gymclassheroes

He was the coolest dude. He came through to our boston stop and laced us all with lovely Johnny Cupcakes gear. I was super stoked! Big shouts to that dude!!

Also once again i will be spinning tonight at everyones favorite bar Angels and Kings come by and say hi ; ).. PEAACCEE

happy (jc gloves)

It is 3:35 AM and I suppose that means it is halloween, How will I be celebrating you ask? well i’m not quite sure. We were supposed to play a show in the dirty jerz but that shit got cancelled so we now have a day off. I think Jo and Andre and I will probably end up in NYC which might actually be fun, I rarely visit New York for things other than business. 

I have become fascinated with a dude named Zachary Vex owner and head builder at ZVEX effects. These are probably the coolest guitar pedals on the face of the planet, they are a bit pricey but a few will definetly have to make it into my collection sometime soon. 

The lyrixes train seems to have come to a complete stop however the sleep deprivation has not, I basically haven’t slept for real for somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 days, its a strange feeling really. I feel equal parts stress and anxiety as well as relaxation sitting alone at 4:00am scouring the internet for information on subtractive equalization and watching video demos for effects pedals.

I think i’m actually starting to go somewhat crazy but not as a result of anything more than my own stubborness toward sleeping. It’s odd to work a job where for the most part time is somewhat of a non-issue. Basically everyday we play between 8 or 10pm. My only other responsibilities in life are showing up for soundcheck and some semblance of personal grooming. My schedule as of late consists of staying up till around 7am, usually around this point I black out in the front lounge till around 11am when everyone else usually wakes up, then I get up go to my bunk and sleep till soundcheck. Then i’m awake all day and night after that (repeat cycle). 

I can’t stop thinking about recording, it plagues me night and day. For whatever reason i’ve been mostly unproductive on this tour, i’ve written about 5 songs or so but i’ve been pretty blocked since then. when inspiration hits I tend to exhaust my creative juices like a furiously masterbating monkey which I suppose is why i’ve felt so kind of up and down lately. On tour I tend to find a good source of entertainment, latch onto it and bleed it dry. 

I bought the 3rd season of Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia on DVD and basically watched the entire season in one sitting, I took what probably could have easily provided 3 days of entertainment and rolled it into one fine day.

YA BLEW IT! LEARN SOMETHING

Dating as far back as the 1930’s, the equalizer is the oldest and probably the most extensively used signal processing device available to the recording or sound reinforcement engineer. Today there are many types of equalizers available, and these vary greatly in sophistication, from the simple bass and treble tone control of the fifties to advanced equipment like the modern multi-band graphic equalizer and the more complex parametric types. Basically, an equalizer consists of a number of electronic filters which allow frequency response of a sound system or signal chain to be altered. Over the past half century, equalizers design has grown increasingly sophisticated. Designs began with the basic ‘shelving filter’, but have since evolved to meet the requirements of today’s audio industry.

Understanding EQ and its Effects on Signals

There are two areas of equalization that I want to cover. Those two areas are vocals and music. I’d like to discuss the different effects of frequencies within audio signals. What do certain frequencies do for sound and how we understand those sounds. Why are some sound harsh? Why do things sound muddy? Why can’t I understand the vocals? I’ll try and answer all of these question and hopefully bring some light to the voodoo world of EQ.

Vocals

Roughly speaking, the speech spectrum may be divided into three main frequency bands corresponding to the speech components known as fundamentals, vowels, and consonants. 
Speech fundamentals occur over a fairly limited range between about 125Hz and 250Hz. The fundamental region is important in that it allows us to tell who is speaking, and its clear transmission is therefore essential as far as voice quality is concerned. 
Vowels essentially contain the maximum energy and power of the voice, occurring over the range of 350Hz to 2000Hz. Consonants occurring over the range of 1500Hz to 4000Hz contain little energy but are essential to intelligibility.

For example, the frequency range from 63 to 500Hz carries 60% of the power of the voice and yet contributes only 5% to the intelligibility. The 500Hz to 1KHz region produces 35% of the intelligibility, while the range from 1 to 8KHz produces just 5% of the power but 60% of the intelligibility. By rolling off the low frequencies and accentuating the range from 1 to 5KHz, the intelligibility and clarity can be improved. Here are some of the effect EQ can have in regards to intelligibility. Boosting the low frequencies from 100 to 250Hz makes a vocal boomy or chesty. A cut in the 150 to 500Hz area will make it boxy, hollow, or tube like. Dips around 500 to 1Khz produce hardness, while peaks about 1 and 3Khz produce a hard metallic nasal quality. Dips around 2 to 5KHz reduce intelligibility and make vocals woolly and lifeless. Peaks in the 4 to 10KHz produce sibilance and a gritty quality.

