tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26811565812811059892023-11-16T06:42:32.374-05:00Brighter than a BuoySongwriter Carsie Blanton blogs about flotsam, jetsam, flim and flam.Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-62586078631184761322014-02-03T14:54:00.001-05:002014-02-03T14:54:28.393-05:00I'm in love with you, but it's all right.By the way, I'm a songwriter! Here is the "casual love" blog post, in song form. It's brand new and hot off the proverbial presses.<br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/132885865&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe><br />
<br />
If you like it, consider becoming a patron of my work, at <a href="http://www.patreon.com/carsieblanton">www.patreon.com/carsieblanton</a>. It's like sending me a "tip" every time I write a new song. I really appreciate the support - and the extra kick in the pants to finish my songs!Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-25259032104198617852014-01-21T11:27:00.001-05:002014-02-01T17:16:52.314-05:00Casual Love<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Friends, put on your flak jackets. It's time to drop some honesty on yet another uncomfortable topic: love.</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
We use the word "love" to mean a lot of things. Throughout this post I'll be referring to the romantic kind of love, the kind that usually involves sexual attraction, AKA "falling in love".</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: clear; text-align: center;"><b>Love: The Shocking Truth</b> </span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: clear; text-align: center;"> </span></h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">The truth about love is: it happens. A lot. It happens at appropriate times (like, when you're in a long-term relationship with someone great), and also inappropriate ones (like, when you meet somebody at a party and have a weirdly awesome conversation and then make out in a bathroom). Love is just not all that concerned with appropriateness. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">We have a mythology surrounding romantic love that says it's a special, rare feeling, reserved for just a few people in your whole life. It says that love takes time to develop, and that the feelings you experience at the outset of a relationship are not love, but something else ("infatuation", "a crush", or my favorite, "<a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=twitterpated">twitterpation</a>" (see<i> Bambi</i>)). It also says that love is generally constant and reliable, and that falling in love is A MAJOR LIFE EVENT, about which SOMETHING MUST BE DONE! </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">In summation, the plot of every romantic comedy: if you fall in love with somebody, you better go out and get 'em - even if they're already married and they don't really like you and you're their stepsister and you're leaving for a six-year residency in Mongolia in the morning - because you'll probably love them forever and you might not ever love anyone else. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">We are so enamored with this idea that we tend to round some feelings <i>up </i>to love (when you first met the person you later married), and others <i>down </i>to not-love (your weekend fling with a Spanish dancer). The thing is, those experiences feel remarkably similar from the inside.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<h3>
<b>That Old Feeling</b></h3>
<h3>
<b> </b></h3>
<div style="clear: both; color: #222222;">
<span class="il">Love</span> is a feeling. It's hot and fluttery and tingly. I get it in my guts and chest and face. The feeling is accompanied by a series of enthusiastic thoughts, such as "This person is the greatest person ever", "I wonder how I can make this person feel good", and/or "I want to climb onto this person and put my face close to their face and smoosh my body onto their body."</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">I have felt this way, to varying degrees, towards probably a hundred different people. Actually, that's a lie; it is way more. When I was a teenager, I felt it towards approximately three people per day. Lately, the torrent has slowed to once every month or three (I am a bit of a love-fiend, I know. I don't think such frequency is average.) And I'm married! </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">And speaking of being married, yes, I do experience this feeling towards my husband. It feels different now than it felt when we first met: softer, warmer, with more comfort and less urgency. But the love I have for my husband is surrounded by a bunch of other feelings and thoughts that are much rarer than love, in my experience. These include: a deep mutual understanding of and appreciation for each other's personalities, values, and quirks (e.g.: he finds my love-fiendishness endearing); years of shared experience; a lot of conversations about the kind of future we're aiming for; and plenty of similar tastes and preferences (e.g. New Orleans, humor, dogs, dark chocolate, Ray Charles, The Daily Show, preferred frequency of house cleaning/travel/sex). </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">But underneath all that is the same feeling: love.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">Instead of trying to deny it, or ignore it, or call it something different in each different situation, I want to call it like I feel it: I'm in love. I'm in love with my husband, several of my friends, most of the musicians who move me (including some who are dead, such as Chet Baker, who would <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zrSoHgAAWo">sympathize</a>), and a handful of people I hardly know but have had good conversations/dances/make out sessions with. I fall in love all the time. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">And really, it's no big deal. It's actually kind of fun, once you get used to it.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<b style="background-color: clear;">I love you. NBD.</b></h3>
<h3>
<b style="background-color: clear;"> </b></h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">The kids today are having a casual sex revolution. "Hookup culture" is akin to "free love", but with more condoms and fewer hallucinogens. And I'm for it! In case you haven't heard, <a href="http://brighterthanabuoy.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-women-who-like-sex.html">I like casual sex</a>. It's my observation that as casual sex becomes more acceptable behavior (for men <i>and </i>women), it lessens the shame and anxiety associated with the sex that people are having anyway (and have been having since the dawn of time, and are going to keep having). I'm thrilled that young people are beginning to feel they have the option of exploring sex, safely and consensually, outside of the boundaries of long-term commitment. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">But why not have the option of exploring love, too, with or without a side of commitment? If we can agree that our bodies are not inherently dangerous, can't we do the same for our hearts?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">I suggest we take a page from the casual sex book here. Let's lift some of the weighty grandiosity off the shoulders of love, and allow it</span> to be what it is: a sweet, ephemeral, exciting feeling to experience and share.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7yY3KOKMu73pm8BwBU17aQMm2kSlVO6_RzKgu_xcxkpP56ASGQZapeZg_Q4gvYOvA3joiSX0a40bRvxFkHCr2IElnxFuT8NajXBKBxha1OuvkhgFDIbis4BZQ7F064pjOzeM8u3lguo/s1600/I+love+younbd2-page-001.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7yY3KOKMu73pm8BwBU17aQMm2kSlVO6_RzKgu_xcxkpP56ASGQZapeZg_Q4gvYOvA3joiSX0a40bRvxFkHCr2IElnxFuT8NajXBKBxha1OuvkhgFDIbis4BZQ7F064pjOzeM8u3lguo/s1600/I+love+younbd2-page-001.jpg" height="308" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">Imagine if you could say to a casual partner, "I love you. It's no big deal. It doesn't mean you're The One, or even one of the ones. It doesn't mean you have to love me back. It doesn't mean we have to date, or marry, or even cuddle. It doesn't mean we have to part ways dramatically in a flurry of tears and broken dishes. It doesn't mean I'll love you until I die, or that I'll still love you next year, or tomorrow."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">Then later, perhaps over brunch, you could tackle the question of whether there's anything to <i>do</i> about it. All of the aforementioned - dating, marriage, cuddling, etc - are options, and there are an infinite number of other options (Skee ball, sailing around the world, double suicide). These are all things you can now choose or not choose, as two conscious adult human beings. The important distinction is that none of them is implied just by saying the word "love".</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<b style="background-color: clear;">The Point </b></h3>
<h3>
<b style="background-color: clear;"> </b></h3>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">There are advantages to separating the wacky, butterflies-in-the-gut, unpredictable feeling of "love" from the ideally rational, cool-headed decisions and agreements of "commitment". For one: love is just not a good enough reason to commit to somebody (trust me, I've tried). You need a few other ingredients: </span>mutuality, compatibility, and availability, for starters.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><b>The big advantage for the lover</b> is that falling in love will feel less scary, life-threatening, and crazy-making. As long as love is theoretically reserved for people whom you want to date and possibly marry, falling in love will be confusing and dramatic. If we interpret this particular set of feelings and thoughts as an epic, life-changing event, we'll have no choice but to get really, really attached to our beloved. We'll throw a lot of expectations at them ("Love me back! Love me only! Love me forever!"), and feel hurt and resentful if the feeling is not mutual. We'll imprint upon them like baby ducks, and resolve to stick with them through thick and thin, through hell or high water, through abuse and neglect and lies and bickering and frustration and mutually-assured destruction, whether or not it brings us (or anyone else) any kind of joy. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><b>The big advantage for the beloved</b> is that being loved will feel less like an attack, and more like a gift. The little-discussed fact is that it's super uncomfortable to be loved when the feeling is not mutual (see my song <a href="http://carsieblanton.bandcamp.com/track/please"><i>Please</i></a>). So uncomfortable, in fact, that many of us would rather act like callous, cold-hearted assholes than be in the same room as the person who loves us. We panic, we get distant, we deny any interest or care for the other person, we stop returning their texts. But that's not an aversion to love, or to the lover; it's the attachment and expectation being hurled in our direction with such intensity. If love was casual, we could take it as a high compliment, say "thanks!", and feel some warm fuzzies. We might also begin to feel some compassion for our lover (who, after all, has a stomach full of butterflies and can't eat or sleep very well), which might allow us to make better and kinder decisions about how to respond.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">If love was casual, perhaps it wouldn't collide into our sense of identity or our plans for the future at such high velocity. It wouldn't feel so <i>personal</i>. If it's not mutual, so what? If it doesn't turn into a relationship, so what? I have feelings and desires all the time that go unsatisfied. Sometimes (okay, a lot of times), late at night, I want Chef's Perfect Chocolate ice cream, but <a href="http://www.creolecreamery.com/">Creole Creamery</a> closes at 10pm. Do I panic? Do I call Creole Creamery and leave a series of desperate messages? Do I curl into a ball and lament that without Chef's Perfect Chocolate, I am a broken person who is not worthy of ice cream? No. </span>I deal. I feel my feelings, whine a little if I need to, and go without. Like a grown-ass woman.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><b>And here's my favorite part:</b> if love is casual - not something rare and dramatic and potentially painful, but something common and easy and mutually enjoyable - we all get to feel more love, and share more love. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">Sounds lovely, right?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;">****</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<span style="background-color: clear;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">If you like this post, let me know! You can donate below via paypal, buy my music on <a href="http://carsieblanton.bandcamp.com/">bandcamp</a>, and/or become a subscriber on <a href="http://www.patreon.com/carsieblanton">patreon</a>. To learn more about me, visit my <a href="http://www.carsieblanton.com/">website</a>. </span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-weight: normal;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: medium;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"></span></span></h3>
<form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post" target="_top">
<input name="cmd" type="hidden" value="_s-xclick" />
<input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="D4DK5TPHYAMJ4" />
<input alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!" border="0" name="submit" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_donate_SM.gif" type="image" />
<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" />
</form>
Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-31708925574921084802013-09-08T12:20:00.000-04:002014-01-30T23:54:49.429-05:00Sexuality is a superpower.<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yesterday, along with about a million
other people, I read <a href="http://givenbreath.com/2013/09/03/fyi-if-youre-a-teenage-girl/">this blog post</a>.
In it, "Mrs. Hall", a Christian mother of teenage boys, cautions teenage girls against
posting pictures of themselves on social media wearing “skimpy PJs” or “only a
towel”. And by “cautions”, I mean patronizes, berates, and shames. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The post, thankfully, was subject to
a swift and glorious <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marisa-mcpeckstringham/fyi-if-youre-a-teenage-boy_b_3880516.html">backlash</a>. Some friends and I posted a series of photos on Facebook and twitter in protest (see below - then make your own - #solidarityselfie). </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6FxWX305w7zrDma3k6X4FQSiaXulTA137ozkduhSCRz_Ux75JjxukXlCjR_snNzs0cYVc6Wv3aJhnqVJcnk7VWYILq0FXJCfACBcB3Khkee7ypzpkFZR9-RGAgdIHsbXk6HUhkpFEd8g/s1600/bathroomselfieminusR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6FxWX305w7zrDma3k6X4FQSiaXulTA137ozkduhSCRz_Ux75JjxukXlCjR_snNzs0cYVc6Wv3aJhnqVJcnk7VWYILq0FXJCfACBcB3Khkee7ypzpkFZR9-RGAgdIHsbXk6HUhkpFEd8g/s320/bathroomselfieminusR.jpg" height="184" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ1QgSrqT5SZpki5WE_GfXwuwMMJeMSH9xaF-Jml-pGc9nbkpl6jJHdJJMIHfsI7LBDrCBbnsy4CwCfBS3H8vHb4e32wppWDmbscgxTmdWrQBt23zbpHh1tyMByUNFvgdD8CUIKIJt8HQ/s1600/bathroomselfie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I was
pleased to see other bloggers writing <a href="http://natepyle.com/seeing-a-woman/">thoughtful responses</a>, many of which emphasized the idea that it’s
not a young woman's job to keep young men from thinking about her in a sexual
way; it’s a young man’s job to learn how to look at women without objectifying
them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Although I think that's a valid position, and certainly less damaging than the original post, I don’t think it addresses my biggest problem with this all-too-common worldview. I will attempt to do that here.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I think both arguments (“girls
shouldn’t wear skimpy clothing” and “boys should control their lustful feelings for girls”) stem from
a shared paradigm:<b> </b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>“Sexuality is dangerous, and we must protect our children from
it.” </b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's how I hear it:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<ul><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Mrs. Hall: </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">Women’s sexuality is dangerous to men</b><span style="font-family: inherit;">. “</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: inherit;">Some young men are fighting the daily
uphill battle to keep their minds pure.”</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></li>
<li><a href="http://natepyle.com/seeing-a-woman/" style="font-family: inherit;">Nate Pyle</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">: </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">Men’s sexuality is dangerous to women. </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">"</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Discipline
yourself to see her, not her clothes or her body."</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Me: </span><b style="font-family: inherit;">Sexuality is not
dangerous.</b></li>
</span></ul>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Yes, </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I understand that bad things happen
to people because of sex. Rape, sexual abuse and molestation, STDs, unwanted
pregnancies, physical and emotional damage of every flavor and variety are real and present dangers of unchecked sexuality. I’m not interested in sugar-coating
the issue.</span><br />
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm interested in this idea: <b>the experience of ourselves and other people as sexual beings is
not inherently dangerous</b>. Nor is it shameful, or shallow, nor does it rob us of the ability or opportunity to engage with people in other ways. The act of
expressing our sexual selves can be empowering, fun, and
pleasurable. The act of experiencing someone else’s sexual expression can also be
empowering, fun, and pleasurable. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Furthermore: sexuality is a built-in part of
the human experience, and there is no avoiding it. It doesn’t matter
how conservatively you dress, how hard you pray, how much "discipline" you have, or how many teenage girls you block on Facebook.
