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We are playing our third, and first non-Dragonfly show this Thursday night at Los Angeles's Key Club. It's a pretty big place, and we are part of a 3 band bill set up by Indie radio 103.1, it's their one year anniversary. First on are The Tints (great name), it's a band featuring Flea's daughter Clara. Next up is Doheny, the lovely and talented Billy Morrison's band, word is that they are bringing down a multimedia super spectacle for the show, then the Channel. We are really excited for this one, a larger stage, and a bill with some friends. Also we are hoping to add a new song to the set, one I am fucking orgasmic about, one of the "Project P" songs. We have two more rehearsals, so I think we can get it together, it's a pretty involved jam, but it is sounding really good, so it looks to be in. Here are the details for the show:
The Panic Channel live
Thursday, December 2, 2004
The Key Club
9039 Sunset Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
Advance tickets are available for $10.31 at the box office.
You can get in for $1.03 with a can of food for the homeless on the day of the show.
We play at 10pm.
Show starts at 7:45pm.
And let me let you into to our set time logic: Typically for local shows, you have to tell people the BFT (Bullshit Flyer Time) so that everybody gets there on time, and the time you really play is the ART (Actual Rock Time). So when I say we're playing at 10pm, that is actually the BFT ...the ART is 10:20. That's just between us.
Can't sleep. Really wanted too a few hours back, but you can't always get what you want. In Colorado, as relaxing as it was, I found myself waking up in the middle of the night each night and not being able to get back to sleep. My mind would start racing.
On Saturday I worked for a while on "Project P", and it was fruitful. I played the whole thing on the acoustic. Just the music, no singing, to get a feel for the whole piece in sequence. It felt great playing it like that, and made working on the next unfinished song (PB) much clearer. I concentrated on it for a while, and finished it. The verses are a percussive riff that I am shit at playing and singing at the same time, so I plan on demo-ing it out here at home to hear how it all falls together with the guitar and voice done properly at the same time. I have an idea for the last chorus too, where the 1st verse is sung over top of it in counterpoint. Dave calls this "Michael row row row your boat-ing", and he's totally right. I really like "PB", it feels like a good place to go after the drama of "N1". So here's the "P" scorecard:
"PB" is the 5th song in the cycle, and the 6th I've written so far. The whole thing looks like it is 4 songs from being done, but that could change. A total of 10 songs. I am not fond of even numbers, so I might force it to be 9 or 11. One of my only superstitions.
As I have been working on these songs, and this idea so intensely, a new, non-music idea has formed. I did some sketching on the plane for it today. I figure that you can't really force what shape the ideas and concepts take as well as you think you do, so it is best to try to see the flow, and create within it. So now I am trying to get the ideas down for this new venture as they are fresh. As with "P", until the idea is ready for public scrutiny and discussion, I need to keep it secret for it's own sake, so it can grow naturally. The main gist of it is that is a place, a location, an experience that I someday would like to build. I say someday because it would take a decent bit of time and money to start, two things I have in alarmingly short supply. I do have pens and pencils and a sketchpad and a boatload of ideas for it, so maybe someday I'll have the chance to make it more than a sketch.
Speaking of sketches, I met Rantz in person last week. He is a game/comic industry artist, and we "met" via this site. We sent some emails back and forth, and decided to meet up here in L.A. I really like his illustration style and thought that we should get together and investigate the common ground. Luckily (but not unexpectedly) there was plenty, and I gave him the inside info on "P" and hope to work with him as a collaborator on the graphic/design end of it.
We have Panic rehearsals for the next 3 days, then a show at L.A.'s Key Club on Thursday. It's a birthday party for 103.1 indie radio, so the advance tickets are $10.13, but only $1.03 on the day of the show if you bring a can of food for the homeless. Everybody is dying to get back in the room and play after the holiday, I know I am. After the show, we get back into our regular 4 days a week rehearsal schedule until we go back in the studio right before Christmas to finish up the 7 songs we tracked in October. After that, the plan is to write in January, then track the new stuff in February. Then it looks like we'll have a full-length record. After that, God-willing, we get the hell out of town and hit the road, and come play our music for you, wherever you are.