Effects of Equalization on Vocals

For the best control over any audio signal, fully parametric EQ’s are the best way to go.

80 to 125Sense of power in some outstanding bass singers160 to 250Voice fundamentals315 to 500Important to voice quality630 to 1KImportant for a natural sound. Too much boost in the 315 to 1K range produces a honky, telephone-like quality.

1.25 to 4K / 5 to 8K

Accentuation of vocals

Important to vocal intelligibility. Too much boost between 2 and 4KHz can mask certain vocal sounds such as ‘m’, ‘b’, ‘v’. Too much boost between 1 and 4KHz can produce ‘listening fatigue’. Vocals can be highlighted at the 3KHz area and at the same time dipping the instruments at the same frequency. Accentuation of vocals: The range from 1.25 to 8K governs the clarity of vocals. Too much in the area of 5 to 16K can cause sibilance. 

Instruments

Mic’ing instruments is an art … and equalizers can often times be used to help an engineer get the sound he is looking for. Many instruments have complex sounds with radiating patterns that make it almost impossible to capture when close mic’ing. An equalizer can compensate for these imbalances by accenting some frequencies and rolling off others. The goal is to capture the sounds as natural as possible and use equalizers to straighten out any non-linear qualities to the tones. Clarity of many instruments can be improved by boosting their harmonics. In fact, the ear in many cases actually fills in hard-to-hear fundamental notes of sounds, provided the harmonics are clear. Drums are one instrument that can be effectively lifted and cleaned up simply by rolling off the bass giving way to more harmonic tones. Here are a few ideas on what different frequencies do to sounds and their effects on our ears.

31Hz to 50HzThese frequencies give music a sense of power. If over emphasized they can make things muddy and dull. Will also cloudy up some harmonic content80Hz to 125HzToo much in this area produces excessive ‘boom’160Hz to 250HzThis is the problem area of a lot of mixes. To much of this area can take away from the power of a mix but is still needed for warmth. 160Hz is a pet-peeve frequency of mine. Also, the fundamental of bass guitar and other bass instruments sit here.300Hz to 500HzFundamentals of string and percussion instruments400Hz to 1KFundamentals and harmonics of strings, keyboards and percussion. This is probably the most important area when trying to control or shape to a natural sound. The ‘voice’ of an instrument is in the mids. To much in this area can make instruments sound horn-like800Hz to 4KThis is a good range to accentuate instruments or warm them up. Too much in this area can produce ‘listening fatigue’. Boosts in the 1K to 2K range can make instruments sound tinny4K to 10KAccentuation of percussion, cymbals, and snare drum. Playing with 5K makes the overall sound more distant or transparent

8K to 20K

This area is often what defines the quality of a recording or mix. This area can also help define depth and ‘air’ to mix. Too much can take away from the natural sense of a mix by becoming shrill and brittle.

Here are a few other pin point frequencies to start with for different instruments. In a live sound situation, I might event pre set the console’s eq to these frequencies to help save time once the sound check is under way. These aren’t the answers to everything… just a place to start at.

Kick Drum:

Besides the usual cuts in the 200Hz to 400 area, some tighter Q cuts at 160Hz, 800Hz and 1.3k may help. The point of these cuts makes for space for the fundamental tones of a bass guitar or stand up. I have also found a high pass filter at 50Hz will help tighten up the kick along with giving your compressor a signal it can deal with musically. 5K to 7K for snap.

Snare Drum:

The snare drum is an instrument that can really be clouded by having too much low end. Frequencies under about 150Hz are really un-usable for modern mixing styles. I would suggest a high pass filter in this case. Most snares are out front enough so a few cuts might be all that is needed. I like to start with 400Hz, 800Hz, and some 1.3K. This are just frequencies to play with. Doesn’t mean you will use all. If the snare is too transparent in the mix but I like the level it is at, a cut at 5K can give it a little more distance and that might mean a little boost at 10K to brighten it up.

High Hats:

High hats have very little low end information. I high pass at 200Hz can clean up a lot of un-usable mud in regards to mic bleed. The mid tones are the most important to a high hat. This will mean the 400Hz to 1K area but I’ve found the 600Hz to 800Hz area to be the most effective. To brighten up high hats, a shelving filter at 12.5K does nicely.

Toms and Floor Toms:

Again, the focus here is control. Most toms could use a cut in the 300Hz to 800Hz area. And there is nothing real usable under 100Hz for a tom… unless you are going for a special effect. Too much low end cloud up harmonics and the natural tones of the instrument. Think color not big low end.

