About That Plot, About Performing, Zach Bryan on the Patio, and Lost Songs

How to turn anxious energy into joy

A musical update. First, a few performances on the horizon - more coming too.

Upcoming Shows

Saturday, August 31, 2024 - 5pm-9pm
Tomato Joe’s Pizza & Taps, Canyon Country, CA
Facebook Event Page

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This is fun!

I was contacted by the event coordinator of the Water Lantern Festival (August 17th above) about playing last weekend - about 25 minutes from the house. But, alas, we had my 40th high school reunion that night. To be honest, I would have rather played music but we saw some friends and danced to a Rod Stewart cover band that sounded pretty good.

I kept telling former school mates that I came to a 40th high school reunion and a bunch of old people showed up! Some found it funny and a few told me to STFU!

But, the festival has several dates and booked me for Bakersfield.

Bakersfield… Nothing in me really wants to visit the central California dustbowl in August but for music… I’ll do it…

Besides, it is the final resting spot of country music legend, Buck Owens. Buck Owens and Dwight Yoakam had a hit with this song, The Streets of Bakersfield.

So, we’ll try to get by the Buck Owen’s Crystal Palace and take a few pictures before I perform.

What’s Next

Remember when I wrote about losing the plot?

I seem to have found it or, more accurately, am re-writing the script - adding some juicy plot twists. Playing live has been instrumental in that.

It forces me to practice more diligently. Both my command of guitar and my vocals are far better than even a month ago. This translates to better recordings and, of course, better performances.

It also calms that anxiety-driven voice in my head that reminds me about time and the lack thereof. In fact, performing seems to transfigure anxiety into joy!

I’ve written before how, when you’ve practiced enough the songs are performed, more than played. That flow state is as close to what might be called spiritual as anything one can experience.

Things to Mention

• I’ve completed Whiskey Kill This Dream and The Coward and The Fool. I’ll look to release both in the next week or so.

• I’ve learned several new cover tunes and have been mixing them into my performances. Most recently, “Something in the Orange” by Zach Bryan. It was requested by a young woman who attended a performance with her parents a few weeks ago. I promised her I would learn it.
  
  I was on our upstairs balcony the other morning taking video of me rehearsing the song. While I was playing a neighbor was walking to her car and I noticed her grooving to the song. When she got to her car she turned around and started applauding. It made me laugh.

• I’ve been speaking with a few other players about putting a new iteration of my band, Arrogant Sage, together. I have a much clearer vision for what I’m looking for but I’m not rushing things.

• My friend and fellow songwriter, Emiko, and I are talking about a show in South Pasadena. We believe we have a venue and will be coordinating something, hopefully in September.

• I had hoped to write one song a month but haven’t. I’ve written several lyrical snippets and recorded some musical ideas. These have been cataloged on a folder in my Google Drive.
  
  I’m not feeling any pressure to meet that goal. I have enough on the plate. Recording and improving my skills is more important for now. However, I have revisited some old, never performed songs, and brought them out of the dusty basement to see how they play. I refer to them as lost songs.

A Lost Song

Regarding those lost songs, here is one of them.

Love Exposed

I wrote Love Exposed in 2020. I never recorded it or wrote the chords down. Last week I was going through my catalog, organizing some files, when I found the lyrics.

I knew how it “felt” but it took me a day of plinking around on guitar to rediscover how I’d been playing it.

Yesterday, I tracked two guitars and this single, uncut, vocal take, and created this video for the fun of it. It has fun, pop-esque, feel. I’m certain I’ll do a bit more with the vocals when I get around to working on it more but I may include it when I perform this weekend.

The lyrics are below the video. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know.

And, as always, thank you for joining me on this journey.

With Love and Gratitude,
Matthew Moran
August 7, 2024

LYRICS

VERSE 1
I liked it better when the world was ours
We still believed that in time we could count the stars
And every dream was yours and mine
Forever seemed like too short a time

Now I'm skeptical of all I see
Question and second-guess everything
I've got some thoughts on that thing called love
It never was what we thought it was

CHORUS
It says forever but it's not
Says, “I'll be faithful” until it's caught
Plays it innocent, then plays the game
Plays the victim then lays the blame

Takes you high than lets you go
You can't imagine the tricks it knows
First your heart and then your soul
It's a warning I'm issuing to you
This is love exposed

VERSE 2
You left that keychain on the floor
The one I bought you out in Wichita
You always said that it's the thought that counts
So baby, what the hell was that about?

I never been the one to hold you back
You must know me better than that
But then again that may not be true
I never expected this from you