CAUGHT UP

We have been working on Caught Up again :)  It is one of the earlier songs we wrote, and Scobra recently put some finishing touches on this little darling.  That's the nice thing about having such a massive back log of songs... There's always something fresh, lurking in the vault. So I thought that an interesting post would be the lyrics.  I originally wrote it for Tupac's birthday, in a sense, this song is very much in honor of him.  We also had a marvelous rehearsal earlier this week, which has been tastefully retold by filmmaker Jeriah Goad.  He was attending the session because he is going to be shooting the music video for Caught Up ( !!!! : - D  ).   He wrote a post about it on his blog, and so without further ado, here is a link to it:  http://manicexpressionism.tumblr.com/

And now for my words, which have now been written so long ago, I surprised myself with them.

CAUGHT UP

Percolation of my brainwaves, peeking into the microwaves.
Teacher I'll be good, I 'll behave,
But dirty like a little knave.

Raven's shadow overhead, I'm channelling a medium.
Killing time with tedium, matriarch of the Citydom.

I wear my sadness like cenotes, stalagmites point they smote so passe.
Limestone lythos endo-coat me, convicted to every last day.

 I get caught up, I drag me down.
Keep coffins shut, to wear the crown.
Future's today, so clutch it tight.
Let's rip, baby, into the night...
Let's rip, baby, into the night...

Stardust falling, fingers flying, rawness lingers, hot spit drying, light specs sighing, undenying, quartets plying, heartstrings vying. 
Hot lights.... Hot.  Hot.
Hot lights hit me, foxtrot slipping, caught bullwhipping, lunar crypting, people sifting, go out spliffing, endless grifting, jungle drifting.

I am terminally lonely.

Sit on the bridge and watch the stars seep by.
Playing rock star with the cloud smoke high.
Jackie D and my Paul's outcry,
Gimme your first, and we can touch the sky.

I am the perfect sketch, of a placid wretch.
I lead my life outstretched, just waiting to be fetched.
I'm workin' overtime, on every goddamn crime.
Looking for the signs, that end this paradigm.

 I get caught up, I drag me down.
Keep coffins shut, to wear the crown.
Future's today, so clutch it tight.
Let's rip, baby, into the night...
Let's rip, baby, into the night...

I need you, you need me.  Together we are free of responsibility.
Things we drew, on the trees.  Scarred up thick, no one says please.
Sheets hang white, flags flame red.  I know my fight, 'cause I'm dead.
Inner sight, in my bed.  Hold on tight, to your head.  To your head.

From the top I drink myself all the way down to the well.
Amber crystallizing me, I'm a sap stuck in her spell.
Black lacquer, clear glass, living liquor.  Toll of the bell.

 I get caught up, I drag me down.
Keep coffins shut, to wear the crown.
Future's today, so clutch it tight.
Let's rip, baby, into the night...
Let's rip, baby, into the night...


If you would like a sonic accompaniment to this song, to your right (on this screen) is a music player with Caught Up right at the top!

xo
-Dion

Inaugural February Freak Fest

Okay folks, it's getting time to gear up for our next show.  I am meeting up with all of the performers this evening - we are going to go over all of the material, and make this one cohesive show!  :)  Mel will be there, so get ready for some more beautiful sword dancing (probably not the technical term for what she does, but whatever it is she does, she does it WELL).  Jennifer Sokolowsky will also be there, to add some beautiful belly dancing to our set.  Acrobats are coming down, more dancers, a film maker, two costume designers, singers, performers of all ilks.  GLORIOUS!  I also finally got some new strings on my bass.  See if you don't find me playing a song or two on it ;)

-Dion
p.s. we have advance tickets available from any of the performers.  Pay it forward, and recieve all the more bounty on the back end.

