So here's what happens when you don't spend the extra 4ish hours to awkwardly sync up video from a Flip to the audio of a Zoom:
For this one I hooked my Zoom H4n up to the laptop and used the internal camera on the laptop. Dang. I've been under the impression that you can have crappier video if you still have great audio--and I think there's a lot of truth to that--but I think this shows it's nicer to have both!
Maybe I'll try again.
5.21.2010
The Bazaar Cafe
I just had a lovely night at The Bazaar Cafe way the hell out there on California at 22nd. I've been hearing about this place for a long time now. It's kind of a songwriter's hub/haven in SF. It seems to have a pretty similar crowd to the Hotel Utah folks, but without amps and mics. You come to Bazaar to listen. I was messing around with an iPhone for a few minutes before I felt unbelievably rude. Not that anyone made me feel that way, the place just commands that kind of presence. Okay, I'm digressing. The point is the cute little community these guys seem to have. Super talented and it seems like they hang out... (I promise not to be creepy.) Here's a picture of the cafe. So cute!
Actually, I noticed this little group the first time I was at Hotel Utah. I had been to a few terrible open mics* in SF and then stumbled upon this little place where everyone was really talented. Even the songs that I didn't like that much were really well done. And right in the middle of me thinking "Man, these guys are great. If only they were friends too..." Some guy gets up and sings one of the host's songs! He covered a friend's song! Check, check, and check. It does exist! Yea!
So here I go... Me. Next Thursday. Bazaar Cafe. 7:30.
*At Amnesia once--and don't get me wrong, I adore that place!--right after I sang there was a man who came up and made the audience shout out Beatles songs for him to whistle. He could whistle really well, but he had no idea how any of the songs went.
Actually, I noticed this little group the first time I was at Hotel Utah. I had been to a few terrible open mics* in SF and then stumbled upon this little place where everyone was really talented. Even the songs that I didn't like that much were really well done. And right in the middle of me thinking "Man, these guys are great. If only they were friends too..." Some guy gets up and sings one of the host's songs! He covered a friend's song! Check, check, and check. It does exist! Yea!
So here I go... Me. Next Thursday. Bazaar Cafe. 7:30.
*At Amnesia once--and don't get me wrong, I adore that place!--right after I sang there was a man who came up and made the audience shout out Beatles songs for him to whistle. He could whistle really well, but he had no idea how any of the songs went.
5.20.2010
The Japanese Storyteller Returns!
Yea! Hurray! So I was mistaken the first time around. This is not really a music thing. BUT it's still awesome. Kei Sakaguchi (the storyteller) teaches kindergarten in Japan and reads all over the place, in Japanese and in English. So in the US he's been going around doing guerrilla readings. He even went into various bookstores and asked to read. Super cute. And I gotta say, getting people to smile while they're on their way to MUNI is no small feat. Well done!!
He also read a great Japanese story about farting, but I think that deserves its own separate video.
He also read a great Japanese story about farting, but I think that deserves its own separate video.
5.12.2010
Cover: "Bien o Mal" by Julieta Venegas
Things I learned from making this 2 minute cover:
- Putting a video camera on a box doesn't mean you will automatically get your full head in the frame. (This might have been a happy accident!)
- Trying to sync video from a Flip and audio from a ZoomH4 leads to approximately 4 extra hours of work. However, it's not impossible.
- But it is impossible to do a silly cover video and not feel 12 years old.
- Despite the time it takes and the assured ridicule, it's fun to make silly videos.
- A fake drum solo will drown out most swearing.
5.11.2010
Video Songs!
Ooooh! I get it!! I wrote early about Pomplamoose and how they started this thing they called Video Songs. (A funny side note is that when you type "video song" into google, you get a link or so of Pomplamoose and then a ton of links to Bollywood songs. I have this awesome image of the two being related. But alas...)
Anyway, on their myspace page they've got a ton of subscribers, BUT only 3 subscriptions. (I hope you're sensing the mysterious tone in my voice.) Hmm. Interesting. So tons of people want see you, but you only care to see 3 people. What could that possibly mean?? You guessed it! VideoSongers! They are in the process of starting a movement. A movement of 3! Hear what you see and see what you hear in a video. It's a good way to counteract the glossy, video-madness of today. I like seeing (and showing!) what's under the hood.
Get your head out of the gutter.
And stop clicking on my hyperlinks and navigating away from my page!
