Arts vs. Ministry: Part 10 - Baby Blue Prints

So, it’s probably not news to many who know me personally, but Catherine and I are now expecting our second child. While it did come to us as a surprise last Monday, part of me said “it figures”. Another child was in our own plans for the future, but not this soon. At a point where it felt Catherine and I were making some progress on where our lives may have been taking us next, God throws us a curve ball.

He does that.

We to realize it’s just another part of the journey; another thing God is preparing us with. Another responsibility he’s blessing us with. He does that.

Of course, this is where the old adage “all in God’s timing” comes in. I’m semi-grateful for that because I'm always keen to understood His timing. I always thought that the whole desires of our hearts verse had a sense of immediacy to it. I was wrong. “Trust in Him and He will do this” does not mean God will provide my desires as soon as I find myself in a place of delighting, obeying, and pleasing Him. Rather, as you continue to read Psalm 37, the promise of God fulfilling your desires requires more thought and duty: “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways…” ("37:7a"). I am impatient and sometimes envious of others.

I’m sure a lot of people share these same feelings, but when you see someone with something you like/love and want/need, and begin to long for it, that is envy. If it gets out of hand to where those things become something to replace more important things in your life, it becomes idolatry. For example, I’ve got a number of friends who are in positions or situations I wish I could be in. Either playing music for a living or are in a creative/musical environment that I wish I could be involved in. Sometimes I envy that. For example, a couple of weeks ago, I got asked by an old friend in Calgary to move there so I can be apart of a musical project. It’s with a country artist who’s expected to be the ‘next big thing’. A few months before this, it was suggested by another friend that I be apart of another musical project which would also require a move to Calgary. While that sounds fun and exciting, it’s another thing to get up and move my family across the country to an enormous city where the cost of living is 4x as much as it is here in Moncton. Even without these opportunities for me, Calgary seemed very intriguing to Catherine and I. Her sisters both live there, we have many close friends there from our University days, there’s more opportunity for Catherine in her field of work (at twice the salary), and we just love the city. I won’t even mention it’s the home of my favorite sports team. But is this what God wants us to do and where He wants us to go? I wish it were as easy to say “yes, we’ll move to Calgary and all our dreams will comes true”. But here’s where our struggle lies… Is God slowly and subtly showing us a new plan for our lives by tickling our fancies or are our own ambitions and desires overshadowing another plan He has for us? After all, God wants to give us the desires of our hearts… right?

Sometimes, it’s hard to see the things that you desire and long for coming to fruition in the lives of others. But, it’s no secret God has different plans for each of our lives. God knows what is best for our own lives and gives us blessing upon what we’re capable of handling. We are told to "guard well" the things God has entrusted us with. Blessing just doesn’t stop with what’s been given to us. We are also supposed to use those blessings to keep giving glory, honor, and praise to Him. I’ve always maintained that wherever He leads, I will be quick to follow. Whatever cards I’m dealt, I’ll play. Whatever I’m given, I’ll be happy with. It's hard sometimes, but I try.

While the prospect of another new human in the house and both exciting and terrifying, I cannot let myself believe it changes God’s plan for our lives. Rather, it’s another way that God shows us His good and perfect will for our lives. Another child further expands our usefulness for sharing God’s love and faithfulness. It doesn’t change God’s plan for us; it just alters our own view of what that plan is for us. I still believe the things we long for will come to fruition, but not in our timing, not in our desired moment, nor in our own blue-print.

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I must add, now that I've read over this, that I am not ungrateful or dissapointed with the arrival of a new baby no matter how scary and trying it will be. While I will not argue that being a parent is often frustrating and exhausting, watching Noah from day 1 to day 511 has been an absolute, pure joy and there's no explanation to how much happiness he brings to our lives on a daily basis. I can honestly say I look forward to see that happen in another child we've created and seeing God's process work in our ever-expanding family.

Pedalboard Renovation

Size matters, right? That's what they've always said but I don't buy it. Although, judging from the size of the pedalboards I've had over the past 8 years or so, you could certainly deduct that I believe it to be true. Ever since I started playing guitar about 12 years ago (geesh... I'm getting old) I've been fascinated with gadgets and stomp-boxes of all kinds for making unique, pure, and ambient guitar sounds; not to mention the guitarists constant search for the tone. I've had some gems and some lumps of coal over the years, yet I find I'm really finding my favorite sounds in some of the pedals I'm now using. I recently got a bonus from work and my wife gave me permission to use some of it to replace and upgrade some of my current pedals:

1) Digitech Whammy 4 - this pedal is, of course, most known for its use by players like Tom Morello and Joe Satriani. On its most useful setting, you play a note (or more, if you're brave) and kick the treadle forward to ascend the note one (or two) octaves up. Although it doesn't find much use when I'm playing lead in worship, it can create some unique chorus sounds, pitch-changes, harmony bends, and creative lead sounds. I recently sold my old, squeaky, wobbly, input-frtizy whammy and bought a brand new one. It's shiny and red.

2) Ibanez Ts9 w/ 808 Mod - The onyl pedals that have constantly been chaning on my board are drive pedals. I've missed my modded Ibanez TS9 (a staple in light-overdrives), so I decided to trade an old-school version of the Fulltone Fulldrive II for a modded TS9 to a guy here in town. While my Mosfet Fulltdrive has a great medium-gain rhythm sound with gain/mid-boost on the 2nd channel, I wanted a drive that'd do a slightly overdriven sound/clean boost and a modded TS9 is one of the best in the business (imo). Welcome home Tube Screamer.

