<---Take me home!
<---Take me home!
It's been hard finding my writing voice. I always thought I was so sure about stuff but running this site for a couple of months and having the compulsion to delete and upload reviews over and over again highlighted that I may not be as good with words as I'd like to think. Which annoys me to no end, I made this website to upload stuff with no pressure and make work I was happy with, yet I feel the eyes of others reading and criticizing. Why do I think I always should make stuff for other people, why can't I have a dialogue with myself? So I challenged myself to write more, and it's been rocky and depressive. But I can say I'm getting better at being me when I actually write, and not writing like I'm going to be edited and peer reviewed. In the end, I have no idea why I imposed arbitrary limitations on myself (must be four paragraphs, must make two a week), expression comes organically and I want to express for MY pleasure.
I just thought about an interesting activity: Go to your preferred music listening app, go to your liked songs playlist, hit shuffle and listen to the next ten songs that play. Then, write them down and give a small explanation for why you like each of them. You then have something interesting and personal that you can share with another person. And not only that, you're giving them some good music too! So here's my ten:
1. Elizabeth Cotten - "Oh Babe It ain't No Lie": Wonderful acoustic ballad in Cotten's signature busy style. Her unique voice adds an extra dimension of sorrow to an already weary song.
2. Static X - "Bled For Days": Really killer chorus on this one, and the rapped bridge is also fun. Wayne's voice and the simple screeching guitar riff go together so well. My favorite cut off of their debut.
3. Gwen Stefani - "The Sweet Escape": Another song with a rhythmic bridge. I feel the production makes this one weaker, but those crisp tuned harmonies and that instantly recognisable "Yeeeehoooo!" makes it undeniably catchy.
4. Michael Jones - "After The Rain": A fun cascading piece that feels serene and exploratory. I don't like the percussion on this track, but I think the oboe playing is fantastic.
5. Bowery Electric - "Slow Thrills": A nice two-note jam that's content to let the drum groove do the heavy lifting. I like the feeling of distance that comes from the vocals being so quiet.
6. Purity Ring - "Knife Prty Remix": Honestly forgot I had liked this. I'm not as into it as I guess I was since I don't particularly like the brittle production and beat. I do like the lush wall of synthesizers that they throw onto this song and the new chorus vocals. Original is much better though.
7. Radiohead - "Lotus Flower": The tune is really great with a dreary and hypnotic performance from Thom Yorke. I do think the production is a little unfocused though and I think the drums from the basement performance are much better.
8. Spoon - "Dismember": Pretty obvious Pixies worship, but if Pixies made this song I'd think it ruled so I like it.
9. Bjork - "Possibly Maybe": I really like the contrast between the rigid beat and Bjork's soulful vocal line. The textures like the crackle and quiet background vocals are also a nice touch.
10. Mercury Rev - "Hi-Speed Boats": Am I crazy for thinking this sounds like a George Harrison cut? Really fuzzed and bright David Baker era cut, poppy and fun.
It's up! My very own website! For years I've actively avoided coding as visually my mind couldn't associate what I wanted to appear on screen with the necessary text. It also quickly became a nightmare to organize as I had no idea how to structure containers for content. Now that I'm older and more patient I was able to finally sit down this past weekend and viciously hammer out code to resemble the site in its current incarnation. To be honest I'm actually quite proud of how much I've been able to accomplish, and I think it looks exactly like I wanted.
The biggest drive to make this website has been my own obsession with cataloging my thoughts and opinions. Call it indulgent, to a degree it is, but I view it as therapeutic and also a chance to practice my communication skills. I also like having these opinions in a vacuum where I don't have anyone else's words/scores etc. to worry about when I'm writing. I'm someone who is subconsciously affected by the opinions of others, and it was eventually taking over and molding my own thoughts so that I'd always be second guessing myself when I made a piece. Here I can be sure that everything is something I want to read or see.
I want to thank my girlfriend for giving me the inspiration to make a website with Neocities. Her own website helped give me the drive to make a piece this personal, and seeing how even she had a fun time coding got me interested again. I also want to thank Neocities of course, as its early online aesthetic and easy to use hosting system saves me all the trouble of organizing and also paying for my own website. I've never really cared about custom domains anyway.
I hope to grow these pages and eventually have a catalog that I can look back on and enjoy; as well as improve my writing skills for more reviews, journaling, and coding. To all who are reading this: "Thank you for visiting!" It really does mean a lot.
<---Here's her website!