In Plain Sight

Please Do Not Fight

The Please Do Not Fight Album is due for release on the 5th of November, so please to remember. It will be available on iTunes. More videos available on Facebook.

Local Band Scene

For years my son Zen and many of his friends (many of whom are also home schooled) have been making music. Some of these friendships go back 10 years to when Zen was 13 and 14. Last year several of them, including Zen, finished at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood and they have come back to the Bay Area and are teaching at the Riekes Center in Menlo Park - http://www.riekes.org/ - an independent center of youth education in Menlo Park.

Anyhow, this year has seen these fine young people make the sudden shift in competence that comes from long practice and commitment. Zen has just finished a new album of his own songs with his new band "Please Do Not Fight" and his colleagues at the Riekes Center in a band called "Punchface" have also produced an extraordinary album; both albums are simply world-class. They are working together on a collective indie record label called "Mega Ultra Records" that has promise in its own right as a venture. They need a little help in terms of some initial cash and business development. A little investment here would go a long way.

A few months ago Zen came to Sunnyvale and performed at my local haunt (the Bean Scene Cafe) two of the songs that appear on the new album; one that you can see below. This past weekend I recorded a performance by Punchface and was simply blown away by the mature performance of these guys and the well-developed material that they have produced. Both bands deserve as much support as I can muster. The Punchface album is on iTunes now and the Please Do Not Fight album will be available in the near future.

In short, the Southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area suddenly has a very mature and exciting music scene. Check it out!

Kristin Hersh

I had the very good fortune to see Kristin Hersh in the intimate setting of the American Swedish Theater in San Francisco a couple of months ago. She has just released a new album on January 23rd "Learn to Sing Like a Star." Download it from iTunes now. I strongly recommend it.

The music video is a track from the new album.