3) Catalinbread Ottava Magus - this tiny little pedal is pretty fraggin' sweet. It's tiny, but has got some big volume capabilities. It's a copy of the "octave-up" fuzz that Hendrix, Satriani, and Robin Trower get a lot of use out of. It's always been one of my favorite tones and this one soudns especially good before another overdrive pedal. It gives me that octave tone without beeing too "fuzzy" and tgives a great lead boost as well. And, since the pedal is so tiny, it fits well ib my cramped custom pedalboard.

4) Electro-Harmonix MicroPOG - there was a guy who was selling his EHX POG locally for a great price and I coudln't pass up the offer. I was absolutely impressed with the POG's capabilites and sounds. Essentially, you can make use of it's 1 or 2 octavess down/1 or 2 octaves up sounds and get unique instument sounds. From a 12-string guitar, a 4 or 12 string bass, and even an oscillating church organ and POG's soudns are endless and it tracks chords amazingly. Unfortuneatly, the POG is a giant pedal and it coudl not fit on my board. So, opting out of selling me equally-sized EHX Memory Man to fit the POG, I decided to sell it (and in turn made profit) and bought a MicroPOG which was similar sounds, but isn't nearly as capable of as many soudns. But, it still emulates a bass guiar, 12-string, and (for what I want it for) a church-organ sound. It replaces my seldom-used MicroVibe and should give me some great chord and tone options.

So, those are my new and upgraded pedals. Here is my current pedal lineup and pic of my board:
Line 6 DL4 -> pretty much every worship guitar players delay staple since you can store 3 delays and have tap-tempo capabilities
Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man -> this has become my staple for getting that .1/8("dotted eight") delay that The Edge makes so popular. Not only that, but I also use it for that pure analog "ambient" sound by turning up the repeat feedback and delay volume down
Fulltone Fulldrive II -> see above
Fulltone Fulldrive II (Mosfet) -> see above
Catalinbread Ottava Magus -> see above
MXR Dyncomp -> probably not my first choice of compressor (I'd love to have Keeley's 4-knob compressor), but I find this far better than most other non-boutique comps I've tried and they're at a great price. I use this particularly when playing with single coils, need a squashed sound, or need some really long sustain
pedalboards.com True Bypass Loop (Tuna Melt, Wah, Whammy) ->
Danelectro Tuna Melt -> I have some subtle tremolo in my amp head, but the Tuna Melt has a great "stutter" tremolo sound which casues for some neat sound. I don' use it often, but it's cheap and small
Digitech WHammy IV -> see above
Crybaby 535 Wah -> everyone has a wah in their setup. Not onyl are they graet for sols, but they give you different rhythm options when they're used as frequency gate(see Dire Straights "Money or Nothing" or Wide Mouth Mason's "Alright, Alright", "Once You Got It", or "Fa Na Na")
EHX MicroPOG -> see above
Boss TU2 -> the tuner everyone uses who don't want to pay for a Peterson Strobostomp

I hope to post some audio clips sooner or later. Here's a pic of my current board.

Art vs. Ministry: Part 9 - The Most Dangerous Prayer

I had a great conversation with an old friend last night. When I was living in Calgary during my last two yeas of university, Justin was one of my best friends and I loved spending every moment with him (except when he was hungry in which he became a very mean and grumpy person). Justin and I have more in common than any other person I’ve ever met and we think so much alike it’s scary. He’s also a musical mentor of mine (see this blog from April) even though he’s 2 or 3 years younger than me. Not only is he the best bass player I’ve ever played with (no offence to Ross, Tim, and the others players I’ve had the pleasure to play with), but he’s got a great head for music and simply just loves to play. He’s got more talent in his two, small Asian hands than I do in my whole body. It’s really quite remarkable. Above that, his passion to use his talents and abilities to glorify God is just as remarkable.

After playing catch-up for a while, we started to talk about music and where he was in his life. He’s practically playing full-time as a session guy for numerous musicians in Alberta and though he isn’t rolling in the dough, God is blessing him with the experience, relationships, and provision he needs to move on in his journey. To be honest, I was a little bit envious. As we talked, the conversation moved to where I am in my musical & spiritual journey and he proceeded to challenge me with a tough question: “are you waiting to hear from God what His will is for your life is or are you willing to step out in faith and hope it is His call”.

At first, I stammered at the question and got him to unpack it for me.

“Are you waiting to hear from God what His will is for your life is?”
“Yes”

“Are you at the place where you’re willing to step out in faith?”
“Sure.”

“Even if it meant not knowing where you are going or having no security?”
‘Well…”

I had a tough time with that part. I turn 26 in a few weeks. Even though I still consider myself young, I do have a wife of four years and a 16-month-old child whom I need to care for and put above my own wants and desires. I am in no way saying Cat and Noah are keeping me from any dreams or desires I have. That is certainly not the case. They are along for the ride with me and we follow God’s calling no matter where, when, or why we go. Marriage implies the two become one concept and I don’t believe God calls one and not the other; God’s will is all inclusive and is perfect, right, and good.

I explained to Justin that Catherine and I are in limbo right now. We’re not sure what God wants for us in our lives right now.
Are we content with where we are? I suppose we are, but we know there’s more for us.
Are we willing to drop everything in order to follow where He leads us? Most likely.
Do we believe that God would put us in a situation where we are not happy? No.
Do I believe God would put us in a place where we are not using our gifts, abilities, and relationships to serve Him? No. Luckily he doesn’t work that way.
The trouble is, though, that Christians today have difficulty living the “stepping out in faith” part. Sure, we can say we’re willing to follow Him wherever He leads, but sometimes He asks us to do things we just don’t want to or don’t believe He’d ask us to do. Basically, sometimes God’s will is easier said than done.

