Under My Radar

The ideas for this one started forming as soon as I was done with "Take It Away". During the summer of 2003, I was recording a lot of demos, but needed a break after Kelli and I got done with our cover album, "How Ya BOOIN'?". Unfortunately, I had to take a second job that fall, and would be doing that for six months. After that, I just spent time relaxing, and finally started working on it late summer 2004. I was armed with more instruments and a better idea of how to mix tracks together. It would result in the best sounding collection of songs yet. I released it in January, 2005.

Track 1: "Sleep"
The inspiration for the beginning chorus came from an old Who song. It's not an exact copy, but as soon as I heard their song, I began developing this one. In fact, I knew I wanted it to be "big", and it paved the way for a lot of the harmonies on this CD. I hadn't even considered doing harmonies before, and was excited to try it out. It would be nearly a year from the first ideas to getting them down on my 4-track, but there was no way I was going to forget it. I also knew that I had to make it the first track, to establish a presence and let the listener know they were in for something different. The lyrics are sparse compared to the music, but it talks about a mythical place where people chase rainbows. I never explored why, but there was certainly some power in them that kept them up at night. Of course, there never is an end to a rainbow, and these folks would spend years chasing after something they could never have. I suppose it's a slightly higher concept than my usual stuff and probably deserved more words, but.....I've always expressed myself better through the actual notes.

Track 2: "Long Long Long"
The general tone of this one was inspired by an old Stones song, one that was never a hit, but is good nonetheless. The simple acoustic beginning leading to an intense burst caught my ear. The lyrics were written pretty easily. It starts with someone looking back at their childhood and wishing they could go back, but then realizing that things are just fine now, and in fact there are better things to look forward to.

Track 3: "Walking The Dog"
Another tune that lay in waiting for many months, I decided at the last minute to play my 12-string. I had actually sat down with my 6-string to record, and suddenly decided I needed a change. It was a good change. No lyrics were needed, as the tune holds its' own, yet I was still concerned that people listening to it would drift off. It never really goes anywhere. But everyone liked it quite a bit, so I was pleasantly surprised. This was one of the first songs done for this album, and I was really starting to work my way around the drum software and be able to create sounds that were fully integrated with everything else.

Track 4: "Under My Radar"
This is one of the best songs on this album. I played in a style I hadn't before, and sang the same. This is T's song, and it's about us being so close to meeting, yet so far away. We were only a blog message apart, but incredible circumstances had to happen in order to make it a reality. The song follows no particular structure. A couple verses, some kind of bridge, then an ending that's kind of a verse, but not.

Track 5: "Seeing Me Drive"
I thought this one up during some of my many long drives to my main job, which at the time was 50 miles away. I had always played this as a quiet song, but suddenly liked the idea of a driving beat that would carry it. This is another one that I thought wasn't one of my best, but some said it stayed in their heads, which is always a good thing.

Track 6: "Just To Hang (Around With Me)"
There are fewer "love" songs on this album, and for good reason: songs like this pushed them out of the way. It's told from the point of few of a guy who has tired of his girl and is breaking up with her in a harsh way. She needs to pack up and leave now, and he wants nothing more to do with her. From the sounds of it, she may even deserve it, but the exact reasons are left vague. I still cherish the first line, I think it's one of the best I've written so far.

Track 7: "She's Over It"
If you play this and the previous track together, they tell a story. In fact, the ending of #6 rolls right into this one. However, we now have the girl's point of view, as she's walking home in the cold from her encounter. Again, reasons and faults are vague, all we see is that as she walks, she is eventually able to hold her head up high. My dad contributed the rhythm guitar here, making it the first time we have collaborated on a musical recording.

Track 8: "Flight of the Canyon"
The title means absolutely nothing here. I just wanted to use my electric guitar for some nice rock and roll. One of my favorites.

Track 9: "Julia"
When I first played the guitar for this, I loved it, and played it all the time. I actually wrote the first few lines long before I recorded anything, and then finished the song based on that over a year later. It ended up being about a whore who has a bad day on the job, and in the end gives it up. See, not all my songs can be happy little trees.

Track 10: "Everybody"
Another biting look at rejection. I guess I needed to cancel out some of the love, because the lyrics for a song like this probably could have easily gone the sappy route. I had originally written everything on guitar, but since I want to explore as many avenues as possible, tried it out on piano, and then of course the many ideas of guitars, harmonies, different styles started filling my mind, and it ended up being a very good song. Yet another one where I sing a couple verses, then simply let the music go. I liked the last line of this one just as much as the first in "Just To Hang".

Track 11: "High Fives"
My daughter helped me with this one. I was playing my guitar when she sat down and started a rhythm with a pen and a book. I started playing this song, recorded a quick demo of it, and later refined it into what you hear. But I didn't want to refine it too much. I liked the idea of a generic sounding beginning moving into a fast, clean section before coming back down again. I even used a pen and notebook for the early percussion.

Track 12: "Little Miss Hero"
This is one of my most ambitious projects. It's based on Metroid, the old Nintendo video game, where at the end, it's revealed that the hero is a girl. She kicks ass in this song, and at the end, you get to hear a variation of the actual Metroid theme song. I did this part with my grandma's electric keyboard. The space effects were done with a little Smarties soundmaker that came packaged in a pack of candy that Kelli brought me from her trip to Rome. When I set out to be different, I never know where it will take me.

Track 13: "A Better Tomorrow"
The chorus for this song was written by my friend Bryce nearly three years before I recorded this. I loved the words, and wrote my own verses and music around them. It turned into a very nice song. Yeah, it's a love song, too. If you like that kind of stuff, cherish it, because there might not be too many more of these anytime soon!

Track 14: "A Yellow Place"
Here is our J.R. Comics tune. I did it because I always liked this one, and it's T's favorite color. Not many people remembered it when they heard it, but it wasn't one we played in public very much. Again, it was a lot of fun to "upgrade" an oldie.

Track 15: "Hammersails"
What can I say? I was driving home from grandma's after recording the keyboards for "Little Miss Hero" when I started singing what ended up being the only vocals on this one. I had been close to wrapping up the album, but felt like I could have used more songs. When this one hit, I started laughing, knowing I could go absolutely nuts with it but still make it a really good song. It was done within three days. The vocals may be off-putting, but the main parts of the song are some of the best I've ever done. I feel like my knowledge of mixing, using the drum software, and composing came together really well here.