This, The Howl: Emotional Writing and the Passion Continuum

Today's topic, chilblains, is lyrics. Specifically, the writing thereof and issues associated with it.

So the eternal dilemma I confront is a) How much of myself to put into them, and b) How obvious to make that connection. I'm a big fan of a lot of emotion in a lyric, but I'm also a massive opponent of anything either emo or ballady. So 90% of the reasons for be chucking a lyric in the bin end up being that it's either too dispassionate or too emotional.

But this got me thinking on what, exactly, has made me so specific on that subject. Why is it, on a vast continuum of emotional exhibitionism, that I have chosen a very small midpoint of that range as the acceptable writing area? To be sure, all of my favourite albums tread that line at least part of the time, but is that the cause or effect of my inclination... Interesting.

So tell me, what's your preference? Where's the point where you say "Ugh, no, this is far too emo for my tastes", and where do you start saying "Come on people, a little emotion please". Do you find this limits your creativity or your choice of listening material?

Also, to be discussed: Does it matter that, in the case of many singers, the emotion they're expressing is someone else's?

Dinner Party Guests

If I'm going to rant on and on about creativity, it's only right to give credit to everyone who inspired a love of creativity in me...

Coda #7/Intro #8

At 25 years old, I've found myself irretrievably mired in several projects which are slowly and inexorably consuming what remains of my spare time. It's suddenly dawned on me that one or all of these projects could soon be at that breaking-wave point, the moment where they go from time-filler to fullblown life-dominating axiom.

So, this blog: I want to keep a record of what I'm creating, and when, and why I thought of it, and who I worked with... You get the gist.

What's in the air now then? What little nuggets of creative wizardry and semi-hallucinogenic whimsy are erupting out of your brainbomb tonight, Jason? Well I'll tell you. Currently on the drawing board:

1. Gold
    Scheduled for March, a play by 12-16 year olds about the Nazi occupation of Norway

2. Axis
    For April, a bizarre audience participation performance art piece that will force the audience to make choices and live with the consequences of their actions

3. Fragment
    With no schedule at all, my grand folly... Currently 3 notebooks worth of an entirely fictional encyclopedia about a non-existent universe with its own physics, history, geography and maths. Yes, it's mental. Not good mental. Just mental. My geeky side comes out with this project...

4. Carthage
    The album I've been working on... well, technically for 9 years. Problem is, I keep recording it, then scrapping the whole thing and starting again. I suppose that really I'm working on number 11 in a series of unreleased albums, right the way from Annihilist in 2001. Anyway, music is mostly where I channel anything too destructive to work on with other people. The 5% of lyrics that are coherent enough to qualify as being in English will sometimes get a tune put to them. When the tune isn't shit, I record it. When the recording isn't shit, I save it. I do this between 10 and 14 times. I then mix it. I then DELETE EVERYTHING as my artistic tastes have entirely changed since I started that iteration of the album...

******

So what have I done today? Well, whilst nursing a hideous hangover and directing Gold (a task made infinitely more taxing by the presence of one girl who possessed the peculiar trait of cracking up whenever she got her lines right), I spent every break scribbling down the next entry in the 800 year record of the kings of a fictional country, including notable events and method of death.

Not good mental. Mental mental.

Meanwhile, issues arising... my free trial of Photoshop expired yesterday, so until I can grab a paid one (probably next week), there will be no more of these...

Which pisses me right off. Mainly because I like looking at them and going "ONE MONTH AGO I'D NEVER USED PHOTOSHOP, I AM FUCKING AWESOME!", but also partly because I'm properly enjoying creating the aesthetic surrounding the performance piece for AXIS.

Anyway people, that's today's vague update done. Tune in for proper progress on what is happening in each of these ill-conceived flights into insanity.