Over Heads:

In my opinion, drum over heads are the most important mics on a drum kit. They are the ones that really define the sound of the drums. That also give the kit some ambience and space. These mics usually need a cut in the 400Hz area and can use a good rolling off at about 150Hz. Again, they are not used for power…. these mics ‘are’ the color of your drum sound. Roll off anything that will mask harmonic content or make your drums sound dull. Cuts at 800Hz can bring more focus to these mics and a little boost of a shelving filter at 12.5K can bring some air to the tones as well.

Bass Guitar:

Bass guitar puts out all the frequencies that you really don’t want on every other instrument. The clarity of bass is defined a lot at 800Hz. Too much low end can mask the clarity of a bass line. I’ve heard other say that the best way to shape the bass tone is to roll off everything below 150Hz, mold the mids into the tone you are looking for, then slowly roll the low end back in until the power and body is there you are looking for. If the bass isn’t defined enough, there is probably too much low end and not enough mid range clarity. Think of sounds in a linear fashion, like on a graph. If there is too much bass and no clarity, you would see a bump in the low end masking the top end. The use of EQ can fix those abnormalities.

Guitar / piano / etc.:

These instruments all have fundamentals in the mid range. Rolling off low end that is not needed or usable is a good idea. Even if you feel you can’t really hear the low end, it still is doing something to the mix. Low end on these instruments give what I call support. The tone is in the mids. 400Hz and 800Hz are usually a point of interest as are the upper mids or 1K to 5K. Anything above that just adds brightness. Remember to look at perspective though. Is a kick brighter than a vocal? Is a piano bright than a vocal? Is a cymbal brighter than a vocal?

In Closing

Equalizers are one of the most over looked and mis-used pieces of gear in the audio industry. By understanding equalizers better, an engineer can control and get the results he or she is looking for. The key to EQ’ing is knowing how to get the results you are looking for. Also, knowing if its a mic character or mic placement problem. EQ can’t fix everything. It can only change what signal its working with. Equalizers are also a lot more effective taking away things in the signal than replacing what was never there.

Published by Trinity Sound Company (c) 1998-2002.

holllaaa

This is why i have so much love for T-PAIN, and his new video for “Chopped and Screwed” is absolutley retarded.

 Angels + Kings NY has been nominated for best Bar/Lounge in Paper Magazine’s Night Life Awards/People’s Choice nominees. Our competition is Beatrice Inn, Gold Bar, Lit, 1Oak, and Sub Mercer.

Here is the link to vote. http://papermag.com/?section=peopleschoice08

HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Philadelphia wins its first sports championship in 25 years. I’m not a sports fan but you can be damned sure i’m a Philadelphia fan, we’ve come so close so many times and now it is finally written in stone. Congratufuckinglations! Philly will be burned to the ground by morning.

So I decided that for the last few days of tour i’m going to upload a song a day from my personal collection in hopes of introducing some of you to some great music from the past and present that you might not have otherwise heard. I may keep this as an ongoing thing. First up in the stack is Joanna Newson, a beautiful and talented lady signed to the Drag City label. I’ve been a fan of Joanna’s for quite a while now, for a lot of people I think she is a hate it or love it kind of artist and for myself it is certainly the latter. I like to think of her album Milk-Eyed-Mender as a sort of whimsical counterpart to Neutral Milk Hotel’s “In The Aeroplane Over The Sea”, The album consists mostly of just harp and voice and conveys its odd emotions in a very cryptic and interesting way. I’ve uploaded the track “Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie”  for your enjoyment.

VOTE IN 08’

Today i’m in Hartford, CT. Most of the morning has been spent watching bullshit television. I’m tired of everyone telling me to vote, i’ve never voted ever and don’t plan to because it makes no difference, as long as the electoral cabinet exists voting is a waste of time, i’m giving up on any retarded fucking system that allowed Bush to exist in office for 2 terms. I say do yourself a favor and DON’T VOTE because your vote pretty much means nothing regardless of what anyone tells you. I guess I somewhat understand that voting for Obama is technically the lesser of two evils but he’s certainly no fucking saint, I’ll vote when there is someone I actually believe will try to make a difference. Vote Moz in ‘08.

Travie’s  ”OL’ SCHOOL UNDERGROUND HIP HOP VIDEO OF THE WEEK”

THE ARSONISTS-PYROMANIAX/BACKDRAFT

The Arsonists were on of my favorite groups back in my Backpacker days, D-Stroy is still in my top 10 favorite emcees list, craziest adlibs ever recorded. PLEASE COME BACK!!!PLEASE!!!

Tickets for the Citi Pass show at the Key Club on November 13 in Hollywood, CA are now on sale!  Click HERE to purchase your tickets! This show is expected to be insane, so we hope to see you all there!!

