NEW BLOG!

Hi all,
I really appreciate the hell out of everyone that has supported this site for so long. I was recently picked up by masslive to write for them. Therefor, this site is probably going to take a backseat. The only differences between the new blog and this one is the lack of swearing. Which is probably a good thing. So if you wish to continue reading please click on this :

http://feedback.blogs.masslive.com

Word.

twinkie and a flashlight

Friday, Oct. 20th 2006
8PM

PACE

www.pioneerarts.org

MARK SCHWABER with ROB CONNELLY and JOSHUA CHURCHILL (formerly known as home.)
with
STEPHEN BRODSKY of CAVE IN
and
OWEIHOPS

$5 in advance at Night Owl Records
www.nightowlrecords.net
or $7 at the door.

I had this realization a few weeks ago. It hit me like a ton of bricks. The entire notion of world peace is a completely humanist faux pas. (This is especially crushing for me having been heavily influenced by beauty pageants since I was little.) As animals we are not meant to be entirely peaceful. By nature we are protective, self-indulgent and ambivalent to the all encompassing halo of peace. (Seriously. Relax. Whatever it is you’re worried about is just something that you should be taking prescription meds for. At some point, probably very soon, the earth will swat us away like the bug that we are.) Take what we’ve earned, we fight. Harm our young, we fight. (Give us 3 bottles of Zima and 2 Percosets and we knock down newspaper boxes on Main St. on our way to the bench in the park where we’ll spend the night hoping that the morning won’t bring stifling sunshine and a warm puddle of urine on our Ipod.) Whether it is with fists or words. We are not unlike bears, sharks, crickets, dogs etc etc. It is not in our genetic makeup to be entirely peaceful. I know that as a highly evolved creature (Justin Timberlake), capable of backing our decisions from an intellectual stance, we are much more probable to avoid cruel interactions by looking to our brains to serve us right from wrong. (You would think that it would also afford us the probability detector capable of telling us NOT to drink that 15th beer on a Tuesday.) To help us sway those nasty, adrenalized passions. This may be the case on paper, but it rarely happens. The exception to prove the rule. The rule that we are incapable of really getting along. (Except for American Idol winners. Flawless beings, they are.)

That made me feel better. Made me breathe a little easier. Made me realize that our president and his cohorts are just a bunch of assholes. Terrell Owens, an arrogant schmuck. Every Yankee fan in or surrounding the Bronx, an impish rube. People who use the word “resolve.” Motorcyclists that run their bikes for 10 minutes before driving them away. I guess the closest I (or you) can come to peace is through an inner one. A self imposed cleansing of the conscience. (If you’re going to perform this cleansing yourself I highly recommend using a flashlight and a twinkie. And for God’s sake, please read the instructions first).

You can't see planes

I went to the movies last week. The girl with the twitch that waits on me most afternoons actually asked me what I was going to see. Our usual interactions are “Would you like the extra large for 11 cents more?” or “Any M+M’s or Raisinetes with that?” I inevitably reply “No thanks.” I see her most every week. Long, dark hair. Very nerdy, like myself except she’s not trying as hard as I do. Her hat is always crooked and she has a notable twitch. I’m told that those kinds of slight facial ticks are related to one of several things. Tourettes. Abuse. Crashing a car through the window of a Denny’s at 4AM. You know.

Anyway, I feel strangely connected to her. She doesn’t really want to be working there. I don’t really want to go to the movies by myself all the time, but I do. I’m an addict. You could produce a movie about a piece of shit that speaks French and slays dragons while simultaneously being a debt collector and I’d go see it. Actually, I already saw that one. It’s called “Wedding Crashers”.

I’ve never talked with her, but I kinda consider her a friend. We interact privately. She’s quiet and seems nice. I’m quiet and don’t. But she threw a whole new step in our relationship the other day. I wasn’t ready for it. What was I going to see? Wait, you really want to know. I can tell. She’s made a breakthrough. I can tell she’s really reaching but I’m too much of a jaded prick to help her with it.

