Image: One of about 200 stills that are connected and that will run under the "Long is the Road" music video.
Good morning, it’s Friday in August. A little update today as I break away from video editing and postproduction on the new “Long is the Road” video. A lot has been happening lately. I’ll do my best to cover it all, pardon me if I get a little deep this morning as I’m smelling autumn in the air here in LA.
Where to start. That’s an interesting 3 three words don’t you think. In life we wake each day and have decisions to make. Where to start? This week I’m feeling the echos of my past smashing into me. Ripples from waves set in motion long ago. Rocks I threw in the ocean years ago are now sending waves crashing on my shore. It’s delightful to see actually. A bit stormy in a pleasant kind of way. That’s just the way life works. I love the storms here along the pacific.
Thank you: I just wanted to start by saying thank you. The breakers record is finding it’s way across the pacific. It’s falling on kind ears and it’s echoing positive feelings so far. Look, I understand very well that it’s not for everyone. That’s life you know. Along the way of our dreams we have to cut some things loose, we have to make decisions… what you can control is being honest with what your creating. It’s the one true factor you should always consider while your crafting the world of your dreams. I’ll tell you a little story: I awoke Saturday morning to an email from someone overseas who heard my record and took it upon themselves to write me a message. I won’t tell you the whole message but there was one thing that stood out to me. It said that my record made the person feel like a kid again. That struck a chord in me. It’s about the greatest thing anyone could have eve said to me. There’s something about growing up. The memories we acquire. They linger don’t they. They certainly linger in me. I refuse to forget the things that made me. It’s fascinating to me how we somehow become the things we like in life. It happens so slowly at times that you don’t really realize it. We are the sum of all things accumulated over time. Not perfect in any one moment, but more so just a beautiful mess of everything until those things are so many that they, or you, become one again, so to say. A perfect harmony with your passions and desires. Sorry, I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed as of late with some of the kind reactions to my “breakers” record and it’s a warm feeling after so many long and cold hours in the tower. So, to some of my new friend around the world, you know who you are. Thank you for listening and for sharing with me. I appreciate it.
Long is the Road Music Video: It’s about 5 weeks now I’ve been working on the new music video for long is the road. That might seem like a long time and I suppose it is really, but that’s what it takes. And it’s actually a lot of fun. There’s been 4 video shoot days that all have to go through postproduction, grading, FX, velocity maps, grains, lights. It’s a lot. Vocal shoots are done. Generally, when I’m editing music videos, I have two IMACs running through the night batch processing files. They get set up during the day and batch while I sleep. Digital monsters crunching data file. “Punch punch punch transferring data into code.” Almost done with post. Behind the scenes of that, there are back drop zoom panning artwork clips that run through the entire song, about 200 images, those took about 3 weeks to complete, talking animations, 70’s style mood board cutaways, kind of like throwing old polaroid’s on the floor with moving scenes inside of them. An idea I had months ago during my late night LA fitness dream time workouts in the city. Then there’s the extra clips for filler stuff. Just need to shoot guitar sequences now. Perhaps this weekend. Those are the final clips I’ll be doing before I sit and do the final editing, which actually goes pretty quick once you have everything at your fingertips. I’m still on track for my 30 day estimate, 23 days left. I think it’s doable. Once I close the guitar shoot it’s just a pretty march to the finish line. Fingers crossed.
To Greece with love: Just wanted to thank Yiannis Dolas over at Rock Pages in Athens for the recent review of the "Beyond the Breakers” record. We also did an interview and I had a great time with that. I'll let ya know when the interview goes up. It was nice to look back on the making of this record, from that first dream about evermore and all the things that happened in between and after. What a journey. It’s people like Yiannis, passionate about their own craft, listening to the wind themselves for their own reasons and rhymes… searching for things out there… past their own breakers… connecting dots and reaching out into the darkness, across the pacific… that give me hope. There’s just something about heavy metal, that Transends water barriers and land masses. Some common thing that gets in our blood like a beautiful heavy virus we all share. I’m happy to be part of that infection. Anyway, from the bottom of my heart, thanks Yiannis.
A link to the Rock Pages review. www.rockpages.gr
Well that’s it for now, I really must go tend to my little IMACs and their robotic digital tasks. “AI” and computers are one thing, but robots will always need someone to build them and give them direction. At least for a few more years. NM 156, I suppose I’m up for the task for now. They sure do batch processing quite well. Hope your enjoying some loud Diamonds Hadder most nights, under dark headphones, while the storms are passing outside your own windows of life. I hope your seeing your own evermore out there and dreaming about all you can be. God bless.
-j
PS. I added a nice "Beyond the Breakers" POSTER to the shop this week. They print really well especially in the 24 by 36 size.
