Moneyless Music - NIN

Ever since my days as an angsty teen, I have found the music of Nine Inch Nails to be a cathartic outlet for living vicariously through the screams of another. Trent Reznor just dripped sex from a broken emotional landscape devoid of any hope for repose. His emotional wasteland mirrored my own and made me feel just a little less alone.  Much time as passed and many wounds have healed but I still find the music of Mister Reznor to be a comforting little window out of which I can stick my head and scream.

The new album is called 'Hesitation marks' and it is streaming now for free on iTunes (US) , Deezer (Canada) and The Guardian (everywhere else).

Moneyless Music + Diversions Double Feature The Joanna Newsom edition

I adore Joanna Newsom. Seriously I do. The coordination required to flawlessly play the harp is its own award-worthy talent. Couple that with the ability to simultaneously sound like some sort of old appellation woman shouting jibberish on her front porch while pa whittles squirrel shaped wooden figurines and I'm sold. Sign me up.

I recently stumbled upon a live performance of Have one on me from the Austin City Limits series.  The title track from Joanna's ambitious triple album is by far my favorite offering on that 2010 release.  We own this on vinyl and just a side-note the packaging is stunning featuring these timeless stylized black and white photos of Joanna.

Here is the Austin City Limits performance.



As the title suggests, there is some free music if you feel so inclined to reward yourself with free music.  I stumbled upon a cover of Joanna's The Book of Right-On, done by Joel Cathey which is available for free download on his BandCamp Page.  Have one on me or rather on him.  You're welcome. ;)



If you haven't heard the original, here she is for reference.

July 21st 2012

On July 21st at 8pm in NYC I will be performing
The Ocean & The Easel Part 1: The Ocean

This is an original concept album that I have been working
on for a bit now. The songs have never been performed together
in their entirety and this is a one time performance which will
combine visual elements of video, lighting and costume along
with the music and guest performers. I am very excited to
share this with you all.

More details to come soon.

XO

R

A Lost Mind

Where does one go to find a lost mind full of lost time and lost words? Do you lift up the sofa cushions and dig through the loose change, wads of paper and bits of random crap? Is there a cardboard box at the police station or the post office tattooed with black sharpie?

This thought or rather this question rattles around in my empty head echoing and reverberating against the sides of my skull.

With most lost things they (who is they?) tell you to retrace your steps. Where did you last see your mind? Where might you have left it, dear? I trace backwards to my husband being taken from me and banned from the country, my wedding, being hit by a car, panic attacks unable to find my breath, my father's accident, deaths, births, the loss of my best friend, the loss of my self-confidence. All of this is painted with the brush of sleepless nights, of worry, of self-doubt and of deep joy and deep loss, deep depression and paralysis.

Somewhere along the line, the circuitry got fried and the mind escaped to save itself, jumped overboard to try its luck with the sharks and Portuguese man o' wars. The search party was too exhausted to look for long and the mind washed up on some distant shore, but alas, we shall find it and stuff it back. It wasn't too much of a loss as no one seemed to really notice it was gone.

I am working on the last two songs in my Eat My Shorts series. The current one is aptly named Crazy. coming soon.

1/19/12 Set List at Bar 4

Last night I had a totally awesome show at Bar 4 in Park Slope Brooklyn.
Thank you to everyone who made the night so very special.

The set list was as follows

(Kalimba)
1. Louise (unreleased/O&E1)
2. The Bottle (unreleased/O&E1)

(piano)
3. Sally (unreleased/O&E1)
4. Narcissus Sea (unreleased/O&E1)
5. The Seaman's Wharf * (unreleased/O&E1)

(a capella)
6. Flapjacks (unreleased/SRATS)

(guitar)
7. Lemon Scented (S.O.B.)
8. Follow Me Home (S.O.B.)
9. Sirens of Brooklyn (S.O.B.)
10. Mr. Carpentier (unplug single/SRATS)
11. Fishnet Sailor (S.O.B.)
12. Before You Go (S.O.B.)
13. Banana Leaves (unreleased/O&E1)

*=premiere/first time performed live
S.O.B = from the album Sirens of Brooklyn
SRATS = from the unreleased album Sunrise at the Speakeasy (coming 2012)
O&E1 = from The Ocean & The Easel (part 1)
unplug = unplug single

Moneyless Music: White Xmas/Xmas Bells

Free Download!

Last year, I recorded two songs in my home studio for the lovely Wanda Wisdom's Christmas Special.

The tracks were written, recorded and mixed over the course of only a couple days.
If i remember correctly, her instructions were to give her something that was somewhere
between Burl Ives and John Waters. I'd like to think I succeeded.
These short ditties are downright filthy, so parental advisory kiddies.

Xmas Bells/White Xmas by robertgermanmusic

2012 - A Musical Odyssey a.k.a. my last year in the USA

...Coming Soon.

A Rant from the Past

Occasionally I stumble upon an article that reminds me of something I posted years ago. So, today I present two articles.


The Cellphone is the New Cigarette - The Rant 2006

&

Technology is the New Smoking - TechCrunch 2011

sort of but not quite a new year's resolution

So, I don't really do new year's resolutions, but this year I am going to try to commit to a few things. This may be a bit ambitious, so don't flog me if I fail on some account.