Sexuality is everywhere – within you and without you. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">So, here's what I want to say to teenage girls, and boys, and people of all ages:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Your sexuality is</b></span></span><b style="font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"> a superpower. </span></b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">It can be a force for good in your life, and in the lives of others. Just like your intelligence, your ambition, your talent, and every other aspect of yourself, it's one of the things that makes you who you are. It's not a weapon; it's a gift.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">From there, we still need to do our
damnedest to educate our children about how their actions affect those around them. <b>Just
like it’s wrong to use your intelligence to harm someone else, it’s wrong
to use your sexuality to harm someone else. </b>We have to teach our kids about kindness, compassion, and personal responsibility, and how those values relate to <i>every</i> area of life. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm not saying these lessons will be simple; I'm saying just the opposite. Unfortunately for Mrs. Hall, these lessons will be messy, uncomfortable, and complicated - there are no shortcuts.</span><br />
<br /></div>
</div>
Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-89044548465975147472013-09-04T14:49:00.001-04:002013-09-05T00:25:32.903-04:00On jazz, my record, and KickstarterSo, I just ran this Kickstarter campaign. It went well. I asked for $29k to make a jazz record, and I raised over $60k. I had nearly 1300 backers, many of whom were brand new listeners, who discovered me via the campaign. A huge number of these backers were international (holla, Aussies!). After hitting my "true goal" of $34k (that's how much I was looking for to fully fund the record), I added "stretch goals" to fund a PR campaign, a national full-band tour, and a solo tour in Australia.<br />
<br />
In short, it was nuts. The likelihood of somebody in my position raising that amount of money on Kickstarter is <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/help/stats">quite slim</a>. Thus, people have been asking me how I think it happened. Here are my thoughts.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<b>1) I found an audience for my record, and I spoke to them directly.</b></h3>
<b><br /></b>
<b>Part I, The Record: </b>This is a record I've been wanting to make for most of my life. I'm extremely passionate about jazz music, and relatedly, about the plight of jazz in contemporary America. Although it's hard to pin down accurate and up-to-date numbers (you can't believe everything you read <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204619004574320303103850572.html">on the internet</a>), jazz currently holds around 3-5% of the American music market share. At the same time jazz has been losing listeners, its listeners are aging. The average age of a jazz fan in the US is around 50.<br />
<br />
In short, jazz is going the way of classical music. It's becoming a genre for well-educated, high-class, mostly old, mostly white people to listen to in concert halls.<br />
<br />
Now, obviously there are exceptions to this rule. Two of them are notable, considering the crowd that is probably reading this post: if you're a swing dancer, you probably love jazz. If you live in New Orleans, you probably listen to live jazz regularly. But let me gently burst the tiny bubble that we're all living in: if you took every swing dancer in the US, and put them in a room with every single man, woman and child in New Orleans, you'd have maybe 400,000 people. That's less than .2% of the US population. Add in every working jazz musician in the rest of the US, and you'd have - maybe - the population of Omaha, Nebraska.<br />
<br />
So, regardless of your personal feelings about jazz, the amount of passion you have for it, or the amount of time you spend listening to it, dancing to it or playing it, you have to admit that it's got a problem.<br />
<br />
As a songwriter and song-geek, I have a big fear that the art of songwriting is going the way of, say, basket-weaving. Like, within a generation or two, it will be a quaint craftsy thing that kids do at summer camp; and popular music will be written exclusively by machines and committees. The folks who are currently lauded as the "great songwriters of my generation" do not move me even 1/100th as much as a Gershwin, or a Dylan, or even a Costello. I think songs are getting worse, and I think the waning of jazz in contemporary culture is partly to blame. In other words, I don't think it's a coincidence that Dylan and Costello have both listened to plenty of Gershwin.<br />
<br />
Every time I meet a young songwriter who's never heard of Billie Holiday (this happens more than you think), or who compliments me at a show on "that great new song of yours", and means "Sweet Lorraine", the fear grows.<br />
<br />
So, the kind of jazz revival that I'm most interested in is not of the Esparanza Spalding variety (although I think she's great), nor is it of the swing danceable trad jazz variety (although I am a dancer myself, and I love a lot of the dance bands who are currently out there). Neither is it of the Norah Jones variety (which is accessible, clearly, but is not quite up to the Gershwin bar in terms of songwriting).<br />
<br />
The jazz revival I want to see is of the tasteful pop variety (side note: I firmly believe that those two words are not mutually exclusive). I want to hear more jazz that meets a high standard in terms of songwriting, performance and production quality, BUT that anybody, from any background, can appreciate, enjoy, and get stuck in their head. The kind of record that your average thirteen-year-old girl might pick up, put on, and feel moved by. That way, when that girl starts writing songs, she'll have some Gershwin knocking around in her brain, along with Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift.<br />
<br />
Whew. It feels good to get that off my chest.<br />
<br />
<b>Part II, The Audience: </b>So, the way this all relates to the Kickstarter campaign is this: there's a demand for what I'm doing. Many of the backers I heard from said things like, "I've always thought that jazz was too complicated for me." or, "My Grandparents listened to this music, I haven't listened to it since I was a kid."<br />
<br />
When I put my campaign together, I made a conscious decision to speak directly to the people who I am making this record for. I wasn't speaking to jazz musicians, or dancers, or anyone who's already part of the "jazz scene". I wasn't even speaking to the fans I already had - at least, not primarily.<br />
<br />
I was speaking to non-jazz-geeks, who want an entry into the world of jazz. As it turns out, a lot of those people were listening.<br />
<br />
<h3>
2) I kept people involved.</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I sent updates to my backers every single day. I made them videos, I recorded songs for them, and I wrote epic essays about each song I'll be including on the record (I plan to post some of those on this blog). I also answered every comment and email that I got over the course of the 30-day campaign. Thus, the people who backed my project felt like I was talking to <i>them</i>, and I was. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
At the same time, I posted on Facebook and twitter every day, and did my best to provide new content and/or information every time I posted. I had my friends make <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px1LrsWN_P8">cute support videos</a>. I tweeted at people with large fan bases who were also involved in Kickstarter (like Amanda Palmer (who tweeted the project) and Spike Lee (who backed it)). I ran silly contests on Facebook like "if we hit 1000 backers by 12pm I will make a video of myself rolling around like a kitten in a yarn factory." </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
The risk of all this involvement was wearing people out, and I think some people did get worn out (sorry if you were one of them!). I was willing to take that risk because the advantage was huge: the people who <i>did</i> support what I was doing got really<i> </i>invested in the project. They became super-fans, shared my project with their friends, and made important suggestions about how I could better manage the campaign. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
In other words, I was working to make fans, not just money. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
3) I prepared. A lot.</h3>
<div>
Before launching my campaign, I spent about two weeks reading everything I could find about running a Kickstarter campaign. I also stalked other people's campaigns relentlessly and stole their ideas. Here are the best resources I found:</div>
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.launchandrelease.com/">Launch and Release</a> </b>- This is a brilliant blog written by two musicians who also happen to smart, down-to-earth, mathy-type guys. They introduce a novel concept to the world of crowdfunding: statistics. In addition to a bunch of really helpful "case studies", this site offers a "fundability calculator", which tells you how much you can reasonably expect to raise on Kickstarter (as determined by the number of fans/friends/family you currently have access to.) *Full disclosure: after reading their blog, I actually hired these guys to help me with my campaign.*<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_palmer_the_art_of_asking.html">This TED Talk</a> from Amanda Palmer</b> - If you have any feelings of guilt, shame, or hesitancy about asking people for money in exchange for your art, watch this video. OR if you have any inner conflict about asking for gigs, or help, or places to stay. OR if it makes you mad that people steal music and other digital content. Amanda has a revolutionary and brilliant grasp on what it means to be an artist in the 21st century. What she says in this video is absolutely profound.<br />
<br />
<b>Here are my favorite Kickstarter campaigns:</b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1869987317/wish-i-was-here-1?ref=live">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1869987317/wish-i-was-here-1?ref=live</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/559914737/the-veronica-mars-movie-project">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/559914737/the-veronica-mars-movie-project</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnvanderslice/john-vanderslices-dagger-beach-the-new-album?ref=live">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnvanderslice/john-vanderslices-dagger-beach-the-new-album?ref=live</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
4) I am really, really lucky.</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's just a fact. I can't explain it, but I am extremely grateful for it. I'm extremely grateful to have friends like Vienna Teng (see below). I'm extremely grateful to have so many outstandingly caring, enthusiastic, and generous fans. Thanks for your support, with this project and all the others.<br />
<br />
<div id="fb-root">
</div>
<script>(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));</script><br />
<div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/ViennaTeng/posts/10151565917926759">
<div class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore">
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/ViennaTeng/posts/10151565917926759">Post</a> by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ViennaTeng">Vienna Teng</a>.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-46506338021630666412013-04-02T12:26:00.001-04:002013-04-02T13:30:55.768-04:00Safe Sex in Three Easy Steps<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
</w:Compatibility>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276">
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
When you talk about having sex for pleasure, people like it
if you also talk about sexual safety.
Like, they <i>really</i> like it, and they’d prefer if you did it <i>right away</i>. I
have been hesitant to blog about sexual safety because I want to illustrate the
point that we are <i>allowed</i> to say that sex is fun without immediately tacking on
a precautionary statement. Just like I can say “cookies are delicious!” without
following it up with “when consumed in moderation by people who are at low risk
for diabetes!” Sex is fun, it’s a wonderful adventure, it makes me feel
awesome, and I recommend it to most people. End of statement.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With that said, I would like to take a moment to talk about
safe sex. I think American-style sex education tends to promote a false
dichotomy about sexual safety, which then gets passed around guiltily for years
like an inedible fruitcake. It goes something like this: </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Option 1: don’t have sex.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Option 2: have crazy stupid thoughtless drunken
unprotected rapey sex with someone you don’t know who will give you AIDS and
syphilis and an unwanted baby and then skip town and post photos of your vag on
the internet and never pay child support.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Luckily, here in reality there are more options than that. It is
possible to have sex and also be reasonably safe. Here’s how, in three easy
steps.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Step 1: Consent</span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Consent is the invisible fairy dust that turns scary things
into sexy things. It’s the difference between hot rough sex and rape. It’s the
difference between polyamory and cheating. It’s the difference between sex that
makes people feel icky and shameful, and sex that makes people feel turned on and
empowered.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s also the reason <a href="http://jezebel.com/5991944/what-lies-ahead-for-the-steubenville-rapists">the Stubenville rapists</a> are rapists,
and deserve to be treated as such, regardless of how drunken or foolish or
scantily clad their victim was. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Consent is not a lack of “no”, it’s an “absolutely yes”. It
happens verbally and physically, and it keeps happening throughout every part of every kind of sex. Consent is an acknowledgement
from your sex partner that they are a willing and enthusiastic participant in
the encounter you’re having, or about to have. It’s an accepted proposition.
