Last week, my flatmates' cat Madox died. We think he was hit by a car down the road. Murray, the other cat, has been mourning the loss of his little companion. It's been a sad week.
I've been sick for a week now. I have a head cold sort of thing, and it wasn't very fun over the weekend. Plus, I added a hangover to the mix, which was not wise.
The advantage of being sick was that I didn't have the energy to do much but stay in my room, so I've been doing a lot of practicing lately. I've been trying to practice up "Spiritual Groove" by Antoine Dufour for tonight's open mic. My throat and voice have not fully recovered, so I'm sticking with instrumental pieces tonight. I'm bound to make some mistakes, but that's alright. I need to know what kind of troubles I have playing it live, as opposed to practicing at home.
I hate making a title for my posts.
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 6:21 PM Comments: (1)
I finally got around to chopping up my radio appearance from a few weeks ago, so that one can listen to one song at a time. The setlist is available here.
My brain is convinced that time is going backwards. Or that it has stopped. It's a little bit confused, because there isn't any snow. I am aware of the date, but there's a part of my brain that is in some serious denial. I was in a store the other day, and saw a Christmas tree. My initial thought was that it was way too early to see Christmas trees. But then I recalled that it is, in fact, a month until Christmas. My brain just doesn't know how to handle it all yet.
This past week I tried out two very new songs. I actually don't know the words very well, so there were pauses while I had to consult my lyrics sheet. And the best part was that I was totally fine with the mistakes that I made. Mistakes used to get me all flustered, and everything would fall apart. I'm getting much more comfortable with the reality of live music. It's not that I want to make mistakes, but when they happen, they happen, and you need to move on and keep playing. Open mic opportunities are good for that, because most of the people in the room are musicians as well, and know what it's like. In that kind of crowd, you are almost expected to step up and try something that might go horribly wrong, because it shows that you're not holding back. I choose to embrace mistakes as a part of the learning process.
My brain is convinced that time is going backwards. Or that it has stopped. It's a little bit confused, because there isn't any snow. I am aware of the date, but there's a part of my brain that is in some serious denial. I was in a store the other day, and saw a Christmas tree. My initial thought was that it was way too early to see Christmas trees. But then I recalled that it is, in fact, a month until Christmas. My brain just doesn't know how to handle it all yet.
This past week I tried out two very new songs. I actually don't know the words very well, so there were pauses while I had to consult my lyrics sheet. And the best part was that I was totally fine with the mistakes that I made. Mistakes used to get me all flustered, and everything would fall apart. I'm getting much more comfortable with the reality of live music. It's not that I want to make mistakes, but when they happen, they happen, and you need to move on and keep playing. Open mic opportunities are good for that, because most of the people in the room are musicians as well, and know what it's like. In that kind of crowd, you are almost expected to step up and try something that might go horribly wrong, because it shows that you're not holding back. I choose to embrace mistakes as a part of the learning process.
Elliott Smith
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 2:28 PM Comments: (0)
Over the years, I've had people comment that I sound a bit like Elliott Smith. Until last week, I had never listened to Elliott Smith, and the only things I knew about him before was that he was dead, and that Ben Folds had written a song about him. I started listening to his first album, Roman Candle, and he's absolutely amazing. I could learn a lot from this guy, so I'm intending to listen to his albums chronologically over the next few weeks.
I've decided to record videos of some of my stuff, and post them on my YouTube channel. I have a few videos there already, and I hope to get a few more done this next week.
Also, feel free to leave comments on my blog, if you wish. I just changed the settings for commenting, and I'm curious how it will all work.
I've decided to record videos of some of my stuff, and post them on my YouTube channel. I have a few videos there already, and I hope to get a few more done this next week.
Also, feel free to leave comments on my blog, if you wish. I just changed the settings for commenting, and I'm curious how it will all work.
Terry's Songwriters Show: Power On
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 1:58 PM Comments: (0)
My session on Wellington Access Radio is now available online. I was putting off blogging until it was ready, but that took much longer than expected. I actually got a recording of it in the mail before it was available electronically.
Having listened to it, I definitely, ummm....need to stop saying "ummm." I also need to say "thank you" less. Clearly I need more experience in interviews. But it certainly could have been more awkward. It would have been much worse a few years ago, so I'm relatively pleased with the outcome.
I have been trying not to play the same songs at the same venues since coming to Wellington. I've been using a spreadsheet to keep track of what I play where, and the names of the people I meet. I'm starting to run out of original songs that I haven't played yet, but the good news is that I'm writing more as I go. It's really good motivation, because now I have a goal in mind: to finish and memorize two songs for open mic next Wednesday. It's quite possible that I'll have three ready, because I finished one yesterday, and have two more that are almost done. Mind you, it's the memorizing that will be the tricky part.