...I really need to figure out how to have them open in a new window. Ideas??
Anyway, on their myspace page they've got a ton of subscribers, BUT only 3 subscriptions. (I hope you're sensing the mysterious tone in my voice.) Hmm. Interesting. So tons of people want see you, but you only care to see 3 people. What could that possibly mean?? You guessed it! VideoSongers! They are in the process of starting a movement. A movement of 3! Hear what you see and see what you hear in a video. It's a good way to counteract the glossy, video-madness of today. I like seeing (and showing!) what's under the hood.
Get your head out of the gutter.
And stop clicking on my hyperlinks and navigating away from my page!
...I really need to figure out how to have them open in a new window. Ideas??
5.08.2010
Te Quiero, Julieta!
I need to say something unabashedly:
I LOVE JULIETA VENEGAS!
Truly. She's a wonderfully talented singer/songwriter/musician from Tijuana who creates these songs that are fun and beautiful, and make you feel as though life is slightly less complicated than it sometimes seems: the good is never perfect and the bad is never insurmountable. Obviously, she sings in Spanish. I understand about 3/4 of what she says, but I'm pretty sure I get the gist. It's liberating stuff.
I saw her play this past Wednesday at the Fox in Oakland--hence the remembering that I love her--and she was just as amazing as ever. She's preggers this time around. Adorable. Anyway, it hit me while I was there that part of the reason I love her so much is the community she inspires around her music. Her lyrics are really powerful to the hardcore fans, and they (we!) show it. Throughout the entire show the crowd is smiling, saying excuse me when bumping into people; people are singing along and looking around to find new friends who are also singing their hearts out. Pretty cute. One amazing woman engendering so many smiles and so much good will. Love it.
And then I realized something bigger. Look at this picture. Do you see that? Julieta is at the piano and there are 8(!) people on stage with her. 8! That's kind of a lot for the music she makes. She's got 4 women, and 4 men up there. Gender balance, what?!? Awesome. She's made a community of musicians who have worked with her for years and everyone shines in their own way. It's beautiful. All my other musical loves have great concerts, but there's just a touch of loneliness. Regina Spektor's concert--also at The Fox a few months back--was like that. She played with people for a few of her new songs, but you got the feeling that they were hired guns, there to fill up the space. Then she did the rest of the show by herself on that massive stage. Big ups, but a little sad. Maybe Regina likes it like that, but I would want to do it the Venegas way: the more the merrier.
I think I'm going to start here with some covers. Julieta's songs are so fun and I love trying to sing in Spanish. Viva para-social relationships!
I LOVE JULIETA VENEGAS!
Truly. She's a wonderfully talented singer/songwriter/musician from Tijuana who creates these songs that are fun and beautiful, and make you feel as though life is slightly less complicated than it sometimes seems: the good is never perfect and the bad is never insurmountable. Obviously, she sings in Spanish. I understand about 3/4 of what she says, but I'm pretty sure I get the gist. It's liberating stuff.
I saw her play this past Wednesday at the Fox in Oakland--hence the remembering that I love her--and she was just as amazing as ever. She's preggers this time around. Adorable. Anyway, it hit me while I was there that part of the reason I love her so much is the community she inspires around her music. Her lyrics are really powerful to the hardcore fans, and they (we!) show it. Throughout the entire show the crowd is smiling, saying excuse me when bumping into people; people are singing along and looking around to find new friends who are also singing their hearts out. Pretty cute. One amazing woman engendering so many smiles and so much good will. Love it.
And then I realized something bigger. Look at this picture. Do you see that? Julieta is at the piano and there are 8(!) people on stage with her. 8! That's kind of a lot for the music she makes. She's got 4 women, and 4 men up there. Gender balance, what?!? Awesome. She's made a community of musicians who have worked with her for years and everyone shines in their own way. It's beautiful. All my other musical loves have great concerts, but there's just a touch of loneliness. Regina Spektor's concert--also at The Fox a few months back--was like that. She played with people for a few of her new songs, but you got the feeling that they were hired guns, there to fill up the space. Then she did the rest of the show by herself on that massive stage. Big ups, but a little sad. Maybe Regina likes it like that, but I would want to do it the Venegas way: the more the merrier.
I think I'm going to start here with some covers. Julieta's songs are so fun and I love trying to sing in Spanish. Viva para-social relationships!
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