The Middle Brain Experiment

This coffee is awful...

2010-03-14T21:38:00.001-06:00

I grew up in Michigan and spent many an hour at the counter of a famous coffee and donut shop drinking their coffee and eating sugar glazed doughnuts.   As a teenager with nowhere to go, that was the place to go. Well, that was until the cops decided to hang out there too.   After that, it was usually the take-out variety - a cup on the way home from a gig or a night out.   Never really anything to write home about. It was DD coffee.

Having lived out west for over twenty years, they didn't exist anywhere near where I resided. I really never thought much of DD or their coffee.   So after all those years, I was surprised and intrigued when the coffee became available in the Denver area supermarkets. There was also a clever television campaign depicting the great lengths people will go to drink the stuff. It made me nostalgic. Was the coffee really good? Or are they banking on my nostalgia and past brand loyalty?

I gave in and bought a bag. I found it priced higher than the *premium* coffees. I grabbed a bag of the whole bean, and ground it up - coarse, for my french press.   I must say, I was not at all impressed by the dryness of the beans or the lack of aroma from the fresh grind.

Once home, I eyeballed a few teaspoons into the french press glass urn, poured in the hot water and set back to let it brew.   After mixing in a little half and half, I took a sip. Much to my dismay, it tasted too strong and had a burnt taste to it - like the last cup in the pot left on a burner. Left a horrible aftertaste. Blech. Ok, perhaps I should have measured more carefully.

So I dumped the cup down the drain and started over, this time fetching the official scooper (supplied by the french press manufacturer).   After careful measurement and brewing, I took another first sip.   It tasted just like the first cup - shite.   I flashed back to the counter as a teenager and I remembered how we'd always add creme and sugar. Then take a sip. Then add more sugar.   Sip. Sugar. Refill. Sugar... It never tasted good until it was mostly sugar.   That's how DD coffee always tasted.   Awful.   I should have known better.

I foolishly fell for their clever marketing and now I have a bag of coffee that I won't drink. Any takers?

peace,
k

Are You a Doer or a Teacher?

2009-09-01T23:27:00.006-06:00

There is a saying that "People who can't do, teach". Haha. Where in the world did that ever come from? It is believed that the expression might be as old as the apple and the teacher, described by Shari at Blogcritics.org.

I would vote to restructure the quote to say "Some people can't teach!". I think anyone can "do" something and attain a certain level of expertise, but not everyone can "teach" someone else how to do it. This implies that doing and teaching are really just a different skill set. The doing skillset is wide and varied, but the core teaching skillset breaks down fairly simply to me.

Of course, the obvious requirements are:

to be knowledgable in the first place and
have patience and be encouraging (which some of my teachers didn't necessarily have or do!).

But I think the core drivers of the best teacher are:

the willingness to share something you have a passion for, and
to enjoy watching that passion transfer into another human being.

If you have that trait, skill, mindset - whatever you want to call it - you will be called to be a teacher.

One of the coolest things about being a guitar teacher is that I can watch a person who came in holding the guitar upside-down and backwards turn into an amazing guitar player in a few years time. It doesn't matter the age, gender, race or upbringing. I've watched 12 year-olds end up amazing players in high school. Guys in their 30's and 40's who never got past the basics enlightened by the ease of learning the fretboard. Kids as young as 5 or 55, working through the physical mechanics required to play "Ode to Joy". They are all like a big vase of sunflower buds... all will flower in their own way, and some will just be magnificent.

Some might argue that teaching guitar is "vocational" and not strictly "educational" and I agree to a point, but who cares? There is something much larger that happens in an environment where information is being shared, processed, understood and built upon. Sometimes it's frickin' magical. The reward is the connection. The 10-4, good buddy.

If you are one of those people who can't teach, take heart. It's not "God-given" or "God-taketh-away". You can develop a willingness to share your passion if you try. Once you experience the magic of watching it transfer into someone else, you'll be hooked. You'll find you can't do it without patience and encouragement, so you'll work on those. Not all the buds will flower right away, but some will just blow you away.

peace.

Live Looping!