Another observation about cats: they can, and often do, use their hind feet as pillows. I think that's pretty sweet.
Having listened to it, I definitely, ummm....need to stop saying "ummm." I also need to say "thank you" less. Clearly I need more experience in interviews. But it certainly could have been more awkward. It would have been much worse a few years ago, so I'm relatively pleased with the outcome.
I have been trying not to play the same songs at the same venues since coming to Wellington. I've been using a spreadsheet to keep track of what I play where, and the names of the people I meet. I'm starting to run out of original songs that I haven't played yet, but the good news is that I'm writing more as I go. It's really good motivation, because now I have a goal in mind: to finish and memorize two songs for open mic next Wednesday. It's quite possible that I'll have three ready, because I finished one yesterday, and have two more that are almost done. Mind you, it's the memorizing that will be the tricky part.
Another observation about cats: they can, and often do, use their hind feet as pillows. I think that's pretty sweet.
Right Place, Right Time.
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 5:38 PM Comments: (0)
I played at Open Mic at the Fringe Bar on Tuesday. After I performed, I was approached by a local radio show host named Terry Shore. He asked me some questions about my original songs, and after some discussion, he said that he needed someone for his radio show for the next morning. A last-mintue cancellation opened up a spot, and he asked me if I could do 5 songs the next day at 10:00am.
It was a bit rough waking up early for the first time in a while, but it was worth it. It was a lot of fun, and a good experience for me, since I haven't had much experience singing until lately. I sang 5 original songs, interspersed with some interview clips. It's airing in Wellington at 2:30pm on Saturday, but it will be available online eventually as well. I'll post a link as soon as I can.
This is all further proof that Wellington is an awesome city.
It was a bit rough waking up early for the first time in a while, but it was worth it. It was a lot of fun, and a good experience for me, since I haven't had much experience singing until lately. I sang 5 original songs, interspersed with some interview clips. It's airing in Wellington at 2:30pm on Saturday, but it will be available online eventually as well. I'll post a link as soon as I can.
This is all further proof that Wellington is an awesome city.
I call it..."Song-taking"
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 5:15 PM Comments: (0)
Wednesday morning, I awoke around 4am to the sound of a bird I had never heard before. And it kept singing its tune, and it was damn catchy. So in the darkness of way-too-early morning, I scribbled some mostly legible notes in my music notebook. I returned to sleep, and in the morning, I had myself a sweet bass line, plagiarized from nature itself. Now I just have to wait for a bird to sing me a sweet chorus, and I'll have myself a song.
Tomorrow I have to get a new new bank card. I forgot which pin I selected for my new account, and in the process of trying to figure out which of my regular pins I chose, the bank machine ate my card for security reasons. Classic. As a side note, I will also spend part of tomorrow editing a script for a comedy that's going to be shot in Auckland, New Zealand. Seriously.
Oh, and it's Guy Fawkes Night here in New Zealand, which for me means that we celebrate yet another movie starring Natalie Portman. With fireworks.
Tomorrow I have to get a new new bank card. I forgot which pin I selected for my new account, and in the process of trying to figure out which of my regular pins I chose, the bank machine ate my card for security reasons. Classic. As a side note, I will also spend part of tomorrow editing a script for a comedy that's going to be shot in Auckland, New Zealand. Seriously.
Oh, and it's Guy Fawkes Night here in New Zealand, which for me means that we celebrate yet another movie starring Natalie Portman. With fireworks.
It's Cold.
Posted by Ryan Holaday at 1:48 AM Comments: (0)
I have neglected to write about the weather here, and it's truly something that requires some attention. It's cold. And not because it's actually all that cold. The high today was 14 degrees, which is 5 degrees warmer than Saskatoon today. The catch is that it's the temperature both outside and inside my house. We don't have a furnace here. We have small space heaters in each of our rooms, but when people leave for the day, they open all the windows and let the house air out. My flatmates are used to that here, whereas I am used to my house being a small bubble of hot air amidst the cold weather.
I'm slowly adjusting to the cold here, but I do wish that I had packed more warm clothing. I was not anticipating the spring to be so bone-chillingly cold. I suppose the humidity helps to magnify the cold, too. Luckily, the best solution seems to be to get out of the house and go for a walk. Every time I go downtown, I return sweating a bit from the climb up the hill.
I'm slowly adjusting to the cold here, but I do wish that I had packed more warm clothing. I was not anticipating the spring to be so bone-chillingly cold. I suppose the humidity helps to magnify the cold, too. Luckily, the best solution seems to be to get out of the house and go for a walk. Every time I go downtown, I return sweating a bit from the climb up the hill.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)