I had a few spare moments here/there over the past few days, and had a little fun with some video. Most of what’s posted on this site are Hall Family Videos. This really isn’t a “Hall Family” vid….more of a music video for a great tune by Eric Matthews. The tune is called “And the World Will Go,” and it can be found on the excellent _Foundation Sounds_ CD.
As I said, this isn’t really a family video, but it does contain a few interesting family photos. Randall, Billy (grandparents) and Aunt Helen can be seen in the video if you look closely, but one of the more interesting photos was taken by Randall when he was stationed in Europe in WWII.
While back in Kansas earlier this summer, we came across a photo of what’s either some sort of rally or a religious ceremony. If you look closely, you can see a swastika at the event. I ended up photoshopping out the swastika from the video because it didn’t really fit the context (and might be misinterpreted), but I’ve included the original photo here.
WWII
Judging from the apparent size of the mountains in the background, I would say that those are either the Alps or the Pyrenees. I know Grandpa was in France so I’m guessing that’s where this is. Interesting photo.
In any case, this was a fun video to put together so I’ll probably do a few more of these. Here’s a link to the video, which is also posted on YouTube:
For the technically-minded (geeks), here’s a little more info on “the making of” the video. Stills were from a couple of different cameras. One of them was a Pentax K200 (not sure about the other one).
The music, one of my favorite parts, was from Todd Rundgren’s No World Order CD. I thought it was appropriate since Reed is a TR fan:
Reed and Todd Rundgren
Video composition was constructed using:
Adobe Photoshop for image editing, logo deconstruction/reconstruction into PSD format
A custom app from Todd Rundgren used to remove vocals from the soundtrack
Apple Soundtrack Pro for editing/cleanup and normalization of audio files
Apple Motion 4 for image segments and logo animation
Final Cut Pro for final composition
Apple Compressor for rendering
SoundTrack Pro
Then there were all those video segments….each put together with Motion 4. I hadn’t ever done a spinning logo animation, but it was pretty simple in motion once I had the logo deconstructed into layered pieces to work with. While a daunting program initially, this program makes a lot of sense.
Motion 4
Then final composition using Final Cut Studio, with rendering in Compressor:
Not sure how this one got past me. There’s a “Recommendations” thread going on right now on the Jelly List (where I get many new music recommendations).
Sounds like Ben Folds + Todd Rundgren + Burt Bacharach. If you’re looking for loud guitars, this won’t be your cup of tea. But if you’re looking for great piano work, harmonies, interesting arrangements, and not your typical boy-meets-girl tunes, this will fit the bill.
From the web site, it looks like these guys are getting close to a new release. Can’t wait.
Some of my favorite 2009 releases thus far could be categorized as New Progressive. And oddly enough, they seem to be centered around Francis Dunnery.
Dunnery teamed up with Tom Brislin (another of my staples from Spiraling) and Steve Nardelli to produce the latest “The Syn” CD entitled “Big Sky.”
Rehearsals 1
For those not familiar, The Syn was basically the precursor to Yes, and the project has continued to evolve over 40 years. That’s a band with staying power.
Rehearsals 2
In this incarnation, Francis was the producer, music director, and he put together a fantastic record.
The record won’t actually be released until 4/24, but Umbrello Records has a special digital package available now that includes a digital download of the disc….and, of course, given the lineup, I bit on the offer.
Francis is all over the CD, but I’m still hoping to hear more Tom Brislin stuff (he’s an amazing player). Granted I haven’t listened to it all the way thru so I’m guessing I’ll discover things with each spin.
Rehearsals 3
If you’re wondering what the connection is to this site….I’ve had the privilege of seeing both Tom Brislin and Francis Dunnery play live, and I’m going to try to catch the live tour for this record.
Now available exclusively on this site, the debut EP from one of America’s youngest up-and-comers, Reed Hall.
Reed created this EP all by himself today using Dad’s Mac and a crowd of thousands, as you’ll hear on the EP. The crowd couldn’t get enough. Good thing Mom made a big ham for Easter Dinner.
Download your copy, all-pre-tagged and ready for your iPod here.
I’m on trip #4 to Helsinki this week. Normally, I take time for an “Ed Hall” adventure. My dad always tells me not to “do anything Ed Hall wouldn’t do.” In other words, be careful when you’re in a foreign country.
That usually doesn’t stop me (sorry, Dad), but I got distracted yesterday. I spent most of the morning finishing prep work for meetings, that started in the afternoon, but as I was considering my options, it occurred to me that I hadn’t taken advantage of the fact that I was in Europe and might be able to pick up some good import music that’s super-expensive in the US.
In particular, I’d been trying to get my hands on the new It Bites disc (Tall Ships) that came out in Europe last October, but is not for sale in the US. For those who aren’t familiar, It Bites is a group of Cumbrian progressives, formerly led by Francis Dunnery. Dunnery opted out of the project, but the band replaced him with a guy called John Mitchell, who sounds like a cross between Francis and Peter Gabriel. Great voice, great player. Anyway, I had tried everything to get my hands on this disc: ordered off Amazon’s import list, tried going through the band web site, trolling the It Bites lists for anyone looking to sell a used one somewhere. No luck.
