Jadiid Journal

Working With THE MEDIA

2010-09-03T10:28:00.000-07:00

We are now part of a collective in Chicago called THE MEDIA.
It is a collaborative effort of a journalist, some photographers, and a slew of musicians.

Here is the first piece produced by THE MEDIA

A STRANGER'S SMILE from THE MEDIA on Vimeo.

Come join us at a live show to get the full story and expierence

On A Hill... on a hill

2010-08-21T16:32:00.000-07:00

San Francisco waiting for our van to get fixed once again.

Dogs In Space

2010-08-17T09:34:00.001-07:00

we found our way into a meteor shower

Dogs Go West!!

2010-08-17T09:17:00.000-07:00

Whoa!
First blog of the tour. It's been a busy week and we are now here at some of our last stops in California before we head back.

Our friend Ben Scarbro made us a great website Dogs On Tour

Here are a few shots so far:

April 21st

2010-04-21T14:56:00.000-07:00

We played an unexpected show at the elbo room last night, just Matt and I. Since Kevin couldn't make it, we tried our best to get by without the sweet melodic gestures of his rhythmic bass. Over all it was fun and the crowd seemed to enjoy it.

I tried to get some shots of us during the set but I kept forgetting in between songs. Before we played the last song (burning sun) I got my camera out and took a few quick shots, then rushed to get the tambourine.

Listening Party!

2010-04-19T13:35:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to invite you all to Shambles on May 1st for a listening party featuring "It's Ok, Be Anxious"

We will be listening to to the new album, while we get free drinks and look at some new art by our friends William Winter and Alexis Nido-Russo

Check out the event here!!

When your label are your friends, and your friends are your label

2010-04-13T09:47:00.000-07:00

Our friend Justin from our label had some things to share....

I think it's safe to speak for everyone when I say that we at Yes and Yes are super proud and happy to have It's Ok, Be Anxious be one of our first releases. I think it's also safe to say that the album perfectly captures the state of mind that we're in at this point in our lives. You see, the city is a tricky place. When your immersed in it you soak in the sense of utter possibility that surrounds you. Anything seems possible, your dreams run wild. Yet most of the joys of life here are coupled with burdens that creep up and flip-sides of the coin that aren't quite what they seem at first. The power of potential here is no different. What seems to be an encouragement can turn on you and suddenly you find yourself dismayed by the possibility of not achieving all that you can. It seems silly but the what-ifs have a stronger pull here. Anxiety creeps in. BUT here we are, we're pushing through and it's ok. We'll be anxious when the time comes to be but we won't stop. So cheers to dreams and the future.
Justin

Dogs Go West is Booking!

2010-04-10T14:57:00.001-07:00

We have started to book for our new tour!!

We call it Dogs on Tour and if you were apart of our January excursion you know what to look forward to: super silly, maximized fun, mulitmedia, sing along, house shows... we call it pioneering.

Our tour this summer goes from August 2nd - 19th and we have decided to go west

Dogs Go West!!

We are picking up a few new people to take with us including Becky Beighley (All That Noise For Feeling) and our friend Ben Scarbro (filmographer), as well as the usual: Jadiid, The Hudson Branch, Nate Henricks, and Andy Mills (storyteller)

Here are the states we will be traveling through

IL, TN, AR, OK, TX, NM, AZ, CA, NV, UT, CO, KS, MO

We like all these shows to take place in a home of some sort, so if you or anybody you know would be interested in hosting in any of these states please lets us know.

In the name of Lewis and Clark

See you on the road

If what you love's not available, make it yourself.

2010-04-09T21:24:00.000-07:00

An interesting snapshot of the underground radio scene in London.

http://www.palladiumboots.com/exploration/london-pirate-radio

2010-04-08T12:04:00.000-07:00

My friend, Chris, wrote this article and it was really inspiring, so I thought I'd share with everybody else.

Life is short.

Some people die at birth. Some people live forever.

I know a man, a person close to me. Here is a man who was born into a good family, a very wealthy family. Growing up he had everything taken care of. His college was paid for, as well as advanced schooling to obtain a very well respected position. Here he is, approaching 40 years old, and the proud owner of 2 condos in beautiful downtown Chicago. He is dead.

Faith is what turns an ordinary thought into a rich, vibrant reality.