 Thanks for all the good holiday wishes, people. Riss and I are in Colorado visiting my Mom and stepdad. They live in this really great house on the edge of the forest with a beautiful view. I didn't grow up here, my Mom's company moved her out here a few years ago. I only get to see her once or twice a year at holidays, but getting to come out to the snow and quiet is a nice bonus. Colorado is a complete 180 degree shift from Los Angeles life. Since moving here, my Mom has gotten into cooking and holiday decorating with a passion, so Riss and I are stoked - we get to pig out on her crazy good cinnamon rolls for the weekend. Historically, with all this damn peace and quiet, I get musically inspired on Colorado trips, so hopefully I can get an idea or two down while I am here. Have my trusty sketchbooks, tape recorder and iPod just in case the ideas come. They have an acoustic they keep here just in case.
Been listening to the new Rufus Wainwright CD "Want Two" for the past few days. "Want One" was my favorite CD of last year, so I have been looking forward to this one. His record company went out of business between records, so it was looking a little grim concerning the release of this new one, but it looks like Geffen picked him up and everything is going to be okay. As with all of his records, I love it, but have already heard most of my favorite songs as they were put on an EP called "Waiting for a Want" that came out a few months ago when the full album's release was looking shaky. Favorite tracks: "The Art Teacher", "Angus Dei", "Gay Messiah". It's not for everybody, but if you are into full on songwriting and singing of singular caliber, then it is definitely for you. Elton John called him "The greatest living songwriter on the planet", and I completely agree.
Halo 2 is proving to be a much longer game than I has previously thought. That walkthrough I had consulted was incomplete. I have been digging into it for a few solid days now, and am still in the thick of it. It's a great game, but like I said, it's really just and extension of the first one, not much new ground is covered except the levels where you play as one of the covenant. Before my Xbox was stolen, it was broken for months (take that you fuckin robbers) so it's been great playing some games again.
Thanksgiving is a holiday where you are supposed to gather up with friends and family and be aware of what you have to be grateful for. I am lucky enough to be in a beautiful mountain town with my Mom, stepdad, and girlfriend and I have so much to be thankful for. I have some friends I truly love, and I am lucky to spend my days working on this band and making music with Dave, Stephen, and Chris, what has been an unbelievable experience so far. I am also thankful to all of you who read and post to this site, having you guys in my life has been one of these unforeseen pleasures. I wish you all the best.
Ahh, that was nice, getting my Xbox back on. Kind of like reuniting with an old friend… and picking them off with a well timed head shot. Good times. I sat up and burrowed into Halo 2 on Friday night. It’s good, I mean Halo 1 was great, but 2 is just not that different. I checked the cheats the next morning to get past a tough part, and found that I’ve almost finished it! What the hell is up with that??? Halo 1 took me like, weeks! That sucks! I see what Rantz is talking about when he says that 2 is more like an expansion pack than a true sequel. Oh well. Riss and I got way into Burnout 3 on Saturday night. Sure you can race cars, but the CRASHING is fucking sublime. For the uninitiated: the game is 50% traditional racing, and 50% levels where you have to speed into a crowded intersection and cause the most violent, expensive, multi car pile up possible. Once the carnage is complete, a brilliant “Fight Club” style roving camera surveys the damage and adds up every dollar. For guy who has a history of breaking shit in angry moments, a video game like this is paradise.
Watched U2 on Saturday Night Live, they were really great. After all that Ashlee Simpson lip-synching bullshit, and the worlds most popular artist, Eminem rapping to a guide track the very next week (which still sucks in my opinion), it was vital that the show did something to re-establish it’s reputation as America’s greatest weekly LIVE performance opportunity. They played “Vertigo” first, then anther new one, which was especially good. Sounded like “classic” U2. Then before the credits, they played “I Will Follow”, and Bono and The Edge walked into the audience, Bono screwed with the cameras ala “Zoo TV Tour”, and he mingled with the SNL cast making the ladies cry. It was a really cool moment. He was singing lyrics about it being “live” over and over. Very important that that happened. I think anyone who makes a career of lip-synching should stay clear of SNL, leave that for actual live performances. That includes those in the hip-hop world who rap to a “guide vocal”, I mean, shit, you’re not even singing, you don’t have to worry about pitch, just fucking do it!
We had a couple Panic rehearsals over the weekend, as we get ready for the show at the Key Club on December 2nd. Things are sounding better and better. Yesterday we did the set, then sat around for a band meeting and came up with plans for finishing the recording we started last month in December, the stage show, and what we plan on doing in the new year. Afterward, we played some new music.
