“Somersaults Inside Ourselves” by Squirm

 

Seldom is music so lifelike as in this long awaited release from local sound alchemists Squirm. More an organic ecosystem of sound than a familiarized format of music, this is creatively produced music for adventurous listeners. Squirm’s music transcends the confines of predictable genres and traditional ambient music and blooms into a unique catalyst of musical consciousness. This is music as interpretive art, at once both thought provokingly innovative and sonically meditative. Somersaults Inside Ourselves succeeds in the difficult musical task of leaving the listener feeling both grounded and liberated at the same time.

There is a child like sense of freedom and curiosity that pervades this music. Squirm’s playful approach to music is enhanced by the group’s exceptional chemistry and talented musicianship. Core members Kahlil Smylie, Brandon Nelson, Brett Padgett, Thomas Klepach, and Elizabeth Biddlecome are musicians who listen to each other with a symbiotic ear.  They lovingly build subtle events into epic dimensions, creating a gently swirling vortex of sonic textures that includes everything from chimes, flute, melodica, cello, bells, tuba, melodic bass and the beautiful sounds of nature itself. Deftly syncopated rhythms punctuate these clouds of sound as expansive musical themes hint at places never seen. There is no wonder that this group has been chosen to perform live soundtracks for films at the Vickers Theater in Three Oaks.

Comparing such strikingly original music to existing works is tricky. Imagine Michael Brook jamming with a Gamelan orchestra and an angelic junkyard band being conducted by Salvador Dali. If Brian Eno was producing, Teo Macero editing, and King Tubby mixing it might sound vaguely similar to this. While such innovative and unique music may not be enjoyed by those with a colonized ear, open minded listeners who allow music to speak for itself are likely to find a whole new sonic Universe waiting for them on this masterful album.

 

 http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=28804421

“Lonesome Gone” by the Goldmine Pickers

 

On their latest CD “Lonesome Gone”, Goldmine pickers deliver an excellent collection of acoustic roots music that effortlessly intertwines bluegrass, folk, and Irish music traditions into a fun and tight sound that is uniquely their own. Playful mandolin, freewheeling fiddle, earthy upright bass, driving guitar, and beautiful banjo picking all shine on this disc. Topping off the rich musical blend are polished harmonies and soulful lead vocals that are balanced just right with the music. The music and vocals never step on each other’s toes, but instead elevate and add dimension to each other. There is a wide and dynamic range of tunes on this disc and the band can shift musical gears effortlessly. Songs like “the Split” show off their remarkably tight musicianship while tracks like “Mud” showcase their catchy songwriting. There is everything from laid back instrumentals like “Sean’s Favorite” to up tempo barn burners like “Don’t leave me here tonight” here. All the tunes grow on you with repeated listening and overall these are remarkably cohesive and well crafted songs.

Goldmine Pickers have shared the stage with contemporaries such as Hot Buttered Rum, Yonder Mountain String Band, and the David Grisman Quintet and like these peers they are forging a new trail in roots music that both honors the spirit of old time music while bringing fresh and innovative ideas to the genre. This is a perfect CD for a drive in the country, a Sunday afternoon, a midsummer barn dance, or a backwoods fishing trip. If you liked the popular “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” soundtrack you will probably like this CD. In a world with so much half-baked music, it is nice to hear this gourmet recipe made of choice ingredients, lovingly prepared, and simmered just right. This is real music made by incredibly tight musicians whose approach to music is timeless. They write good songs, play them with incredible musicianship, and put lots of heart and soul into their craft.

 

http://www.goldminepickers.com/music/

Putting Soul into Sound

       Our inner nature is Soul. Soul is the unbreakable part of us that transcends life’s challenges and obstacles. It is the eternal spark that ignites creativity. It is the constantly growing and evolving intelligence that gives rise to subjective experience. All of us have it, but not all of us embrace and develop it. Many of us hide from it when we live an unexamined life filled with unconscious beliefs. This makes us removed and disconnected from our selves and the Life around us. We may feel alienated and distant from our own being. In reality we are simply hiding from our truest nature. This inner nature is constantly seeking, expanding, and reinventing itself. Until we are doing the same, we will feel removed from it. It is an illusion though to be without Soul. Soul may temporarily hide from itself, but it can never leave. Soul is always present. Soul is the underlying Oneness that binds life together.

