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1/30/2001 - Update: well, .pointfive is a band again, even though it's just me for now. I've decided to do something, even if I have to do it alone. Up until now I was sort of waiting for people to come along who'd be interested in doing the kind of music I'm hoping to do with .pointfive (the last incarnation of the band fell very wide of the mark, with the exception of a precious few songs). Of course, I wasn't doing anything, so even if those people were around, how could they know I was here? It's been a cycle of inaction. Anyway... I'm at the idea phase again. The good thing about this is that I'm coming up with lots of ideas I like, but the danger is that there's a chance I'll remain at the idea phase indefinitely. At any rate, until something congeals and becomes a little more certain, this page will really be more my ramblings than an actual newsletter. I plan to do shows eventually, whether I find people or not, but that won't be for a while. I plan to record eventually, but who knows when that will be? So until there's actually some news to put here, it'll just be my musings about this or that. You've been warned. *ramble faucet on*I'm trying to take the mistakes that were made when Heather and Brian were in the band and learn from them. That whole experience was a very dichotomous thing... on the one hand, we had some really incredible moments, usually when we'd jam. On the other hand, especially when it came to performing, we were a freakin' joke. The difference between my songs and Heather's songs was so striking, it sounded like there were two different bands on stage or something. And the result was usually that half the audience would be really into one style and hate the other. So during any given song, half the audience would be thinking, "These guys rock!" while the other half would be thinking, "Boo! Get off the stage!" It was like being in a band that did half Yanni songs and half Dead Kennedys songs... at any given moment, half the audience hated us. And when we tried to merge our styles, the result was usually just weak (except when we'd jam... but for some reason we couldn't capture that when we'd hammer out an idea). It makes me really happy to see Heather's new band, crowns on 45, because for one, they really rock. They're an excellent band. Aaaaand they're very much in Heather's style. I feel like at last she's doing the kind of music she wants to do. Her style is a style I repsect and even like to listen to, but for a number of reasons I would never want to be in that kind of band. And that was the big conflict between us when we were both in .pointfive: Heather would come up with an idea, and I'd listen and think, "That's cool!" But when it came time to play it, my enthusiasm would plummet. It wasn't until I made the distinction between "music I like" and "music I like to play" that I even understood I'd been doing this. Certain music just doesn't fit my personality to try to play. My voice doesn't fit, the way I play guitar doesn't fit... so it ends up coming off like a joke. It's like if Eric Bachmann tried to sing a Mozart aria... it just wouldn't work. And that's what .pointfive was... because neither my style nor Heather's style was free to become what it was intended to be. We each just held the other back. So now I'm really happy to see what crowns on 45 are up to, and to hear their songs, because finally Heather gets to do what she was aiming for, and it rocks. And that gives me a lot of hope for myself, even. The next step, after pinning down some ideas to work on, would preferably be to get some people. So if you're reading this and are interested, or know anyone who is, feel free to e-mail me at pointfive@rotarydial.com. Not much else to say for now. Thanks for tuning in, though. I'll have more to report soon, God-willing. |
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