I was so used to her being one of those corporate employees. Where they make you say the same shit every time someone walks up to the counter. “Hello and welcome to Pride.” being one of my favorites. You can see these people programming themselves not only to say this ad nauseum but to keep themselves from biting off their own arm.

Does she like me too? Does she finally recognize me? Or has she been there long enough now that she’s starting to feel a little more comfortable? Could be a little of all those things. I can tell though, this is hard for her. To be socially gracious in general. Not because she isn’t kind. But because something in her doesn’t fire quite right when it comes to being comfortable and confident. I can completely relate.
“World Trade Center”
I wasn’t going to see that movie, so I don’t know why I even said it.
“Oh, it’s really good. I really liked it.”
“Cool. Thanks.”
I went into my movie 10 minutes early so I could listen to Phil Collins’ “Take me home”. For some reason that song sounds fucking amazing in a giant empty theater. Probably not the review that Phil would want, but it does. I was so disappointed in my movie girlfriend telling me that World Trade Center was “Really good.” Not because I’m being the leftist indie-rock judgmental asshole because I’ll gladly go see that movie. I thought about it actually. I thought that every 15 minutes I would jog out of the theater isle decorated with blue cloth walls and dim red lights and into the one playing Snakes On A Plane. Swapping out every 15 minutes. WTC. Snakes On A Plane. One to the other and so forth.

I think I was disappointed in her because I think she gave me a milquetoast response. She says that same thing to everyone, I thought. An extension of the sales pitch. I really thought we were going to the next level, and I’ll be honest. I was scared. But excited. You know what? I’m not just going to sit here and take this bullshit. We HAD something. I knew it would grow and I know deep down somewhere in her, she knew it too. I just can’t let this go. And I need some Twizzlers. I leave my seat with my half eaten nachos, large Coke and New Edition song (Mr. Telephone Man, for the record, sounds fucking amazing no matter what listening environment you’re in) and make a break for the stand. Nervously, I ponder how I’m going to do this. How can I approach her again? After what she’s done to me. There are two people in line in front of me. Two teenagers (the male hitting his girlfriend in the head with a wrapped straw) and some surfer/80’s looking kid. The new Indie Rock, I surmise. Read about it in SPIN. Basically, a threesome of douchewhistles. That would make a great band name. Anyway, “I’m just trying to pass your class, Mr. Hand” is finally done getting his blue Slurpee (a movie theater faux pas) and I’m there. Frozen. Smiling though. It’s hard to smile I’m thinking. It’s almost physical, the pain. She looks at me. Twitches. She always twitches. She’s smiling too. I wonder if she’s fighting it like I am.
“May I have some Twizzlers please?”
“Sure”
No apology. Nothing.
“You can’t see planes crashing into buildings without Twizzlers.”
Just like that, it came out. Shot like a bitter, sarcastic bullet. I’m such an asshole.
“That’s true!” she says, smiling.
She still didn’t get it. She’s just selling this place. We’re done. I can’t believe it’s over. I’m never going to the movies again. Well, until Tuesday.

Cereal says it all.

Cereal says it all. 



Not often do you live in a time where art and entertainment are impacted in such ways as to immortalize a certain performer/writer/musician/athlete/artist. I’ve been lucky enough to watch Michael Jordan perform from start to finish. Manny Ramirez. Roger Clemens. Pedro Martinez. Lucky enough to listen to Elliott Smith. Bad Brains. Read David Eggers. Etc. Last night I went to see Lady In The Water. The new M. Night Shyamalan film. I must admit, first and foremost, that I’m not much of a superfan of the horror genre. Not that I despise it, it’s just normally not my thing. People regularly pan M Night’s films for being too predictable. Which I find hilarious. I know that plenty of people enjoy going to these types of pictures to crown themselves the next Sherlock Holmes. I regularly hear “I figured it out in the first half hour.” Well, good for you. I choose to let myself get lost in the art form and try not to turn it into a project for myself. Most of the people that claim to “figure out” these films are the people that can’t find golf balls in a golf bag. So I guess it’s some sort of reasoning/logic fulfillment that they lack in other aspects of their lives. Or maybe they just enjoy the challenge. Fine. Regardless, it drives me nuts when people use this formula as a benchmark for their review of a film. It’s kind of like saying “I knew the chorus of the song was coming, it was so predictable that it took something away for me.” Knowing the chorus of “Jealous Guy” by John Lennon is coming makes it no less a perfect song. I guess I’m just a fan of letting art cradle me and carry me off.