This past Sunday, my father-in-law preached a fantastic sermon on “praying the most dangerous prayer”. He talked about praying the phrase “use me, Lord”. That’s dangerous stuff because we don’t know what that entails.

Me: “Use me, Lord”
God: “Ok, then I want your identity, your influence, and your income”
Me: “Mmmm… all of those things?”
God: “Yup”
Me: “You sure?”
God: “Yes”
Me: “How about just…”
God: “All of them”

God wants our identity. He wants who we are. He wants what we stand for. He wants to change us to become more like His son. He wants us to reflect His love.
God wants our influence. He wants to use us and show others what He’s done for us, through us. He wants our words, music, love, and actions to affect others.
God wants our income. No only does God want to be control of our money but he wants us to use our possessions and tools to His glory and purpose.

These are tough things to give up, but following God’s will truly requires a step of faith. A walk into the unknown. A moment where you push all your chips in hoping your hand is better than his. God has pulled Catherine and I out of the miry clay before. He has provided for us when provision was scarce. He has blessed us many times before. I don’t believe these things ever stop but it’s a matter of believing He will keep doing it if you’re willing to lay it all down for Him. It’s a dangerous prayer and I am ready to pray it. I am ready to follow the next step in His will for our lives. Where to, God?

Art vs. Ministry: Part 8 (a turning point?)

It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog… or at least a blog that actually means something to the whole point of this blogsite. While I have thrown in a few words here or there or a video just to let anyone (who might read this) know I’m still alive, I’ve also been very reflective lately and have been really looking into my “Arts vs. Ministry” debate.
Without getting into too many details (since I don’t know all of them myself), I’ll say that I’ve recently been offered an opportunity that has struck interest in me. The opportunity that presents itself requires not only some serious soul-searching but probably includes some changes that’d affect my families current financial, social, and geographic situations. While I can’t say if those would be good or bad things (ignorance is bliss?), they are changes that test your faith and devotion to seeking out God’s will. And, that’s what this whole thing is about: finding and knowing God’s will. Let me flesh my thoughts out for you and fill you in on where I’m coming from.

Over the past few weeks and months, many of my friends have been given some very important and exciting opportunities. Some are venturing into new ministry positions, some are stepping out in faith and making big changes to follow their God-given dreams, some are moving across the country to follow God’s will even though they’re not sure why He’s called them there, and some have had God reveal totally new visions of ministry and impact on their lives. First, let me say that this excites me. Each one of these situations excites me immensely and I’m so happy to see their dependence on Him for finding God’s truth in their lives. Secondly, however, it depresses me. Not only because I hate to see close friends move away or expand physical distance between us, but more so because it seems that I am running to stand still. People are moving on and I am not. I'm still selling bearings and other industrial goods while people are cautiously following His way for them. This frustrates me, yet it has nothing to do with those people at all. Am I not seeking God’s will the right way? Am I not God-ly enough? Am I not reading His Word enough? Do I not pray enough? Am I not willing to step out in faith? Do I not trust my own instincts? Am I ignoring the Spirit’s guidance? I can’t convincingly answer any those questions for myself. I do not believe there is one singular, concrete way for one to find God’s will for their own life. I do, however, believe it is always attained by reading His word, fervently praying, and being mindful of God using certain people and situations to direct that way. It just happens to come differently for each person at different times. I believe I had one of those “situations” the other day in the form of a comment my wife made…

Though this conversation is paraphrased, Catherine and I were talking about God’s will for our lives and she asked me, for her own clarification, what “Jamie” wanted; what I desired. My answer was a conservative, “to either be playing in a band or have a position as a worship pastor”. That wasn’t good enough for her. She continued, “What do YOU want?”
I began to understand what she was getting at. “I want to be playing music. I want to be part of a creative group of musicians who are using their abilities to glorify God.” Catherine gave me a whole new set of questions to think about: Am I trying to be worship leader because it’s easier (to get a job or sustainable paycheck)? Am I just trying to please other people (my wife, my family, my church) and before myself? Just because I enjoy leading worship and enjoy being apart of worship ministry, does that mean I’m meant for it? Can my desire to be an artist/successful musician truly contain the aspects of ministry I long to be fruitful in?

This past weekend, I got an opportunity to travel down to Oxford, NS and watch a group of friends put on a concert at the Nazarene May Rally. I got to have some great conversation with some of the guys before & after and got a glimpse of what God is doing in their own band & lives. It was great to hear God is testing their faith and moving them into a direction that is difficult, but also hopeful and exciting. God isn’t promising them riches nor a multi-album contract deal, but rather the assurance they’re following His will and He will bless them from there. That, to me, would be more rewarding than money and records. These guys are stepping out in faith to take their God-given and God-glorifying art to where God wants it to grow and continue. That’s exciting.

So where does this lead me? Well, I’m not exactly sure, but I believe that I’m a little bit closer to where I should be. As I daily try to become closer to God, both in prayer and in the Word, I am encouraged when I apply these questions to some of the promises we find in God’s Word:
John 16:13 - "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for he will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come."
Proverbs 3:6 – “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
Isaiah 30:20, 21 – “Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it."
Luke 11:9-10 - "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."
Psalm 37:23 – “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord..."

I believe the day is near where God will reveal His way to Catherine and I. I believe that while we seek His will, he will bless us with great opportunity where we’re both using our gifts and abilities to give glory to Him. Whether that’s a ministry, a band, or a job at a toothpaste factory, I long for Him to speak into my life, change me, and use me to help change others. As I’ve heard prayed many times, “where He leads, I’ll be quick to follow.”

Please pray for Catherine and I (and Noah and Morris too) as we seek for God’s perfect direction for our lives; whatever, wherever, however… we want to know His purpose for us.

