Sculpted Static flashback of the day

Star Ferry, known affectionately to the band as "Star Fucker," was the first song Steven ever wrote. It had all the elements of a real song: an introduction, verse 1, verse 2, chorus, bridge with a time signature switch, instrumental break, verse 3, chorus, and an outro. Few other Sculpted Static/Tonics songs could boast that kind of completeness.

Mark added a busy, but melodic, lead guitar part. Arta played the guitar solo and flanged rhythm guitar. All of this, combined with the keyboard and a synthesized "jazz" drum part, created a dreamy musical texture different from anything they had done before. Apparently a success with the band and their listeners, "Star Ferry" was played at every Sculpted Static concert.

Steven: "When I wrote 'Star Ferry,' I had very little clue how to write a song. It just kind of happened. I didn't really think about it at all. In fact, of all the songs I ever wrote, this one probably makes the most musical sense, too. A very satisfying melody. Lyrically, a sort of an interesting take on a love song. It really went downhill from here.

"They say the music you write reflects your mental state. Maybe 'Star Ferry' was the last song I wrote before I went insane. I guess it was. I was happy at the time."

Our favorite keyboardist, of course, went on to pen depressing shit like "Hamlet" and mean-spirited jibes like "Therefore Play Music" and "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something." God knows what happened to him after the bright and sunny days of early-2001, when everything seemed possible.

"To the neon god they made"

"I read on Pitchfork that"----Fuck you. Go shove your pretentious indie rock collection up your ass.

"But I was going to say"----No. Go to hell, where you can enjoy being impaled by Satan's pitchfork for all eternity.

"Aren't you also"----No, we're pop go the tonics. Read the sign... pop-go-the-tonics. We're not indie. We're pop. We have better melodies.

"But you played The Strokes once"----See, but they actually went mainstream. And that's where we're going to be, someday.

In other news, Steven ordered a condenser mic from Musician's Friend. We will be recording some high-quality vocal tracks, at last.

"Anne Bancroft" recording: Day 2

Steven wrote the lyrics, melody and recorded a demo take for the Anne Bancroft song. When finished, it'll sound like 1967.

Late in her life, Bancroft complained that she will mainly be remembered for her role as Mrs. Robinson, despite a lengthy career of television, film and stage work. One of her more outstanding roles (and one she is much prouder of) is her portrayal of Helen Keller's teacher in The Miracle Worker.

"Neon Phosphor" recording

Today, Arta and Steven started recording an acoustic version of "Neon Phosphor," an old Sculpted Static song that I am named after. When completed, it will have a new melody and lyrics about actress Anne Bancroft, who died yesterday. May she rest in peace.

An exclusive interview with Steven Chow

NP: I AM NEON PHOSPHOR

SC: ha! i am neon phosphor, too!

NP: NO YOU'RE NOT. I AM NEON PHOSPHOR

SC: i know that, and so am i.

NP: NO YOU'RE NOT. I AM NEON PHOSPHOR. NEON PHOSPHOR TYPES IN ALL CAPS. NEON PHOSPHOR'S COMMENTS ARE PRECEDED BY "NP:"

SC: you got me there

NP: SO, WHAT'S IN THE PIPELINE?

SC: music. that's what we do.

"What's going on? Why isn't anything happening?"

----You can blame Elliott Smith's friends and family for demoralizing us by releasing From a Basement on the Hill, which can't be topped.

"Is rock dead?"----Yes, Elliott Smith stabbed it in the heart.

"Seriously, explain the situation."----We have a lot of songs completely written, but they still need to be arranged. Mark's not in South Pas, which is a problem, because we don't even have the basic tracks to "Alpha/Alpha," "Sunday Night" and maybe something else I'm forgetting. Steven and Arta may record a song in the next two weeks. If so, it will be a completely new song that has yet to be written.

The problem with taking a long break during the recording is that months later you think your stuff is shite and you want to quit working on it.

"So how do you convince yourself to work on old stuff?"----Turn on KROQ. Chances are, they're playing shit a lot worse than ours. That helps take some of the pressure off.

A warm up

Arta and Steven practiced at Garfield Park. Nothing tangible was really accomplished. Steven learned how to play an aug chord.

The stunning lack of output

...continues. It's as though rock is dead. "The devil will find work for idle hands to do."

Nothing to report

"Then why do you update this blog?"----Because Neon Phosphor updates everyday.

History is made

Steven records a demo of "History1," a song based on "Idea11c."

What's going on??

"Are you going to play shows in South Pas?"----If by "show" you mean practicing our new songs at Garfield Park or at the sound bowl at the Arroyo, then maybe.

"As one of the leading bands of the South Pas scene, explain your snubbing of the 'Decline and Fall of the South Pas Civilization' rock festival a few years ago."----First of all, Ian was there. I think he played, too. Secondly, the rest of us were too busy at our respective colleges, "getting smart," as Mark would say.

Another slow day

"Will this album come out in summer 2005, after all?"----No, the end of the universe comes after all.

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 10

Human-manipulated lead synthesizers

Theremin

A theremin is an instrument that you can play without touching it. You control the pitch by moving your hand towards and away from an antenna. That's why you can do pitch bends. you can hear the theremin in action on The Beach Boys "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times" and "Good Vibrations."

Ondes martenot

It's sort of like a theremin, except with a keyboard. Apparently, it is easier to play than a theremin. Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood used it on several tracks on Kid A, most notably on "The National Anthem" and "Optimistic."

Musitron

This homemade synthesizer is used on several Del Shannon songs, including "Runaway", one of the greatest songs ever written. Here's all you need to know about the song. And you can read about the musitron.

The musitron has the same function as other early synthesizers like the theremin (used mostly as a lead instrument), but has a sharper sound.

