Here are some jams I’ve “liked” of late:

Around the time that Pizza! dissolved, Duncan jumped into graduate school at USC. He composed a lot of really nice, haunting and creative film music, much of which can be found on his Soundcloud. This is his final project, which he got to record at Warner Bros. Studios. In a comment, user HeadPhoneMash said, “Calling this music, Is a lie for your brain. This is not music. This is Magic!”

I know this guy’s brother but I don’t think I know him. Anyway, this gets me pumped.

I found this band when I was looking through my own stats and noticed that their account had been playing a lot of my songs. I’m not sure if this is weird music or just Japanese music, but it’s got a particular charm. The vocal abandon is intoxicating and if I could understand the words I’m sure this would become a classic car sing-along for me.

I kind of liked Cornershop back in the Nineties. I remember buying their CD back in the day when buying lots of CDs was the thing to do, but I don’t recall being impressed with it on the whole and I’m pretty sure I sold it to the store. Either my taste has expanded, or they’ve gotten better. Perhaps Kula Shaker will release a great new song soon too?

Tyler is an extraordinary producer. This might not be his best track, but it’s really gritty and it’s good for me when I want to strut around and pretend I’m tough. Also, he does vocal “pop pops” in the breaks and I just really like that personal touch.

This is only the second time I’ve done a remix; the first was this one I did for Simo Soo a while ago. I really don’t know what I’m doing but it’s fun and now I want to make more. Anybody is welcome to send me stems. I’m ready to party.

I’ve decided to “go reggae.”

So, back in September I told So Many Wizards that I needed to leave the band. This Friday, January 18, marks my final appearance as bassist in SMW. We’re playing at the Smell, and we’d love it if you came. You can RSVP on Facebook.

Though necessary, my departure leaves me with a heavy heart. I’ve had a lot of fun playing with the Wizards, and I’m proud of the album that we made together. I’m also really glad I’ve had the opportunity to become great friends with such talented and warm people as Nima, Erik, Frank, and Melody. Even more than that, I’ve enjoyed playing for the most energetic and supportive group of fans I’ve ever known.

However, I’ve put a lot of my personal priorities – both musical and non-musical – on hold to be in this band. Now it’s time for me to return to them.

I wish nothing but the best for the Wizards! This band deserve all sorts of accolades, and I hope they’ll give me tickets to watch them be inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame in 2037.

Here is a video we made with director Walt Gorecki. Enjoy!

It’s an exciting art show opening at Pehrspace this Saturday, January 12. Curated by Sarah Cisco, it features approximately 10,000 amazing artists who have created work in celebration of mankind’s “most innocent vice” (tell that to Lil’ Wayne!), candy. There will be lots of free candy and there will also be amazing candy-inspired cocktails.

The show will be up at Pehr until March. But there are special reasons for you to attend the opening. First, there will be a wonder-tent. Don’t ask me what it is, but know that it is a “one night only” thing and AWESOME. Second, I’ll be performing a few candy-themed cover songs at certain points during the night. I’ll never be playing these again, so if you want to hear me do a slowed-down, reverb-drenched, synth-heavy cover of Bow Wow Wow’s “I Want Candy,” this is your only chance. Hint: you do want to hear that!

Anyhoo, feel free to RSVP on Facebook so that everybody knows you’ll be there. The 100th RSVP gets free candy (just kidding, everybody gets free candy).

Here’s Ms. Cisco working on the tent:

In that time, I’ve been working hard making demos for a new album. I just started rehearsing for the recording process. In the meantime, I’ve also recorded a few cover songs. Many of them have ended up on Kyle Mabson’s Mabson Enterprises compilations, like this version I did of Cher Lloyd’s “Want U Back:”

Others I’ve done “just for me,” like this version of Ellie Goulding’s “Anything Could Happen:”

I hope you enjoy the tunes. For more, you can visit my Soundcloud page.

Pre-order the album on iTunes.