       Sound is the experience of energy patterns created by a specific vibration. Sound refers to energy we can consciously perceive. It is waves of particles that have been affected by motion. It is an energetic reaction to vibration that contains information about its source. Without an initial vibration there can be no sound. Soul is the purest form of energetic vibration we can put forth. It is our truest essence. The “sound” generated by Soul recalibrates the creative directions of the material plane. Putting Soul into Sound means combining our inner nature with perceivable outer expressions. In other words, it means projecting our deepest selves into the world around us.

       When a great performance or artistic creation moves us at our deepest levels, it is said to have Soul. These experiences step out of time and space to utilize and embody the eternally flowing energy at the heart of the universe itself. This non-local and infinite force of creation dwells within all things and is the underlying energy that animates our world. An experience of Soul expands our consciousness into this realm of infinite energy. We witness unseen amounts of potential energy being harnessed into an expression of our own dynamic nature. Such a Soul experience reveals perceptual divisions between the creator, the creating, the creation, and the perceiver to be illusion. At such times there is a release of energetic awareness that reveals our own inner potential essence. How can we be moved and touched at such a deep level without the capacity within our Souls to encompass the experience? We are witnessing a lost part of our own being. Soul reveals us to ourselves. It shows us not only our own creative potential, but also our infinite ability to experience Life meaningfully and deeply.

       To merge with the creative power of the Universe is to fully give our selves to it. We can place our awareness fully into any experience we undertake. The good and bad we experience outside of us are aspects of ourselves and provide useful information about our inner state. By experiencing outer life as part of our own internal evolving nature, we can go beyond our limited sense of ego identity. When we learn to expand our concept of self to include all that is around us, we no longer experience the isolated division so often felt in human existence. Such mindfulness opens up new possibilities of creative interaction with Life. When we put our Soul into the Sound of the Universe in this manner, we open to an entirely different reality. We are no longer constrained to cultural and biological programming, but are instead a part of the creative unfolding of Life. Our unconsciously self-imposed mental limitations cannot help but change when we live in such an open minded and creative way.

       We are fully able to reprogram our conceptions of reality. The human mind is often a jumble of fears and desire, unable to move past its energetically conflicted inertia. Through meditation and nature we can experience a reality free from the barrage of limiting thought patterns thrust upon us. Unplugging from the dense vibration of materialistic attachment and man made mental confinements is essential to liberation of the Soul. We must actively select what we subsidize with our consciousness. We are bombarded with propaganda, sales pitches, psychological manipulation, and commercially conceived entertainment. Such vibrations do little to awaken the creative spirit within us, and often stifle its expression. Instead we must actively seek culture and lifestyles free from the mental pollution of an unconsciously self-destructive society. We must expand our worldview with experiences that resonate with the ability to reinvent our perceptions. We must seek out and integrate experiences that lead to self-creation and renewal. Listen to the ocean, the forest, or children playing. What do you hear? You hear the sound of Life spontaneously creating itself without self-censorship or doubt. These sounds vibrate with freedom, creativity, possibility, acceptance, and vitality. This is the sound of awakened Soul. Soul in Sound seeks to announce the existence of the world to itself. When Soul and Sound are one, there is an unstoppable creative force that expands our awareness to include freedom as part of our being.

       Soul is the unveiling of a whole and complete divine presence normally concealed in the illusion of separation. So much of our reality construct is based on material and temporal constraints. Soul is the power to shatter such limitations and dwell in the continually renewing present. It puts us in touch with aspects of our being we are no longer aware of. It is a manifestation of pure energy vibrating with unconscious truths, lost possibilities, reclaimed emotions, and undiscovered ideas. It is a living symbol exposing the unconscious to the conscious, the shadow to the light, and illusion to the truth. Soul brings Life back into Life in order to celebrate the ability to live.