It’s dirty talk. It’s a whispered direction readily followed. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Consent is the foremost ingredient not just to safe sex, but
to great sex.</b> Consent is sexy, it’s ballsy, it’s thrilling, and we could all
use more of it. Go out and get yours today.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Step 2: Care</span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This comes up often in discussions of casual sex, and I’m
excited to make it crystal clear: <b>a person who doesn’t care for or empathize
with their sex partner is not being “casual”, they are being a sociopath. </b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is nothing sexy or charming or mysterious about people
who don’t offer emotional resonance to their sex partners. In any relationship where
someone is being vulnerable with you, the way to be deserving of that
vulnerability is to treat them with consideration. Any other response is callous
and disrespectful. Do unto others, etcetera. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This doesn’t mean you have to LOVE everyone you have sex
with, or even know them well. It means you should relate to your sex partner
like you are both human beings, not inanimate objects. Consider their feelings
and desires and try your best to respond to them. If you sense that they want
something, offer it. If you sense that they don’t like something, stop and
check in. If you want something from them, ask. It’s not rocket science, it’s
the laws of human decency: they still apply when you’re turned on. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you are considering having sex with a person, and you
don’t feel resonance/empathy/care for them, or <i>from</i> them, there’s a really simple solution: don’t have sex with
them. Also probably don’t date them, or be friends with them, or spend any time
with them at all, because that shit is creepy. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Step 3: Condoms & Contraception </span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">(okay, that was four Cs)</span></span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Condoms and birth control are the technology that makes safe
sex-for-pleasure possible. Thank you, science! </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you're having straight sex, you need to think about not one but <i>two</i> kinds of risk: STD prevention, and birth control. </div>
<br />
<ul>
<li>STD Prevention</li>
</ul>
The best way to avoid STDs is to not have penetrative sex (in which case you can still make out,
masturbate together, use your hands to get each other off, and/or experiment
with the myriad of other creative solutions that the unmarried youth and
cautious adulterers of the world have been perfecting for untold centuries).<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you’ve decided to have penetrative sex (wherein a penis is penetrating a vagina, butt, or mouth (the risk of contracting an STD from giving or receiving oral sex is small, <a href="http://blog.advocatesaz.org/2012/02/01/sti-awareness-can-i-get-an-std-from-oral-sex/">but it's still there</a>. Eg: high-risk HPV, which can be contracted from any kind of genital contact, increases the risk of some kinds of cancer, and for which there is now a handy <a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/stds-hiv-safer-sex/hpv-vaccine-19345.htm">vaccine</a>!)), you are accepting the risk of potentially
contracting an STD. As such, condoms are your friend. Use them every time, all the time, don't bitch about using them, and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdSq2HB7jqU">use them properly</a> (click the link and an attractive Latin man will teach you how to put
on a condom.) </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you’re in a situation where you can confirm beyond
reasonable suspicion that your sex partner is STD-free (ie: you have been
dating them for a while, neither of you has been having sex with anyone else, you
just went with them to get tested, and they are clean), and you are using a <i>reliable</i> method of birth control (gay sex counts, “withdrawal” does not), or you are <i>hoping</i> to get pregnant, that’s
the only time it’s okay to have sex without a condom.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<h4>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: normal;">Birth Control</span></li>
</ul>
</h4>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Pregnancy is another issue. If you’re having penis-in-vagina
sex, you should not rely on condoms to keep you from getting pregnant. They just don’t
work that well. Here are some more reliable forms of birth control, to be used
in conjunction with condoms, in order of effectiveness: the Progestin implant
(Implanon or Jadelle), the ‘combined injectable’ (Lunelle), the IUD, the shot,
the cervical cap, the Nuvaring, and the pill.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For people who are sure they aren’t going to want offspring
of their own at any time in the future, vasectomies and tubal ligation (ie: male
and female sterilization) are both highly effective and readily available.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Birth control is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Know yourself, do your
research, and <b>figure out what kind of birth control would be easiest to use and
most effective <i>for you</i>.</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Finally: if you fucked up, and you had some sex that wasn’t
totally safe, you <i>still</i> have options.
There’s the “morning after” pill, which will disrupt fertilization (ie: make
you less likely to get pregnant) when taken up to 72 hours after unprotected
sex. And after that, there’s everybody’s favorite Sunday dinner topic:
abortion. It’s legal and available in this great nation, and it is an option to
be considered (and a decision to be made) by the pregnant woman herself, not
her boyfriend or her parents or her priest.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Want to know more about contraception? Start with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_birth_control_methods#Comparison_table">this handy birth control effectiveness table</a> from Wikipedia. Learn <a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control-4211.htm">more about various birth control methods</a> on the Planned Parenthood website.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">And, voila.</span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s it. If you want to have safe sex, you’ll need
consent, care, and condoms/contraception. Some notable absences from the list include: love,
marriage, monogamous commitment, and approval from your parents, friends or
church. You can use those, too, but only if you feel like it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Have safe sex, but don’t stop there. </b>Have pleasurable, playful, joyful sex. Have kinky sex. Have silly sex. It’s not just dangerous,
it’s fun. <a href="http://brighterthanabuoy.blogspot.com/2013/04/this-video-is-so-great-i-had-to-post-it.html">Watch this video</a>, and enjoy yourself.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-30417973295963645062013-04-01T10:09:00.003-04:002013-04-01T10:09:48.535-04:00This video is so great I had to post it here. I didn't make it, but I couldn't agree with it more. More on how sex is like music, from Karen B. K. Chan:<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bgd3m-x46JU" width="560"></iframe>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-61968782450647621552013-03-08T13:20:00.001-05:002013-03-08T13:20:41.729-05:00Why I’m Not Done Writing About Sex <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
</w:Compatibility>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276">
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>(or, If You Thought That Last Video Was Too Risque You Better Brace Yourself)</b><br />
<br />
I wrote my <a href="http://brighterthanabuoy.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-women-who-like-sex.html">first blog about sex</a> back in August. I made the
decision, with that post, not to be private or coy about my sexuality, my
interest in sex, or the sexual content of my work. I made the decision to “come
out” as a woman who likes sex.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. I got a bunch
of fan mail in response to that post (only a very small percentage of it
inappropriate or creepy). I got to <a href="https://twitter.com/fakedansavage/status/250060839267221504">have dinner with Dan Savage and Chris Ryan</a>. I had women of all ages come up to me in person and thank me for writing about female
sexuality. I got hit on a lot more often at my shows, and more directly (which
is, of course, fine with me.) </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Occasionally, I get a different reaction. A few people have told me that they’re “bored” of this topic, that I ought to write
about something else. A friend told me that I should show less cleavage in
my promotional pictures, or people might “get the wrong idea”. People have said that they “fear for my safety”, that I should probably “tone down the sex stuff”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well, I’m about to release an EP. It includes one song about
sex, one song about sex and murder, and one song about sex and bravery. That
last one is accompanied by a music video which features two burlesque dancers
in their underwear, two very tall men in suits, and yours truly, dancing
lasciviously and looking like I’m about to make some mischief. NPR just told me
they wouldn’t post it to their website because it’s “too risque”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, for clarification purposes, I’d like to tell you why I
won’t tone down the sex stuff.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Just Exactly What I
Stand For<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s not my job to sing pretty songs. It’s not my job to be
cute, or to make people feel comfortable, or nice, or happy. My job, as I’ve
chosen to define it, is to live vibrantly, and tell everyone about it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I stand for aliveness. I stand for joy and pleasure and inspiration.
I stand for human beings having a vibrant experience of their own lives. I stand
for sex and desire and passion and lust because those things make me, and most
other people, feel alive. For the same reason, I also stand for music, love,
honesty, silliness, poetry, bravery, chocolate, parades, and painting things pink.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will stop writing about sex, and music and love and
honesty, when those things stop making people feel alive. So don’t hold your
breath.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>“I Fear for Your
Safety”<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Aliveness is inefficient, messy, and hard to control. It’s
difficult to monetize, difficult to quantify, difficult to compete at. Aliveness
does not increase GDP. What’s worse: everybody wants it more than money. In a
society like ours, aliveness is automatically threatening to the status quo. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sexual pleasure, being one of the most potent bearers of
aliveness, is surrounded by a sort of gloppy, tarry, whiny puritan shame. That
shame is society’s way of protecting itself – think of it like porcupine
quills, or the fake blood that some lizards cry. Shame, and its attendant
propaganda, floats around in the ether and pours out of other people’s mouths
before they realize what they’re saying. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you dedicate your life to aliveness, or anything that
inspires it; be it sex or music or humor or painting-things-pink; people will
tell you to get a job. They will ask you about your fallback plan. They will
say, “I could never do that”. They will tell you they fear for your safety. They
will tell you to show less cleavage and write about something else and focus
and get serious and grow up and tone it down.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In essence, they will tell you that there are better things
to do than run around feeling alive.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m here to tell you that there aren’t.</div>
<!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-38572895298084048162012-10-31T12:32:00.006-04:002012-10-31T12:32:57.091-04:00how to improve your sex life and save America<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
</w:Compatibility>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276">
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was at a Halloween party on Saturday, sitting between two
men whose entire bodies (including their heads) were covered in green spandex,
when I reached this conclusion: all of us, in the company of our friends,
families, lovers and co-workers, ought to spend much more time talking about
sex.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I propose that talking about sex will help us to feel less shame,
have better sex, and even weaken
the influence of politics (and worse, politicians) on our personal lives.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here’s how it works.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h3>
<b>Waste less of your life feeling ashamed.</b></h3>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We feel ashamed when we think that we are doing or feeling
something <i>uniquely</i> awful. You can’t
feel ashamed of doing something that everybody you know and love is also doing.
At least, in theory you can’t, but in practice you do: everyone you know and
love picks their nose, poops, does not look like an airbrushed supermodel when
naked, and has all kinds of dirty, dark, and deviant sexual desires. Just. Like.
You. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Keeping the shameful stuff to ourselves keeps us
isolated from each other. We are so afraid of each other’s judgment that we clam
up, and forfeit the possibility of connection. The irony is that connection is the only thing that can alleviate our shame - when we realize that we are not <i>uniquely</i> dirty-minded, just plain old run-of-the-mill dirty-minded, the shame begins to evaporate. Of course, it may not be the case that your
best friend shares your fantasy about being tied up. But guess what: there is only
one way to find out. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Personally, I am sick of shame. I’ve spent enough time with
it to recognize the depth of its uselessness. If you could also do with a little less shame, follow these
simple instructions: </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ol>
<li>Invite some friends over. </li>
<li>Make a pot of tea. </li>
<li>Pose this question: "What turns you on?"</li>
</ol>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h3>
<b>Have better sex.</b></h3>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One thing I’ve often found perplexing is why competent,
intelligent, fully-grown members of society so often turn into simpering weenies when things
get sexual. They lose the ability to ask for things they want, and to say NO to
things they don’t want. As anyone who has ever hung out with a toddler knows,
these are not advanced skills – every one of us mastered them completely by the
age of 2.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So what gives? It seems to me that our vast reserves of
shame cloud our judgment and thicken our tongues. Whatever the reason, the fact is that most of
us suck at communication when we’re turned on. Luckily there’s a really easy
and reliable way to get better at things: practice.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Start talking about sex before you get into bed with
somebody. Like, WAY before. At the party, on the date, in mixed company. Right
after “what do you do?” and “where are you from?”, ask “what turns you on?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
If you’re honest with yourself and the ones you covet,
here’s what I predict: you may have fewer sex partners (having filtered out the incompatible and easily-offended ones right off the bat), but you’ll
have much better sex. Your sex partners will know what you like before they
have the chance to try all the things you don’t like. You’ll know what they
like, too, so you can spend less time worrying about your performance.
Even better: the more you practice talking about sex, the better you'll be at it; so when your desires inevitably change and develop, you’ll be
more likely to get those satisfied, too.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And here’s the revolutionary part: when you talk about sex,
the people around you will <i>also</i> have better sex. Talking about sex is
contagious (that’s why I wasn’t allowed to hang out with my Christian
homeschooler friends after I was about 13). It jumps from host to host,
devouring their shame, connecting them to each other, and making their sex
lives hotter. It’s a miracle drug. If I could make it into a pill I’d be a
billionaire.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h3>
<b>Kick politicians out of your sex life </b></h3>
<h4>
<b>(unless you're having sex with one).</b></h4>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Part of the reason politicians and voters support stupid,
counterproductive, dangerous legislation about sex is because they are under the influence of sexual shame. Remember how being open about sex and sexuality brings people closer together? It also <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/118931/Knowing-Someone-Gay-Lesbian-Affects-Views-Gay-Issues.aspx">weakens people’s opposition</a> to no-brainer civil rights issues like marriage
equality. In short: shame makes us stupid.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sexual shame gives politicians and voters the selective-blindness required to support policies that are bad for them and their
families. Shame allows <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/29/gay-political-scandals-politicians-claims-sexuality-_n_1638201.html">closeted gay politicians to endorse anti-gay legislation</a>.
Shame allows parents of gay kids to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/30/dick-cheney-gay-marriage_n_1718779.html">keep mum about their support</a> for marriage
equality.
