Inside the Art and "Beyond the Frame" - Andy Gullahorn's newest album

I've been a fan of Andy Gullahorn for about 4 years.

He is a singer/songwriter in Nash-Vegas TN.  I initially became aware of him as a "Captain Courageous" who tours frequently with Andrew Peterson.  He has some of his own albums (why do we still call them albums?) out there and just released "Beyond the Frame".

I am a big fan of his work.  I think he is one of the absolute best singers for delivery of a complex truth in a simple way.  He doesn't try to do too much with a song.  Similar to the parables being able to offend your common sense (who sells all that they own for a piece of land?) his songs hammer a point.  Some might bother you.  He lets you sit being bothered; he lets the silence speak to you.

Andy is also a master with humor.  Many songs draw out a chuckle or smile and then the point is driven home while my guard is down.

I've heard a few of his songs live at Hutchmoot and am very excited for his playing at Center Presbyterian Church in Grove City this Friday (8/23/13).  His stage presence has the listener on the edge of his seat wondering - "will this story be incredibly funny or make me cry?  Either way I'll enjoy it." 

I've had "Beyond the Frame" available to my ears for a few days now and wanted to put my thoughts to digital paper.

It is very different from his previous work and I like it.  From the start it has a different sound; a different vibe might be a better way to say it.  It plays slower and is more insightful.  There is notable piano in some songs which he had not included before.  In some of the songs (I Will, Nowhere to be Found) the intro offers a sense of the mood before the rhythm is established.  It actually feels like the mood of each song carries it more than the lyric/melody combination.

If you're familiar with his earlier works don't despair, "Skinny Jeans" and "Flash in the Pan" delivers that sense of laughter from a guy in the middle that Andy is so adept at.  It reminds me of "More of a Man" or "Nobody Wants to Work" yet makes me laugh to the level of "Workin' Man".


So I highly recommend the album.  It's a roller coaster that is worth the ride. 

Floored by Nick Flora - "The Reintroduction of Nick Flora" review

Nick Flora's new album comes out on July 2nd. - The Reintroduction of Nick Flora

I supported the Kickstarter effort because enough was of interest to me, and he runs in a few circles of musicians I enjoy; namely the Square Peg Alliance folks.

As part of the supported level I received an advance digital copy of his newest album, "The Reintroduction of Nick Flora". It took me a few weeks to roll around to giving it a proper listen. I'm sorry that I waited.

I'm not very familiar with Nick's music.  I downloaded his trio of cover albums and they were able to produce a smile.  Not long ago I downloaded "Great Escape" off of Noisetrade and it was enjoyable but got lost in my sea of background music selection.

It is difficult to describe this album but I can say that I like it.  A LOT.  It doesn't squeeze nicely into a single genre.  There is a great mix of some pop, rock, ballads, Vegas lounge style and blues.  What blows my mind is that each is done well and so enjoyable.  Generally an experiment in styles can sound overproduced and the song gets lost behind horns that just sound out of place and hurt my ears.

For me it comes off as a soundtrack for a movie that I want to see.  Each song captures a moment well and doesn't get caught overstretching or saying too much.  I find myself humming these songs throughout the day.

Some specific song thoughts:
"Hard Man to Love" is an edgy declaration of "take it or leave it". 

"Luckiest Man of All" - probably the catchiest song to me.  I love the changes between verses.

"Everybody Asked About You" - this is probably my favorite song on the album.  It builds so well and the closing borders on remorse/realization and rebirth.  Some good stuff here:

Heartbeat finally we've broke through

You'll find in this life it's all on you

 

Everybody asked about you

 

So hold strong to your heart and listen close

for so long the hard part has run its course

Now everybody asks about you

 

Everybody asks about you

 

They're telling lies, so don't believe it

You've got greatness in you, boy and I have seen it

So just hold on

"Good Enough" - I love this ending song too.  The intro, the lonely vocal bridge and the powerful backup vocals are well placed.  Of course they aren't in this clip. 

I say if you get a chance get this album and give it a listen.  It's great for a roadtrip or a movie.

My brain soon started filling in the movie that holds this soundtrack.  The review pretty much ends here and any further reading is just me writing down some crazy idea for a dream movie that loosely ties together a handful of songs.

Setting:
The youngest in the Jackson family of 4 brothers is getting married.  The big "last night of freedom party" is his brothers taking him from small town Missouri to the big city for a night of celebration.

The Jackson family house caught on fire one night.  One of the boys, Simon, managed to wake the family up and the boys were saved; the parents were trapped in a room behind the fire and died.  Rube feels like as the oldest he should've done more and saved the entire family.

Characters:
Rube Jackson- oldest brother, once the bigwig but is now bitter and plugging away in a dead end job.  He seems to choose staying in a rut of self hatred.  He's separated from his wife but his pride seems to be the only obstacle to reconciliation.
Jud - brother #2 who is a party animal somehow engaged to a sweet lady, everyone wonders how long he'll stick around and why he pretends that he'd get married.  Wherever he goes a train wreck of empty bottles, loud music and craziness follows.
Simon - very upstanding guy and everyone knows he's dependable; after all he was the hero.
Joe - youngest and about to be married. 

Soundtrack panels:
"The Reintroduction" plays as Joe is packing his bags 3 days before his wedding.  The brothers make an odd lot but they're family.  3 out of 4 of them are packing - Rube can't bring himself to go.

"Hard Man to Love" plays as Jud shows that he is leading this celebration for his brother.  Leaves home with a bag full of beverages.

"Hometown Kids" - Rube is moping around thinking of all the things he should be doing but can't seem to take that step away from self pity.  Doesn't step toward his brother or his estranged wife.

"Lost at Sea" - Simon is the stable family guy.  He had to step in as their parents died in a house fire.  He's packing his stuff and anxious to step out of the burden of being Mr. Reliable. 

