John Arch: Vision & Voice
John Arch holds a special significance in my life. From the first Fates Warning album, Night on Brocken in 1984, I was touched by the heart-power of his voice, the magic of his lyrics and his transcendent flow of melody, which seemed to soar to realms of spirit and bring them swirling earthward to awaken my shaken…
Read MoreJim Wilson: Turn It Up!
Jim Wilson is a rocker. A dyed-in-the-old-school purveyor of balls-out, bluesy riffs and rhythms with lyrics to match. Jim’s credentials run deep. He’s been guitar slinging and songsmithing in the L.A. music scene for 30 years. He forged a reputation for himself in the early 90’s in Mother Superior, an L.A.-based rock band, who went…
Read MoreJoey Vera: Explorations in Creativity
I recently had the privilege of sharing a lengthy chat about the creative process with Joey Vera, chief songsmith for the mighty Armored Saint. Joey plays bass for the band, as well as for Prog Metal titans Fates Warning, the rocking LA outfit Motor Sister & Pearl Aday, among his many projects. With such a hectic…
Read MoreBryan “Racecar” Aiken: Creating from Authenticity
Having experienced the radical authenticity of Lazer/Wulf live and much late-night listening to the brain-grabbing complexity of their albums, I was intrigued to know more about their creative process. I had the good fortune to delve into this territory with Bryan “Racecar” Aiken, the creative force at the beating heart of Lazer/Wulf. Like all good…
Read MoreEli Santana: Manifesting Inspirado
My ongoing quest for insight into the creative process led me to a late-night Skype chat with Holy Grail guitarist and songsmith, Eli Santana. Tenacious D may be right. It might not be possible to manufacture inspirado, but Eli demonstrates that is possible to consciously create conditions which allow inspiration to manifest. Eli: It’s rare…
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