I spent the last part of this evening doing a Year In Review. I’ve never done one of these before, its all thanks to the previously mentioned Moleskine planner notebook. In conclusion, it scared the hell out of me. These things don’t feel like they happened a year ago, they feel like weeks, sometimes less. I was eating a delicious Bison burger with some friends recently, and said “That reminds me of that time a few months ago we went to that place and hung out with that guy, remember that?” they responded, “Steve, that was 2 years ago…and why are you wearing a red satin bathrobe? we’re in a restaurant for god sakes.” Well, I don’t know, that last half may have been made up, but the other certainly did occur. Its like time is a big giant line, and all the important events on that line are little dots, so all I did was remove the space between the dots…………. Thats just how I roll, only the important things stay. I feel like time is my enemy, and I am here to defeat it.
Looking at this notebook really freaked me out. I remember writing little notes by certain dates, I remember things I didnt write down because of events before and after, little ideas that led to bigger ideas, half assed schemes never even attempted, 1001 awesome band names, among them “Solid Gold Lobster” and “Every Betakey Ever”. Yeah, thats right. I saw a lot of music, which was a wonderful thing, one show that still sticks out is Joseph Arthur at Maxwells in Hoboken, also the Bob Dylan tribute at Lincoln Center. Yes there are others, but these were two unexpected gems.
This afternoon my associate David B and myself worked on our Prog Electro Pop Of The 1980’s project, Finding Alan. (what else are Jews going to do on Christmas?) It led me to another important conclusion. My favorite pieces of music which I have been a part of, occur in very brief periods. From inception to completion they maybe take 2 hrs. This makes sense in an odd way. Sometimes you slave over a project, revision after revision, and you’re never as happy as you were at that initial moment. If thats the most important creative lesson I’ve learned this year, I can live with that. I think this applies to anything, music, writing, painting, scrimshaw, civil war re-creations, its all the same. One goal which was planned in July (thanks moleskine!) but never completed, was the 2 day analog album between myself and my friend/resident electronic madman BUD. This will certainly be done my mid 2008 (I’m being realistic) and it will be fantastic.
There are resolutions to be made and taken with a grain of salt, no one pays attention to those after mid January anyhow. So, I’m comfortable closing out 2007, taking the good, the bad, and whatever else occurred, combining it into a delicious gumbo, and seeing what happens from there.