FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION, AND DIGESTION (because you can eat Chocolate Frogs, it was a joke.)

As always I’m very late in posting this, and as always it’s because I spent way too much time on it trying to say everything I wanted to say. Anyways, who cares, here it is.

The annual Wizrocklopedia’s Wizard Rock People’s Choice Awards are upon us, and voting ends Thursday at midnight. I’m sure the majority of you already cast your votes but I couldn’t not post this. (As a note, last summer I wrote an essay about the Earth-moving awesomeness of music put out by my fellow wizard rockers during this past year, and you can read that here. I think I said everything I could possibly say about my love, admiration and respect for that music in that essay, so don’t think I don’t have them on my mind right now. Because they’ll all be getting my votes!)

 From this point forward I don’t really care if this sounds self-congratulatory in any way, and it will be I’m sure, but I feel it’s deservingly so. I’m trying to speak as candidly as possible. That being said, this is my submission of our full-length album From Hogsmeade With Love for your consideration. Hogsmeade was released at Wrock Chicago during Terminus last summer.

 To put it simply, I fully believe From Hogsmeade With Love is the greatest creative achievement I’ve managed in my life so far. And again I thought about not writing this, but I don’t care; I can’t begin to describe how hard I worked on this. I’ve done a lot of things arts-related, but I’ve never been able to put forth all of my effort into something and have it come out exactly how I intended. I’m very grateful that it was Harry Potter and of course wizard rock that was finally able to bring that out of me. I couldn’t be more proud of the songs on our album, as well as the album as a whole.

I suppose this is more just a general write-up on my thoughts on Hogsmeade as oppose to a submission for your votes. But for those few who have heard our album, if you feel it deserves at least one of your nominations, then by all means.

Once more, I’m sorry if this was long and seemed like I was patting myself on the back, and I went back and forth about not posting this. But I needed to have this in written form, as candid as possible, I suppose for my own peace of mind. And please, please consider the bands mentioned here before us! Because we wouldn’t exist without them. It’s kind of like the time-travelling fiasco that’s going on with LOST. Actually not at all but tonight was the 100^th episode so I wanted to mention it.

Here’s what we’re eligible for:

BEST MALE VOCALS: I’m in full agreement with Matt here though that since people like Christian Caldeira, Alex Carpenter, Adam Dubberly, Matt himself, and let’s not forget Bryce Cone, I don’t think I’m really deserving of a nomination here :[].

BEST FULL-LENGTH ALBUM: From Hogsmeade With Love was released August 06^th, 2008 at Wrock Chicago during Terminus. For my own personal favorite albums (and EPs) from this year, see my previous essay.

BEST ALBUM ART: The artwork on From Hogsmeade With Love was done by me, and the photograph on the front cover was done by Dan Gimbrone.

BEST SONG: Any song off of our album is eligible.

BEST DUO: Yes Mike and I are two humans, but have you heard of Harry And The Potters? The Quaffle Kids? The Nifflers? The Moaning Myrtles?

BEST KEPT SECRET AWARD: As I said we are eligible for this and this is very near and dear to me because our small following has always been so loyal, but a lot of our very close friends also meet the requirement here. Neville’s Diary, The Quaffle Kids, The Nifflers, Tonks And The Aurors…

BAND OF THE YEAR

BEST LIVE ACT

BEST DANCE SONG: When I wrote Summer Fires I was really hoping it would get people dancing 1950s style, and I saw a few of you over the summer obliging! Or at least Bryce did…

BEST HOLIDAY SONG: The album version of A Merry Wizard Christmas is eligible.

BEST COMEDY SONG: John Dawlish, Auror and our man-duet-cover of Anyone Else But You both seem to get people laughing. Mission accomplished.

BEST MEMORIAL SONG: All The Stars And Moon And Fur (My Moonlight Friend) is about Remus, however it was written from his teenage POV as well as Sirius’ and not as a memorial to him so I don’t consider it eligible.

 

 

We are now on iTunes! As of Saturday, our full-length album "From Hogsmeade With Love" went live, so please please go and have a listen, even a purchase if you want. And if you didn't get to pick up a copy at Wrock Chicago, Terminus, or Wrock Wreggies, you can now order a hard copy of it on our main page!

(You should know that I went back and forth for months after Terminus on writing a blog about that magical week we had with each other, and I think that WILL eventually be done, but I need to remember all the minutia and put it into a coherent structure.)