GOD

How do I begin this, with such a loaded title?  I suppose that I used the title to intrigue people enough to read this.  And to begin, I must begin with myself:  I am not "religious" because I feel uncomfortable worshiping a singular object or being.  I am not "spiritual" because that word seems silly to me.  We are all comprised of several things, including a spirit.  So everyone is "spiritual", whether or not they like or realize it.  And so when I use the word GOD, I do not mean a specific being or entity. 
I would also like to put forth that I have never really written or spoken about much of this before, especially on this blog.  I don't want to say that I choose what to write about in a political sense, but historically speaking, I have thus far chosen not to write about things that would potentially offend anyone.  I have also kept the thematic concepts tied directly to the doings of the band.  But for anyone that actually reads this, I imagine that for whatever reason, they find enough value in my words to give it their attention and energy.  And while I am in no way interested in "converting" anyone's thoughts or ideals into my own, I do have one truth in me that I would like to share. 
To me, art is truth.  It is abstract only because through the abstract, the literal can be explained more completely.  For instance, as humans, we can hear 10 octaves of sound, but only see one octave of light.  And beyond those 10, or that 1 octave, there are many more that we cannot or do not knowledgeably experience.  So, the only way to tell the truth, which is something so much larger than anything that our literal words, images, or sounds can detail, is by setting about something larger than our "literal", which is the abstract.  I am putting myself now out on a limb.  I will be completely honest in my experience, and you may choose, as abstract as it may be, to either think me a fool, or a friend.
Everything is connected, nothing is alone.  Everything is built of the same material at it's most basic level.  Energy.  And that is God.  God is everywhere, everyone, and everything, because it is all comprised of energy.  God is the energy of creation.  And since we are all built of this, we hold the very key to creation in ourselves.  Everything that has ever existed to us, is because of us.  We are the eyes of God, so that we may see and rejoice in all of what we have created.  In essence, we are the ultimate artists.  This world is our canvass, and we exist to think up and thus create the most beautiful things imaginable.  And there are so many of us, like different facets of a prism, because it gives a wonderful unknown diversity.  Shine a singular light through a simple prism, and you get a rainbow.  Thus, shining a light through humanity, gives us everything we know today. 
Sadly, and happily, we have power.  It's actually not too sad or happy at all.  It's the most simple thing there is, because it is just that .  It is.  The funniest thing about this power, is that it is actually quite limitless.  Like love, there is no bottom to this well.  It is eternity, forever full.  With limitless power, within each and every one of us, how is it that we can all tend to feel so small, alone, and powerless?  I myself fall into this all the time.  It's a tricky trap.  And when you get used to this cage, it becomes an addiction of comfort.  Knowing that you can define your limitations and stay put in your box, means that you can give yourself the illusion of safety within that box.  Even if you say you hate your box, why then do return every night to dwell in it?  Because you feel like you know it, it is familiar, thus it is comforting.  This is a waste.  A complete waste of potential and a solid waste of existence. 
Harsh?  Perhaps.  Not half as harsh as the waste itself is.  No one was born to die, even though that seems to be the only way we can tell the difference between physical life and any other form thereof.  But I was not born to live in a box, and then check out.  If that were the case, I never would have been born.  I was born to experience, and learn.  Most of all, to try and remember what I already know, and apply it to my life so that I may learn even more.  I was born, not to check in and check out, but to travel through the box and beyond, walls included. 
But what am I getting at here?  I guess that I just wanted to put forth that every person has the power of creation, and of course, the power of destruction as well.  While the life cycle is natural, genocide is not.  While doubt is natural, and leads to higher understanding and clarification, hatred is not.  While pain is real, and I feel it everyday, it is not the basis of reality.  It is a choice that I or someone else created.  And as a person capable of free will, I can choose it or not.  I can create and I can destroy.  I have the choice to make between the two, and I have the responsibility of what I chosen.  I have chosen to seek knowledge, so that I may better understand my choices, and my abilities.  And with that choice of knowledge, I feel the responsibility of it.  Knowledge is earned, and it's reward is application, but also dissemination. 
Therefore, I suppose that my whole purpose for this post is because of the responsibility I feel.  I have spent my entire life seeking a better understanding of it, and of myself within it.  I imagine that many other people have done the same.  We, as a planet, as a species, and as creators (or destructors) are at a crossroads right now.  We hold the key to eternal bliss, and also the key to eternal hell.  But no matter what anyone else wants to tell me, I truly believe that we alone are responsible for this.  We can make our bed however we please, but you can be damn well sure that we are going to have to lay in it at the end of the day.  Love, as misused, and misguided a four letter word as that might be, is creation.  Unconditional love, is freedom.  If every person that reads this post (all the way down to this rambling bottom) were to take a moment to fill themselves with the feeling of love, we can create Eden.  Remember, there aren't actually any limitations or literal "rules" to stop us.  For however low we can go, we can go infinitely that much higher.  I fear sounding "preachy".  I don't want to intrude on anyone's free will, nor tell them what to do.  All I can put forth is an idea:  If each person were able to put just one drop of love into this desert, there would grow an oasis... And then an ocean.

-DV
p.s.  If you are down for some curious reading, click on the title.

