Voice

Finding a real voice in music (or any other art) is what engages our aesthetic attention. An artist must say something meaningful, whatever it may be. It may fall anywhere from “Let’s shake baby” to “We are all fundamentally, existentially, disconnected from each other” to a sound-sculpture that transcends language, but it’s got to be there to open possibilities for aesthetic response. Works have multiple, and even mysterious meanings. Voice gives shape to the artistic “object” that is presented, and plays over us when we listen.

A colorful voice is what I want to hear when I listen to music, and it’s what I try to put into mine.

For example, h&s played with Westside Proletariat ( http://wsphardcore.com ) in Lincoln last year. I’m not a huge hardcore listener but I rocked, loving it, believing it, hearing their voice. Scott, plus the friends who came for h&s, left the club rather than hear WSP. I think for them, the aggressive presentation covered their authentic voice.

Writing about the various musical voices taking part in Mr. Furious Records (h&s, “signs,” echoes, Shacker, and others…) will be happening. Struggling for a voice is important. It’s where real art happens.

[blog]

Today the Mr. Furious [blog] joins the ranks of millions of completely unread weblogs that populate the web. In the blog you can read about music – I imagine quite a bit of behind-the-scenes MFR stuff, things about the songs, and the occasional outside reference or review of something we’ve heard.

If you don’t like reading the blog inside the MFR page, the full link is http://mrfuriousrecords.blogspot.com. -h

Mic Check

We continue to add things to Mr. Furious, and this blog won’t be the last (i.e. art & lyrics, shopping cart, NEW MUSIC). I’m imagining a space to tell a little about the music, the recording process, and what I’m working on in a given week; it takes quite a while to bring a project from the writing the first songs to releasing it. Often, it’s been over a year. signs.comets was that way. Knowing Her Best was close. The nickel EP was even longer – I wrote “God Bless The Strokes” in November of 02 as I unpacked the first ProTools equipment Scottie and I bought for the studio.

This morning I bounced down a full mastered copy of Shacker’s Dimly Lit Room to check out on some different stereos, to see if it sounds finished. That will be the next thing up on MFR, maybe in a month or a little longer. We’ll have to take something down to make room for it, but you’ll think it’s worth it. See you,

-h

LIFTOFF

At 1:09 pm CST today, mrfuriousrecords.com is live, with two releases: Shacker’s Knowing Her Best and echoes’ nickel EP. What counts is the music, and the music is here, now.

Other features of the site that will arrive in the next week or two include the email list, album art & lyrics, and MFR blog. The store, and echoes shows, are coming as well.

Listen, enjoy, rock, and supply your feedback. I will be checking today & tomorrow to make sure the music is working before going to Nebraska for a short weekend – so if there is trouble, I’ll find out Sunday. SEE YOU -h

Imaginary Update

Mr. Furious Records does not exist quite yet, but there are just a few things left to do before we can launch. Finish the site, finish mastering echoes’ nickel EP and Shacker’s Knowing Her Best…, register the domain… and later, get the blog running and get the store ready for the older CDs and, eventually, the Catalog. I’ve been aiming to be live by the end of August for a few months now, and it looks like it might happen. See you… -h

PARDON MY PRETENSION, BUT ISN’T IT BLACKBEARD’S BIRTHDAY? | Shacker

“You sound like an early George Harrison meets Nada Surf.”

– Jesse Carmichael, Maroon5

“Great stuff – I like the way everything fits in the mix & the fun, melodic sensibility. Best of luck to you!”

– Michael Manring