Alas, we do not have any of these cool instruments. We have tried to get Steven's keyboard to do cool things, like the octave bends on "You're Only Human (Do You Know What You're Doing)."

What kind of sixties person am I?

Like I really want to know. Here's what they asked:

"First, the inevitable. What's your favorite color?"----Well, this one's easy. BLACK. As in "my dark lord the cube is blacker than the night sky."

"Which 60s person is your idol?"----JOHN LENNON, because he wrote some of the greatest songs ever. Like "This Boy" and "Help!"

"Others see you as..."----KINDA SCARY.

"You see yourself as..."----SMART. I'm a genius.

"When it comes to music, you like..."----I couldn't select The Tonics, so I had to go with ROCK AND ROLL.

"In High School, you were..."----The OUTCAST, of course.

"Which of these problems is the worst(to you personally)?"----I live on the fucking internet, so how do any of these problems affect me personally? I answered POVERTY, which is really less a problem and more a symptom of the greatest problem: capitalist greed. But I couldn't select that one.

"Fill in the blank: ________irritate you."----I couldn't say existence, so COPS it is. We had a song about cops. It's called "Narc."

"Which of these objects most appeals to you?"----It was between gun and guitar. I chose GUITAR.

"Pick a pattern:"----UNION JACK. It's a Sculpted Static/Kris song.

"When it comes to hair..."----"I PREFER SOME OUTLANDISH COLOR, SUCH AS PINK OR BLUE." Notice the hidden political message in there: pinko and blue (as in democrat blue).

"You'd most like to visit..."----LONDON, the site of Abbey Road studios.

"What are your thoughts concerning the current war in Iraq?"----It ANGERS me, especially knowing that some people taking the test would answer "I support it wholeheartedly."



You are a Mod. Yeah baby.

What kind of Sixties Person are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

OK. Well it could be worse. Today's album recommendation is from a band closely associated with mod culture. The Who Sell Out. I think it's better than Who's Next. More clever. And it has one of John Entwistle's best moments, "Silas Stingy." Bless his soul. Petra haden did an a cappella version of it. I heard some 30-second clips off Amazon. Interesting.

This subject line is

mandatory, but it makes for some interesting enjambments. Today is day 2 on myspace, the archive is up (see top of the page). I've made some friends. Don't know if some of them are fans previously unknown to us, or if they just stumbled across my profile.

Now on MySpace

"[shock] [disbelief] etc..."----Well, think of the advantages. I can now update myself anywhere, anytime, whether I'm in LA, or New York, or aboard a transatlantic flight. I'm doing what I can to ensure the daily updates.

"Can I be your friend on MySpace?"----Hmm... you want to befriend me? That means you can't possibly know me. That's from a Morrissey song.

"What happened to all the old posts?!!!"----They're still around. I'll soon set up an archive for the pre-May 14 posts.

An exclusive interview with Mark Williams

NP: I AM NEON PHOSPHOR.

MW: hey there, guy. been a while since we last talked

NP: WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY TO THE WORLD?

MW: i've got a question: does king lear's expectation of unconditional, uniquely intense love from his daughters indicate some kind of retardation in his development? namely, is he trapped for most of the play's action in an infantile pre-Oedipal state? if the world will answer that, we'll make a deal and i'll write songs full time. oh, and by the by, Sunday Night's second verse has the best lyrics i've ever written

NP: LET'S TALK ABOUT SUNDAY NIGHT, THIS NEW SONG OF YOURS. HOW DO YOU IMAGINE THE ARRANGEMENT? WHAT'S IT GOING TO SOUND LIKE?

MW: hmm. harmonization is what everything's about. i've been working on a rhythmically off-kilter interplay between the guitar and bass. so, you know, more glam rock. bowie & bolan remade R&B throughout the 70s. guess i want to try my hand at it

NP: SO YOU'RE TAKING ARABIC THIS SUMMER. IN AN EARLIER INTERVIEW, ARTA CALLED IT "BULL" AND SAID "as for arabic, as-salaam aleikum wa rahmatollah wa barakatoh." WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT?

MW: i doubt that's really arabic -- the kid's completely immersed in star wars right now, to the painful exclusion of all else. makes me think i should go see it. so i guess we're all sunny-side up

Neon Phosphor's mailbag, part 2

"the pun about fame [from 5/16] didnt even make sense"----Well, maybe your PUNy little mind can't handle puns and the other masterful wordplays that Neon Phosphor contrives.

Neon Phosphor's mailbag, part 1

"how much time before the raveges of the popular music world turn you guys to drugs? I mean you guys gotta already be hardcore alchoholics."----Who is this? I wish we didn't have a "your name is optional" policy. To answer your question, it's already happened. Did you know that many romantic poets, especially Coleridge, composed some of the greatest English poetry while on an opium high? Or that Radiohead recorded "Planet Telex" while pissed out of their minds. And to quote Emily Dickinson:

I taste a liquor never brewed --
From Tankards scooped in Pearl --
Not all the Vats upon the Rhine
Yield such an Alcohol!

Inebriate of Air -- am I --
And Debauchee of Dew --
Reeling -- thro endless summer days --
From inns of Molten Blue --

When "Landlords" turn the drunken Bee
Out of the Foxglove's door --
When Butterflies -- renounce their "drams" --
I shall but drink the more!

Till Seraphs swing their snowy Hats --
And Saints -- to windows run --
To see the little Tippler
Leaning against the -- Sun --

Steven churned out another demo of Idea11,

but tinkering around with it seems to be making it worse: "Let this be a lesson to songwriters everywhere. If you couldn't do it in 5 minutes, don't bother."

