Its a great day for a list.

1. We are releasing a Christmas single today! You should check it out and then download it FOR FREE. that’s right. but first, you should read the rest of this…
2. Finals this week. Then it’s back home to Colorado Springs! Christmas and I get to see that very special someone!
3. I am very happy about number 2
4. It’s snowing and blowing and piling up outside here in Saint Paul. I’m considering buying eight cheap dogs and sledding to school Monday. Yes… Just like Sarah Palin
5. I’m happy I could mention Sarah Palin. I can tag that and get a million more hits than I otherwise would. hehe…
6. Do you know how hard it is to stop a list once you’ve started?
7. Alright I’m done, go download the song and merry holidays and happy christmas!

Click the artwork to receive the aforementioned free download.

“Plock!”

The McDonald’s coffee cup bounced off the back of my head and into the gutter. The drunk had surprisingly good aim. Still on the bus, he lurched unsteadily and looked radically pleased with himself as the doors closed. The bus moved on. I stared at the discarded coffee cup; brain trying to make sense of what just happened. My moment of confusion was cut short by a voice.

‘That’s not mine.”

The original owner of the offending coffee cup had gotten off at the same stop. She was crazy. A solid eight on the crazy scale. And now she was staring at me. I’ve learned from my short time in the city that generally, getting stared at by crazy people is not a good sign. They carry zippo lighters and lots of plastic bags. This particular crazy lady was not much of a threat however so I casually stared back.

Ok, casually staring back at a crazy person is just about as hard as it sounds. First off, while you’re trying to cast a level headed gaze, they’re doing this twitch-eyed-deer-in-the-headlights look that makes you want to either laugh out loud or call the police. Secondly, very quickly, your logical faculties kick in and you begin to wonder, “Why, in the name of all that’s holy, am I staring back at a crazy person?” Today, my answer was simple. Someone threw this crazy person’s coffee cup at my head. And I was not backing down.

She twitched her eyes, mumbled nonsense, twitched faster, shuffled feet, flared nostrils, and bugged her eyeballs but I didn’t even look surprised. Raising my eyebrows nonchalantly I continued my stare. She continued acting crazy. After ten seconds of this she stuck both arms straight out, declared again that—in fact—the coffee cup was not hers, and walked away like a zombified grandma. Victory. I threw the coffee cup away and made a mental note to upgrade her crazy score from an eight to at least a nine-point-five.

True* story. Just wait until you hear what happened on the bus!

*some facts may or may not have been changed to be funny or not boring

Come to think of it, I haven’t read any blogs lately. Actually, I have no memory of the last 5 years. Has there been a zombie apocalypse in the blogosphere?! Where are the survivors! Why I am I still here! Where is my sawed off shotgun?!! HELP! HELP! HELP!

–I really hope this is entertaining because I’m making a fool of myself–

PHONE HOME!!!! BLOG-O-SPHERE PHONE HOME!

Ok, that’s out of my system. Aaaahhhh… How ya doing? I’m glad we’re all not dead or un-dead or any un-holy version of deadness you can conjure. Thanks for being alive. And thanks for reading this. I like you.

So, that's what the blogosphere is doing...

Songwriting is something I am still relatively new to and sometimes I see myself growing in different directions as a songwriter. The songs on Rhythm & Waves (the EP) are very simple, lyrically and musically speaking. This song, Lift Me Up, turns to a different route musically while still staying fairly simple in idea and form. Written with the idea or picture in my mind that sometimes, we just want to be lifted up and out of the craziness of our circumstances. We want someone stronger and bigger than our existence to tell us that everything will be ok. Sometimes I think, we retain our childlike fear of the unknown and hard, but lose our childlike faith in the sovereignty and goodness of God. This song is a cry from someone who is in that place so many times. Hmm, well this has gone deeper than I thought it would SO.

Here it is! I recommend your favorite headphones. That makes everyone happy!

Hi from a hotel room in Bozeman Montana!

Flew in from Honolulu on Thursday and spent the weekend in Northwestern Montana. Right now I am heading home with mom and dad, fourteen hours of driving ahead of us, all systems go.

So I guess that means I’m back from my Hawaiian Hiatus. Boo.

It also means I’m about to be starting school in St. Paul. boss!

This is an Edison Blue Amberol record from 1914. It’s a recording of ‘Toots Paka’s Hawaiians” singing Aloha ‘Oe. Each cylinder is a molded plaster core covered in the trademark blue celluloid. Similar to later records, grooves in the celluloid were read by a needle and walah! Amplification! Each Blue Amberol held about 4 minutes of music, basically one “track”. One cylinder one song.

Let’s think about that now.

