Ok, so while this fire’s still burning and I’ve got your attention, I’m happy to announce that I’m going to (mostly) self-produce an album made up of the top 10 songs from the Odyssey as chosen by YOU, my lovely cyber family. Here are the guidelines to make your submissions.
1) Each person can send in up to 3 of their favorite songs from the Odyssey. Keep in mind, these should be songs you’d like to hear with a full arrangement.
2) To submit, send an email to macionni@gmail.com with the subject line “ODYSSEY TOP 10” or else it might go to spamland. Also, feel free to message me on Facebook.
3) NO THICK7 songs will be chosen for the Top 10 album. Because that album’s probably going to drop before this one anyways :)
After receiving a fair number of submissions, I’ll tally up the votes and get to work on some demos. I’m hoping to get some pretty interesting and challenging songs to demo out, so have fun with it! Think how COOL you’ll feel when you realize that a certain track is on the album all because of you.
Where to begin. How about riggghtt… here! I want to start off by saying how much I appreciate those of you who, every day, every other day, or every once in a while, visited the Odyssey and listened to some of these songs. Your encouragement and comments were my “tacklin’ fuel”, and, quite honestly, I couldn’t have done it without the love of my friends and family. In addition, it was inspiring meeting and making connections with new friends along the way. People like Deanna, Duffey, Tatiana, Phil, all my homies in the UK- people I didn’t know, still haven’t met, but managed to give me unending support- you guys not only made this whole thing worthwhile, but you revitalized my faith in community, even humanity, at a time when the world seems to be so disconnected. All you need is love… rings true doesn’t it?
Holy hell, I needed that love from you all. Every once in a while, a close friend would take me aside and mention that I seemed frustrated or exhausted in the videos. Who knows, maybe everybody saw it. But they were right. I reached some of the lowest depths I can remember this past year. Life has a natural way of ebbing and flowing, which is manageable, but when I chose to pair that with the obligation to stare down my own personal truths every single day, beat it into submission and twist it into something presentable as art, those ebbs and flows became tidal waves. It came in so many forms- quiet acceptance of failure, infuriated tantrums, isolation, cynicism- and it forced me to look inside myself and recognize all the ‘demons’ that tend to pull my strings without me even knowing. Mind you, this is a good thing. I find myself, now, so much more familiar with… myself, and therefore so much more in control of what I do, because I know why I’m doing it. This is a journey that never ends. I believe that we constantly strive to learn ourselves, and once we become fully self-actualized, aware of our purpose and receptive to what that purpose is, well that’s when we die. It’s like beating Ocarina of Time, or achieving nirvana. Did I really just compare those two? Yes I did. Why? Because I assume the completion of each evokes similar feelings of accomplishment. Now I’m not saying that I think I’ve got myself figured out, and I’m not saying that in order to do that, you have to willingly drive yourself mad, but for me, it took an entire year of constant reflection, analyzation (always thought that word was hilarious), and creation to really break the surface and start digging.
That’s all actually kind of funny, because after all, this was just a songwriting project. It’s not like I was at some sort of spiritual boot camp. That’s honestly just the first thing that comes to mind when I think about results from the past year. The songwriting is a completely different story altogether (although I do feel that finding comfort in oneself can lead to more instinctual, original, and genuine music). As for the songwriting, I saw a huge improvement not only in the content being created, but also the manner in which I was creating it. First off, Charles Bukowski sums up my first point best in his poem, “So You Want To Be A Writer.” My good friend Sean Sullivan showed this to me one night, and it made the hair stand up on my neck hearing Chuck B say these things:
If it doesn’t come bursting out of you
In spite of everything
Don’t do it.
Unless it comes unasked out of your
heart and your mind and your mouth
and your gut,
don’t do it….
If you have to wait for it to roar out of
You,
Then wait patiently.
If it never does roar out of you,
Do something else.