Lady In The Water officially makes M. Night a monster in my opinion. It is one of the smarmiest, smartest and most beautifully filmed movies I’ve seen in quite some time. He takes the best complicated neurosis of Paul Giamatti (son of former baseball commissioner, and huge Sox fan, A. Bart Giamatti) and pairs it with the stunning subtlety of Bryce Dallas Howard. The rest of the nameless, faceless cast is flawless and wonderfully understated. Well, the insanely talented Jeffrey Wright isn’t nameless but is just as transcendently humorous as his counterparts. It’s also a cinematographers dream. Now, I know nothing about filming a movie but I do appreciate innovative and intrinsically, esthetically pleasing landscapes. This film is loaded with them. Pieces at the start of the film that were shot in moonlight and nothing else. Dark and mysterious? Sure. But more importantly, real. You feel yourself standing in Giamatti’s shoes. There is also a scene that is in a shower where the curtain is used as the centerpiece. Separating the crossword-puzzled interpreter and the guild of conjoined hearts (which happens to be 5 stoners) from the alien mermaid figure in the hotel tub. I’m not making this up. Smart, moving, cryptic and strangely peaceful and uplifting. This is the first piece of art that Hollywood has funded since Eternal Sunshine. M Night Shyamalan is the finest of his peers. Someone that I will refer to in the same breath as Michael Jordan, David Eggers and Elliott Smith when weighing in my opinions of the true greats in entertainment of our generation.

6 in 6

June 10th 2006 at the Elevens in Northampton, MA 

Half way round the world. Well, half way round the year at least. So I figured I’d throw out my favorite records/films of 2006 thusfar. Let’s see what gets bumped by the end of the year.


Sounds

Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere
Flaming Lips – At war with the mystics
Dave Chappelle’s Block Party – Soundtrack
Quasi – When the going gets dark
Shadows Fall – Fallout from the war
Tool – 10,000 days


Sites

V For Vendetta
Dave Chappelle’s Block Party
Match Point
The New World
Munich
Mission Impossible 3


Busy lately. Just finished a mini tour with Matt Bachand of Shadows Fall. Much fun was had. Everyone treated us very well. I had to cancel a handful of shows because of a flare up in my allergies like I haven’t had in over 15 years. I use to get shots for them. Looks like I might have to again. My apologies to those that came out to support us. I feel horrible about cancelling but hopefully we’ll reschedule soon.


My record is getting some great reviews. I’m so thankful. The most recent one is on babysue.com. Here it is:


Mark Schwaber - The Killing Card (CD, Pigeon, Progressive pop)
This is an intriguing album that immediately caught our attention. Mark Schwaber creates uniquely entertaining music from a different perspective. His tunes combine highly melodic thoughtful vocal melodies with abstract musical passages...and the end result is extraordinarily effective. Instead of predictable tunes and cute arrangements, Schwaber writes and records mature, intellectual tunes that are sometimes reminiscent of Sufjan Stevens. There is a wealth of material to take in here. The Killing Card presents sixteen thought provoking compositions that flow by seamlessly...combining classic elements with unpredictable spontaneity. This man is bound to be a major player in the years to come. Cool reflective tracks include "The Pressure It Feeds," "Torture Ground," "Island of the Burning Trees," and "You Are Just Like Me. You Will Never Be Free." Recommended. (Rating: 5++)



You can read the others, as well as buy a copy of my new record “The Killing Card” by clicking here.


Spouse has wrapped up its first round of mixes for its forthcoming record. Wow. This might be my favorite record of theirs/ours yet. Which is big props coming from me, since “Nozomi” essentially changed my musical landscape.


Check out this magazine if you get the chance. My name was in it! Thanks to the great friends in Shadows Fall. You can get a copy here.

Horns! 