Steven recorded a demo of a new song called "Idea11"

"neon phosphor wants me to comment on my new song but all i have to say is, if you haven't seen the new star wars, you have to see it. it's an instant classic."

Nothing important happened today

Neon Phosphor takes a break.

"What do you think of the new Star Wars movie?"

----Who do you think we are, movie critics? Go read this instead.

Mark writes a new song called "Sunday Night"

"Are you sure you can deal with fame?"----The real question is, can fame deal with us? Because we're pretty much out to revolutionize the music world, and culture in general.

"Why are you so arrogant?"----We are given one lifetime to change the world. Fame is how you can make the most of it. Aim any lower than fame, and you're probably not giving your art enough respect.

"But aren't you just going to sell out in order to get to the top? How would that rest with your conscience? And wouldn't that compromise the integrity of your art?"----No. Our art is by definition to communicate to the masses, enacting social change in the process. Try doing that out of a garage or in a small club. Frankly, I think people will be interested in what we have to say. Good, honest art doesn't have to be unintelligible, pretentious and badly arranged (i.e. much of indie rock). Our music will be catchy, the lyrics simple, but informed by actual thought and complex, reality-based feelings.

An exclusive interview with Ian Asbjornsen

NP: I AM NEON PHOSPHOR. I AM EVERYWHERE, EVEN IN CHINA, WHERE I HAVE TRACKED DOWN OUR DRUMMER.

IAN, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN CHINA?

IA: Studying Art History, Language, Modern History, and Traveling. I have only been here 4 days, but so far the astro turf surrounding the hotel pools has been spectacular. It's really foggy all the time.

NP: HOW'S THE FOOD? MUSIC SCENE?

IA: The food might be the best part, but my first bite of my first dumpling had a metal shaving in it as a surprise for me. Traditional Chinese instruments abound, also I just got back from a night club in Xian called "1+1" and almost got in a fight with a crazy guy who kept touching the girls in my class. We danced to remixed Communist songs. I read that there are over 300 rock bands in Beijing, where I will be staying for over a month. Much more on that later.

NP: HAVE YOU SEEN THE GREAT WALL?

IA: We took a ski lift up to the wall, climbed around on it, and slid back down on a tobbaggan.

NP: UMM... I MEANT, PINK FLOYD'S "THE WALL"

IA: I've never seen it although I love psychedelic cartoons.

Ian Asbjornsen, missing in action

Rumors are that he is in China. If you are Ian or know what his summer plans are, please e-mail info@popgothetonics.com.

"Will you be famous?"----That's a good word. Not only will it happen, but we *will* it to happen. I am certain that we will be famous simply because we have decided upon it. It's in the name of our EP: 'pop' go the tonics. That doesn't mean we'll sit back and let it happen to us. Frankly, there's a lot of room for improvement, but that's really tied to how much time we actually get to work on music.

Copies 16 and 17 built

Steven built and mailed copies 16 and 17 for two of his housemates. "I want to know what they look like after going through the postal service."

"So you consider yourselves an indie pop band."----Not really. And I don't like where this is going.

"Are you influenced by other groups in your genre, such as The Shins or The Postal Service?"----They are not of our genre. We have changed the meaning of 'indie pop band.'

"Rumors abound that the Tonics album will never see the light of day"

----True. The album will be released to meet the prince of darkness.

"Interesting. Is this album going to sound like Black Sabbath? We know that Mark was in a Black Sabbath tribute band before he joined Sculpted Static, and he is currently playing for a Davis-based classic rock cover band."----What the hell? Now you're just making shit up. What kind of journalist are you? Go listen to "Distance."

"What have you been putting on the Pop Go The Tonics EPs?"----Ah, a good question at last. The last few EPs have featured a cool 37c stamp of R. Buckminster Fuller (architect known for his geodesic domes), a 37c stamp of a snowy egret (a kind of heron), and a 23c stamp featuring Wilma Rudolph (triple Olympic champion).

"Why is it 'Pop' Go the Tonics?"

----Because we slaughtered and ate the weasel? Well, why not?

"I heard that Steven is going to New York to pursue a career in publishing. How will that affect the band?"----It's all part of a grand scheme to install him in an editorial position with RollingStone and get us a feature-length article or two.

"Do you have stage names?"----What an odd question. Well, when we do get around to acquiring all that scaffolding, lighting, backdrops, speakers and shit, we'll probably call the whole assembly 'that multi-million-dollar setup better not collapse on us during a show.'

"So, who or what is Lucy?"----I'm kind of worried that you think Lucy could be a what. Talk about the objectification of women! She did trick me into something, though.

Copies 14 and 15 mailed

We finally mailed out copies 14 and 15 to paying customers in So Cal. Our goal is to get to 100. Remember, we expect most people to have downloaded our mp3s off the web site, so it's hard to tell how many copies of Pop Go The Tonics are floating around.

"Seriously, are we going to see a new album this summer?"----In a parallel universe, the answer would be yes.

"Um... sure. So, what does the new 'Alpha-Alpha' song sound like? And why the change in song title?" ----Well, if you must know... signs point to yes.

"Excuse me?" ----You heard me the first time.

"What's with this hostility? Don't you respect your fans?" ----Performatively speaking, I am entertaining them as we speak. Next question.

"Do you believe rock stars should take advantage of their position in society to promote social causes like Free Tibet, cancelling third world debt, and increasing awareness of depression?"----Concentrate and ask again.

Some notes

Over the last week or so, Mark wrote a new verse for "Alpha-Alpha," formerly known as "Alpha and Omega."

Where do we go from here? Ideally we should finish the new album this summer, but as usual our summer plans are scattering us all over the country again. Steven and Arta will have about 3 weeks at the beginning of summer to record.

Special dinner concert

Yep, it went well. Thanks again to all those who made it possible...

