Category: Music

For my sleep deprived friends

For my sleep deprived friends (and family)… here are some tips on getting a good meditative power nap in from Lifehack:

  • 1 STRETCH your legs for 30 seconds.
  • 2 SIT on a chair or couch. If you’re at work back away from your desk a bit.
  • 3 CLOSE YOUR EYES.
  • 4 STRETCH your arms above your head, slowly roll your head to stretch your neck.
  • 5 DEEP BREATHING – take at least 3 deep breaths in and out. Do this slowly and hold in between the in and out breath.
  • 6 REST and RELAX your face, jaw, eyes and whole body.
  • 7 BE AWARE HOW YOU FEEL as you relax.
  • 8 CALM THE MIND. Let go of all thoughts. As thoughts come into your mind, just repeat this gentle reminder to yourself “Empty The Mind.” You may want to switch over to a word of your choosing to focus on (mantra) that will help push out other thoughts. Examples of words are Peace, Calm, Rest, Empty, Power, Strength, Love. Any word is fine. In fact the word “OM” can be helpful because it is not attached to other meanings. Whatever works for you is what is best at that moment!
  • 9 IGNORE NOISES in the same way that you ignore thoughts. Repeat your mantra or “Empty the Mind.” Don’t get mad at noises, just flow with them as if they are waves under your boat of meditation.
  • 10 OPEN YOUR EYES slowly after about 10-20 minutes. Take a few more deep breaths and stretch again: arms, neck, legs.
  • 11 AHHHH. Feel the rejuvenation!

KLTY Celebrate Freedom

KLTY has announced their scheduled lineup for Celebrate Freedom this year. Of course I’m a little annoyed. I think they do this to me on purpose, but they put the artists I want to see in the evening and the morning.
I really don’t care much for who’s playing mid-day.
And with a two day event this year, I’d have to go on Friday night, see the artists I want to see, leave and then come back on Saturday. Gripes.
Oh well. Here’s this year’s scheduled lineup:

.FRIDAY JUNE 29
Afternoon
Caleb Rowden
Scott Riggan
Circleslide
Daniel Doss
Echoing Angels
Tanya Godsey

Evening
Rush of Fools
Krystal Meyers
Salvador
needtobreathe
Building 429
Sanctus Real
Barlowgirl
Skillet

.SATURDAY JUNE 30
Morning
Aaron Shust
Bebo Norman
33Miles
Gateway Worship
Brandon Heath
pureNRG

Afternoon
Michael English
Marcos Witt
Shawn McDonald
Bethany Dillon
Anthony Evans
Nicol Sponberg
Thousand Foot Krutch
Nate Sallie
Superchic[k]
Rebecca St. James

Evening
Avalon
Phillips, Craig and Dean
Natalie Grant
Nichole Nordeman
Toby Mac
Casting Crowns

Song of the day: Belief

Belief by John Mayer

Is there anyone who
Ever remembers changing there mind from
The paint on a sign?
Is there anyone who really recalls
Ever breaking rank at all
For something someone yelled real loud one time

Everyone believes
In how they think it ought to be
Everyone believes
And they’re not going easily

Belief is a beautiful armor
But makes for the heaviest sword
Like punching under water
You never can hit who you’re trying for

Some need the exhibition
And some have to know they tried
It’s the chemical weapon
For the war that’s raging on inside

Everyone believes
From emptiness to everything
Everyone believes
And no ones going quietly

We’re never gonna win the world
We’re never gonna stop the war
We’re never gonna beat this
If belief is what we’re fighting for

What puts a hundred thousand children in the sand
Belief can
Belief can
What puts the folded flag inside his mother’s hand
Belief can
Belief can

Star Wars Mashup

Brian Bailey’s son has put together several Star Wars Mashups with the site, mashup.starwars.com.
Pretty funny stuff. Good job Ben. Keep it up.
I’d still love to see a mashup with Josh Wink’s “Higher State of Consciousness” playing for the soundtrack.
Get a little R2D2 rapping going on. You know what I’m saying in full effect?

Internet radio providers could pay millions

As hopefully you’ve noticed, on the banner at the top of my blog, we’re still waiting/hoping and fighting for our rights to broadcast music on OrangeNoiseRadio. New rules could force Webcasters to pay higher royalty fees and additional administration fees – fees that are much greater than those paid by satellite and terrestrial radio counterparts.
RealNetworks, Yahoo, Pandora and our hosting company, Live365 have told Congress that the new administration fees could cost $1 billion a year. That’s a lot of money going to waste if you ask me.
From CNet:

Here’s how they say they derived that figure: When the CRB decided earlier this year to change the rules for Internet broadcasters, it also decided to levy a $500 minimum annual fee per Internet radio “channel.” SoundExchange, the non-profit music industry entity that collects the royalty and other fees on behalf of record labels, says that minimum payment is supposed to cover administrative costs.
But since some of the larger Internet radio services potentially offer their listeners hundreds of thousands of unique “channels” (RealNetworks’ Rhapsody offered more than 400,000 in 2006 alone, according to a company spokesman), the companies view the ruling as forcing them to multiply that mandatory minimum payment accordingly (for Real, that would amount to $200 million).
Such an amount would far outpace the $20 million in total royalty fees collected by SoundExchange from the Internet radio industry last year, the CEOs note in their letter. And besides, it’s not even clear that those payments would go to artists, as royalty payments do, the companies argue.

So we have until July 15 to hopefully save Net Radio.
What can you do?
Visit SaveNetRadio.org to get informed and to send letters and/or call your congressional leaders and get them to back and co-sponsor The Internet Radio Equality Act, H.R. 2060, and S. 1353.
If you’re in the Waxahachie area, Joe Barton is your representative. You can call his Washington office at: (202) 225-2002 or send an email via his website: http://joebarton.house.gov.
Also, anywhere in Texas, our U.S. Senators are Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn.
Call Kay Bailey at: (202) 224-5922 or contact her via her website: http://www.hutchison.senate.gov.
Call John Cornyn at: (202) 224-2934 or via his website at: http://cornyn.senate.gov.
Your help is greatly appreciated!