This is not meant to bash this man. In fact, if anything, he is the normal one, I am the outcast. I am the one with the faith. I am the one that has aspirations. I do not know a human being who has studied/bought more self-help products than the one I currently am talking about. I rarely see this man, but every time I come in contact with him things are still the same.

He gets drunk 4x a week, and has been doing so for nearly 20 years. He studies self help 20+ hours a week, but never puts anything into action. He is afraid. He lives in fear, in fear of himself. He will live in a state of "what if" for the remainder of his life, because he is too scared to leave his cushy lifestyle to take a chance. Once again, there is nothing wrong with this, if anything it makes you very normal.

What you are looking for you will not find on this board. You'll only find it within yourself. Everything in life comes down to flipping a switch. The more answers you look for the further from your goal you will stray. It will only keep you from further facing your fear.

Most men go through life dead. They never strive for anything. They never see a wall and run straight through it. They spend years trying to find a way around it, and they give up when the easiest way is facing that fear and going right through it.

Life is not that hard. We just make it hard, because it's a lot easier to accept failure when your ego is not involved. I've lived in my car, had no money, no anything. It still was not that hard. Now that I've made something out of myself I can easily realize that. When you look for tactics and ways to get around something, it is not your fault when you fail. When you look your fear in the eye and go right at it, it is you any only you. And when that becomes your reality you will become the man you are to become. All of our goals and aspirations funnel into becoming that man we dream of becoming.

When you flip that switch you will never ask for advice again. You will become the smartest man you know, the man who takes action, and you will reap the rewards.

Very few men ever encounter this. But the ones that do, you never forget. They live forever. They never die.

-enoch

Blue on Blue an old Doggs classic

2010-04-07T14:05:00.000-07:00

Wanted to share another song off the new record with you all. Looking forward to our May 4th release!

This song is called Blue On Blue, which you've heard a little bit about. Our friend Nate (or Andy i can't remember who) likes to call it beer on beer... you know it makes you feel good

peace

filmed by our good friend Ben Scarbro

I've been published

2010-04-05T16:28:00.000-07:00

I took some photos for AP magazine back in February of The Forecast and Four Year Strong. They were both published in this months issue. I'm pretty sure the magazines are at all Borders, Barnes and Nobles and any other major bookstores so go check them out.

-Jake B.

A Recipe For Counter-funk

2010-04-03T18:27:00.001-07:00

Hi, folks. Blessings to each one on this special weekend.

'been convalescing from a bad cold; its been a good opportunity to make some new sounds and and adjust aspects of an older tune.

I've been thinking about getting away from the 'prefab' harmony of the chord progression largely as a way of getting better - or less expected - texture (voice-leading scenarios) into the music. Whether in the case of da funk or the 'countepunct,' it can be very pleasing.

Here's a recipe:

1- Craft a slow, beautiful, simple melody. (Try to make it as fresh as possible by using unexpected intervals WHILE maintaining lyricism/'melodiousness'.)

2- Using protools or garageband or some such program, record this melody by instrument, voice, or good-quality sample

3- Once you are done recording it, copy and paste it into two more tracks (3 total trks)

4- Stagger them so that a round or cannon emerges. This takes sustained, trustful experimentation; be patient with yourself and keep open to the special serendipities[sic.] that WILL emerge ...if you let them. FEAR NOT. Take ye time!

5- We stagger these lil melodies both horizontally [round effect] AND vertically:

Pitch shift one of these babies a fourth or fifth up [or down] from the original.

6- Truncate the beginning and ending of this erstwhile canon (the music) so as to make it appear like a more typical progression.

7- Once you resolve any undue disonance, enjoy the fresh voice-leading and suspension-resolve scenarios, those which you not have come by otherwise ..AND consider superimposing a worded counter-melody, a descant of sorts.

Let me know what you think about the results.

I have a number of these experiments, some more successful than others, :) at alonetone.com/kscotsparks

Have a listen when you can. Feel free to write me any clarification questions. (kevinssparks@yahoo.com)

Thanks and I hope you will have a good day-

Kevin

Don't Ever Dismiss What Happens

2010-04-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

I remember one of last year's Jadiid practice session, I was messing around on the guitar. It wasn't serious or anything. and Matt goes "hey, keep playing that" and I was like "ok..." but I was really thinking "is he seriously going to try to write a song over this guitar riff?" I didn't think it was anything worth keeping. But I'm glad Matt did something with it because it's one of my favorite Jadiid songs, "Blue on Blue" (which is coming out on the new record!).