The setlist was:

Soundcheck... John Nepomuceno's "Still As The Night"
1. Distance, 2. Lucy, 3. The Clapping Song, 4. Lucy Tricked Me Into Something, 5. Morning Bell.

Stebbins concert tomorrow

Very little preparation is going into this concert. Hopefully, it'll go smoothly.

Mass e-mail sent today

THE TONICS AT STEBBINS HALL

The Tonics will be playing at Stebbins Hall's end-of-semester talent show this Saturday at 9PM! Stebbins (2527 Ridge Road, Berkeley) is a co-op on the north side of the Berkeley campus. It's also where Steven lives. To gain entry, you may have to say that you are Steven's guest.

JOKE TIME

What did the Beatles say when they were caught in a rockslide? (answer below)

DOWNLOAD OUR MUSIC!

If you haven't already, we invite you to download the Pop Go The Tonics EP from our website: http://www.popgothetonics.com/
It's free.

ANSWER

Watch out for the Rolling Stones!

An exclusive interview with John Nepomuceno

NP: DESCRIBE YOUR MUSICAL HISTORY.

JN: Me llamo, Juan. I played piano at the age of 5, quit at 9...but I still tickle the ivories from time to time...I've been playing guitar since I was 14...i am 22 so that makes that...wow 8 years? I play bass sometimes....drums sometimes...i started learning how to play the Koto (a Japanese lute instrument of some kind) when I was in high school and wish i pursued that longer...shrug...i like working the drum machine. I sing. I dance. I rap too, no bullshit mang.

NP: HOW DID YOU GET THIS GIG TO PLAY WITH THE TONICS?

JN: Bless Steven Chow's heart, he asked Project X: The Radiohead Tribute Collective to play with The Tonics...I was much obliged to do so. He is the facilitator of my Radiohead DeCal class which totally blows...i mean rocks.

NP: YOU ARE ARTA "HARD ROCKIN'" KHAKPOUR'S SUBSTITUTE. AS SUCH, YOU ARE PLAYING THE PARTS THAT HE PERSONALLY WROTE. WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY TO HIM?

JN: Hahaha, I think he's an extremely gifted musician. It wasn't easy figuring out his parts but I would say that they are indeed "hard rockin'," awesome riffage. I would like to meet you some day dude, you rock.

A most excellent cover

The purpose of this post is to call attention to Ben Folds - Bitches Ain't Shit. Please acquire that song.

Two quotes

Steven: "I don't like the way 'Tonight' sounds. We will have to re-record it. This time, I think with a faster 6/8 rhythm instead of 3/4."

Mark: "We should get a 4-track and re-record the whole Sculpted Static canon in a weekend."

Neon Phosphor's mailbag

'I want to purchase "Sound Check". I let my friend borrow it and it came back scuffed and sticky...unplayable. I will pay any price!!!!' (name and contact info withheld)

Unfortunately, we do not have any copies of Sound Check. In fact, we cannibalized our leftover Sound Check jewel cases into Sunny Ash cases. But we don't have any more Sunny Ashes, either.

Those interested in our past should visit our old soundclick page.

The Tonics bootlegged

John Nepomuceno built a bootleg CD containing the Pop Go The Tonics EP and our concert recordings, among other things. Steven: "When I saw it, I was like, holy shit, it looks better than the official CD. It's actually got a jewel case and liner notes, and the cover is a picture of that girl from our lyrics web pages."

Good news

It looks like we are going to play.

Neon Phosphor's mailbag

"your punning is getting out of control. i am shocked and a bit offended by today's 'summer' pun. wtf? says arta."

NEON PHOSPHOR EXCURS TO THE RAGGED EDGE OF OUR LANGUAGE, AND BEYOND.

Special dinner gig confirmed, sorta

The Tonics will play at the special dinner at Stebbins Hall, but only if we can get our Bay Area cast together again. We are currently in the process of looking at our respective planners.

Concert recording

Steven finished editing the concert recording: "The best part is hearing that you actually hit the right notes, something that doesn't always happen in the heat of the moment."

Copy 13 is mailed to the piNoisepop festival, which we qualify for because we have at least one Asian bandmember.

"What are your summer plans?" ----That question leaves out a lot. My TI-85 is also a differencer, producer, and a quotienter.

"Are we to expect this kind of wordplay on the album?" ----Sure, if you stack the works of Shakespeare on top of our CD. Did you know that Shakespeare was such a master of the language that he invented hundreds of common words and sayings still used today?

Concert to be mixed

Today was pretty eventful. Steven got a copy of the concert recording (recorded by Morgan Wadsworth and Matthew Siemonsma). He will attempt to mix out a metronome track that was accidentally recorded on top of the whole recording.

"This is the ultimate challenge for a waveform manipulator. I should earn a merit badge for this."

Obviously we cannot expect this to have the same fidelity as, say, The Who Live At Leeds, but you will still get a very good feeling of the energy from this concert.

Today, Mark recorded a new demo of "Alpha and Omega" with a cool harmonized guitar part.

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 9

The Rolling Stones arrangements

They're really geniuses at producing a rich sound without sounding overproduced, probably better than The Beatles. Today's spotlight goes to "Memory Motel" by The Rolling Stones. Piano, organ, acoustic guitar, a bit of electric, bass. That's the kind of the sound we're going for, I think.

Other great songs by the Stones: "Brown Sugar," "Wild Horses," "Let's Spend The Night Together" (for the doo-wop backing vocals), "Ruby Tuesday," "Miss You" (containing probably Arta's favorite spoken word passage) and "Gimme Shelter."

I don't know if we can sing like Mick Jagger, but there's still a lot to learn from "the world's greatest rhythm section."

