jason's blog
January 30, 2010
The Concert For Haiti went super well. We raised over $4300 for the
Canadian Red Cross. We're in the middle of rehearsals right now for the
next batch of gigs. We'll be in Lloydminster, Creighton, Edmonton, La
Ronge, and many other places over the next few months. Check the LIVE
page for more details.
I'm taking a day for myself today. My house is empty and I'm
re-arranging my music collection. It's funny how the voice in my head
keeps chattering away even though I'm ignoring him...
Peace
J
January 15, 2010
So many things happening these days! Firstly, we've organized a Concert For Haiti that's happening on Wednesday, January 20 in Prince Albert SK at the Cuelenaere Library Auditorium. Hopefully we'll raise lots of money for the Red Cross. The lady from the Red Cross office told me that the money raised is accessible by the workers on the ground in Haiti the very next day, so that's pretty cool.
Our new album is over half done - I think it's going to be important -
REALLY important. Call me crazy, but that's just what I think!
We've got lots of gigs lined up over the next couple of months, and
a very cool one in Edmonton on March 20 playing for Water Week to raise
awareness of the fact that all people are entitled to fresh clean
drinking water, wherever they are in the world. Look at me, I'm
sounding like an activist. Let me assure you all that I'm still the
same old hard-partying irresponsible Jay you've come to know and love
(and suspect of terrible things, ha ha), there are just so many
opportunities coming our way to help change the world, and we hate
turning anything down!!
Peace and lotsa love
J
November 30, 2009
The title of the new disc will be "Another
Way To Exist". We've been a little slow getting the tracks
recorded mainly due to me acting in a show that will finally wrap at
the end of this week. It was a very cool play to be in but it didn't
leave me much time for the studio. So far we've completed two
songs - "Two Or Three Things I Would Change"
and "Your Heart Is My Mirror".
We're also experimenting with some new recording techniques that are
producing some cool results - jamming each section of the song
repeatedly while the tape rolls and moving to the next section only
when we know we've got the groove down cold. It means we get twenty
minute versions of what will be three or four minute songs, but that's
cool - it certainly makes mixing more interesting! Oh yes, and as
promised the Free
Ride video is now up on YouTube. Enjoy!
Peace
J
October 11, 2009
We shot a video last week for the song "Free Ride". It's a tune written by
Nick Drake back in the early seventies. Our version is being included
on a Nick Drake tribute album being put together in the US. As soon as
we have a copy we'll post it up and put a link here. The original
version is acoustic guitar and vocals and it still sounds very cool
despite being forty years old! We did an arrangement of it with drums,
bass, guitar, and didjiridoo that sounds pretty cool as well. Plus for
the video I got to wear a long leather jacket that was super
sweet!
Peace
J
September 11, 2009
So we'll be starting work on our second album in a few weeks. We
have 11 songs picked and about another 10 that are on the maybe pile.
So far it's looking like it will be a "Peace and Love" album. I
think that's cool - we need peace and love, right? We've been playing
lots of the songs live so we already kind of know how they work in
front of an audience.
Peace (and love),
J
August 6, 2009
Our CD Release Party is tomorrow! We're playing at Rockcees in
Prince Albert at 10 pm. We'll do a set featuring about 8 tunes from the
"Live For What's Beautiful" disc
and then we'll fill the rest of the night with some newer
material and some cover songs. We're also playing Saturday night which
will be cool. There's also a video of one of our songs from the Rocking
Tree Festival on the VIDEOS
page.
Peace,
J
July 24, 2009
Thank you to everyone that has been supporting us so far this
summer! We had a blast playing the Rocking Tree Festival in June and
Taste Of Prince Albert in July and all the other assorted clubs (Hi
Creighton) and folks that we partied with! We are filling up our
calendar right now so there will be many more gigs announced soon!
We've also nearly sold out the first run of our "Live For What's Beautiful" disc,
so we are pretty pumped about that! Thank you friends!!
