Posts Tagged ‘music’

Attrrraaaactors

Friday, May 8th, 2009

Photographer and friend Amelia Dowd treated us to an impromptu photoshoot last Thursday, just before we had to rush onto the Ric’s stage and play.

Still waiting on the final photos, planned to serve as promo for when we play Live Spark at the Powerhouse in June, she posted up a few teasers.

Anticipation awaits.

The Strange Attractors

The Jonestown Show

Monday, September 1st, 2008

Last Wednesday has slipped away into memory, what memory remains at least. Glad of the fact that unlike some who attended, mine seems relatively intact, and free from too many distortions, aside from those inherent. An experience can be lived but once, through coloured glass filters; though its populous imprint on the mind can be readily called upon to grace consciousness time after time.

A pre-party was planned, Corey & Yolande’s palace in the Valley. Only a small gathering was expected, but as it unravelled, more and more bodies slowly sauntered in, filling to capacity. With them came the cigarettes and other stimulants, a cloud hanging like fallout over the preparatory daze of smiling faces, awaiting. Drinks enough and we were off, a bottle or two in hand.

Everyone was there at The Arena, all good company. Seems the somewhat elusive Brian Jonestown Massacre had slipped inside many a mind, making certain they wouldn’t want to miss bearing witness to this spectacle, not for the world. And so the night drew on, the people stumbled, and the Jonestown boys played to ears ablaze.

From a few rows back I stood watching, absorbing, a few times puling the camera out to record some snapshots in time. Also manage to catch some commotion video, nailing honey to the bee.

Evil genuis show, no encore for the sake of one; respecible in light of our apparent tameness as an audience. Tambourine James is following them to New Zealand to learn a few moves. Catch them if you can.

The BJM
The BJM at The Arena

Learning to Climb the Stairway to Heaven

Sunday, August 24th, 2008

Usually one of the first songs learned by the budding guitarist, I however only just decided a few days ago that it was about bloody time I actually learnt how to play Stairway to Heaven, now that I’ve started geting into Led Zeppelin a little more.

So Stairway is from their fourth album, which I keep telling Fletch is their best, but he won’t have any of it — although admittedly, I’m yet to hear his favourite, Led Zeppelin III, in order to compare. Hope to acquire it sometime soon.

To learn, I thought I might see if there were any tutorial videos on YouTube. I found one, but the guy seemed to be getting it obviously wrong in a few places. What better time to do my own video than while I’m learning myself? So I found a tab which seems to be passably accurate, and set up my camera.

Only just getting my fingers around the introduction right now. It’s quite a well crafted piece I must say; hats off to Jimmy Page.

Here’s the tab for the first part of the into anyway:

E-------5-7-----7-|-8-----8-2-----2-|-0---------0-----|-----------------|
B-----5-----5-----|---5-------4-----|---1---1-----1---|---1-1-----------|
G---5---------5---|-----5-------2---|-----2---------2-|-0-2-2-----------|
D-7-------6-------|-5-------4-------|-3---------------|-----------------|
A-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-2-0-0---0--/8-7-|
E-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|

And the video:

Enjoy! More to come…

An Enemy

Thursday, May 22nd, 2008

So it seems I have unwittingly found myself fronting this psychedelic band called The Strange Attractors for just about a year now, ups and down and all, and still I seem stumped at what to tell people when they ask about it, so it usually comes out just the same old stuff, when what I really want to say is… I’m not sure. It has played a permanent role in the direction of existence however these past few months. What I’m still trying to figure out is if it is an enemy or a friend.

The group is still evolving, like all else, and we’re still to record a proper album. A video emerged on our YouTube channel the other day, something from a recent rehearsal: a cover of Anenome by The Brian Jonestown Massacre. See for yourself.

Climbing The Wonderwall

Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

I’ve been keeping an eye on Oasis’ Wonderwall song in the last.fm charts for quite some time now.

Before the whole Radiohead digital only release and subsequent digital only releases from other bands which seem to be skewing the charts a bit, just due to the nature of last.fm audioscrobbling software counting only tracks played on a computer, Wonderwall would often be up there usually within the top 10 or top 5.