Shame allows otherwise rational people to suggest that <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17885460">abstinence-only education</a> is a good idea. Shame
allows people with uteri (or daughters) to support a Presidential candidate who
wants to <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/burns-haberman/2012/10/romney-reiterates-defunding-planned-parenthood-138063.html">de-fund planned parenthood</a> <i>and</i>
<a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2012/10/15/romney-i-want-the-supreme-court-to-overturn-roe-v-wade/">overturn Roe v. Wade</a> - a lethal combination for women, regardless of your
religious or moral position on those issues (<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/12/news/12iht-12abortion.7863868.html?_r=0">HELLO SCIENCE</a>: making
abortion illegal <i>does not</i> mean that
fewer women get abortions, it means that more of them die in the process.)<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All of this is not to mention that oral sex is currently
illegal in eighteen states.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In short, sexual shame is what a lot of people are smoking
when they vote against there own interests. And what have we learned is the
sobering antidote to sexual shame, friends? Or at least the morning-after,
hangover-easing french toast and OJ? Talking about sex.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So turn to your neighbor, open your mouth, and say something
sexy. For the good of humanity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-51022641720122625812012-09-19T14:36:00.000-04:002014-01-23T00:46:58.056-05:00A couple things I forgot to mention about sex.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
</w:Compatibility>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276">
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>1) Sex is not that
big of a deal.</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Despite the fact that I love it, and I love to <a href="http://brighterthanabuoy.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-women-who-like-sex.html">write about it</a>, I firmly believe that sex, between consenting adults, is not that big of a deal*. I don't think it's worth falling in love, falling out of love, ending a friendship, breaking up a marriage, impeaching a president, or maiming or killing anybody over. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve been watching a lot of movies lately, and I'm starting to think that this sentiment is unusual. Somehow I keep coming across the type of movie where two people fall in love,
have a giant conflict involving sex, hate each other's guts for a while, and
then realize that love conquers all and get married. Or, in the tragic version: realize that said conflict has revealed their insurmountable incompatibility, and go their separate ways.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In other words, pretty much every American movie that isn’t about war, or a heist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can’t help but wonder whether these movies would be so poignant and popular if we all stood up, en masse, and said, WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL ABOUT SEX?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
How about a movie where the boyfriend casually mentions to
the girlfriend that once, before they were together, he had sex with her best
friend/sister/nemesis, and she says “that makes sense, she’s a cutie”, and that’s the last
we hear of it? How about a movie where the wife cheats on her husband, and
then confesses tearfully, and her husband says “Well, that’s a real bummer, but
I love you and I think we’re great together and we have all these great kids,
so I’ll get over it.”? How about a movie where the heroine has unprotected sex with
the dopey-but-lovable guy at the party, and then wakes up the next day and says
to herself, “I don’t know this guy at all and this is a terrible time for me to
have a baby”, so she <i>takes the fucking
morning after pill</i>? Even better, how about a movie where the heroine has drunken
sex with the dopey-but-lovable guy at the party, but she <i>doesn’t get pregnant</i>, because she <i>uses birth control like any sane woman who has drunken sex with guys she
meets at parties</i>? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I would love for sex to exist in pop culture, but not be central to the
plot line. I would love to see characters who have other shit to think about. Perhaps if we all start living that way, Hollywood will follow suit.<br />
<br />
So here's my advice: have some sex, or don't. Be safe, be honest. Above all: don't freak out about it.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>2) There is no normal.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
People, as a species, tend to be pretty concerned with whether we are "normal". Which is really too bad, because "normal" is not only impossible to achieve, in many areas it's impossible to identify. Normalcy is determined by your perspective. Louis CK brilliantly illustrates this point in the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkAPW5Iq6hM">opening lines of his stand-up act</a>: </div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: center;">
"Hello everybody. Actually, I shouldn't say everybody, because most people are not here. By a pretty huge majority, most people are not here tonight. In fact, most people are in China. <br />
Actually, most people are dead.
Out of all the people that ever were, almost all of them are dead."</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So next time you ask yourself, "Do most people dress/eat/fuck/think this way?" Remember: most people are dead.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For example: is it normal to drink cow’s milk? If you live in North America or most of Europe, you might think ‘yes’. But the answer is: only if you <i>don’t</i> live in Asia or Africa. Considering the fact that most people (that's <i>living</i> people; about 5.2 billion of them) <i>do</i> live in Asia and Africa: no, it is definitely not normal. If you drink milk, you are a freak.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As Christopher Ryan observes in his brain-busting book on the topic, <a href="http://www.sexatdawn.com/">Sex at Dawn</a> (I've mentioned it before and I will again - read the damned thing): cultural attitudes about sex vary <i>at least</i> as widely as cultural attitudes about food. Plus, our personal sexual desires seem to be affected not only by our culture but by our genetics,
our <a href="http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1952313,00.html">epigenetics</a>, our family dynamics, our formative experiences, and probably other things that we don’t
even know about. Even our species' <i>evolved</i> sexual behaviors are not as you might expect. What’s more: the way all of these things affect our sexual interests and behaviors is
complex, unpredictable, and extremely difficult to study. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In short, if there is such a thing as “normal” sexuality, we
probably don’t know what it is. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But I can tell you what it's not: it is not normal for two completely
heterosexual people to meet in high school, fall in love, get married at
20, lose their virginity to each other, and have mutually orgasmic
missionary-position sex once a week, exclusively with each other, until they
both croak. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So if that doesn't describe you, congratulations: you're normal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And if you're not married, but you're still having sex, congratulations to you, too. And if you're gay and married, gay and partnered, or gay and single. And if you're a transgendered bisexual sex worker who's into threesomes, or a super-femme housewife who's dominant in bed. If you need a lot of time to have an orgasm, or you need to use your hand to have an orgasm, or if you have orgasms at 'inappropriate' times, or if you don't have orgasms at all. If you need to be in love to feel aroused or if you can't get it up unless you're with somebody new. If you had sex when you were twelve or if you've never had sex at all. If you love giving head or hate getting head or love porn or hate porn or like being slapped or hanging from the ceiling or fantasize about animals or high heels or, actually, if you're only into missionary position once a week with your high school sweetheart:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Congratulations to all of you. You are just as normal as anybody else. Which is to say perfectly, blessedly, magnificently abnormal.</div>
<!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-17434462983752011422012-09-05T14:42:00.000-04:002013-03-19T15:16:42.144-04:00the first-sippers<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>
<w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>
<w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
</w:Compatibility>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276">
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Pepsi Challenge is a marketing stunt wherein volunteers
are asked to choose between Pepsi and Coke in a blind taste test. The results
skew heavily in favor of Pepsi. In Malcolm Gladwell’s <i>Blink</i>, a new set of taste tests (some single-sip, some whole-can)
suggest that although Pepsi (being sweeter) is preferred upon first sip, Coke
(with its more complex “flavor profile”) is preferred in full-can form.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lately, I’ve had a creeping suspicion that American culture
(which unfortunately seems to be rapidly devouring most other cultures) has
become first-sip obsessed. In many areas of life, we’re trading in quality for
convenience, and experiential complexity for candy-coated immediacy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Take music, for example. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On my recent trip through Europe, I was plagued at every
turn by the sort of hyper-emotive, autotuned, electro-dance-pop that much of the
world is so enamored with. I’m not
saying “Somebody That I Used to Know” and “We Are Young” are bad songs, but
I’ll tell you what: the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d_PZikUT2I">dance remixes</a>, which are being played not just in
the clubs but in grocery stores, restaurants and radio stations internationally
and at alarming rates, have been robbed of any element of soulfulness they once
possessed. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What do I mean by soulfulness? Well, as Ray Charles said, soul
is “when you become part of your song… so that the people really <i>believe</i> every word you’re singing”. A
soulful song reaches out and grabs your attention, like a stranger talking
directly to you about their personal, emotional life. I think Gotye was on to
something when he originally recorded “Somebody That I Used to Know”, but
whatever kernel of truth made it <i>believeable</i>
has since been remixed, multi-tracked and autotuned right into oblivion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So why do we love these shells of songs? I would venture to
say that we don’t. We take pleasure in them, especially upon first listen,
because they are sweet to the ears. They are emphatically, overwhelmingly in
tune. They are devoid of all non-musical sounds, like breath, movement, or
catches in the throat. They are agreeably inhuman, like airbrushed
supermodels . They are so pleasant, so unobtrusive, that they can play in the
background while we drive and text and drink Pepsi, and they <i>do not demand our attention.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But I’ll tell you what does demand your attention: every
song Ray Charles ever recorded. Ditto The Beatles, in spite of all the
ear-candy. And how many great artists have demanded our attention in a way that
wasn’t pleasant at all - at least not at first? Billie Holiday. Bob Dylan. Tom
Waits. The more pressing question is, how many great artists <i>did</i> strike you as pleasant<i>,</i> within the first ten seconds of the
first song of theirs you heard? I’d wager that <b>pleasantness is a common feature
of mediocrity, and an uncommon feature of genius.</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Imagine you’re in your car, driving and texting and drinking
a Pepsi, simmering in a not-unpleasant fog of caffeine and Facebook-induced
narcissism, and Tom Waits’ “<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pwxD8quPCg">Picture in a Frame</a>” comes on the radio. You’ve
never heard him, or anything like him. The piano is out of tune. You hear breathing,
a creaking piano bench, squeaky fingers on bass strings. His voice is like a
thousand years of cigarettes and whiskey and unrequited love. How long does it
take you to turn the dial?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Unfortunately for the first-sippers - the Blackberry dads, the Real Housewives of Atlanta, and the
whole eat-on-the-run, sleep-when-you’re-dead, one-stop-shop, party-in-the-USA
generation – soulfulness, with all of its inherent sorrow and strangeness and
black magic, demands our full
attention. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Upon posting this, I plan to turn off my computer, throw my
phone in a lake, and allow the soulfulness of life to grab me by the hair and
shake me, yawning spit and sound into my face. I suggest you do the same.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-58229561471452180622012-08-16T12:24:00.000-04:002012-08-17T02:17:36.291-04:00backseat videoWow! People sure had a lot of feelings about that last post. Let's see how y'all feel about the video:<br />
<br />
<center><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/klgEY0SfgN0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-90599348214364774462012-08-15T11:32:00.000-04:002012-08-17T11:40:53.231-04:00on women who like sexTomorrow, I am releasing a music video for “Backseat”, which
is a song I wrote about wanting to have sex with a hot tattooed guy who
unfortunately had a girlfriend. In said video, I will be dancing around in
lingerie, drooling over my dear (hot tattooed guy) friend Dan, and singing some
pretty thinly veiled sexual innuendo. (Update: see the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klgEY0SfgN0">here</a>.)<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, this seems like the time to make my confession. Confession
might not be the right word, actually, considering my last album, <i><a href="http://carsieblanton.bandcamp.com/">Idiot Heart</a></i>, was more or less an epic
poem on the topic. But, for those of you who don’t know me, or who aren’t big
on lyrics, or who are still nursing your vision of me as an innocent young
folksinger, here goes:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I like sex. A
lot. I don’t like it because it’s all about love, or because it’s some kind of
spiritual journey for me. I like it, mostly, because it’s just so dang fun.
Because it makes me feel alive, and it allows me to share that aliveness with
other people. Because it helps me to learn things about my body and mind and heart
that I otherwise wouldn’t. In other words, I like sex for the same reasons I like
music and dance: it is a joyful, playful, fun, surprising way to connect with
people, and to explore the human experience.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So why, when I’ve written and talked extensively about music
and dance, haven’t I gotten around to writing about sex? Because I am afraid of
what it will mean. I’m afraid of being judged, shamed, belittled, or reprimanded.
I’m afraid my fans will either run screaming into the hills, hiding their children,
or become creepy stalking phone-breathers. It’s only recently occurred to me
that these fears don’t belong to me; they belong to a culture with a long
history of wrongheaded, destructive views about sex, especially as it pertains
to women.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In my own interest, and the interest of sex-liking women
everywhere, let’s get a few things straight.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>1. Sex ≠ love. </b>I
think the idea that sex and love are the same thing (perpetuated throughout the
world for much of recent history by religion, art, literature and advertising)
is responsible for many of our misconceptions about both, so let's get this one out of the way first.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Clearly, on occasion, people who aren’t in love have sex.
Clearly, also, people love other people and don’t have sex with them. I’m not
saying they’re mutually exclusive, but neither are they inextricably linked. Love
and sex, like milk and cookies, pair well; but neither is required for the
enjoyment of the other. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>2. Women like sex
just as much as men. </b>Countless theories have been put forth over the past few
centuries about why women don’t like sex. Without going into the tedious details,
let me state my own opinion on the matter: they do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you don’t buy it, let’s do an experiment. Let’s start a
new culture where women, from their girlhood, are told that sexual pleasure is
a natural, fun part of being female. They are never told that sex is dangerous,
dirty or weird. They are never badgered, shamed, pressured or forced into any
sexual experience. When they become interested in sex with other people, they are
encouraged to explore it in a consensual, safe, fun way, with whomever they
find themselves attracted to. All of their sexual partners are caring,
communicative, generous, and happy to take direction.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That will be our control group. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>3. Women who like sex
are not sluts. </b>Let me try to sum up the meaning of the word “slut”, as I think it is commonly used, in a
sentence or two. A slut is a woman who will sacrifice a lot of valuable things
(her physical and emotional health, her reputation, her friendships with women)
in order to have sex. It’s generally understood that sluts are not truly
interested in sex; they just use sex to get other things they want (like
attention, love, or money).<b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, a slut is not actually a woman who likes sex. A slut is
a woman who uses sex as a bargaining chip to get other things, which she does
like.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A woman who likes sex, on the other hand, is just a woman
who likes sex. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>4. It is not
“dangerous” to like sex. </b>All people are vulnerable to rape and sexual
assault. All sexually active people are vulnerable to sexually transmitted
infections. I don’t believe there is anything about liking sex, or
acknowledging it, that puts me in a more vulnerable position. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s not to say that there are no risks to having sex, but
those risks are not higher than, say, driving a car. Driving a car is generally
considered a justifiable risk, whereas having sex - colored by its cultural
legacy of shame - is not. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>5. Women who like sex
will not necessarily have sex with you. </b>This, my friends, is the clincher.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I find myself in a conversation about sex, and mention that
I am a fan of the activity, the men in the room tend to get very nervous, very handsy,
or very surly. I think this is due to a common misconception: that women who
like sex will “give it up” to anybody. Like, our brains will be so flooded with
arousal endorphins that we’ll transform into some kind of pansexual nymph.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Women who like sex still have all our wits about us. Like most
people, we only want to have sex with people who we think are attractive, and trustworthy,
and with whom we have chemistry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>In conclusion:</b> I
just made a music video that is sexy, based on a song that is about sex. Why?