"Nobody Gets out Clean" plays as the road trip goes along without Rube.  He couldn't be drawn out of his personal pit.  Occasional flashes to a Rube realizing he's lonely.  It carries into the night of revelry. Flashy lights and shady clubs. It turns out Jud is controlled and knows when to quit and pulls the brothers away and back to the suite at the hotel.  He sends Simon and Joe back in a cab while he settles up the bill.  Simon is like a puppy chasing dandelions in a field and doesn't want to stop. He hires some ladies for more entertainment back at the hotel suite.  Jud arrives 10 minutes later and clears everyone out - loudly and forcefully

"Young Man's Game" - As the next day begins Jud calls home and realizes he's been missing out but he was never that far away, he just made it look that way.  Family life maybe pretty good.  Simon realizes he's been a well landscaped exterior to a house that's rotting.  Inside he's the guy that he resented Jud for being.

"Happy You're Happy" - Later in the day Joe is cornered by the bosses of the ladies who were booted out.  These gents aren't too happy about the treatment of their employees and want money or blood.

Kick & Scream - As the fighting starts and people are scrambling the Police show up, the trio are arrested and in jail.  They place a call to Rube to come pick them up.

"Make it Out Alive" - A long quiet roadtrip home. 

"Luckiest Man of All" - another quirky song, it plays as the wedding ceremony happens.  Ends with Rube picking up a phone and placing a call.

"Everybody Asked About You" - during the wedding feast there's an empty chair where Rube should be.

Good Enough - As the general dancing at the reception starts, in walks Rube to join the celebration.

Allegiance from "Gods of Mars" by Edgar Rice Burroughs

I'm about 2/3 done listening to the second book by E.R. Burroughs in his Barsoom series.  I'm finding it to be a space western.  I'm greatly enjoying these books.  The reading is good from the librivox volunteers, which helps.

This passage struck me and made me wonder about how temperamental my allegiance has been-

"Ah, my Prince," he continued, as though no thought had interrupted his greeting, "that you are back is sufficient, and let Hor Vastus' sword have the high honour of being first at thy feet." With these words the noble fellow unbuckled his scabbard and flung his sword upon the ground before me.

Could you know the customs and the character of red Martians you would appreciate the depth of meaning that that simple act conveyed to me and to all about us who witnessed it. The thing was equivalent to saying, "My sword, my body, my life, my soul are yours to do with as you wish. Until death and after death I look to you alone for authority for my every act. Be you right or wrong, your word shall be my only truth. Whoso raises his hand against you must answer to my sword."

It is the oath of fealty that men occasionally pay to a Jeddak whose high character and chivalrous acts have inspired the enthusiastic love of his followers. Never had I known this high tribute paid to a lesser mortal. There was but one response possible. I stooped and lifted the sword from the ground, raised the hilt to my lips, and then, stepping to Hor Vastus, I buckled the weapon upon him with my own hands.

"Hor Vastus," I said, placing my hand upon his shoulder, "you know best the promptings of your own heart. That I shall need your sword I have little doubt, but accept from John Carter upon his sacred honour the assurance that he will never call upon you to draw this sword other than in the cause of truth, justice, and righteousness."

"That I knew, my Prince," he replied, "ere ever I threw my beloved blade at thy feet."


Of course I need to tie in some GKC (Orthodoxy):

Before any cosmic act of reform we must have a cosmic oath of allegiance. A man must be interested in life, then he could be disinterested in his views of it.  "My son give me thy heart"; the heart must be fixed on the right thing: the moment we have a fixed heart we have a free hand.

An Epic review

The family went and watched "Epic" yesterday.  So here's my quick review.

All in all - pretty good.  I think it rises to being above average for what it isn't more than what it is.  Good action and threads of danger but not too dark; although my 4 y/o was slightly spooked by the bad guys.

The title is far reaching as it will not stand the test of time as an epic movie; but it does relate an epic event in the fairy world that we get to watch.

Story:
Teen-ish MK (Mary-Kate) is sent to live with her father after the death of her mother.  The mother and father split  due to the dad's obsession with chasing a fairy world.

So it turns out the fairyworld is real and there's an ongoing battle between the fairies who bring life to the forest and some forces that are seeking to bring decay.

Every 100 years the fairies anoint a new queen.  The selection ceremony is important and cannot take a shortcut for safety.  The leafmen guard forces try to be prepared but get overwhelmed by the decaybringers and MK is drawn into delivery the seedpod to complete the ceremony when it blooms under the full moon.


Thoughts:
The story works well enough.  There are some well worn story elements - dead/missing parents, rebellious teen, etc; but they play okay.  There is some humor for various ages (physical and word humor).  I found the voice work to be good and fitting.

I think what lets this movie rise out of the sea of mediocrity is what it isn't.  It isn't a tree-hugger movie - Ferngully, Avatar.  This provided some good discussion on what a "tree hugger" movie is.  The decay of the world isn't the fault of humans.  Humans are not ignorantly wrecking everything or willfully wrecking everything.  It isn't a tale of children needing to teach their parents/elders - How to Train Your Dragon, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  It isn't moralizing. 

Fairyland is nothing but the sunny country of common sense. It is not earth that judges heaven, but heaven that judges earth; so for me at least it was not earth that criticised elfland, but elfland that criticised the earth. I knew the magic beanstalk before I had tasted beans; I was sure of the Man in the Moon before I was certain of the moon. This was at one with all popular tradition. Modern minor poets are naturalists, and talk about the bush or the brook; but the singers of the old epics and fables were supernaturalists, and talked about the gods of brook and bush. That is what the moderns mean when they say that the ancients did not "appreciate Nature," because they said that Nature was divine. Old nurses do not tell children about the grass, but about the fairies that dance on the grass; and the old Greeks could not see the trees for the dryads. - GK Chesterton

"The Road" by Cormac McCarthy - heavy thoughts

Last night I finished the audiobook of "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy.

This book is a hard read.  It is well told and heavy, ton of bricks heavy.  I don't know how to talk about it without offering spoilers so read on with that warning.  I knew the end and still hated the end that was coming, and was glad the book was over when it came.

