Day two got off to a bit of a bleary start after guitar tracking (and a bit -- well, if we're being honest, a lot -- of Mariokart) kept the crew working into the wee-hours the night before.
Having received a text from MJ letting me know that things were getting going a little later than expected, Elizabeth and I decided to grab this opportunity and try for a little sight-seeing. Knowing a holistic look at San Diego was going to be impossible, we decided to focus our efforts on La Jolla, an area we knew little about but that had been highly recommended for us to "check out". And so began the morning ritual of coffee, brisk park walk to breathe in the fresh Pacific air, sunshine to help combat jetlag, and requisite lunch of "even-more-authentic-than-Mexico" Mexican food.
Having received a text from MJ letting me know that things were getting going a little later than expected, Elizabeth and I decided to grab this opportunity and try for a little sight-seeing. Knowing a holistic look at San Diego was going to be impossible, we decided to focus our efforts on La Jolla, an area we knew little about but that had been highly recommended for us to "check out". And so began the morning ritual of coffee, brisk park walk to breathe in the fresh Pacific air, sunshine to help combat jetlag, and requisite lunch of "even-more-authentic-than-Mexico" Mexican food.
As an aside, only now do I understand why they are called refried beans. Over here, they actually fry them... again! It's incredible. They sizzle. On the plate. I'm not kidding. Incredible. I said that already. It bears repeating. Also, the chips here have left me spoiled for life. There's a bite and crunch to them that bears little to no resemblance to anything I've had out of a bag, or else as compared to even the more earnest of Mexican restaurants I've been to on my home coast, though with this new idea of what I am looking for, I will now search anew. But I digress. We got a text from MJ just short of 1pm, and shuffled south to The JB Cave. Avengers Assemble!
Things opened with drum tracking of my track, Seasons Come and Go. Not having had the benefit of MJ's west coast experience (granted Palo Alto, but I've heard it still counts), I immediately adopted what I saw as a helpful posture, finely honed from my teenage years spent in British boarding school and often accepted quite comfortably in the Northeast, of running around trying to organize as many things as possible in as little time as possible. Ever the industrialist. This elicited some rather odd looks from Jesse and crew, though they persevered with the kind of patient bemusement typically reserved for anthropologists towards the tribes they study and vice versa, until finally I realized that even Copper, Jesse's beagle, was giving me the beady once-over, stopped what I was doing, and asked:
"What can I do?"
Jesse, without batting an eyelid, replied, quite plainly: "Vibe, man. Just vibe."
I blink, then say the first thing that came into my mind.
"But... I'm from New England."
Things opened with drum tracking of my track, Seasons Come and Go. Not having had the benefit of MJ's west coast experience (granted Palo Alto, but I've heard it still counts), I immediately adopted what I saw as a helpful posture, finely honed from my teenage years spent in British boarding school and often accepted quite comfortably in the Northeast, of running around trying to organize as many things as possible in as little time as possible. Ever the industrialist. This elicited some rather odd looks from Jesse and crew, though they persevered with the kind of patient bemusement typically reserved for anthropologists towards the tribes they study and vice versa, until finally I realized that even Copper, Jesse's beagle, was giving me the beady once-over, stopped what I was doing, and asked:
"What can I do?"
Jesse, without batting an eyelid, replied, quite plainly: "Vibe, man. Just vibe."
I blink, then say the first thing that came into my mind.
"But... I'm from New England."
There was a collective chuckle, and I realized this might be the ideal time for me to go for that post-lunch walk I had promised myself, take a little scenic video footage (some of which can be seen here at MJ Kuok's youtube channel), and maybe do some light reading or else calisthenics to keep me occupied and out of trouble.
It was an incredibly productive day of non-stop exploration and trial-and-error. We experimented with a number of different rhythms, from absolute straight 8ths to all manner of syncopations, with Noah at conn, Jesse directing, and the rest of us adding our two cents when it seemed relevant and helpful to do so without interrupting the flow. We eventually found great synergy with two-and-a-half moving parts for the rhythm section: a simple, rock-ballad feel in the verse; which switched to an off-the-backbeat clave idea in the prechorus (which I'm finding I have something of an odd proclivity towards... note to self: ok to love it but try not to overuse). The chorus came back with a similar idea as the verse, but harder and more driving.
It was an incredibly productive day of non-stop exploration and trial-and-error. We experimented with a number of different rhythms, from absolute straight 8ths to all manner of syncopations, with Noah at conn, Jesse directing, and the rest of us adding our two cents when it seemed relevant and helpful to do so without interrupting the flow. We eventually found great synergy with two-and-a-half moving parts for the rhythm section: a simple, rock-ballad feel in the verse; which switched to an off-the-backbeat clave idea in the prechorus (which I'm finding I have something of an odd proclivity towards... note to self: ok to love it but try not to overuse). The chorus came back with a similar idea as the verse, but harder and more driving.
It was about 9pm before we realized we were bushwhacked and starving, but there was still quite a to-do list to get through, not to mention the fact that our collective flow was really starting to bloom. Happy at last to be given an opportunity for the full expression of my logistical prowess, I took orders and headed out with Elizabeth to In-and-Out burger, to pick up some old-school battery recharger goodness, "protein" style, as it were, if that's what floats your boat. However, upon returning I discovered that the best medicine for a weary creative mind, it seems, may not be food so much as Mariokart. Eight rounds of blistering high-speed, left-brain-vacating procrastination... or so you might think. That evening was the most productive night of the entire session; we not only only shot through the entire to-do list but pushed on to put ourselves permanently ahead of schedule. See? Who says video games decrease productivity? Ne'er again I, good Sir, ne'er again I...
Travel safe and talk soon.
-AF
And, coming soon, my new website: www.wenewenglandersvibelikethebestofthem.com
Travel safe and talk soon.
-AF
And, coming soon, my new website: www.wenewenglandersvibelikethebestofthem.com
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