Death Of The Rockstar – Rockin The Deathstar
The other day, one of my bandmates made the comment “It seems like people are becoming more and more nervous every day” This should be obvious to everyone. It’s not just a political situation. Its not just an economic situation. It’s a world situation. It comes with the death of the rockstar. It should be obvious also that the potential power of music to move masses of people is not a small thing. “The 60’s”, that great mystery period where large numbers of people began to question the status quo and the powers that be, was at least coordinated by and with, music. Music said something. It no longer does. Music’s ability as a cultural force to mobilize people has been marginalized by the business interests which once helped foster it. Record companies which once helped record, select and develop the artists they signed with have been bought out by electronics and media companies. This has not been a successful marriage. It used to be that no musician was “In it for the money” And they didn’t really know how to make it with this unique product called music. So some businessmen cam along and took care of that side of it. Then there was money involved and the musicians began to demand it as part of the package. Then the business guys used other business tools called marketing to make more of it. Technology advanced and soon we had videos explaining what the music meant. And then it became unnecessary for the music to mean anything because the business side got more “efficient” The playing field is supposed to be evened out these days with this mass communication tool called the Internet. Theoretically, anyone can make music and market it themselves and they don’t need” the music business or record companies of the past. But, they do need to do all that themselves, instead of making the music that moves people. Again, the rockstar has died because he now has to become the business man as well. Originally music was the thing you did if you had a creative impulse to inspire people to have faith in themselves, or the future or to question the way things are around you. It was originally the purest form of rebellion. Now the Rockstar has become part of the Deathstar. He wasn’t so much lured to the dark side by greed or by the dark forces, for the dark side exists in all of us. Becoming his own business minded self managed DIY solo artist blogger merch guy all adds up to the musician doing his music for something other than...
No Regrets Living & Drumming
On tour with the Zeppelin2 show. Shows going great. Saw an old friend/fan the other night in Bloomington In. He’s seen us about 5 times. In different cities. Came to St Louis, Cleveland House of Blues, Bunch of other shows, and last night Bloomington In. Honest to god Zeppelin fan, loves us. I come off stage, recognize him, start talking. Very nice, very complimentary. He says “If I had a million dollars, I’d give you guys half just to keep doing what you’re doing” Later he upped it to a billion dollars. He went on to tell me about “…when he was younger he played drums” followed by “…I wish i kept at it” followed by “…I bet your life is so fun…” This is not the first time i’ve heard this line of thought from people coming to see bands I’ve been in. Actually happens quite a bit with Zeppelin 2. While I graciously accepted his compliments and thanked him for his kindness and enthusiasm, I also said ” You have an awesome life too. You have a great wife (who was with him) who puts up with you dragging her all over the country to see us” It really got me thinking about the choices we make in life. I’ve made many and I’ve made many bad ones, like most people. It’s always interesting to me to see how people view a career in music. When It’s successful, like the Zeppelin2 band is, it seems to truly inspire people. Which I love. However, not all people see the amount of work and struggle it takes to actually persist and make your dream of playing music a reality. Maybe there’s a serous lesson in here somewhere, although I’m not sure I have it defined yet. The simple version is “Never regret your life. Make decisions the best you can with the information you have at the time. But never regret your own life” The reason this conversation struck me was that nobody has yet to walk up to me on the street while playing and say the same thing. Few people walk up to a street musician and say “I wish I could do what you do” Yet this comment is common when you play in “approved theaters and music venues” And I understand it because in the back of my mind, when I’m playing in the street, I’m thinking to some degree “These people walking by, probably assume I’m homeless, or crazy or I’ve got some agenda or, or, or” Yet, the most satisfying thing I’ve done in recent times is playing in the street. Interesting....
