The Originals (04.26.09)

Bringing the ZakRock to lots of new and cool people.

Neat place for a big show.

Ah, so that's what 90 people look like. It's been awhile.

When I first heard about THE ORIGINALS, a group in SL of people who perform their own song exclusively, I was immediately interested. First and foremost, I was interested as a music fan. Don't get me wrong; I like hearing someone do a terrific cover song as much as anyone, and have spent a lot of time in SL playing covers while I worked on my own stuff. These days, my shows are about two-thirds originals on average, with some covers thrown in to mix stuff up every so often.

But I digress. Today, the Originals held an all-day festival for -- you guessed it -- original music. Here was the line-up:

09.45am - MIMI CARPENTER
10.00am - RASPBURY REARWIN
10.30am - EVAMOON EMBER
11.00am - PILGRIM75 SWASHBUCKLER
11.30am - WINSTON ACKLAND
12.00pm - POL Arida
12.30pm - STRUM DIESEL
1.00pm - ZAK CLAXTON
1.30pm - GRACE McDUNNOUGH
2.00pm - MAXIMILLION KLEENE
2.15pm - DANN NUMBERS
2.30pm - SENJATA WITT
3.00pm - The AfterParty with DJ DOUBLEDOWN TANDINO

So, I had the pleasure of joining some of SL's finest for this entire day of live music. I usually don't stay the entire day for these kind of events, but it turned out to be the perfect day to relax and enjoy the company of Kat (here in real life) and all my musical compatriots in SL as well.

I can say honestly that everyone I heard today sounded pretty fantastic. It was a definite honor getting to play before one of my personal favorite musicians in SL, Grace McDunnough. But all the performers really brought their A-game and played some terrific stuff. I really enjoyed it. My set was at 1:00, and the show was run very well (thanks to Harrie Skjellerup) so right on time I got to start my half-hour show.

Set list for THE ORIGINALS (Sun 4/26/09)...
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Come Around (Zak Claxton)

I'd say it went really well, considering that a week ago, I was completely laid up with the flu, and hadn't played for a week before that either. It was a really nice way to jump back into doing gigs in SL, and huge thanks go out to Harrie Skjellerup for getting me involved in this terrific group.

Big thanks to everyone who supported today's show!
Triana Caldera, Diana Renoir, Harrie Skjellerup, Reginald Beck, Ron Kaffebaum, Shellie Sands, sarahjo Teardrop, Jeaninne Mathilde, Natasja Koenkamp, Jordan Hazlitt, Krakov Letov, Kat Claxton, Bourque Rau, Winston Ackland, Jura Shepherd, Amylyn Arcadia, Aurelie Chenaux, Strawberry Holiday, and Eli Schlegal!

Another new demo song (04.12.09)

I have a good problem.

I had decided awhile ago that 11 songs was a pretty good total for my first album. Why 11? Pretty simple; as we all know, most music today is purchased online via downloads, from places like iTunes, Amazon MP3, Rhapsody, and so on and so forth. And we also know that most songs sell for $0.99, and albums sell for around $9.99. So, to make an album worthwhile for a listener to want to buy, it should have a value worth more than the sum of its parts. Therefore, an album needs at least 11 songs to cost $9.99. Res ipsa loquitur.

There are also limits to what one can include on an album, due to the fact that at some point, it also needs to be put on a physical medium such as a compact disc. The compact disc is still a pretty cool way to store and distribute music, even with its popularity on the decline. You can put about 80 minutes of music on a CD, which is a lot; my entire album of 11 songs should clock in as such:

1. Lines On Your Eyes (3:35)
2. You're Like a Cloud (3:34)
3. Falling Down (4:13)
4. This Afternoon (3:16)
5. Come Around (3:04)
6. The Sands of Redondo (4:35)
7. Time Never Waits for You (4:12)
8. Always Tomorrow (3:11)
9. Thanks Anyway (3:01)
10. Waxing Gibbous (3:30)
11. Waiting for This (6:04)

So that's only a little over 42 minutes, and obviously, we have room for more music. And therein lies the problem; I am definitely anxious to finish the recording of this album and get it out there, but at the same time, I keep writing songs, and it's entirely possible that I can include them on this album.

