can ya dig it?

Check this out, the new JM video...enjoy!

texas hold'em vs. texas blues

Yesterday was such a fun day. I spent the day with my good buddy Tyson and his friend Ryan. We just hung out and had a good old guys day. We watched some old SNL bits on DVD and had a rather rousing game of poker. There is something I absolutely love about putting on some music and just relaxing with a game of cards. Actually, music finds its way into a lot of what i do. Yesterdays weapon of choice: Stevie Ray Vaughn. As a guitarist I find inspiration in a great many places, but no guitarist has impacted my playing quite like Stevie. Every track I listen to is like a little piece of heaven. I could listen to "Things That I Used To Do" a thousand times and still find something exciting and new every time around. If you are not familiar with Stevie Ray Vaughn, I highly recommend that you take the time to shake hands and introduce yourself to songs like "Lenny", "Texas Flood", or "Tin Pan Ally". Sit down, have a listen, and lose yourself.

these are the days...

It's official, I am finally enjoying being my own age. Until now I was more than content with growing up, getting older and finding my place in the world of grocery store lineups and drive through coffee shops. I hated my teen years; the drama, the "heartache", and the stupidity of thinking we were larger than life. I always wanted to grow up and just settle into a routine. Fast forward 5 to 8 years... I have done a lot of growing up, and I mean a lot. I am 22, newly married, getting ready to start a career, and finding myself becoming more and more enamored with the idea of being a twentysomething. It is so great to be able to look forward with anticipation while still being able to look around at where I am now and say "I'm lovin' it". This is the independant, albeit stressful lifestyle teenagers always dream of. I hate to say it because it sounds so juvenile, but I love living life on my own terms. Everything is so fresh, so inviting. There is a huge future ahead, but I want to make sure that I am not so fixated on it that I miss the experience. I guess what I am trying to say is that life is good. These are the days...

in my own words...

Maybe I just try to hard. It seems whenever I sit down to expel whatever is going through my head I just end up frustrated because I can't say it as eloquently as I want to. When you talk, thats it, its a one shot deal. You speak and it is over. There is no taking back what you have said because the words are free from the confines of your tongue. Thats what i hate about writing. Whether I am writing music or just writing in this here blog, i find myself trying too hard to be inspired. There is always the option to tear up a piece of paper and start over, or to hit that magical backspace button and erase what i have already expressed. I am beginning to realize that through all of my undoing and erasing I have lost my voice. I am trying too hard to say things the way somebody else might say them.

I listen to a lot of music and, in the course of doing so, have discovered a ton of artists whose work just makes my brain melt. I am amazed at the lyrical genius of John K Samson and the reflective, often introspective writing of John Mayer. In comparison to artists such as these my work seems more like eighth grade poetry. But that is where the problem lies. I am Dan, and the only words that will ever carry any real weight are the ones that come from that place deep inside of me where the real emotion lives. From now on I am restricting the use of my backspace button to editting spelling errors or punctuation mishaps.

welcome and announcements...

Well, it's been a long time coming but here it is, the blog the world has been holding its breath for! Im sure this link will find its way into MSN convo's and online chatrooms everywhere with exclamations of "Wow, this blog is awesome!" or "I'm speechless! Literally speechless!" Whatever your reaction, I'm sure you'll agree: this is one for the ages. Stay tuned boys and girls, you just might learn something!