1. Release of Sunrise at the Speakeasy in 2012 (finally)

2. Finish studio recordings of the following unreleased songs:

The Ocean & The Easel Part 1 :The Ocean

-Wash Away
-Sally
-Banana Leaves
-The Seaman's Wharf
-Fishes & Birds
-Chicken of the Sea (taste like chicken)
-Mister Octopus (yes, that is the title)
-Portuguese Man of War
-The Bottle
-The Siren
-The Ocean & The Easel

The Ocean & The Easel Part 2: The Easel
-Digitized
-Western Front
-Daddy
-Cherry Falls
-600 Miles
-Pretty Decent Guy
-After the Apocalypse
-God in The Telephone Book
-Single File
-Down So Low
-Big from Down Here/Sirens of Brooklyn (ballad version)
-The Famine & The Flood
-Act Like a Girl

3. Move to Canada.

There you have it.

Lotsa Love

R

Things I didn't say It's probably for the best The gimpy edition

I was weighed down carrying two bags this morning and was diverted into a small pathway due to a construction area. I passed a woman and she turned around and started screaming at me.

"What's the matter with you? You can't walk in a straight line?"

5 years ago I had an accident and consequently I walk with a slight limp. It's not something I often talk about. It doesn't so much make me feel deformed or less able, however it is more promounced with I carry bags or heavy awkward things.
In this situation I chose to keep walking as though I didn't hear the woman.

A tiny voice in my head however screemed "I was in an accident and walk with a fucking limp. What's your excuse for being a nasty cunt?"

please pardon the foul language of the little voice in my head most especially its use of the "c" word. I mean no disrespect to women by its usage here. I know how distasteful it is and thus, it's probably for the best that the little voice remained in my head, though now it's had its say on my blog as well.

Sigh.

NPR: First Listen Tori Amos - Night of Hunters

I haven't had a chance to listen to this yet, but I thought I'd post now and give opinions later. The new Tori Amos album Night of Hunters is now streaming on NPRs website. Go forth and listen!

NPR - First Listen: St. Vincent

NPR has really been doing a great job of making me happy by streaming the albums
of some of my favorite musicians before the release dates. Being a child who couldn't
resist shaking the presents before Christmas Day, this is something with makes me exceedingly happy.

You can have a listen to St. Vincent's Strange Mercy in its entirety over on NPR's
website.

Enjoy! The album is scheduled for a September 13th release date.

Fallout Friday - The Nuclear Edition

There are certain questions which keep finding their way into my thought patterns.
This is one that has circled around for a while.

Why is the U.S.A. seemingly in charge of policing nuclear weapons worldwide when it is the only country which has actually used nuclear weapons against other human beings?

As you ponder this question, I leave you with a very literal video for Ani DiFranco's "The Atom" made by a fan and posted to Youtube. Happy Friday! Enjoy.

Diversions - Hygiene with Amy Sedaris

Amy Sedaris has always been my hero.
Whenever I'm a little down
I know that she's there
to help put things into perspective.
She also teaches me things...
important things like hygiene.

A pair of (eat my) shorts on September's Out Radio

J.D. Doyle is the foremost historian of queer music.
His knowledge is unrivaled. Not only is he a staunch supporter
of Out artists and their works, but he is also just a really nice guy.

I had the pleasure of meeting J.D. back in 2006 when I had the honor of recording an intro to accompany my song Marlboro man for his program.

This month, you can hear two songs in my eat my shorts series being played on the september edition of Out Radio. There are many talented musicians, too many to name with whom I share this honor.

Head over to JD's site and check out the playlist where you can also
listen to the program.

moneyless Music - Robert Recommends - Royksopp/The Irrepressibles Free Download

The Irrepressibles have been on my musical radar for a while now thanks
to their introduction by the lovely Gilles-Mathieu Laberge, my friend up north in Montréal.

The Scandi (Norwegian Electronica) group Royksopp has put their own subtle but lovely twist on the track In This Shirt, which is now downloadable from their site.

Get it here for Free!

Also, if you haven't seen the music video from Pag directed by Roy Raz (non official) for the same song, I highly recommend you give it a looksy. Pure eye candy.

Eat My Shorts - Volume 4 - Bootylicious

Robert German - Eat My Shorts - Volume 4: Bootylicious by robertgermanmusic

Robert German - Eat My Shorts - Volume 3: The West Virginia Bath Salt Blues

Robert German - Eat My Shorts - Volume 3: The West Virginia Bath Salt Blues by robertgermanmusic

This 2 Shall Pass - Rehearsal 4.28.11

Yes, I'm wearing Pajama pants, a scarf and a took.
This is just a bit of footage from a laid back rehearsal
on 4.28.11. This 2 Shall Pass.



We will be posting video clips regularly from here on out.
Please subscribe to the official Youtube channel to be kept up to
date when things are posted.

The NarcissusSea (lyrics)

Metamorphisis of Narcissus by Salvador Dali (1937)

oh the man
he loved his reflection
it's rippled perfection
the ebb and flow of
oh god, I love me so much

oh the man
his body contorting
an image distorting
when the tide goes out
there'll be nothing left of him

In the Narcissus si sis us Sea
In the Narcisus si sis us Sea
The Narcissus si sis us
Narcisus si sis sis

The sailors all have mirrors on their sails
and the dolphins all have cameras on their tails
the lobster's selling lipstick to the walruses and whales
and the clams have many secrets they could sell

in the narcissus si sis us Sea
in the narcissus si sis us Sea
the narcissus si sis us Sea