Baby Likes To Rock
Seeing the reactions people have to a guy setting up a drum kit in the street is really what this blog is all about. I’ll start a new category with this post, because there’s one group of people who really dig on the drums. Kids. I think its safe to say that KIDS LOVE DRUMS. Another theme here is that communication solves everything. This especially applies to kids. The trick with communicating with children is reaching THEIR reality. And apparently, rhythm is a reality that kids will communicate to and with. The other day while playing in Golden Gate Park, I had an interaction with a total stranger that was amazing. Today, I got the following email from her mom. Hi Ian, Thanks for entertaining us on Saturday! Violet was rockin’ out from around the corner and got very excited when I brought her closer to see you and listen. When I played these videos back in front of her, she started dancing again. I think it was good exercise for her because two days later she started walking. At 13 months old, she’s probably one of your youngest fans! Cheers, I think the video says it all. Notice that when I play a groove, she moves, and when I play a solo, she gets all messed up. This email and video brought a tear to my eye. I hate to admit to myself sometimes how jaded I am. When you play drums in the street, you need to be willing to experience anything, good and bad. Its these kind of interactions that make life worthwhile. Thanks to Violet and her...
Back Into Hiding or On Tour
The next 2 weeks I’m on tour with my regular rock band Led Zeppelin2 (www.LedZeppelin2.com) I made a huge (for me) breakthrough on Monday when I went out to the Embarcadero in front of the Ferry Building in SF and played for an hour. Made $35, highest per hour take in a single setting. This really was the biggest challenge for me, mentally. And I’m not usually mentally challenged. It’s really the bare bones of the busking gig. Can/Will you set up in a highly populated spot and really make it happen? It’s one thing to set up in a park in a moderately populated spot, with easy, free parking and no buildings around. People walk by, but they can walk away if they want. Setting up in the middle of a busy walkway in the middle of the city is the real deal. Found a parking spot. Paid $8 (meaning I went in the hole if I made nothing) for 1 hour 20 min. Jumped out. Ran 1/2 way through the park so I could see the spot was open. It was. Back to the car. Piled the drums on my shitty cart. Bungee strapped them down. Started pushing it through the streets. “I must look crazy to these people” running through your head the whole time. Pulled up to the spot. Started unpacking while hundreds of people walked by. A couple of guys stood there waiting for me to start. Its hard to explain the sensation of having just finished setting up your drums in the street. Because once you’ve come this far, you can’t stop. You have to start the next thing immediately. And that means playing. NOT “warming up” or “sound checking” So I started and I kind of sucked, was tense, couldn’t remember if I ever played the drums before. Seriously weird sensation after probably thousands of gigs played in my life. After a minute I found my sweet spot and relaxed and started rocking it. Whew. So, this week I’m back into the safe zone of sound checks, people paying in advance to see by band. Getting on stage in front of 1000...
Drum Bum Buddies
Me and my new friend Great day in Golden Gate Park again today. Beautiful weather, lots of people. And some new, old friends. The homeless guys. Basically, I view this thing as a social experiment. Watching peoples reaction to some dude playing a massive drum solo in the middle of a park or street is awesome to see. Part of my overall theory is that we’ve become so fixated on our computer technology and gadgets, that we’re growing too isolated as a culture. Nobody communicates anymore. And the sad fact is that it seems to be true. A great many people just walk on by as if nothings happening. Most people, are pretty wrapped up in their own world and ignore the world we all share. There seems to be one exception. Homeless people. The homeless, love to stop and hang out. And it seems they always have some kind of percussion instrument. Friday it was a dude with bongos. Yesterday, a different friend used a 2×4 hunk of wood, banging it on the ground. More or less in time. Now, I’m going to be honest. I’m not a fan of the homeless. Actually, I would probably categorize myself as…unsympathetic. I basically believe that people choose their path. And that people are responsible for their own condition. Ok, that was before I started playing drums in the street. It kind of messes with my preconceived ideas to find that homeless guys are completely unabashed in just walking up to you and participating. Maybe it’s out of necessity. Maybe they are so close to not surviving that they simply communicate. Because if they don’t (ask you for some change usually), they’ll just die from starvation. So they communicate. But what makes this odd is that I’m comparing this fact to the “normal” members of our world. “The normal” are kind of wrapped up in their own cocoon. Maybe we think we know so much, that we don’t think we need to interact any more. Wrong kind of lesson. There is one other group that will communicate because they don’t “know better” Kids. The majorette of people who put cash in the can are kids. They bug their parents as they walk by and then their parents give em a buck and they walk up and gently put it in the case. I made friends with one today. He walked up with a branch in his hand like it was a drumstick. I traded him for one of my sticks and let him smash away while I kept time on the kick drum. He was elated. Maybe thats the lesson....
Our Sponsor