Peace,
J
July 4, 2009
We are taking the next step in our evolution as... well, I don't
know what exactly! Me and my chums in Bridges Of Light have tentatively
booked Marc and Jodie Emery to speak in Prince Albert on Monday August
24 as part of Marc's Farewell Tour. For those of you who don't know,
Marc Emery is a Canadian activist and founder of the Marijuana Party Of
Canada. He is about to be extradited to the US to serve an unjust
sentence for selling marijuana seeds online.
Now I am personally not that fond of smoking marijuana. It makes me
cough and it is expensive to boot!! But I sure don't want my tax
dollars being spent to subsidize a bunch of politicians and cops
telling us what we can or cannot grow in the ground!! That's why it's
important to come together on this issue. It's about freedom. Either we
have it or we don't!
We want to make a rock and roll party out of the evening with music
and good times and Marc's fantastic electric delivery of a message that
we all need to hear.
Our question to you is ARE YOU INTO IT? We want to make sure we have
some support before we write the cheque. Please send us an email
telling us if this is something you would come out to.
Peace,
J
April 30, 2009
I was watching a debate about entheogens (substances that alter
consciousness - LSD, psilocybin, etc). The argument was made that even
though people PERCEIVE their experiences as real or revelatory, they
are still under the influence of the substance and so it is simply
illusory. I thought that it was a good point except for the possibility
that the substance in question might be drawing aside a curtain to show
a glimpse of "reality" - a glimpse that we don't get relying only on
our unaffected senses. By way of example, imagine you have a friend
(Bob) who is depressed much of the time. You're accustomed to this so
from your perspective, the "real" Bob is simply a depressed person. But
maybe Bob doesn't like feeling this so he gets Prozac from his doctor,
and a week later he is happier and feeling better about himself. More
"like" himself. You notice the change and you can choose to perceive it
in one of two ways: either "Real Bob" is gone, replaced by "Prozac
Bob", or Prozac is a substance that corrected something in Bob and the
new Bob IS "Real Bob". Of course you can choose any conclusion you
want, it really only matters to Bob.
Peace,
J
April 18, 2009
Good news! We will be playing in the Rocking Tree music festival
June 19-21. We'll be doing an hour long set on Saturday evening. We're
super-pumped about it because a lot of our favorite artists from around
here will be playing as well and we're totally going to get to hang out
with them!!
Peace,
J
April 15, 2009
And we're back!! Our server was down for ten days and today I picked it up from the repair shop, plugged it in, and presto! We would like to thank everyone who enthusiastically cheered us on at the Rocking Tree auditions. We haven't heard yet if we've made it into the festival so keep your fingers crossed! And to all my friends in the US who are out in the streets for the Tea Party Protests today - FIGHT THE POWER!!
Peace,
J
March 19, 2009
As it happens, we're now playing a mini set on APRIL 4, not March 21 as we previously told people. It's still at Par Place at around 7:30 pm, and it will still be cool and fun, only our suntans may have faded a bit more.
Peace,
J
March 15, 2009
We're playing four songs at a fundraiser on Saturday night. If
you're anywhere near Prince Albert come on out to Par Place on Saturday
March 21 at around 7:30 pm. Lots of music and shenanigans to be had.
Our drummer Ian and I just got back from Cuba so you can also check out
our sweet suntans!
Peace,
J
March 2, 2009
I had a dream last night where my engaged friend was told by his
fiance that she was actually a lesbian and she wanted to call off the
wedding. He wasn't upset at all, in fact he enlisted me to help find
her a mate. For some reason we hooked her up with a lady from England
who flew here with her 5 year old daughter in tow. We met them for
brunch, my friend, his ex-fiance, even my parents and siblings were
there! The lady walked in with her daughter and then said, "Look honey,
there's your new Mommy". My friend's ex whispered to me that she wasn't
comfortable with the kid calling her Mommy right off the bat like that,
so I took the lady aside and let her know. She got really upset and
stormed out and headed right back to England and then I woke up.
Peace,
J
January 27, 2009
We have a new member! We would like to welcome Kurt Johns on
keyboards, guitar, and vocals to our Bridges Of Light family.
