david hill

actually it’s not a song…it’s a piece. A piece of what, you might ask? It is a piece of the jungle…162 beats a minute. We could say it is a kind of jungle music – there certainly isn’t any proper singing in this one. Originally I was going to call it jungle amp because I was drinking a Mountain Dew Amp when the inspiration hit, then it went to jungle boogie – and, well, here we are. This was – admittedly a strange day musically. I was working on one hand on the fastest song I have done to date – “don’t feed the drummer”- @ 162 beats a minute. I was also getting ready for next Wednesdays Wallop – which turned out being a reggae / dub groove clocking in at 60 beats a minute, yes – my slowest song to date…what?…then I was working on another song with Rick – which was an acoustic strumming number – featuring his spectacular voice and songwriting skills… you get the idea.

Anyway, back to todays WW – dftd has a lot of strange effects, from its gigantic winged intro – landing, to the last severed wire, blips, screeches, frantic, and I do mean frantic drums, djembe solo, zweeps, Über panning – throughout the whole piece, backwards masking, polyrhythms a feedback crescendo that would make Angus Young blush…it is probably more an attitude than a song per se.. Fasten your seat belt. Step right up – one at a time – no pushing please…listen to stream here . Download here.

I do have a bit of a time crunch happening right now, as we (myself and some family) are planning on going to Texas this week (Friday). I am working on 2 songs for the Weekly Wallop as I will not have access to my studio next week, and I am working on a new gig producing a cable TV jingle and sound bed for an infomercial. I also have a guest coming in to record some songs of his own Wednesday – and my own band is going to practice. Right. You know the old saying – if you want to get something done – give it to the busy guy.

really cutting this one to the wire…I was looking through my audio sketches, and saw “bacon song” and the rough vocal track was there. I remember I had this idea while I was upstairs cooking bacon, and I had to hurry and get in down – before the bacon burned …this is one of the reasons I think it is important to have a user friendly recording environment – switch, switch – record – done…. I finally had a chance to work it out in this weeks WW (Wednesday Wallop) I tried some different drum grooves and simply wasn’t happy until I hit this fat stompin house kick, a kind of 4 on the floor – with complementary bass. the water and wine lyric fell into place as the chorus came together…I originally wanted to do a megaphone type vocal – but not really sure I pulled it off…anyway…In case you are wondering – I am not a music snob, I am happy to try almost anything if it might make the idea work – same with equipment – I will use almost anything, and sometimes do, to execute the idea. lyrics here…listen here And download here.

I have to tell you, this song posed some new challenges. It was one of the first songs I did where I sat down and kind of felt like just going out to the hot tub and saying…why bother? There was not a particular reason, it was just one of those motivational challenges. No inspiration, no enthusiasm, no motivation – and that folks is a recipe for trouble no matter what you are trying to finish. Thankfully I managed to roll up my sleeves and catch a wave…and what a wave we have here today. Lay it down…Some of the notable firsts; very chillin groove, clocking in at 63 beats per minute, any of you drummers out there know that a slow groove is hard to maintain – and that was the case here. If you have a decent stereo system and get the cd audio (when I make it available), you will find your house rumblin from the bass on this song- very full and clean low end there… I decided to beef cake the outro with a kind of drum solo – but in order to keep the vibe I had to really mix down the drums…it almost sounds like a thunderstorm to me. I let it go vocally too on the outro – why not? So, you can hear the song here . You can download it here. The lyrics are here. Finally – I have been told that I need to take care of the player / lyrics issue, i.e. – when you play the song and click the lyrics the song stops – the way around this is to have 2 browsers open – I will try to get set up so the lyrics just sit in the window – if anyone of you has an easy solution I’m all ears.

this song started out with an experimental drum sound I’ve been chasing – then with the ring of the snare being more or less in the key of the song, the decision was made to emphasize that, and save the other sound for another day… there was a total 4 mics on the snare (top, bottom, off center – floor, room), and to me it sits good in the mix…as the lyrics were worked out I found myself enjoying the harmonizing…I might have gotten carried away – but it was fun to do. There was also something I am calling subtractive drumming…there is probably a proper musical name for it – but it is essentially doing less rather than more…instead of a fill pause – instead of a build, silence. I also really fought the desire to play anything other than straight 2 and 4 on the drums…it was hard to do. This might be a subliminal revolt against hotbeds extravagance – dunno… There is a total of 1 cymbal crash on this song, and I believe 1 kick drum fill (gasp) – the bridge introduces a rather hyper panned drum fill – which you can decide if it balances the rest nicely…you can decide that right? I’m not going to get a lot into the rest of the song – if you read around my blog you should have a good idea about what “dust and divine” is getting at…and the music on this is very straightforward too… anyway – this is dust and divine, you can stream it here . You can read the lyrics here. Those of you desiring so can download the song in mp3 here.