       Putting Soul into Sound is a matter of creatively combining action and intent. When we offer kind words and actions for friends, take the time to share knowledge with each other, or leap into new experiences, we have put our inner nature into action. These actions are vibrations of energy that will have subtle repercussions in the world. We must strive to continually put forward the best part of us or face negative reverberations of our own making. To do this effectively we must make a continual effort to know and improve our deepest self. The part of us that is beyond wounded ego, frustrated desire, and small-minded self-centeredness. When we live from the eternally evolving and infinitely loving part of us, our actions can bring about profound changes in the world around us. These changes must begin with us.

       Creative experience demands that we transcend pre conceived and limiting concepts of self. So often we hide behind a wall of our limited knowledge, afraid to experience the unknown dimensions of the other side. When we live in this way, our trust and creativity can atrophy. This leaves us with false assumptions about others and ourselves. The doubts, fears, lack of faith, arrogance, ignorance, pride, self centeredness, apathy, and complacency we harbor are a prison to the spirit within us. Breaking out of this prison is a long and strange journey into the unknown dimensions of our own being. It is unique for everyone and no two paths will ever be the same. There are however universal signs that you are heading in the right direction.

       To illuminate life with Soul, one must often endure trials and tribulations beyond the threshold of human comprehension. Doubt, uncertainty, obstacles, limitations, loneliness, and an infinite gestation period are rained down upon those who would dare to live a Soulful and creative life. In following this uncertain and difficult path we will find the part of our selves capable of transcending such temporal and material situations. To truly make a contribution to Life, we must develop an inhuman amount of patience, faith, persistence, fearlessness, dedication, and love within us. We can transcend our arbitrary identification with matter to become an indestructible spiritual force. When we are willing to do this we can actually put forth vibrations that will reverberate in the hearts of others long after our life time. The place we are coming from is the identical place we will reach with our actions. If we live from a place of Love, we will be received appropriately. If our actions are motivated by fear, then we will encounter a fearful response. In the end we find the giver and receiver of an action to be one and the same.

       A Soulful life insists that we continually expand our consciousness to encompass all experience as part of our own selves. There is no room for blame in a Soul who is completely focused on positive creation. The part of us we do not wish to look at is the part staring us in the face from our external reality. We often project our anger, frustration, and lack of power onto outer people and situations. This allows us a convenient way to abdicate any responsibility we have for shaping our life. Often times we will find we get out of one difficult situation only to fall into another. Such recurring patterns are always a giant chance to grow into higher self-awareness.

       Our perception of external reality is ultimately a projection of internal thought patterns. Our own mind and its unconscious wounds color our vision of Life. This is what Carl Jung referred to as the Shadow. It is the sum total of unexamined beliefs, fears, desires, insecurities, and emotions that cloud our perception of the world and our place in it. We must shine the transformational light of our consciousness on this part of our being if we are to transform the world around us. If we do not, we will repeat the same patterns again and again until we learn the underlying lessons offered by the Universe. Until this is done, we bring an unconscious and unempowered self into the world to dysfunctionaly interact with others. Our planet can no longer tolerate such mass dysfunction and its consequences. Either we evolve a planetary culture that values active and reflective self-awareness or we perish in the sum total of our ignorance, laziness, fear, greed, and complacency.

       When we look outside us to see vast amounts of destructive power beyond our control, we are seeing a reflection of the inner dynamics inside us. We are seeing the magnification of our inner fears and the energy they produce in the world. We must face the fears within us, or risk being ruled by them. External projections of threatening power also reveal and embody the self-destructive elements within us. These elements left undealt with in the psyche will manifest materially. Many of us use these situations as reason and excuse to be self-destructive or adopt the victim perspective. People feel that the world is indifferent to their needs and offers cruel resistance to their happiness. To be certain the world is full of pain and injustice. So much of this occurs because we have abdicated our role in preventing it. Even when we are actively shaping our own life though, we will still encounter things beyond our control. It is up to us to transform the poop of Life into fertilizer for our own growth. We bring unhappiness upon ourselves when we give away our internal sense of well being to arbitrarily fluctuating external forces. We reclaim it when we use external circumstance as a springboard to transformation. Only we can decide to choose happiness over despair, self-creation over self-destruction. The way to do this is to adopt the perspective that all situations are brought about so that your Soul may come into higher awareness of its true nature.