Angels & Kings (one of our most favorite bars in NYC) has been nominated by Papermag for "Best Bar/Lounge" in New York!  Please vote for AK HERE!

Why the fuck am I still awake, we just finished up a performance for MTV Canada and I have yet to sleep from the night before. I think I was just way to cracked out on the good hotel internet. Last night I got good and loaded and watched Pineapple Express, I don’t think it was as good as everyone says. Tommorow is the dreaded NYC show, the show filled with chaos on all ends of the spectrum, hopefully everything will go nice and smooth but it never does. 

I need to find something to do for halloween! I so wanted to go as Casey Tatum but it does not look as though I will end up doing anything cool.

Lawrence Oates

Alone inside an empty room smoking cigarettes while the TV echoes the news but i’m just sitting here staring at my shoes waiting for the moment, humming the same tune and then the rain it starts to fall and i’m stuck within a memory, lost inside it all and life for me is like an awkward phone call I try to raise my voice but my words just hit the wall and outside my door I can feel the air grow cold this town stays young forever, but my eyes their getting old wish I felt more alive but you reap what you soe maybe someday I can be your Lawrence Oates I’m going outside just for a spell I may be sometime but only time will really tell inside my head I can hear the chapel bells for a moment it feels warm, i’m sure i’ll see you all in hell and I found a box filled with all of your old notes a forgotten silver dollar in the pocket of a winter coat i’m lost at sea in a brokedown fishing boat maybe someday I can be your Lawrence Oates

Crucifixation

standing on the edge of fable or mystic fairytale in a book of lies the naive can call the truth where the questions all are answered and ideas become beliefsand each page a little pill to help you soundly sleep Your souls a hollow shell you’ve got a missionary mind a drug to help the simple souls unwind so if your feeling lost or sinister in thought place your offerings into the melting pot you can’t win me over and I can’t be bought what compels you to teach the hypocrisy you’ve taught this is not to say its useless theres a good amount of truth but if you feel downtrodden take off your heavy boots because the sidewalks full of cracks from your worn aching back and all the art of life distorts within your view A garden full of shame you lived naked as the day symbolic lies become the nature of the snake it won’t mend a shattered heart, or make the wicked rest its your microphone so get it off your chest you can’t win me over and I can’t be bought what compels you to teach the hypocrisy you’ve taughtsing with me quietly of surefooted irony your thoughts they won’t lie to me so praise your confusion and leave the conclusions be

I’m coming to you live from Toronto, Ontario. What’s to say really, Canada is kind of neutral for me. I’ve never found anything to be particularly good or bad about it. Were coming to the end of tour which I always find to be somewhat bittersweet. I’m definetly ready to get home and see my lady and my dog and my family but at the same time home doesn’t feel the same as it did before I started touring and I don’t neccesarily think it will ever go back. I always have large intentions for my time at home but somehow I always end up wasting it away. Here is my usual day.

1. wake up around noon or 1

2. Shower

3. Walk dog and make something for him and I to eat (he gets Merrick puppy plate I usually have an Amy’s veggie burrito)

4. Play with dog for a lil bit maybe play a little guitar

5. Walk to my record store, shoot the shit with Arik for about 4 hours.

6. Girl gets home from work, have dinner.

7. Occasionally hit the bars, several of which are walking distance from my house. But more likely than not the trips are not enjoyable.

8, come home go to bed.

I’m going to try my best to avoid these sorts of days, I know there are many worse fates then the day I just layed out but more than anything I hate being unproductive. I plan to work in the studio as much as I possibly can and hopefully find some people to work with. I may get back into building stompboxes, something about soldering really relaxes me yet stresses me out at the same time (could have something to do with the fumes). I’ve been staying up way to late yesterday I went to bed at 7am, it is 4 now hopefully I will catch some zzzz’s before 7am, we have a 1pm lobby call to shoot some stuff for Canadian MTV and it would be great to not have obnoxiously dark circles under my eyes, we’ll see. goodbye for now.

Skeletons

All these skeletons with fragile arms make for poor company so lets skip the introductions refrain from social functions close your black book soul and wandering eyes put your desires to their death the heat it keeps in on calling but in my head the snows still falling I don’t know what it is you hope to gain some sort of recognition, some misplaced sense of fame just another black hole in the land of endless days its a long walk home, thanks for stopping by hope you enjoyed your stay Its all loose talk and empty hearts naive thoughts and meaningless dreams she’s so happy dressed in lies he’s searching for an alibi you’ll do your work and stake your claim and tell yourself it’ll be just fine go to sleep in your own mind theres no better place to hide I don’t know what it is you hope to gain some sort of recognition, some misplaced sense of fame just another black hole in the land of endless days its a long walk home, thanks for stopping by hope you enjoyed your stay

I was just going through my photos and realized I forgot to post this little gem, that’s Seth and our pal Denver Dan, one of the coolest dudes I’ve ever met….he runs Denver.

