Of the Wandering Floret Albums, I put the least amount of thought into the theme of this one, having some of the Octology's shortest and weirdest songs. However, I don't think the likeability of my work is dependant on the amount of attention I put into it. In fact, I'm well aware of the patterns and formulas that can make a nerds-only piece of a crap into something as enjoyable as it is forgettable.
Most the songs for this album were recorded on my Nickelodeon boom box in the bathroom at 165 M. L. King Avenue in Saint Augustine. Our house never got an official name, which was probably for the best. I would have ended up hating it and feeling misrepresented by it, or something like that. Regarding the album, the songs are all romantic. You might like them.
I thought this number of the Octology had a lot of hits on it, and a lot of acoustic guitar, embodying the formula I was trying for with Super Famicom. I would start with a finger-picked guitar riff, and use half that riff for the chorus and the other half for the verse. Then I'd add two verses, using the last two lines at the chorus, and then add layers to make each verse different. If simple yet weird hits are your thang, this is the album for you.
Of the Octology, this is the only album that made anyone go out of their to tell me how they don't like it. It's my first Super Famicom album of all heavy songs. It's kind of sloppy, but I always attributed that to the sludge factor. Despite the sludge, all the tracks are fairly poppy and catchy, which to me, make it all the more unique, and therefore, more special.
This album was shorter than I meant for it to be, considering how fun it was to make. It's a collection of pop rock songs with acoustic guitar, drums, and bass. My first time playing drums on an album, and I wanted to stick with this theme, and stick to the eight song format. Someday I'll compensate for the shortness of this "full-length" by releasing one that's much longer than your wildest dreams.
For the Wandering Floret Octology, I'd planned for a different labels to put out each one. Most of these labels were brand new, or only had a couple releases. My records weren't finished until a month before August eight, and it seemed like I should go ahead and copy most of these cds myself instead of expecting anyone to rush a release of my cd-r. Most of the tracks for this part were used my Peavey T-15 guitar plugged directly into my four track. For one of the tracks, I used a cup and a cooler of water for the percussion. It's been brought to my attention that I should do more of that for my future releases. As you may have noticed, the Wandering Floret Octology is the only release which I elected to have someone else to do the art for. It was all done by my friend Jon Carling, who I met one time. He hosted a Saturday Morning Cartoon Show in the bay area, and had me as a musical guest. I thought that was pretty cool, and I also liked his work.
You can check out more of it at his website: http://www.joncarling.com
When planning the Wandering Floret Octology, to be released on August Eighth, Two Thousand Eight (on 888), I had a story concept in mind for the lyrics. It was a story about a young woman who had committed herself for life, to tend to a certain magical garden. Unable to leave this garden, her use to the outside world was gone. She was dead to the world. Useless, and reflecting on this sad truth. However, there were plants in this garden that, within them existed a mass of entirely new worlds. Part 1 was the last set of songs with which I used my half sized acoustic guitar. It needed to be tuned so high to be intonated, and the neck was badly bowing. I used a lot of weird sounding percussion on these tracks, and I think it sounds cool, sloppy but cool. Lost Sound Tapes made a tape of this, but I think for the release show, I made cd-rs. For the PJ Records page, I thought I'd check to see if Lost Sound Tapes had any copies available, but it seems they've erased any evidence of me having ever had a release with them. As if my day in the sun decided to have never been. So it goes.
Fire Island, AK was a solo project of a guy named Thomas, who at the time (I think) lived in North Carolina. Most of my friends in the freaky folky scene, including myself, were fans of Thomas's music. It was dark, ambient, and translated well when played with an acoustic guitar. However, I'm not sure if I know anyone who's met the guy who made the music. There wasn't a ton of communication about this split. My side was more hit-oriented, and Thomas's was more experimental and longer. Either way, I made a cd-r of this split and I think it'd pretty good. I think all of my songs from it were recorded in Bloomington Indiana, at a house called The Lattice of Coincidence.
Stream it - YouTube Download it - Nextcloud Here is yet another album from Super Famicom, my solo project since the year 2002. As ...