Last October, I joined the band So Many Wizards. The guys in the band were my good friends, and I was a longtime fan of their music — I included their initial single “Fly a Kite” on the Big Whup Industries compilation I co-curated in 2009, and the next year I reviewed their album “Love Songs for When You Leave Me” for LA Record. They needed a new member around the same time that I was looking for a new band, so I lobbied singer Nima Kazerouni to let me in. Because they’d already added Frank Maston as a guitarist, I bought a bass and took to learning it. A couple of weeks later, I played my first show.

Since then, things have been pretty interesting. In January of this year, I started getting emails from Nima with acoustic guitar/drum sketches of songs I’d never heard — I’d listen to each song twice, write a bass line, record it directly into my computer, send it to Nima, and then get another song. I even had the pleasure of helping to produce one song, “Deep Down,” which required electronic drums. I don’t think that I even knew that we were recording an album until Nima said “it will be called Warm Nothing and it will be released this summer via JAXart.”

I was still dubbing parts on top of new tracks when the boys started mixing the songs with Niko Bolas at Capitol Records. The next thing I knew, it was early March and we were in a stranger’s kitchen in Liverpool sharing mastering notes via Skype with Richard Dodd. And then it was done. Other things have happened since then, but this is a post about the album so I’ll keep it at that.

So now it’s about to be released, and I’ve had a little bit of distance from the whirlwind recording — enough of a distance to actually listen to it and think about it. And it’s good. It’s cohesive, it’s compelling, and it’s brisk. If I were still outside of the band, I’d give it a glowing review.

Anyway — leading up to the August 7 release date, we’re offering a special deal to people who pre-order it on iTunes. Pre-order the album for $7.99, forward your receipt to somanywizards@gmail.com, and you’ll get bonus tracks including a B-side and some live versions from our UK tour.

Here’s a link to the iTunes pre-order.

We’ll be celebrating the release on August 18 at the Smell with some of our loveliest friends. Would you like to come? You can RSVP on Facebook.

Hi Hi:

As a child in the South, I grew up eating Chick-fil-a. Your chicken biscuits were my favorite. I was so happy when your restaurants came to California! I’m actually a vegetarian now, but I still have fond memories of eating at Chick-fil-a when I was younger. Until last week, I occasionally went to your restaurants for a snack of waffle fries and your delicious sauces. What a testament to how tasty your food is, right?

Then, your CEO decided to come out publicly against human rights. And now I’ve learned that, to my utter horror, some of the money that I spent on those waffle fries was used to further an agenda that I find despicable: using our legal system to treat people unequally for no reason other than your misguided and unfounded personal beliefs.

Anyway, I’m writing to let you know that I just donated to GLAAD. The amount was more than I’ve spent at Chick-fil-a since you came to California, so it will go beyond merely counterbalancing my contribution to your sick and twisted cause. I’ll also never eat at your restaurant again, and I’ll use every ounce of persuasive power that I can muster to convince my friends to join me in my boycott. This is after almost three decades of being a loyal customer, too! Think about this: I was such a loyal customer that I continued to patronize your restaurants even after I stopped eating the main thing that you serve. Yet this is too much. It’s a shame that your CEO’s bigotry has driven me to abandon something I love, but morals are more important than waffle fries and your organization is morally bankrupt.

Here’s hoping you go out of business forever!

Sincerely,
Geoff

Kyle Mabson, my roommate, just made his second compilation featuring interpretations of a single current hit. Last time it was Gotye’s “Somebody that I Used to Know,” and this time it’s Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.” Two number one hits. Two sick jams.

This is what I made for “Call Me Maybe.” I based my interpretation off of a cover by an 11 year old on Youtube. I knew that a lot of kids use youtube this way, but I was kind of mortified when I actually went searching for one to use for this video. Maybe parents should monitor their kids’ Internet usage more. I’m glad this technology didn’t exist when I was a pre-teen.

I call my version “Mom’s Medicine Cabinet REMIX.”

Listen to the entire compilation here. It’s got sick tracks from Maston, Dan Deacon, Fudge Dredd, Sean Carnage, Your Mom/Your Dad, 333 Boyz… the list continues. It’s 43 tracks and about 2 1/2 hours long, so go crazy.