So for now, here is a track-by-track analysis of our first full-length album "From Hogsmeade With Love" which was released August 6th 2008, at Wrock Chicago during Terminus. These songs have been works-in-progress since the spring or summer of 2007, so naturally I have a lot to say about them; things I wish I had had space to say in the liner notes of the album. They're all extremely dear to me, and anyone who is familiar with my lyrics knows I get extremely wordy, so I'll try not to do the same with my thoughts, notes, and reviews of these finished products. Hopefully you enjoy it.

(A Special Note: I'd like to say before I get started that Bryce Cone of The Quaffle Kids and Neville's Diary really owned "Summer Fires" during Wrock Chicago, and ALL of our songs at Wrock Wreggies, and I only wish he could've written and performed on the album. I love the guitar lines he came up with during our impromptu practices during Terminus, and the album sounds strange now without them. I think of him as a third Chocolate Frog. And I was very flattered during Terminus when he and our roommates Danii and Stephanie would hum the guitar riff from "Summer Fires." I love you guys so much!)

Intro Medley
Right, so I'm a very cinematic-oriented person…I really wanted the listener to immediately get what The Chocolate Frogs are. When I originally knew I wanted an intro to the album I imagined someone walking into Honeydukes, and a jazz band is rehearsing in a loft above the sweets shop. Hopefully it turned out at least sort of like that. There are a LOT of instruments in this track, and we did it all live with the exception of an acoustic guitar overdub and a music box track. None of the instruments are synthesized. The trombone is of course Mike, the saxophone and guitars are moi, the flute and vintage organ is our long-time friend Gwen Dipert, and the keys and music box are our recording engineer John Galbo.

My Pumpkin Juice Love
Contrary to popular belief, this song is NOT about Ron and Hermione. It can be if you want it to, but I think people just assume that it is since Crookshanks is mentioned. (Crookshanks is just hangin' in the common room during the song, that's all.) Really I wrote it to be about anyone you'd like it to be about, even if it's you and your significant other if you were at Hogwarts. It's challenging and sometimes frustrating to record a song again that you're already VERY happy with (Pumpkin Juice is the first song we ever recorded and is on our e.p.) But I feel that the warmth of the electric (my new Telecaster) and the moderately-paced drums are a nice addition; one that's welcome I hope.

Summer Fires
This song has changed a lot since I first showed it to Mike. What we've ended up is a VERY 1950s/early-1960s type song. I hope it makes you want to do dances from that era in some place with a jukebox; swinging, grooving, bopping, and maybe wearing Ray Bans and poodle skirts. The song is in two alternating points of view, Ron and Hermione's; insisting that they come with Harry on his final adventures but not being able to put out of their mind the constant threat of not making it to the end.

A Merry Wizard Christmas
My only regret on this song is that we didn't have time (read: forgot) to record Mike's "frightened owl yelp" that's on the original recording on the e.p and that he performed live at the PA Yule Ball. The same goes with his trombone line, which I always thought added a bit more meat to the simple guitar. The acoustic piano line that our engineer wrote captures the movement and hot-chocolate-warmth of the song nicely I think. You may ask "why put a holiday song on an album being released in the summer?" The thing is is that you're not only going to be listening to this album during the summer. At least I hope not. You want your record to have longevity, range, and be listened to at all times of the year.

Our Very Own Burrow
Again, there is no trombone on this track. Mike didn't think it needed it after the music box line our engineer wrote for it, which is incredibly beautiful and I can't thank him enough for taking the time to listen to the song and write such a great melody. (After he finished the take you hear I just whispered "exactly" with a slack jaw.) However, I still really, really miss Mike's trombone. So blame him! This is by far my wordiest song ever, and this is the most editorial and concise version I could allow myself to put out without second-guessing. I had to reign it in and ask if I'm saying something new and necessary in each verse. It's very humbling and you have to remind yourself that not all of your words are perfect, some may even suck.

John Dawlish, Auror
LOL is all I should say about this song. We used a VERY old organ for this and the sound we got out of it is exactly what I imagined when I was putting the song together alone. I'm really happy with how this turned out, and impressed that I could be completely satisfied with such a short song. It's about John Dawlish, an auror. And it's called John Dawlish, Auror. And it is of course a nod to the always hilarious John Noe and his favorite character.