Happy Birthday

     It's my birthday.  It is also the 3 year anniversary of my first recorded track.  Three years ago today, I was living in Scobra's studio at the foot of the Hollywood Hills.  Wu Tang Killa Beez came over the night before, for what could be called a very wild recording session.  Due to the 'wildness', this session stretched straight into my birthday.  I had never sang in Scobras studio before, I was just sitting in the corner, acting invisible, and penning what I hoped would be future lyrics to songs.  That's how I started out actually.  I would sit in the studio during recording sessions, and write lyrics to hip hop beats.  Practice makes perfect, right?  RIGHT!
     So the clock tolled, and I turned 19 (goodness, what a baby!... Still am I suppose).  I kept writing, smiling, and nodding my head to the beat.  One by one, the guys laid down their verses.  Christ Bearer, Monk, Irie.  Killa Beez classic members.  Here's where I get real honest:  The gal they brought in to sing the hook... well... it was a wild sort of night.  She had hit her wall, and was passed out asleep on the couch.  As much as everyone tried, there was no getting her up to record.  Suddenly, I was the only girl left standing (or at least capable of standing) in the room.  Everyone turned my direction, and it was clear that they meant for me to take her place.  No one (including Scobra) had ever heard me sing.  Let alone heard what words I might write to sing.  The pressure was on, and to be quite frank, there was not a lot of room for 'ifs ands or buts'.  I was TOLD to stand up and sing something into the microphone.  Luckily enough for me, I had already written a verse to that very beat.  I stood up and laid down my verse in one take.  When Scobra said 'cut', to my completen surprise, the room errupted into cheers!  Holy crap!  I guess they liked it! ? ! It was all so sudden, and dramatic.  What a birthday present!

      Well, that's the story of how I started in music.  Three years ago today.  You can listen to that very moment on the song Vetted.  Just click on the title to this blog, and it will take you to a page with the muzik.
      So thanks to all the true Wu-Heads.  Thanks to the gal who passed out.  Thanks to Scobra for sweating and bleeding out years of underground hip hop to get to where he was with the Killa Beez at that very moment.  And thanks folks, for creating me.  They told me that my birth announcement was a sign posted on the front door of the OK Hotel that said, "No jam session tonight. -Baby".  And so on the 12th day of Christmas, here I am.  I may not be 12 lords a leaping, but I'm one sassy little lady a singing :)

xoxo
-Dion

Bright and shiny

     Okay folks it's 1/1/11.  I don't know what that necessarily means, but it seems momentous none the less.  So it's a new year, a new day, NEW.  I am downright jazzed for what's a coming with all this new-ness!  We have been rehearsing like mad, working on making the live show bigger and better every time.  This will only continue and increase in this coming year.  Along with a sweeter live show, we have new band members joining the ranks to make it an even tastier deal!  We have also come up with some super-cool-top-secret surprises for all the listeners within these next few months.   This is in no way intended to be a cop-out, but administrative work on  our team is huge and hard.  Thus, we have a radical new game plan (that is not any easier, but far more effective) to get all things out and about (all things meaning our music and media...). 

     For me, I also have some 'changes' or 'resolutions' that are being put into place for this new year.  All of which will directly benefit the sound, look, and longevity of the band, and hopefully myself as well ;).  I must admit, that one of these is cutting out sugar... not in my voice or attitude, just in my eating habits...  Boo for me, but yay for me.  It'll be a good challenge though, along with waking my booty up earlier to get some fresh air.  I'll tell ya right now, my daily routine at this point involves waking up, and slogging to work at my desk or computer as soon as the coffee starts brewing.  Then, I usually remember I have a life to tend to just in time to do dishes, take a shower, oh! eat something!, and then off to work again.  Until... until I can't any more... Usually in the wee hours of the morning.  Then I close my eyes for a bit, until they open again, and I start all over.  Ahh well... This year, the idea is to incorporate more fresh air, and regular additions of leafy greens to all my meals... But enough of that!  My boring old life is not as sweet on the ears as I hope our music is! 

     I am also happy to report that we have a really great show coming up in February that we are working on very hard right now.  We'll be playing Art Attack (second Sat. of every month) at the MIX in Georgetown.  It will be the inaugural February Freak Fest!  Freakish attire encouraged!  But mostly, it should just be a proper carnivalesque throw-down.  We will also be incorporating a vaudeville show into it all.  Good old-fashioned entertainment for all!  So stay tuned on that front, as the lineup is evolving and getting better every day :)

     So happy new year!!! Happy 1 day!!!  Happy everything, and may everything (although, realistically, let's just say, "the important stuff") be happy all year round!

xoxo
-Dion