How He Loves Video

We used to play the song for hours at a time and each time we would see how much louder we could play the chorus. We broke a lot of strings and drum heads. We were a mess but it was a beautiful one.

I love this version of the song because it makes me feel the way I did when I first wrote it seven years ago.

You get the entire video for free when you buy "Skeleton Bones" on iTunes for $1.29.

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Check these guys out: Songs Of Water

If you're looking for something that is truley unique, moving, and all together worshipful, this is it. Songs of Water is one of my favorite bands in the world, and they're releasing a new album on March 26. I honestly couldn't be more excited.

Please check them out and if your in the Charlotte area on March 26, go t0 their CD release show and pick up the new album.

www.myspace.com/songsofwater
www.songsofwater.com


Here's what By Beth Yeckley at the Blue Indian had to say about them :

I think sometimes, when we judge music, it becomes easy to weigh the value of an album based on its lyrical content. I would go as far to say that often times, the integrity of the instrumentation is overshadowed by the emotions laced within the lyrics. That being said, Songs Of Water’s forthcoming sophomore album, The Sea Has Spoken, is one of the most vibrant musical works I have heard in the last three years. Mostly without lyrics, the music produces a unique language, allowing the violin to tell a story or the mandolin to share a dance; the fiddle to take you on a journey or the percussion to beat beneath your skin.
At first glance, Songs Of Water, which is an eight-member band ranging in talent from the hacky sack to the shruti box, is akin to bands like Old School Freight Train, Nickel Creek, and Punch Brothers. It’s that easily recognizable folk experience, deeply rooted in the belly of a banjo and refined by the elegance of a violin. But the breadth and ability of this band is so much more than that.

The Sea Has Spoken begins with “Everything That Rises,” which starts off with the hammered dulcimer, then layers a foundation for the violin to become the focal point of the song. Played by both Marta Richardson and Luke Skaggs, the violin also becomes the cynosure in songs like “Bread and Circus” and “Sycamore.” But let’s talk more about the hammered dulcimer. It’s described as an “Appalachian folk instrument,” but I don’t think that quite gives it justice. In the right hands, which happen to be Steven Roach’s, the instrument can produce sounds that mimic the robustness of bagpipes, the fluidity of the piano, the dropping of rain on a tin roof, and still be crisp enough to remind you that it’s made of strings.

“Window Seat” is one the songs I was most intrigued by because of the shift in focus towards the guitar and the creation of a flair found in more Spanish-influenced music, like that of Rodrigo y Gabriela. This sound is even more prominent on the song “Luminitsa,” and is due in large part to the influence of Jason Windsor, whose range of play on the strings is remarkable. Also of note, “The Great Russian Catastrophe” is just one of the songs that drifts away from folk and instead carries a more Eastern melody involving the domra (think Russian mandolin). The sound of the strings is so distinct and rich, it leaves the taste of metal on your tongue.

*Editor’s Note: The author would like to clarify that the Spanish-influenced music addressed in songs like “Window Seat” and “Luminitsa.” was due to guitar play by both Jason Windsor and Greg Willette, respectively.

The band is experimental, too, showing signs of curiosity and texture building in songs like, “Beneath The Sleeping City” and “Belly Of The Whale,” which use sounds of shoes striking sidewalks and heavy percussion fused with chime-like noises.

“Sycamore” is the first time we hear lyrics, and it happens again on the final song, “Willow.” Roach’s singing is soft and muffled in static, but becomes clear and high as the song goes on. I love the harmonizing of Sarah Stephens, and was pleasantly surprised to hear the vocals drape over the instrumentation without tainting the music.

As you listen to The Sea Has Spoken, you’ll find that the depth of each song creates a kaleidoscope effect. Wherein, at one moment you feel that you are walking on a cliff against the sea, and the next you find yourself meandering through a circus tent. I love lyrics as much as the next person, but find myself incredibly moved and enraptured by the work of Songs Of Water.

"I've got my finger on the trigger, but I don't know who to trust"

Now that's how to write a song.

Springsteen isn't trying to impress you with his writing. Rather he's attempting to draw you into a conversation. That's why I think the song "Devils and Dust" is one of the greatest anti-war songs ever written. It's so good, you may not even realize it's an anti-war song, and that is exactly what makes it so effective.

By assuming the point of view of a soldier, Bruce creates a statement without marginalizing anyone in the process. Instead of nailing people in the face with an opinion, he paints pictures that require the listener to ask questions. I'm sure Bruce hopes these questions will lead you to his same conclusions, but he leaves it up to you.

Springsteen certainly isn't the originator of this approach. Neither is Dylan or even Shakespeare. King David uses it in his most famous Psalm "23", where he assumes the role of a sheep. And as a communicator, Jesus applied it almost exclusively (Mathew 13:34).

So take a tip from Jesus, and Springsteen: Tell a story. If people are smart, they'll get it, and I think people are smarter than we give them credit for. Don't you?

Meet Ana Lucia

She is my brand new custom Elliott, Peter Stroud Signature, Tone Master guitar.

There's something about hearing a new tone, and feeling new vibration in your arms that cause the creative juices to move. This morning when I picked her up for a few minutes I swear I could hear a hundred songs in her. Ideas wouldn't leave me alone. With me, it's "feast or famine" when it comes to writing. I'm either working on 10 ideas or I've got nothing at all. This morning the 10 ideas showed up. Hopefully, I'll have time to sit down and catch one.

I can't help thinking, did the songs existed in her when she looked like this, just six weeks ago?


BTW, I did, in fact, name her after the chick from lost.