The setting is that after some apocalyptic event a man and a boy (a never named father and son) are trekking to survive somewhere.  Wake up, scour for food, hide from bad guys.  I'm not sure "bad guys" is a good description, maybe feral humans.  They won't survive another northern winter and believe there might be something to be found at the ocean. They keep moving.  That is the constant struggle in the story.  It is something you are always aware of - like light in a cave or a snorkel underwater.  Food is needed.

Imagine this, all day and  everyday, without the candybar to bite into.  okay it doesn't really relate but it is a funny commercial.



I was hit pretty hard by "The Road".  I have a soft spot for father/son stories mostly for some struggles in how my own real life has unfolded and continues into the next round.  It wasn't that I was locked into identifying with the particular characters, it was that their battle and their bond was believable.  The whole story is somehow believable - that a culture with such a callous view about life and everything this side of it would be able to turn to cannibalism wasn't a leap for me.

For me, this book was most unsettling as the 7ish y/o boy is a view of innocence and hope.  His questions and his comments were spot on - not too mature, not too immature.  There was a touch of being naive but not unaware.  The father's singular focus on keeping the boy safe is true to form also.  It did make me think about the few things that are really important and how many negligible things hold my attention.

I was truly struck by two things:
1. The father apologizes often.  It's not that he always messes up.  The man apologizes for a world where a boy sees other people being eaten for food.  He apologizes for when the boy is held at knife point and then has to have brains washed out of his hair.  The apologies are for a world that isn't right.

2.  Their role switch.  Through 3/4 or more of the book the father is the guardian of the boy.  It's his job.  At the end it is the boy worrying about the father.  I think this is most profound for not taking the easy route of it being a "coming of age" event.  The boy isn't ready.  No boy that age should be caught in that situation.


One of the other linchpins in the story is the mantra to "carry the fire".  The father tells the boy that we "carry the fire".  At first it seems that it may have been some trite statement to give the boy hope or answer a tough question.  But it really is their mission.  "We don't eat people and never will."  "We are the good guys."  They carry the hope of humanity forward.  Not animals just looking to live and eating anything.  There are many lines they cross to survive, but they stay human rather than animal.  They do indeed carry the fire so far, and then the boy carries it further.

I read the book as it was the theme for an Andrew Peterson song - "Carry the Fire" off of his album Light for the Lost Boy



So would I recommend reading (or watching or listening to) "The Road"?  Maybe.  It is well told but you better be ready for a dark ride.  To a casual reader - no.

All really imaginative literature is only the contrast between
the weird curves of Nature and the straightness of the soul.
Man may behold what ugliness he likes if he is sure that he will
not worship it; but there are some so weak that they will
worship a thing only because it is ugly.  These must be chained
to the beautiful.  It is not always wrong even to go, like Dante,
to the brink of the lowest promontory and look down at hell.
It is when you look up at hell that a serious miscalculation has
probably been made.

* * * *

Therefore I see no wrong in riding with the Nightmare to-night;
she whinnies to me from the rocking tree-tops and the roaring wind;
I will catch her and ride her through the awful air.
Woods and weeds are alike tugging at the roots in the rising tempest,
as if all wished to fly with us over the moon, like that wild,
amorous cow whose child was the Moon-Calf. We will rise to
that mad infinite where there is neither up nor down, the high
topsy-turveydom of the heavens.  I will ride on the Nightmare;
but she shall not ride on me.   
-GK Chesterton "The Nightmare"

CS Lewis - "Letters to an American Lady"

Over the weekend I finished reading "Letters to an American Lady" by CS Lewis.

It was a fantastic read.  It is a collection of letters sent to a lady in America tracking a 13 year correspondence history.

It was great for what it offered.  It is a glimpse into the thoughts and personality of Jack.  There is no urgency from a publishing deadline or edits for appeal; the urgency is concern for a friend and the words are from the heard.

The letters start out fairly polite and reserved.  As the time passes and the normal personal barriers are passed he shifts from CS Lewis to Jack.  What struck me the most is how very personable (common?) he was.  "Mere Christianity" certainly shows his ability to express complex ideas in normal language; I don't think it struck me how much he lived in normal language.  "Practical" comes to mind, but I'm not sure why.

My other lingering thought was how much this was the exact opposite of "The Screwtape Letters".  These were real letters with no agenda, sharing true concerns with a friend.  TSL is a great book but fabricated, perverted to hide the truth (and to a point of revealing the absurd as CSL intended), between snivelling demons.

It is a light read that I didn't want to end.  It was painful to read of Joy's cancer, remission and then the final recurrence that claimed her time here.  There are many points of humor and many points of vulnerability.  I didn't want it to end because for a moment I felt like I could spy into the friendship and CSL was alive.

Missing my fellow sheep and "Black Sheep Boy"

I'm a mild Pierce Pettis fan.  I should say I'm a huge fan, but I forget sometimes; and I've only dipped my toe into the ocean of his music.

He's an odd musician and I can only think of him as like mac & cheese.  Pierce has been around a long time writing thoughtful songs that aren't hard to digest but certainly can fill you up.  He's comfort food.  Not flashy and always at the table of great music.  At church dinners sometimes I take mac and cheese and while few would claim it as a "favorite food"; that dish always came home empty.

I'm only vaguely familiar with his music and it continues to grow on me.  The more I find the more I want to find.

Anyway he had a free interview/song session that I caught about a year ago and he discussed and then played this song - "Black Sheep Boy".  I immediately checked Youtube and it wasn't there.  But it is now. 

There's that child in your family who tries but always seems to be out of place; and your heart breaks for them.  Maybe your heart breaks because at one time you were the black sheep.

Yesterday I lost a fellow black sheep.  One of my co-workers, Jim, moved to a higher place and is looking down on from above.  He was relocated to the 2nd floor to make room for a new employee.  Jim and I would daily solve problems.  Sometimes in engineering, sometimes in the world - no one ever seemed to ask us for those answers though.  We had many great discussions in the realms of the spiritual, social, political, engineering - we discussed life; we shared life.  We were 25ish years apart but we were kindred souls sharing much of the same outlook and internal drive for solutions, even if they weren't easy.