A quick Google search revealed that there were about 5 indie record stores in Helsinki center center that looked promising. I’m not good at reading Finnish (ok, I can’t read it at all), so that ruled out a couple right off the bat. I came across an entry for Popparienkeli – Popangel one that had an “English” option, and did a quick search on “It Bites” “Tall Ships.” To my surprise, it came back with a hit that showed they had one on hand.
After punching in the address on my GPS phone, I grabbed my coat and headed out. Through the magic of GPS, I was there after about a 20 minute walk from the hotel. As it turns out, the shop is owned/operated by an older guy and his son. When I asked the proprietor if he had it, I was amazed that he knew exactly where it was (there’s a guy who knows his store). And it was mine. After months of searching, I had a copy of the elusive disc, which I immediately imported via iTunes and loaded onto my iPod.
Obligatory dork picture goes here:
My big find in Helsinki
The disc came in really handy because I woke up at 2am this morning and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I gave the disc a solid listen. And it’s phenomenal.
I received the following from Gary Tanin (Daystorm Music) this morning. Can’t wait to get my hands on this:
Tuesday March 03, 2009
SAN FRANCISCO – Roger Powell releases Blue Note Ridge, a collection of improvisations that embrace classical melody, contemporary harmony and impressionist forms on this debut solo piano album. A stream of consciousness merging styles and eras, Blue Note Ridge is pure, elegant and honest.
In the 70’s and 80’s Roger Powell’s groundbreaking electronic synthesizer albums Cosmic Furnace (Atlantic) and Air Pocket (Bearsville) were hailed as masterworks. Powell has always been held in high esteem by his peers. “Even among the keyboard titans of the prog-rock Seventies, Roger Powell always stood out.” (Future Music U.S. Ed.- June 2006).
2006 signaled a welcome return of Roger Powell with the retro-futuristic, groove oriented, Fossil Poets (Inner Knot CD/Vinyl LP). The critically acclaimed release was produced by award winning producer Gary Tanin, who along with Powell, produced the 2009 solo piano offering Blue Note Ridge.
Fossil Poet Records is releasing Blue Note Ridge as a Limited Edition CD through CDBaby as well as digital download by way of iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, and Mindawn (offering a cutting-edge lossless format for superior audio fidelity).
This is the post that takes me a full year to write, and this year, I’ve also added Lala links, wherever possible, for those who would like to sample full songs.
As a quick refresher of the criteria, all discs featured must have been released during the calendar year. Simple as that.
2008 included releases from perennial favorites including Todd Rundgren, Eric Matthews and Bob Mould, but also included many newcomers like Adrian Bourgeois (I still listen to his dad’s stuff — Bourgeois Tagg). I must be getting old.
But unlike last year, when only a handful of discs really grabbed me, there were A BUNCH of offerings that grabbed me, but unfortunately this is not a Top 50 list. I had a really tough time picking these. Special note for the Runner’s Up list: the Luke Jackson disc was the last CD I picked up in 2008, and it’s really growing on me. Had it shown up earlier, it would no doubt have made my Top 10. It’s very well rounded, with songs in the English punk vein to a few softer Bacharachian/Rundgrenesque, early ’70′s sounding tunes. The entire CD’s on Lala for those who want to give it a free spin.
Standard disclaimer applies: these discs were my favorites of 2008. It’s not based on sales….these are the CD’s that dominated my ipod this year. Many of these showed up on other powerpop top cd’s sites for 2008 too, so it’s not just me calling these discs great.
For those who don’t have time to watch the video, here’s the list in text form:
Runners Up
5. Luke Jackson – …And Then Some
4. The Honeydogs – Can’t Feel the Beating
3. Pugwash – Eleven Modern Antiquities
2. Bob Mould – District Line
1. Justin Levinson – 1175 Boylston Street
And the Top 10
10. Brent Cash – How Will I Know If I’m Awake
9. Adrian Whitehead – One Small Stepping Man
8. Roger Joseph Manning, Jr – Catnip Dynamite
7. The Major Labels – Aquavia
6. Adrian Bourgeois – S/T
5. Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears – Flight of the Knife
4. Spiraling – Time Travel Made Easy
3. Starling Electric – Clouded Staircase
2. Eric Matthews – The Imagination Stage
1. Todd Rundgren – Arena
Most Anticipated Discs of 2009
Eric Matthews – Too Much World (sounds like it’s almost finished!)
Bob Mould – New one due at the end of Q1, early Q2?
Halloween Alaska’s _Champaign Downtown_ is finished and due out April 7, 2009
The Syn – Francis Dunnery, Tom Brislin (Spiraling), and more
That wraps up my list of favorites for the year. Time to get started on my 2009 list .
I missed this in the recent updates (been a little busy at work), but here’s a full song from the Francis Dunnery concert I attended in Seattle. This one’s a cover of “Back In NYC” from the Genesis’ legendary concept album “Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.” I am perhaps showing my prog leanings on this one, but I thought this was a brilliant cover.
A few of you have asked “what’s this House Concert stuff you’ve been writing about.: There’s a pretty decent view of it now posted on YouTube. To be fair, the video is not JUST about House Concerts, but also on Francis’ creative process. But it certainly provides a glimpse into what it’s like to attend one of his House Concerts. I’m hoping more artists start going this route. The crowds may be small, but the impact is undeniable.
I think this will show up on the upcoming Francis Dunnery DVD, but preview is here:
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