       The outer manifestations of uncontrolled power also reflect the unclaimed potential within us. This vast inner potential is more explosive than any war could ever be. As we reclaim our inner creative power, the world around us will naturally evolve. The way to a better world lives within our untapped ability to help create it. All the advancements made in the history of humanity have come from those who have chosen creative potentialities over the established and known limitations of material reality. When we relinquish our creativity and resign ourselves to the world’s dysfunction we allow it to get a grip on us. Those who are resigned to institutionalized dysfunction pay a price of continual frustration with the world and their place in it. Action is the antidote for this despair. Not just a single action, but continual ceaseless action. Some of these actions will fail but many will succeed. Small and gradual improvements are still progressive steps in the right direction. Each of these steps will build on the ones before it and culminate in a massive transition. If we stay true to the inner sound and tune in to its infinite potential we will be the ones to influence the future. Those who continue to sleep walk without knowing the inner sound will sink deeper and deeper into a nightmare beyond their control.

       The society that trades its creative spirit for a prescription version of life will suffer dire consequences. The reality being created for the McLife consumer is one where they will ultimately become the product consumed. They will have no creative input into a system designed to treat them as a “human resource”, ready to be exploited and disposed of. Just like a natural resource, their inherent worth will be used up and ultimately go to the benefit of a well moneyed few. To change this situation we must shift our paradigm to one of empowered creation. If you believe you have to take whatever life will give you, then you will not get much. If however you acknowledge that your inner nature is the ability to create, you will always have inventive ways to improve your surroundings. We may not control the circumstances around us, but we can always create a response that comes from and leads to a higher place. As more of us adopt this stance, the more the world around us will reflect our inherent ability to positively influence it. The result will be a more healthy, just, and functional reflection of our inner nature. To arrive at this point we must strive to unearth, utilize, and develop our creative potential. We must bring it into tune with the laws of nature and the best interests of a Living Earth.

       The challenge now is to bring our creative will into alignment with the divine laws of Life. If we fail to do this, our actions will fall by the way side of an ever-evolving world. We must integrate an awareness of nature, science, history, spirituality, art, and culture into our creations. There are divine and immutable universal laws of self-organization present in these areas. When we act in accord with these laws, our actions will sympathetically vibrate with the world around us. When we are out of tune with these laws, we will encounter discordant resistance and cacophonous results. The world around us will ultimately not support what goes against the laws at work within it. It is our responsibility to evolve a collective awareness of these laws and how they can help us to liberate our consciousness from rigid and dogmatic belief systems. We must continually integrate new perceptual paradigms in order to navigate the terrain of a universe in continual evolution. Outdated beliefs and attachments are the biggest obstacle we face in joining with this Universal evolution. To ignorantly and fearfully cling to paradigms that no longer serve us is to suffocate the Loving Soul within us.

       To channel the creative energy of Soul into the vibrations around us we must overcome our limited concepts of self. Only through conscious transformation of our limiting beliefs are we able to merge with the totality of being. The self-renewing current of creative Soul will catch anyone willing to leap into the unknown. It will take us directly to an infinite and loving world that waits to be discovered within us.

You are the future of the music industry

       It is a tragic but preventable situation. Seeing the Artist and Listener get ripped off while the big companies make off like the organized criminals they are. As it stands major label artists make less than 50 cents of that 18+ dollars you spend supporting them with a CD purchase. At the same time the cost to manufacture that CD is about 50 cents. Where does your hard earned cash go? It goes to limo rides and inflated salaries for CEO’s. It goes to $1000 dollar haircuts for performers whose music cannot stand on its own merit. It funds Demographically targeted promotional campaigns to gain market share and move x number of product. It goes to systematic production of product strategically produced to sound like product that moved x number of units last year. It funds modern payola arrangements as media conglomerates buy up independent radio. It subsidizes an unpleasant horde of promoters, distributors, retailers, manufacturers, and parasitic middle men whose efforts have steadily sterilized music into mediocrity. It gets a lot worse though.

