Brothers' Hike

In October of 2016 my Mom and I set out on a trip through the southwest to celebrate her successful completion of breast cancer treatment. It was truly awe-inspiring and I cherish the time we spent together. I look forward to reflecting, writing, and sharing some of those experiences in the months ahead.

My Dad was able to join us for the first leg of the trip while we visited my Uncle Tom (his brother) and Aunt Pollyanna in El Paso. I had never been to the southwest before (save for a featherbrained trip to Vegas). I was immediately and profoundly moved by the sheer size and openness of the landscape, the dryness of the air, and the wildlife determined to survive in the harsh climate. It was easy to understand and share Uncle Tom’s love of hiking.

On Saturday we set off to the Franklin Mountains State Park. The rocky range splits the northern side of El Paso into a Y with foot trails tracing its ridges and valleys. It was a beautiful and fun hike, and I treasure the memory of time spent with my Dad and Uncle Tom.

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Thank you for your input Cecil, Chuck, Taylor, and Moses.

NPR Tiny Desk Contest

I got a call from my friend Cassy Renee asking if I would help her put together a video recording of one of her songs to submit to the NPR TIny Desk Contest. Heck yes! I love Cassy's music! Well unfortunately out schedules and a surprise cold kept us from recording together, but luckily Lonnie and Moses took care of her! Here's her video, Cassy is sooooooooo good! 

During our initial conversation, she asked me if I was going to submit anything. I didn't really know what song I would record and submit for it so I kind of put it on the back burner. Then a couple weeks later I found myself monkeying around with my keyboard sounds and started writing.

The song first started as "sleeping with the lights on". I wanted to talk about consciousness and how I sometimes find myself disengaged from the experience of living because of the to-do list I feel like needs to be done in order to live (something I still really want to develop). Buuuuuut it just wasn't happening; all of the lyrics felt stilted, and I just wasn't FEELING IT! So I decided to write about someone for whom I am very much feeling it. I finished the song an hour-or-so later and played it out on the town at Montague's in Greenwood, SC. Folks seemed to enjoy it, so I figured I'd record it and send it in for the NPR's 2017 Tiny Desk Contest! Hope you enjoy "Kissing for the First Time". :) 

The Crossing Breath (RISE)

I have always loved the way that sound and music bring motion pictures to life. Since 2005, I have had the pleasure of working with my good friends at Riot Scene Pictures (Baltimore, MD). I enjoy working on-set-sound, post-production sound, foley and especially composing the score for our projects. We’ve produced feature length films, short films, and released this past year a series called RISE. In future blog entries I will go into more detail on some of the fun behind the scenes aspects of the score. For this entry, I’m going to talk about the closing credits song written for the last episode of season one. 

-Click here to listen out the the full score for RISE on Bandcamp!

I wanted the final thought of the season to be an intimate reflection on death. We seek to comfort our friend who is about to take the mysterious journey to death. No matter what help we offer, we find the crossing breath from life to death is a path we all must take on our own. It’s a beautiful paradox that we experience solitude doing that which unites every living thing. While we approach what we find to be the final steps, we can’t help but remember there is no end to that which is, has been, and always will be - there is no life without death. I could write on that statement for a long time, but I’ll leave it to the masters like Richard Rohr. For now, I hope you enjoy “The Crossing Breath”.

THE CROSSING BREATH

Fare thee well, my fading friend. 
I give you my permission. 
The boatman now awaits your soul, 
do you need a coin to pass? 

No one else can speak for you and all that you have done. 
And I don't know where you'll go. 

Tarry not to take the test. 
You've picked the path before you. 
The final steps compel you now. 
The present has no end. 

No one else can speak for you. 
Your journey's almost done. 
But I don't know where you'll go.

Moore Mill

THE PIECE

The piece reflects the steady and timeless nature of the creek with a single repeated note. Our harmony develops as a reflection on how we can draw from this abundant and consistent source. Our single melody reflects the inner workings of of the mill in it's vital days. As the melody (work) continues, it's purpose stays the same as the harmony (the times) subtly shift underneath of it, ultimately leaving the melody behind. Soon the times change and the work moves, and all we have left is the creek and the memories of a working mill.