All that having been said (and I hope you didn't doze off while reading that crap), I have a new demo tune that you can check out. No lyrics yet, and only a half-assed melody that I can hum at the moment. But it seems like it could be a strong song, and I'm still debating as to whether it a) goes on the album in addition to the current list, b) goes on the album in place of one of the other songs that I have yet to record, c) is put out as a single while I'm working on the next album, or d) is just put on the shelf until we record the next album.

Decisions, decisions. In the meantime, here's the new song idea. Enjoy.

Averlast Boxing (04.11.09)

Bourque Rau is a hockey fan, if you couldn't tell by her avatar name (inspired by NHL great Ray Bourque). Maybe that's why she thought to approach the group Averlast Boxing to see if they wanted to host a live music event. Bourque is a great fan of live music in SL, and she's taken it upon herself to go around and set up what she calls "investment gigs". We musicians are donating a little time and effort, but helping to spread the word to people to might not ordinarily get exposed to the music scene in SL.

So, that was the spirit when I went over to Averlast today. Averlast is a group for boxing and MMA (mixed martial arts) in Second Life, and they'd scheduled my show directly after a big tournament fight. In retrospect, I"m not entirely sure that was a great plan; I think after a bunch of aggression, you might not be up for hearing some guy strumming away on a happy acoustic guitar, lol.

But we did manage to scare up a pretty decent crowd that included a bunch of great friends and fans (and both), as well as get some new folks from the Averlast group to hear a bunch of my tunes. And, most importantly, it was a really fun day. I can't put a value on that, so I'm happy to say I'd gladly do another "investment gig" for Bourque if she calls me to play again.

Today's set list...
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Old Man (Neil Young)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Tribute (Tenacious D)
California (Joni Mitchell)
The Man Who Sold The World (David Bowie)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
Come Around (Zak Claxton)
Behind Blue Eyes (The Who)
Lines On Your Eyes (Zak Claxton)

Thanks to everyone who came out to support me and the SL Live Music scene today!
Julianna Lionheart, Diana Renoir, Red Hykova, Jordan Hazlitt, Chyna Landar, Alex Barth, jsmn Yao, hexx Triskaidekaphobia, and especially Karine Koba for hostessing and Bourque Rau for putting the show together!

Bay Vista Rainforest (04.09.09)

About to get onstage at Bay Vista. April 9, 2009.

Now this was a fun show. We had a nice-sized crowd of seemingly happy people, and despite having taken two weeks off SL performances, my voice and guitar were working with me (as opposed to against me, as they occasionally tend to do).

Last time I played at BV Rainforest, it was cool and fun but I didn't draw a large crowd that day. In contrast, I got wedged between KevinMThomas Carpool and Zacharia Loon, and I think I benefitted from both of their respective crowds. In any case, I felt nicely inspired to rock, so rock I did. And, giving myself a break from my own songs (which I do like, but play a LOT), I did throw a couple of extra covers in on the spur of the moment. I think the people approved.

The set list for Bay Vista Rainforest today...
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Summer Breeze (Seals & Crofts)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
Fire & Rain (James Taylor)
Come Around (Zak Claxton)
For the Turnstiles (Neil Young)
The Weight (The Band)
Soul Kitchen (The Doors)

Big thanks to those who helped support my show today!
kittie Serendipity, Amanda Steadham, OESSI Harbour, Shiwa Taurog, Alexandri Ashbourne, Chrysalida Burnstein, Bourque Rau, Blindboy Gumbo, and Bay View's lovely owners, Charm March and Gretchen Capalini!