So, how about you? Have you ever caught yourself trying to be someone or do something that God hasn't necessarily planned to to be/do? Have you followed alternative options because you didn't think your desires were God's desires for you?

My Favorite Albums of All Time

I don't think I'm too far off stating that the music industry has become a little bit stale over the past few years. The formula to making a 'successful' album is easily found on most pop records these days and this formulae has really dried up a lot of the truly great song-writers, musicians, and bands. Catchy lyrics, 4-chord progressions, a great melody, and anything not written by the actual performer are probably all goods starting points to writing a hit song. American Idol has re-popularized listener-friendly friendly pop music and the media's glorification of material possessions, sex, and women have even made the most terrible songs into hits because of content their lyrical content alone. And, the means of attaining music these days have become another problem; downloading an album over the net (whether free or not) have taken over CD sales and is causing a massive decrease in album manufacturing. So, to find truly original and undeniably great music you've really gotta search for it. The popularity of "indie" music, "brit-pop", and "the underground sound" have taken over, but most of these albums cannot be attained over the internet.

So, lately, I've been finding myself going back into my catalog of music and reintroducing myself to some of the most impactful albums on my life (both musically, instrumentally, and even spiritually). I'd be comfortable in saying that most musicians can recite some of their favorite albums of all time. I can only assume that some musicians can even remember the time/place they first heard 'that song' or 'that album'. Certainly, for some of these albums listed below, I can remember just those times & places. Whether it was a great solo, a great guitar tone, a catchy lyric, a melody or a moving chorus, the following albums have had everlasting impact on my musical development over the years. Yes, I'm sure there'll be others over to comes, but I believe it's also important to pay homage to those albums that have brought music to where it is today. So, here're my favorite and most inspirational albums of all time. These albums are in no particular order since they're all from different genres, eras, styles, and content. Feel free to comment with your Fave Albums in the comment section: I'd be interested to hear own opinions & styles. Enjoy:

• "Ten" by Pearl Jam (1991)
  
  - while I could have easily put Nirvana's "Nevermind" in place of this record, I chose "Ten" because of it's coolness factor as a guitar player. Stone Gossard and Mike McCready have some amazing guitar tones, riffs, and solo parts. While Nirvana started the grunge movement, this album opened the flood-gates wide. With Eddie Vedder's charismatic vocals, a tight rock element, subtle use of guitar effects, and a purely raw sound, Pearl Jam's "Ten" is one of the most successful and profound debut albums of all time. when I first learned my pentatonic guitar scale, I practiced it over the solo section in "Alive" for hours and hours (no lie). I learned licks from that 2-minute solo section and applied them to my own style that started me on my "lead guitar" journey.
  Must listen: "Alive", "Black", "Even Flow"
  
  
  
• "Any Given Thursday" by John Mayer (2003)
  
  I debated whether to include this album or not for two reasons: it’s a live album and it’s not my favorite John Mayer album. But, when I was living in Calgary I probably watched this DVD two or three times a week. Mayer was probably one of the first singer/song-writers I really got into. At a time when I was only listening to loud, heavy music I heard an acoustic version of “Neon” and was blown away. I checked him out and eventually got this live album & DVD. It really took me out of my shell and immersed me into a different kind of music. Even my guitar playing changed since, at that point, every solo I could play was shred. I stole a lot of licks, progressions, and structure from John’s playing and was introduced to a very important part of lead-guitar playing. “feel” and “emotion” (listen to “Lenny/Man on the Side” and “Covered in Rain”). You don’t get much feel when you’re shedding through a Metallica song, but John’s definitely got some SRV & Slow-Hand touch here. I even had a new-found respect for song-writing and acoustic playing (see “Neon” and “Message in a Bottle”).
  Must listen: "Covered in Rain", "Lenny/Man on the Side", "Love Song for No One"
  
  
• "The Alchemy Index: Volumes I, II, III, IV"" by Thrice (2007/2008)
  
  - this one is another difficult album to include because it's a 4-CD, 2-Volume concept manifesto. But, the way it’s made, produced, and conceptualized makes it one of my favorite volumes of music. “Concept albums” have always been sketchy with me, but this one really worked for me. It really showed the breadth and depth of Thrice’s musicality. Each volume is an interpretation of an element of the alchemist’s index; Fire, Water, Air, and Earth. Fire is a raw, loud, heavy. Water has lots of flow and groove to it, with some digital aspects. Air is rock, but melodic and vibrant. Earth is very down-to-earth, honest, and mostly acoustic. This manifesto covers many genres, styles, and tones of music and I invite any music lover to immerse themselves in this collection. It’s absolutely amazing.
  Must listen: "The Arsonist" (Fire), "Digital Sea" (Water), "Daedalus" (Air), "Come All You Weary" (Earth)
  
  
• "OK Computer" by Radiohead (1997)
  
  - As I stated at the beginning of this blog, music has become stale and formulaic. Every now and then, though, an album comes out that totally redefines that era’s music and reinterprets what music is to the artist. Radiohead’s OK Computer did just that in 1997. Although I enjoyed many songs from that record back then (I remember learning the tab of Paranoid Android from Guitar World way back then), it wasn’t until a few years ago that I was re-introduced to this album. It had as much impact on me 2 or 3 years ago as it did to the music industry back in 1997. Odd chord progressions, off-time beats, cryptic sounds, Thom Yorke’s muttering, eclectic guitar sounds, and electronic ambiance makes this album a staple for the music-lovers collection.
  Must listen: "Paranoid Android", "Airbag", "Exit Music (for a Film)"
  
  
• "A Collision" by David Crowder Band (2005)
  
