Thursday, December 23, 2010

HOODIE W/ BUILT-IN HEADPHONES!!!!!!

Introducing the most convenient way to rock out while jogging/running: 




Enter stage right - Old Navy. I wonder who REALLY owns the inventor rights to this budding new contraption? I've always just bought Old Navy's jeans just for the way they're stone washed patterns look and sometimes feel. Every once in a while, you find those pair of jeans that you wanna buy like 4 more pairs for when the first run out. HAHA!

However, the downside to this hoodie with headphones in them is that It will be similar to the scene Bluetooth users are a part of when an honest conversationalist decides to strike up a chat and then, BAM - auto-cold shoulder! YEP, Mr. Techno Hoodie will be VERY, VERY...similar. HEHEH.


Unless of course you're working out on a closed track, and ummmmmm....everyone else decides to buy TH's too and collectively wear them on the same day as you. DID I MEANTION THEY'RE  MACHINE-WASHABLE?    :o)
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SICK!!! -----LYNYRD SKYNYRD Poster (DESIGNED USING FREEBIRD LYRICS!)

This has GOT to be one of the, COOLEST posters I've seen that takes words and makes art with them in a unique way. I actually have a tee shirt from a show here in Las Vegas from 2005 called "Rock You: a Tribute to Queen" that has all the words to "Bohemian Rhapsody", which I thought was way cooler than any plain Jane band tee with a logo and the name of the group, but this one takes the cake. Kudos to the designers!!! HEY - I found the shirt for ya'll too. 
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Know Your Meme: "Weird Al" Yankovic Helps Explain Auto Tune


I remember in 2001-2002 going into the studio with my classic rock band Brilliant Orange and having a few single notes autotuned, but it was described more as a way to assist - AKA auto-correct. Artists like Weird Al as well as the genius Frank Zappa have asked the question, "Does Humor Belong in Music". Obviously, the success of the previously mentioned two has given the world it's answer.

T-Pain was a visionary and saw a marketing opportunity as seized it. He milked it and took advantage of the software but - in a time of over-consumerism, waste and financial IQ meltdown...who's going to stop things like this from happening. This video DOES have a point about fads coming and going in music. From the accidental "SCRATCH" on a vinyl record to mouth percussion and guitar looping stations...creation is at the center. AND CREATE IS WHAT WE DO AS ARTISTS.

Check Out: The Smiths go reggae + other previously unreleased tracks

Check Out: The Smiths go reggae + other previously unreleased tracks



Pantene does a MUSIC Commercial?!!!!!


This MOVING STORY commercial has so deeply changed my view of marketing, ASL, love, and passion that undoubtedly - tears fell. I feel as though this could have been a movie. Despite the language barrier and having to read the subtitles, this hits home and delivers the best news: that MUSIC LIVES AND IS ALIVE IN ALL, OF US.




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Lil' Kim & Cyndi Lauper: "Time After Time" LIVE!

I've gotta say that this rendition and "recover" (as us musicians in the industry like to call this) was very different yet unique. Cyndi is rocking what looks like a middle eastern steel lap guitar without a box/sound hole playing somewhat staccato and accenting on the chord changes while Lil' Kim gets i nthe groove of this sliced up chopped version of a classic 1980's hit single.

FAST-FORWARD TO THE 2 MINUTE MARKER TO SKIP THE OVERLY LONG INTRODUCTION...


-Troy (LIVE FROM LAS VEGAS!)






Tuesday, December 21, 2010

ZEN GUITAR: exploring the WHY of guitar-playing.

As you open the book to your left, you illustratively walk into a dojo - a place of learning and discipline. Yet, there's a fun air to the book's feel and presence in your hands.

This dojo is not like an ordinary martial arts dojo - it's a guitar dojo. An already amazing premise for a book and some would say, it describes the way we should approach taking our guitars out into the world. And it gets better!

To me, to truly interact by making "beautiful and memorable connections" with those that have the listening capability beyond merely hearing, is where it's at! THAT, is the "end state" in my humble yet ardent opinion. 

The work done in this book will be solely up to the individual guitarist. Yes, it can be "READ" like every other book published in the Library of Congress, but my hope is that it will be EXPERIENCED and APPLIED to each skill-set that you already have. This book will asisst you in building onto what you've already uncovered and figured out about the guitar and it's inner workings -IT WILL HELP YOU TO GET TO THAT LEVEL OF BEING AND PLAYING GUITAR THAT ALL THE ADVERTISEMENTS CLAIM TO UNVEIL ALL THOSE "SECRETS".

I can't remember who told me about this book, or where I found it or saw it first, but it's kind of like the movie "Pay It Forward" (released in 2000), it really doesn't matter so much who started the movement as it does that it CONTINUES in it's purest form for others to benefit from. That's where you and your group of friends come into the picture!

OKAY! SWEETNESS.

If you're just joining me from my previous post, quick-linked here for ya, we were discussing how so many books focus on "how" to do certain techniques or how to "play" like a specific famous guitarist, genre style or band. This book differs in that it guides you to discover "WHY" we play guitar. It's focus is on simply playing the songs you have in your heart already. If you're looking to build up you identity as a musician, this is YOUR book! Avid listeners and music fanatics about everything tonal and aural will benefit from Zen Guitar too. It's really amazing how much this book covers without even going into the HOW of guitar-playing.