this is a song I started in September…it has about 20 different drum / percussion tracks – a tuba bass line, horns galore, clarinet, whistles, marimba, and a general feeling of New Orleans…aiming for and hitting that vibe I hope. I did not have a lot of time to spend on this one- as we got back from Europe yesterday at 2:30 a.m. – not to seek pity, but I am sick too, and feel it crawling into my lungs…hey – you do what you gotta do right? Lyrics will be forthcoming. Listen here

The definition for squank is (as defined by the urban dictionary);

1.(n.)An unseen energy or force said to be the basis of all music creativity. From pre-macedonian lore related to those that are deeply driven by musical ambition.

example;

It must be the squank that drives those musicians to play with so much heart and passion.

personally I believe that any time anything good is created, it comes from the creative core (God Himself)…but if you have read this blog for any length of time you know who that would be, and how I see this. It is an old story of musicians creating music and taking the praise onto themselves…as if they have the ability to create a single thing without God giving them what they have. I think deep down most musicians know this, and that is hard to ignore, especially when one tries to deny the existence of God from the get go. However, anything that falls short must needs be taken on my own back as my own imperfections…right? I mean after all – music is moving air, and there are a lot of ways to do that… … I named this piece squank – because it feels squanky, it has undertones of squank – a certain squankish flavor if you will.
This song is a bit frantic, and the sounds seem to me appropriate for the week, air raid sirens, technology amock, backward masking, scream of rage, a synthesized voice with the only lyrics…”drum”, “the drumbeat goers like this”, and “funky drummer”.. There is in my life currently a concern for an acquaintance possibly using drugs (a complete surprise to me), a grandfather dying, haste in overseas plans and preparation, and a seeming deluge of other distractions, and so these sounds come into my mind. this is less a song and more a mood. It is definitely a departure, but I did enjoy it, and may visit the land of some of these genres more. I haven’t really ever been a big euro / techie guy – but there is a vibe to explored in some of this. Probably not many will like this…is it good? For me to say something is good means it is what I meant it to be. After that too many variables come into play – and I would rather not go there. Without further ado – I present to you, squank.

this was a rough one….dogs barking during vox takes, lyrical uncertainties, questionable motivations, issues swarmed around….. unblinking – I forged ahead and will have to release it. Now, of course, you might say “you don’t have to release it”…I don’t, you are right, but I want to do a song a week remember? This was one of the more dangerous moments in the continuity hazard though. You can listen to the new song “so this is love” here
You can read the lyrics here. You can download the song here.

it has been a very fascinating journey through Ezekiel. I am in chapter 14 now, and considering the warnings God gave to Jerusalem… I also think on applications in my own life, especially idols in my heart. God would have us all put Him first, because if we don’t, we are easily led astray and hurt. I find so many parallels with our times, and the amazing thing is that I haven’t even hit the famous chapters that are so popular with students of prophecy. Chuck Missler said Ezekiel is one of the least read books of the old testament. I have no idea why – unless it is because we see God so clearly in Ezekiel that the enemy would not want us to be informed. It is a book for today. Lessons leap out at every turn. Further, the bible is such a wonderful book in its consistency and truthfulness. Running parallels from the old testament up through Revelation is inspiring. 66 books, 80 men and thousands of years working with 1 author in God, WOW. If anyone is interested in the online audio I am using in this study – the link is here.

this song is a pretty upbeat little number. May it put a smile on your face. I had the good pleasure of collaborating with Matt Leonetti, and he laid down the Hammond (much appreciated)… I have a confession to make. I don’t know what I am doing. There. I said it. I don’t know chords, I don’t know music theory, it takes me a long time to make the one man band stuff sound like a group. In a way it is strange – because I think one of the strongest “urges” or “ïmpulses” I have is to write songs. I have many, many songs, and that is one of the reasons I want to try to write a song a week for a year…to see what comes out. BTW, if you did not know it – that is the musical P.A.W. (piece a week) initiative. I am still looking for something catchy in the name, if you have something please let me know. this song officially marks number 5…how many weeks to go? 47? Here is glorious day, if you want to listen to it .
Here are the lyrics, and as always – if you want to download – head on over to the music page. You might wonder why I am doing this…i’ll be honest, I am trying to figure out how to turn this little webspace into a kind of storefront…yaknow – to make money… (now you probably really think I am delusional)…it’s true. If you want to help me – buy something…all online transactions are secure (paypal, google checkout etc)