  - as I mentioned in a previous post, the David Crowder Band is probably my favorite “Christian” band; furthermore, he may be one of my 3 favorite worship song-writers and the band has an immense amount of musical talent and creativity. Before this record, I wasn’t crazy over them. But, my friend Sunny persisted and I really dug this album. The use of rhythmic guitar textures, loops, and yet simple 4-chord progression worship songs really got me hooked. The simplicity of song-writing and worship meets the intricacies of rhythms, sounds, and digital syncopation. I was curious as to how DCB would relate this to a live situation and I was even more blow away when I saw them in November of 2007 in New York City. Their live sound was pristine and was almost identical to their studio records.
  Must listen: "Here is Our King", "Come and Listen", "Do Not Move"
  
  
• "Achtung Baby!" by U2 (1991)
  
  - U2 make great albums. Everyone knows that. But to pick a favorite from their illustrious 30+ year career and 12-album collection is quite the task. I pick Achtung Baby because it, like OK Computer, set a new bar for music at its particular moment in time. Achtung Baby mixed U2's unique rock sound with a dance sound and yet still stuck to their formulaic guns to make pop hits that garnered many #1 hits (One, Mysterious Ways, Even Better than the Real Thing). The Edge experimented with unheard of guitar sounds and made them work which really caught my ear. The envelope-filtered "Mysterious Ways" riff, 12/8 syncopated tremolo of "Acrobat", whammy-driven opener of "Even Better then the Real Thing", and industrial-thick distortion of "The Fly" make Auctung Baby the bar for guitar soundscapes and industry-changing albums.
  Must listen: "Mysterious Ways", "The Fly", "Until the End of the World"
  
  
• "Long Line of Leavers" by Caedmon's Call (2000)
  
  - the first time I heard this album, I was driving to Toronto to go see a John Mayer concert with friends, Sunny & Marc. Between the three of us, our 17-hour drive consisted of many different albums. Marc happened to pop this one in and although it wasn't my favorite "styles" of music at the time, I had never heard such an emphasis on great melody and relevant, honest lyrics before. I bought this album shortly after and really dove into it. Lyrical depth and unforgettable melody made this my favorite folk-rock/sing-songwriter albums off all time. This also lead me to be a big fan of controversial Christina song-writer, Derek Webb (check out his album, "The Ringing Bell". Fantastic).
  Must liten: "Dance", "Love Along", "Prepare Ye the Way"
  
  
• "mutemath (self-titled)" by MuteMath (2006)
  
  - as millennium rolled on, pop-music was becoming more and more a carbon copy of itself and was hard to find original and musically enriched artists... that is unless you were looking under the covers (or "the underground" as the kids call it). Using MySpace as a stepping stone, MuteMath came from out of nowhere and blessed everyone with a new and fresh sound. Mixing rock, psychedelic, neo-pop, and dance, MuteMath was the new sound everyone was waiting to hear. After their 5-song EP garnered some attention and their extravagant & energetic live performances garnered even more attention. When their self-titled album came out (produced by famous produce, Tedd T), MuteMath used MySpace as their only means of marketing and became an overnight (and underground) success. There hasn't been a keyboard/piano as a lead-instrument since Toto, and lead singer Paul Meany plays it to a tee. The ultra-talented band could make unbelievable music using spoons, a chair, dental floss, and a toilet. Using loops, pads, mega-tight drum & bass grooves, guitar-created soundscapes, a delayed-out Rhodes, and powerful vocals (all melodically, vocally, and lyrically) this album takes the listener on a cinematic journey over a musical one.
  Must listen: "Chaos", "Break the Same", "Noticed"
  
  
• "Re-Load" by Metallica (1997)
  
  - when 1996's "Load" came out, Metallica got into a bunch of heat from their fans for "selling out" because the album wasn't as "metal" as 1990's hugely successful "Black Album". Oh, and because they cut their long hair. But, Load had a few gems and the purest of fans embraced the new sound. Originally, the album was supposed to be a 2-CD collection, but the label pressed them into releasing it as one album and re-releasing the "rest" of the songs as a B-Sides item. Evidently, "Load" didn't fair so well so on the charts or with most fans, so they decided to try releasing the B-Sides as "ReLoad". I'm not one to say whether it was more or less successful than Load, but to me, it is one of my favorite guitar albums. Some of the riffs, though simple, are memorable and I spent hours with the tab book learning every song in and out.
  "The Memory Remain", "Fixxer", "Prince Charming"



• "Jesus Freak" by dc Talk(1997)
  
  - I'm pretty sure this was the first CD I ever bought. Sure, the song 'Jesus Freak' was the Christian song of its day, but this album has a few gems that were hidden in the shadows of the hugely successful title song; "Mind's Eye", "So Help Me God", and "Like It, Love It, Need It" were all great rocks songs with some very powerful riffage. Then, there are some "softer" tunes like "What if I Stumble?" and "In the Light" that really caught the listener's ear and, more importantly, heart. Strong lyrics, vocals, and plethora of styles really makes this an inspirational album, both spiritually and musically.
  Must listen: "Mind's Eye", "So Help Me God", "What Have We Become"
  
  
• "In Loving Memory" by Big Wreck (1997)
  