Because I like sex. I like sex that is loving and profound, and I like sex that
is fun and casual. I like sex as much as any man I know. I am not a weirdo, I
am not a slut, and I am not in any excessive danger. I like sex, but that
doesn’t mean I want to have sex with you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Probably. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsThn0i1v4GKqCeotOVQpJHqEUbBJDKpdpyJaVA6jpJ9kdCKq9AlMpiKLSgWMctel6x3JSQie_l-myb8brC3sYtBsFjq6zhXodO9lI0dWTq2BaPlrANFUFtvm4-Be2JW1DiS98Ninge78/s1600/guitarback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsThn0i1v4GKqCeotOVQpJHqEUbBJDKpdpyJaVA6jpJ9kdCKq9AlMpiKLSgWMctel6x3JSQie_l-myb8brC3sYtBsFjq6zhXodO9lI0dWTq2BaPlrANFUFtvm4-Be2JW1DiS98Ninge78/s320/guitarback.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="http://laurenjandrews.com/">Lauren J. Andrews</a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Recommended reading:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Everything ever said by <a href="http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/SavageLove?oid=14463026">Dan Savage</a>, especially his <a href="http://www.thestranger.com/lovecast">Savage Lovecast</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.sexatdawn.com/">Sex at Dawn</a> (by <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisRyanPhD">Christopher Ryan</a> and Cacilda Jetha)</li>
<li><a href="http://yesmeansyesblog.wordpress.com/2011/03/03/gender-differences-and-casual-sex-the-new-research/">This Amazing Study</a> about gender differences and casual sex </li>
<li>New here? If you like this post you'll probably like my music. Check out my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/carsieblantonfans">fan page</a>.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com251tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-74185425350008870902012-06-18T12:13:00.001-04:002012-06-18T12:15:48.763-04:00on living extraordinarily“We are human beings, for whom birth is a supremely welcome mystery: the mystery of growing, the mystery which happens only and whenever we are faithful to ourselves.” –e.e. cummings<br />
<br />
As you might have heard, I packed up my lil’ pink studio and left Philly at the end of May. Currently, I’m taking in a pristine view of pines, poplars and blue sky in northern Maine. Later this summer, I’ll be ping-ponging around Europe. I’ll still come through the northeast on tour (don’t worry your pretty heads), but I’m not sure whether I’ll be living there. I don’t know where I’ll be living after September (but I have a hunch. I’ll give you a hint: it’s my favorite place in the world).<br />
<br />
Why? You ask. Well, let me explain.<br />
<br />
The worst thing about being an adult, by far, is the sense of obligation. I think in most cases, we don’t have very many real obligations, and the ones we do have (loving our spouses, feeding our kids, paying off our debts) were freely chosen (even if it doesn’t always feel that way). I, for one, have even fewer real obligations than your average bear. But I have plenty of imaginary ones.<br />
<br />
Imaginary obligations create a vague, creepy feeling that you can’t possibly stay home from work/go skydiving/move to New Orleans, because of an imaginary jury of disapproving people. In my case, the imaginary jury includes my fans, my manager, my band-mates, and some of my friends and family members. I’m not sure what would satisfy them, exactly, but it seems to include a constant supply of new songs, an ever-expanding fan base, and a tour itinerary wherein next month’s gigs are always more impressive than last month’s.
So we keep ourselves from doing things we want to do – for example, packing up my house, taking the summer off from touring, and bouncing around the world for who knows how long – based on a set of assumptions about what an imaginary group of people would find appropriate.<br />
<br />
So, although I’ve been hankerin’ for a move for a while now, I didn’t think my jury would be in favor of that choice. But I’ve gone and done it, because here’s the God’s-honest truth: I am obligated to only one person, and it’s myself.<br />
<br />
Let me clarify. My purpose is to live an extraordinary life. And by living extraordinarily, and being vocal about the joy and magic I stir up, I aim to inspire others to live extraordinarily (whatever their version of extraordinarly living might look like).<br />
<br />
My version of extraordinary living, so far, includes lots of songwriting, performing, and making records. But it also includes pointless travel, spontaneous adventures, creative fits, hedonistic binges, friendships and love affairs of many varieties and durations, periods of selfless giving, periods of extreme solitude, periods of extreme creative passion, and, apparently, the occasional hermitage in Maine. And I’ll be candid, blog-readers: it very likely includes a move to New Orleans.<br />
<br />
If the songs come, they come because I have been living extraordinarily, and I have some noise to make about it. So, Philadelphia, don’t be sad to lose me. Be thrilled for the mischief I’ll get into, the magic I’ll encounter, the music I haven’t yet made.Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-29316787137893785022012-04-19T16:42:00.005-04:002012-04-19T17:11:53.008-04:00Levon Helm and musical joyLevon Helm was a rare spirit: he radiated love so great you could hear it in his voice, feel it in his backbeat, and see it on his face. <div><br /><div>Levon was a musical bodhisattva, and part of a lineage which stretches back into the centuries, and which I believe is still alive today. The Band's music fills me up with a kind of joy that is familiar to me, and that I absolutely live for. When music is beautiful and joyful and honest, and played with kindness, it speaks directly to your heart. You get a taste of enlightenment: the feeling that you are just a drop in an infinite ocean of human experience. That your pain and joy are one in the same as the pain and joy of the people around you.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>I want to thank Levon for his life and for his music, and for the inspiration he provided for me and so many of my compadres. I also want to thank the musicians and writers in his lineage: those who have moved me, from the stage or the speaker, and filled me with musical joy. Those whose kindness is palpable, whose grace is evident in their voices and hands. Most recently and to name a few: <a href="http://www.thewoodbrothers.com">Oliver and Chris Wood</a>, <a href="http://www.shovelsandrope.com/">Cary Ann Hearst</a>, <a href="http://www.devonsproule.com/">Devon Sproule</a>, <a href="http://chriskasper.com/fr_splash.cfm">Chris Kasper</a>, <a href="http://sethwalker.com/3.0/">Seth Walker</a>, <a href="http://miltonmusic.com/">Milton</a>. I hear you, I feel you, and I thank you.</div><div><br /></div><div>Levon: the business of music isn't easy, but thanks to you and those like you, music itself is very clearly a spiritual necessity. I feel grateful every day for the opportunity to make music: to make a joyful noise unto the world, and just maybe to move somebody the way you have moved me. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /><br /><center> <iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0PJwxQrm8Os" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-64231908361573493432012-03-28T10:52:00.003-04:002012-03-28T10:58:36.143-04:00theory of songs<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:drawinggridhorizontalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:drawinggridverticalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> <w:dontautofitconstrainedtables/> <w:dontvertalignintxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Let me start by crediting my friend and inspiration, singer/songwriter Milton, for much of the following theory. He didn’t coin it (and I wouldn’t be surprised if he disagreed with some of it), but it was born out of hours of conversation between the two of us, over which I’ve been mulling for the last few years. Let me add that I don’t pretend that anyone can be an authority on this subject, and I don’t mean to sound like I’m trying to be one. I just like talking about it. The following is my current theory of great songs.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Songs are like lovers: the best ones have a good heart, a good brain, and a great body. </b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">The heart is the emotion: the melody and harmony, the shape and feeling of the song. The brain is the insight: the part that makes you think, usually it’s conveyed in the lyrics, but sometimes with fancy chord voicings or time signatures. The body is the physicality of the song: the rhythm, the primal, erotic force that makes you want to get up and dance. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">In other words: a great song should <span style="font-size: 100%; ">break your heart,</span><span style="font-size: 100%; "> </span><span style="font-size: 100%; ">make you think, and turn you on.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">Since I started thinking of songs like this, I’ve noticed that most songs (like most lovers) tend to be unevenly distributed. Most are heavy on one or two of these categories and lacking the third. Even whole genres of music tend to concentrate on one or two aspects. For example…</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><b>Folk music</b> tends to be heavy on the brain and heart, and light on the body. Think about Joni Mitchell’s canon: sweeping, heartbreaking melodies, brilliant lyrics, but generally not much going on downstairs. The few times Joni brought in some eros - some sexy, powerful rhythm - she had a hit (think “Big Yellow Taxi”). Leonard Cohen has the same concentration: “Suzanne” is one of my very favorite songs, but you could sing it to a metronome, and not lose anything essential. It’s got a tempo, but no rhythm. It doesn’t <i>move</i> rhythmically. To think of it another way: Dylan was a folksinger when he played solo. When he brought in The Band, he became a rock star. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><b>Pop Music, </b>for most of the last hundred years, tends to have plenty of heart and body, but no brains. Don’t get me wrong, I am a huge fan of pop music. The hugest. But rarely does a pop song contain much insight. This spans the decades, from “Ain’t Misbehavin’”, through “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” and “What’d I Say”, all the way to Bruno Mars’ “F**k You”. Those songs are like smokin’ hot lovers, sweet and kind and passionate, but without a thought in their pretty little heads.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">Think about “Dock of the Bay”, one of my favorite pop songs of the last fifty years: It moves you, and it makes you want to move. It’s sexy and sweet and full of longing. But what is it actually saying? This guy is sitting on a dock, thinking about life. He thinks to himself “looks like nothing’s gonna change”. Then he whistles. Again: I adore this song - and I think it has “meaning” in a sort of cosmic, big-picture sense - but it’s not going to change anybody’s mind about anything.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">I don’t know <b>rap and hip-hop</b> well enough to comment much, but based on the heart=melody theory, rap seems to be light on the heart, and heavy on the body and brains. I could say the same about punk and hardcore. It would make some sense, because so many of those songs are conveying strength, anger, and toughness, and you don’t want to show too much emotion if you’re trying to win a fight. You want to show brains and brawn: words and rhythm.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">All of this is to say that <b>the greatest songs of all</b>, of course, shatter the boundaries. They transcend genres by displaying, in all their beauty and vulnerability, the heart, the mind, and the physicality of the singer. They sing of the complete human experience.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; ">My fans are currently <a href="https://www.facebook.com/carsieblantonfans">nominating their favorites</a>. Here are a few of mine.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><b style="font-size: 100%; ">Lean On Me (Bill Withers)</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Still Crazy After all These Years (Paul Simon)</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Brown Eyed Girl (Van Morrison)</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Picture in a Frame (Tom Waits)</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>What A Wonderful World (Theile/Weiss)</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>Forgiveness (Patty Griffin)</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; "><o:p> </o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-77021404116033795952012-01-17T10:47:00.002-05:002012-01-17T10:51:53.541-05:00the “pay what you please” manifesto<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:drawinggridhorizontalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:drawinggridverticalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> <w:dontautofitconstrainedtables/> <w:dontvertalignintxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">In 2008, I helped start a business called “<a href="http://www.quidplayer.com/">Quidplayer</a>”, which built a nifty little widget for artists to post on their websites. The Quidplayer is a music player that allows fans to pick their own price for the music they download from artists. It was a fairly revolutionary idea at the time (I had only heard of Radiohead taking that approach, never a smaller-time artist). These days, because of the success of Bandcamp and similar businesses, I’m happy to say it’s becoming more commonplace.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’ve now adopted <a href="http://www.carsieblanton.com/music">Bandcamp</a> on my website, allowing fans to download tracks from the <i>Buoy</i> album for any price they choose. I’m planning to release the new record, <i>Idiot Heart</i>, in the same way. Additionally, for the past year, I’ve been inviting fans to choose their own price for my physical CDs at my shows.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This approach has gotten mixed reviews from fans. Some people are instantly in favor of it, others are downright incredulous. I’d like to let you in on where the idea came from, and why I’m now 100% sold on it. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>The fan experience<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Before I was a musician, I was a music fan. I still am! Music that moves me is worth more to me than almost anything else in the world. I would eat gruel every day for the rest of my life, or live in a tin hut, before I would give up good music. Music that doesn’t move me, on the other hand, is worth nothing to me. So how can two songs, one totally inspiring and one completely boring, both be worth $.99?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">My answer is, they aren’t. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Not everybody has the same taste, but I will wager that everybody who loves music has a similar experience. If you really <i>love</i> an artist, if their music gets inside you and wreaks glorious havoc, destroying and rebuilding your interpretation of the world, making you laugh and cry and reconsider things, their art is worth an infinite amount of money to you. