as of last night, the new line-up has become the old line-up. bret elected to make a graceful exit from below blackstar, so everyone who joined the group in late summer is now gone.
we had a great time playing with doug and bret, and not only do we wish them well, we look forward to maintaining the friendship we built with them. we also want to wish kelly a bright drumming future.
our old friend kim rizk has rejoined below blackstar as our new bassist, and tonight we have another drum audition. hopefully, it'll all settle itself by the end of rehearsal at ten pm.
of course, this leaves us on the search for a new guitarist. per our advert on craigslist:
"first of all, we're not metal. if you're a metal guitarist, you're obviously amazingly talented, but it's not really our thing. we would hate to waste your time :)
local band seeking a new guitarist. we are designed to be a three-guitar band, five people total with the inclusion of a bassist and drummer. three of us handle vocals, and if you do as well, i'm sure we could make some room for it. we've got some floydian tendencies, some shoegaze tendencies, a progressive bent, but we can also write the three-to-four minute rockers. we're quite eclectic in that regard.
our preferred guitarist will be able to play leads, and share that duty with the others. think siamese dream-era corgan, or radiohead's jonny greenwood... maybe course of empire's mike graff, some of the lead sounds on the cure's kiss me, kiss me, kiss me... and of course, david gilmour. however, knowing when to lead and when to add to the textural rhythm of things (like hum, or early catherine wheel) is also a great skill!
if you write songs, cool. if not, it's no problem... there are already quite a few, so it's not as vital to us.
we would prefer someone that knows how to hang and really be a part of the group, and not someone with a session-type demeanor. unity builds better songs. all the usuals apply: please have applicable gear, the necessary transportation, and the time to dedicate to the project. your time is precious, and so is ours. we aim to be as professional as we can be when forming and maintaining relationships, and this includes the vibe between bandmates.
we practice at least twice a week, and are in the process of booking more shows after taking the holidays off. we are already set for march and april, and hoping to play more out of town gigs throughout 2011.
http://www.reverbnation.com/belowblackstar (we now feature a new bassist and a new drummer from those on this page)
thanks, and we look forward to jamming with you, soon!"
one hour 'til people start showing up for tonight's jam. let's hope it goes well.
thanks to everyone who has made it to a show or bought us a drink in the last several months. we're in the process of booking again, and we'll see you soon. we love you all!
-christopher.
below blackstar.
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below blackstar / Blog
too many blogs
we probably should be better about blogging our progress, but between facebook's "notes", our seldom-used blogger site, and reverbnation, it's difficult to know where the best forum is.
for now, we'll just continue to blog here. once our official web site construction is completed, perhaps we'll migrate all of the random entries there.
for now, we're on break. we have an audition for an open guitar slot this coming thursday, but afterward, we're pretty content to shut things down for the holidays as far as gigging is concerned. recording sessions are going to begin soon, so, you know, that'll be interesting...
more to come.
-christopher. below blackstar.
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getting better all the time
since the last blog entry, we've managed to do well for ourselves. we couldn't possibly be any happier with our bass situation thanks to kim, and we managed to fix the missing drummer issue, too!
it's kinda funny, actually... before we resolved the matter at drums, we received an email a while ago that said, "Good luck in finding what you are looking for although I have serious doubts that you will find it."
it's important to believe in your dreams and trust in your ideas, kids. when you do, great things happen, and we found what we were seeking in our new drummer, jeremy.
jeremy's been with us for several weeks now, and we're all looking forward to the moment when everything is rock solid and tight again. throwing so much material at new people is no small undertaking, and everyone has to go through an adjustment period, but when the chemistry is there, the work is worth it!
we're still on the search for a new lead guitarist, but we're approaching that matter with patience... no need to rush it, and it doesn't prevent us from actively booking and getting back to the business of being in a band. we're even getting ready to debut a new song, soon!
hopefully, the blogs won't go so long without an update here or there... we miss you, too!
take care, and we'll see you at the echo and the bunnymen / the church tribute night on may 30 at the sunset in ballard, and on thursday, june 9 at the blue moon!
Reply
the future has now become the past again
as of last night, the new line-up has become the old line-up. bret elected to make a graceful exit from below blackstar, so everyone who joined the group in late summer is now gone.
we had a great time playing with doug and bret, and not only do we wish them well, we look forward to maintaining the friendship we built with them. we also want to wish kelly a bright drumming future.
our old friend kim rizk has rejoined below blackstar as our new bassist, and tonight we have another drum audition. hopefully, it'll all settle itself by the end of rehearsal at ten pm.
of course, this leaves us on the search for a new guitarist. per our advert on craigslist:
"first of all, we're not metal. if you're a metal guitarist, you're obviously amazingly talented, but it's not really our thing. we would hate to waste your time :)
local band seeking a new guitarist. we are designed to be a three-guitar band, five people total with the inclusion of a bassist and drummer. three of us handle vocals, and if you do as well, i'm sure we could make some room for it. we've got some floydian tendencies, some shoegaze tendencies, a progressive bent, but we can also write the three-to-four minute rockers. we're quite eclectic in that regard.
our preferred guitarist will be able to play leads, and share that duty with the others. think siamese dream-era corgan, or radiohead's jonny greenwood... maybe course of empire's mike graff, some of the lead sounds on the cure's kiss me, kiss me, kiss me... and of course, david gilmour. however, knowing when to lead and when to add to the textural rhythm of things (like hum, or early catherine wheel) is also a great skill!
if you write songs, cool. if not, it's no problem... there are already quite a few, so it's not as vital to us.
we would prefer someone that knows how to hang and really be a part of the group, and not someone with a session-type demeanor. unity builds better songs. all the usuals apply: please have applicable gear, the necessary transportation, and the time to dedicate to the project. your time is precious, and so is ours. we aim to be as professional as we can be when forming and maintaining relationships, and this includes the vibe between bandmates.
we practice at least twice a week, and are in the process of booking more shows after taking the holidays off. we are already set for march and april, and hoping to play more out of town gigs throughout 2011.
http://www.reverbnation.com/belowblackstar (we now feature a new bassist and a new drummer from those on this page)
thanks, and we look forward to jamming with you, soon!"
one hour 'til people start showing up for tonight's jam. let's hope it goes well.
thanks to everyone who has made it to a show or bought us a drink in the last several months. we're in the process of booking again, and we'll see you soon. we love you all!
-christopher. below blackstar.
Reply
first blog on reverb...
wow... i don't think we've really utilized this page much, but that's gonna change.
bear with us while we go through some growing pains.
-christopher.
Reply