Originally blogged at http://causticmusic.wordpress.com/2009/09/01/trusting-the-process/

The process by which an artist creates is always fascinating to me.  I devour interviews and "X-ARTIST on X-ARTIST" books as I love learning the thought process and methods that other creative types (whether visual artists, musicians, writers, or whatever) use to achieve their works.  Sometimes I don't even like the artist but still love reading about how they make their shitty art, as the process is completely separate in some ways than the piece itself.

Personally, I just have a notebook that's pretty much exclusively for dumb ideas.  I'm on my 4th or 5th one now, and usually go through one a CD.  I write and revise lyrics constantly in a sort of mental churning and regurgitation to come up with something better or iron out where they simply just don't work and/or suck.  Sometimes I have a line or a chorus and just sit on that until inspiration hits and I spurt out the rest of the lyrics.  Booze Up and Riot was, if I recall, just a title (from Milk and Cheese, if you know the awesome Evan Dorkin comic book.  If not you should check it out) and I had the basic chorus, but it totally took form when I read an interview with Maynard from Tool somewhere where he said something along the lines of "You piss me off, we start a riot," regarding a show where the promoters were being dicks.

....Eureka.....  The lyrics just poured out...well, mostly.  I had a point of reference and a basis to work everything else off of.  Luckily for the music I also had a bassline from a song I'd tried to work out a year earlier and even though the song itself failed the bassline was cool as hell, so it all came together due to not discarding ideas and just working through the process.

Similar situations happened with Pull the Pin and The Bible, The Bottle, The Bomb, the title on the latter from a piece by Black Flag artist Raymond Pettibon that I read about in a book somewhere and loved.

Point is, don't keep your ears or eyes closed for inspiration.  If something hits you as a cool phrase or idea WRITE IT DOWN.  My notebooks are probably 75% shit-- discarded ideas, doodles, and crappy drunken lyrics.

But still, even if it's a stupid idea, WRITE IT DOWN.

Brainstorming is a massively gratifying way to mine your noggin.  There are no stupid ideas, as an idea you may never use may inspire another which could be brilliant or at least exactly what you're looking for.

I came out of a decade of improvisational comedy and so trusting ideas, writing them down without judgment, and building on the good ones is a key part of the process.  Just get it out there.  It's a draft.  It's a purging.  It's Ex Lax for the creative bowels.

Just get it out of you.

I still use lyrics and ideas I came up with YEARS ago.  Sometimes from over a DECADE.  Why?  It stuck with me.  And I WROTE IT DOWN.

I get frustrated that I can't always come up with the music that suits the lyrics or the lyrics that suit the music, but having the confidence in your process and some major patience occasionally allows your brain the time to work through shit to the best results.  Redneck Pussyhouse took me FOREVER to write.  I had the idea "gabber with haikus" and the title, but I went through probably 10 different versions of that bitch before I hit paydirt.  I'm sure some people can just pump song after song out when they get their ideas, and by comparison to many I actually look like it's what I do, but it's a long process regardless of the outcome, and for me the process is entirely more gratifying and fun than the finished product.  Hell, the final songs are mostly just cool because that's when they can be shared and played live finally, but by then they're also totally out of me and I'm on another zillion bad ideas.

So trust your process, whatever it is, but ALWAYS write it down.

In the last 2 weeks I've got scratch vocals (meaning not final) recorded for several songs on the new CD, plus final vocals for a few tracks I'd already gotten going.  I've been pushing myself to work faster and learn to trust my instincts a bit more and just say "this works-- keep on going!"  The more I've been listening to some of the tracks I make mental notes on how the structure needs to change or that I need to add something or take it away. 

Working this fast I've been literally recording vocal ideas on the fly and adding them to the songs.  Sometimes it's successful and sometimes not, but in working so fast has kept a pretty cool energy and urgency to the tracks that keeps the momentum focused very much forward.  I keep feel like I'm channeling Robert Rodriguez's filmmaking techniques with music, if you've ever read his awesome "Rebel Without a Crew" book on making El Mariachi.  It's forcing me to make decisions I'd agonize over for days and weeks, but knowing I can always go back and change the tracks if it doesn't work.  I've made some surprising discoveries due to this method, so it's been rewarding creatively.

Some of the songs on this CD are a lot looser than stuff I'd done earlier, and for me more experimental as to what I'm used to.  Not like Eno, Cage, or Glass...because I don't really care that much, but rather exploring different styles I enjoy and trying to put them in my artistic context, and trying out a few vocal styles I haven't worked on that much, at least recently.

I was hoping to get this done for the September shows in California but probably won't, as even though I'm working fast and making a lot of progress I don't know if I'll be able to get this completed, mastered (which I'll be asking a few pals to blog about at some point, as it's essential to a well-produced/professional sounding CD), and off to Sooperdooper for replication in time.  There's rushing and there's simply putting out something I'll regret later on, so the October shows seem more likely.

I have a feeling the 3" CDR that will come with the "special edition" will have a few covers on it-- I recently completed a crunchy version of the Lady Gaga mega-hit "Poker Face", which I really don't like but did it as a joke for my wife who tortures me with it on long car trips.  It might be a good reason to finally unleash the Caustic/Vomit Arsonist cover of Godflesh's "Christbait Rising" and a few others as well.  We'll see.

Once I get the tracks done and off to get mastered (meaning the album's essentially done on my side) I'll get the preorders up for the special edition and regular version.

I've been thinking of the pricing on the CD as well and I'm pretty sure I'll be sticking with the $5 for it, regardless of buying it online (overseas postage will be a bit more, as I don't want to LOSE money on the CDs) or at shows.  I spent a good chunk of time figuring out a price that I felt was fair to fans and consumers and that I could live with as an artist.  It's hard to put a price on what you think art is "worth" and since this album is more of an experiment for me on some levels in terms of the content and distribution I think $5 covers me fine.   It's not about getting rich obviously.  It's about covering costs plus a little so I can keep going with this stuff.

I'll probably keep it at a slightly higher price point on services like iTunes and others, as if you're too lazy to check out where to get my music for the best price then you suffer the consequences.  I believe in fairness and availability of music in any form I can provide it, but if the only place you look is iTunes you can pay a couple extra bucks, as that's a couple extra I'll be losing in just having it up there.  Fair trade, in my mind.

So overall things are going well-- I just wish I had more time to plug away on it.