We just got finished playing and are heading out of here to Buffalo, NY. Whit has comandeered the Ipod in the front lounge, we are enjoying select numbers from Brand New’s “Deja Entedu” and chatting about our past band experiences. I cannot wait to get home and record some shit, its killing me. I find i’m running out of things to talk about on here so rather than continue on with some long winded bullshit i’m gona stop it here.

“here we sit beneath the ruins of an aging oak tree
our backs against a water pail painted in rust and agony
I tried to read your eyes but this whole towns to blind to see
like a sweater’s thread everythings unraveling
your the soul of an artist trapped inside a factory wall
a kiss which tastes of peppermint engulfed in alcohol
you may live in New York City but I can still hear your southern draw
like a bell, like a poet, like a doll”

Yes Whit’s shirt you are correct!

Today we are in Chicago, home of the deep dish pizza, Steve Albini and Adam Siska, three of the coolest things ever. I’m not a big Chi-town fan. I appreciate what its done musically and cuisine-wise but this city doesn’t really have a feeling, I always feel somewhat bored and tired walking around. Today I had an awful burrito.

On a better note the songwriting is back on track and its looking like i’m gonna have a full batch of Alt Country solo stuff to record next time i’m home as well as the indie stuff, which has no name yet and I need to find a drummer and bassist for. Also I may be putting the Ghost Anchors record on hold for a while, I feel like to do a proper instrumental record you need a full band and I have no one to work on this stuff with me.

I’m fighting the urge to buy new gear right now so hard, I just got a nice electric organ for the studio and still need to purchase some drum mics and Fender just came out with a Jaguar Bass that looks super bad ass. I’ve been trying to save money and start acting like a grown up but I always seem to fail at those sorts of things, I just keep telling myself I need to own a house so I can put my studio gear in there and never have to move it again but we’ll see if that ever happens. 

Paul just came on the bus and delivered me an Odwalla Carrot Juice, next to a fine german wheat beer this is my favorite thing to drink at the moment. 

I’m starting to realize that I need to maybe start being more social and make some more friends. I don’t hang out with that many people at home, honestly its hard for me to be tolerant of peoples flaws…I figure I spend so much time away from any sense of normalcy or reality that when I actually do get to spend time at home it should be MY TIME and should not be compromised for anyone, though I guess that seems a bit selfish. Maybe I should clarify, I would like to meet more musicians to work with that aren’t douchebags. 

Milwaukee, today I went to wal mart and got chipotle so its been pretty good. Not much else to say right now.

its 4:00am and yet again I’m not sleeping, my head is killing me. i’ve been trying to quit smoking for a little bit now but fell off the wagon today while I was at the bar (nothing quite like a drink and a smoke). Today was a pretty great day off, The little I got to see of Omaha I really really loved. It’s amazing to think of all the great music that came out of such a small city in the middle of nowhere and in turn gave its city a name and a sense of culture. Like it or not Conor Oberst is basically the Bob Dylan of our generation, i’m pretty sure if he and Mr. Adams ever joined forces to make a record heads would definetly explode. But unlike a lot of other “music” cities in america Omaha doesn’t front like its the shit, theres still a good amount of midwestern self deprecation. Also it doesn’t seem to endorse very much fly by night bullshit music, its not like brooklyn where simply being from there gives your band some sort of entitlement (this is not to say there aren’t good bands from brooklyn but c’mon you know what I mean) if your from Omaha your band still has to be good to get recognized. I had some Thai food today for the first time in quite a while and it is currently burning a hole in my stomach. I find lately that i’m consistently frustrated with myself when i’m not involved in some form of creation, i’ve been obnoxiously ADD with songwriting lately and despite the fact that it angers me I can’t seem to curb it at all. I’ll waste an entire day sitting around staring at a wall and hear these little pieces that don’t seem to want to come together till around 4 or 5am at which point I get up to try and make sense of them but i’m just to exhausted, it seems to be a neverending cycle. I’m hoping the Omaha visit will give me some sort of creative push, when you think about it nothing as beautiful as that scene coming together will ever happen again organically. I’m tired of hearing about politics and listening to everyone blindly champion Barack Obama, I get it though as the man is certainly the lesser of two evils, IF I VOTE i’m going to write in Bill Clinton, dude was responsible for the largest economic growth in the history of the USA everyone was just pissed he liked BJ’s.

