I’ve been told to journal towards self-exploration, but I’m not very good at it. I am, however, very good at rambling on about music. So, towards that end, I’ve decided to write each week about two songs that matter to me, and try to figure out why they do.
In the spirit of psychological exploration, I’ll choose each week’s songs by free associating off a random word.
Check it out at clements.substack.com
The final playlist inspired by songs from "A Failure." This week: Really Long Songs. A few rules: No song-suites here (sorry, prog rock), no experimental or jazz music, no jams or guitars solos - these are all songs that could have been four minutes long had the writer decided to choose their best three verses rather than use all forty-seven.
I've been asked more than once about how I managed to get the album done considering the demands of the job, adulthood, parenthood. My "method" (or whatever you might call it) was gifted to me by a piece of writing from the novelist Christian Kiefer, which I've shared below. I'm going to write a bit about what I learned from it, because perhaps it will help pull you out of a rut, like it did for me. (Read More…)
Click the image to view the lyric video for "Not A Lot Of Blood," the first single from Jim Clements's new album “A Failure." You can also download the single to listen on your own time by clicking the link below:
Not a Lot of Blood (MP3, 320kbps, 6.7MB) (Right-click to download)
Jim is joined on "A Failure" by musicians from albums' past, including singer/songwriter Kevin Quain (keys) who previously played on 2004's Kill Devil Hills, Dave Gooblar (keys) from 2008's When The Saints Go, and Richard Clements (piano) and Meghan Engel (strings) from 2011's The Road To Anhedonia.. Jim is also joined by some new faces, including Dave Tompkins (bass), Ashley Karlin (vocals), and Shawn Nourse (drums).
