LonelyStreets.com
New Song - Electronicas
I recently downloaded Booka Shade’s newest Single (Tickle/Karma Car) from eMusic - and that heavily influenced this new track. I actually threw this track together in a couple of hours in just two short sittings, but it came together beautifully. It’s always a wonderful feeling when you sit down to just mess around with some beats and something with which you’re happy comes out almost immediately. Anyway, have a listen - as you may have guessed from the title and aforementioned influence, this is a very electronic sounding tack:
Please let me know what you think! (I’ve been looking, and I’m getting lots of visitors but no comments! Show me the love people! Btw - if you don’t feel like leaving a comment you can click on the little stars below to rate the post, just roll over them with you mouse).
June 22nd, 2007
Posted by Paul in Music and Movies | 2 Comments »
New Photo and a new-old song
First, a self portrait I did that I really like:
Also, the following is actually a song I put together a few months ago, but forgot to post among the others. It’s a fun and happy reggae rock tune - very hippy sounding, but I like it anyway.
June 15th, 2007
Posted by Paul in Photography, Music and Movies | No Comments »
Grad School and Iowans
The following are the most common reactions Emily and I receive when we announce that we’re heading off to grad school. Note than many Iowans are not limited to just one of these comments:
Are you doing it online?
So, you’re going to Drake then?
Oh, Pittsburgh? Do you have family there?
So are you going to get a job out there too?
What will your wife/husband do?
(S)he’s going to graduate school too? How will you pay the bills?
Well that’s smart. Do it while you’re young.
It’s good to do that now before you have kids.
That’s going to be quite an adventure.
Carnegie Mellon? Hum. I don’t know it…
_____________________________________________
All I can say is: Damn I’m glad I’m leaving. 
June 15th, 2007
Posted by Paul in Humor | No Comments »
New Song - Dee Rock
I’ve been working on this track for a while, and I’m very happy with it.Â
Dee Rock
File this under nu rave I suppose - it’s definitely my most rock oriented song to date (though some screamin’ punk vocals might improve it - anyone out there care to take a stab?). The title is an obscure reference to an awesome dj/producer/band I discovered, and whose music influenced me to start trying more rock oriented stuff. The guy’s name is Dee, and he lives in Montreal. I highly recommend that you check out his stuff on myspace or at deemusic.com. Anyway, let me know what you think of this track everyone!
June 12th, 2007
Posted by Paul in Music and Movies | No Comments »
Kansas City Sci-Fi and Vacancy
Just wanted to post a couple pictures I was working on today, and like a lot. They are very much opposite images, and so work nicely together. This first one was originally a photo of part of Kansas City at night, though it’s gone a bit sci-fi now…
This second one was originally a photo taken by my mother, Lorie Robare, who is a professional photographer. She kicked me down a damaged print and gave me permission to play with it, so I scanned it in and tweaked it for maximum creepiness, and am thoroughly satisfied:
And because they go together so well and I just can’t help myself:
June 3rd, 2007
Posted by Paul in Photography | No Comments »
bucolopolis
In an effort to more correctly define the landscapes and physical aspects of Midwestern American cities, I propose a new and enhanced Lexicon of the Bucolopolis. Bucolopolis, is of course just one of the many terms that will fit into this lexicon (which is evolving). But first, credit where it is due: this lexicon was inpired by the wonderful writer Neal Stephenson, and more specifically, his book Snow Crash (which I recommend to anyone with a sense of humor and an interest in where America would be, if taken to the logical extreme). In Snow Crash, Mr. Stephenson (who was also the inventor of the term “avatar” as a word for an online persona), uses the term burb-clave to refer to the fenced-in, self-governed, self-policed enclaves which today’s gated suburbs have become in the not-too-distant future. Personally I believe that this term has relevance to modern America, West Des Moines particularly. I encourage all my readers to submit additions to the lexicon for future inclusion. I also hope to provide photo-documentation of each term where possible. And so:
apartment warren - home to the mall-dra’s less wealthy natives, apartment warrens are large settlement-structures rising no higher than three stories, but often covering many acres of land (most often super-fund sites). Apartment warrens exhibit much greater diversity in exterior form than burb-claves, but are sadly all identical within. Residents of an apartment warren are transient by definition, constantly moving to new apartment warrens following a trail of declining credit requirements. Apartment warrens are a bit of an enigma, as land values in the non-burb-clave mall-dra are so low that houses often sell for under $50 at annual tax auctions. For some reason, however, apartment warrens continue to grow in ever-increasing numbers, occasionally creeping right up to the wrought-iron-fenced border of burb-claves.