Really anyway you slice it, our planet is fucked regardless of politics, here are some things you can do to help yourself get the most out of your time spent on it:

1. Support local music, go to the shows, buy the merch but most importantly go to the shows…

2. Talk shit, most of the worlds problems can’t and won’t change. So bitch about it and make your opinions known.

3. Buy 2 records a month, everyone downloads now and that’s not gonna change and your naive and stupid if you think it ever will. However your just as naive and stupid if you think all your favorite bands are going to exist forever if EVERYONE steals their music. I’m not saying stop downloading i’m just saying throw a couple coins into the hypothetical music offerings tray.

4. In conjunction with 3 read Steve Albini’s “The Problem With Music” essay

5. Drink carrot juice, this is just a suggestion of course but this is the only thing i’ve ever consumed that gives me an instant “better” feeling, its also totally legal.

6. Watch more Adult Swim.

7. Buy yourself a nice pair of headphones, this is crucial in my line of work and I have to say my BOSE jawns are mostly resposnible for keeping my sanity.

8. Walk your dog.

9. Punch an inanimate object really hard, lets face it sometimes life sucks and your pissed off at someone or something. Take it out on something that you can’t hurt and that won’t call the police on you, preferably something that won’t hurt your hand as well, sometimes this is the only way to get it out and move on with your day.

10. If you are in a band and are fortunate enough to have crew who handle setting up the bulk of your shit for you. Love and appreciate them like Henry Rollins says “They get there before you and they will be working long after you leave, they should get your salary and you should get their’s”. 

11. If you are dealing with post relationship hatred of any kind listen to the song “No Children” by the Mountain Goats.

12. Introduce people to things you think are funny, I find there is almost nothing more rewarding than turning someone on to something new. 

13. Travel if you can but don’t expect it to have some profound effect on your life and don’t let someone who’s more “worldly” than you make you feel as though it will, I hate these people more than anything. On the same note try to occasionally leave your area or comfort zone, you don’t have to go to France just get far enough away that you feel it, this will effect your life in a positive way.

14. Don’t buy the Iphone, your really not missing out on much. 

15. Read Ryan Adams blog, if you think i’m crazy, homeboy is bat shit www.dradamsfilms.com

Great G!!!(via travie)

Looks like i’m heading downtown by myself since all these little bitches are scared of a little rain. I shall post when I return, drunk and happy.

We are on our way to a day off in Omaha, Denver proved to be not as enjoyable as usual but I think maybe I was just to tired to really get down. Went to lunch with Seth and Denver Dan at this rad joint called Steubens, excellent mac n cheese. I’m kinda stoked for the day off in Omaha, i’ve never been to Omaha but there is a lot of great musical things happening and it is home to one of my favorite record labels of all time Saddle Creek (Bright Eyes, The Faint, Cursive etc.). All the dudes from the label apparently opened up a really cool bar called The Slowdown (named of course after the amazing Slowdown Virginia) so I definetly plan to hit this place up and drink myself retarded. I’ve been a real waste on this tour but I plan to make up for it in the coming days, my voice is coming back so I can continue to write songs, i’m also in the process of trying to come up with some ideas for projects to record at home. I’m always looking for collaborators to work on shit with me so if you think you got skills hit me up. February will be a month of recording.

WE WANT THE AIR WAVES BAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!! Estelle and I @ a recent radio visit.

THE GLAMOROUS LIFE………So after an amazing set in SAN JOSE, i walked off stage dripping with sweat only to be greeted by ?uesto. He congratulates me on a job well done and goes “Oh, by the way, MEET SHIELA E”. I almost pissed myself!! I froze. When I finally snapped out of it I said hello and promised to reintroduce myself after I had showered and dried off. HOLY HELL, SHIELA E!!!!! ?uesto’s nonchalant introduction was PRICELESS. So after I had showered I kept my promise and caught up with her and ?uest outside for a the pic of the year. She complimented us on our cover of Princes”When Doves Cry” My heart paused again. ps. PEEP ?UEST’S T-SHIRT(AMAZING)……San Jose was so much fun. Everyone put on an amazing show. Sabor was awesome afterwards, Great hangs with Estelle and Crew, Malcolm and Leah, and my man Jimson(Thanks homie:). WOW, SHIELA E.

Shitty.

This weekend all of you lucky Varsity Club members had first shot to Gym Class' exclusive show in LA at the Key Club on November 13th. Now Citi Pass members have next dibs.. this show should be insane, so hope to see you all there! Click HERE for the Citi presale!

