Jan 2008
Its amazing how many ways there are to learn
and how many things there are to learn.
Learning means everything is important and nothing is wasted.
Learning isn't easy,
not learning is.
Learning enables change.
Change brings conflict.
Conflict that leads to learning brings growth .
Growth lives in forgivness.
March 19, 2007
Well, hard to believe but whatever FormFactor is, just like The Police,
we're back !!
OK, it looks like three things happened: One, spring 06 arrived and my life got really busy at school.
Two, I went "on vacation" from the entire "be the best that you can be" requirement for my life,
and slowed w-a-y down for the summer.... and on.|
I had just resigned from live gigging, a very weird kind of thing for me to do,
putting me into a new zone in many ways. I think I also resigned from "attempts to do what money-making artists do",
and played a lot of piano in my living room, and had a ball, and got better.
Three, in July I bought the notebook computer of my dreams (Daddio's Portable Life),
and because it didn't have Microsoft "Front Page" on it, which I had at last become one with,
I had to install the Ontario Ministry Licenced-for-Teachers Macromedia "DreamWeaver."
Well, that was a great excuse for the above-mentioned truce re the business end of creativity,
at least as regards this humble web-site, so............
there we were in virtual suspended animation (insert echo here.)
BUT after a March Break 07 that couldn't be beat, it seems the site is back!
I have a great photo galley (excellent, original works of visual art) to make available,
lots of additions and changes to implement here at the FF site,
and (ahem) a warm FF welcome to
"Steve Cox and The System"
May 22, 2006
New main link added from the index page, a link to what will be a mix of creative expressions
that don't easily fit into other Formfactor divisions.
Room for realevations and ravings.
May 6
So it's been a while: blame spring fever.
The S&N pages are updated ,with lyrics links added. Studio D is busy with school productions,
an audio CD and the Graduation DVD. Lots is being produced,
but this web publishing excitement will have to come later.
Oops, can't talk, gotta go.
April 11
"The Torchmen" page is added. The liner notes win the MT award as
"Best Moving Target Liner Notes"
which is interesting in a CD with no liner notes.
"Best Moving Target Back Insert Notes"
just doesn't have the same ring.
This blog's humble author did sound and played a solo set at a benefit concert Sat night at
Windsor's "Fooglar Furlan" club. 5 of the 10 songs were original songs of mine.
The echo was too strong, on a too quiet PA system, my announcing was unintelligible,
and I don't think many knew which songs were covers and which were originals.
Later, someone said "It was OK that your voice wasn't so loud,
I knew all the words to all the songs anyways."
Don't you love show business?
March 28
Jennifer Lynne mixed.
Bob Garrett's work is great to hear again and it's up now.
The Torchmen await the finding of the final revision of the liner notes to their CD, "Record Hop Blues."
Len Cake's original composition still awaits a suitably slinky melody, and the upcoming Stuff And Nonsense songs
are the best yet, unfortunately seriously good in composition and execution (he said humbly.)
"Unfortunately", because now the songs seem to demand some action
to promote such quality material. Nice problem.
March 1, 06
Captured S&N's "Jennifer Lynne", still laughing while others play, and sounding
quite like S&G in a good mood. You have no idea how much I fear the tape breaking!
Got Ross's OK to present his tunes into the void. (Kinda reminds me of our first gig at the Zoo.)
We have contingency plans if we get invited onto the Ed Sullivan Show, involving shotguns by the river,
between sets rehearsals, and a yellow 67 Mustang.
I'm recovering from a February fiasco that would have been rejected from a Spinal Tap plot
as being too implausible. It was a doozy. All we are saying is "Give Peace A Chance." Sometimes it's good to just stop
and consider the alternatives, even to the fundamentals.
***********************************************
That done, I'm back at it, nothing to lose. What was once private in a Hilroy notebook is now
available hidden in plain sight, more content for your piece of the Hollywood Window,
messages to no-one and everyone
Feb 15
The new mix of "Harmony Road" by Stuff and Nonsense is posted. Both the S&N songs are by Ross Munro,
as are the other songs to come from the tape, except for one by yours truly. I'm really enjoying the music we made,
It's so different from modern pop gloss that it's almost alternative.
Trying to get long distance communication going regarding FF activities and possibilities is a challenge.
It's hard to be a master of time and space and current events,
possibility dreaming, bobbing and weaving with inflating dreams and earnest craftsmanship.
Intimate but global sounds to share, songs with no destination,
aiming for aimless art and some kind of grace.
Feb 11
Finished and posted the second remix of the Stuff And Nonsense song , 'Welcome To The Show", much better than the first.
I've taken the master 24 bit stereo capture into my digital audio workstation and tried to work some subtle magic on it.
Sounds not bad for a 32 year old cassette tape, sez me! More than that, it's nice to hear
why S&N were a successful venture. Ross wrote some great tunes, and we
matched our song structures to our musical resources pretty well, it seems.
Feb 4
So is this a blog?
Today I'm very happy with the final mix of my song , "United By Love."
Its an adaptation of an instrumental track I recorded back at a U of T summer course.
I'm liking the song for a whole bunch of reasons, and I think it could fit the concept of a dramatic presentation.
It's on the Steve Cox and The System site.
Jan 25, 06
Formfactor Publishing is just beginning its activities
functioning basically as a clearinghouse for a lot of musical and creative projects that I've been involved with.
I'm just getting rolling with the fun of everything that comes with taking the role of publisher seriously,
yet in an environment designed for very small run, localized, often historical kind of projects.
The form of this publishing project FormFactor is the form of it's content, if I get it right.
I care a lot about the presentation and value of non-mass-market musical projects,
often purposefully amateur in the face of the global scale of modern success.
I often wonder, what if Paul McCartney had never met John Lennon?
Maybe he'd be closing down a varied career as musical entertainer, educator or weekend band/lorry driver
having written a bunch of songs that nobody had ever heard of.
In that environment, would a song like "Blackbird" be any less valuable, stripped of its cultural, and personal history,
missing the pleasure factor that comes from long association of a melody with many different times?
Would the pure musical value come through, or would you hear it and say " Nice tune, good picking" and move on?
I often think, maybe someone I know has produced work like that, and yeah, maybe I could too.
Who will know what people will think if they never get to hear it?
SO this evolving website is my new way of "being in a band", (ahem....)
retired as I am from the honorable function of weekend danceband gigging.
I'm trying to concentrate on original material only, and have been involved with many people and projects
over the years that I'd like to help other people know about. This all has nothing SO FAR to do with
any financial dealings, although I do plan on being able to distribute printed CD/DVD's for people to buy.
The idea is that no projects will depend at all on sales for success, as all production runs will be "small batch"
and the goals involved are artistic, not commercial.
Yeah, I'm going to have to figure out exactly how to get any money that comes in back to the authors,
and to work out what to do if, say, The National wants to use a Formfactor project for their nightly theme...!
Lets just gently say that it's not an immediate problem.
But hey, one never knows what the future may hold......
Steve Cox