2009-07-30T22:19:00.002-06:00

So most musicians are familiar with, or at least have heard of "looping" - but it's a rarity when a casual listener understands the concept or has heard the term. I am an avid "live looper" and really enjoy demonstrating the technique to listeners, however sometimes I am accused of "playing along with tracks" or "using backing tracks". I just want to explain a little bit about "live looping" and debunk the myths that have surfaced.

"Live Looping" is the process of playing sections of music while simultaneously recording it and then having them repeat over and over (loop). It is then possible to play a second part along with the loop, that overlays on top of the first loop (known as "overdubbing"). Multiple tracks can be overdubbed to form a huge band sound from a single performer. It is possible to loop multiple instruments as well, such as rhythm guitar, bass, rhythms, lead guitar and vocals. There are numerous "looping pedals" available, however I use the BOSS RC-2 (with external footswitch).

Most, if not all, of the looping pedals allow the user to save the loops that are created. They can then be "recalled" at any given time and replayed. Some players save the loops and reuse them, or create loops of "full songs" with the intent of playing along with. THIS IS WHERE "LIVE" LOOPING STOPS!!! There is nothing "live" about recalling tracks previously recorded (even if the performer actually performed them) and playing and/or singing along with these tracks.

I enjoy creating ALL of my loops live, in the moment, and on the spot. There is a risk involved that something can go wrong at any time - and I've seen it - from loss of power (and loop) to broken buttons that wouldn't stop, accidentally hitting the stop (or start) button, or accidentally starting the loop from the previous song. But that's what's fun about it. Pre-recorded loops require you to play the song the same way every time. That's how it's recorded, so that's how it has to be played. True "live looping" doesn't have an arrangement. It's up to the performer to take it wherever they want. It's a little bit of life on the edge.

There are guys out there using pre-recorded tracks - and some of them are pretty good. They just aren't "live looping". In my eyes, that's the difference.

peace...

Ted's Wild Ride

2008-07-17T11:20:00.009-06:00

Ted is on an amazing wild ride.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet with Ted. He is riding his bike across the country to raise funds and awareness for dog cancer, specifically to assist dog owners who can't afford the costly treatments to care for their pets. Ted Schneck, and his travel assistants Ian, Nicky and Angie, currently on day 52 of an 82 day trip from Oregon Pacific to the Atlantic, took the time to stop by our house and meet us and our cancer-survivor canine, Cain.

This was all arranged by my wife, Kelly and her discovery of Ted's journey via searching for information about cancer particular to dogs. Ted's dog, "Marty", contracted cancer in 2007, and after researching the disease intensely for his pet, Ted wrote a book about dog cancer and what can be done to enhance the quality of life for both the dog and the owner. His mission didn't stop there though, but grew into a cause, spearheaded by his two-wheel excursion - with a picture of "Marty" on his handlebars the whole way. Kelly felt a calling, and invited him to stop over as he passed through town.

After interviewing Kelly, Ted offered to pass out samples of "Wishcuits" along with business cards for Kelly's new business. Also talked about was Ted selling copies of my song "Wonderful Day" and giving all proceeds to the cause. I'll talk more about all that later.

In the meantime, go read about Ted at his WEBSITE. While you're at it, why not donate to his cause - or check out the "map of heroes". If you have a dog (or any pet), please take a moment to be involved. It's good.

peace,
kenk

play on brother, sing on...

2005-11-25T01:34:00.000-07:00

i've been watching the 'jimi plays berkeley' dvd lately, in particular, his show-closing version of 'voodoo chile (slight return)'. it's fabulous. even though the cinematography blows (lots of shots from behind, off to the side, extreme facial close-ups, stoners in the crowd, and shakey camerawork), the performance as a whole is loose, spirited, passionate and fabulous. there's something there for every jimi fan(atic)... headbands, flowing shirtsleeves, scarves, sliding the guitar neck across the mic stand, dropping to his knees, playing with his teeth, fuzz, wah-wah, screamin' leads, improvisation, all culminating into the classic frozen pose of jimi waving good-bye as he leaves the stage. he died 3 1/2 months after the berkeley shows. damn, if 6 was 9.
-kenk