
K2 and the Three [and the Four]--@k2andthe3, @k2-kara -–Ken–drums
Entheogenic Psychonaught (Josh Clary)–@josh-clary-1 –- four string Fender Precision Bass with a plectrum 
 
This song began as one of Joe's, lyrically centered songs, which he wrote and filled in with VST instruments. He came up with the lyrics by sharing ideas with fellow SoundCloud musician Michele Ansani.
   Knowing that Josh is a fan of his work, Joe offered this song to him in hopes that he'd share it with the rest of the band. Of course, Josh jumped at the opportunity to work on his song, and immediately shared it with the rest of the group. 
  Ken went to work first, adding his driving, excting drums. Josh was having a hard time coming up with a good bass line for it, until Ken suggested that he use the power of the 1/8 note to propel it. Tez was up next with his clever fills you hear throughout the first half of the song. Stephen came along right after and matched Tez's energy for the guitar fills in the second half of the song. 
  It was still missing a solo in the designated spot, though, so Mark stepped up with his innovative piano solo you hear in the middle. If it sounds a little mechanical, that's because he's using an arpeggiator to achieve the effect. We thought it sounded good in a song about AI, though. 
  Once all the parts were dialed in, and Joe had gotten all his vocals tuned up, we asked one of our resident pros, Stephen, to mix it for us. He did that and mastered it, too, expertly, as always.
  This is the first song we've ever done with Joe, and don't expect it to be the last. We all really enjoyed putting together, in no small part because Joe is such a competent, receptive, and gracious collaborator. We all hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed creating it. 
Original lyrics by Joe Stroffolino (and Michele Ansani):
When I was thirteen I picked up my first guitar
it was my mother's, it only had one nylon string 
I tried to play it like a rock star
I learned to play the Coca-Cola jingle
So I could teach the world to sing
When I was fourteen, I put on six new strings
I learned to play Beatles, I learned a Bob Dylan song
I sounded out of tune but I tried to carry on
At fifteen I wrote my first original tune 
So bad it sounded like it might have been written by a baboon
When I was sixteen, I got a new guitar for my birthday
The metal strings sawed through my fingers 
But I continued to play
And the calluses formed and every day I learned a brand new chord
I was obsessed with that guitar and I never grew bored.
I wrote songs every day and most of them were a mess
But I believed that through hard work, I could achieve success
Malcom Gladwell wrote a book that said it takes ten thousand hours
To become and expert at your craft
But now all it takes is two commands and an enter
And in two minutes you have ten versions of the same damn new song,
You just have to choose the type
folk, rock, rap, pop, metal, jazz, trap or blues.
You don't even need to write the lyrics, 
your push a few buttons let the AI choose.
And people will think your songs are great even though you didn’t write or play a single note.
When I was 20, I did my first concert, it was time
it occurred in a village square
there were four cats all friends of mine
I was still using the plectrum and sometimes I got the chords wrong
at thirty I finally wrote what I thought was a decent song
It had a very well thought out structure
And a catchy vibe and beat
It was overly verbose but when I played it people tapped their feet
In my forties I stopped wasting my time
Work was more fun I was doing just fine

AI Sucks - The Eclectic Collective with Joe Stroffolino

"Faust", Charles Gounods opera, based on the tragic tale of the aging scholar Dr. Faust who made a deal with the devil to relive his youth, and in the process seduces, an finally ruins young innocent Marguerite's virtue and subsequently her life, premiered in 1859 at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris.
The aria "Avant de quitter ces lieux" however was added in 1864, when the opera was first given in English, and Gounod wrote a new aria for baritone Charles Santley in the role of Valentin.

Piano by Helen Roberts

We hope you'll enjoy :)

Lyrics

VALENTIN
Avant de quitter ces lieux,
Sol natal de mes aïeux,
A toi, Seigneur et Roi des cieux,
Ma sœur je confie.
Daigne de tout danger
Toujours la protéger,
Cette soeur, si chérie.
Délivré d'une triste pensée
J'irai chercher la gloire au sein des ennemis,
Le premier, le plus brave au fort de la mêlée,
J'irai combattre pour mon pays.
Et si, vers lui, Dieu me rappelle,
Je veillerai sur toi fidèle,
Ô Marguerite.
Avant de quitter ces lieux, etc.
Ô Roi des cieux, lève les yeux,
Protège Marguerite, ô Roi des cieux!

English

VALENTINE
Before I quit these parts,
birthplace of my forefathers,
to Thy care, o Lord and Ruler of the skies,
I confide my sister.
Deign to protect her always
from every danger.
My sister, so dearly loved.
Freed from care and worry,
I will go to seek glory in the enemy's midst,
foremost and bravest in the thick of the fight,
I'll go to fight for my country.
And, if God should call me to Him,
I will watch faithfully over you,
o Marguerite!
Before I quit these parts, etc.
O King of heaven, look down
and protect Marguerite, o King of heaven!


Avant de quitter ces lieux (Faust - Charles Gounod - @rehearsals with Helen Roberts)

If You Could See Me Now,   Gene Jumper,  Elvis ( cover song )

dreamin' & schemin'

pluck edward octave rain echo 42 seconds

1. Movement - Demise:
The first movement portrays a gradual descent, culminating in absolute despair.
After a brief, enigmatic introduction, the piece unfolds episodes of carefree and jubilant dancing, intertwined with moments of social revelry.
But with a hauntingly oppressive cry for help, desperate calls, the work plunges deeper into despair, culminating in utter dissolution. 
The instruments, scattered across the vast sonic landscape, attempt to connect, yet fail.
The first movement concludes in profound hopelessness, with a fragile lament fading away through descending semitones, drained of all strength.

Pandemic Symphony - Demise

Heart on Fire Tonight

Psych sounds, dub vibes and a whole bunch of FX in operation
SoundCloud collabs most welcome. Remixes, guitar bashing, conceptualising (a big word for a guitar player, I know) or whatever you have 😎

Member of the transatlantic music machine that is The Eclectic Collective

Member of Mid-Wales’ premier cheezepunk band The Recursives - watch us get down and boogie!!

https://youtu.be/f0CnN7FsIzM?si=4yCzlCMsylbIjKLx

https://youtu.be/E_tYwc83XPs?si=MjmQbwNeRpNXRhQS


Logo and cover art by Marianne

You may wish to check out my older dub based stuff here 
https://soundcloud.app.goo.gl/TwJYv9QgWsDdKNvu9