If you would like sheet music, contact me.

THE STORY

This past week I bought a new Panasonic GH4 camera and went to do some camera tests. I decided to go down the hill and shoot video of the old Moore Mill on Hurricane Creek (Pelzer, SC). My purpose was a technical one: get to know my camera before I do some recording jobs with it this coming weekend, but it wasn't long before I found myself moved by the images I was getting of Mill. The constant whir of the creek outside, the light catching the dust, and the texture of weatherworn metal woke me up to the moment once again. Have you ever had that moment where you put all your focus on the place in which you are - then through that focus you become present in that place? 

The next morning I found myself at the piano reflecting on the serene and nostalgic footage. There's so much to be said for being in the space now, with rust and dirt and floorboards you have to test before each step, and yet immerse your mind in the goings-on of years ago, when it was a vital and purposeful place. How did the wheels turn and belts communicate this organism's extremities with it's inner kinesis? What little tricks did the workers do to make their process smoother and easier? Which tools were the most useful, though now so obsolete? I'm thankful this was the place I found myself testing my camera. 

Rain after Snow

Today, I share my reflection I had while tinkering on my parent’s piano I grew-up on. In 2014 my mentor steered me toward mindfulness – specifically practicing mindfulness around the ways I react. I find it’s so easy for me to fly off my game because of some transient discomfort. I scramble about in a flustered attempt to fix whatever new cataclysm I sense erupting around me. I experience a life-train-derailment, rather than seeing the issue as it is: a small road-block, during a fraction of my life-time. And to this day I find myself ensnared in minuscule issues clawing my way out.

Sometimes, I just have to stop and ask myself, “Am I busting my hump clearing snow that’s going to melt in the rain tomorrow?”

Rain after Snow

Yesterday it snowed. It stayed below freezing through the day and after dark it warmed up. By eleven the boards on deck were wet reflecting the street lights.

This morning there were only thin traces of white in the grass and mulch, and little piles of soggy snow we had heaped off of our road and walkways yesterday.

Songwriter And Pianist Alex Davis Keys In On Two New Albums | Severna Park Voice

Severna Park native Alex Davis whet his performing appetite with a performance of Billy Joel’s “She’s Got A Way” during Rock ‘N’ Roll Revival in 2006, but at that point, he still had miles to go before reaching the status of full-time musician. Now, as the lead singer and keyboardist of two bands - Miles To Go and Passing Worth – that are set to release albums later this year, he is closer to making music his sole career.

Source: Songwriter And Pianist Alex Davis Keys In On Two New Albums | Severna Park Voice

A few weeks ago I got a phone call from Zach Sparks at the Severna Park Voice. He had found me through an old reverbnation page that is linked to an email I can't even access anymore; I hadn't even updated it to reflect that I lived in South Carolina. Well this worked out, because Zach was searching for local artists in Severna Park and stumbled onto me in this way. Zach was interested in interviewing me to talk about I had shifted from the solo act "Alex Davis" in 2008, to Passing Worth and Miles to Go that currently are working so hard on albums and tour planning. It's amazing how things like this happen. I had just given my letter of resignation for my full time job at Saxe Gotha Presbyterian Church to pursue music in a full time capacity when he called. All that's to say, I can use all the support that comes my way.

I'm thankful for our meeting for many reasons. One, it was so refreshing to talk with someone who values the person-to-person interaction in a conversation, rather than a message thread. Two, it was great to talk with someone about the development of my relationship with my art and reflect on how it continues to become more meaningful to me on every level. And lastly, it was nice to feel like I'm doing something worth writing about, maybe people might even want to come to a show and hear what it is that has compelled me to take such a huge leap of faith from a full-time job and comfortable home-studio arrangement to a life on the road.

Ah heck, I can go on and on about it. Better off just pointing you to the words of Zach Sparks. Thanks so much, man!