Finally finished this song, the first one with Logic Express 8 and an electronic drumset. Took me forever to set up the drumset, long story. And I have so many toys at my disposal now that I’ve been fiddling with this song endlessly. But I gotta finish something. Much more thought out than other recordings, but problems here and there that could be better.
I think I’m out of practice not playing in a band for so long. Gives me new appreciation for musicians who are able to play any kind of music flawlessly. I’ll get better at this. Quit denigrating myself. Here it is.
A remake of this song, posted last year. Man, I don’t remember it being that slow:
Come One
lyrics:
come on inside
sit by the fire
it’s on tv
and we can make believe
we’re watching news.
let’s take a ride
on our hard drive
we’ll cure the virus
spreading like the measles
of our youth
don’t we both just paint a picture
of people don’t want to be known
two people will make one except if
that person doesn’t reach out
to the only one they know
come on we’ll
reap what we scythe
and sleep through the night
at home
come on we’ll
seem like we’re right
and be who we want
to know
come on let’s fight
about our life
we’ll reach a truce
when we realize the world
is not alone
it’s a delight
to be alive
in time we’ll find that we
can be on top of
what we love
March 20, 2008
March 10, 2008
Preorder
New template and news. My novel, The Golden Calf, is ready for preorder.
People say about it:
“This pacy, tightly written novel is like ‘Taxi Driver’ meets Charles Bukowski’s Factotum.”
-Uncut
“An amusing, persuasive insight into obsession, stalking and the disintegration of sanity. Highly recommended to anyone with a bitter hatred of Tom Cruise and Hollywood stars in general.”
-Butterfly
“A marvel of pace and comic timing….Much of Baum’s narrative bears a similarity to Dostoevsky’s Notes from the Underground.”
-Daily Telegraph
“With a superb narrative control, Baum paints a portrait of male dysfunction set to explode.”
-The List
“Ray is nearly as good a portrait of post-collegiate angst as has been painted so far.”
-New York Press
“Explores the hazy junction where the teeth of the daily grind sink into the day-dreamt certainties of life’s true bell-head sounds.”
-Lee Ranaldo, member of Sonic Youth
People say about it:
“This pacy, tightly written novel is like ‘Taxi Driver’ meets Charles Bukowski’s Factotum.”
-Uncut
“An amusing, persuasive insight into obsession, stalking and the disintegration of sanity. Highly recommended to anyone with a bitter hatred of Tom Cruise and Hollywood stars in general.”
-Butterfly
“A marvel of pace and comic timing….Much of Baum’s narrative bears a similarity to Dostoevsky’s Notes from the Underground.”
-Daily Telegraph
“With a superb narrative control, Baum paints a portrait of male dysfunction set to explode.”
-The List
“Ray is nearly as good a portrait of post-collegiate angst as has been painted so far.”
-New York Press
“Explores the hazy junction where the teeth of the daily grind sink into the day-dreamt certainties of life’s true bell-head sounds.”
-Lee Ranaldo, member of Sonic Youth
February 28, 2008
3 AM
I’m in this, a story, “Thirteen Mississippi.” I haven’t seen it yet, but it’s available here. Thanks to 3AM and Social Disease.
If anyone’s wondering what I’m up to: I have plans to post some music here soon but it’s taking a while. Now that I’ve decided to take songwriting more seriously, and I can play anything I want to: drums, strings, whatever, I’ve become a fairly insane perfectionist. I’m on, like, the eighth draft of the same song. I need to admit that it might not be possible to record a totally clean recording by myself. I’m thinking of a Dinosaur Jr. record called “Whatever’s Cool with Me,” where J. Mascis plays the drums. The drums are strangely, but interestingly, off. I’m deep into it, though, and enjoying it, the main thing I think about. Anyway, I hope to have something done in the next week or so.
If anyone’s wondering what I’m up to: I have plans to post some music here soon but it’s taking a while. Now that I’ve decided to take songwriting more seriously, and I can play anything I want to: drums, strings, whatever, I’ve become a fairly insane perfectionist. I’m on, like, the eighth draft of the same song. I need to admit that it might not be possible to record a totally clean recording by myself. I’m thinking of a Dinosaur Jr. record called “Whatever’s Cool with Me,” where J. Mascis plays the drums. The drums are strangely, but interestingly, off. I’m deep into it, though, and enjoying it, the main thing I think about. Anyway, I hope to have something done in the next week or so.
February 8, 2008
January 29, 2008
Van Halen!
Oh man, this is one of the most amazing things I’ve heard online. David Lee Roth’s vocals isolated for “Runnin’ with the Devil.” Click it, amazing. He’s like John Coltrane playing three notes at once. How in the hell does he do that with his voice?
Runnin with the Devil (via)
After reading DLR’s autobiography a couple months ago, I got obsessed with Van Halen. Played every record. Found good Youtube stuff. Like Ice Cream Man.
Or Eddie Van Halen, wasted, destroying a guitar.
I’d love to see them live, way cooler than seeing Led Zeppelin reform, they ain’t nothing without John Bonham.
Been listening to more drum-heavy music, now that I've got a drumset. Almost got it working. Almost. Sort of painful getting it set up. I'll probably write a review of my drum set-up because I've been nerding so heavily about V-drums and software. Playing drums again has been a nice sense memory of what it was like when I was 25. Don't know what you've been missing til you've got it back. Realize it was the main thing keeping me from considering myself as a songwriter. Always thought a band would come down the pike at some point, time in a recording studio, but I kind of like the idea of playing everything myself. Recording to come soon. I may sign up for this.