This Be The Verse

I don't really have much to say today, either. Here's a poem by Philip Larkin:

This Be The Verse

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.

But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another's throats.

Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don't have any kids yourself.

Nothing to say today

Neon Phosphor takes a break.

Arta: "We need to make music that will destroy the world"

Speaking of apocalypse, it's time for a Sunny Ash moment.

As some of you may know, we released an album called Sunny Ash back when we were Sculpted Static. In fact, Thank You (on our EP) is the same version from Sunny Ash, only touched up a little.

Here are all the references to the sun in Sunny Ash:

"the sinking sun face the smile of the moon" (Lucy)
"sleep on a bed of nails to see the sunrise" (Apart)
"soaking the warmth from the rays of the sun, he takes in some heat" (Follow The)
"so he follows the sun round corners and trees" (Follow The)
"early morn the sun is in my room" (Haste)
"the sun will burn off the day all day" (Nothing)
"the sun is just as big or small" (Nothing)
"he tried to blot the sunlight" (Refrain)
"marisol" (Refrain, we think this means "sunny sea")

Could the sun be a metaphor for a nuclear bomb?

On a side note, the word "no," "nothing" or "not" appears in every song except "Apart."

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 8

(Happy 4/20, folks. Copy 12 will be mailed tomorrow.)

Today's spotlight: the beginning

This is a particular weakness of ours. We don't usually give our songs their proper introductions. Let's look at a sampling of good intros, particularly those that aren't just the first chord played for 2 bars.

Intros that appear nowhere else in the song

The Beach Boys - California Girls (it keeps building: piano and guitar, bass, then horns, then the organ)
The Beatles - If I Fell (intro verse)
The Beatles - Michelle (guitar part)
The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night (chord)

The intro is also a between-verse link

Elliott Smith - Everything Means Nothing To Me (brief piano flourish)
The Beatles - In My Life
The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

One song or instrumental track introduces the next

Blonde Redhead - Equally Damaged/ In Particular
Van Halen - Eruption/ You Really Got Me
Queen - We Will Rock You/ We Are The Champions
Brian Wilson - Our Prayer/ Gee/ Heroes and Villains

I'm sure there are many other excellent intros out there. This is just what I can come up with off the top of my head.

Honorable mention goes to The Offspring - Pretty Fly (For A White Guy) for a spectacular multi-part intro:

Sample: "gunter glieben glauten globen"

Female vocalist: Give it to me, baby
Male vocalist: uh huh, uh huh
x3

Spoken: And all the girlies say I’m pretty fly for a white guy

Guitar riff

Spoken: Uno, dos, tres, quatro, cinquo, senco, ses

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 7

(Produced and mailed copy 11 for a customer.)

Today's spotlight: pop songs with totally different movements

This is a tricky category. How do you work with sudden shifts in music without it turning prog rock? Let's try to find out:

The medley

The Beatles - Kansas City/Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey (1:12), the Beatles experimented with medleys as early as 1964. Just put two songs with the same key.

The 5th Dimension - Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures) (2:18), The 5th Dimension are one of the best pop groups of the 60s, no question about it. Here, they accomplish the switch by splicing two songs into a medley.

The cut up and splice method

The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations, this is an example of how you put completely different sections of music together and still have one of the most popular records ever.

Brian Wilson - Heroes And Villains (2:17), the switch to the "in the cantina" section is borderline prog rock, I think. By that, I mean it doesn't work as well as some of the other songs, perhaps too self-consciously a sudden switch. A successful switch should sound smooth and natural.

Petula Clark - Don't Sleep in the Subway (0:51), she is best known for "Downtown" but this one is a really good song, too.

The Beatles - Happiness Is A Warm Gun, brilliant. My favorite sections are "I need a fix" and "mother superior" with that weird time signature.

Radiohead - Paranoid Android, inspired by the Beatles song named above.

The "different" coda

Madonna - Vogue (4:50), new lyrics and melody for the end: "ooh, you got to..."

The Beatles - Ticket To Ride (2:46), the "my baby don't care" section with a new beat and guitar solo.

So.... how are The Tonics responding to all this? "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something"

We want photos or recordings

If you have any photos or recordings of the show, we'd love to see them! E-mail info@popgothetonics.com.

The Next Big Thing

According to the website for "The Next Big Thing" (KALX), which played Sculpted Static two years ago, they have not yet played us. The next chance is tomorrow (Monday), so tune in on http://kalx.berkeley.edu/ at 6:00pm Pacific, and hope for the best.

Harmony work on "Tonight"

Harmony vocals on "Tonight"'s (very intense) last verse. "It's getting very near the end."

Mixing "Tonight"

Steven did some more mixing work on "Tonight."

"I got rid of the piano in the beginning because it was too much, also the french horn had to go because it was really doing the same thing as the harmony vocals."

An exclusive interview with Steven Chow

NP: HOW WAS THE GIG?

SC: we played to about 300% more people at this gig than the last. at this rate, we're 4 gigs away from playing the berkeley greek theatre, which has a max capacity of 8000.

NP: ARE YOU MAKING ANY PROGRESS ON THE ALBUM?

SC: we've sort of taken a step back because we'll probably have to record some of the songs again. like the clapping song, for sure, and crowds of nervous people. on the bright side, i think we have a better idea how to arrange them. also, i would like to bring back shoes because it's a good song. we can do that one with just piano, acoustic rhythm guitar, one lead electric guitar, bass and drums. in fact, i'd like to see that arrangement done more, it's basically what we had during the concert. mark pointed out that my piano-based songs usually sound complete as they are, and if the band can just play around the piano instead of overwhelming it--like on radio--it could work really well, like karma police or pyramid song.

NP: HAVE YOU WRITTEN ANY NEW SONGS LATELY?