Dave mentioned that he was into trying a song from “Project P” (a song cycle I have been writing for the last two months) so I sent him a demo of the most rocking song, (N1). The demo was just a little middle of the night one I made to keep the ideas before they floated away, it wasn’t the one I was planning on sending to him, but what the hell. The song was built from a jam that Dave came up with a few months ago, a really haunting Pink Floyd like verse part, and then a 180 degree flip into a really acerbic mean riff. That was the piece of music that got me started writing “P”. I was planning on finishing it as much as I could, then hitting the guys with it once we had finished the record, but we’ll see what happens now. Maybe we’ll play a song or two from it live before then. This means that maybe earlier than I had thought, I will take the wraps off it and tell you the name and idea behind it.
Originally, it was meant to be a 3-4 song “suite” of tunes that ran together to tell a story (ala The Who’s “A Quick One While He’s Away”), but once the idea made itself known, it was obvious that it was a record-sized piece. At the moment it is 5 songs done, with two more in the works, and after that I think it will need 2 more to be complete. It really felt great to run through “N1” and hear all the band muscle behind it. Even when they are just playing something the first time, it sounds awesome.
We have the week off, 2 days to go before Riss and I take off to the snowy mountains to visit my folks for Thanksgiving.
Last night we played our second show, at the Dragonfly club in Los Angeles. We had a great time, once again is was awesome seeing a lot of you in the flesh, after communicating almost daily via our “codenames” (PrincessAbby, Snow White, WendyBird, Mortisha, etc.). Got to briefly say hi to Rantz the artist and his wife, which was nice.
The set was about the same as last time, we haven’t written any new songs as a band, since October was spent in the studio. What’s cool about a gigs after tracking the songs is that they tighten up considerably. In the studio you clearly hear what you are doing in relation to everybody else, what works, what doesn’t, and you decide on “the” part.
I had a load of trouble with my amp during sound check so I was not in my Zen with my guitar tone during the gig. I have a couple more experiments to run on it using a “hot plate” to dump some of the voltage going to the cabinet, instead of using the Variac to lower the voltage going into the cabinet which seems to “suck up” the tone. Man, in all my years of playing my Marshall, I never had worries like this, but I really am determined to find a new sound I love that works well with Dave’s tone instead of competes with it. I hear a sound in my head, and apparently I have to keep looking.
Our set was: Unholy Ghost, Loophole, Bloody Mary, She Won’t Last, Outsider, Go On, Half Hearted, our cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused”, and we closed again with “Ashes”.
We were brainstorming covers for the last week or so, and hit upon “Dazed”. It is a ball-breaker of a jam and to play it with this group of guys is honestly like being …possessed. The music is so powerful, and the way it occurs in the moment is so right on, we knew right away that this song was something for us to do live. I flash back to the moment where we were in the middle jam bit, and I was standing between Perk and Chaney who were locked like an engine and watching Dave lost in the music, positively owning the solo. My favorite moment of last night.
We wrapped Stephen’s kit in white Christmas lights and it looked awesome. It’s a chrome kit and the effect of the lights reflecting off of it was perfect. Riss and I went to a Halloween where house on the weekend and loaded up on black lights, black roses, and a fog machine. Love that fog machine.
This time, we had 3 friends taking pictures, and a couple more videotaping. I’ll cut some stuff up to post in the next couple days. We get lots of requests to post whole shows from our international friends (Obvious, this means you!) but we’ll probably just do a song or two per show until we have a record out. We don’t want to have too much online until people have a chance to hear the recorded versions first. We are going to cut up some “montage” videos of the show to post soon, too.
Now the thanks to those who helped the show happen, because it is never EVER just the band: Phil Hutson and Mark Vangool: the techs (big ups to Mark for riding the hot plate during the bit where I needed to grab some feedback in “Mary”), Kristen Lauck for jumping in and doing merch at the last minute and ROCKING it, Dan Cleary for helping with the stage “atmosphere”, Anthony Belanger, our Dragonfly brother for being the perfect host, Todd for videotaping, Brian Easterling for taking pics, Kelly Castro for pics, (a couple more friends who took vid/pics, names coming). And most of all thank you to the woman who makes it ALL possible, Larissa Friend!!!