I did an interview with Matt at Pville Radio

This is the EHX Black Finger Compressor, It is an amazing guitar pedal and all you little jerks should buy it, i’ve used the Boss Compressor and some of the Keeley stuff in the past but none of those stand up to this. The Black Finger is a tube powered (two 12AX7’s to be exact.) optical compressor pedal, when used correctly in conjunction with a nice distortion it can make your guitar leads sound like they are trying to eat their way out of your amplifier, I plug in my Jazzmaster put this in the front of the chain usually followed by a Big Muff and BAM! instant face melting fuzz with buttery smooth sustain. I use the hell out of this pedal and you should too. This will be the first in my set of reviews of great musical equipment so keep your eyes and ears open for more excellent gear reviews in the future.

The Virgins: This band is fucking awesome get into it, I hope we get to do a proper tour with them being as were label mates. Today we got to play with these guys for all the Atlantic records folks on their lunch break.

Sounds like a lady when he walks in the room!

Today/Yesterday was pretty sweet, i’m starting to feel better for the most part but running around on stage and breathing properly still proves to be rather trying, however today was rather productive and eventful, besides a short adventure to In N Out Burger with Aisha I stayed pretty on task and managed to finish crafting three songs for my next solo record, not gonna lie, shits pretty fucking good if I do say so myself. Tommorow we do some sort of showcase for the folks at atlantic should be a good time followed by our usual set with the roots later in the evening, I’m starting to somewhat understand all the hype about California, everytime I come here all the bullshit in my brain seems to somewhat melt away. I’m feeling somewhat happy? (gasp) 

also if you have yet to hear my first solo effort please check it out on itunes or steal it from someone, though i’m fairly certain its so unpopular that that would actually be kinda hard, just use itunes and search Tyler Pursel, only $10.00 and they are 320kbps Mp3’s for the super audio dorks.

Everyone singing happy Bday in Houston.. Awwww..

So we are in San Diego right now loafing in the dressing room… Its awesome though lol.. Just to let you guys know my Bday was on the 10th hollerr.. (TELL ME HAPPY BELATED LOL!!!)

Im curious who you guys are “Voting” for as well (if your not old enough to vote tell me who you would vote for if you could) Write back

Later

Were In Tempe, AZ i’m still sick as hell and it sucks. Currently wasting time on the internet waiting for my delivery medditeranian food.

Get to see this dude live for the first time December 19th and i’m beyond stoked, I think its unfortunate he’s opening for Oasis but hopefully he gets a long set.

As you can see from the photos below myself and some of the rest of the crew folk had a lovely family dinner at the Olive Garden. I’m still obnoxiously sick unfortunately but I hope for this to clear up by tommorow. i’m on my 8th or 9th cup of throat coat though I can’t say I feel as though its helping.

Seth

Whit 

Patrick

It looks like today the crew will be having a day off in El Paso while all the rest of the guys are off doing a radio show somewhere else. i’m looking out the window of the bus and there is no sign of civilization. I miss my family and my girl and my dog, and especially my new drum set which I haven’t even had the chance to break in yet but these are the breaks. I’m off to search out a strip club and/or mall of some kind on the internet. These are the only two locations which usually result in a good day off.

This is the only thing keeping me alive today.

this is a picture of a real deal classic Putnam 610 console that I saw in a music museum in Macon, Georgia. Believe it or not people made records before pro tools.

1. My throat feels absolutlely terrible as if its being internally devoured by a throat sized wolf.

2. Much of the joy I recieve in my day to day life comes from fucking with random people psychologically, though it is rare that I have the oppurtunity to do this.

3. Why have Kevin Shields and Jay Mascis not done an album together? I know they are friends, i’m sure they have maybe collaborated together on some shit but why not do something official, both bands are back in the swing of things. Someone should make this happen.

4. What the fuck is with Su Doku? People really do this shit. I would rather punch myself in the face repeatedly than spend time doing a Su Doku.

5. Philadelphia is fucking awesome, though I have never officially lived in Philly proper I will always hold this city somewhat close to my heart, I hate football but I love the Eagles and more so Philly’s overall mentality towards sports and things that have nothing to do with Philadelphia. There is a lot of hate which is of course ironic given that its alias is “The City Of Brotherly Love” but its a good kind of hate, a prideful kind of hate that encompasses the entire city. It’s the anti-california, its the city that proudly states “Fuck the treadmill give me another Pat’s steak” and i’ll take it over New York any day of the week.