SC: been working on one, yeah. it's another depressing one on the piano.

Nothing really interesting happened today.

Neon Phosphor takes a break.

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 7 1/2

Here's another brilliant one, courtesy of Ringo.

The Beatles - I Feel Fine (1:24)

Concert report

It really was an awesome concert, and we don't normally feel that way about our concerts. Mark's really improved his stage presence from playing with a cover band in Davis. You should've seen him freaking out during the interludes of "The Clapping Song." "The Clapping Song," by the way, went sooooo well that we have to re-record it.

Here is the complete setlist:

Soundcheck: Lucy. 2nd soundcheck: Airbag (partial), The Clapping Song, Cosmic Dancer, True Love Waits (partial).

Show: (John addresses the audience), 1. Distance, (Mark introduces G the bassist, then a tuning break), 2. Telegraph Avenue, (Mark introduces the rest of the band), 3. Lucy, (Mark introduces the next song), 4. The Clapping Song, (Steven talks about the web site), 5. Lucy Tricked Me Into Something, (Mark talks about the next song being a Smiths cover), 6. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.

Thanks...

Neon Phosphor took a break on 4/9 to celebrate the successful gig.

We would like to thank Joanna Wisniewski, John Nepomuceno, Matt Siemonsma, and G for playing with us. Thanks also to the people who put the concert together and the people who came to see it. Finally, thanks to Sarah Accomazzo and Binh Au for loaning us equipment.

Rehearsals for the big show

The first rehearsal happened today. Amazing to hear the songs live. We are still short on equipment and hoping to borrow some by tomorrow. Mark arrived in Berkeley after the rehearsal.

Ad campaign for The Tonics

After hearing the promoters' modest expectations of a half-house at 155 Dwinelle (max capacity: 300), Steven took it upon himself to design and post nearly 200 flyers on the Berkeley campus. "Just for the record, I spent $8.70 today on copies. We're gonna exceed that 30 person attendance at the No Future Cafe."

Personnel issues

We are facing a bit of a crisis as our bassist has pulled out due to an emergency. Now we will see just how good Craigslist is. Also, our second electric guitarist can't do it anymore, but we won't bother replacing him.

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 7 1/3

Arta: "you missed one of the greatest drums attacking moments. i'm very disappointed in you"

Radiohead - There There (3:57), after nearly four minutes of timpani, Phil attacks with his regular drumset, signaling the beginning of a brief, but kickass, guitar solo

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 7

"When drums attack"

Not just when drums come in, but includes examples where drums build tension (usually by an extended drum roll or hammering out the quarter notes) and release into a normal rock and roll beat. I don't know what the technical terms are---I'm no drummer!

Blonde Redhead - Kazuality (3:09-3:14)
The White Stripes - Hypnotise (0:59-1:15)
Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven (4:17-4:19)
Pixies - Rock Music (0:04-0:21)
Broken Social Scene - KC Accidental (0:10)
The Beatles - The End (0:19-0:34)

We sorta do this on "The Clapping Song."

We don't have an update for you today

Sorry, man. Neon Phosphor needs a break.

Greatest moments in rock and roll, part 6

Today we focus on instrumentals that "preview" an upcoming vocal melody, often as a turning point in the song.

Blonde Redhead - Misery Is A Butterfly (2:48), guitar anticipates "Misery is a butterfly"
Radiohead - Where I End and You Begin (2:53), bass anticipates "I will eat you alive"
Radiohead - Sit down. Stand up. (2:25-3:03), piano chords in the rhythm of "rain drops, the rain drops"
The Beach Boys - You Still Believe In Me (0:00), the intro melody, made by simultaneously playing and plucking the piano strings, doesn't return until the coda (1:37 onwards)
The Beatles - You Never Give Me Your Money (0:00), the intro melody is the same as the verse
Blonde Redhead - Melody (0:00), keyboard intro anticipates the verse melody, ironically the keyboard starts playing something else once the singing starts

The Tonics used this technique on "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something."

Lineup determined

The Tonics have decided on the lineup and the setlist (Distance, Telegraph Avenue, Lucy, The Clapping Song, Lucy Tricked Me Into Something, There Is A Light That Never Goes Out), but we will hold off on the mass e-mail and announcement until things are more set in stone. Keep your schedule open for next Saturday, April 9, 5:30pm, if you're in Berkeley.

Great moments in lyric writing, vol. 1

Jay-Z, feat. Bun B and Pimp C - Big Pimpin'

Nigga it's the - big Southern rap impresario
Comin straight up out the black bar-rio
Makes a mill' up off a sorry hoe
Then sit back and peep my sce-nawr-e-oh
Oops, my bad, that's my scenario

This is lyric writing worthy of Shakespeare. No, we're not being sarcastic. Rap lyrics have to stay musical despite the lack of a melody, and good lyricists will have a keen ear for sound and rhythm of their verse. The above is a fine example of the more unusual rhyme "ahrio". As if impresario and barrio aren't impressive enough, he rhymes it across two words with "sorry hoe". And then, in a brilliantly comical, but unpretentious, self-conscious moment, he "tries" to continue the rhyme with "scenahrio" but realizes his error in pronunciation and corrects it in the next line.

Concert update

Steven is putting together the support band for The Tonics. The setlist will be decided tomorrow.

A concert! Yes, really...

Mark and Steven have agreed to play at a benefit concert on April 9 to benefit children. Therefore, we have to rule out our nihilist, anti-life anthem "Hamlet," but we will nonetheless be putting together an exciting setlist, and perhaps a support band, in the coming days. Check this space for details.

Nothing happened today

What do you expect? We go to school.

Spotlight on duets

(The kids at Somesongs like "Distance." It currently has the highest rating of the week.)