       Unless you are doing some homework your CD purchase may be supporting nuclear waste, promoting malt liquor in the inner city, subsidizing slave labor conditions in the 3rd world, and helping the corporate media consolidate its grip on our access to information. Almost all of the biggest record companies are owned by parent companies with diversified holdings. Such conglomerates often include the arms industry, alcoholic beverages, radio, newspaper and other media outlets. Your dollars are buying quite a bit more than entertainment. The point is not that all major label artists are without merit and independents ones are divine beacons of artistic integrity. The point is that We must collectively make a concerted effort to liberate the Soul of Music from commercial constraint. At a time when capitalism is attempting a hostile takeover of democracy, the voting power of your dollar is more important than ever. Be conscious of what you are voting for. A better world depends on it.

       Why support such a greedy, shallow, bloated, corrupt, inefficient, and dysfunctional industry when you can help create a new one? Start by supporting Independent artists and labels. Go see local music and if you like it, buy a CD. Play it for your friends. Get to know the band and put some fliers in a coffee house for them when they have a show coming up. They will probably thank you with a slot on the guest list. If the band permits, tape a show and put it on the net. Phone in requests to local radio to hear them. Put a link on your web sight. Throw a house party where they can play. Get to know some DJ’s you like and find out what they are listening to. Support independent and internet radio. Become a regional distributor for indie bands and make some extra income doing it. If we really want a vibrant and soulful music industry, it must be supported by all of us who care about music.

       We must take it upon ourselves to unearth the vital artists before the current system extinguishes their creative flame. Far too many of histories most gifted artists have suffocated under the weight of an indifferent and unaware world only to resurface well after their death. Our generation can make a change, but it starts with us. We need to take the time to slow down and appreciate art in general. We need to take advantage of each others unique knowledge. We need to do more listening and less talking. We need to open our hearts to Music created for purposes beyond just fitting the parameters of the lowest common denominator. People in America so often mistake commercial product for actual music. The consequences to our airwaves has been devastating. The independent artist who pushes the creative envelope beyond the marketing formulas is quite literally on their own in such a climate. Many have sacrificed comfy day jobs, health insurance, even housing to bring you their love for music that may well live longer than they do.

       The future of Music needs the hearts and minds of listeners to become actively engaged in the promotion, distribution, creation, and discovery of tomorrow’s music. No longer can we passively expect that others will bring us exactly what we want. We need to find and create it for ourselves. Or as the Godfather of Soul James Brown said, “Get Involved, Get Involved, Get Involved”. The necessity to get involved extends far beyond Music. If we collectively take conscious responsibility for the direction we are headed, a future we can all groove to is possible.

Conscious Culture

       Conscious Culture describes art, music or other creative expression that is designed to generate higher awareness. Such culture brings to our attention our inner nature, the world we live in, and how the two can creatively interact. It helps us to transcend the perceptual prisons of cultural and spiritual ignorance. It reconnects us to our creative abilities and the knowledge necessary to make change in the world. It provides alternatives to perpetuating dysfunctional modes of existence.

       There is a divine creative spirit that dwells within us. Every invention, technological advance, agricultural breakthrough, work of art, etc comes from this creative spirit. It take in its surroundings and reconfigures them for more optimal manifestations. It is constantly evolving by building on previous advancements, integrating new facets of creation, and unifying its expressions into cohesive and novel wholes. The natural world around us is an amazing demonstration of this force at work. Just look around you. We live in a Universe alive with the ability to create, evolve, adapt and change. This ability is hardwired to the Soul of humanity.

       The mall culture we live in is just now beginning to realize the importance of “thinking out of the box”. For too long our public education systems have driven the creative part of young minds into atrophied exile. From its inception, public education was designed to produce standardized minds capable of predictable performance in an industrialized society. In a culture that values conformity above creativity, the creative spirit is for many buried beneath years of societal conditioning, cultural programming, and general neglect. Conscious culture can help cultivate, empower, and liberate this spirit. It gives us examples of creative responses to harmful and arbitrarily empowered realities. It provides us with the awareness necessary to remove our own limiting belief systems that enable situations that are against our best interests. It illuminates the role of our own actions in perpetuating self-destructive systems alien to our survival. It provides us with positive alternatives for outdated and unconscious paradigms. Our future depends on the liberation of human creativity and consciousness to create alternatives to the current self-terminating global order. Without the ability to create alternative courses of action, we are doomed to repeat ever-intensifying echoes of history.

