This Guy Falls Down

I think it's really cool...

Why oh why do I spend hours of my life on this blog (and this blog and this blog)?  Because it's really cool...

I think it's really cool that she is friends with her...

I think it's really cool that she is working with her...

I think it's really cool that he moved to Canada and I can still keep up with him...

I think it's really cool that I met him when he lived in Canada and now he lives near me...

I think it's really cool that he got to write about that for him...

I think it's really cool that he and I can talk about what we do with them...

I think it's really cool that you are where you are and I am where I am and we are both, well, here.

Blog 29: Vertizontal

OK, OK.  I know.  I've gotten really slack on these.  I think the tour and the band lineup change and the slow-as-molasses bus internet all conspired to take the wind out of my sails.  But enough excuses.  Back to the task at hand.  50 Blogs in 50 (non-consecutive) Days...

I've known John Voelz for several years.  I think I first met him at a Third Day show in '02.  Or was it re:create in '03?  Not sure.  At any rate, John's a great guy and a creative soul.  He's been blowing my mind as of late.  I set up a tumblr account and see that he's already there, rockin' it with the tumblr.  Then he goes and does this "song/prayer" thing.  And then he starts talking about altered books and how he uses that as a form of journaling.  "Altered wha?" you're thinking.  Exactly.  You need to go check out his blog to find out for yourself.

And then.  And THEN.  Randy and Spence host a Web 2.0 clinic.  John gives us all a "clinic" by broadcasting it LIVE through Mogulus...

Be sure to check out John's blog.  He's doing some cool stuff over there!   

Kalein Songwriter Master Class

Today it's officially being announced that I will be leading a songwriter's master class at Round Cove in Tennessee.  This will be the first event for the Kalein artist center which will be opening in Middle Tennessee in the not-too-distant future.  Leading the class with me will be none other than country songwriter/recording artist Bryan White.  This is obviously a huge honor!

I'm going to be spending the next several weeks researching the creative process from a songwriter's perspective.  I will definitely be sharing some of those nuggets of goodness with you guys.  If all goes well, I hope to compile the notes into some kind of e-book form that I can make available later in the summer.  Should be fun.

Six applicants will be accepted for the master class.  If you or somebody you know is interested in attending, go to kalein.org for info.

Remind me to tell you...

Well, the fam and I are loading and leaving for Disney World today.   I'll be out of pocket til Tuesday*.  Be sure to check my Tumblr site as I'm planning on posting a bunch of pictures and shorter posts while I'm gone.

I mentioned on Twitter yesterday that I have about 7 ideas for blog posts, but no time to talk about them.  Here they are, so you can pester me about it until it happens:

1. Picnic at Hanging Rock - Awesome movie, looking forward to the book.  I plan to review it.
2. The death of the Southern Gentleman?  I had a great conversation with the wife about this the other day, and it came up in an interview as well.  I'd love to hear your thoughts about it.
3. There is a certain scene in Picnic at Hanging Rock that really made me think, esp. in the light of Flowerdust's, um, boob post.  Yes, you just witnessed history:  never thought I'd say that word on here...
4. I have a couple of thoughts in response to Hugh Hewitt's response to the Evangelical Manifesto.  Confusing, huh?
5. I plan to talk about biofuels and the world food crisis.
6. Ever heard of the 101 Things in 1001 days project?
7. How about the Domino effect?  I'll talk about both of those soon as well.

Yes, this post should be filled with cool hypertext and whatnot, but you're bright kids.  You can track all these things down.

See ya in a few days...

* Sing it with me!  HUSH HUSH!  KEEP IT DOWN NOW!  VOICES CARRY!  OHHHHH HUSH HUSH!  Man I'm such a boob.  Wow, twice in one post.

Awesome Kendall Payne news

Saw a couple of your comments about how awesome Kendall Payne is.  I couldn't agree more having done two tours with her!  I just got an email with a cool announcement:  she's doing a Christmas album AND a worship album this year!  I'm sure both will be great, but I'm especially intrigued about the worship album...

Go to Kendall's website for details.

75 Skills Every Man Should Master

Yes, it's from a magazine for guys, so of course there are a few crude and unnecessary entries.  But there are some real gems in this list that make it worth a perusal, whether you're a man or somebody who hangs around men, which would be, just about all of us...

(via Elizabeth Grattan, aka Radio Elizabeth)

Watercooler Wednesday: What's the best concert you ever saw?

