Filling the void in one's soul with love or fear

I've been thinking that maybe we all have a void in our lives that needs to be filled. Maybe we are all meant to do something great, maybe we are all meant to love, and I don't just mean romantically, I mean love one another, as God loves us.

Faith, Hope and Love are the greatest gifts that we humans can possess, and of those three the greatest is love.

So, I've been thinking, if we're all built to love, then could it be that some people don't know how to love properly, or even worse, have replaced love with something else? In the absence of love, could something else grow. e.g, fear, hatred, lust, anger, bitterness and envy? I think it could happen. Because we see so many people wondering around like a lost soul - angry and bitter.

And we ask, where is the love? (thank you Black Eyed Peas)

We're all meant to love, but love is a gift and any gift must be cherished and nurtured. I once read somewhere that if you harbor bitterness, happiness docks somewhere else.

If we don't love then we fear instead. Fear produces every negative emotion we know, fear stifles and suffocates our lives, it straps us in mentally and keeps us from living our lives truly free, as God intended us to be - free.

Love, true love, not the media version of love is the ONLY thing that can save our souls from perishing. Love is the only healing agent, the only cleanser that makes everything alright.

That line from Moulin Rouge has been stuck in my head for years now - 'The greatest thing you'll ever learn is to love and be loved in return.'

What am I listening to

Sooo...nowadays I'm digging up these guys:

Crown City Rockers (Earthtones)
DJ Krush (Zen)
The Roots (various albums...)
Q-Tip (Amplified & Renaissance)
Tears for Fears (Elemental)
Primus (Miscellaneous Debris)
Death Cab for Cutie (Plans)


Look out for the next installment soon-ish!!!

Who I'm listening to....First installment

You know, it dawned on me....I never write about who I'm listening to...I mean, I'm a musician and I never write about who I'm digging....so here it is.....my first installment of what's playing today, this week, right now as we speak....on my home speakers:

Jean Louis
Victor Lafuente - Six strings for one heart
The Roots of Chica - Psychedelic Cumbias from Peru (Various Artists)
Shakti with John Mclaughlin - Natural Elements
Morglbl - Grotesk
The Mothers - Fillmore East - June 1971
John Frusciante - The Empyrean
African Virtuoses - The Classic Guinean Guitar Group
John Abercrombie - Class Trip
Meshell Ndegeocello - Bitter



And thats a wrap.....

Quality vs. Money.....Rock vs. Soca

I went to see CHECKlist and Skid Nevely last night at Casa de Ibiza. Every Thursday night is 'Live Alternative' music there, it's been drawing a fairly decent crowd over the last few months. Both bands were tight each have a very unique sound. The overall acoustics of the venue needs to be worked on though, last night I couldn't hear the vocals at all.

I was talking after to Drew Gonsalves and Jason Kernahan about the state of music, the pop market and the TNT music scene. I was lamenting that Rock/Metal/Alternative doesn't get any funding as say compared to 'Our culture' - SOCA, which is sponsored heavily, on both a government and private corporate level. Soca is lauded as our pride and joy. but if you talk to many musicians and music lovers alike, they will ALL agree that the quality of the average soca song is TERRIBLE - songs lack originality (in some cases stealing music from foreign acts), lyrical content is a joke, and it's not uncommon to have a few soca songs each carnival season 'sharing' the same music. I mean, the exact music, same key and everything.

After all, original soca ideas are hard to come by. Didn't you know?

It was then that Jason said, 'Yes, but look at the quality of Soca vs. the quality of Rock here'. Nearly all rock/alternative bands here are self-financed. It's truly a labour of love for the average rock musician, and clearly the quality of the product shows. And the rock bands are getting less, they're growing. Their songs are well crafted and the fans are loyal. Sure the market is small, and media could do a lot more to help promote the 'scene' here. In fact, it's fair to say that radio, which has the power to promote has more often that not, held back local artistes here, ESPECIALLY with respect to the local rock scene.

Still, nonetheless, it was refreshing to hear Jason's point of view, that for all the funding and publicity that soca music and their artistes get, their music is below sub-standard and almost anyone with a brain can see that. Well at least, that's my opinion (the brain part at least).

Heck, the fact that this little rock scene has survived all these years without public, proper support from the media, the private sector and the government is a success story in itself.

I only hope someday soon, the general public will awake to see that rock 'n roll in TNT is a great thing, and it's only getting better. Will little or no money to be made from this, it truly is a labour of love.

Wish I could play in a symphony

So, I sat yesterday watching the ARTS channel with my dad, he loves the classics. I told him, 'Man, I wish I could play guitar in an orchestra'.

But then we both realized after counting all the instruments there, that guitar is seldom used in symphony. I mean there have been Concertos featuring guitar works in the past, surely (e.g. Concierto de Aranjuez).

But usually, guitar is not included among other orchestral instruments.

Why? is my next question. I have heard and seen guitar played with other stringed instruments in a 5-piece chamber music movement, but not in a full-scale symphony.

So....I'm putting this out there. I hope someday to play an entire suite, on guitar, alongside a full orchestra. Heck, I'll even wear a tux!

If not, I'll settle for playing guitar in a chamber setting, or getting one of my songs used as score for a movie, that's another dream of mine, but that's another blog altogether.

One of those unexpected moments that you treasure forever

So....I teach guitar for a life (not a living). I teach privately and at two schools - St. Andrews and my old high-school - Fatima College.

Friday, 2nd July I was asked to recommend a few of my students to perform at the orientation ceremony for newcomers to the school. So we decided the easiest thing to play would be 'Redemption Song' by Bob Marley. We even had a singer, some random kid who just started coming and sitting through the guitar class early on in the term, he didn't want to learn guitar, but he said he wrote lyrics and sang.

So here we were - four student guitar players, one teacher accompanying them and one singer, performing to the freshmen of Fatima College, along with the Principal, teachers and parents.

We got a great introduction by the MC, who even mentioned that I was an 'Old-Boy' giving back to my school.

Things were going pretty decent, we got through the first two verses and choruses, had reached the bridge and for the final verse, the singer grabbed the mic, rocked back and started clapping. Next thing I know, the entire hall (which was jam-packed) is clapping along.

It was great. It was a moment totally unplanned and perfect.

It was one of the best feelings I've ever had performing. I know it was just one song, and I know it was at my old school. And no one said after 'Hey, that was great!' But somehow, I had a great sense of happiness and fulfillment when it was all over.

Thank you God for the miracle of music in my life. Thank You!

Anyone can change if they want to....

Change is the only thing that's constant as the saying goes.

Change also doesn't come easy. Sometimes it happens overnight, (like a thief taking away in one fell swoop what you took years to build) and other times it's slow and painful.

When it's personal change, then it's an on-going struggle really, because deep down we know what needs attention within ourselves - be it medical, physical, financial, emotional or spiritual. We know but we don't always accept the truth.

Our old ways want to trick us into thinking that there's nothing wrong with us. But if we are on a path to continuous self improvement, we must be willing to face the music and be truthful with ourselves.

Truth hurts. It does. The truth about ourselves isn't always pretty, but then again life isn't always a bed of roses either, it's a continuous cycle of build, destroy and rebuild again.

The purpose of all of this is not to accumulate massive structures within our lives, but to enjoy the journey and be willing to improve ourselves so we can be the best for ourselves and other people.

Positive change is the hardest thing to do, I think.