Duets are of particular interest to us because we have two lead singers.

PJ Harvey and Thom Yorke - This Mess We're In (One of the best duets from the modern era. Notice how the two voices weave in and out of each other.)

The Beatles - We Can Work It Out (Aside from the vocal work, also notice the amazing time signature switch at the end of John's section.)

Blonde Redhead - (I Am Taking Out My Eurotrash) I Still Get Rocks Off (This is a typical exchange between Kazu Makino and Amedeo Pace. It looks as dramatic as it sounds onstage.)

Pixies - Tony's Theme (Kim Deal is usually mixed as though she is a second lead singer, even when she's doing a harmony or countermelody. Yes, she says "This is a song about a superhero named Tony..." even during the live performance, which I think rocks.)

The Sugarcubes - Motor Crash (Einar's poor rapping tends to make Bjork sound even better than she does. Still, this song is a good example of how two lead singers can switch off: one of them [Bjork] starts scat singing, and the other takes over on words.)

More copies mailed out

Copies 09 and 10 mailed to KALX (UC Berkeley, attn: The Next Big Thing) and KDVS (UC Davis). Three years ago, we had "UFO" and "Telegraph Avenue" played on KALX's "The Next Big Thing."

Bureaucratic stuff

Copy 09 is built, but not mailed yet, because Steven ran out of stamps.

If you type "The Tonics" into Google (with quotes), we're the first thing that shows up. Huzzah!

How are our downloads doing?

(Copy 08 built and shipped.)

According to CNet, we had more downloads last week than our indie pop peers Showroom, The Hong Kong, The Decembrists, Crooked Fingers, Hippie Cream, Viva Voce, and others. We are also the top artist in the category without an editor's review. Before we celebrate, however, it's important to note that part of the reason is that we dumped the whole EP on there, while most other bands have only one or two songs picking up the download count. Also, the leader in our category (The Postal Service) had 7,774 downloads last week, compared to only 476 for us.

Great moments in vocal harmonies, vol. 2

The Cranberries - Ode To My Family (1:04): This is a good example of creative double-tracking. The second vocal track alternates between singing harmony and countermelody. Sometimes it sounds like the two vocal tracks are switching roles.

The Smiths - Bigmouth Strikes Again (1:52): Notice how Morrissey's moan fades in from the background as though branching off from his main melody.

The Beatles - Help! (throughout): It's very frustrating that no one's topped The Beatles in the last 40 years. "Help!" is a fine example of what no one's been paying attention to...

Rufus Wainwright - April Fools (throughout): ...or maybe Rufus Wainwright was paying attention. He's got a whole choir doing cool shit. The best part is the long bridge, beginning at 2:03.

The Beach Boys - I Get Around (0:00-0:08): The finest acappella opening on a rock song. This is before acappella openings turned into shit like Yes' "I've Seen All Good People."

I have nothing to say today

That's, of course, in stark contrast to the upcoming Tonics album, which will have plenty to say about life, death and everything in between.

Great moments in vocal harmonies, vol. 1

Great vocal harmonies have existed almost since the beginning of music. Here are some random selections:

The Velvet Underground - I Found A Reason (beginning of song): Pedal tone harmonies made with two vocal tracks of opposing rhythms, this trick may be used for the harmonies on the last verse of "Tonight."

Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories - Stay (I Missed You) (1:07): Lisa Loeb gives us hope because she was the first unsigned artist to have a number one single with this song. She also went to Brown and majored in comp lit. Beginning at 1:07, the harmonies, which at times sound more like an extension of her lead vocal, help build the song to a powerful climax. There's also tambourine on the song, if you listen closely.

Radiohead - Sit down. Stand up. (1:48): Radiohead aren't exactly known for their barbershop harmonies, but they still have a few tricks up their sleeves. At 1:48, the harmonies start creating these weird chords that only create more tension, and make the song creepier as it builds up to the raindrops.

The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice: Notice how the harmonies alternate smoothly between "oohs/ahs" and actual words. And while we're on this song... everyone should experience the joy of discovering what the guitar is playing during the bridge (1:06).

Martha & the Vandellas - Heatwave: Motown produced an amazing string of pop songs during the 60s, another reason to reclaim the oldies station from your parents instead of rebelling against it. Remember, John Lennon's favorite singer is mary wells ("you beat me to the punch", "my guy") of Motown fame. "Heatwave" is a great example of call-response, doubling, and "ooh" harmonies, all wrapped in one high-energy pop song that rocks harder than most indie rockers today.

Indie rock moment of the day

(Steven recorded a tambourine and a new lead vocal for "Tonight": "Completely tranformed the song. It'll blow your mind.")

To show that we're not entirely in the dark about our contemporaries, today we highlight drum machine usage in the world of indie rock.

The Raveonettes - Do You Believe Her (They are sort of a retro band. On this song is probably their most exciting drum track, complete with sound effects.)
The Strokes - Hard To Explain (We covered this song during a Sculpted Static concert. What happened to them, anyway?)
Adult. - Glue Your Eyelids Together (electronica/pop/rock)
Spoon - Small Stakes (Not a drum machine, but tambourine all the way except for a couple flourishes and a coda of heavily reverbed real drums)

Probably the most famous example of drum machine rock is The Smashing Pumpkins' Adore, made after they lost their drummer.

Radiohead cut up and looped samples of real drumming on "Airbag". Also notice the sleighbells at the beginning of the track suggesting transportation of the polar kind.

Here is a list of Sculpted Static songs that actually used programmed beats: "Salvo Social," "Save the Day," "carchase2," "Einsamkeit," "Spare Change." We expect to use the drum machine again on the new version of "Save the Day."

Today(night)'s update

Harmony vocals recorded for "Tonight."