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>The industry <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Something big happened in the music world about a hundred years ago. Vinyl records were invented. Suddenly, record labels could record musicians, and distribute their music to jukeboxes, and later, directly to music fans and radio stations. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Imagine the enormity of this! Before 1910, a musician was a working person who traveled from town to town, performing their music <i>live</i>, in the same room with their fans. A fan was a person who saw that artist, enjoyed their performance, and planned to see them again the next time they came through town. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Recording changed the face of music in countless ways. The most shocking and new and important way, I submit, what that it turned a <i>song</i> – previously an <i>experience</i>, unsellable and unquantifiable - into an object which could be bought and sold. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">With that one little idea, the recording industry was born. You can’t have an industry without a product, and you can’t make a product out of a musical performance unless you stamp it onto a piece of plastic. Now, a hundred years later, the music-buying public seems to think that a song is more or less the same as a pen, or an iPod, or an ice cream cone: it’s a thing, and it’s worth a fixed amount of money.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This, my friends, is lunacy. Songs are magic. Money is just money.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>In Conclusion<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">It seems to me that the big mistake – the very biggest mistake in the history of the music industry – was not highly paid record executives, or unfair royalty distribution, or Napster, or iTunes. It was the faulty premise on which the whole empire was built: pretending, in the first place, that a song could be bought or sold.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> So, here in the 21<sup>st</sup> century, as I make my songs and sing them into microphones, as so many others did before me, I’m challenging that premise. If you hear my music, and you like it, and you want to take it home with you, don’t ask me what it’s worth. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">To me, it’s worth everything. It’s worth every failed love affair I wrote about. It’s worth the debts, and the late nights, and the incessant station wagon traveling. It’s worth every ounce of heartache that went into conceiving, writing, singing, and recording it. It’s worth all the money I’ve ever made, and ever spent, and ever will.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The question is: what’s it worth <i>to you</i>?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-59267774979891217902011-12-19T08:25:00.009-05:002011-12-19T09:52:50.266-05:00last-minute gifts for music-loversAs you probably already know, the first and most important gift to buy for your music-loving loved ones (at least if you live in the northeast US) is a ticket to one of my upcoming <a href="http://www.carsieblanton.com/shows">CD release shows</a>.<br /><br />Now that my shameless plug is complete, let me shamelessly plug the work of some excellent songwriters who are not me. Myself, I don't listen to much music that was made after about 1975, but I have proverbially spun all of these records til they wore through. Keep in mind that I have a strong bias towards great lyricists, so if that ain't your thing, you might want to read somebody else's list of recommendations. Also, keep in mind that all of these artists are even better live, so if you dig their records, sign their mailing lists.<br /><br />Below are my top 5 not-widely-known-album recommendations, all of which are guaranteed home runs, some of which your music-loving friends and family may not already have.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1) Devon Sproule - <span style="font-style: italic;">Don't Hurry for Heaven</span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"></span> - <a href="http://www.blackhenmusic.com/album/dont-hurry-heaven">Buy it here</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For fans of:</span> Rickie Lee Jones, Bob Dylan, Gillian Welch, Hoagy Carmichael<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who dig:</span> Outstandingly playful, creative, wry, image-rich lyrics paired with earbogglingly beautiful melodies, presented by Devon's sweet, young, conversational vocals and skillful, warm jazz guitar.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Note:</span> For the already-avid Devon fan, consider gifting her newest record, <span style="font-style: italic;">I Love You, Go Easy</span>, <a href="http://www.tinangeltickets.co.uk/index.php/action/item/id/448/prevaction/category/previd/new/prevstart//">on vinyl</a>.<br /><br /><center><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="gsSong2591359415" name="gsSong2591359415" height="40" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=25913594&style=metal&p=0"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" height="40" width="250"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=25913594&style=metal&p=0"><span>Ain't That the Way by <a href="http://grooveshark.com/artist/Devon+Sproule/237980" title="Devon Sproule">Devon Sproule</a> on Grooveshark</span></object></object></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2) Milton - <span style="font-style: italic;">Grand Hotel</span> - </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://maggadee.com/milton.asp">Buy it here</a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />For fans of:</span> Van Morrison, Randy Newman, John Prine, Nick Lowe<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who dig:</span> Classic tunes (and I mean CLASSIC, like could-have-been-written-in-any-decade-by-any-of-the-aforementioned-greats), simple arrangements with great groove, conversational singing from a disarmingly honest, whip-smart, totally endearing songwriter.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Note:</span> This song is not on this album. Grooveshark lacks the new record, but it's <span>even better</span>.<br /><center><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="gsSong3077743851" name="gsSong3077743851" height="40" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=30777438&style=metal&p=0"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" height="40" width="250"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=30777438&style=metal&p=0"><span>In the City by <a href="http://grooveshark.com/artist/Milton/197769" title="Milton">Milton</a> on Grooveshark</span></object></object></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3) Anais Mitchell -</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> The Brightness</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> - </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://store.righteousbabe.com/departments/product/rbrartists/thebrightness">Buy it here</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For fans of:</span> Joni Mitchell, Joanna Newsom, Leonard Cohen, Ani DiFranco<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who dig:</span> Expansive, emotive, exuberant, pitch-perfect singing, sparse instrumentation, absolutely masterful wordplay. Topics include Jesus, apples, war in the Middle East, Hades and Persephone.<br /><center><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="gsSong496314296" name="gsSong496314296" height="40" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=4963142&style=metal&p=0"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" height="40" width="250"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=4963142&style=metal&p=0"><span>Changer by <a href="http://grooveshark.com/artist/Ana+s+Mitchell/73917" title="Anaïs Mitchell">Anaïs Mitchell</a> on Grooveshark</span></object></object></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4) Mark Erelli - <span style="font-style: italic;">Little Vigils</span> - </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://markerelli.com/index.php?page=cds&family=music&display=1169#offset2">Buy it here</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For fans of:</span> Jackson Browne, early Paul Simon, Loudon Wainwright III<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who dig:</span> Incredibly sweet, melodic, totally love-filled songs, delivered with a shockingly adept voice (this dude has a five-octave range, all of which has the texture of warm honey). The songs are simple-but-surprising, honest, and introspective. I especially recommend this album if you're buying for your sweetheart, or for new parents.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Note: </span>Again, this song is not on this album, but it is my favorite album of his. Damn you, Grooveshark! Also, Mark is touring with me <a href="http://www.carsieblanton.com/shows">in January</a> as a special guest.<br /><center><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="gsSong2351283644" name="gsSong2351283644" height="40" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=23512836&style=metal&p=0"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" height="40" width="250"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=23512836&style=metal&p=0"><span>Once by <a href="http://grooveshark.com/artist/Mark+Erelli/8738" title="Mark Erelli">Mark Erelli</a> on Grooveshark</span></object></object></center><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">5) Cary Ann Hearst - <span style="font-style: italic;">Lions & Lambs</span> - </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=8508663">Buy it here</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For fans of:</span> The Band, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Steve Earle<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Who dig:</span> Instant heartbreak, fearless vocals, classic country melodies, totally asskicking drums and harmonies (think The Band with Janis Joplin as frontwoman), songs of death, courage and outlaws.<br /><center><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="gsSong3039348471" name="gsSong3039348471" height="40" width="250"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=30393484&style=metal&p=0"><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" height="40" width="250"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=30393484&style=metal&p=0"><span>The Hardest Thing by <a href="http://grooveshark.com/artist/Cary+Ann+Hearst/226881" title="Cary Ann Hearst">Cary Ann Hearst</a> on Grooveshark</span></object></object></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-17896230856919758442011-11-17T10:19:00.010-05:002011-11-17T12:28:31.226-05:00my personal top 10<span style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >As you may know (if you're my Facebook buddy), I just spent way too much time over the past week compiling a list, proposed and edited by my friends and fans, of the Top 50 American Musical Artists of the Past 100 Years. The final list (after four rounds of voting) can be found <a href="http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10150369213432479">here</a>.<br /><br />As a highly music-obsessed and highly opinionated person, of course, I have my own version of this list. First, I'll tell you why. Then, I'll tell you what it is.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1) Originators over Popularizers</span><br /><br />Occasionally, someone invents a whole new kind of music, becomes gigantically famous, and brings that kind of music to the whole world (Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, Michael Jackson). Usually, though, it's one or the other.<br /><br />One of my biggest pet peeves in reading these sorts of lists (*cough* ROLLING STONE *cough, cough*) is when an artist like Buddy Holly is listed instead of, or higher than, an artist like Chuck Berry. Why? because Buddy Holly was doing something <span style="font-style: italic;">extremely</span> similar to what Chuck Berry did, only a little later, and not as well.<br /><br />It's difficult to say how much race influences the popularity and long-term idolization of a given artist, but I do see a theme. The more popular, and more-often-cited "originators" of a given genre, are usually white. See also: Frank Sinatra, Eminem, Elvis Presley.<br /><br />"The colored folks been singing it and playing it just like I’m doin' now, man, for more years than I know. They played it like that in their shanties and in their juke joints and nobody paid it no mind 'til I goosed it up. I got it from them. " - Elvis Himself.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />2) Pop Musicians over Cult Artists</span><br /><br /><br />This is not a hard and fast rule, and this tenet is not very popular with music geeks, but in general I think pop musicians have a wider scope of influence than cult musicians. Obviously, there are exceptions to that rule (eg: The Pixies. But who ever thought indie rock would become pop?)<br /><br />You'll notice Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker didn't make it onto my list. Why? Because bebop & modern jazz are, and always have been, cult genres. That music is for music geeks, not the general public. As much as I appreciate it, as a music geek myself, I don't think geekery influences the world of music the same way a brilliant pop song does.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3) Lasting Impressions over Flashes in the Pan</span><br /><br />In creating my list, I am extremely hesitant to include anybody who's been making and releasing records for less than 20 years. Why? Because it's impossible to take the long-view of a part of history that one is currently involved in. Eg: I think Ani DiFranco is incredible, and I'm glad she made the top 50 (especially glad considering some of the other proposals). But, I didn't vote for her myself, because we can't yet say whether she changed the face of music forever, or just for now.<br /><br />So here it is, my top 10, in chronological order (rather than order of greatness).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Louis Armstrong</span></span><p style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Like I said, this list is not supposed to be in order of greatness. BUT, if I had to pick one artist, the artist who MOST changed the face of music, worldwide, irreversibly and for the better, it would be Louis. As Wynton Marsalis said, "He invented swing, he invented jazz, he invented the telephone, the automobile and the polio vaccine." Louis Armstrong redefined rhythm, phrasing AND tonality, changing the way people write and sing songs forever.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Robert Johnson<br /></span></p><p style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">I'm already breaking my own rule, here, because Robert Johnson was a cult musician if there ever was one. He achieved no kind of fame or fortune during his short life, just wandered the juke joints of the south, playing what eventually became known as the blues. However, he made a series of recording that unequivocally changed music; writing and recording the first set of songs in a genre that later morphed into R&B, rock & roll, folk, soul, funk, punk and all the rest.