these shows are what made me want to make music. at the best of them, a human kind of magic happened. it was a physical sort of emotion that was vulnerable and painful and joyous. a transcendent musical rapture. it wasn’t something that happened to me, or even in me. it was something that happened with me. it happened in concert with the musicians, with whatever friends were at that show on that night, and with the strangers who made up the audience with us. i’m sure the term ‘concert’ is meant to describe the performers—multiple musicians, playing together—but it meant a larger shared activity to me. it meant this feeling and connection that we all created with one another.

i got some of that from listening to records, because words and music have their own kind of standalone magic. hearing people sing songs that, to me, were clearly about my life, was incredibly powerful. and recorded music went with me wherever i went, at all times of day and night—something live music could not do.

but live music had the power that comes in the moment of creation, of co-creation, that can never exist in the same way again. not on audio, not on video, not ever. it brought out the parts of everyone in the room that were the same, were universal, and touched them together, in heat, in proximity, in love.

i loved being a part of those nights. it’s why i started making music. i wanted to be the catalyst in creating that feeling, that experience. i’m older now, and don’t get to nearly as many live shows as i used to. but i’ve also learned that there’s a depth to what musicians create with their recordings. hearing the studio version of a song time after time after time, you develop a relationship to that song. over time, and with a substantial body of work, you develop a relationship with the artist. it includes their recordings, and whatever performances you see, and their presence in pop culture. this is now part of why i want to make music.

all of this is to say that this latest record, acres and continents, is more than just a static recorded statement, destined to remain frozen in time. it is part of an ongoing conversation between us and whoever listens to it, whoever finds something in the album to hold on to and take into her life. and it is part of the co-creation of a relationship between performers and listeners.

so, if something in the album finds purchase with you—or hell, pisses you off or discomfits you terribly—feel free to join more actively in the conversation. post something to us on our website or on facebook, or by text (if you already have our numbers ), or at a show, or the next time you see one of us in the world.

i love music. i love what it makes possible, its ethereal physicality, ephemeral permanence, its capacity to build and tear down. and i love what it creates between you and me.

I (re)WROTE A NOVEL! (sort of.)

you know how sometimes you read a book or see a movie and think, “this could be really good, but it keeps getting in its own way. it has some really cool elements, but some of it is just really dumb”? well, that was what my dear friend tsuya and i were saying in a conversation about the fantasy series The Wheel of Time. we started talking about how it could be better, and the upshot was that i was going to try my hand as editor to robert jordan’s behemoth of a story.

well, anyone who has worked with me knows that i can be a pretty…let’s call it ‘aggressive’…aggressive editor. the project soon went from editing to reimagining, sort of like the new Battlestar Galactica or marvel’s ULTIMATE comics. i used the original prose as a starting point, but often ended up somewhere very different. (and many thanks to tsuya for being a sounding board throughout.)

it took a while (the new dialectic record will be finished in the coming weeks is out!), but i’ve finally finished the first volume, The Eye of the World. of course, i have nothing to do with it now. so, if you want to read it, you’re welcome. the .zip file below includes .epub, .mobi, and .pdf versions of the book..

so enjoy, and please let me know what you think. (extra points for kindness.) this is all new for me—i’ve never even dabbled in fiction.

NOTE: i would be especially grateful to hear the thoughts of people who read speculative fiction or have read The Wheel of Time.

So everyone welcome the newest honorary member of the band. (Two if you count Zoe.)