As I learned of Philip's life (and all-to-early passing) through his writing style and specific stories, I began to understand and know guitar and music in a new undeniable way. Unlike books about theory and how. HOW HOW HOW?- That seems to be the age old question - it's almost like an analogy of a skill representing a door, but discovering the key to unlock the secrets behind that threshold are only for the chosen. I believe we CHOOSE to allow ourselves that gift. To seek diligently about music, or to leave it a mystery and store our instruments in their cases for years, sometimes decades. Maybe never even committing to buying that investment in the first place. I had an acquaintance tell me as i was waiting to sing the national anthem that, "If you want a secret to be kept, put it in a book". I believe that's exactly why the campaign to encourage children to read often is so strongly in effect.

ALL IN ALL: 
Mastering guitar is truly a gift - to be able to connect and speak to anyone of any other language is the ultimate "Rosetta Stone". So ALLOW yourself to enter into a knowledge-base beyond the "HOW". 

ALLOW it to change your musical course and success, forever. Buy this for the musician in your life that you love.

Philip T. Sudo's "Zen Guitar". 

The only question left would be, what type of audience will you attract?







METHOD BOOK REVIEW: A SUCCINCT PATH TO MASTERY.

This is my most recent search for a book that would dramatically assist me in teaching others what I already know. Everyone approaches learning differently. Music is no exception.

Although I consider Music to be "the ultimate language of all known languages,"I know that the raw information and concepts STILL have to be PROCESSED. Which is why I'm so excited to review this book! 

Let me first start out by saying, out the dozens of music-related book, CDs and DVDs I've invested my time and money in, THIS ONE BOOK does the job of about 75% of my current collection! SO to me, it's very important that I give this book it's proper distinction and place above the rest.

It's also different in that it addresses questions that most guitarists (INCLUDING ME!) are unsure about that stay stuck in our minds. These hidden questions are out in the open and ALIVE inside the pages of Tom Kolb's book (PUBLISHED BY HAL LEONARD, OF COURSE!). He not only asks them, but answers each vital main point involved in cracking the guitar-code towards mastery.

I'll describe this place of mastery: It's a place where you "just know." It's an area of "natural" knowing. Where you're SURE of each interval between  notes  and can emulate/copy/mimic patterns within a seemingly stagnant scale. This area is a region where, because of the work you've done to find out what notes you're playing, you can  improvise without worrying/thinking about hitting a wrong note.


STAY TUNED FOR MY NEXT REVIEW OF - PHILIP TOSHIO SUDO'S LEGENDARY BOOK -- "ZEN GUITAR"!!!



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Monday, December 20, 2010

$10,000 Dr. Seuss Scholarship for HS Seniors!!!!( SPREAD THE WORD!)

http://www.seussville.com/OTPScholarship/



Click the link above to be taken to the application sheet at the top center of the page. This is a huge opportunity for those that are serious about having fun and learning more!If you need a little inspiration, here are the words from Dr. Seuss' "Oh, the Places You'll Go":
Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

You'll look up and down streets. Look 'em over with care.
About some you will say, "I don't choose to go there."
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any
you'll want to go down.
In that case, of course,
you'll head straight out of town.

It's opener there
in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.

And then things start to happen,
don't worry. Don't stew.
Just go right along.
You'll start happening too.

OH!
THE PLACES YOU'LL GO!

You'll be on y our way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights.

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.
You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't.
Because, sometimes, you won't.

I'm sorry to say so
but, sadly, it's true
that Bang-ups
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

You can get all hung up
in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on.
You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch
with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,
that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,
you're not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself
is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're darked.
A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right...
or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?
Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it's not, I'm afraid you will find,
for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused
that you'll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace
and grind on for miles cross weirdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...

...for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go
or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow
or the waiting around for a Yes or No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite
or waiting for the wind to fly a kite
or waiting around for Friday night
or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake
or a pot to boil, or a Better Break
or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants
or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.

NO!
That's not for you!

Somehow you'll escape
all that waiting and staying
You'll find the bright places
where Boom Bands are playing.

With banner flip-flapping,
once more you'll ride high!
Ready for anything under the sky.
Ready because you're that kind of a guy!

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!
There are points to be scored. There are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball
will make you the winning-est winner of all.
Fame! You'll be as famous as famous can be,
with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don't
Because, sometimes they won't.

I'm afraid that some times
you'll play lonely games too.
Games you can't win
'cause you'll play against you.

All Alone!
Whether you like it or not,
Alone will be something
you'll be quite a lot.

And when you're alone, there's a very good chance
you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.
There are some, down the road between hither and yon,
that can scare you so much you won't want to go on.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul.
On you will go
though your enemies prowl.
On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl.
Onward up many
a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak.

On and on you will hike,
And I know you'll hike far
and face up to your problems
whatever they are.

You'll get mixed up, of course,
as you already know.
You'll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life's
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never foget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So...
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea,
You're off the Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way!

The above text was copyrighted in 1990 

 

The complete book which has great pictures to accompany the text is published by Random House and can be purchase at any bookstore. Cost: approx. $10-$15

I whole-heartedly suggest you buy this book as a gift to yourself or to anyone that you know will graduating soon from something.