Grammy Nomination

Fast Fact: Pirate Democracy

I was watching a super cool special about early Caribbean pirates and they were talking about how they weren’t necessarily led by dictatorial captains. They might start out on a voyage with one captain, but if the crew didn’t agree with the captain or lost confidence in him, they could vote him out without a mutiny. And they also got a pretty good share of whatever loot they stole, a much better rate than regular crewmen received on merchant or military vessels.

Anyway, I just thought I would share that.

Ethiopian Lunch

I wanted to post something very important in today’s blog, but unfortunately I am overcome by exhaustion and being too full. I had a very late night last night, and I had the largest Ethiopian lunch I’ve ever had in my life today. If you live in the area and have a chance to go to little Ethiopia on Fairfax, visit Merkato. It is entirely too delicious.

Cheers,

SJ

Setting Expectations

I have started working on the new record, and I just want to make sure that by the time it’s done everyone has their expectations set. ‘Mercy’ was a very dark and intimate album, and I won’t be making it again. This next album is going to be a bit more upbeat (in tempo, not necessarily tone, although there will be some of that too), have more instruments, more layers, and a fuller sound. I can hear it in my head, now I just need to get it all recorded so that you can hear it too.

Also, if you haven’t purchased ‘Mercy’ yet, now is definitely the time to do so. The money I earn from it goes directly into keeping me fed and working on the new record. Also on the next printing of ‘Mercy’ there will be an important graphic change on the cover so the current edition might one day be a collectors item. It might just be a fancy coaster for your coffee table, but at least it will be a rare coaster.

Cheers,

SJ

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year!

I’ll be celebrating with some Chinese food from our local favourite Chinese restaurant. And maybe I’ll play with some gunpowder.

Congratulations and be prosperous.

SJ

I Lost One Of These Cells This Morning

Researchers have just discovered that a single cell can hold on to memories, and that it doesn’t necessarily have to be a network of neurons that stores memory.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7846531.stm

I wonder if memories are backed up on to multiple cells. If so, I had a really great song idea this morning in the shower, and I even told it to myself a few times so that I wouldn’t forget when I got out. Unfortunately, I forgot and I’m still trying to remember it. It would be really nice to know where that one brain cell with that memory went off to.

iLike

You can find me on iLike and get good recommendations and connect with folks who like similar music. There’s lots of good stuff there:

http://ilike.com/artist/Saint+John+and+the+Revelations

Feel free to leave a comment for me there too.

Cheers,

SJ

Huge Sigh Of Relief

It seems everyone is letting out a huge sigh of relief now that Barack Obama is President of the United States of America. I find myself checking in with a lot of political news sites figuring out what his next steps are and what he’s going to do in his first 100 days.

He’s smart, thoughtful, and I think he really believes in the fundamental values of the U.S. Constitution. I am hard pressed to think of somebody more capable of the job than him. But I think also I’m just a little wary considering how bad things have been politically for the past few years.

Anyway, the good news is that hope is not lost.

Slumdog Gazillionaire

I saw Slumdog Millionaire last night. It was perfect. It’s the best movie I’ve seen in a couple of years and it’s going in to the list of top movies I’ve ever seen. I’ll be quiet now and won’t give any of the plot away, but my friends are going to have to put up with me raving about it for the next couple of weeks.

Geek Alert

The final episodes of Battlestar Galactica start tonight. I don’t know if watching it gives me as much geek credibility as watching Star Trek, but I’m definitely looking forward to it. I’m even supposed to go out tonight (in which case I’d put it on my DVR), but I’m tempted to ask my friend if we wait until the show is over to go out. Sigh. I might even have a bit of work to do tonight. This is dumb, life isn’t supposed to get in the way of important TV shows.

Indie 103.1 Sadly Leaves The Airwaves

Popular alternative radio station Indie 103.1 has gone off the airwaves today. They used to be the best station in LA. Of course they get extra points for being the first in LA to decide that we deserve a space in their playlist, but even beyond that, they introduced me to a whole bunch of new bands that I probably wouldn’t have found otherwise. They have been declining in quality over the past few years, but they were still the best to choose from in the bubble gum saturated LA radio market. It’s another unfortunate example of the sad state of affairs in the music industry.

First Show With The New Line Up

Well, we did it. We had our first gig with the new line up of Saint John and the Revelations.

Me – Vocals/Guitar
Gabriel – Organ, Rhodes, Piano
Mark Schiele – Bass
Ali Lin – Cello
Nick Hanson – Drums

Our first show was last Saturday at 14 Below in Santa Monica, and it was a lot of fun. They’re a good group of musicians and somehow they put up with me. It probably helps that I drug their tea. Anyway, we’re going to be booking a ton of shows and it would be great to meet you, so keep an eye on our schedule.

Cheers, SJ

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!

I hope this year is really good for all of you. 2008 was a pretty rough ride in a lot of ways, but hopefully in 2009 we’ll all be able to make some good things happen. I know some people who were fucking their lives up pretty heavily in 2008, so I’m especially hoping for them that they find their strength and make their lives better this year.

All the best,

SJ