Jim's doing fine and I'm looking forward to building a friendship with the new guy; but I will greatly miss sharing with Jim.

Review: "Peace Like a River" by Leif Enger

I finished reading "Peace Like a River" by Leif Enger, so it's time to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard nowadays) and offer my $0.02.

The story is a narrative from an 11 y/o (Reuben Land) and his family adventure.  I'm going to try very hard to not have spoilers in this.

The story reads quickly and the characters are well developed.  The dad struggles with a son on the run from the law, the remnant siblings struggle with a brother they may admire too much, and their own pride and forgiveness.

The book is blatantly Christian.  It is part of the characters so it is part of the story.  The same plot could basically have been told without the father's faith, and it would be as boring as my senior year class on "Fluid Power and Systems" and have had just as much of an audience.

What jumped out to me the most was the descriptions of Rueben's asthma.  It is drawn out so well as a reader I started to wonder for my own breath.  It is a constant concern for him and he is offered fixes that don't fix and advice like he could give it up like a vice.  It's a strong parallel to our walk in this world.  Life can be a struggle to just get along - but at most we limp or are betrayed by raspy lungs that won't let us run like we could be able to.  There is a remedy but it isn't advise or breathing salts.

I was blindsided by the last 2 chapters.  I didn't know how all the wild threads that were woven into the tale would tie together.  It isn't exactly a happy ending, but it does end. 

I didn't find anything life changing or faith changing or thought changing in the book.  As compared to "Silence" (my thoughts here).  I did greatly enjoy it and would recommend it to anyone who wants a good read.  I think I gave it 5/5 on Goodreads.

Eureka (x3)

Yesterday was an epiphany day.  I had quite a few ideas hit me that were significant.  If not major leaps in various journeys they were at least solid milestones. 

#1 - Screw It
While driving to work I was pondering a particular consistent design sticking point.  Our machines spin a cutting head against a metal bar that is shoved through the center.  Metal doesn't like to fall off so it take some power and it generates much heat.  So we shoot coolant on the cutting.  It has been most effective to sneak in some spray from the back to shoot directly where the cut is happening. We use a spray tube (in teal below) which has some coolant lines running to a nozzle ring.  The hard part is reaching however far (15"? 30"?) between the bar and the spinning tube holding the cutterhead.  Some chips and coolant can get stuck between the spray tube and the inside of the spindle sleeve.  Over time this can build up and cause troubles.






So my bright idea was to thread the inside of the spindle.  This would make it's rotation act like a pump and drive all the built up junk to the back or to the front (we're still kicking around which is better).  This could be a huge step in making my companies machines run better and longer.


#2 - Book It
My son loves graphic novels and comic books.  Who doesn't.  Becky is excellent at regular trips to the library to keep the kids loaded up on good materials.  It was something I never had, never did, and would be terrible at starting now.

She brought home a book called "Tommysaurus Rex" by Doug TenNapel. To call that a good story is to call the moon a nice rock.  There is so much more - location, movement, details.  It is a graphic novel that Caleb stayed up WAY too late reading (he read the book twice).  I read it on day 2 in our house (25 minutes) and was blown away. 

So I started digging into the author and the more I see the more I like.  I have much to investigate.


#3 Curse It
Becky & I do devotionals during the week.  It used to be mornings but then work got hectic and I started going in extra early so devotions migrated to evenings.  Devotionals for couples is a tough area to find a quality book.

I've found that some devotional books are fight starters - "have you stopped ignoring your wife?" "how can you be more involved in church?".  These questions start loaded with attacking a deficiency.  Sometimes the problem isn't there and don't just tell me to work harder.

Maybe I get like Goldilocks in that some are too light and too heavy also.  10-15minutes is the right length of time for these.  We won't have 2 hours to discuss sprinkling vs. immersion.

The devotional yesterday was spot on.  It wrapped up a discussion about primary male and female differences.  Men are more task driven and women are relationship driven.  The author referred to this as men seeking significance and women seeking intimacy.  The day before I thought the "significance" drive was pretty profound, and Becky let me know "intimacy" was pretty accurate. 

This made me re-evaluate the curse when Adam & Eve were cast from the garden.  I had always thought of the curse (especially Adam's) as external.  Adam toiled over the ground because it wouldn't grow easy.  I'm wondering if Adam toils over the ground because growing is a job.  In trying to be like God, he became bent to try to seek significance in something other than God.  I thought of Eve being cursed in that childbearing would just now be painful.  I didn't think of it as the emotional pain in trying to achieve closeness "your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."

I don't think it is an either/or proposition that the curse was only external or internal.  I just never thought about the internals (emotional, mental) of being cursed.

"The Man who Shot Liberty Valance" - review and thoughts

Over the weekend we watched "The Man who Shot Liberty Valance".


I heard it was a good classic movie and kicked it up after we got the kids to bed on Saturday.  I can say that we enjoyed the movie and I would recommend it.  It is a good story (and story telling) more than an action western.


The acting is good (Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne) and some of the action and scene shots bear the fact that they were done in the 60's.  Wider views (which I like) and some camera angles that aren't natural to the story (which I don't like).

There are great layers into the story - romance, political statehood, and the power of legends.



The brief story - (beyond this spoilers may abound and wikipedia tells it further and better)

Ransom Stoddard (Jimmy Stewart) is a US Senator returning to a smalltown for the funeral of Tom Doniphon (John Wayne).  The local press corner him for an interview and he tells a story (flashback 20-ish years). 

Ransom is a lawyer heading out west.  As he was approaching Shinbone for the first time he gets mugged & beat by Liberty Valance.  Liberty is the lead thug supported by the big ranchers.  The only person tougher is a horse trader, Tom Doniphon.  Ransom is nursed back to health and after some time is one of two delegates for a convention regarding statehood of the territories.  Liberty beats the other delegate and forces Ransom into a shootout.  Ransom can't shoot.  He can but it's similar to playing football with a 4 y/o; no competition.  Liberty toys with him and somehow Ransom shoots him dead.  At the statehood convention Ransom is nominated to be a delegate to US Senate.  He ducks in back and is packing to leave when Tom corners him.  Tom tells a story of his own....he was in the side alley and Tom shot Liberty Valence, not Ransom.  Tom tells Ransom to man up and go be a force for good.

