Weather + Guitar

02005-03-27 | Uncategorized | 3 comments

It is as if Winter and Spring are fighting. A few days ago 50 degrees Fahrenheit, then another foot of snow and freezing temperatures. Today the sun is shining and the melting snow is coming off the roof in a torrent of water… The ground is muddy because 6 inches of snow melted in less than 12 hours. Monday 60-70 degrees and then right back down and possibly more snow?

The trees are happy, very happy. Most pinons have shot up 3 inches to half a foot! Some branches were snapped by the snow, but already the pine trees are a rich green we haven’t seen in years.

Practiced guitar early in the morning and had a great time. The new Negra from Lester is getting better every week. What an amazing guitar! How lovely to hear a guitar find its voice.

Wrote a new Tangos piece a little while ago and have been refining it over time. I am tempted to record it right away, but decided that we should perform it this year and see where it goes, before I record it next Winter sometime, for the up close album. Very catchy tune.

Watched a documentary about Derrida, the father of deconstruction, which did not do much for me, and The Incredibles, which I thought was great.

Tomorrow Jon will add bass and keyboard on several new pieces I recorded for the Holiday album.

Oh, and although I ordered, and paid for, the SACD version of Romero’s Un Segundo Una Vida, I believe amazon sent me the regular CD, which might explain why the surround sound experience was less than thrilling. I listened to the album again on headphones, and did not like it much. Some nice elements, some nice playing, but it won’t make it on regular rotation here.

I listened to La Semana in the wee hours of the morning and yes, I am still very, very happy with it. Heard that the Italian label we want to use for distribution there is still on the fence about releasing La Semana – wanting, no doubt, more of a NF or Borrasca rumba sound. Well, 15 years have passed. I have shed all of my cells twice… Will I record more rumbas? Yes, of course. Will they sound like those songs from a decade and a half ago? I hope not. Will I write and record in a certain style because there is a demand for it? Yes, but under two conditions: 1. a nice fat advance and 2. not with my name on the CD.

3 Comments

  1. Adam Solomon

    Say, I wonder how many anonymous death metal albums might be out there that are steadily fattening your wallet….~sigh~ Ottmar recording death metal, it’s a funny thought, but at the same time so saddening.

    Hey, Fanmencos going to the 2005 non-holiday shows–I hope one of you not-so-legally (shh!) records that new Tangos :) Sounds very exciting…ooh, maybe you could put that in the Lounge after you’ve toured it a few times?

    The Incredibles was indeed incredible (note the bad, not-so-well-hidden pun). I recall you saying that you don’t go to theaters anymore, waiting for DVD releases instead, no? Which would explain why you saw the movie? Well, it would definitely be a great movie for the whole family, grown-ups and kids alike, to sit around the fire and enjoy together. One of those Shrek-esque movies with jokes and nuances that appeal to all ages. That’s the way to make a movie ;)

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  2. Borya

    What about recording the Tangos tune now AND next winter. You then could put it in the subscroption part of the Listening Lounge. Perfect example for a work in progress. Plus I’m sure it already makes a beautiful song!
    Can’t believe what you write about the expectation of the Italian label concerning “La Semana”. In case they would reject “nouveaumatic”, maybe, because NVMT is very different in style. But what’s the deal about LS in comparison to NF and Borrasca? Not that LS has it all, it’s better. And it has those catchy tunes they demand.

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  3. Adam Solomon

    I think it’s all about marketability, Boris, and recognizability. Someone who’d only heard NF–which I wouldn’t even compare in style to Borrasca, which I find to be much better–etc. probably would never hear LS out of nowhere and think “that’s Ottmar”. And honestly, LS is deeper, it has catchy tunes, but it’s just not suited for the masses as much as NF was, I think–which is a full compliment to LS.

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