what the !$#? a new post?!

it might seem a little strange that i'm finally updating this page at a time i've been busy to the point where i don't have time to return phone calls. it's too late to call anyone now. i've had my hands full the past month or so and my eyes don't want to look at this computer anymore but i thought i'd post a quick i'm still alive note before the search and rescue squads descend on my roof. mainly i've been mixing adam warner's next release in my little upstairs studio. we're just tightening the screws at this point - but man, there are a lot of them.

and then in a couple days it's off to europe to do some shows and radio with royal wood. we're just a duo on this trip to dublin, milan, and the netherlands, until next time when hopefully the band can join us. and as soon as we get back we head into the studio to do some recording. i'm planning on taking a full day off sometime in april. i'm gonna wake up at 3 then watch the entire lord of the rings trilogy or maybe the arrested development dvd's that were lent to me a month ago. or perhaps i'll just sleep until it hurts then get up and write a novel. so many options.

some people have emailed mentioning that they heard me singing on the tv set over the past month. no, i'm not the juicy fruit guy again. but the CBC series MVP used a couple songs from dream at harmony motel in previous episodes. we'll see how long this canadian series can hang on for. it's about "the secret lives of hockey wives". i always wished someone would finally uncover the lives of the unreasonably rich and glorify it until i couldn't stop watching. apparently my prayers were heard.

on the music-of-my-own front... like i said, i've been otherwise occupied lately. but i am still working somewhat officially on another release. though what exactly it is seems to come in and out of focus quite regularly. luckily there has been some incentive to keep working at it regardless of how little sleep i get. my friend josh van tassel have been geeking out on sounds lately and even given each other regular assignments to keep ourselves creating. so far i've recorded my humidifier, the air outside my room, a single note on the piano, my 4-track playing silence. i think i may have a hit on my hands. josh has an entertaining website that he updates regularly demonstrating his own progress in sound composition.

strangely i've been looking forward to sitting in a confined airplane with nothing to do but watch movies or read. my bloody headphones better work this time.

some people i haven't seen in a while ask me "what have you been up to lately?" my usual response is something like, "nothing". in truth, when i say this i am actually lying. i don't get a chance to do "nothing" often these days. so as a quick catch up, here is some of what i've actually been up to lately:

* playing with kevin quain & the mad bastards sunday nights at the cameron house
* at the bathouse studio near kingston recording with matt barber & the union dues
* at the rogue studio in toronto recording with ben somer
* playing some cool shows with royal wood. we went to u.k. and germany in september and will be returning some more european countries in february/march)
* went on a trip to nashville with my family and much of my dad's business to attend a big speech he was making for a conference.
* some recording for adam warner's forthcoming album. i will be mixing it very soon.
* and in the early stages of creating some new and ambitious music

that's about it.

dinosaurs, dragons...

change is inevitable and around me a lot these days. and i'm sorry there's been little said here for some time. perhaps the makeover will inspire more words. but this comes at a time i've been building a home in instrumental music with my current recording experiments (dinosaurs) and the live shows with the dragon! that's not to say i haven't had any development with words. just none i've found a place for yet.

... and dogs

in other completely unrelated news, i have now heard on a couple separate accounts that dream at harmony motel seems to have a calming effect on the canine species. it seems that at least a couple of dogs known to have excitement issues have spontaneously sat in calm when the cd was put on. now if i could just figure out how to teach dogs to download or use a credit card...