The House Of Neville
This is probably the fastest-paced song on the album so I put it in the middle to sort of be the anchor for all of the songs. The song is about the leaps Neville's made in himself and his relationship with others, and how he now takes on the world. One of the most important and timeless points in Jo's books is that not all people in their respective houses are made the same, and that's very evident with what you think of as the "typical Gryffindor" in comparison to Neville. I know a LOT of people see a great deal of themselves in Neville. I hope that this song is worthy of all of your love of Neville, and that when you hear it you root for how far he's come, and how far we've all come since this fandom first started. Because that's really what I think this song's about. How much we've all changed, and all of these close friends we've all made, and would've never met if it wasn't for Jo. I only wish I could've had your amazing chorus sing-alongs from Wrock Wreggies on the album, thank you SO much for that.

All The Stars And Moon And Fur (My Moonlight Friend)
This is another case of recording a second version of something I was already very happy with. This has become one of my favorites to play live because of how close up I feel to the audience, and I hope this recording shows that even more than the e.p. version. Alex Carpenter has always given me such kind words about this song, ever since our first show together. I've always appreciated that so this is on the album for him. It's about a younger Remus and the very palpable pain he goes through. It's in his point of view during the verses, but during the choruses it switches to Sirius' point of view, which I think is equally as painful as Remus' suffering. (This is a re-imagining of Bright Eyes' Lua if anyone doesn't know that by now.)

Name The Best Parts
This is one of the first songs I ever wrote and it started off very small, and I knew it would have to get bigger without being a gimmick. I think all of the parts (no pun intended) on this version are very complimentary and just enough. This is about all the things the trio has been through, and everything that's going to come (it was written before Deathly Hallows' release.) "Summer Fires" explores this further, as that was written after the last book's release.

Anyone Else But You
Anyone who has been to a recent show of ours has seen us cover the Michael Cera/Ellen Page version of this Moldy Peaches song from Juno. The response is always very nice and funny, but I secretly always knew I wanted to re-imagine it (like "Lua") as a song about Ron and Hermione. They're two misfits much like the characters in the original material. It took me a VERY long to finally be happy with the lyrics, and I felt it was ready and a deserving alternative for you to hear. I hope so at least, I could be very wrong. But the response at Wrock Chicago and Wrock Wreggies was incredibly sweet and kind, so I thank you for that with my whole heart and am relieved.

Good Morning Weasleys
The Weasleys have always been a subject I wanted to tackle, but let's face it there's a lot of material in the books, and a lot I wanted to say. I'm the first to admit that I usually end up writing more words than less, so for this song I really wanted try to keep it tight. The Weasleys aren't something that should be forced down your ears. And again, I really wish we could've had Bryce's talents on this song, because what he came up with at Wrock Wreggies for this song was incredible.

Well that's it, after months of writing this thing, there it is. Thank you all so much for your amazing support, and I urge you to keep listening, because we still have more to tell. I have to tell you that it's very bittersweet putting this up because it only makes me think of our family reunion at Terminus, and also that at this time last year, we were taking very long road trips to play so many snowy shows for you, and I miss that a lot right now. I hope to see you all soon, and we'll all have some hot chocolate together. Which is not innuendo.

You are all very very smart​ peopl​e,​​ and I know you all know why it's so impor​tant to go and WIZAR​D ROCK THE VOTE today​.​​ This is a very power​ful spell​ that we all can cast,​​ and help steer​ us from the Fudge​s and Scrim​geour​s.​​

http://www.maps.google.com/vote is a very easy to way to help you find your polli​ng place​.​​

If you didn'​​t regis​ter,​​ you can alway​s do so at http://www.thehpalliance.org/wrockthevote.

And go out and buy Melis​sa'​​s book!​​ It's every​where​!​​ http://www.harryahistory.com.

I love you and miss you all my incre​dibly​-​​attra​ctive​-​​and-​​huge-​​exten​ded-​​famil​y!​​
- Matty​

Oh hello there members of our incredible-attractive extended-family. Today is my birthday, so I've finally posted our track off of Tonk And The Aurors' To Write Love On Her Arms benefit compilation "Letters From Hogwarts." An incredible array of bands have contributed to this, and you can purchase it through Steph's Myspace. We're very pleased to be a part of it.

Our new song that's up is called "The House Of Neville." This is the version that appears on the benefit compilation, but this will also be on our forth-coming full-length, completely re-done. We recorded it at long-time friend Mark Scherrer's studio over two 8-hour days. It's been a long time in the oven, so please take the time to read the lyrics. This is our first song with full-drums and a step into a more energetic style. We hope you love it, and sing and dance along to it with all your friends.

