Untitled Entry (05/28/2009)

Hey Every-One!

An update then for the curiouser of you on what's going on with the art film/album making and the ol' SP archives...

Presently I am working a whole lot on new songs. At this point I have over 25+ ideas in the air and am just now reviewing everything to try to whittle the pile back down. Part of the challenge of doing such a sweeping concept record is to find some core consistency in the work, feed the bigger story line with some tangential narratives, and have some sense of where it all goes in the end. Having done Machina and Mellon Collie, 2 albums that were in the 50+ song range, I at least have the experience of when that material goes right and how it easily gets lost in the shuffle. I think the current approach of only recording a song at a time will at least address some of those past pitfalls. I personally am quite happy with the work and I feel I've found some of what I was looking for when I came back to SP. There is a real vitality to the new work that feels futuristic, and that always excites me. Still am shooting for the end of summer (Aug-Sept) to start recording, so hopefully the first song(s) will be dropping from the sky in October!

As far as the daily album updates go, for the moment that project continues to be on hold...the logistics of putting everyone together to make it happen with the short turnaround to this point is just too much for me to take on on top of writing the material. What was supposed to be 'fun' and 'groundbreaking' quickly turned into the SOS (translation: same old stuff!). I've learned not to let concepts come at the expense of the quality of the writing and so far this has been the case. Currently shooting for a short term window of work (4-6 weeks), which is obviously far down from the 12 weeks initially proposed. I'm crossing my fingers, because I still think that it can inform the work and add a layer to it that it doesn't currently have. But honestly it also exposes heartfelt work to a vibration that I'm not sure belongs along side it. Jury is still out. See 'If All Goes Wrong' for insight into how much the world cares about new music ha ha! Seriously though, thinking up new ideas and implementing them are 2 different worlds as far as creativity goes. I am currently 'alone' in all this, and I must be honest with myself to try to achieve the most positive attitude moving forward.

Ok, so some current thoughts on archives...

I have started marching down the path on a 'one release at a time strategy' but I am starting to believe this will not work. If I look at what is succesful in other parts of the musick-biz (and it does make me sick), the best examples right now are ones that derive max impact for least amount of effort. A single release at a time, no matter how worthy or illuminating will require us (which is currently only Frank and I) to get your attention each and every time. Let's be realistic, that's just not going to happen, nor are there enough of y-o-u to assume that each and every release will be worth the intrinsic effort. If you asked me today which way I am leaning, I'm starting to think that a boxset-type model is the best scenario to keep everything simple and easy. It is still at the end of the day too big a leap to take without being sure. For those that continue to demand music right now, I ask you to have some compassion and quite possibly some common sense. I know my getting involved in the archives makes no common sense to me. Too much hassle. So why am I getting involved? Because it's my life's work and I want this stuff available. It's that simple.

With Lots of Love, WPC