For my edition of Randy Elrod's fabulous Watercooler Wednesday, I'm going to talk about something near and dear to my heart.  In addition to performing somewhere in the neighborhood of 1200 shows with Third Day, I've also been to hundreds of shows myself.  I've been to shows at stadiums, rock clubs, arenas, amphitheaters, churches, bars, schools, parking lots, and empty fields in the middle of nowhere.  I've seen rap shows, rock shows, and rap rock shows.  I've seen it all.  But the big question, and the question I'm also going to ask you, is "What's the best concert you ever saw?"

Many great concerts come to mind*.  As much as I want to come up with some hip and obscure show, I've gotta go with U2.  I've seen them 5 times dating back to Zoo TV.  But the absolute best time was when I loaded up with the rest of the band guys and friends drove to Chicago to see U2 on the Elevation tour.  It was just a few weeks after 9/11, so it was a really emotional night for everyone there.  I remember Bono striking one of his signature poses by hugging an American flag.  And of course the production was absolutely unbelievable.  The song arrangements were killer.  I'll never forget the intro to "Where the Streets Have No Name".  And the show opening with the house lights on and they ease into "Elevation" and turn the lights off on the "mole diggin' in a hole" line.  And "Beautiful Day"!  It was just a magical evening that I'll never forget!

What about you?

* Gun, Cinderella, Pearl Jam, The Scorpions (great story), The Rolling Stones (Steel Wheels! I still have the shirt), Jeff Healey (another great story), Eric Johnson, Extreme, Coldplay (in a club BEFORE they were huge), Wilco (killer!), Gary Louris and Mark Olson, Bon Jovi, Jacob's Trouble, The Choir, Bride, Drivin n Cryin, Joe Satriani, Steve Morse, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sheryl Crow, Clint Black, Motley Crue, Travis Tritt, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Jars of Clay, The Dixie Chicks, Van Halen, The Wallflowers (that was seriously one of the best club shows ever!), The Black Crowes (best festival set ever), Yngwie Malmsteen, Mr. Big, Winger, Kiss, dc talk, Ryan Adams, Loretta Lynn, Gov't Mule, The Police, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, you get the picture...

Valentine's music

No this post is not what you think it's going to be.  This is not about romantic music - it's about two bands that both ROCK and both happen to have "Valentine" in their name.  There is a glut of heavy music out there, and unfortunately there are some really cool bands who are getting lost in the shuffle.  These are but two examples:

• Bullet for My Valentine, Scream, Aim, Fire:  What a title!  I bought this album mainly because they're from Wales and I have a good friend from Wales.  They land in kind of a no man's land between the Avenged/metalcore type thing and the power metal of, say, Dragonforce.  I kind of rolled my eyes at first because I'm not really into the power metal thing.  But it just grows on you and stays with you.  There's something oddly endearing about the Welsh accent gang vocal shouting "OVER THE TOP!" on the title track. If you like both the newer screamo/metalcore stuff AND old school Iron Maiden you will love it.  I'd give this about 3 1/2 stars out of 5.  It's been in heavy rotation for me as of late.
• Twelve Gauge Valentine, Shock Value:  I've had this album for months and only now has it gotten under my skin enough to make a good assessment.  I love it.  Good old Southern metal like a stagecoach from hell that burns down the whole dang town.  If you like Maylene, you'll be all about this stuff.  I can't quite describe it - it's not quite as catchy as the Maylene, but it also somehow feels a little more authentic.  Apprarently the band recently broke up.  Well, R.I.P., Twelve Gauge Valentine!  Great stuff.  Solid 4 out of 5.

So there you have it.  If you have a refined metal palette like I do, get to it.  Buy these records.  If not, keep on enjoying the Sting and Strauss...

Erasure!!!

Not the band, the action! For only the second time in this blog's history , I'm pulling down a post. Even though it's been over a decade since the issue in question, it just feels a little too close to home for me to link to that story.  I'm an artist, not a journalist!
I do still intend to share some thoughts about the Christian music industry in the very near future. 

Thanks, and sorry for any confusion...

Jumping on the "M-Train"

OK, so you may not get this if you didn't go to Georgia Tech, but a buddy of mine put this little rap video together and it's been getting a ton of "buzz". So why not post it here? (Jumping on the M-Train is what they call it when you change majors from Engineering to Management to avoid dropping out of school...Mr. Lee here jumped ship from engineering but switched to a major called History, Technology, and Society)