The same sort of thing happened last week. I was hanging out with one of my bandmates and I was dicking around on the guitar. I was playing the chords to one of our songs, but with a melody that I was singing in the moment. I kept singing it and singing it, and I didn't think much of it. But my bandmate was looking at me saying that it was really cool, so we recorded it on Garageband so that we wouldn't forget it. The funny thing is I was actually using the beginning melodic idea from "Blue on Blue". Does that mean I have to pay Matt royalties? I'll probably play it off like Coldplay vs Joe Satriani.

A few minutes later. The same thing happened. I was just playing around and my bandmate secretly was recording it and I listened back to it and I liked it a lot.

So I guess the lesson is wash your hands before you eat. And keep a journal of the times you fool around with any musical idea, because it can become a song you love to sing and play.

Cheers
E

Waiting Beside Me Simple Show

2010-03-31T06:18:00.000-07:00

Check out one of our songs from the new record.

It's called Waiting Beside Me

Our New Album! It's Ok, Be Anxious

2010-03-29T23:39:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Chicago!!

Well, after months of recording, a lot of thinking, the dogs on tour, much rehearsing and some inevitable changes we are finally releasing our new full length album!

It's called

It's Ok, Be Anxious

and it looks a little something like this

The official release date is May 4th and will be available on iTunes, Amazon Mp3, as well as our own site Jadiid Music. There are many things to come in the next week including... videos, pictures, thoughts, ways to help and get free shit, etc...

thanks

Artwork/Radio Show

2009-11-02T22:30:00.000-08:00

This picture was taken by Kevin in 1986 (i was two years old...). Jake edited it tonight and rather rapidly became the cover of our new album. It's coming soon friends.

On another note we will be live on WONC 89.1 on Nov. 15th for an hour, talking and playing.

Lates
matt

Half Given Circle/Do You Write?

2009-10-12T22:08:00.000-07:00

Here is our second simple show for a rather long song on the record called Half Given Circle. This song has taken on so many different shapes I don't even remember how the writing of it started. I think its what some might call a "slow burn". Don't worry you'll get it.

Jadiid Simple Show- Half Given Circle from jadiid on Vimeo.

Also I'm fairly convinced that people only write songs because something or someone let them down. I mean maybe not but there always seems to be some inherent sadness to songs (well good songs anyway). Like there is always some evidence left over of whatever heart had to open up in order to spill this song out.

Anyone ever heard Lil Wayne's song "Let The Beat Build". I think I listen to it at least once a week

It Only Makes Sense If You Get It

2009-10-05T21:39:00.000-07:00

I found this completely hilarious and enlightening

PLAYBOY: Mistake or not, what made you decide to go the rock-'n'-roll route?
DYLAN: Carelessness. I lost my one true love. I started drinking. The first thing I know, I'm in a card game. Then I'm in a crap game. I wake up in a pool hall. Then this big Mexican lady drags me off the table, takes me to Philadelphia. She leaves me alone in her house, and it burns down. I wind up in Phoenix. I get a job as a Chinaman. I start working in a dime store, and move in with a 13-year-old girl. Then this big Mexican lady from Philadelphia comes in and burns the house down. I go down to Dallas. I get a job as a "before" in a Charles Atlas "before and after" ad. I move in with a delivery boy who can cook fantastic chili and hot dogs. Then this 13-year-old girl from Phoenix comes and burns the house down. The delivery boy - he ain't so mild: He gives her the knife, and the next thing I know I'm in Omaha. It's so cold there, by this time I'm robbing my own bicycles and frying my own fish. I stumble onto some luck and get a job as a carburetor out at the hot-rod races every Thursday night. I move in with a high school teacher who also does a little plumbing on the side, who ain't much to look at, but who's built a special kind of refrigerator that can turn newspaper into lettuce. Everything's going good until that delivery boy shows up and tries to knife me. Needless to say, he burned the house down, and I hit the road. The first guy that picked me up asked me if I wanted to be a star. What could I say?
PLAYBOY: And that's how you became a rock-'n'-roll singer?
DYLAN: No, that's how I got tuberculosis.

Stay tuned for a new video this week!

