One of my New Years resolutions for 2019 was to make more creative risks, and this took on many forms: photography, storytelling, even cooking. But from January 1st I had a big project in mind: making new music for the first time in nearly a decade. A year later, I’m finally ready to share my “1923 EP” :
Inspired by the Roaring Twenties, I set out to rearrange and re-contextualize these classics from the American songbook for the 21st century. What I came up with was a stripped-down set of songs, influenced by nostalgic sounds like chiptune, FM synths, and vintage samplers that help bring these old melodies to life.
But why 1923? Last year marked the first time in over two decades that copyrighted works from 1923 entered the public domain, thanks in part to lobbying by big media companies in the late 1990s. To help correct the absurdity of overly-restrictive copyright laws keeping great music from the public for nearly a century, I’m proud to share my recordings through Creative Commons licensing so that others can share or remix my music to make their own creative projects.
I had so much fun putting this EP together, going back to my roots by creating music and where I got my first taste of marketing when I would promote my various bands in high school and college. So it only seems fitting that my return to music would bring out a little nostalgic inspiration.
I have so much more I could say about each track, but what do you guys think of my latest project? Should I keep it going in 2020 with new arrangements from 1924? Feel free to let me know with a comment below.