Even now, the track still regularly places up and amongst all these newly released tracks.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love the track, and am glad that it is up there. I do however find it kind of an anomaly.

Any thoughts?

It’s currently at number 19, but last week it placed at number 9. Seems to have been pushed back by the Portisehead release.

http://www.last.fm/charts

The Royalty Engineers

Friday, April 25th, 2008

While taking a forced break from recording due to unforeseen software issues, I decided to turn my hand to the other side of band life, the organisation and chaos.

Updating The Strange Attractors on Last.fm there was a little notice saying that they are now going to start paying royalties for music played on Last.fm. I signed up immediately, although I think I’m going to have to expand my catalogue a little beyond the three demo tracks before any real revenue starts streaming in. Dreams of a new music label are still unevolved in the mind, but they’re getting there.

With the music economy in a wave of confusion, this is a major step in the right direction.

Keep listening.

Lennongrad

Monday, April 21st, 2008

Words and music by Joshua J Byrd for The Strange Attractors.

Verse:
Lennon prayed we’d join him some day
Imagining a better way,
But it seems we’ve got a long long way to go.

If heaven is a magic pie
Waiting for us to pass it by,
Imagine if we all believed in you.

Bridge:
Because I feel, the way you do,
And I need you, to be there too.
Cause now I feel, the way you do.
And in your head, you know I’m talking to you.

Verse:
Hey John sing me a song.
I need to hear, It Won’t Be Long,
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Cause I am he, but she’s not free
To go on living eternally,
Just like the time you saw her standing there.

Bridge:
Because I feel, the way you do,
And I need you, to be there too.
Cause now I feel, the way you do.
I’m in your head, and yes I’m talking to you.

Outro:
Na, na na
Na, na na
Na, na na
Na, na na na

Join us.

Na, na na
Na, na na
Na, na na
Na, na na na

May need a touch more work. Will get to that later.

Junk Posting

Tuesday, April 8th, 2008

To fill that canyon void between true quality, sometimes there must become a little bit of junk. This is the first of the experiment with junk posts on this quasi-blog type thing. No real aim, but to create and fill. Oft times it is the mass of filling that makes the other so good.

I am not talking automatic writing here, and will leave that to another day.

Anyway, what did I do today? Not much, just working mainly. Thinking back, thismorning Jasper awakened me with her meowing. For lunch I headed down to Sakura Sushi. Still failing in my attempts to get Jerry to try it. I finished chapter twenty-nine of Great Expectations, experiencing Pip’s first adult falling for the now-fully-grown Estella.

Had a call from The Strange Attractors‘ prospective bass player. Things seem almost to be coming together.

Unsure of where all this junk will lead me tonight.

Coming up for AIR

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

Shyla said she had two spare tickets to see AIR play that night. Somewhere in The Valley she said, the Tivoli maybe. Some quick googling proved her right. The tickets were in her name, so she handed over some non-photo id and we prepared for some undercover work, only to have our cover crumble when we got to the ticket counter and saw the familiar face of an old acquaintance staring back. The girl at the ticket counter obliged us, thankfully.

New Buffalo supported the night, glitz girl with certain somewhat subtle masculinity, supported to the side by feminine transparent red showing of two more supported showings. Ocean had sprung up a conversation with a girl called Liz of whom she remarked had a nice dress only moments before. She became part of the group as more and more friendly faces arrived and gathered for the show. Surprising there would be so many there, known in the mind.

After the song and dance, the pretty photon show, a migratory path to Ric’s was pursued. Only stayed there a short while, time enough for one game of Galaga. Perhaps it was the effect of the show on my senses, or some other stimulant, but I played like never before, trance-like, focused to the gills, reaching a never before achieved, level 17, and breaking the 100,000 point mark. First on the machine by a long shot, surprising not only those watching, but myself as well.

Sometimes all it takes is to come up for AIR every so often. See you there.

AIR at the Tivoli
AIR playing at the Tivoli in Brisbane