-matt

Simple Shows

2009-10-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

In anticipation of our new record "It's Ok, Be Anxious" we are playing a new song off of said record each week.

first one is called "Interesting You Know"

Jadiid Simple Show - Interesting You Know from jadiid on Vimeo.

you can tell me what its about
peace

Singing Is Hard

2009-07-09T12:44:00.000-07:00

This one part seriously took us 30 minutes. Here is why

This is why we build studios in our bedroom... no hourly fee

Before the Beginning

2009-07-04T17:36:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

So as we continue working on our new record, I thought we could give you a little freebie.

Our first EP called "Movement" is available for free download if you provide 5 friends that you think would also like it. If in fact you would prefer to pay for it that option is available.

Just take a look at the widget on the sidebar there and follow the directions!

Thanks everyone, can't wait to show the new music to everyone

-matt

Its Official? Its Done?

2009-06-06T13:25:00.000-07:00

Its crazy that I can immediately take a recording into the car with me and listen to it while I'm driving. I don' t know why music in the car seems so much more... official, concrete... maybe because of how much music I listen to in the car or the experiences I associate with road trips and music.

I wonder what the experience would have been like when music was going directly to tape. That "official" feeling must have come much later in the process. The full realization of the song must have been something different.

Anyway 9 or so rhythm tracks have been done or started on including
Blue On Blue, People, On A Hill, Half-Given Circle, Handshake, Something To Follow, 04.14.09 and a couple more I haven't named yet. We have a given ourselves a goal to finish tracking everything in these next two weeks

matt

Sometimes I Don't Play Songs Well

2009-03-10T15:21:00.001-07:00

Matt Boll - Sunken Treasure from corey bienert on Vimeo.

Some downtime before a show we played in Chicago.
Filmed by Corey Bienert as a part of a documentary he is working on.
More soon
peace
matt

Sound Sample

2009-03-05T13:18:00.000-08:00

jake does a nice mallet flip on the second clip

and enoch got in the way...
actually not a bad shot though right

Blue on Blue

2009-03-04T15:43:00.001-08:00

Sorry for the lack of updates as of late. There should be lots to say in the coming months. Started making some sounds for the new album today. I like recording early in the morning. Everything seems a bit brighter.

Tracked for a song called "Blue on Blue". We've been playing some of these songs at our shows for awhile now. Its good to get a record of them. Here are some of the lyrics for the song

Blue on blue,

Where the lines are true

There is a hole in black

Where the light came through.

We stood up tall, we stood up tall to look around

But you brought us down, into humble dirt look at us now.

Make sure to check back often.

Peace

-matt

Review of "Movement"

2009-01-27T20:15:00.000-08:00

We've been reviewed by Chicago's Independent Music Review

Read the review of the "Movement" ep

here.

Peace
Matt

How I've been feeling for the longest time

2009-01-04T13:58:00.000-08:00

I've been reading Fountainhead and I don't like it

Ellsworth Toohey: "Just why are you unhappy my dear?"
Catherine:"I don't know. I can't understand it. For instance, it was I who arranged to have the classes in prenatal care down at the Clifford House-it was my idea-I raised the money-I found the teacher. The classes are doing very well. I tell myself that I should be happy about it. But I'm not. It doesn't seem to make any difference to me. I sit down and I tell myself: It was you who arranged to have Marie Gonzales' baby adopted into a nice family-now, be happy. But I'm not. I feel nothing. When I'm honest with myself, I know that the only emotion I've felt for years is being tired. Not physically tired. Just tired. It's as if...as if there were nobody there to feel any more."

Enoch

Happy Christmas

2008-12-25T16:15:00.000-08:00

A Happy Christmas to everyone.

Our present to you all:

Music For Winter

from:

Matt, Kevin, Jake, Enoch

peace

Done With This

2008-12-10T13:21:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure I ever want to make an album again

Ok I digress, this has been the longest "quick project" i've been apart of. If its not one thing its another ya know.

It coming to end though. Tonight Enoch and I make our final mix and then we will let this go out there to whoever wants to listen...

Its a Christmas album... supposedly full of cheer. Its been fun. I'm glad we are done.
Track List:

Christmastime
Silent Night
White Christmas
O Come
Rudolph
Merry Little Christmas

Now to work on music that we have written. New Jadiid record is next... although not sure when. We are going to play some shows first
Peace
matt

Rachael and Snow

2008-12-04T09:41:00.000-08:00

One time me and some friends were in New York and through some fortunate circumstances we found ourselves watching a video to a Rachael Yamagata song called Elephants... beautiful song.