<br /></span></p><span style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bessie Smith</span><br /><br />Bessie Smith originated (more or less) a singing style that influenced all the singers to follow, thus influencing the way songs were written, in an infinite feedback loop that still continues today. Among those influenced by Bessie Smith, whether they know it or not, are Adele, Kelly Clarkson and Amy Winehouse (RIP). She also penned at least one extremely well-known and long-enduring blues standard, Backwater Blues.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Billie Holiday</span><br /><br />If I'm being honest, Billie was a popularizer more than an originator. Her phrasing was extremely similar to Armstrong's, only moreso. But, she was just SO DAMN GOOD.... I guess this one is just a personal favorite I can't let go of.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Duke Ellington</span><br /><br />First off, thanks for naming him #1 on our little list over there, voters. He certainly had a gigantic circle of influence. In addition to writing and arranging (yes, along with Strayhorn) "It Don't Mean a Thing", "Mood Indigo", "I Let a Song Go Out Of My Heart", and of course dozens of other totally gorgeous and magical jazz standards, Duke was a very elegant slap in the face to a segregated society that still didn't like seeing well-dressed, well-spoken, undeniably ingenious black men. Plus, he brought us Johnny Hodges.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Little Richard</span><br /><br />See above. Li'l Rich is more responsible for Rock & Roll than most, possible all other, Rock & Rollers. He was cited as a major influence of, among others, The Beatles, The Stones, The Kinks, Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, Jimi Hendrix and Queen. I had a small conniption over whether to include Chuck Berry instead, but went with LR because he had better hair.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ray Charles</span><br /><br />UGH. If all Ray did was record a <span style="font-style: italic;">huge</span> percentage of the best records of all time, I would still include him on this list. But no, he also invented <span style="font-style: italic;">several</span> genres which went on to change all American music, wrote dozens of classic songs, sang dozens of other classic songs better than they'd ever been sung, popularized gospel and blues music with white people, popularized country music with black people, and personally <a href="http://minorjive.typepad.com/hungryblues/2004/06/ray_charles_hel.html">integrated Birmingham, AL</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Dylan</span><br /><br />First, I'd like to congratulate Bob for being the only white dude on this list. I swear, it's not that I'm a self-hating white racist. It just happens to be the case, in this particular country, during the particular span of years in question, that persons of African descent invented, perfected, and popularized almost all of the best music.<br /><br />Bob, of course, being a notable exception to that rule. Funny thing about Bob Dylan: he was (is) not a great singer or instrumentalist, but he certainly did change music in a huge way. His genius lies in changing the way people hear the popular song; suddenly, it's personal, direct, conversational. He more or less invented a style of songwriting to which everyone who came after owes a great debt (myself included). He cracked open the genre, and allowed us to speak when we're singing, and to speak to someone in particular. Simultaneously, he helped turn the songwriter into the performer, the celebrity, and the idol. Then, he made it cool for folk artists to have a rock band. Thanks, Bob.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Aretha Franklin</span><br /><br />Much like Billie, Aretha was more a popularizer than an originator. But again, she recorded a huge number of the best records in her genre (and yes, in the history of American music). She also just sang (sings) her ass off, all the time, more than anybody else ever has or will.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Michael Jackson</span><br /><br />Controversial, I know, but would anybody argue that hip-hop would exist without MJ? How about pop music, as it's currently defined? What about breakdancing? How about music videos, as we know them? Perhaps most pertinently, what about the show "So You Think You Can Dance"?<br /><br />MJ originated AND PERFECTED a genre that we still don't know what to call. Ask me in another hundred years.<br /><br /></span>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-56629667773120060572011-10-24T12:50:00.016-04:002011-10-24T19:35:32.930-04:00three myths about art and successMy five-year anniversary of professional musicianship passed in August, and I was too busy making a record, touring, and driving back and forth to New Orleans to notice until now. I guess that's as it should be.<br /><br />Five years of doing this thing - and I mean REALLY DOING IT, pouring in all of my time and energy and passion and night-and-daydreams - has given me a whole lot of thoughts, feelings, and surprises. Below are some of my favorites, and the myths that begot them.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /><br />Myth #1: Being Good will Make You Successful.<br /></span><br />The reality: being good and being successful: no correlation.<br /><br />This has been the number one biggest shock to me over the past five years, and even though I "get it" now, I still wake up every week or two in a panic/depression/rebellion against this idea. I spent literally ten years of my life, ages 13 to 23, focused on only one musical goal: becoming a great songwriter. On the tail-end of that ten years, just as I started to think I might be reaching my goal, I got a wicked-bad feeling that it might not matter. It reminded me of Joseph Campbell's description of a midlife crisis: you spend half your life climbing a ladder, you finally get to the top, and you realize it's up against the wrong wall.<br /><br />I woke up one day and had this chilling thought: I could be the best songwriter alive, and it wouldn't guarantee any sort of external success. Not fame, not fortune, not even rent money.<br /><br />I think the greatness = success myth grew out of a combination of bio-pic mania and the rags-to-riches fairy tales that Americans are particularly fond of. The myth goes something like this: if you're really good at what you do, someone will come along and "discover" you, make a few phone calls, and before long, you'll be a star.<br /><br />I am not saying this to be bitchy, but here's the stone-cold fact: <span style="font-style: italic;">the people who are most successful in the music business are not always the people who are best at music. </span>Conversely, <span style="font-style: italic;">the people who are best at music are not always successful in the music business. </span><br /><br />This principle, unfortunately, trickles down from platinum-selling mega-stars to the street musicians of Manhattan, and seems to be equally prevalent in the other arts, sciences, and even business. Contrary to popular belief, I think it's been more or less this way for the last hundred years. Yes, Louis Armstrong was incredibly great, and incredibly successful. But have you ever heard of Cleo Brown? How about James Booker? And I won't go into the less-than-talented artists who have been extremely successful, that would be rude... <span style="font-style: italic;">*COUGH*</span> Rebecca Black <span style="font-style: italic;">*cough, cough*</span>. Excuse me.<br /><br />The first follow-up question, which I have yet to find a satisfactory answer to, is this: if being good doesn't make you successful, what does? Some common suggestions are: 1) money 2) good looks 3) dumb luck. A less common but equally probable suggestion: 4) persistence.<br /><br />The next follow-up question is a doozie. If being good doesn't make you successful... why be good?<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Myth #2: If You're Not Successful, You Should Probably Stop.</span><br /><br />The reality: your success is none of your business.<br /><br />Before I got out from under this myth, I had to spend many months crying into my cereal about the fact that I had probably wasted ten years of my life honing a skill that the rest of the world considers about as important and interesting as making sculptures out of pencil shavings. So why be good? Why make music at all?<br /><br />Finally, it dawned on me: success is not the point. Furthermore, it's none of my business. My business <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span>, in fact, being good.<br /><br />Little-known fact: the most important and satisfying rewards one gets from being good at something are not external rewards. They don't always include money or fame or gold stars. For example: nobody ever got a trophy for being in a happy marriage. At best, your spouse will buy you flowers, or do the dishes, occasionally. Does that mean it's not worth the effort?<br /><br />Obviously not. My goal of being a great songwriter is partly selfish and partly altruistic: I want to write great songs because doing so makes me happy. And how do I know I've written a great song? Because hearing that song makes somebody else happy.<br /><br />I have to assume, somewhere deep in my heart, that the world will take care of me if I keep on doing what I love, and throwing my pleasure and joy and enthusiasm for it all around me like birdseed at a wedding. I have to assume that, put my head down, and write more songs.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Myth #3: Making Art will Drive You Crazy</span><br /><br />The reality: success, or lack thereof, will drive you crazy. Making art may be the only thing that will keep you sane.<br /><br />I <a href="http://brighterthanabuoy.blogspot.com/2011/08/on-living-creative-life.html">blogged</a> in detail about this a few months back, and here's a follow-up. People (including me, until recently) seem to think that being an artist is a little like being a paranoid schizophrenic. You're born that way and there's nothing you can do about it, but with lots of meds and a decent institution, there's still hope of an okay life. More likely, you'll end up ODing at 27 in a basement green room, having spent your twelve illegitimate kids' inheritance money on hookers and blow.<br /><br />I'll be 27 next July, so it seems like the time to take a long, hard look at this one.<br /><br />I can't say this will always be the case, but here's what I've found so far: my relationship with my "muse", that creature/spirit/part of my brain that brings me songs and melody and great performances, is the most satisfying relationship in my life. Creating art is a beautiful, magical, endlessly-gratifying experience.<br /><br />My relationship with my ego, however, that creature/spirit/part of my brain that brings me fear, bitterness, and endless late-night monologues about my failures as an artist, is by far the most destructive and abusive one in my life. If I ever end up ODing in a basement green room (still looking pretty unlikely, from here): blame my ego, not my muse.<br /><br />And yes, I blame Robert Johnson's, Janis Joplin's, Kurt Cobain's and Amy Winehouse's egos, too. Their muses were brilliant and kind and good to them. They didn't have to die to make those records. Let's all stop talking that way, for the good of the artists who are still with us.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In Conclusion...<br /></span><br />I always hope that my little essays will be interesting to other artists, <span style="font-style: italic;">as well as</span> to computer programmers and doctors and stay-at-home-dads. In case this one is a little too artist-centric, here's a big-picture summary.<br /><br />We humans, these days, put way too much emphasis on the kinds of success we can quantify, measure and compare (why? Probably a lot of reasons. I mostly blame the school system. And American Idol). Unfortunately for us, that kind of success has no inherent personal or spiritual value.<br /><br />The kind of success that we need, that we ought to be concentrating on, cultivating, and encouraging from our kids, is the kind that brings us joy and satisfaction. It's success that we need to work hard for, but the work makes us feel strong and smart and a little bit giddy. Chances are good that this kind of success brings the people around us joy and satisfaction, too; but how much, and whether they pay/thank/praise us for it, is none of our business.<br /><br />I think Howard Thurman said it best, when he said...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">"Do not ask yourself what the world needs. As yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATlzW8QHn4IpHeFowh7c03vPZDKptA5xMKGEFHlz5izZL0Pl88ATX2NVBrAWrcFOg0Ch3TWW7v4xF8vZh3yK3gcVWfSCNBClR07ZK9DAbUsJbupgqp9UoE4Z4TaDBRpHo_Vp56FNfv7A/s1600/happykid.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 333px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATlzW8QHn4IpHeFowh7c03vPZDKptA5xMKGEFHlz5izZL0Pl88ATX2NVBrAWrcFOg0Ch3TWW7v4xF8vZh3yK3gcVWfSCNBClR07ZK9DAbUsJbupgqp9UoE4Z4TaDBRpHo_Vp56FNfv7A/s400/happykid.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667133779326517730" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">PS. Actually, all kids already know this. </span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-4366637143849182992011-09-20T15:22:00.003-04:002011-09-20T15:28:38.515-04:00fastidious and preciseThis song has wormed its way into my head and heart, and now I can't walk down the freshly cooled Philly streets without humming it to myself, or bursting into dimpled grins at a line like "to avoid complications, she never kept the same address/in conversation, she spoke just like a baroness"! Have you ever <span style="font-style: italic;">truly</span> considered the depth and breadth of brilliance that is Queen? Now is the time, friends. Now is the time.<br /><center><br /><object width="250" height="40"><param name="movie" value="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf"><param name="wmode" value="window"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=13766524&style=metal&p=0"><embed src="http://grooveshark.com/songWidget.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" flashvars="hostname=cowbell.grooveshark.com&songIDs=13766524&style=metal&p=0" allowscriptaccess="always" wmode="window" width="250" height="40"></embed></object></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-74425603620833924362011-08-29T23:47:00.003-04:002011-08-30T00:14:47.352-04:00until that morningIt's midnight in Atlanta. I'm sitting in the "living room" at a mixing studio, which consists of a table with three chairs, and a couch facing a blank orange wall. Mixing a record is monotonous and maddening simultaneously, and also really fun and exciting. At least, fun and exciting for me; of course, I am usually in the other room while Damien mixes. He's been working on the same song for three hours.
<br />
<br />To reset my ears, between sessions, I've been listening to Sam Cooke's greatest hits. The nights are hot and sultry down here, and after many years of sitting on the fence, I've finally settled on my favorite version of "Summertime".
