Stir Up Summer!

Stir Up Your Grey Matter, the pseudo-label/Bandcamp under which I post my and friend's music, posted a song a day to our Facebook page throughout (most of) the summer. Each track is either thematically tied to summer activities or was recorded during on a summer day sometime within the last 20 years. 

Check out the full collection of tracks below!

1. "Solstice (2012): sing.eg.grat" by Thirsting Quench
from Memphis Transitions & Variations

2. "Burn Hazard"
by Thirsting Quench and the Captains of Industry
from Moving Gates

3. "Johnny, Row That Boat Ashore"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from Do Business in Outer-Space

4. "Sky Blue" by Farewell Scalar
from Archives Vol. 1

5. "Suedesugarwatermelon"
by Thirsting Quench
from The Simian Script

6. "Brazil"
by Electric Bolts
from Electric Bolts

7. "Dear Steve pt. 1"
by Casey Bye
from Who Writes the Songs? Why, I Write Them!: Commissioned & Produced Work

"The Spikes Go Down"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from It'll Work, and Nothing Will Happen: The Lost Tapes

"Today I Bought a Dog Names Lilo"
by Thirsting Quench
from An American Cup of Wine: The Lost Tapes

"I Go Swimming" by Peter Gabriel
performed by The Literacy Program
from Tarps & Blankets: 15 Years of Stir Up

"The Analytical Engine"
by Today's Lovelace
from 072206 (The Amazing Graduation Day Friendship Jamboree)

"Premise 2: Become the Good Practitioner"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from Do Business in Outer-Space

"Fit the Third: Boxes, Portmanteaus, and Bags"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from An Agony in Eight Fits

"Think Hard, Pink Hearts"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from The Money Goes Up

"nɔʁ....jɔ̃ trāl"
by Thirsting Quench
from /lo͞op/

"Let's Play...Fire Ball!"
by Diametric Correlator
from Diametric Correlator

"Sun Block"
by Farewell Scalar
from Archive Vol. 1

"Oh, Wot a Dream!"
by Casey Bye (written by the amazing Kevin Ayers)
from Who Writes the Songs?

"Grasshoppers"
by Diametric Correlator
from Strikes (again.)

"Swimming with Sharks"
by Thirsting Quench and the Captains of Industry (written by Tom Heil)
from Tarps & Blankets: 15 Years of Stir Up

"Casual Friday!"
by Melkbox
from Protosyrup

"Good Night, Moon!"
by Lauren Svacina
from Oh, My Stars!
 

"Knee-Jerk Cookout" (originally "This Way To...")
by Thirsting Quench and the Captains of Industry
from Moving Gates

"Dick Bacon" (excerpt from "Collage VII: Heroes"
by Universal Chickenhawk
from Vol. III

"Summer Blinds (instrumental)"
by Farewell Scalar
from Faux?! Su!

"Gesture 6"
by Thirsting Quench
from Figurative Study

"escher and dali, and hell, boesch for that matter, all make great dorm-room posters, but as fodder for your skin..."
by Diametric Correlator and the $35 Sound
from D(iametric)-Compositions

"In Retrograde"
by Thirsting Quench
from An American Cup of Wine: the Lost Tapes

"Tonsillitis"
by Thirsting Quench and the Captains of Industry
from Tonsillitis single

"Ars Notaroria"
by The Furry Murrays
from No, Thanks

"Variation: Aug. 16, 2011"
by Thirsting Quench
from Memphis Transitions & Variations

"A Sad Ending for Horace Roye"
by Melkbox
from Melkbox

"Variation: Aug. 18, 2011"
by Thirsting Quench
from Memphis Transitions & Variations

"Quarternity"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from Quarternity

"Broken"
by Thirsting Quench
from The (Possible) Origin of...

"Garden Party Rally"
by Lauren Svacina
from Oh, My Stars!

"Variation: Aug. 23, 2011"
by Thirsting Quench
from Memphis Transitions & Variations

"The Man in the Custom Tailored T-Shirt"
by Electric Bolts
from Electric Bolts (Brazil pt 1)

"HWY 16"
by Diametric Correlator
from Cut the Slats

"I Love You More Than All The Other Fishes"
by Thirsting Quench and the Captains of Industry
from The Sentimentary EP

"Concession Stand: Gotta Put Ketchup On A Hotdog"
by Art in Underpants
from Audio Erection

"Domestically Challenged"
by Thirsting Quench
from The (Possible) Origin of...