This was our second show, and we have set ourselves to the task of building this band song by song, gig by gig, organically. These two first shows were in a favorite local club of ours so we could have some fun, and try out the waters. The next show will be at a much larger venue, and we plan on adding a bit more to the stage, a bit more to the set, and so on. With the guys I am blessed to be playing with, the option existed to grow the band in a record company incubator, and bust out in a year as a whole corporate product thing and just “happen”. That option was never even discussed as we started jamming in Stephen Perkins’ garage. It has always seemed appropriate to bask in the joy of building something from scratch, and let everyone in on the creation process. There is already way too much manipulative corporate music “product” designed to exploit demographic buying tendencies as it is. I am truly blessed to be playing with musical artists who are at a point where they don’t’ give a shit about running down that route, they are craving the fun of the start. So we will walk all kinds of paths, some lead us to the new face of the band, some will be dead ends, but you are welcome to explore them with us as we find out what we are.
Panic News: Band rehearsal yesterday, got back to the songs for the first time since the 3 weeks of recording. Did our set twice, and played some tunes for fun while searching for a cover to play for Tuesday. We found one, keeping it a surprise til the show.
Great news... my good buddy Ryan worked his magic and saved The Panic Channel website from having to be rebuilt from the ground up. He sent me the Flash files, and they will only take a few hours work to get back up to speed. Incredible news. Also thanks to my friend who I haven't heard from since High School, Jason Williams who came out of the woodwork to help the cause too.
Project P: Haven't had the chance to work on much music the past week, been getting a new computer (donated by a good friend) all in gear, and set up for band work. I send all my most sincere thanks, and will use it to the best of my abilities...
I left off Project P in the middle of two new songs (PB and N2) and play them a little every couple days, but sadly I don't think I'll get to focus on "P" for a few weeks. We are writing a couple new songs before we go back into the studio in December, so my writing care will be with them. I really wish I had another "empty" week where I could stay up all night and think of nothing by "P", cause I got so much done in that crazy first week of October, but that can't happen right now.
Ghost Hunters: My new favorite show is "Ghost Hunters" on SciFi. I have been steadily more and more fascinated with the idea of afterworld communication in the last couple months. It seemed that I got caught in a confluence of different events that all seemed to have a similar center: The beginning of "Project P", Halloween Season, all the books I've been reading about Ouija and afterworld communication, and my friend Andie's death. With songs, I find the best thing is to just go with whatever the flow might be and not try to hard to influence it with my ego. Try to assume that there is something working and hope that I am working with it.
Listening to: "Strange Eyes": Year of the Rabbit
That said, it was so exciting to be so single-minded and obsessed with continuing "P" that I miss that fever feeling now. I hope that when this recording is done, I can spend one more week with nothing else to do but get it finished enough to play for the guys.
Back to "Ghost Hunters" - I really look forward to seeing this show every week, they don't always find something, sometimes it's a bust, but they have cleverly integrated the "reality" aspects of their "normal guy" life and the tensions of running a paranormal research organization to offset the shows where they don't actually come up with any evidence. The TAPS guys also have a cool super blue-collar vibe that makes the whole concept of the show more palatable, instead of a wide-eyed, new agey Shirley Maclaine one. And did you see the episode two weeks ago where the chair moved on it's own in the attic of that abandoned light house? Hell yeah! Good shit.
Bad news: Eddy (my buddy from the Netherlands who ran/runs the Skycycle fan site), with my computer being stolen, I lost almost everything from 5 years of my band Skycycle which is really heartbreaking. Due to a fucking idiotic maneuver on my part, I had a folder of years of photos, 4 versions of our website that I had built, songs, lyrics, everything... was taken with the computer. I hope to have some stuff backed up somewhere on Zip discs, but I think I am screwed. I can't really articulate how bad this is, so I won't.
Ok, we move on... I was a bit tripped out when I thought that the robbery was connected to someone posting my address online on the same day, and it being a malicious act instead of a random one. Went to Xiola and dropped an olive branch on their doorstep. Didn't mean to label the whole community as "haters", just came out that way in the moment. Plus, I just despise the word "haters" ..it rings of Fred Durst.
Also in the melee, I checked out www.determinedmoth.org - nice site -good design, and the English humour in the forum is refreshing. Cheers.
On to more positive things...