  - Ian Thornley is one of the most underrated guitar players ever. His riffs are awesome, his chops undeniable, and tones are my favorite of any guitar player. Oh, and he's the front man and does it all while singing fantastic & complicated melodies. His band were mega-tight and ultra-talented as well, but Ian obviously stole the show. This was especially evident after Big Wreck (unfortunately) broke up in 2002. Ian, however, went on to create his own solo rock-band, Thornley, in 2004 (I also recommend the album "Come Again" by Thonrley). Ian Thornley has a way of making his guitar sing louder than his piercing tenor & falsetto voice. He has some of the most amazing guitar tones and is a master at making guitar effects work )see #1 hit "The Oaf", "That Song", and "Blown Wide Open"). There's also some great slide-guitar tidbits on songs like "Look What I found" and the solo on "Under the Lighthouse"). You can probably find this CD for $3 on your local pawn-shop shelf. I recommend you start looking.
  Must listen: "The Oaf (My Luck is Wasted)", "Under the Lighthouse", "Blown Wide Open"
  
  
• "Scenery & Fish" by I Mother Earth (1996)
  
  - I neglected to put this album in since it's closely related to the Big Wreck album (after all, Canadian Rock of the mid-90's sounded too similar). But, then I played this album again and noticed a lot of sounds & grooves that weren't found in the Big Wreck, Our Lady Peace, and Finger 11 sounds of its day. Rather, Scenery & Fish is very rhythmically driven with Stuart Copeland-like drums, Tower of Power-percussion, lightning fast bass grooves, and Jagori's high-gain Hendrix riffs. For a a trio of musicians, they really beef up the sound and have a rock sound unlike any other band with their mix of R&B, Funk, and ethnic styles of music; all with a pop-sensitive attitude of melody and rock.
  Must listen: "Pisser", "Used to Be Alright", "One More Astronaut"
  

Other honorable mentions:

• "Albertine" by Brooke Fraser"
  
• "Not to Us" by Chris Tomlin
  
• "Morning View" by Incubus
  
• "Twenty Something" by Jamie Cullum
  
• "With Arrows, with Poise" by the Myriad
  
• "About a Burning Fire" by Blindside
  
• "Eat, Sleep, Repeat" by Copeland
  
• "Black Holes & Revelations" by Muse
  
• "Access:d" by Delirious
  
• "Falling into Infinity" by Dream Theater
  

Resolutions or Revelations?

It's been a week or so since I've last blogged, and my last blog was a poor excuse of a blog. So, I just wanted to comment on "New Years Resolutions".

I don't really have any. I can't say I've ever really had any New Years resolutions before. At least not any that worked out well. But, being someone who is conscious of his own inner and outer being (both physically and spiritually), I realize that there are things that I do need to change or improve on. I'm not sure that they're considered resolutions or not because I don't believe most issues can be "resolved" in a year. Rather, I believe I can "reveal" in my own soul that need improvemnt, changing, and beginnings. So, this year I'm replacing resolution with revelation; I choose to improve myself by not changing who I am. Rather, change who I am by the improvements I make. When we look at our own lives, the things we need to resolve are revealed to us over the course of our journey. So, here're the things that've been revealed to me that I want to accomplish:

Eating:
It's only been the last few years that I've started to notice the spare tire starting to form around my gut. It's more of the bicycle tire at this point, but who's to say it won't move to a motorized vehicle tire at some point soon? So, if anything, I'm probably going to watch how much late-night snacks and in-between-meals munchies I'm consuming. I've always had great metabolism, but since I got married (and probably become less active the past few years), I find my sugary desires catch up to me and show a bit more. I am in no way saying I'm fat or need a diet, but I can certainly become more aware and disciplined in my eating habits. My wife is always serving me great (and healthier) foods so I certainly can't blame her. It's my own cupboard-scouring habits that get me into trouble.

Less TV/More Reading:
I love TV. And I especially like watching movies/DVDs. There're only a few shows on TV that I deliberately watch: House, Heroes, & 24 on Monday with Survivor and The Office on Thursdays. There're also a few shows that I like to catch now and then like American Idol (usually only the audition episodes), 30 Rock, and Hell's Kitchen/Kitchen Nightmares. And, of course, I'll watch every Calgary Flames game I can when they happen to be on TV (if not, I'll try and catch a live stream on the net). So, that only takes up a few of my TV-watching hours in the course of a week.
I hate reading. However, I love knowledge, spirituality, philosophy, and debate. I've got a stack of about 4 or 5 books that I deeply want to read. Moreover, I don't just want to read them, I want to enjoy them. With the TV being on almost all the time, with being a father, and with the the weekly routine filling in the rest of the blanks, I find I don't really have time for reading as much as I would like. Catherine and I have mentioned canceling our TV service on several occasions, but we've never followed through. I imagine that is only because we really don't want to miss the shows we faithfully love to follow (see above). While I'm sure I could download those episodes, we then wouldn't have the time to catch up on them. And with the digital-cable era taking over, there will soon be no such thing as "basic" cable or the 3 fuzzy channels that any TV might receive. A conundrum, for sure.
So, this year, I hope to watch less TV and read more books.

Bible/T.A.W.G.:
As a Christian, I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of what God's Word has for me. Then again, I doubt anyone really has, but even just the simple stuff is waiting there for me to retain. My Bible (wherever it lies in my house) has virtually been unopened this past year, so I intend to start to wear the binding a bit more. Along with this, my Time Alone With God has also suffered. Although I have taken some steps over the past few months to change that, improvement is still needed. Even if it takes getting up a 1/2 hour earlier (thx, Tim) then I should do so if it is going to refresh my soul. I'm sure the payoff is killer (figuratively speaking).

Patience:
I think I've actually become a more patient person since getting married. My wife brings out the best in me, I believe. Probably because I'm more patient than her and it makes me feel better about my own... heh. But, no, she does bring the best in me and I love her for it. Even when my son is crying in my ear, or being stubborn as a mule, I need to learn patience and not get frustrated so easily. Babies are learning too. Also, cooped up dogs need something to keep them entertained. So when Morris has been alone for a few hours and feels the urge to chew my Dion Phaneuf statuette or eat the whole bag of caramels my mom bought for me, I need to be more patient with him. I also need to have patience in finding God's will for my life. God is enver late, God is never early, God is always on time. That needs to be instilled in my life. Then again, I can only discover that through reading His Word more and said T.A.W.G.