Please feel free to let me know if you have any records or movies that I left off my shortlist. I’m always game for new sites and sounds.

I promise nothing.

So I committed the official kiss-of-death foul. I said that I would be writing much more often on this site. As you can tell, that didn’t happen. My apologies. I have, however, been quite busy with many, many things.
The record release show we did at PACE was a huge success. Thanks in large part to several different folks. The Yucky Octopus guys and their fashion show were absolutely amazing. Chris (the band’s keyboardist/vocalist) really has a vision that seems to be shared by the rest of the band. I still say they sound like the Dead Kennedys. If the Kennedys started in 2005. So much cooler than all that other dime-a-dozen crap metal that plagues today’s airwaves.
I guess they turned away upwards of 60 people that night. Maybe we should do the show again? I don’t know. Probably not.
One of the highlights of the night for me was not only the sold out/highly attentive crowd but the fact that my friends Rob and Josh and I reunited for an impromptu performance of a song called “under them” from a band that we were in together from ’93-‘96 called “home.”. It was surreal for me, to say the least, to be performing a song with those 2 guys 11 years after the fact. Actually, our performance that night was literally our first in over a decade. We didn’t rehearse it and actually didn’t decide to do it until 3PM that day. I still say that of all the great bands I’ve been a part of “home.” was the one that I had the strongest connection with. We bonded on another level. An unexplained one. Almost as if we were born to make music together. It’s truly a feeling I’ve never had reproduced. That night brought back some of that fire. It was truly inspiring.


I’m looking forward to these upcoming shows that I have with old friend Matt Bachand. I guess it’s all over the internet now. Turns out that Matt is pretty famous.


I went to see The Roots last night at the Mullins Center with good friend and drummer extraordinaire JJ O’Connell. Mind blowing. I have to say, it was the most impressed I’ve ever been at a live show. They were easily the most talented, driven, inspired and creative band I’ve ever scene. Only Bad Brains moved me more. I suggest that everyone see them, regardless of what kind of brand you’ve stamped on hip hop. Their stuff is spiritual.
I have to go. Time to watch my DVD of Superfuzz. Don’t see red.
I promise nothing.
www.markschwaber.com

Fashion show

Friday, April 21st 2006 at 8PM. PACE. "The Killing Card" is officially released. Full band show with many crazy surprise. Yucky Octopus (and their fully realized fashion show) open. Tickets are $5 in advance at Night Owl Records. You can buy my new record at the show on this night or if you can't wait you can get it directly from me here : www.markschwaber.com


I'll be on tour with Matt Bachand of Shadows Fall at the end of May through June. Hope to see you at one of these shows.

chamber of water

Block party.
On March 14th I filled my day with music. You would think that most days of mine are filled with music. Owning a record store and playing in 3 bands. Even working at a bar with a great jukebox. I guess that theory would be correct in some ways. Although I think I tend to let music slip through one ear and out the other most days. It’s hard to get invested in the true spiritual element of music when you’re working. It becomes more of audio wallpaper for me. Yesterday I got to truly submerse myself in two wonderful arenas. I picked up the new Ben Folds DVD. It’s a concert in Perth where it is just him on the piano and a ninety piece orchestra. The arrangements were all done by various Australian composers/arrangers/performers. Whether or not you enjoy Ben Folds music (which I ecstatically do) this is one of the most moving things around. Just the sheer girth of ninety people pushing gorgeous air at you from a Petri dish shaped stage is quite an impressive thing. There is a moment between the songs “Annie Waits” and “Brick” that floored me. There is a moaning, groaning, living sheet of animal-like sound coming from at least forty or so string players that sets a enigmatic tone. A subtle, swaying beast crawls on the floor. Amazing.


Just a handful of hours after watching that DVD I went to see Dave Chappelle’s Block Party. I was in tears at least four times during the course of the film. I have a whole new appreciation of hip hop now. I think I easily wrote it off for a long time because of my insatiable appetite for melody and simplicity. But hip hop IS melodious. And simple in its groove by nature, hip hop leaves very little to still desire. Sometimes, I think I pigeonholed many rappers as misogynists/racist power mongers. I think that is still true of many mainstream performers. In all forms of music and art. However, the fearless leaders of the true spirit of the hip hop underground paint a very different and intriguing picture.