I've known Kurt for most of my life and played in Idle Thoughts with
him for over ten years. When I was putting Bridges Of Light together in
the summer of 2008 I asked Kurt if he was interested in coming along
for the adventure. At the time, he had just finished recording an album
with his own project, "Softbox", and he felt that between that and Idle
Thoughts there wouldn't be time to devote to a new project. Happily,
now that Idle Thoughts is going on hiatus for the foreseeable future,
he was able to jump on board. In the one rehearsal we have had with
him, the songs took on a whole new and exciting dimension as he added
cool orchestral sounds and sweet analog lead sounds to the
arrangements. We can't wait to get on a stage and show him off to our
friends out there.
In other news, our song Float has been picked by reviewers to be the
"Track Of The Day" on Garage Band! Just click the graphic below to go
check it out (you can play the song from there too!)
Peace,
J
January 15, 2009
I've been busy over the last few days handling the business affairs
of Bridges Of Light. I don't mind doing it but I certainly prefer
writing songs and playing onstage! Well of course, who wouldn't? I
remember the exact moment when I decided I would be a professional
musician. I was in Grade 8 and two older Grade 9 guitar guys wanted to
play Wipe Out at the school variety night. They enlisted me because I
was the percussionist in our school band, and so I had access to both
the drums AND the guitar amp from band. We did the show and a bunch of
girls screamed when I did the drum solos. Now these were girls I saw
every day in the hallways. Up to now, they had never screamed when they
saw me. In fact I'm pretty sure they didn't notice me much at all. But
here they were screaming! "This is it," I thought, "this is what I'm
going to do from now on!"
I've been lucky, but I've also been determined. I remember teachers
telling me I should get a "real" career and play music as a hobby. I
seem to recall that most of them seemed to HATE their jobs. It inspired
me to do the opposite of what they said. Fortunately my parents always
supported me (except for a few qualms about me choosing to tour England
with a band instead of finishing my degree at university), and I've
always made enough money playing music to pay the rent and buy
pornography (just kidding, I have the internet!).
Peace,
J
January 13, 2009
A wise man once said:
You know that feeling you get when you hold a newborn baby in your
arms? Kind of like the universe has a meaning and this baby is a symbol
of new life and you're overcome by awe and wonder?
That's spirituality!
On the other hand, if you're overcome by a need to find something
sharp and mutilate the baby's genitalia...
That's religion!
Peace,
J
January 9, 2009
It's my birthday today and so I get to reflect and meditate on ME!
Jehovah's Witnesses don't celebrate birthdays because they can
encourage adherents to focus too much on themselves and not on
spiritual matters. Many Buddhists use their birthday to practice
generosity to others, because they feel it is precisely those special
days in our lives when family and friends gather that we are presented
with the opportunity to do so. Me, I think I will drink too much and
engage in rowdy (and possibly immoral) activities. I think that while
my way is definitely less virtuous than the aforementioned ones, it
still has merit because it involves altering reality, and I think
that's an excellent way to celebrate since a perspective change seems
almost mandatory on a birthday. Admittedly, alcohol has to be one of
the clumsiest ways to alter reality, but I like the taste of cold beer
and unlike other substances I could name, it will still allow me to
make some type of conversation. In fact, it COULD make me really
magnanimous and more prone to the type of generosity practiced by my
Buddhist friends. And if I drink WAY too much, who knows - maybe I'll
wind up stumbling around town knocking on random doors, just like the
JWs. So maybe I can incorporate LOTS of different traditions in my
birthday celebration. Here's to hoping trouble is just around the
corner!
Peace
J
January 7, 2009
Last night I had a dream that I was playing in a club and some of my
friends came out to see me. After a little while they said they were
tired and they were going home, but then I found out that they actually
went somewhere else, and they knew that they were going there all
along. The worst part is that when I woke up I remembered that this
actually happened to me once, plus my so-called girlfriend was one of
them. Now I've been depressed all day. Probably tonight I'll have a
dream where nice things happen and it will turn out to be JUST a dream.
Blah.