Go see the Incredibles: No matter what you think of animated films, or CG as a medium, go see this thing, it's really very funny, and the design of the movie is insane. Very very highly recommended. I am predisposed to this kind of subject matter (Superheroes), but it really is a movie for anyone. All the Pixar films are great, but this one is decidedly more adult.
The Surreal Life last show: Yes, this guilty pleasure was part of my Sunday night for the past few weeks, and while it was a complete waste of time, I culled these tiny few bits of new information from the series:
1. Brigitte Nielsen taught me that to be "European" is to be drunk from the time you wake up until you pass out, mid-afternoon.
2. Dave Coulier is still alive.
3. Ryan Starr is a little twat.
4. Jordan Knight made a total ass of himself. If you are going to sign up for a "celebrities living together" reality show, at least DO IT, don't show up and act all "tortured artist" about it... please. Winner of least cool human being, 2004.
5. Flavor Flav RULES! ...Who knew?
In the midst of all this drama at home this weekend, the inclination is to go with the flow and get swept up in it. Better to look for what is positive in the immediate future:
1. The new episode of The Biggest Loser is on on Tuesday.
2. The new Wes Anderson movie, "The Life Aquatic" is coming out soon.
3. Riss and I have tickets to Muse at the Wiltern in December.
4. They didn't steal my iPod.
5. QueensOTSA have a new record coming out in March.
6. George Bush didn't win.
(oh hell, he did win. scratch that one, we're fucked)
Thanks so much everybody for your kind words about the robbery, really every thing is going to be just fine. Thanks Jezz for alterting us to that fine upstanding human being from Xiola who posted saying that you could get my home address online via my web host, but he's incorrect. I have been building sites for 8 years now and know better than to have your home address online for a hosting contact. Jesus, I mean, the haters over there might hate this band or my singing or whatever, but I'm not stupid.
Boy, there are some negative fuckers over there, aren't there? With stuff I really don't like, I try to ignore it move on, instead of spending all my time complaining. But hey, it's a big world and it takes all types to make it spin. I don't hate the haters over on aintnoright and xiola, not one bit. I can see our similarities, our love for Jane's Addiction's music.
Whoever took my stuff, I pray for them, that life can somehow open up and be a bit more positive so they don't need to do shit like this to keep going. As for the artwork and band work I lost, it's never lost because I created it out of my vison and love for what The Panic Channel is becoming. My true "hard drives" are my heart and my brain, and both of those have Terrabytes of creativity streaming out in the name of making this band great. That cannot be stolen.
A computer is a shiny (albeit expensive) bit of technology that amplifies creativity. I just need a new "amplifier", not the creativity to power it.
With as long as I have been writing songs, doing artwork, and building online, I have lost work that I have put my heart into before. I came up with a code: "if it was lost, and needs to be built from the ground up , then the universe is asking for an even better version, use this opportunity to create something that superceedes what was lost!"
So stay tuned for The Panic Channel 2.0 - I t will be even better!
You all rock.
hi everybody, I was just about to hit you with a massive super post with
what's been going on, but that is going to have to wait.
When Riss got home tonight she found that we'd been robbed. It could have
been worse, but it's pretty bad. They got my computer, her laptop, the dvd,
and the tivo. All the electronic gear is no biggie, but the computer had
everything I'd ever done for the Panic Channel, including the website. All
of our rehearsal mp3's, all my band logo and artwork. That's the stuff that
hurts. So the band site will be in that form for the forseeable future,
because well, it's gone. I, like a moron hadn't backed up a thing since the
band started. Rebuilding the website from scratch. That's gonna be fun.
They didn't get the amp and guitars which is mysterious, but wonderful. And
I have cd's of "Project P" even though the demo files are gone. The cats
are fine, I have my guitar, and we will get all back up to speed ...
Sometime.
Ok, I have a tons of stuff to post on (Graveyard tour, Halloween, Parties, Disneyland) - I plan on getting to it later today, but for now let me say that if you are in America, please go out and vote today (you know who I am voting for...). This is a big one...
And to everyone who has participated in the spirited political debate over the last few days, I applaud all of you (yes, ALL). This discourse has been a really great eleventh hour inspiration for me to re-examine my own views and convictions before election day. You all have raised some solid points and have revealed yourselves to be a very sharp group, and I am lucky to have you all clicking around my humble website.
Many, many thanks.
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