Kanye West exudes pure passion during his performance of “Jesus Walks” (which is simply one of the most powerful songs of the last decade). Talib Kweli and the multi-talented Mos Def do their best at shaking the crowd into a frenzy. Dead Prez ignite a hardcore fire much in the same way that early Public Enemy or MDC or The Dead Kennedy’s did 20 years ago. Lauren Hill and Fugees re-unite for the first time. I once spoke with Archie Shepp about many a great jazz players. He spoke of Coltrane, Miles and several other monsters of that genre with such great ease and familiarity that it was mind blowing for me. The only person he said was feared by everyone in the genre was Billie Holiday. She exuded this presence of respect and sheer and utter once-in-a-lifetime talent. She was the only person that made everyone shake in their collective shoes when she walked in the room. You get the feeling that Lauren Hill is the Billie Holiday of our time. She just drips of something above and beyond everyone else in her field. Wyclef Jean gives an uplifting performance and speech backstage to an all black marching band from Ohio. Telling them to never blame the white man. That it is a huge copout. Urging them by slamming his hand on the table to make their lives what they want them to be and never make excuses. Demanding that they go to the public library everyday and create their own betterment. The Roots are the backing band for the whole thing and I’ll tell you, there might not be a better drummer on earth than ?estlove. Groove and feel just fall off that guys hands at all times. Dave Chappelle has a sort of manic poetry running through him. Of course he’s funny. And gimmicky. He has everything that most successful comedians have. Great timing (which he credits Thelonius Monk teaching him), a funny voice, great facial ticks and a genuine “this is a good guy” feel to him. Deeper, however, I felt a somewhat turmoil-ridden man trying to discover what it is that he is here for. I read of his recent disappearance to Africa. Cutting off ties with his Comedy Central contract. Turning the comedic world on its ear. He lives in Southern Ohio. Roams the streets of his quiet, very white rural town with a sort of general glaze of a man searching for something more. He visits children in foster homes and makes you truly feel that he’s the person he comes across as. Genuine. Sweet. I felt that if this movie was never made you would still be able to find him doing all the things he did in it. Nothing seems forced by industry pressure. His actions seem real. His interest in throwing a party for those who might never get to be a part of something of this magnitude seem completely realized and pure. Seeing what this music did to the people in attendance was extremely moving. Then it hit me. Three quarters of the way through the film. Oh my God. He’s the next Richard Pryor.


I walked out of it thinking a lot about how lucky I was. How lucky we all are. We have such great access to such great art at all times. I felt like a better person somehow. Just by spending my day with these two very different portrayals of music and their respective environments. It made me wonder what it was about music that can shape our days in such overwhelming ways. Are we just chambers of water and muscle reflecting and absorbing sound waves? Do we live on a spiritual plane that is higher than anyone can comprehend? Where sounds create golden envelopes for us to file away emotions only to be able to open them and re-live them at anytime? Is it science or God? Why did I leave with these questions in my head? Well, isn’t that the beauty of music? You just never know what it will do for/to you.

be a paypal, would ya?

My new CD "The Killing Card" can be purchased online by simply going to paypal and entering this address:
night.owl.records@verizon.net
and sending $12.99 shipping and handling included. I will send one to you the following day. Thanks so much everyone.
Or if you live in Western Massachusetts you can simply stop by here to pick one up:
www.nightowlrecords.net

Just thought I'd share

These are 2 pictures of Spouse outside a early morning radio show in Maine in early 2005. I like them, however I don't think I ever noticed how much taller I am than the collective Spouse.
Just thought I'd share.

glow sticks and kicking the horse.