Back to the present day and the press scraps the notes from the interview.  The newspaper chief tosses the notes into the stove and says "When the legend becomes fact; print the legend."

Ransom and his wife are on the train heading back to Washington.  The conductor passes along some strings that they pulled to expedite the Senator's travel.  Ransom expresses his thanks and the conductor replies "nothing's too good for the man who shot Liberty Valence".


The Gospel of the story -
I've been thinking a few days about this story.  Ransom's career and his life is built on a lie.  Even the newspaper would rather hold to the legend rather than tell folks the truth.

There is a basic law at work in the story.  Ransom has no arena (or court) in which he can win against Liberty.  Ransom tries desperately to hold to the law of the books but that has no authority over Liberty.  He refuses guns frequently and starts to try to train with one knowing that the showdown will someday happen.  Ransom isn't good enough though.  Tom had to fulfill the law.

Ransom rides on the coattails of the victory.  He rides into Washington as the legendary man who shot Liberty Valance.

There is something required of us that we can't measure up to.  I know there is good and I don't measure up; my words, thoughts and actions don't measure up.  There is an enemy waiting to kill us and let us die under the law.  But there is also a real hero who is ready to save us.  He doesn't destroy the law he fulfills it and we can rejoice in the victory.

Concert Review - AP & Caleb

Saturday (10/6/12) Becky & I trekked about 1.5 hrs to enjoy Andrew Peterson and the band Caleb playing in Wadsworth Ohio.  I had my expectations fairly high for this event and was only slightly disappointed.  My disappointment - it had to end.  Also we are old and couldn't hang around to pull AP aside to extort an afterglow out of him.

It was a great concert for a few reasons, Andrew Peterson & Caleb were playing.  Andrew is a seasoned performer and played great music with engaging set-up stories and humor.  Caleb consists of Caleb Chapman on guitar and belting out raw emotion and Will Chapman on drums driving the songs home. 

It was my first time seeing Caleb performing live and I was blown away.  They are excellent musicians and are still cutting their teeth as performers.  They had a 3 song set and certainly won some fans out of it.  The songs were good, really good.  Not necessarily happy or easy songs, but evoked emotion and connected on a deep level.  It feels like that brief description of "good" and "evoking emotion" is like calling E.T. a good movie about an alien.  There is just so much more to these guys.  Awesome stuff.  My rock&roll days are mostly behind me, but I look forward to hearing much more from them.



Andrew played a mostly somber set which falls in line with "Light for the Lost Boy".  (I reviewed the album here.)  The album is about the ache of growing up.  It is painted from a parent's view at a child; a grown-ups view longing for the lost childhood; and a mature view of how that experience can (and should) change us to being thankful. 

It is somber, but it is also hopeful.  The contrast of something being lost against what is found. 

My takeaway line (paraphrase) - "As parents we work to preserve Eden for our children, but the snake is going to get into the garden."


All of this echoes of a few parts from GK Chesterton's Orthodoxy:

Catholic* doctrine and discipline may be walls; but they are the walls of a playground.  Christianity is the only frame which has preserved the pleasure of Paganism.  We might fancy some children playing on the flat grassy top of some tall island in the sea.  So long as there was a wall round the cliff's edge they could fling themselves into every frantic game and make the place the noisiest of nurseries.  But the walls were knocked down, leaving the naked peril of the precipice. They did not fall over; but when their friends returned to them they were all huddled in terror in the centre of the island; and their song had ceased.Catholic = universal

 We setup rules (and to an extent Law itself) to protect and preserve.

This is the prime paradox of our religion; something that we have never in any full sense known, is not only better than ourselves, but even more natural to us than ourselves.

I don't think it's a stretch to say it's something that children are closer to than us; but we can take joy in that it will be regained.

It is possible that God says every morning, "Do it again" to the sun; and every evening,
"Do it again" to the moon.  It may not be automatic necessity that makes all daisies alike; it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never got tired of making them.  It may be that He has the eternal appetite of infancy; for we have sinned and grown old, and our Father is younger than we.

Free Music Review - Andy Osenga

An idea hit me this morning - I need to share more.  Music that is, stay away from my kettle chips.

I've been enjoying free music for sometime now and I need to share it more.  I recently had a conversation with someone where I plugged an artist, and at one time they had an offering of their music on Noisetrade (it has since expired).

I'm hoping 1x a week (Tuesdays?) to share a nugget that is available for free.  I had this thought and then Andy Osenga just posted on Noisetrade an oldy of his that I got for free the first time around.  Letters to the Editor, Vol 1.

The timing is also neat in that Andy O is the perfect example of how this process works for the musician and the listener.

Noisetrade artists put their music out there for free and it can be downloaded and enjoyed.  The cost is your e-mail address and zipcode.  The artist gets to build a listener connection.  I say listener because in using these things I've been a listener to many singers/groups and have grown into a fan of a few of them.    You can choose to leave a tip which I have done about 10-20% of the time. I am now an Andy Osenga fan.  I supported (and greatly enjoy) his most recent album "Leonard the Lonely Astronaut".  It's a stretch for my genre preferences but I find the album very moving.

That's how it works.  Something out there for free.  Sometimes artists giveaway music on their website directly so this won't all Noisetrade but that will dominate the idea.


Andy Osenga - Letters to the Editor Vol 1.
The album has songs that are from some fan letters that he converted into songs.  Guitar and vocal layering but a fairly low production amount (which can be a very good thing).  "The Ball Game" is one of my favorites; not just of this album but a favorite song all around.  It's catchy and I like the pace.

A bonus on this offering is "Firstborn Son" from the Leonard album.  It is one of my favorites from the Leonard album.  That song holds the gem of a line "God help the man who helps himself, he needs no other devil".  That line is magnifying glass melting my pride under the light of God's holiness.