       We must actively seek, support, and create art and culture that transcends commercial agendas. So much of what passes for culture in America today is a thinly veiled marketing ploy. Our pop stars sell soft drinks, our comedians sell junk food, and our movies advertise everything. Even hip-hop is pimped in the form of commercially produced rap with dubious agendas. Such music helps market not just 40’s and blunts, but a destructive lifestyle that illegitimate powers seek to perpetuate. In a culture saturated with media, we must be aware of the source and agenda of what we consume with our awareness. We must be careful not to subsidize with our consciousness the very perceptual paradigms we must transform if we are to survive. So much of the culture produced by corporate America is designed to oil the vast machinery of consumption. Real art in any form does not encourage the passive consumption of the reality handed to you. It demands that you see things differently with a new perspective. It gives you cause and concepts to question complacent assumptions. True art and culture speaks to a higher plane of living experience. It empowers us with knowledge and speaks to the part of us brave enough to live creatively. It illuminates hidden aspects of Universal truth. Conscious Culture can help us deprogram the flawed mental constructs currently passing for reality. Seek it out and support it.

Living Music

      Living Music is infinitely more than commercially conceived entertainment. Living Music is the universal blueprint for Self Awareness. It is a lost part of our being calling Us to find ourselves. It is the immune system of the creative spirit. The alarm clock of the Creator. The heartbeat of God. Real Music is the voice of Collective Imagination whispering in its own ear. The Sound of Soul giving birth to itself. The vibration of Faith shattering the doubt filled limitations of mental and material experience. A sonic celebration as the infinite moment eradicates flawed constructs of time. Reminding the Heart to listen to itself. Real Music is the Serenade of Divinity seducing us to Dream. Music is the Higher Love Singing in our Soul. LIVE MUSIC. LIVE LOVE.

Make It Funky: The Music That Took Over the World

       This gem of a film is a rich blend of performances and interviews that document the sound, spirit, legacy, and impact of the rich musical and cultural traditions of New Orleans. A key city in the evolution of jazz, funk, rock and roll, zydeco, and R&B, the New Orleans sound is a multi-cultural gumbo of musical traditions that have been slow cooked for flavor and are always served red hot. This film features many of the biggest names in New Orleans music and is a great introduction to the vibrant musical culture of the city. If you have never been to JazzFest in New Orleans then this film is the next best thing.

http://www.amazon.com/Make-Funky-Fats-Domino/dp/B000AA4JMA

The Last Of the Blue Devils

       This documentary filmed in the 1970s captures some of the best musicians from one of the most important musical scenes in Jazz history: Kansas City. Artists like Count Basie and Charlie Parker are featured, and the story of the great Kansas city Jazz scene is told through both archival footage as well as intimate jam sessions. The soul, heart, humor, and genius of these artists is captured beautifully in this incredible document of a magical era gone by. A must see for any Jazz lover.

http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=2033481

 

Amandla! A Revolution in Four Part Harmony

       Amandla is a musical documentary that captures the powerful role played by music and dance in the struggle to end South African apartheid. Never has such fierce revolutionary music sounded so beautiful and inspiring. This film is a stunning account of the South African resistance movement as well as the culture, music, and spirit of the South African people. Amandla is a powerful testament to both the human spirit and the power of music.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0303297/

WattStax

     

           Not long after the Watts riots in California, the astoundingly great soul record label Stax put on an epic concert in LA that was attended by more than 100,00 people. Billed as “the black Woodstock,” this event was a wild success with red hot performances from Rufus Thomas, Isaac Hayes, the Staples Singers, Albert King, and the Barkays. This DVD captures the timeless moment beautifully through great performances, interviews, and footage from the event and Watts streets. Also featured are hilarious and insightful commentaries from Richard Pryor and concert goers as well as a beautiful speech from Jesse Jackson. This multi-layered film is like a journey through the heart and soul of African American music and features funk, soul, gospel, and blues. Perhaps more importantly, though, it is a soulful look into the culture and people that created this timeless music.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wattstax