"Escapism and Pep"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from Do Business in Outer-Space

"Dupe On A Stick VII"
by Dr. Kamikaze and the $35 Sound
from Effempty

"It's Only A Lifetime"
by The Literacy Program
from Paradigm Waltzing in a Holographic Universe

Farewell History

d.auge reminded me of a bit of history behind the forming of Farewell Scalar. I thought it might be worth sharing as the two of us continue to debate whose idea it was to actually form "a real band."

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2/4 of the original Diametric Correlator: 2005

Eddie Dirtnap

In 2005, d. had make-shifted part of his home into a fairly decent recording studio. The two of us, along with friends Eddie Dirtnap and Eric Wolfram got together one fall afternoon and recorded a few droney improvs. The next time I saw d., he handed me a CD-R with the words "Diametric Correlator" written in squiggly Sharpie. Years later, these five songs were added to the Stir Up Bandcamp page as a self-titled ep (which you can download here) with a cover image featuring Eddie passed out in d.'s basement, wearing what we called "the Whiskey Wizard" hat and holding a drumstick like a wand. 

the Whiskey Wizard

In July, 2006, for my college graduation party, d. and I organized a jam session in my parents' garage. d. and I again disagree on who came up with the idea to learn a few simple cover songs. The trend seems to be for me to want to put d. in the driver's seat for any inciting incidents in the story of Farewell Scalar. I do know I came up with a list including songs by The Dandy Warhols, Brian Eno, My Bloody Valentine, and The Jesus and Mary Chain and d. augmented that list with some Pavement, Violent Femmes, and Silver Jews. We rehearsed the songs on guitar once, wrote out bass tabs for whoever wanted to join in, and set up the drum kit for whoever wanted to figure it out.

Friends who have appeared all over Stir Up recordings--Eddie Dirtnap (Diametric Correlator, Universal Chickenhawk, $35 Sound); Dr. Kamikaze (Diametric Correlator, $35 Sound, Complete Audio Destruct); Elliott (Melkbox); David Jensen (The Literacy Program, Complete Audio Destruct); Lauren Svacina (The Literacy Program, solo)--took a turn on a song or improv, much tequila was drank, and, I think, a grand time was had by all.

L-R: me, Eddie Dirtnap, d.auge, Elliott

d.auge's then girlfriend, Stacey designed this amazing cling along with a t-shirt for me to wear in honor of the celebration. She also videotaped the entire drunken mess.

Now, it wasn't long after this that I remember d. asking me to form a "really real band." d. recalls me wanting to push things forward. The name was certainly d.'s as evidenced by the fact that he knows what it means and I kinda sorta really don't at all.

d. says we formed to play a fundraiser for the soon-to be-defunct Undercurrents section of the Riverwest Currents newspaper for which I was, at the time, a staff writer. I do know I brought the fundraiser to his attention and that it would become our first show. And I remember trying out a drummer and then disliking the drummer and having to back out of one fundraiser show before recommitting to the second, later fundraiser once we had Corey in place. If d. and I had a band by the time I became aware of Undercurrents likely demise and the earlier backed-out-of fundraiser, I'm not so sure. 

poster with red augments by d.

Since then, Scalar has broken up, d. has turned the make-shift recording studio into a pretty damn fancy recording studio called Sound Encampment, Scalar has continued to finalize old projects, and Diametric Correlator has become a beast of d.'s burden (a sort of catch all for recordings gathered from impromptu Sound Encampment sessions) where I only infrequently show up.

This is the new (old) stuff. Available for download/listening MARCH 30.

I'm not even entirely sure if d. and I began collaboratively writing songs in 2006 and then decided to form a band or vice versa. I'd tend to believe the earlier as we had a set of at least seven originals at the Undercurrents benefit. I likely was the one to suggest writing together even if I had no intended results for the music. I liked some things d. had written on his own and his jangly, experimental pop sensibilities. 

I suppose the point is this: memory fails, so good thing we recorded just about everything we possibly could.