6. I’m totally over the IPhone, maybe i’m sounding a bit like a crochety old man but the consistent evolvement of technology is actually starting to get a bit bad. I’m a record collector and when i’m home I love nothing more than to listen to a great record on my lovely home stereo, mind you I also have an Ipod because it is indeed convienient and listenable for my lifestyle but the reality is its never going to sound as good as my record player, I remember a while back watching an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond (yes this show is fucking terrible and why I was watching it i’m not sure) where Ray repurchases all of his fathers old Jazz albums on CD and is somewhat hell bent on getting him to admit they are better, in the end Ray’s brother purchases their father some of his original vinyl LP’s and everyone has a really touching moment listening to coltrane blaze out of a nice old set of speakers and blah blah blah, i’m not sure what my point was neccesarily but that’s why its called rambling….anyway back to the Iphone….I purchased this little device relatively soon after it came out, I was completely enamored, this was the only time in my life I have ever owned the hot new cell phone, while my family were always upgrading to whatever sleek new piece of bullshit the phone companies put out I stuck with my trusty old Nokia shitbrick (the phone that came with the plan). This phone never did me wrong it never dropped calls, you could throw it off a building and it wouldn’t break…but I decided to move on and have basically been living with the horror of the stupid fucking Iphone ever since, it consistently drops calls and i’m already on my second one because I dropped it from barely a foot off the ground and it somehow jammed in the power button. And all the Iphone apps and what have you are BULLSHIT, I survived for a good amount of years without ever getting email on my phone, I have no real need to watch you tube videos nor would I want to on a small shitty little screen, I don’t need video games, I don’t need to be able to play mp3’s, I need a phone that will simply just work when I have to make a phone call, and while the I phone can practically give you a blowjob and cook you breakfast, a simple phonecall is apparently to much to ask.

7. I’m upset with myself for not recognizing the brilliance of Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors record until a slightly older age then I feel I should have, people say real emo started with Indian Summer and Rites Of Spring and Mineral, they are wrong.

8. While people like to talk about how fucked up the world of major label corporate music is the truth is “indie” and pretty much all other terms and scenes are just as bad, it seems like any douche with a trust fund and apartment in Williamsburgh can be the next “it” band of the moment (see also: be from the UK sing in heavy accent and play boring jangly bar rock).

9. I feel i’am at a somewhat odd stage of my life where it is extremely complicated to make new friends, I find that sadly most people I meet in my hometown are flaky fuck up’s or so into their “career” that they forgot how to be young. it’s either kegs, assholes and sluts or wine, cheese and talking about money or the prospect of having children. I suppose i’m very fortunate in my “career” (I quote this because I hate the term) to somewhat be able to enjoy the finer sides of both those lifestyles and maybe that’s why its so complicated. I used to sleep on a matress on a floor in a room littered with records, empty beer cans and laundry surviving off the $200.00 a week I made delivering auto parts. When I joined the band I still did this for quite a while and even on the little bit more I made when we starting out I was able to live this type of lifestyle like a king, it wasn’t till the desire for some kind of domesitcation set in that things began to sit more parallel. As a result of my “career” situation making friends can somewhat be as easy or as difficult as I choose due to the fact that I live in a very small town where most people (even the ones who’s names I don’t really know) have some idea of who i’am (i’m not trying to blow myself up by any means i’m just telling it like it is) given my career situation so they make there own assumptions, I’ve had the dudes in bands trying to get me to give their demos to people, the dudes in bands who hate me simply because I’m able to support myself playing music, people who treat me oddly and call me things like “rockstar” and throw around terms like “groupies” and “backstage”. In the end i’m happy with the few real friends I do have, the majority of new people I meet mostly frustrate me. I can only imagine how hard it is sometimes for the rest of the more noticeable dudes in my band.

10. I hope that people who read my blog note that while I write a lot of bullshit and tough talk I’m mostly pretty nice, just mildly self deprecating and a little socially anxious.

Today i’m in the only part of Texas with any real cultural signifigcance, Austin one of the indie rock capitals of the United States who’ve brought us such critically acclaimed darlings as Spoon and my personal favorite Explosions In The Sky. I’m feeling a little under the weather today, i’ve been kind of sick and decided to go out last night with Seth and Brian to get wasted and ride the mechanical bull which resulted in a wounded knee and a gnarly headache. Austin and Nashville always get me thinking about the possibility of becoming a permanent resident somewhere in the south. Aside from certain areas associations with racism and assumed lack of education the south is a really fun and awesome place, things really are more relaxed overall, I could live here, eat barbecue listen to lots of Drive By Truckers and drink whisky and I think I would be happy. I will never understand why people spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to live in a broom closet in NYC.

Yes that is the Urban Cowboy movie poster and yes I did indeed go to the very same bar where all of the mechanical bullriding was filmed, and yes….I rode the very same mechanical bull that Travolta rode in the movie….My knee hurts like a motherfucker.