New Video! You're Like a Cloud

A fun way to spend an otherwise lazy Sunday is to make a music video for a song, especially if you're a musician and have songs that might require videos. Since no one else is volunteering to make Zak Claxton videos, my label (Frothy Music) decided that we should have one. So in just a few hours of filming and editing, bada bing bada boom, we have a nifty video for "You're LIke a Cloud". It was filmed by my darling Kat, in and around my home. Enjoy!

The Notes Shack (03.26.09)

I'll start by saying I had a good time at the Notes Shack today -- I always do. But for whatever reason, it was a really small crowd today. The last couple of shows, though fun and well performed and all that, have been really small in the audience department. Some musicians get discouraged about that stuff, but I really try and connect with people on an individual basis when I do my shows. My main goal is letting people get to know my original music, so sometimes a small crowd can be more intimate and cool.

In any case, none of this mattered much, as I put on the same show at Notes Shack's small crowd today as I would have for a sim full of people. Well, except I probably wouldn't have had room to jump off the stage and play on top of a table. That was kinda fun.

The set list...
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)
Rikki Don't Lose That Number (Steely Dan)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
Time Never Waits for You (Zak Claxton)
Big Bad Bill (Van Halen)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Come Around (Zak Claxton)
A Day In The Life (Beatles)
Waiting For This (Zak Claxton)
Lines On Your Eyes (Zak Claxton)

Thanks to the folks who supported my show!
Ethem Planer, Mimi Carpenter, Isolda Imako, Alex Barth, and our host, Krakov Letov!

Back in the studio (03.21.09)

Epic.

That's the only word I have to describe my day at Phil O'Keefe's Sound Sanctuary Studio in Riverside, CA on Saturday March 21. Why don't you check out the video clips now, and then I'll tell you some more.



Okay, so here's what we did. Kat and I got up Saturday morning and started preparing to hit the road. We live near the beach, and Riverside is about 70 miles inland from us. We first stocked up on massive amounts of snacks and drinks for the day, and then hit the road. Arrived pretty much right on time, and (speaking of time) we didn't waste any; walked in and opened the case for the Martin. Phil threw a couple of mics up, and I did two passes of a solo acoustic instrumental piece called "Waxing Gibbous". The plan is for "Waxing Gibbous" is that it will be the penultimate song on the album, and acts as a long intro of sorts to "Waiting for This", which is the last track. Anyway, it came out nicely, and the Martin sounded great with shimmery new strings on it.

Bunny arrived a short while later (it was nice telling him we already had one in the can before he even got there), and we set up drums. He and I set up camp in the live room for a bit, going over a few runthroughs of the first song we planned to record, "Come Around". There are some tricky timing aspects to the tune, but as I could have predicted, Bunny completely locked into the vibe of the tune. That track was pretty punishing; Bunny was absolutely brutal on the drums, and I put everything I had into the guitars and vocals. But man, I love the result.

The last tune we did was really a blast. "Lines On Your Eyes" is a little more straightforward timing-wise, but has some interesting harmonic twists. Once again, we got to have contributions from Ken Lee, but this time he showed up with a Nord Electro 2 and played a great organ track. He threw down lots of good stuff, so it will be fun to shift through and see which parts can be used at various points in the song. The vocal lines for this song were much more complex, and as it got late that night, I found myself isolated and doing roughly 17,000,000 takes of harmony and background vocals. I told Kat this morning that I felt like Michael McDonald while cutting "Peg".

A couple of personal notes: really felt great about my bass playing and my guitar solos on both songs. I'm never really super happy with my vocals, but I think I did a passable job singing. Most of all, I spent about 90% of the day laughing. My musical collaborators are some of the best people on the planet... I'm convinced of this.

Great, great, great recording session. We'll post rough mixes to hear when they're available. Oh, and by the way: just two songs left to complete the Zak Claxton album, meaning after one more session at Sound Sanctuary, we're done with this one (and probably soon onto the next one, I hope).