Now I wouldn’t say I’m as quick as Chuck to judge someone for writing when it’s not “roaring” out of them, but I can assure you that it’s easy to tell the difference between someone whose music is “roaring” out of them and someone who sits tirelessly over a piano for days, aching to finish a few lines of lyrics or a chorus. Some of the best songs I wrote were the ones I wrote in less than thirty minutes. These were the ones that felt so right before I even started writing them. In fact, song #1 “Run” was one of those songs that just seemed to write itself. I found that it’s extremely important to harness inspiration from all around you and inject it into your music. You can’t force yourself to write. What’s going to come out will often sound contrived and unoriginal. Another thing I learned about writing is that, once you’ve got some sort of start, you have to surrender yourself to that song. For me, it’s not about finding a style or satisfying a target audience. It can be, if I’m being paid to do it (I’m above nothing), but even then, once you’re moving, you have to try and hear the song before it’s written. When I was in Florence, we were checking out some of Michelangelo’s unfinished sculptures, which were my favorite ones (what a hipster). The tour guide said that when he sculpted, Michelangelo would say that the finished sculpture was in the stone already; he just had to uncover the art, or reveal it by removing the excess stone. Later in the Odyssey, a light bulb went off in my head when I realized that songwriting is the same thing! The song is out there, in the universe, floating through the sky, brushing past your ear as you’re walking around, waiting to be discovered. I learned to play the parts I had, and right when I got to the end of a phrase, with nothing written after that point, I would try and completely let go of my thoughts in order to hear the next part of the song. I don’t think I’ve quite mastered this yet, but I know that it’s an honest and fulfilling way to compose music. This brings me to the idea of integrity. When I first began the Odyssey, I wanted to examine the progression of my “musical integrity” throughout each day. Just as I suspected, the integrity, or the genuine nature, of my songs seemed to slip away as I became more entrenched and frustrated. Some songs went up, and I couldn’t tell you what they’re about, what I was thinking, or why I decided to post it. However, it never disappeared. A few rough days in a row, that’s as far as it would go, and then I’d switch it up to a piano or a ukelele, maybe even do something a cappella, and bam, the creativity was flowing again. So, like Chuck says, it’s important to create when you’re inspired, and if you’re not inspired, search for the inspiration to create. Constantly learning and receiving new information is great, and in this way, the internet has given us the key to myriad opportunities to discover ourselves and the world around us. However, we cannot lose touch with the people around us. I’m not saying writing on your friend’s wall to say what’s up. I’m talking about going out in the world, leaving your iPhone at home, and talking to people, engaging yourself in situations you normally wouldn’t. If you never do it, how will you ever know where you stand in relation to such a situation? Now I’m beginning to stray. The bottom line is that an open mind, comfort in oneself, and complete honesty is important in songwriting. In fact, would it be too much to say that those three things can also lead to a satisfying existence in general?
Now that the Odyssey’s over, I’ve had a few of you ask what’s next. Well first of all, I’m going to finish the entire series of “The Wire” and not worry about shit until that’s done. After that, it’s back to the music. Now that I have my work situation settled, I’m going to have a lot of time to work on new projects, and the first order of business is mixing, mastering, packaging, and releasing the debut THICK7 album. We have eight songs recorded, and I think the collection of songs we have is a great showcase of what we can do as a group. I’m currently working on a proposal for our first music video and shopping around for a crew that wants to be a part of the project. By this I mean “a crew that wants to do the video for little or no cost.” I like keeping things all in the family, and I know a handful of talented directors/editors who are also trying to break their way into the industry that would be great collaborators for the video. And if this album’s going to drop, that means we’ve got to start playing a few shows around town. If you have a party, event, or any occasion you think THICK7 would be a good fit for, just let me know, and I’m sure we’ll make it happen. Other than THICK7, Evan and I are now working on getting a new band together. I’m still playing shows with Marisa G and the Gentiles, and things are going great with her shows (she’s an incredible talent, I urge (another hilarious word) you to come check it out if you’ve got the chance), but it’s time Evan and I began our own group where we can play some of the Odyssey songs and some new ones that we make as a group. I’m not looking for this to be my brainchild; you wouldn’t find me in a group named “Mike Cionni and the So-and-so’s,” but I want something more collaborative, where a group of people can put their heads together to come up with something refreshing and original. Outside of that, I definitely want to keep things rolling on the Odyssey. I want to make a post soon inviting everyone to send in their 3 favorite songs so that I can get to work on a “Audience Choice Top 10 Album” for the Odyssey. I think that would be a great way to thank you guys for spending all that time listening! Also, the ones who really listened get their chance to make their mark on this project. There’s more and more to be done, but I don’t want to go on forever about the future. I like doing, but I can’t stand planning to do. To do do. Doo Dooo HAHA. Doodie. Dookie? DuKwon.
Now for some sort of wrap-it-up statement. Don’t do drugs. Do drugs sparingly. Eat healthy, but don’t be a dick about it. Eat Chik-Fil-A too. But seriously, I don’t know what else to say besides the fact that I am happy to have made it, and I now feel more relaxed than I ever have. There’s still so much to be done, but after doing this all I can say is bring it on, world. And to all those who wrote me saying that they were inspired to follow their own creative paths and really dig into their passions, I want you to know how happy that makes me feel. I went into this thinking, “oh maybe I’ll get a publishing deal or a record contract or blahblahblah,” but once I started hearing from you guys that stuff began to disappear. Connecting with the people around us and pushing each other to reach our full potential is so important and so fulfilling. Working by yourself is great, and creating art by yourself is great, but when you work together, the possibilities can be so much greater, and that connection will last until long after you’re gone. Also, if you have no other way of recording your most profound thoughts and experiences, write it down. Going back and looking at these videos, it’s such a trip to see some of these songs and remember what it felt like to write it, how each day chipped away just a little piece of my own marble block, revealing more of the undiscovered masterpiece within. And this is a good point to end on. In the end, it’s not going to be about how much money you make, how many platinum records you sell, or how popular you are. When you’re gone, are going to leave behind a finished product that people can appreciate for years thereafter, or will you still be a big old hunk of unprocessed stone?