Peace
J
January 5, 2009
To figure out what side you're on in the current Israel-Gaza
conflict, begin by asking yourself, "Did God give that piece of land to
the Jews?"
If your answer is yes, then you're on the side of the Jews. If no, then
ask, "Did God give that stretch of sandy desert to the Muslims?"
If you said yes, your definitely in Mohammed's camp. If still no, then
there could be hope for you. Maybe you believe that both sides are
hopelessly deluded and that God, if he exists, certainly must have
better things to do than dole out real estate to various desert tribes.
Do you realize that if Jerusalem had invested in a couple of lunatic
asylums a few thousand years ago, all of this could have been avoided?
Peace
J
January 4, 2009
When I'm in a cold sober state of mind, I can think logically about
the concept of oneness and even discuss it rationally with friends
without getting too freaked out about it. But I find that when I'm in a
meditative state, the concept of oneness makes me feel really antsy and
uncomfortable, and I just want to stop thinking about it.
I've been pondering this and I think that maybe when I'm talking
with people about oneness I don't really FEEL the sensation of it
because after all, I'm Jason talking to another person. What's so "One"
about that? It's only at those meditative times when the Jason layers
start to dissolve away that the concept becomes uncomfortable (maybe
because it seems all too real without my ego there). Well, I have
to solve the dilemma because it's certainly been making meditation time
less relaxing!
Peace
J
January 3, 2009
A cloud of consciousness. At rest, outside time and space. It is One
with itself. How should it experience itself? What can it do when it is
One, existing
outside time? It might be able to create a bubble, a universe where
time can pass. Things will change and evolve inside the bubble, so that
any consciousness residing therein will be provided with the wonderful
illusion of time passing. Everything in the bubble (the universe) is
made of consciousness. The actual rocks and fire and gas and ice are
not tactile objects - they only exist if consciousness observes them.
Now consciousness can enter the bubble - enter the hairless apes that
have been evolved for exactly this purpose. Of course, consciousness
that enters the apes will be like a baby. This is the essence of the
experience. Over the lifetimes of all those billions of creatures,
consciousness will rediscover itself, even as it remains connected (and
One) with the consciousness outside the bubble.
Now remember, all of the billions of sentient creatures that are
inhabited by the One consciousness are only babies. There ARE no
grown-ups on planet Earth (which explains a lot, really). So what
happens when consciousness evolves? If consciousness takes the next
step in it's evolution inside the bubble, then all of the sentient
beings will suddenly become aware that they are One. Not brothers and
sisters, not closely related. One. Total awareness. In other words, you
may have never been to Paris, but you will know your way around like
you've lived there all your life because you are One with millions of
people who have done just that. You have never performed open heart
surgery before, but you will know exactly how to do it because you are
One with every surgeon that ever learned how. You will be Gandhi. You
will be Hitler. You will be Mohammed and Jesus and Buddha. There is NO
difference between them and you because individuality is simply an
illusion brought on by the one consciousness inhabiting so many beings
simultaneously.
And what happens then? I don't know, but thinking about the maybes
is a
fun pastime! For starters, if we stay here in this plane of existence
it seems like it would take some getting used to. There would be no
more commerce. Why buy and trade with yourself? You ARE the farmers and
the fishermen and the cows and the chickens, so you just consume what
you need for maintaining the biological you. Say for a moment, we were ONLY biological beings - existing
without consciousness.
Our only imperatives would be to eat and reproduce. We would also sleep
and defecate once in a while, but that's about it. No music or dancing.
No painting pictures or pondering of mysteries. Those things are the
activities of consciousness.
Peace
J
DECEMBER 28, 2008
So the album is finished, and we have the first couple of hundred
advance copies in our hands. We're plotting our course for 2009. Our
plans include a sweet CD release party, plus a few choice dates and
maybe even a summer festival or two. We've never officially played live
(outside of parties) so everyone is itching to go!
If you want a copy of the "Live For What's Beautiful" album,
the best thing to do is email me at bridges@jasonmoon.com or
phone me at (306) 961-3106 if you're close by to me and we can arrange
an exchange (you give me ten bucks, I give
you disc).
Peace
J