See! I told you I'd write more often. But maybe by writing more often you'll be able to tell that I'm not really much of a writer after all. I just have to rely on having a solid foundation on which to begin. When I don't have one I'll just sound like every other blogging dipshit. I'm afraid of this. Very much.
Went to see Killswitch Engage last night at Cabot St. in Chicopee-by-the-sea. Good times. It was my first time seeing them live (which I feel a bit goofy about since I've been real good friends with a couple of the guys for quite a few years now). So much energy and passion just pours out of that band. It truly was remarkable to witness. My favorite story from the night? I tipped the bartender 2 dollars for the water I ordered and she couldn't believe that it was her tip. She asked me if I needed 2 more waters (because they were a dollar each). I told her no, that the money was hers and she looked at me like I just told her that I cured her Mother's cancer. I feel bad for people that work in that environment. They see 300 people a night and probably walk away with 40 dollars in tips after a 6 hour shift.
Henning's (pictured above) in-store record release show was wonderful. Glow sticks were had by all. You really should buy his new solo CD. It's my favorite work of his to date.
I watched the Sixth Sense yesterday. For the first time in a couple of years. I found it to be overwhelmingly touching. Maybe it's because I have a cold. Either way, between M. Night and Charlie Kaufman I think that the quirky romance genre has never held more hope.
That's it. See! I told you it would suck. Now I'm just going to be known as the guy that kicks the dead horse.

Whitesnake vs. Baseball

So, my record is available locally on March 7th. Nationally on May 2nd. You’ll be able to get it at most local independent record stores or online through my newly discovered website www.markschwaber.com
I’ll be doing a tour of the Northeast at the end of May with Matt Bachand of Shadows Fall. Should be great. It’s the “Can’t harbor a donkey” tour. Don’t ask.
Spouse has been busy recording its 4th record in the cozy winter hills of Cummington. Yesterday Erin McKeown came by to sing on one of the new songs. She is a wonderfully cool person. I felt like I knew her for years after just spending 6 hours together. I hope to catch her at Club Helsinki this weekend. I guess her new record is going to be songs from the 1920’s. Should be pretty stunning given the strength of her voice. Hey, maybe she’ll sing on one of my songs one day. We talked about it. I have to say that this Spouse record is going to be my favorite record of theirs/ours to date. It’s chalk full of strange, Nozomi-like quirk and wonderfully manic Love Can’t Save This Love-like pop.
What am I listening to you didn’t ask? I’m excited about getting this CD I ordered by a band called I Am Spartacus. Today I’m listening to Monster Ballads (which is cock rock balladering from Whitesnake and the like) and the Baseball soundtrack. You know, the Ken Burns thing. Jesus, maybe I’m losing my mind.
I’m going to try and write in this blog more often. I think I always say that but this time I really mean it. OK, maybe I don’t. Gotta go. More than words is on the stereo and I have to sing the harmony. Please come see me sometime.

Sun. February 26th 2006 @ 9PM– The Basement – Northampton, MA – www.iheg.com
Solo opening for Matthew Hebert (www.matthewhebert.com)

Sat. March 4th 2006 @ 6PM – Platterpus Records – Westfield, MA –
www.platterpus-records.com
Solo in-store with Matthew Hebert.

Tues. March 28th 2006 @ 9PM – Bishop’s Lounge – Northampton, MA – www.martyhelly.com/bishops.html
Solo with special opener Matt Bachand of Shadows Fall (www.shadowsfall.com)

Wed. April 12th 2006 @ 9PM – Apollo Grille – Easthampton, MA
Solo with openers Matt Bachand (Shadows Fall) and Alice Austin (www.myspace.com/thelavas) ALL AGES.

Alice Austin

RECORD RELEASE SHOW!
FRI. APRIL 21ST 2006 @ 8PM – PACE – EASTHAMPTON, MA – (www.pioneerarts.org)
Please come celebrate the release of “The Killing Card”
Very special opening act; Yucky Octopus (www.myspace.com/yuckyoctopus)
ALL AGES. Tickets on sale now at Night Owl Records www.nightowlrecords.net
413-527-2444

Yucky Octopus


Matt Bachand

Thur. May 18th 2006 @ 8PM – Abbey Lounge – Somerville , MA - http://www.abbeylounge.com/
Solo w/ Matt Bachand, Spouse(www.spousemusic.com) and Moonshot

Sun. May 21st 2006 4-6PM – WXOJ Valley Free Radio 103.3 – http://www.valleyfreeradio.org/
Solo performance on air from 4-6PM. Also some guest DJ-ing.

