SMOKE SESSION: Strawberry Cough

the rippin' and the tearin'

seattle power shredder

For this week's SMOKE SESSION I vaped some Strawberry Cough from GLP and started elaborating on some ideas I had recently come up with. First off, the line "You don't even have a heart to break" sounded like such a bitter concept, I wanted to see what I could do with it. Its something you'd have to be really angry to say to someone else. Also the title of the song "Kiss and Tell" to me has such a push and pull to it, the KISS is the sweet, wonderful part but the TELL is much more mysterious - who did you tell and what did you tell them?! I'm also working to simplify my musical delivery, and this is a demo but I'm intentionally not overdoing the guitars and other instruments during the verses and vocal parts. I can always add more later, but I like hearing some space in there every so often. I wish I sang this better but typically with demos the vocal melody is so totally new, that I'm honestly just not that good at singing it yet! The next version I'll have it locked in I promise! 

As for the cannabis in today's session, Strawberry Cough from Green Life Productions is one of my absolute favorites! Years ago when cannabis first went legal in Nevada, Strawberry Cough was a strain I just HAD to track down, in addition to the incredibly sweet, fruity scent and taste, SC's effects are ideal for creative folks [check https://www.leafly.com/sativa/strawberry-cough] so I had to see what it was capable of. Immediately I felt the rush of euphoria and creativity that makes you just want to write songs all day! This one tastes great and feels great on the mind/body level as well. 

So even tho this song is far from perfect, it IS what I was able to come up with today on Strawberry Cough, bruises and all. I'll have to post a remix soon. But for now I'm happy with the bitter love concepts in the lyrics and the guitars at the end are kinda cool. Hope y'all are having a great day - until next session... 

SMOKE SESSION: Head Cheese

Head Cheese from Polaris voted Best of Las Vegas 2018.

I had to take advantage of this unique date; 8-8-18, and record something unique. That was the plan, anyway...I was thinking about my own unique life journey - the UPs and DOWNs - and how my main regret would be any time I STOPPED life's momentum and didn't let things continue to play out to see what might happen. Looking back, I think I wanted everything to be "perfect" before anyone heard it. And my definition of what "perfect" was seemed to change constantly. It's enough to make you crazy. So recently I have come to appreciate the idea of the process, and being patient. I didn't want to worry about achieving "perfection", I wanted to celebrate The Imperfections (hence the name). I stopped my own progress so many times in the past - afraid of what might lie ahead. Maybe it was nothing different than life as I knew it, but you can't stop yourself before you finish, its not fair to the universe! This song deals with life's journey, and the process - even if you can't see it now - life is leading you towards an exciting story! People love roller coasters because they ZOOM, ZIP, WHOOSH up, down and all around - not straight ahead and slow. What fun would THAT be? Stick with this song to the end, there are some fun surprises, just like life - now isn't that nice?!

As for the cannabis - I went with my tried and true favorite strain Head Cheese from Polaris based right here in Las Vegas, NV. It was voted "BEST STRAIN" in the Las Vegas Weekly Best of Vegas 2018 issue - and its well-deserved. First of all, it has a STRONG stinky/moldy cheese smell, some people don't like that. But for me - if a flower smells THAT strong, it means there are some serious terpenes in action which typically results in a more enhanced sensory experience overall. Its dense and moist, which isn't easy in the Nevada desert. Head Cheese makes my body feel like its getting a warm hug (which makes me feel safe and creative while coming up with fresh new song ideas). But Head Cheese also packs a hefty cerebral blow - sometimes I can get too cloudy or confused if I have too much, but with well-dosed moderation, Head Cheese can aid mental creativity and give a euphoric stamina well-suited to any kind of creativity, in this case, songwriting. I ground up the cannabis with my trusty SLX Grinder and vaped through my Da Buddha Vaporizer which I've had for 10 YEARS NOW! Happy anniversary to us.

I started recording the song on an acoustic guitar, then laid down the drums over the top - the guitar riffs came soon after and the chorus vocal harmonies topped off the whole shebang. Still tweaking it, but here's where its at now...