Runnin with the Devil (via)
After reading DLR’s autobiography a couple months ago, I got obsessed with Van Halen. Played every record. Found good Youtube stuff. Like Ice Cream Man.
Or Eddie Van Halen, wasted, destroying a guitar.
I’d love to see them live, way cooler than seeing Led Zeppelin reform, they ain’t nothing without John Bonham.
Been listening to more drum-heavy music, now that I've got a drumset. Almost got it working. Almost. Sort of painful getting it set up. I'll probably write a review of my drum set-up because I've been nerding so heavily about V-drums and software. Playing drums again has been a nice sense memory of what it was like when I was 25. Don't know what you've been missing til you've got it back. Realize it was the main thing keeping me from considering myself as a songwriter. Always thought a band would come down the pike at some point, time in a recording studio, but I kind of like the idea of playing everything myself. Recording to come soon. I may sign up for this.
January 28, 2008
Darryl's Library
North of Sunset has a new review, possibly the last one, a good one, by Darryl Sloan, author of the novel Chion. He digs the character of Detective Stein. A lot of people have told me that, don’t like that he doesn’t get a final word.
He also offered to make North of Sunset a free download. I actually tried to change the download cost at Lulu, but they wouldn’t let me. This is better, comes with this nice graphic. Click it to download and read the PDF.
He also offered to make North of Sunset a free download. I actually tried to change the download cost at Lulu, but they wouldn’t let me. This is better, comes with this nice graphic. Click it to download and read the PDF.
January 17, 2008
Hollywood
I wish the fucking writer’s strike would end already. I’ve still got a screenplay lying dormant.
Meanwhile, yes, Tom Cruise is a lunatic. That look in his eyes throughout this interview is everything North of Sunset is about.
Someone should give me a million dollars for being prescient about celebrity. 2007 was the year of the celebrity meltdown. I am getting published though, so good news there. Here’s the initial sketch for the re-release of The Golden Calf:
Meanwhile, yes, Tom Cruise is a lunatic. That look in his eyes throughout this interview is everything North of Sunset is about.
Someone should give me a million dollars for being prescient about celebrity. 2007 was the year of the celebrity meltdown. I am getting published though, so good news there. Here’s the initial sketch for the re-release of The Golden Calf:
January 10, 2008
Notes
A note to everyone, RW Hedges record, which I reviewed, is out now. The best record I’ve heard in years.
Meanwhile, I’ve become totally obsessed with the election, much like 2004, much to my wife’s chagrin, an election which crushed me emotionally. Some zealotry for Obama here.
Thirdly, I just went into debt and bought a drumset, which is seriously going to change my recording life.
Still figuring it out how to make it talk to Logic Express 8, which I also bought, but drums are the main thing that’s been holding me back. I’m a drummer first, before being a songwriter. I just could never get a song to sound like I wanted it to sound.
Meanwhile, I’ve become totally obsessed with the election, much like 2004, much to my wife’s chagrin, an election which crushed me emotionally. Some zealotry for Obama here.
Thirdly, I just went into debt and bought a drumset, which is seriously going to change my recording life.
Still figuring it out how to make it talk to Logic Express 8, which I also bought, but drums are the main thing that’s been holding me back. I’m a drummer first, before being a songwriter. I just could never get a song to sound like I wanted it to sound.
January 3, 2008
Resolution
Happy New Year. I’ve got resolutions:
1. Record a lot of music
2. Make headway on my novel
3. Don’t fuck around anymore
I’ve had three blog entries written in the past coupla weeks and I haven’t posted them, which says something. I just don’t want to put anything too nakedly confessional right now, creeps me out too much. Don’t know want to spread myself too thin maybe. But the reason I’ve sort of resurrected the blog is because I’m going to start posting music here again. Probably what I’ll use it for primarily. I just bought myself a copy of Logic Express 8 for Christmas. Amazing, $100 new on Ebay. I’m going to get my songs done right finally. I listened back to some of my songs and I’m sort of embarrassed by their sloppiness. The stuff I’ve posted so far is pretty thin, demos, half-ideas. I need to put in the same kind of time I’ve put into other writing. For some reason, it’s taken me this long to figure that out.
1. Record a lot of music
2. Make headway on my novel
3. Don’t fuck around anymore
I’ve had three blog entries written in the past coupla weeks and I haven’t posted them, which says something. I just don’t want to put anything too nakedly confessional right now, creeps me out too much. Don’t know want to spread myself too thin maybe. But the reason I’ve sort of resurrected the blog is because I’m going to start posting music here again. Probably what I’ll use it for primarily. I just bought myself a copy of Logic Express 8 for Christmas. Amazing, $100 new on Ebay. I’m going to get my songs done right finally. I listened back to some of my songs and I’m sort of embarrassed by their sloppiness. The stuff I’ve posted so far is pretty thin, demos, half-ideas. I need to put in the same kind of time I’ve put into other writing. For some reason, it’s taken me this long to figure that out.
December 19, 2007
Jim O'Rourke w/ Sonic Youth
I had a whole Jim O’Rourke fanboy post written but never posted it, for whatever reason. I was seriously obsessed with him for a while a couple of months ago, reading everything I could. He even wrote back to me on Myspace. That is cool, even if it wasn’t really him—a fake Jim O’Rourke wrote to me! That’s the kind of fanboy I became. That post’ll have to come later. Today, surfing around, bored, trying not to work, I found this of him playing with Sonic Youth, a great performance from one of my favorite Sonic Youth records, nicely symphonic:
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