So check out this free offering while it's still around.

"Praying with Lior" - review

This was sitting in the draft status for some time now - I dusted it off changed a word or two and cleared it out of the queue.


Over the weekend I scored with Netflix, "Praying with Lior."  There is a large volume of items on Netflix and I have been chasing documentaries and enjoying about 80% of them.  The enjoyment I draw is from getting information, hearing someone's story, and then pondering those two items and their combination.

Lior is a boy with down syndrome in an Orthodox Jewish family.  As a toddler on his mother's knee, he sought songs of prayer over "Itsy-Bitsy Spider" or the ABCs. 

The film builds to his Bah mitzvah where he must lead a prayer.  Throughout there is interactions with Synagogue members, classmates at the Jewish school, and with his family. 

I'm about to ruin the documentary with some of the inner details.  I shouldn't say ruin but it will inoculate you or probably lead the emotional train down the tracks I'm about to lay out.  I thought this was well done and I felt for the people.

Synagogue folks seem to look on him with awe and admiration.  That there is some blessing that he has the inside track on.  They ask for his advice on spiritual matters.  To many he is a prodigy.  Later the documentary has the father working with Lior on his prayer.  In some of the basic questions it is very clear that Lior is parroting back things he has heard and isn't really processing them.

The classmate interactions are rough.  Lior leads them in a rousing prayer/song where I was amazed by the emotion and energy everyone was putting forward.  I can't imagine my middle school soccer team being that enthusiastic about anything.  Later some of the classmates talk about the difficult interactions with Lior.  He's the last pick at games; the social cliques seem nice out of pity or even one joke shy of ridicule.  An outsider.

The family is where the heart of this documentary rings out.  Lior laughs, teases and is teased by his siblings.  Lior plays video games and ignores his brother getting ready "yeah, you look great" which his brother rightly calls him out on.  Then Lior stops, fixes his brother's hair, and tells him "it is perfect, don't let anyone touch it".  There is also a special bond that Lior holds with his stepmother (his mom died when he was about 5) and she realizes (and so does he) that she isn't a replacement but a new mother to love him just as much.


Probably "No prophet (or prodigy) is welcome in his home town" and I'm also thinking "there is no welcoming home, like a home with a loving family". 

"Light for the Lost Boy" by Andrew Peterson - review

Saturday was a great day, we had a small birthday party for our youngest; 4 years flies by and I have the cutest kids in the world (it's true).

Also on Saturday the latest album from Andrew Peterson arrived at my doorstep - "Light for the Lost Boy" (LftLB) available at the Rabbitroom.

Shocker here - I love it.  I'm still unpacking it mentally.  It is more of a thematic album aimed directly at crossroads.  AP has written before about the joy of childhood (Little Boy Heart, Good Confession).  Wrapped in that emotional element is the joy in the life adventure before you (Canaan Bound, Nothing to Say).  LftLB is written at one of the next life stages - crossroads is the only word I can come up with.  Not that AP is in that lifestage or done with them, but it is directed at that lifestage.  Counting Stars (especially 'The Reckoning') touched on this theme that now has an entire album putting words to it.

This album touches on the same crossroad as the "coming of age" story.  I read The Yearling about 8 months ago and it is one of these stories, and so much more.  That point of moving from innocence into maturity.  I enjoy this album since this pain never ceases in life and defining it makes it easier to  process.  Maybe pain isn't the right word. 

I don't think we ever stop hitting those crossroads or feeling the heartbreak of people at them currently.  Recently I sat with my youngest as some dental work was done.  My heart broke for her and yet she did great.  It was the pain at seeing the cruel world where teeth rot and pain happens.  Dogs kill rabbits; winds shake bird nests from trees and the eggs break; infants get cancer.  I hate it and something about it is unfair.

Somehow LftLB walks into the mire of a broken world and exits the otherside without whitewashing the pain, dismissing the brokenness, or being trite.  It stands mud-caked on the far shore ready for the washing that will come.

Come Back Soon
This song wrecks me if I let my emotional guard down.  Two lines get me -
1) The boy grew up and the yearling was dead
2) and wept for the death of his little boy heart

The Cornerstone
There is much about this song I enjoy, but primarily it is touching on the paradox of Christian faith.  You never move, but I cannot seem to catch you.  This stone that can be a stumbling block, a true foundation or you spend effort to move to a better location for you and it remains a rock to build upon not move at my whims.

Rest Easy
This is the "radio song" from the album.  It may get some airplay and hopefully reaches people in a meaningful way over the FM waves.  It is lighter than the other songs on the album which still leaves room for it to be powerful.  There was a contest for user videos and this wonderful video won.  Warning! it may make you cry.  It pulls at the heart strings enough to get you and not so much that it is too sappy.  If a star would've twinkled back at the end I would have hated it, the mom pulls through and I'm a wreck.

The Voice of Jesus
This maybe my favorite song.  A message from a parent who knows the inevitable heartache that every child grows to experience, and where the answer is.

The Ballad of Jody Baxter
I read The Yearling so I knew the reference material for this song.  It is a great story of simple life and getting by.  For me it was especially touching as I related to the boy and the father in the story.  This song brought it all back and more.  It puts words to the real heartache of the story Is there anyway that we can change the ending of this tragedy?

Day by Day
I want to call this the bridge of the album, maybe it's more of the pre-bridge.  It transitions from one movement to the other.

Shine Your Light on Me
Another song of AP crafting his heart.  It captures so much of the mystery of hope, hope when things are hopeless.  They were singing out my song, when the song in me had died.

Carry the Fire
This is from the story The Road, which I have not read.  When I'm ready for another book to punch me in the gut it'll be at the top of the list.

You'll Find Your Way
This is a father's message to kids for the road that lies ahead.  It is a road that they must walk on there own and I hope/pray that I've prepared them.  That they remember lessons.

