Convolution!
I’m excited to share a project I worked on over the holidays. It’s called Convolution. I hope you’ll give it a spin. Sure was fun making it. Soundcloud link:…
The Avinger Projects
I call him the Avenger because he's a guitar super hero. A collection of tracks from Erich Avinger.
Resurrecting a Minimoog
A celebration and extended riff on a classic Moog synthesizer. PS, I own one.
A Forgotten Gem: The Voyetra
In 1982, Keyboard magazine began running ads for a new synthesizer called The Voyetra Eight. Was it too far ahead of its time?
Houston Rap, The Book
On the Walker/Beste book, "Houston Rap"
No Rhyme, No Reason: Farewell, George Duke
We all have our idols and today one of mine fell. George Duke, the veteran pianist, producer, and songwriter, passed away last night in Los Angeles at the age…
Kurstin, Kurstin
About "the guy" from The Bird and The Bee and his knack for writing hit songs for others.
The bands OF Montreal
I love Montreal and you should too. My reasons and a playlist.
RIP Derrick Lewis
I just received the horrible news that bassist Derrick Lewis, one of Houston’s finest musicians, was struck and killed while riding his bicycle this weekend. This is a senseless…
“Celeste and Jesse Forever” Soundtrack
A well-crafted compilation soundtrack can energize a film. It can also provide a launchpad for new artists. Stina Nordenstam and The Cardigans both benefited enormously from their appearance on…
Yacht Rock
On what made Yacht Rock tick. Also a transcription of Suddenly and why it's better than you think.
Tiny Desk Concert: Marketa Irglova
We need more of this in the world — two unaffected artists straight-up making music, no gimmicks, no pizzazz. Marketa Irglova and the talented newcomer Aida Shahghasemi performed a…
electronic minimalism: listen
Beautifully strange music from a composer in Spain named José Manuel Berenguer, a.k.a. ‘jmb’. Free mp3s on his website, though he strongly suggests that you contact him for higher quality…
Arvo Pärt’s Fratres
An intensely haunting piece played to perfection. The bell-like piano chords that enter at 1:24 should remind everyone of the impact Pärt has had on the Hollywood film industry.…
Farewell Lhasa
Either I’m really out of touch, or the music media is. But here it is September and I’m just learning that the great Lhasa de Sela died in January…
New Ambient
I went on an expedition today to seek out new ambient music. It was a tricky hunt. Ambient is a misused, misunderstood genre. If you refer back to Eno’s…
New Zealand on the Tiny Desk
NPR’s excellent music blog includes an ongoing feature called Tiny Desk Concert in which bands perform lo-fi sets from the station’s office (desks included). This week the site hosts…
Soul of a City
It’s April, time for the Spring KUHF fundraiser. One of the gifts-with-donation this year is the Engines of our Ingenuity CD Soul of a City. This new multimedia package, the 11th…
“Crank It Down”: Music For Sleeping
Ambient music, it’s warm milk to a seasoned insomniac. It’s Ambien without the morning hangover. The sandman of choice for me has always been the genre’s master, Brian Eno. There’s just…
For the Love of You, ARP 2600
It’s my sad confession. I once had a crush on a machine. I was an impressionable teenager and the ARP 2600 was my pinup girl. I loved this thing…
Benny Green Transcription, Cottontail
Benny Green trading choruses with a guitarist on the Ellington rhythm changes “Cottontail” from the Ray Brown CD Seven Steps To Heaven. Note the tempo — a scorching 300…
Benny Green Transcription, The Song Is You
This is the first chorus of a Benny Green solo on “The Song Is You” from his debut CD Prelude (1989, Criss Cross). The thing that’s impressive about this solo…
Mulgrew Miller Transcription
RIP Mulgrew. What a loss: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/30/arts/music/mulgrew-miller-jazz-pianist-dies-at-57.html Here are three choruses of a Mulgrew Miller piano solo on “If I Should Lose You,” from the album Getting To Know You.…
Hipster Proto Bands
Band name-dropping is a tried and true technique for making yourself appear knowledgeable and cool. The more obscure the band the better. The smaller their output the better. If…
Blinded by the Douche
“Blinded by the Light” was a perplexing piece of pop music. Despite the song’s surreal refrains, or maybe because of them, it achieved anthem-level notoriety in 1976, popular among both hipster children and…
