Talking Legs & Feetz

(Free WAV Download available here under '••• More'; and eventually, as part of a future solo album)

Greetings my friends. I admit up front, this is a strange write-up… culminating from years of trying to navigate a world that no longer makes sense to me. And maybe that’s a good thing. We all needed a wake up call to just how ineffective and unsustainable it all is? And the last few years have provided examples of that… in abundance. 

Speaking of abundance (or in this case, lack thereof), Cheer and I have been discussing this one a lot lately; specifically in regards to the shops and restaurants we frequent. I finally gave up on building a DIY, music-centric desk I designed, because none of the local hardware stores had enough of the pieces in stock. We’ve watched our favorite Romaine lettuce disappear from the shelves, to be replaced by something half the size and twice the cost. Several of our favorite restaurants have closed permanently, and the wait times at others is painfully long now. 

Apparently, shop and restaurant owners can’t get anybody to work for $15/hr when it costs $30/hr to afford rent and groceries now. (How could we have ever predicted or prevented that? One might speculate.)

It’s enough to make the average mind go a little panicky. “Why don’t you have that in stock?”, ‘Why did the price on this just double overnight?”, “Why have we been waiting for 20 minutes just for the menus?”. All of these are very real, and very concerning… specifically if we never stop to question how much of that thinking is the result of being programmed to think like consumers our whole lives.

How often have you heard a commercial say something along the lines of “You deserve this because you are worth it.” Or “You should fear this. And our product/service can protect you.” Or “You should take this prescription, despite the list of side effects being longer than the list of benefits.”

I suggest we ask ourselves ‘Am I thinking with the mind of a consumer right now?’, and then be very willing to let those developing thoughts roll around in our heads for a while. 

Cheer and I concluded (with minor alarm) that we are both profoundly brainwashed by ‘consumer’ thinking; and it shows every time we feel a sense of panic in the store. Sure, things are a bit more scarce than they were 5 years ago… but does anyone (old enough) remember 30 years ago, when the stores contained half of what they offer now? (And none of us were freaking out over a lack of choices then). How about a time when you couldn’t have something shipped to your door overnight (many of us can still remember a time when 6-8 weeks was a decent shipping window).

Maybe the path to changing this paradigm is for us to get out of that ‘consumer’ thinking, and focus more on a ‘grateful for all the amazing things we have’ kind of thinking. I can still go to the store and choose from an abundance of fruits and vegetables, a teetering display of chips and dips, a bevy of beers from around the world. There are still more choices than my simple brain truly wants to think through, even if they are sold out of the Smoked Salmon and Ketchup flavored Cheetos I was specifically looking for.

So my plan going forward is to TASER myself (at least psychologically) every time I catch my brain being consumery. And the goal is to reach a point where I’m not thinking “It’s not fair my favorite restaurant closed.”, but instead thinking “How cool is it that I had that experience; and got to support the family that owned and worked that restaurant.” 

We’ve reached some critical tipping points that are well on their way to determining our future; and I believe a healthy attitude (dipped in gratitude) is the thing that’s going to keep us from gnawing each other’s faces off over the long haul. Them’s my weird thoughts for the day. Take em with a grain of salt (assuming the store carries the brand you like). I hope you enjoy my latest musical offering, ‘I’ll See It When I Believe It”. :)

WTF! The Musical

I'll See It When I Believe It

@elephantpr: music bed
@juswel: Guitar
@conover : vocal, lyrics,Mix and production

Step on the gas one more time and let's get out of here.
Don't you ask one more time for me to listen to all that fear again.
Invitations have been made
There's nothing changing from here on out.
Destinations have been saved.
There's no more talk about it... we're all talked out
we're all talked out. 

  
~ Desiderata ~
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

by Max Ehrmann ©1927

All Talked Out Labarca/Welin/Conover

Out of the Box January 2023
A Sonic Ballet - Part Two

Grace

Stay Please

Altered Perspective

I love Yukihiro Takahashi(YMO) He loves George Harrison.

Everytime Call Me

Out of the Box February 2023
Special service
Featured voice model and actress Ellie Luna

Entertaining The Men On The Moon

D-Gosh!

An amateur cover version of Chick Corea's song "Eternal Child" (from the album "Eye of the Beholder", 1988). Not much improvisation here.... just a basic version showcasing Mr. Corea's ingenious composition. After installing the new awesome Rhodes V8 plugin I decided to try to record this song using a lovely and dynamic Dyno Rhodes type of electric piano sound.

Played by me with my Korg SGProX digital stage piano using the Rhodes V8 Pro virtual electric piano (Rhodes MK8; preset name "Dyna-Mite" and player profile "Dyn-O-Mighty", with some tweaking by the undersigned), Yamaha Montage 8 (CFX Concert) and Arturia CZ V (cf. Casio CZ-1, CZ-101). 

Posted as a private person for non-commercial purposes.

Chick Corea: Eternal Child (cover)

Not A Mind Reader

I NEVER USE ANYTHING LIKE SUNO AI.
EVERY SUNDAY UPLOAD THE  LATEST TRACK
Composition and Sampling collage by Synline
Instant theatrical music tweets everyweek. 
”The song that is born today can only be born today.” That's why I keep writing it down in the computer every day like a diary.
Music is a kind of feeling I can not express in words. I will write that feelings with Synthesizers. 
I am glad I can share it with you.

I think, as Ryuichi Sakamoto said, AI should be used not for composing music but for solving global issues such as weather forecasting and population problems.