Dark Star Crashes

Greetings My Friends,

I have been remiss. Inattentive. Yes, even lazy! I have been neglecting you, my drones, over the last six weeks, while trying to navigate the difficult terrain of Moore College 3rd Year. But as such I forgot one of the primary purposes of this blog, which was to be an outlet for random thoughts and musings. So I shall now muse on, and whether they listen or refuse to listen they will know that a Blog has been in their midst.

I just finished reading Blair Jackson's excellent biography of Jerry Garcia entitled "Garcia: An American Life". The information about Garcia's side projects was greatly enlightening about the character of one of the greatest musicians of the 20th Century. But even better was his analysis of the shifts in the Grateful Dead's music within the last 15 years. He considers carefully the character of each year, pointing out when a particular tour produced notable experimentation or high points as well as analysing the reasons for certain periods lacking that certain spark. As a result I have been listening to a lot of Dead music during my study time. For those who have not experienced this wonderful band, go scouting on archive.org for some free (and legal) concert downloads. I recommend something from 1974, 1977, or 1990 to get started with.

I love jamming music. Music which flows out of the soul, not as a recital of a strict arrangement but as a step into the unknown to create art on the spot in fellowship with others. I once briefly played in a band with a songwriter who believed that a performance should replicate as closely as possible the band's studio recordings. I thought he was crazy. The band did not last very long.

Free music. Modal explorations. Polyrythms. Sonic effects and feedback. Losing your way and finding it again. The development of a groupthink to bring Truth out of Chaos. Where has it gone? Certainly in the Australian scene it has never been popular. In the 60s we copied the British Invasion. The 70s was blues-based pub rock (with a brief flowering of psychedelic prog now mostly forgotten). The 80s were New Wave. The 90s threw up indie/alt. rock cookie-cutter bands. I can count on one hand the number of local bands I've seen who have truly danced on the edge of madness. That cliff looks mighty high; stay back or you might fall!

There must be some kinda way out of here...