Don't you Want to Thank Someone
This song is long but it is the icing on the cake.  Maybe it's a better thing...../ To be more than merely innocent / But to be broken then redeemed by love 

So much reminds me of GK Chesterton -

The test of all happiness is gratitude; and I felt grateful, though I hardly knew to whom.
Children are grateful when Santa Claus puts in their stockings gifts of toys or sweets.  Could I not be grateful to Santa Claus when he put in my stockings the gift of two miraculous legs?  We thank people for birthday presents of cigars and slippers.
Can I thank no one for the birthday present of birth?  -Orthodoxy
 

It is a great closing to a very enjoyable album.

Like yeast - The Dark Knight Rises

The other night I watched "The Dark Knight Rises".  It was a great wrap up to the trilogy.  I saw it then watched a review from Thomas McKenzie who is very insightful. 



 Now some deeper thoughts (spoilers will follow):

$0.02 on "Brave"

We went and saw "Brave" on Saturday.  It was our first attempt as a family of 5 to get through a movie - it was a success all around.  This movie is wonderful.  Some scary parts but a great movie.

There is a big scary bear, immediately. It's a key part of the story so it isn't there for no reason or merely to startle. To me this was similar to "Up" being incredibly sad in the first 10 minutes. It would be unnecessary in a kid's movie, but this isn't a kid's movie - it is telling a story and it is part of the story. A key part that is built upon.

Pixar is masters at story telling.  They have made one movie that I thought was poor (Cars 2), not terrible but they have set the bar so high that it was disappointing when they missed.  That experience left me curious if they could still deliver or had somehow been tainted by Disney.  Did the Disney machine, which is relentless in churning out pointless sequels and cheap Tinkerbell movies, grind up Pixar and make them assimilate?  The answer is NO.


Beyond the previews leading you to believe this is a just a tom-boy struggle to fit into a Scottish clan society this is really a movie about family and pride.  It is a tale of being stuck in your pride.  The men are full out buffoons but it is still a great story of family.

I also thought it is a monumental leap for being a mother-daughter movie that every guy will enjoy and appreciate too.  The father-son movie has been done well ("Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs", "How to Train Your Dragon") in the kid movie realm and outside.  I can't think of any mother-daughter movie that didn't firmly drop in the realm of "chick flick".

Pixar has been nominated before for "Best Picture" which I think was just a gesture of kindness to "Toy Story 3" and the full saga.  I think that "Brave" could be a strong contender and at the very least might make Hollywood reflect on what their main business should be - telling stories.



And elsewhere, and in all ages, in braver fashion, under cleaner skies, the same eternal tale-telling still goes on, and the whole mortal world is a factory of immortals. -GK Chesterton

Shhh - I'm reading (A review of "Silence")

I had much material to potentially write a quick review on (The Hunger Games (movie), The Yearling) but the grand winner is "Silence" by Shusaki Endo.

This book is stirring.  Imagine seeing an 8-month old tiger and an 8-month old bear tossed in a pen and fighting to the death.  That's how this book feels.  Things that you know get dangerous as they matured but seem manageable when they are small.  There are ugly questions and ugly answers.  But they are important questions that can't be ignored.



The tough questions -
Torture - How much could you take for a cause? How much should you allow others to take for your cause?
Judas - Was Judas happy with what he was doing in betraying Jesus or did he have an internal turmoil?  Did he suffer?
Is God silent in the suffering of the world?  In our personal suffering?

This book is not a ray of sunshine, but it isn't all clouds either.

Written in the 1960s, it starts as a collection of letters and then a narrative picks up from there.  In the 1600s two priests are sent to Japan to explore the sudden decline of what was a successful mission field.  They are also seeking any information about the reported apostasy of a renowned Father who had been working in the country for 20 years.

There are spoilers that follow.  I will say that I knew the ending before reading and it was still riveting to read.  3 days which isn't my usual pace.
I knew of this book from a sermon by Thomas MacKenzie (found here).  That too is worth investing some time (20 minutes) as it's a good sermon.  So I heard that sermon and was interested, then the Rabbitroom covered this book.  I took the plunge and I'm still soaking it up.    Knowing the ending didn't ruin it.

This review is B.O.R.ing

Two days ago was the official release of Birds of Relocation.  This is the latest album by Eric Peters.

I've met Eric a few times, he's even stayed at the Kulp B&B.  He is a regular on the RR and that place is a gateway drug for good music and stories.  My first real introduction to his music was hearing him play "Chrome" at Hutchmoot; I had bought the cd earlier in the day.  In typical fashion for that collection of artists it was a story of the song followed by the song.  This makes you listen to every word.  I listened and I was hooked.

Since then he has played at our church twice and each time was followed by good conversation, good food and good beer at the North Country Brewhouse.  Some tall crazy WV'er was around for one of these too (S.D. Smith who wrote an excellent BOR review at The Rabbit Room).

Also for each concert, James Witmer and Vince Anastasi provided an opener.  There's been an odd forging of friendships over this music.  Truly a wonder and a blessing of meeting new people who you may not have met otherwise. 


Enough back-story (and name/link dropping; I dropped so many links you'd think I worked at a chain factory), onto the review.

I like "Birds of Relocation".  I liked "Chrome" too, but it was dark and heavy.  Chrome put words to points of lost anguish.  Sometimes that is music to fit the bill.  BOR took a different turn because it is written from a different place.

I was thinking about this while driving.  My mind kept coming back to Jonah.  It seems like the "Chrome" album was written from a point of being inside the fish.  BOR is from the sandy beach.  Having been vomited onto the shore for the task, now ready to do it.  Yes, Eric was just compared to sand-crusted whale vomit.  I'm sure I could parallel "Scarce" and "The Miracle of Forgetting" to early aspects in the Jonah narrative.

I like EP music because it is written with heart.  "Chrome" had the heart of Jonah in the belly of the fish.  I want to have hope, I know where my hope comes from, I just can't see it.

BOR has survived the ordeal.  It is thankfully rejoicing in the sunshine.  It is a proclamation of grace and redemption; of hope fulfilled.  There are still monumental tasks before you, that you are called to; but the path is lit, and it is beautiful.