This video however was one of the more inspiring things i have seen. Here is the artist.

www.ashesandsnow.com

Go take a look... and if you happen to have that song nearby be sure to play it while you are looking.

peace

Cover Art

2008-12-02T21:28:00.000-08:00

The cover for our new Christmas record. As some of you may know (and some not) we are releasing this album digitally for free on our website on december 9th.

However, by a number of requests we have decided to make a hard copy of it as well which will be ready by december 16th. We are currently brainstorming ideas on a way to package it... any ideas?

Peace

Creativity

2008-11-25T21:35:00.000-08:00

Reading a book right now titled The Fountainhead written by Ayn Rand

I enjoy creativity, and more importantly I find that it is a very necessary thing for human life in all aspects spirtual, physical, mental, etc...
This book has challenged much of what I thought creativity and art is or should be.

The premise (inspiring the title) of the book is that man (woman) is the "fountainhead" of progress, something I struggle with because it also seems that we are the "fountainhead" of digression as well
I once read a C.S. Lewis series that was called the Space Trilogy. He also dealt with this idea of progress but in a much more apocalyptic sort of way. I think I would like to look at progress through the creative process because this is something I understand to some degree, I'm just not sure what the end product is. I don't know where it leads...

more thoughts forthcoming on completion of the book

5 Songs/Job

2008-11-19T13:16:00.000-08:00

5 Songs
Recording is progressing slowly. We have 5 songs that are almost finished, with a possible secret 6th. I think we are all really looking forward to releasing the Christmas recordings. We still have yet to think of a name but i'm sure it will come. Here is to a white, and magic winter.

Job
In other news, I got a new job, playing music for a church. A return to some traditions seems fitting, although I feel I have recently chosen a different tradition then the one I grew up in. The life of a mega-church popstar, while never a real desire, has seemed to have left me. I continue on this journey, hopeful and full of mystery.

-matt

A Quick Session/God

2008-09-28T18:36:00.001-07:00

Friends,

A recording session was planned rather quickly this weekend, but it went better then we could have hoped for. Some of the Hudson Branch guys (well one, not including us Jadiid members in the band), a mr. cobey bienert came along to start on some of their songs that are going on the Christmas ep. We have two songs we are almost done tracking for, and four other songs we have written/arranged.

In other news me and cobey are running for political office... i think we make a powerhouse team.

God

Some good friends and I have had lengthy disscussions about this topic that has surrounded us our entire lives. Without going into to much of the details... we/I have come to some peaceful conclusions. I have learned to look at God as a creative force with all the processes and challenges that come with that. I'm sure God is very much more than that (0r maybe not) but I think not naming things is becoming something that keeps me spirituality intact. Anyway, these are short thoughts on a very lengthy subject

Kevin's Art

2008-09-16T20:29:00.000-07:00

Hey friends, here is some art by Kevin Sparks, he is the most recent addition to Jadiid. We like having him.

I'll get him to explain these sometime... or maybe one isn't supposed to know. Who can tell right.

Anyway enjoy

Recording Session 2/Time

2008-09-16T06:38:00.000-07:00

Recording
We went back into the studio this past weekend. It certainly wasn't as productive as the first weekend but we got some crucial things done, including kevin's horn part (well for one song at least). I've been thinking about all of us learning to play a little horn (at least to the point where we can hold a note). At the end or beginning of a song we could all play a little symphonic horn section... what do you think.

It goes fast...
We never seem to have enough time. I've lived in Chicago now for maybe 6 or 7 months and it seems like a week. Work and school takes up most of our time leaving little or borrowed time for music. We are working hard to change that.
-matt

Its a little early... but I thought you should know

2008-09-16T06:22:00.000-07:00

Hey friends,
The Christmas record was started this past weekend! I know its only September but hey we got a lot of work to do. The ideas being brought to the recording process are really cool this time. We are all very excited to share with you what we come up with. You can be sure we will be using sleigh bells liberally. Here are a few other things to look forward to…

1. toy piano

2. a new original song

3. Christmas miracles

4. sock mallets

5. horns

Check back to hear updates every week on how the record is progressing, and be sure to check our show dates. We have a few coming up.

Happy (very) early Christmas cheers

-Matt

To Start...

2008-09-16T06:06:00.000-07:00

Here is a blog.

It is about a band called Jadiid.

We live in Chicago (most of us).

It is about things that we are doing/creating/working on.

It begins at the start of the recording process for a new record.

Sing with us... we would like to hear your voices

-Jadiid