<br />
<br /><center><object width="335" height="28"><param value="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio_embed?data=YTo2OntzOjU6ImFwaUlkIjtzOjE6IjQiO3M6NjoiZmlsZUlkIjtzOjg6IjE1NjMxNTMwIjtzOjQ6ImNvZGUiO3M6MTI6IjE1NjMxNTMwLTZmYSI7czo2OiJ1c2VySWQiO3M6NzoiMTM4NzMyNyI7czoxMjoiZXh0ZXJuYWxDYWxsIjtpOjE7czo0OiJ0aW1lIjtpOjEzMTQ2Nzc1NDU7fQ==&autoplay=default" name="movie"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" src="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio_embed?data=YTo2OntzOjU6ImFwaUlkIjtzOjE6IjQiO3M6NjoiZmlsZUlkIjtzOjg6IjE1NjMxNTMwIjtzOjQ6ImNvZGUiO3M6MTI6IjE1NjMxNTMwLTZmYSI7czo2OiJ1c2VySWQiO3M6NzoiMTM4NzMyNyI7czoxMjoiZXh0ZXJuYWxDYWxsIjtpOjE7czo0OiJ0aW1lIjtpOjEzMTQ2Nzc1NDU7fQ==&autoplay=default" width="335" height="28"></embed></object></center>
<br />Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-58566833058879179772011-08-12T11:11:00.004-04:002011-10-24T19:37:23.735-04:00on living a creative life“We can never be born enough. We are human beings; for whom birth is a supremely welcome mystery, the mystery of growing: the mystery which happens only and whenever we are faithful to ourselves." - e. e. cummings<br /><br />Liz Gilbert, who has done a lot of very inspired writing, observes in this TED talk (one of my favorite things on the whole internet) that considering an artist responsible for the quality of her own work, rather than leaving that responsibility to the gods/muses/daemons, may be a grave mistake.<br /><br /><!--copy and paste--><object width="526" height="374"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf"> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff"> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2009/Blank/ElizabethGilbert_2009-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/ElizabethGilbert_2009.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=453&lang=eng&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius;year=2009;theme=words_about_words;theme=speaking_at_ted2009;theme=women_reshaping_the_world;theme=the_creative_spark;event=TED2009;tag=Arts;tag=Culture;tag=Entertainment;tag=TED2009;tag=creativity;tag=poetry;tag=work;tag=writing;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;"> <embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgcolor="#ffffff" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2009/Blank/ElizabethGilbert_2009-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/ElizabethGilbert_2009.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=453&lang=eng&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius;year=2009;theme=words_about_words;theme=speaking_at_ted2009;theme=women_reshaping_the_world;theme=the_creative_spark;event=TED2009;tag=Arts;tag=Culture;tag=Entertainment;tag=TED2009;tag=creativity;tag=poetry;tag=work;tag=writing;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" width="526" height="374"></embed> </object><br /><br />This is a tremendously comforting concept for me, and I imagine it's the same for every creative person (and by that I mean every person). It means that my job is not to create. My job is to remain inspired, so that my heart will be open to the creative force.<br /><br />For me, remaining inspired requires being honest, growing personally, feeling passionately, and having adventures. It generally requires a deep and vibrant experience of music, poetry, sensuality, and/or love. It absolutely requires continually becoming the person I want to be, at risk of facing fears, disappointing people, and breaking with convention.<br /><br />By choosing to live a creative life, I have made a commitment to my muse: she is always welcome in my house. That means that I will remain open to inspiration at all times, regardless of what I might have to sacrifice to do so. So far, I have only had to sacrifice money, security, and routine, all of which I am lucky enough to have no taste for.<br /><br />I believe in muses of the arts, but also of science, childcare, computer programming, baking, dog training, and human relationships. It's my strong suspicion that everyone has a muse, and that everyone - somewhere deep inside themselves - knows what they have to do to invite her into their lives. What have you done for your muse lately?Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-69718823956835925412011-08-01T12:03:00.006-04:002011-08-01T14:07:02.812-04:00blissed half to deathCan I make an observation? Doing what you love - "following your bliss" - is a totally insane, preposterous and irrational thing to do. It will make you broke and anxious and periodically suicidally depressed. It will ravage your heart and mind with obsessions and compulsions, until you can't sit down to a polite conversation without gabbing manically about your most recent harebrained pursuit. It will slowly strip you of all social graces, as well as any unrelated interests or concerns you may once have maintained. You will forget to feed yourself, change your clothes, and take out the trash. In effect, you will be transformed into a bumbling, obsessive-compulsive, dirty, penniless maniac, with no regard for society and little contact with reality.<br /><br />Unfortunately, it is absolutely the only way to live a satisfying life.<br /><br />I just spent two weeks in Atlanta, making my record. We tracked twelve songs in three days, recording drums, bass, guitars and most of the lead vocals live. We spent another ten days arranging and recording overdubs (backup vocals, guitars, percussion, etcetera). Oliver Wood was with me, sharing in the alternating anguish and euphoria, from the first arrangement ideas to the last tambourine. Oliver is a special kind of saint; the kind that tells dirty jokes and plays the guitar like a mofo.<br /><br />On the day I turned 26, I left Atlanta and drove south to New Orleans, for a week of high octane mojo-renewal. I had my rough mixes in tow.<br /><br />To tell you the truth, this project has been absolutely grueling. I've been crazed and harried since mid-May, waking up in the middle of the night to make notes about drum fills, or record background vocal ideas on my iPhone. During the recording, I'm pretty sure I felt the complete range of human emotion in the course of each day. The release date has been moved to January (following the advice of a radio promotion firm), which means I've got another five months of the same to look forward to.<br /><br />To tell you the truth again, I believe these are the best songs I've ever written, many of the best players I've ever worked with, and the best singing I've ever gotten on tape. This record is going to be outstanding, and I am fiercely proud of it.<br /><br />I told you all in my previous post about my plan for the making and release of this record. It's a three-phase process (recording, promotion, and manufacturing). Phase one is now just about complete, and phase two (in which I'll be hiring a big-shot publicity firm and a radio promoter) starts in September.<br /><br />I mentioned before that folks interested in investing should contact me. To my surprise and delight, I've raised over $20,000 to date in investments from fans. If anyone else is interested in investing in the project, I am open to taking another $10,000 in investments (to be repaid, with interest, over an agreed-upon period after the record is released). Email me (carsie@carsieblanton.com) for details.<br /><br />If you'd like to contribute in smaller increments, I'm still taking donations as well. Small donations will help A TON by covering unplanned and unpredictable budget items (of which there are always lots).<br /><br />Thank you, again, for making me crazy.<br /><br /><object width="250" height="250"><param name="movie" value="http://widget.chipin.com/widget/id/cf5c547c8ae62ba9"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://widget.chipin.com/widget/id/cf5c547c8ae62ba9" flashVars="" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowScriptAccess="always" wmode="transparent" width="250" height="250"></embed></object>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-22492390524659899702011-06-12T10:18:00.006-04:002011-06-12T11:57:57.392-04:00the big exciting newsWell, it's happened again. I've written a complete batch of shiny new songs, and I'm ready to make an album. I am more excited than a puppy in peanut-butter, and the prospect of making said album has got me obsessing over my work, my career, the industry, and the future of songs and albums. The schemes are commencing, and I'd like to share them with you. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Album</span><br /><br />In July, Joe and I will head to Atlanta for a week to make a record. It will be produced by the brilliant, talented, heart-squishingly soulful Oliver Wood. Oliver is one half of <a href="http://www.thewoodbrothers.com">the Wood Brothers</a>, a band who you may have seen me touring with/raving about on and off for just under three years. In addition to being my favorite living band, these guys have been my friends and advocates, and I feel completely humbled and honored to work with Oliver.<br /><br />The record is slated to come out in October. As far as I can tell, it will be called 'Idiot Heart'.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Release</span><br /><br />One question that's been on my mind a bunch lately (as I've mentioned in the past) is this: what does a record label do? What did record labels do in their heyday? What do labels do that I can't? <br /><br />The answer to that last one, I've decided, is this: very little, possibly nothing. <br /><br />Thus, I will be releasing my next record with a bigger, bolder, more assertive approach. I will more or less be acting like a record label. I am investing my own money, and that of a few people who are inspired by the project, in not only making the best album I possibly can, but hiring a team of people to help me release it (the same sort of team a label would have in-house). There will be professional marketing, publicity, and radio campaign firms, merchandise, and music videos.<br /><br />This is not cheap, and is thus not a common approach for an artist like myself. However, I am blessed to have people around to me who believe in the project and have a little cash on hand. After five years of working as an independent artist, my business generates a semi-predictable and growing income, and a few folks have taken notice and are willing to invest in the prospect that it will continue to do so. (If you are interested in being an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Investor">investor</a>, as opposed to a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donor">donor</a>, send me an <a href="mailto:carsie@carsieblanton.com">email</a>.)<br /><br />In short, I've decided that a little thing like money should not dictate the quality or the impact of my work, and I've made it my mission to act on that decision.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Wacky Part</span><br /><br />Speaking of money not dictating the impact of art, I've come to one more unusual conclusion in all of my scheming. <span style="font-weight:bold;">I no longer want to sell my music like a commodity. </span> Music is an activity and an experience; it is not a product, and thus, it's impossible to quantify its value. From here on out, my method of selling my music will reflect that. I am hereby transitioning my music sales from the traditional model to the pay-what-you-want model.<br /><br />Many of you have seen the "Quidplayer" on my website, which allows you to download my music for any price you want. A few months ago, some friends (<a href="http://www.markerelli.com">Mark Erelli</a> and <a href="http://www.redmolly.com/">Red Molly</a>) inspired me to try this approach with my physical CD at live shows. I have done so, and it's gone remarkably well. <br /><br />This model is really inspiring to me, and here's the best way I can explain it: Songwriting and performing is not just my job. It's my life, my passion, and the work I was born to do. If I am being honest with myself, it doesn't matter to me how much money I make doing it. If I was literally starving, I might get a job, but I will never stop making music. My music is a gift to me from somewhere else, and I give it as a gift to anyone who is moved by it. <br /><br />All of that to say this: whether you pay $5 or $500 for my CD is none of my concern. That is your decision, and whatever choice you make, I want you to have it. Music is made to be shared. A song is not worth $.99 any more than it's worth $99; it is either completely worthless (if it doesn't move you), or infinitely valuable (if it does). Who am I to decide what you should pay for it?<br /><br />Therefore, I will be releasing 'Idiot Heart' under the pay-what-you-want model. The digital album will be made available on Quidplayer, and the hard copies will be made available at live shows and through my website in a way that allows you to set your own price. Additionally, I will be asking you to share it with anyone who might be moved by it. The more people hear it, the better it is serving its purpose.<br /><br />All of the above applies to my three previous releases, as well. Go forth and burn them! If you feel so moved, send me some money via Quidplayer, or better yet, buy some tickets and come to a show.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />The Take-Home</span><br /><br />The shortest possible version of all this is as follows: I have twelve new songs, and a really exciting team of musicians to help me execute them. I am as committed to these songs as I could possibly be. I am putting my money where my mouth is (and any other money I come across for the next four months), and doing <span style="font-style:italic;">everything</span> within my power to make a great record, and to help it reach a larger audience. <br /><br />Part of what's within my power is this: I am giving it, as a gift, to anyone who wants it. If my audience feels so moved, they are free to return the favor by throwing some money my way. <br /><br />In case you want to contribute to this project, the "ChipIn" widget below will be up on my various and sundry websites until the project is complete (October). Any time you feel moved, toss some cash in the proverbial bucket. Rest assured knowing that it will go directly towards making and promoting my next record, with the help of a way-more-experienced-than-me recording & promotion team.<br /><br />Thank you for giving me the means to spend my every waking hour thinking, dreaming, obsessing, scheming, and feeling about music. I couldn't be more blessed.<br /><center><br /><object width="220" height="220"><param name="movie" value="http://widget.chipin.com/widget/id/cf5c547c8ae62ba9"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><param name="event_title" value="Idiot%20Heart%20Album%20"></param><param name="event_desc" value="These%20funds%20will%20go%20towards%20the%20recording%20and%20release%20of%20Carsie%20Blanton%27s%20next%20album%2C%20Idiot%20Heart.%20Recording%20will%20take%20place%20in%20July%202011%20for%20release%20in%20October%202011."></param><param name="color_scheme" value="red"></param><embed src="http://widget.chipin.com/widget/id/cf5c547c8ae62ba9" flashVars="event_title=Idiot%20Heart%20Album%20&event_desc=These%20funds%20will%20go%20towards%20the%20recording%20and%20release%20of%20Carsie%20Blanton%27s%20next%20album%2C%20Idiot%20Heart.%20Recording%20will%20take%20place%20in%20July%202011%20for%20release%20in%20October%202011.&color_scheme=red" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowScriptAccess="always" wmode="transparent" width="220" height="220"></embed></object></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2681156581281105989.post-51601328186160122142011-05-13T16:18:00.003-04:002011-05-13T16:33:02.242-04:00the lazy mississippi, a hurryin to springI just spent an afternoon on the levee in the Holy Cross neighborhood of New Orleans, watching the brown Mississippi lap the tops of willow trees, which grow on what were sandy banks just last week, and are now the bottom of a river. I was with my good friend Cassidy, who skipped rocks and told me about string theory and the names of clouds. I saw Canadian Geese zooming along the surface at unprecedented speeds, a heron gliding for a length of time that defied physics, and a rickety-looking steamboat called the Creole Queen. I left feeling absolutely elated.<br /><br />The magic of the city of New Orleans is that death sits quietly along it, just beyond the levee, like a stone in your back pocket. The only thing to do about it is to live, deeply and viscerally and excruciatingly. Any time something less important tries to grab your attention, the river rises and reminds you: life is here and fleeting, it's made of dirty music and tugging sorrow and wet, honeysuckle-scented breezes, and if you don't catch it exactly NOW, it is likely to be too late.<br /><br /><center> <object height="28" width="335"><param value="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio_embed?data=YTo2OntzOjU6ImFwaUlkIjtzOjE6IjQiO3M6NjoiZmlsZUlkIjtzOjg6IjE0ODI3OTY4IjtzOjQ6ImNvZGUiO3M6MTI6IjE0ODI3OTY4LTNhNSI7czo2OiJ1c2VySWQiO3M6NzoiMTM4NzMyNyI7czoxMjoiZXh0ZXJuYWxDYWxsIjtpOjE7czo0OiJ0aW1lIjtpOjEzMDUzMTgxNDY7fQ==&autoplay=default" name="movie"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed wmode="transparent" height="28" width="335" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" src="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio_embed?data=YTo2OntzOjU6ImFwaUlkIjtzOjE6IjQiO3M6NjoiZmlsZUlkIjtzOjg6IjE0ODI3OTY4IjtzOjQ6ImNvZGUiO3M6MTI6IjE0ODI3OTY4LTNhNSI7czo2OiJ1c2VySWQiO3M6NzoiMTM4NzMyNyI7czoxMjoiZXh0ZXJuYWxDYWxsIjtpOjE7czo0OiJ0aW1lIjtpOjEzMDUzMTgxNDY7fQ==&autoplay=default"></embed></object></center>Carsie Blantonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16318678483832843479noreply@blogger.com1