So yes, I recommend BOR.  I recommended "Chrome" usually with a warning that it was heavy.  Musically it flowed but before long you were wrapped in the struggle.  Sometimes that is music I need.  Eric delivers great melodies again but BOR delivers the other side of that struggle.

Nothing to Say - FALSE (AP & SCC concert review)

I may finally be over my emotional high from Sunday night.  I might be able to string together a few sensible thoughts that have been converted into sentences. Or as close as I get to sensible thoughts.

Becky & I went to the Songs & Stories Tour in North Olmsted Ohio (south of Cleveland).  Playing was Steven Curtis Chapman, Andrew Peterson and Josh Wilson.  I have been to a fair number of concerts, and right now I can't think of a better one.  Randall Goodgame in our church was awesome.  Eric Peters has been outstanding.  Some duet around 1990 was hitting some incredible harmonies, "Phil & John" as openers for Phil Keaggy made an incredible night.

SCC has a way with a crowd.  I am probably close to having seen him play ten times and he has always connected.  I've seen him backstage and he has always been the same guy.  He lets you know him, and like him.  There was a brief intermission and he came in and played  "Cinderella" and "Heaven".  Heartbreaking, tearjerkers that turns the crowd into a mumbling mess.  I'm sure some shows are easier than others but he said "I can play these songs because I know someday I will dance with my princess in heaven.  I trust in a God who loves us.  It is either all true, or it's all a lie."  Profound.

I was vaguely familiar with Josh Wilson's work, primarily through what gets played on the radio.  "I Refuse" has a message that resonates with me.  It was the first time I caught his instrumental of Amazing Grace. Very cool.  He loves playing and singing, and if I'm ever stuck in a security lockdown I want him there.

Andrew Peterson, AP.  It is my duty to fully disclose that I am familiar with his music.  Similar to how Winnie the Pooh is familiar with honey; I eat it up.  I eat it all up and want more.  For the primary show he played "Many Roads", "Dancing in the Minefield", "Planting Trees" and tested out a new one which I managed to record.   I now know my camera SUCKS for audio.  It was a song to his oldest son as he finds his own way, to remember the ancient roads.

The show seemed over and all in all it was a great show.  There was much sharing about marriage, life, and family; 3 things I'm fond of so that worked out.  We saw some friends from Grove City up front so we starting wandering up to say "hi, have a safe trip home" and noted that James caught Ben Shive and his wife, Julie, caught AP.  So we all caught AP;  there was good chatter on background, and songs, Becky quizzed him about books (more chatter) and I gave a gentle request for an afterglow.  He pounced on the opportunity like a kitten on string.

It ended being about 10 people in a few rows while AP took requests from his perch on a folding chair.  The songs ended up being (I had the feeling it would have been awkward to record them):
All You'll Ever Need, Lay Me Down, Little Boy Heart, In the Night My Hope Lives On, Nothing to Say, and Fool With a Fancy Guitar. 

"Fool With a Fancy Guitar" is my current #1 song, so I was glad to catch it.  I have a twisted idea of working it onto ukulele because that's just funny to me.


I could've sat there all night but 45 minutes was enough, I still had to mumble through work the next day.

Something pours out of his music that I just lap up.  His songs contain wonderful word-pictures that often point to a specific story (Little Boy Heart - Narnia) or a deeper truth (Lay Me Down) and it ends up being layered and hitting you a new way with each listen.

Thank you again Andrew for your music and your willingness to put it out there, even for an audience of 10.  It was a great experience and put that evening over the top (better than a Sly Stallone movie).

My Origami Business Folded....

(I wrote this last week and finally got to the final edit)

On Sunday we had a wee one who was congested and coughing sufficiently to stay home from church.  So I had the duty this time and did what any parent does with some time to kill - pop in a movie and surf the internet.

I wanted sufficiently entertaining background noise and picked a documentary on origami called "Between the Folds" (via Netflix).  I didn't know what I signed up for - this was amazing.  So here's a review, but also something slightly more; a reflection.


Basically the art form has grown from simple critters for elementary school children to very complex and beautiful models.  The art has also grown in the analysis and supporting math.

This is from one sheet of paper (except the base).  It is called "Aragorn" crafted by Eric Joisel (http://ericjoisel.com/).



Eric was heavily featured in the documentary and with good reason; he's a master of his craft.




On top of wanting to make you get some paper and get to work - as all well captured art does - there was a story. I'm not sure the filmmaker intended to tell it, but covering people often ends up telling a story.

There is the usual tension of the artist loving his art and not wanting to part with it.  This reminded me of "My Name is Asher Lev" and how his sponsor basically raided his studio, collected his work, and set it up for auction.  It was too personal for him to go through that process.  Some of the origami artist have the same internal crisis.

The documentary started with masters of the tradition forms.  Trying to convey some message with the paper model.  Animals (real and fantasy), people.  Incredible detail and accuracy (proportion) that simply blew me away.

Then there was also a modernist artist with the approach of how much can you make with one fold.  More shapes than form focused.  I lean towards appreciating the details of the form pieces more than shapes.  I think more gets translated clearly with a form rather than a shape that a viewer has to interpret.

Another sect in the origami world were the organic/naturalists/hippies.  They focused on crumpling and the art in the process more than the final product.

Another intriguing group was the scientist/math realm.  There were complex shapes, software to detail ideas, and real world implications (airbags and medicine).  These folks were doing cool stuff that made my head hurt.



What popped out to me the most (the climax) was a line from one of the artists - "I've been doing this for over 30 years and I find I fold much less now".  The artist matured into appreciating the folds he didn't make. He used to fill his time with the details everywhere, and now lets the flat paper portion speak; because that's the message he has.

"Christ was crucified upon a hill, and not in a cavern, and the word Gospel itself involves the same idea as the ordinary name of a daily paper.  Whenever, therefore, a poet or an similar type of man can, or conceives that he can, make all men partakers in some splendid secret of his own heart, I can imagine nothing saner and nothing manlier than his course in doing so." - GK Chesterton