bucolopolis - Stemming from the terms ‘bucolic‘ and ‘metropolis,’ a bucolopolis is a post-suburban colony of burb-claves, mall-claves, and apartment warrens containing more than 50,000 people and having no actual cultural value to anyone whatsoever. Bucolopolis’ residents never work within the confines of their native bucolopolis, preferring to cross the mall-dra daily to find employment in a nearby metropolis or (in the case of those poor souls indigenous to apartment warrens), a Wells Fargo retail branch. Simultaneously, all enterprises within the bucolopolis are staffed by undocumented Mexicans who send all their wages back home and teenagers who spend all their money on pot (either way, the money ends up south of the American border, thus actually draining the bucolopolis of capital). The net result is that the bucolopolis is essentially an economic non-entity with artificial real estate values invented purely for the purpose of taxation. Mysteriously, the bucolopolis is actually becoming more common in America as time goes on. Residents often cite the complete and utter lack of any reason whatsoever to ever, not even once, walk anywhere as a primary enticement.
burb-clave - A large to uber sized community of houses characterized by vinyl siding, trees comparable to a head of broccoli (where any exist at all), and a complete and utter lack of variation or distinction among individual domiciles. Burb-claves are often gated communities and frequently govern residents with a strict code to rein in misfits tempted to do garish things like paint their house any color other than cream with tan trim. Many physically separate burb-claves are actually related organisms, having been instituted by a single developer and team of no more than 2 very bored architects.
mall-clave - A more recent relative of the burb-clave, mall-claves are an attempt to protect delicate residents from the dangers and foul conditions of the mall-dra at large. Mall-claves accomplish this formidable feat by combining a burb-clave with a shopping mall. Mall claves are generally open air tracts of mall-dra with condominiums built directly on top of the mall itself, thus precluding natives’ usually pressing need to venture into the world at large to obtain necessities such as Budweiser and Gap polo shirts.
mall-dra - Rooted in the term ‘tundra,’ the mall-dra is characterized by equally harsh and unwelcoming conditions. Mall-dra is the land separating burb-claves, mall-claves, and apartment warrens, taking the physical form of seemingly never-ending expanses of concrete interspersed with Monsanto brand grass and strip malls from bygone eras (which commonly contain stores such as T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and Radio Shack). One of the greatest dangers of the modern mall-dra is that one may easily become permanently lost. Mall-dra remains completely uncharted (even built-in nav-units are incapable of navigating them), and grows almost as if it were designed to trap unsuspecting travelers. A common danger of the mall-dra is random curbs springing up in the middle of otherwise undifferentiated parking lots. These curbs are so designed as to be nearly invisible in daylight and just high enough that even mobile abode/ramming units such as the Hummer cannot go over them. Finally, mall-dra are covered in Ice in winter, scorching hot in summer, and prone to flooding in spring and autumn. Note that while being permanently lost in the mall-dra is a terrible fate, there is little risk of death as long as one remains in the shelter of their vehicle, as mall-dra offers a plethora of low-grade nourishment opportunities such as Applebee’s and Olive Garden. It is also important to remember that one should never ever attempt to cross even the smallest portion of mall-dra on foot, conditions being unsuited to human survival outside of an SUV (two-door Toyotas have been known to actually melt in mall-dra in summer). Click here for a photo.
June 2nd, 2007
Posted by Paul in Humor | No Comments »
New Song - The City
So I’ve finally got a new song to put up here! I’ve been working on several very different tracks for a while now, but I decided to sit down and master this one today, making it one of my rare ‘finished’ pieces. Emily doesn’t like it - she says it’s terribly depressing, which I suppose it is. I like it however, it’s got a great groove, and more importantly, it’s one of the first songs I’ve put together that uses absolutely no loops. Everything in this track is done with midi (arranging short samples and synths), except for my vocals, that is. I think it’s quite well composed if I do say so myself. Anyway, please take a listen and let me know what you think. I should have a couple more, much more upbeat tracks along soon as well.
The City
(click above to listen)
June 2nd, 2007
Posted by Paul in Music and Movies | No Comments »