In A Silent Way is the semi-overlooked Miles Davis masterpiece you need in your life

In A Silent Way is the semi-overlooked Miles Davis masterpiece you need in your life

Posted inMusic, Random Musings, Videos, Works by Eric
When I first discovered the music of Miles Davis in the late 1990s, it was something of a musical awakening for me. It came during a time when I was setting aside the strident music "purity" of my youth -- you know how some people will only listen to a specific kind of music and ONLY that kind of music? -- and exploring new frontiers in sound. Miles Davis certainly provided that. His personal story was compelling, but he was more than an intriguing figure. He had the tunes to back it up. LOTS of them, an ever-shifting career filled…
Miles Davis, music, and toll of institutional racism

Miles Davis, music, and toll of institutional racism

Posted inMusic, Politics, Random Musings, Rants
Miles Davis has been one of my favorite artists for close to 25 years. If I started going on about how his work has touched me, the scope of his influence, and the importance of his creative legacy, I'd be here all night. The act of expression through creation is sacred to me, and few exemplify this more powerfully than Miles Davis. Yet Youtuber Adam Neely makes an excellent point in the video below: A now infamous police brutality incident in 1959, just after the release of Davis' masterful Kind of Blue album, almost robbed the world of 30 more…
New zone out music: Second Slumber – Empty Nest (2020)

New zone out music: Second Slumber – Empty Nest (2020)

Posted inMusic, Works by Eric
Unlike writing, I've still kept music "pure." By that I mean it's still something I go to when I just want to freely express myself, pushing out what's in my head and heart and soul in an abstract way without worrying about whether or not it's "right." So when throughout 2019 I was working on an album I knew would end up being called "Empty Nest," it wasn't a formal project I was working towards -- dear lord I do too much of that -- it was just something I gravitated to when I wanted to escape my thoughts, cares,…
My new ambient record is here. It’s very mellow. Get ready to zone out and meditate

My new ambient record is here. It’s very mellow. Get ready to zone out and meditate

Posted inMusic, Works by Eric
In the spring of last year, I started experimenting with getting far more minimal in my music than usual, trading layers of drones for sparse sounds. Also had some ideas I wanted to play with involving using math to structure long, ever-shifting pieces. Taking those goals and a heaping helping of Brian Eno influence, i started messing with stuff. The result is the following album. Here's the opening track. Yes, it's very, very mellow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0oUKyrPAxw If you liked that, the whole thing is available for download and streaming. See below for links. The Experiment 4 - The Ambient Orchestra (2020)…
NEW MUSIC by ERIC: Second Slumber, Beyond the Pale Blue Dot, an experiment in blending drones and drums

NEW MUSIC by ERIC: Second Slumber, Beyond the Pale Blue Dot, an experiment in blending drones and drums

Posted inMusic, Works by Eric
Sometimes I record drones. Sometimes I record songs. Sometimes I experiment with simple electronic compositions. So what if I blended it all together? That's what I had in mind here. I wanted to capture the full band jam aspect of Slumbersigh and the drifting, moving, evolving drones of m2 with traditional backing instruments, enhanced with minor electronic stuff. Basically, I jammed with myself. (Dirty!) After a bunch of messing with the idea, some of which I'll upload later this year, an unofficial journey with Carl Sagan developed. It is Beyond the Pale Blue Dot. This is the first track: https://youtu.be/PS9M53m-DSI…