But the real reason for this blog is this essay I've written. If you pre-ordered our album at our last show with the lovely girls of the Accio Bodyguard tour Lauren and Lena, you got a hard copy of this. I wanted to post it for everyone else to read because it's very important to me, and I hope will give you some insight into a lot of things.

And finally, after the essay, I've included a promotional poster for our upcoming full-length album. As always, we hope we melt in your hearts, and not in your hand.

How To Melt Chocolate,
written by Matty Greco.

The question I get asked most is "why does it take you guys so long to post new songs?" Well it's quite simple really. All of us in this lovely wizard rock melting pot are playing songs about a story about some weirdo named Harry Potter. This story in my opinion (which is always right) is perfect. Well then it would be a crime and disservice to not have our music be of the same quality. In all of my dabblings: film, muggle music, wizard rock, art; I demand an almost brutal standard of myself. If I don't believe that what I'm creating is the best thing I can create, I will re-work it until it is. (And then it still comes out terrible.)

You can rest assured that that mentality is applied ten-fold to my little band The Chocolate Frogs. I think a clearer answer might be to describe my writing process, which will also give you some insight into our forth-coming full-length album. I'm a very cinematic, visually-oriented person. For most of my life I've worked in art and film. That imagery-driven content comes through when I write songs. With my lyrics, you won't find many metaphors and double entendres. What you'll find is an image that I would paint, or a frame that I would film (if this wasn't music,) but in written form. Songs like "Our Very Own Burrow" are the most obvious example of this. I want the words to be so precise in tone and (later on) vocal execution that it fits the story I'm trying to take you on perfectly. I want the words to evoke an image, an immediate feeling, and a post-song feeling in you that is more than just words going through your ears. So I write and re-write and re-write my lyrics until I think I've achieved this.

The same goes for the music. To me tone is the most important thing in music. You can look at a painting or at a film and get a specific type of raw feeling from it much faster than any other sensory detail affects you. If you were to watch the film "Juno" for example, the second the first frame comes on, you would be filled with an overwhelming warm and snuggled feeling, and want to go eat an inappropriate amount of sticky buns at a tiny café. That is tone. In the music I put together for the words that I've written, that is what I care about most. The chords of the guitar, or Mike's trombone (which he writes but understands perfectly the tone I'm aiming for.) These parts need to mesh seamlessly with what I'm singing.

I'm not at all interested in churning out songs once a week for Myspace traffic or what have you. I'm not at all interested in writing four hits, and then ten flat and pointless filler songs. With each new song that I write, I don't stop until I can sit back and say, "wow, now this one is our best song." If you don't constantly push yourself, which can be extremely uncomfortable, then you have no business making music.

It's so refreshing to see my favorite bands coming out with incredible new material that really pushes the envelope of wizard rock thus far. Alex and The Remus Lupins gents, Mr. Maggiacomo of The Whomping Willows, Lauren's solo work (and of course the Myrtles in general,) Justin Finch-Fletchley, Jace, Oliver Boyd And The Remembralls, The Nifflers, The Mudbloods, Lena, Allie, Steph, Tina, Ian, what Harry And The Potters are doing with their tour, and many others. So many people are breaking through comfort zones and putting out amazing new stuff. I'm so thankful to be surrounded by that; these people are true artists who refuse to rest on their laurels. (I think we've all felt the Earth shake a little after listening to "Seven Potters.")

And pushing ourselves brings us to the topic of our new record. These songs have been in some form of completion for about a year now. I'm singing in ranges I've never had the confidence to attempt before. I'm pushing myself out of what guitar progressions I'm comfortable with. You'll hear instruments and sounds you may have never heard before. A lot of my friends are playing with us on this album, and I can't thank them enough for that, and they are all beautiful musicians. The album is full of love, loss, laughter, trials, triumph, mundane and monumental things, heart-warmingness, foot-thumpingness, smile-inducingness, bittersweetness, and Dawlish.

