GM! I don’t care what form the future takes, only what spirit imbues it.

https://wavlake.com/album/59ff22c4-f907-4259-aeff-5f2ec5df7759 Dear Ear Dreamers, I'm reading Lord of the Rings again... (fuck, its good). Apparently Hobbits give presents to other people on their own birthdays. Bilbo calls it "not a bad system." So today, on this bizarre national holiday that shares my birthday, I’m following suit—and giving you a gift: An album called Cranky. I conceived it in 2023 after a few years growing desert dough, though a handful of these songs go back a decade. A handful are 'city', some are more 'folk'. I don't know if this is a genre, but I keep thinking of these tunes as headphone music — one-on-one, emotional, raw, genre-jumping and far from perfect. In a day when AI is soon to top the charts, I don't expect this to be playing in any clubs. It veers towards solitude and a long stare at the ceiling. P.S. I have many people to thank for this coming to be. Andrew Stevens (drummer for more projects than I can find) for playing the drums on all the songs and engineering machinations out in the high desert. Joe Ulmer (Rann drummer) for mixing the city ones with proper super fund slime. Tim Walsh (Jimbo Norman / Stepkids drummer) for mixing the country ones with proper twang. Ivan Anderson (Cyberattack/Sweet Fix) for Peace and Quiet picking. Jeff Manian (MSU/Sweet Fix/Jimbo Norman) for B3 magicals on Tired Along. Dan Manian (MSU/Jimbo Norman, WWB) for laying down (too) many good bass takes on Lost my Way. Hannah Gentiles for making my photo likeness crisp. Happy listening! May you find some old memories and enjoy some new feelings. P.S.S. I'll call out the 3rd song. It's a quirky one that keeps creeping closer to my heart. It has to do with the Buddhist notion of 'attainment' After all these years, how good it feels to realize I'll never attain anything! P.S.S.S. The USA, a monastery I am quite fond of in the Catskills and I all 'began' today. It's always been a confusing day to me. The disparate forces of hot dogs, fireworks, long silences, peace, pain and my desire for ice cream cake all seem swirl together — especially the way America is going these days. And yet, there is hope, because in at least some sense, we are all free — even when we're Cranky. Happy 4th of July. P.S.S.S.S. This was originally sent via email to a listserv on July 4th #music

I’m pretty sure the response would be “a wizard is never late!”