In my iPod Touch, I can hold up too 1750 songs. And play movies, and games, and know exactly when my new Facebook status gets a “like.” Oooooh… Anyway, I’m not trying to be an Apple fanboy. In fact, holding these two things on opposite ends of the entertainment spectrum, I feel sad. Seems like these days, we think of music as little bits of nothing to put next to our “iFart” and “Zippo Lighter” apps. boo! But then again, music is infinitely more accessible to the masses than it was in the early twentieth century. In 1915, a Blue Amberol player, called an “Amberola,” would cost you between $30.00 and $75.00, that’s the equivalent of $630.00 to $1570.00 in modern currency. You don’t need to be incredibly rich to have cd player in your car or even an mp3 player. Music is pretty much available in a consumable form to anyone who wants it. (Case in point: Pirate Bay) So it seems we have a  tradeoff. The question is, which one is better?

On a more update-ish note, I am off to Hawaii tomorrow! Living in Colorado for the last 9 months has been a fantastic experience and I am so grateful for the time with my family! More on that story later though…

A slide show bugaboo! (I have no idea what to call it…haha!)

These are pictures from the last five-ish gigs I’ve done. Please enjoy!

p.s. After watching this I’ve been informed by my significant other that I could use a wardrobe change-up. Okaaaaaayy. I will try. =D

p.p.s. Have you ever noticed the amount of slideshow-ness at weddings? geez.

• I WILL BE IN HAWAII MAY 25!!! Lets hang out.
• Back here in Colorado, I am three away from my goal of ten gigs before I leave. If you’re in C-Springs you can check the Upcoming Shows tab to see when and where I’m playing next. I am truly having a blast, meeting some awesome people and drinking inordinate amounts of coffee. Yes, thanks to all my friends at coffee shops I am supremely caffeinated! =)
• The Fant family has a new addition. Marlowe the dog! Although he peed and threw up on me, I like him. He has a certain aura about him… I think the women word here is “cute.” Yep, that sums Marlowe up in a word. Also “miniature bladder” might apply as well.

• It snowed yesterday morning and I was convinced this Colorado place was really the Land of Perpetual Snow and Ice. Like Narnia before Aslan killed the witch. But sadly, there is no snow freak with a bad hair day you can kill to make the sun come back. So, I pray to God. “PUHLEEEEEASE make it warm again!” Happy to say He answered my prayer and today it will be in the sixties and seventies. The witch is dead!!!
• Last bullet point. Will be posting new music at some point in the next month.

Okay last thing, Question:

Would you rather meet your favorite movie actor, or meet your favorite band/musician/composer/etc…?

(if your favorite is dead like John Wayne or Dean Martin, just assume they are alive.)

Sound off and please have a good day and please remember to be happy!

First, I am heading back to Hawaii in the summer. I am most excited about this for a billion reasons. One because beautiful princess girl is there and two, the thermometer gets above 55. Oh glorious sunshine! I will soak you up like a brand new kitchen sponge soaks up dishwater. It’s true, I am a hot weather person. Which is why it makes perfect sense that I am hoping to go to music school in Antartica Minnesota. Yep, that’s right, M I N N E S O T A. This college thing feels like a roller coaster right now but Minnesota might be the last stop on the maybe-I’m-going-to-college-ohno-I’m-not train. I should hear about scholarships–how much or how little–on May 1st. So if everything works out the way it is in my mind, I will be in a cold place come September.

A really really cold place. Any other questions about school may be submitted in writing.

As for everything else, releasing the album has been an amazing thing. All the encouragement, help, and advice has been overwhelming and I really can’t wait to perform the music live and meet more people. Hopefully that will come together this week. My goal is to schedule ten gigs and play them all before May 25. That’s not so crazy is it? =)

Check the Upcoming Shows tab to see how I’m doing.

Also, I have a new hat. This makes me happy on some deep, uniquely Irish level. =D

So there it is. I put in many hours of hard work and very late nights to get the music sounding great. Jessica worked like crazy to create artwork that is both beautiful and fun. Now it’s your chance to see and hear it for yourself!

Download or order your copy of “Rhythm & Waves (the EP)” TODAY!

Click on the album cover above where you can listen to all 5 songs and then order or download the album. CDs will be shipped to your address and downloads are immediate. We only had 100 CDs made so if you want a physical album with all the great artwork, please order soon. Thanks!

(Hint: If you order a CD you will also get an immediate digital download of all five songs. Pretty nice I think…)

A little more on the album coming up in later posts. Also, we’ll get back to M.M.F.M.P.G.W.I.L.A Mondays and more ordinary blog things. =)

Till’ then, check out the album!

See you later alligator.

]]> http://rhythmandwaves.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/rhythm-waves-the-ep-released/feed/ 2 jonathan Album Cover