I don't want to tell you the subject matter of the songs for spoiling sake, but I can tell you what my mission statement is with this record. If you can go home from one of our shows, or have been driving around in your car listening, or on your iPod, I want you to go meet a friend you haven't seen in years and hug them. I want you to laugh at the dinner table with all of your family, and I want you to cook the meal, even though you've never cooked before. I want you to paint something even though you've never painted before. I want you to write a story even though you've never written a story before. I want you to sing as loud as you can in your car with the windows down, and when that disapproving seventy-year-old woman pulls up next to you, I want you to stick your head out of the window, and sing to them even louder. I want you to smile at a stranger and be amazed by the smile that's returned. I want you to feel something warm inside of you comparable to melting chocolate. I want you to drive to that girl or boy's house that you've exchanged so many glances with, but never words. And when they answer the door, I want you to kiss them fully on the lips until the sun comes up. That is what I do for you. That is what you've done for me. That is The Chocolate Frogs. ♥ your very humbled and thankful Matty.

[The Wizrocklopedia's People Choice Awards]

Oh hello there tiny truffles, marvelous morsels, and all other members of our incredibly-attractive extended family. We realize we're really late on this, but figured this should go up anyway.
 
As most of you know, the lovely people over at Wizrocklopedia have announced their 2008 Wizard Rock People's Choice Awards. Voting has been going on for a while, and we're sure most of you have already submitted your choices for these awards. That being said, we've had an indescribably perfect year; we've made so many friends, seen so many places, and experienced so many wonderful things. From our virginity at Prophecy (get your mind out of the gutter,) to where we are now, we truly feel like the little band that could. All these amazing shows we've played, you have all welcomed us so warmly, and we hope – if you feel we deserve it – that you can think of us in that way with these awards.

Here's what we're eligible for:

Best Male Vocals
Any band with a male lead singer is eligible. (Yours Truly)

Best New Artist
Only bands founded between January 1st and December 31st, 2007 are eligible.
(I officially asked Mike to join the band around when Prophecy was announced, and that is when we consider The Chocolate Frogs came out of the oven.) 

Best EP
Any EP, LP, "short" as opposed to "full-length" album is eligible.
("From Hogsmeade With Love E.P." Our CD that we've been selling at shows for the past few months.)

Best Song
Songs with their original release dates in 2007 are eligible.
(Any tracks off of the "From Hogsmeade With Love E.P." or up here on our Myspace are all eligible.)

Best Duo
Bands consisting of exactly two official members are eligible.
(The two ridiculously handsome and athletically-built men you see on stage each night.)

Band of the Year
Any artist can be nominated.

Best Holiday Song
Your favorite holiday song, produced in 2007, whether it be for Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's Day, is eligible. ("A Merry Wizard Christmas")

The Best Kept Secret Award / Best Band You're Not Listening To
To be eligible, a band must have fewer than 1,000 friends on MySpace.
(Like I mentioned, since the summer Mike and I feel like we've been the little band that could, and you can't imagine our thanks for your dedicated listening and word-of-mouthing.)

Best Album Art
Awarded to the artist responsible for the art on an album of 2007. Digital, EP, or Full-Length album art are all eligible. ("From Hogsmeade With Love E.P." by Matty Greco. You know, the one with all the grass.)

Here's how to vote:

Please copy and paste the categories into an email and send it to awards@wizrocklopedia.com. Read the eligibility requirements as you go, double checking your choices. You have two weeks to submit your votes. You can only vote once. There is no rush! Emails will be accepted through 11:59PM Central Time on February 23rd. No exceptions. You cannot change your votes, so please be careful and be confident in your decisions. The winners will be announced on March 1st. Like last year, they will receive artwork that they can display on their pages as well as certificates for their achievements. If you have any questions or concerns, please write to lizz@wizrocklopedia.com. Do not send questions to awards@wizrocklopedia.com as the account will not be checked until the voting period is expired.

As said, we're very late with the posting of this, the polls close in just a few short days. Like we said, only vote for us if you feel we deserve it. And please vote for all the other amazing bands out there too, every band is an ingredient in this wizard rock melting pot, and let's give them their due.

We say it at just about every show…that we're here to melt in your hearts and not in your hand, but thank you all so so much for melting our hearts each and every day since we came into this incredible fandom.

[The Best Is Yet Come...]

The best is yet to come, including more songs, the announcement of our summer tour dates, merchandise (including several t-shirts, buttons, and our E.P. will be available for online purchase,) our Terminus/Wrock Chicago interview, the three-part Bittersweet Film Diaries (what a very small wizard rock band does on their down-time, the hardships of writing, recording, and putting-out a full-length album, and the life and times of a summer-long tour,) and continuous news of our still untitled debut full-length album. We may just be holding a contest for the title.

Eat chocolate. Save the world. See Juno.

Matty