Play More Guitar:
I'm serious. If there's one thing I could do more of in my spare time, it'd be playing guitar. If it's something I want to do as a living, I better get better at it. My practice time is next-to-none these days. When I get home, I veg for a few minutes, eat supper, and help my wife exhaust the baby and put him to bed. Once that's done, I can't turn my guitar amp on in fear that it'll keep/wake the baby up. I had the chance to play a few gigs with Matt Brouwer over the holidays and while they all seemed to go very well, I realized how important it was that I stay sharp on all my chops. On our drive home from Saint John on New Years Eve, Matt had some very encourageing words for me on my playing. While I strive to accept both criticism and compliments equally, I couldn't help but feel my playing was inadequate as he talked about some players and artists he's shared the stage with. I also think of what opportunities could be held for me if I was to be better at my craft.
On the flip side of this, I do believe that I'm learning more about music in general. Theory, different styles, music technology, and playing different kinds of instruments are all aspects of playing music I've been able to embrace. I certainly can't claim any deep comprehension any of those aspects, but I do believe they've made me grow as a musician in small ways.

---------------------------

Anywho... those're my 2009 "goals". I believe I have a great support system in friends and family that will keep my accountable on those things. So, feel free to be one of those people and send me a msg now and then to see how I'm doing on those accounts.

So, from myself, Catherine, Noah, and Morris, the Cambers family wish you a very (belated) Merry Christmas and Blessed 2009!

Guitar Solo of the Week: "Invincible" by Matt Bellamy of MUSE

I couldn't find a video of just this guitar solo, so you'll find it between 4:30 and 5:01. But, I absolutely love this whole song so the solo really is the icing on the cake.
The solo isn't too difficult or fancy, but I find it really creative and expressive. Using a whammy and some delay, Matt Bellamy uses hammer-ons for the legato parts (with the whammy pedal heel-down) and then taps a single note (the melody) while pushing the Whammy pedal toe-down. Since this is a live version, it's not as clean as the album's solo, but still pretty neat. I highly recommend you check out this album by MUSE called "Black Holes and Revelations". It's a good'n.

Guitar Hero: Worship Leader Edition

I’m sure many of you have seen this concept before, either as a Facebook group or maybe even through email. Most of the ideas expressed in the following are taken directly from the “Worship Hero” Facebook group but, as a worship leader/musician, I thought it’d be appropriate to edit, organize, and repost it for all to see. The truth is both true and funny so take it with a grain of salt. I present to you...


Guitar Hero: Worship Leader Edition

Your Mission:
You are a musician with a call to lead God’s people into worship on a voluntary (or, God permitting, vocational) basis. The first level starts you off leading worship at a small church building your spiritual gifts and efforts up by making your way through many ministries and churches to the ultimate goal of becoming a worship leader at a prestigious mega-church.

Your Purpose:
To become a multi-million dollar worship leader (see "rock-star") while still giving all glory, honor, and praise to God through music.

Rules of (Spiritual) Engagement:

All worship sets must include a minimum of two hymns, one Chris Tomlin song, and one 80’s/90’s worship chorus. In addition, tempo transitions must start out fast, followed by medium-tempo songs, ending with slow tempo songs.

All songs must follow the following map: Verses, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus. Deviation from this order can result in excommunication and mass confusion of instrumentalists.

Some levels will require you to conduct certain stage designs which must incldue particular realistic touches to your environment such as tacky plastic foliage, inspirational banners, or plexi-glass pulpits.

You must maintain your team's dress-code during services. This code excludes skrits above the knee, open-toed shoes, hats of any kind, ripped/torn/faded jeans, and t-shirts. Any choice of "inappropriate" clothing will result in an uprising of old congregationalists and threatening elders.

Every so often you, as the leader, will take it upon yourself to demand an acoustic set which will face great and silent opposition from your keyboard players and drummers who are forced to play percussive instruments. No matter how boring this is, no one is allowed to or will ever complain because we all know that we do not come to church to be entertained. Inproper balance of this level is dangferous as you may experience higher than normal level on the FHLI (False Humility Level Indicator) and you may also lose some youth at the next service.

You, as the worship leader, must conduct the entire congregation. You will not keep tempo however. You must force the band to follow your seizure-like speed changes.

Games Modes:

Practice Mode: as worship leader, you must direct, practice, and rehearse your worship band on a weekly basis. This mode will always be fantastic and include many elements foreign to Sunday mornings (ie: drum fills, shots, accapellas, interludes, worship, and the Holy Spirit) and every song's tempo will be increased by 30bpm with fluctuations in anxiety levels

Service Mode: You must develop a repertoire of worship songs. Instrumentalists are permitted to experiment with solos, but take caution: any excessive soloing will cause an uproar amongst some of the elder. Your transposition and arranging skills must be honed to make sure that every song has no more than four chords (the fewer, the better) and must not deviate from the keys of G, E, or D as they are the easiest for guitar players to play.

Your Band & Instrumentalists:
you must recruit a band on a weekly basis composed entirely of Churched individuals who think they are skilled in their instrument.

Your worship team must have a minimum of:
-at least three guitar players (bass, acoustic, electric)
-at least four singers
-at least one keyboard player
-two percussionists: one must be a drummer while the other must consist of a musician who cannot play any instrument or sing but still wants to be on the worship team; you provide them with a triangle, bongos, djembe, or tambourine.

