time
“time, time, time, see what’s become of me…” wrote paul simon in “hazy shade of winter,” one of simon and garfunkel’s early songs and one of my favorites; a prescient lyric at the time for such a young man. i find myself making a similar remark when i see pictures of myself like the above, this one, as “faust,” at the tender age of 13 or 14, compared to the man in the mirror who now remarks, “it’s weird to be the same age as old people.” it’s funny to feel more like faust now than i did at the time. ironically, faust made a deal with the devil for eternal youth and worldly pleasures. as an artist, i feel timeless, which is perhaps why i cling to my work like i do. while i am now more comfortable in myself than i’ve ever been— as the “old storyteller— i, like faust, cling to the immortality of art which i find irresistible. art, for me, is an elixir similar to love, which also feels immortal, and which we celebrate this month on valentines day. with the muse as my jealous lover and the prolific work of the van gogh brothers, i wonder if i sold my soul to the devil without knowing it somewhere along the way…
the van gogh brothers complete work on our 15th full-length immortal tome, “ghost,” this month. “ghost” is the tile track of an album that is reflective of “old storyteller” themes of sin, redemption, love and immortality. we include songs like, “down to the river,” a baptism tale of which we made a wonderful video, featuring good friend bob crowley, who plays a wayward preacher, and “power of love,” a song written for my daughter, that speaks to the power of self-realization and actualization. other songs like, “turn off the world,” comment on the daily deluge of information we deal with in the 21st century, and “little stick of dynamite,” that speaks to the lasting allure and power of sex. these topics have gained more personal gravitas over time and as i continue to write, the songs get honed and weathered. these are my observations of a life well-lived so far, and age has everything to do with that.
in 1998, my friend and collaborator (“two brothers”), rob fraboni, enlightened me to theories about the aural differences and physiological effects of digital music (streaming/CD’s) vs analog music (vinyl). there have been studies that show the human brain is not as receptive to digital music as it is to analog because there is “less information” in digital sound, so the brain “has to fill in the gaps” which causes it to work harder, and thus, “not adhere” to digital sound and in fact, reject it to an extent. think of the flickering difference between a florescent light and an incandescent light— our eyes become fatigued under florescence and we get headaches— in part because the brain is “filling in the gaps” between the flickers. some speculate that, because of this similar phenomenon in digital sound (as well as film and photographs, by the way), people have less emotional connection to music than they once did. all this resonated with me but as a writer, i have been more focused on the writing and playback process than i have been in listening for pleasure, much of the analog / digital argument was lost on me until recently. these days, i’ve been listening to vinyl with donna and these learnings have all come back— this time, in an experiential way. because of this, i am considering investing in a vinyl release for our new album. how awesome would it be to have analog sound and a big cardboard graphic with fonts even i could read? i get excited just thinking about it. please write to me at johncateband@gmail.com and let me know what you think.
like many of my peers, i sorely miss the energy exchange of live performance during these times of quarantine. we were fortunate to perform several times at the magical moon farm during the summer months, and once at vincent’s worcester, but the northeast winter has us all in hibernation. donna has painted the barn floor this winter and we hope to open the farm again to music this spring, virus permitting. the sound in the barn is absolutely amazing.
even though the snow is still flying, the sun is getting stronger and the days are getting longer. i’m looking forward to joining donna in the garden to till and plant as i did last year, and to setting up the farm stand and re-starting the “music at the barn” music series. we think this year is going to be even more fun than last, and we hope to move some concerts inside the barn, as it’s safe to do so.
alongside of the above, the van gogh brothers have been sorting through newer songs for the start of even more recording! we don’t feel the need to delay, and we’re considering how to shape the next project— as another album, an ep or a series of individual releases. regardless of how we decide to release new music, we’ve decided not to delay the start of making it. part of the “problem” is keeping up with the new songs, which are pouring out like an overflowing river.
i wish all of you love on this valentine’s month and i hope we get to see each other again sooner rather than later.
love,
jc