January 19, 2016

My Debut Album: Wise 'Trip' EP

You can listen to the finalized version of my entire album on SoundCloud.
It is also available on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, Amazon MP3, Deezer, and Rdio!


Wise 'Trip' EP is a "concept album," falling under the sub-genres of ambient, ambient industrial, and "space music," that provides the listener with a variety of unique mental impressions united by a thread of universal metaphysical concepts concerning life and reality.  'Trip' has a double-meaning: trip, as in a journey; and trip, as in a "head-trip".

My goal has been to create a truly fresh, unique, and rich listening experience, with each song being structured and composed to serve as a musical metaphor for the concepts and feelings I wanted to share.  I did not wish to be bound by common song structures in doing so--the structures are defined instead by the concepts themselves.

I have thrown in a mellow, alternative genre "bonus track" I recorded and produced in a little over an hour using a full-featured recording studio.  It was intentionally produced to give it an impromptu, "off-the-cuff" performance feel, with every instrumental and vocal track performed by Drake Holliday.  He has my thanks for letting me work with him on it, and for letting me share this song.

The lyrics for "Ascendency" were written by Taylor Podkranic.  I'm grateful to him for writing them specifically for me, and for how personally meaningful they are to me.  I'm further grateful for him transferring copyright ownership of the lyrics over to my record label.  All together, a great example of thoughtful altruism.

"Ascendancy" was a song born from a deeply personal struggle I had for many years. The primary concept conveyed musically is of moving from "darkness to light". The lyrics, which have strong ties to the mythology of the Phoenix (and were written for me by my friend Taylor Podkranic), are perfectly complimentary to the musical development of the song. The purpose of the song, as a whole, is to remind and inspire people, who may be in, or at least remember, that in their darkest hour, they can transcend their limits and struggles to be reborn into whoever they wish to be...

"Ascendancy" Lyrics
(Written by Taylor Podkranic)
©2015 Wise 'Trip' Records

[Verse 1]
Broken and beaten,
to the depths of my soul
Sundered and shaken,
will I ever be whole?
(Repeat Verse)

[Chorus 1]
Climbing higher and higher,
fists to the sky
Through the smoke and the fire,
screaming why... why!
Why did I fracture?
Why did I break?
Can I come back together?
What will it take?
No longer that boy
Reborn as a man
Embers burn in my eyes,
and now here I stand
...now here I stand

[Verse 2]
Self-loathing a cancer,
dragging me down
Choking on silence,
what then is the sound?
Of a soul as it's breaking,
as all lies are lost
As new eyes come open,
I know the cost

[Chorus 2]
Climbing higher and higher,
fists to the sky
Through smoke and the fire,
screaming why... why!
Why did I stumble?
Why did I fall?
Am I worth saving?
Am I worth it at all?
The answer is yes!
We deserve one more chance
A shot at redemption
I'm worth more than a glance
...more than a glance

[Bridge]
Because if you watch,
I'll burst into flames,
soar out of my ashes
Remember my name
Suffering can cleanse you,
each trial a gift
Harder, Faster, Stronger,
even mountains may shift
You have the power
Exert your will
Learn from this lesson,
as I am still...

[Final Chorus]
Climbing higher and higher,
fists to the sky
Through the smoke and the fire,
screaming I will not die
Now I can fly,
fists to the sky
I will not die
Now I can... fly...

[Outro]
What is broken,
may be mended... (x7)

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