Mon. May 22nd 2006 @ 8PM – The Red Door – Portsmouth, NH -
Solo appearance with Matt Bachand.

Tue. May 23rd 2006 @ 8PM – Johnny D’s – Somerville, MA - http://www.johnnyds.com/
Solo w/ Matt Bachand and Alastair Moock (www.moock.com)

Wed. May 24th 2006 @ 9PM - The Weathervane - Brattleboro, VT
Solo w/ Matt Bachand and Hayseed Chrome.

Thur. May 25th 2006 @ 9PM – Pete’s Candy Store – Brooklyn, NY -
Solo opening for Matthew Hebert (www.matthewhebert.com). Also with Matt Bachand.

Fri. May 26th 2006 @ 8PM – Aboveground Records – Vineyard Haven, MA
Solo in-store with Matt Bachand.

Sat. May 27th 2006 @ 9PM – Offshore Alehouse – Vineyard Haven, MA
Solo opening for the Kahoots (www.myspace.com/kahoots) and Matt Bachand.

Tue. May 30th 2006 @8PM – The Space – Hamden, Ct. – www.thespace.tk
Solo performance w/ Matt Bachand

May 31st 2006 @ 8PM – The Flywheel – Easthampton, MA – www.flywheelarts.org
Solo opening for Blame Game (www.myspace.com/blamegame). Also Matt Bachand.

everything else is none of your business

Where to begin?
First off, I wish to thank those of you who have been faithfully reading this. I truly appreciate it. It’s helped spark an interest in writing that I never knew I had. A secret and somewhat nasty little habit that I had been burying I suppose. So thanks. I mean that.
It’s been sometime since I’ve updated this thing. I feel bad about that. To my defense however, it’s been a wonderfully busy time. Let’s see if I can cover it all.
I finished mastering my next record and started designing the layout for it with dear friend J Johnson at Designfarm. During this time I had one monstrously helacious time with the foundation that owns the estate of Henry Darger (the artist from which I picked a 3 panel piece of artwork for “the killing card”. The cover photo is shown above). Ceaseless emails and phone calls. A purchasing and re-purchasing of copyright rights between 3 different organizations. It instilled some panic but only a healthy amount. The kind that keeps things electric and firing. I realized during the mastering process and initial layout sessions that this entire record is and exact replica of an anxiety attack. It starts frantically and grows slowly towards a horrific crash and then curtails you back into what you think is safety. In reality it’s simply a cushion for the next inevitable takeoff. Sure, make the metaphor yourself. Picture yourself taking off on a plane. As it reaches its peak altitude it is struck by lightning and descends erratically but ultimately safely. A friend said to me (just last night) that she believed that the true purpose of art was to make the truth beautiful. I can’t tell you how strongly that resounded with me. I won’t be so bold as to presume that I’ve done that with the themes of this forthcoming record, but God knows that that’s where my attempts in all forms of art lay their collective heads. The CD should most certainly be out at the turn of March. I promise.
Also, thanks to J Johnson, I have my own website now. Check it out. It's got a link to this blog there as well as the other shit that all music websites have. www.markschwaber.com
Jen and I expanded our record store. It’s almost too overwhelming to describe what it means to build something from scratch and nurture the ever-loving shit out of it. Thinking that it might be all for naught. Then one day you stand back and discover that you are capable of doing it. And not only capable, but on some levels you have succeeded. Come see for yourself sometime.
The holidays were great, albeit a bit quick and wearing. The store was bustling (well, let’s be relative here, we’re not exactly Best Buy. Thank God.) The last week before Christmas was definitely worth the wait business wise. We truly appreciate all of those of you that support us. It means more than you know.
I played a few solo shows that were really wonderful. I really enjoy playing to small crowds that are attentive. It makes it so much more special. Thanks to those of you who came out to the Apollo, Bishop’s Lounge and the Abbey Lounge in Somerville.
It’s been one month now. For those of you who don’t know, I asked Jen to marry me on Christmas morning. We cried. She said yes. Everything else is none of your business.