"I heard rumors that the whole album will be re-recorded" ----Yeah, it's called 'The Tonics present their first album live at the Royal Festival Hall, 2008.' It'll be made into a DVD, too, packed with special features like an archive of this very website.

Random notes

Bass and additional mixing done for "Tonight." Roger has received copy 04.

Steven: "'Tonight' is the kind of song you'd expect about 3/4 of the way into an album. It's kind of a downer. It's a lot like 'Haste,' actually. Very depressing."

"Distance" is now at the top of the list on CNet, but the rest of the EP is still in reverse order.

Confusion

I just realized that I missed an entry, so the last few journal entries may be off by a day. 3/17 should be 3/18, for instance. I don't know if 3/16 is correct as it is.

"Tonight" gets synthesizers

Steven recorded a synth part for "Tonight."

"Take Me Now"

Mark wrote a new song called "Take Me Now" and recorded a demo of it.

For less than a dollar...

Copies 05, 06 and 07 are ready to be shipped. There's still no word on the fate of copy 04, so Steven will ship the CDs with 97 cent postage.

Mark wants to rewrite some of "The Clapping Song" lyrics.

Strangers listening to The Tonics

With every passing day, more people are enjoying the experience of listening to Pop Go The Tonics backwards on CNet (mp3.com). From a total of 76 people on "Thank You," 26 of them reached the bottom of the list. That's actually more than a third, which I guess is good.

Of the 45 people who listened to "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something," all but three moved onto "Lucy." On "Lucy," they seem to be disappointed or too tired to continue. the numbers drop sharply to 30 for "Sad," and 26 for "Distance."

Backwards messages

We got a bunch of plays on mp3.com less on merit and more on the fact that we are the newest band in the alternative category. Unfortunately, they have presented our music in reverse EP order, which means our weakest song is on top and getting all the plays, and "Distance" is at the bottom. And there seems to be no way to fix it. Very disappointing, because only slightly more than half of our listeners continued listening to us after "Thank You". Now, "Thank You" is a perfectly great song, it's just one of those songs that you are supposed to love only after you've listened to it a bunch of times. And it is not a representative Tonics track.

On the bright side, 14 strangers have good enough taste to listen to the whole EP. We also got our first two orders! We are aware, however, that our surge in popularity is an anomaly due to mp3.com's generosity in providing coverage to new entries. There is much work to be done...

Not much happened today

See, we're lazy people. New CDs will not be mailed until Roger confirms that 83 cents is enough postage for our CD (that's 14 cents less than what we spent on postage for copies 01 to 03). Yeah, we're lazy and cheap.

For China Bialos...

Steven started working on copy 05 destined for KUPS in Tacoma, WA.

For Roger Tang...

Copy 04 produced and mailed to WQHS.

Locked out...

Day two of the lockout from popgothetonics.com.

A video?

Ian is doing a video for "Lucy Tricked Me Into Something."

"I'm in an 'Advanced Video-Editing' adjunct class and I think I could make a funny/trippy music-video for our website."

I can't get on popgothetonics.com today, so the upload is postponed.

You can't expect a Tonic to be a Tonic everyday.

Nothing relevant to this journal happened today. Except maybe Arta strumming away at his new acoustic-electric guitar like there's no tomorrow.

A bad sentence in many ways...

"Nothing tangible was achieved today."

Sculpted Static song of the day: "Haste"

Fans' choice for the best song on Sculpted Static's Sunny Ash, "Haste" is about the rooming house at 2316 Haste Street, Berkeley, where Steven lived from August 2002 to March 2003.

The band dislikes the song for its gloomy and meandering music, but there are some lyrical highlights including the following twist on pathetic fallacy:

Early morn the sun is in my room
And never mind that it sheds the light on doom

The chorus melody was actually written by Arta. In fact, most of the music was finished in June 2002, before the Sound Check album. Why the song became a hit is still a mystery to the band these days.

Steven: "It's not a bad song. We'll perform it if we have to."

Yet another batch of questions

(The mass e-mail was sent yesterday.)

"What's the strategy now?" ----College radio stations, and many of them. We really can't lose with our eye-catching CD mailer.

"Are you at the mercy of those radio stations?" ----Considering that more people will want to tune in to them when they start playing The Tonics, college radio stations have more at stake than we do.

"What does the new 'Tonight' sound like?" ----Not nearly as depressing as it should be. More changes necessary.

"Why are you making depressing music? Aren't you supposed to go pop?" ----The Smiths were depressing but they were quite pop.

A great day for consumption

Arta got a new guitar and Steven got 50 cd mailers. The mass e-mail will probably happen today.

What Then?

Celesta recorded on "Tonight."

What Then?

His chosen comrades thought at school
He must grow a famous man;
He thought the same and lived by rule,
All his twenties crammed with toil;
`What then?' sang Plato's ghost. `What then?'

Everything he wrote was read,
After certain years he won
Sufficient money for his need,
Friends that have been friends indeed;
`What then?' sang Plato's ghost. `What then?'

All his happier dreams came true -
A small old house, wife, daughter, son,
Grounds where plum and cabbage grew,
Poets and Wits about him drew;
`What then?' sang Plato's ghost. `What then?'

`The work is done,' grown old he thought,
`According to my boyish plan;
Let the fools rage, I swerved in naught,
Something to perfection brought';
But louder sang that ghost, `What then?'

- W. B. Yeats

Piano for "Tonight"

Steven recorded a piano track for "Tonight." Now it's sounding more like a good song.

Success!

Copies 01 and 02 reached their destinations, proving that $0.97 is enough postage, though $0.83 might work, too. Steven is currently waiting for a shipment of 50 cardboard mailers, because buying them one by one was too expensive.