Guitar players:

electric guitarists must play 94% of what the acoustic player is playing. Any derivation should be dealt with by turning the amp down

guitar amps must be run through a DI Box. Do not mic the amp. Heaven forbid you have good tone

guitar players must not have their amps turned up past 0.5 on the volume knob. Failure to do so will result in dissension from the sound techs and the elderly.

occasionally, one of your guitarists will require a capo. This will result in utter chaos as you will now have two sets of chord sheets which will inevitably be mixed up and none of your band members will know which key to actaully play in

any and all guitar solos must begin with the melody of the song's chorus. Derivation from this will be allowed (but not recommended) after 4 bars

Drummers:

drum kits must be fully engulfed by a plexi-glass wall. No one will know or ever understand the reasoning for this but failure to do so will result in dissension from sound techs and the elderly

drummers must resort to "Hot Rods" and/or plastic sticks because wood sticks make too much noise

even if volume of a song is only going from soft to mind-blowingly loud in half a measure, your drummer requires only one skill: and that is to build

Bass players:

bass players must go direct through a D.I. (direct input) and musn't use amplifiers larger than one 10" speaker. Failure to do so will result in dissension from sound techs and the elderly

you will lose points if your bass player is making any use whatsoever of the subwoofers provided by the church's sound system

bass players will always be the only member of the band with actual talent. To ensure that no one hears them, make sure he is turned down at all times except for simple, one-note intros

Keyboard/Piano/Organ:

every song (fast or slow) must have a keyboard pad as the background. The keyboardist must work hard to make it look like they are contributing. This is usually achieved by dramatic facial expressions, swaying, or yelling in between pre-choruses and choruses

the final slow song must be dominated by an angelic synth sound. This activates the Holy Spirit.

Vocalists:

75% of your vocalists must sing the melody. A maximum of two harmonies are allowed which must be at 50% the volume of the melody

any vocal harmony must be dragged out longer than the melody to allow the congregation to hear them

POINT STRUCTURE:

points are awarded if you or any band member shouts “Jesus!”, “Yes, Lord!”, or other indistinguishable noises between choruses

points are awarded for getting your band-mates to properly execute map and tambre changes using any means necessary including leg-lifts, dirty looks, frantic arm waving, and/or yelling

be sure not to leave more than 4 seconds of awkward silence while transitioning songs, as the Holy Spirit Level Indicator (HSLI) will take a sudden drop. If the HSLI remains in the red for more than 15 seconds, your team will be asked to leave the stage, and you will be told gently that there are other teams who would like to use their gifts for God as well

bonus points are awarded if everyone in your band (including vocalists) shows up on time. However, double MINUS those points because the sound techs are MIA

points will also be lost when you request "just the voices" and your drummer or guitar player keeps playing

points will be lost when the vast majority of the congregation raises their hands and sings only during the chorus while staring blankly at you or the projection screen during the verses

points are lost if you say, "God is good" and no one replies "all the time"

at the end of a set (level), a middle-aged woman who knows your name but doesn't introduce herself will say, "You are SO anointed!" Your FHLI (False Humility Level Indicator) will blink indicating the false humility you're about to use to respond with. 5000 extra points and a free set of in-ears if you can figure out how to respond well

Guitar Solo of the Week: "Little Wing" by Monte Montgomery

This week's guitar-solo is not necessarily a solo, but a song in general.
It's "Little Wing" ; written by the great Jimi Hendrix, perfected (and perhaps bettered) by Stevie Ray Vaughan, and imitated by practically every good guitar player in history. Hendrix had a knack for writing guitar part that not only created chordal structure tot eh song, but included melody in the same arrangement. So, most of the time it sounds like two guitars. Originally written for the electric, Monte Montgomery rocks this out on an old beat-up acoustic. While still sounding like the original, Monte really fancies this version up a bit (maybe a bit too much at times) but throws in a few different flavours (including classical, jazz, and a bit of flamenco).

Beware: this clip is about 10 minutes long. While the whole song seems to be a solo and certainly worth watching, the "payoff" for me comes somewhere between 5:20-6:30. Wowzers

Thx to Sunny for introducing me to Monte Montgomery. Enjoy.

Guitar Solo of the Week: "Answers" solo by Steve Vai

Guitar solos aren't necessarily a lost art, but good, original, creative solos certainly aren't as common either. While I believe in some musical cases, the "solo" has been replaced by cool riffs, great melody, and Macbook-powered/Appleby-driven loops & sequencing, it's so refreshing to hear a creative/original solo every now and then. Thus, every week I'm going to post a "guitar solo of the week" video. The first solo I'm going to post is not the solo I ever heard, but certainly the first solo I ever "felt" or "experienced". Here it is in all it's shred/glory...

Back in '98 or so, when I had first met my friend Tim Heerebout, he got me into this guitar virtuoso concert thing called "G3" starring Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Eric Johnson. I had never heard of any of these players before as I was still into my "only-listen-to-metal" stage of adolescents. But, Tim got me hook on these guys and I remember going gaga over this solo section at the end of Vai's song called "Answers". The whole thing is pretty neat, but about 0:39 seconds in, he goes into this part that boggles my mind: he sweep-picks on the way down, taps the fretboard on the way up, and does a whole bunch of hammer-on/pull-offs in between; not only that, but it sounds so perfect and "beautiful".
Now, this version is from the DVD, though he has a different version on the CD (which I prefer as he adds a bit of whammy bar in it). Anywho... check it out. It really took me back. Enjoy:
Guitar - Steve Vai
Rhythm/Keys - Mike Keneely
Drums: Mike Mangini
Bass: Michael Tait from dc Talk?