what? no pics...SMDH!

Wednesday night was a great night out at Kraftwork. had a chance to sample a new brew & met w/some fellow SoundClouders from the Illadelph area. the venue is real comfortable & the staff was very accomodating to our group. i have to emphasize this as the location originally suggested did not seem to be interested in hosting our group. [SHRUG]

the meetup was quite solid. it looks like we'll be making this a monthly thing. i'm excited about the prospects of building w/other creatives. my whole purpose of creating a presence on the web was to create awareness & promote building w/other creatives. building will always be a part of the Refinery's mission.

somehow i did not capture any digital media from the meetup. i brought the P&S dcam & a tripod, but shot not 1 pic. i have to say i was too interested in interacting w/the other peeps in the group. next time i'll have to be a bit more photographically diligent!

the next meeting is being planned at Meetup Everywhere...

PEACE
...be calm...

if a creative falls out of a tree...

i'm generally not big on cliches. i frequently mangle them. lately i've been thinking about that cliched riddle about the tree in the forest. the line of thinking being if a creative expresses & no one ever experiences it, did creation occur? are you only an artist if you &/or your works are recognized/credited?

i would argue no, but i suppose i'm biased.

these thoughts lead me to thinking about the idea of selling out or crossing over. i remember toward what turned out to be the closing years of the golden era of hip-hop that selling out was a major issue. many respected artists spoke out against it & dissed anyone who appeared to be doing it. how many songs come to mind about the artists who were considered to be blatantly selling out?

getting back to how this relates to being an unrecognized creative, what is considered acceptable when there are bills to be paid? family to be fed? health to be maintained? how does all this relate to signing away creative freedom & knowingly or not walking into the belly of the beast? idealism doesn't pay for expenses like studio time or anything else that relates to pursuing artistic crafts. it definitely doesn't pay for any life expenses.

it's really easy to talk about artistic integrity when you don't consider such issues. the lines between mainstream/underground are not always as clear as they used to be when it comes to hip-hop. the reality is these same ideas apply to just about any creative expression that has lent itself to commodification.

there are those who are willing to do certain things that others will not. find enough people who don't give a damn & you're likely to find the person who does chillin' in a tree in some desolate forest...

PEACE
...be calm...

working to create a way...

i'm working on making some of the images that appear in the expressions gallery (facebook) available for purchase. there is some question as to how large some of the images can be reproduced at a high quality. poster size & larger is the goal.

here are 3 of the images i'm working to make available...

movement aquatic

 

piercing the depths

 

that cat see

these are all original Refinery crafted designs. as always, if you dig it, spread the word. help keep the Refinery alive & flowing...

PEACE

...be calm...

the 2011 framework...

greetings fellow humans!

the journey continues...

the Refinery moves forward...

the plan for Pipeline has changed a bit. some logistics still have to be taken care of before i detail the plan. briefly, the goal is to make Pipeline available to those who support the independent nature of this operation. the fuel will be physical or digital depending on the preference of those interested.

i'm also working on making some Refinery crafted designs available as posters/prints. tees & other merch may be made available as well. this will again be dependent on the interest of those who support the Refinery.

to be clear, this blog exists to promote the Refinery's creative projects. if the blog can help financially support the Refinery, that's lovely as well. that's what the ads & product links are for. there are Google & Amazon ads. do click on the things that you find relevant to self.

in an effort to further promote the progress of the Refinery's creative effort a PayPal link is being added to the blog. if you feel strongly enough to do so, contribute to this operation. no pressure, the blog will always be free to view.

ultimately, this is intended to be an interactive experience to promote artistic energies. as always, feedback is welcome & appreciated.

spread the word & help support this independent creative effort!

much thanks in advance to you...

PEACE

...be calm...

Illadelph we have a problem...

the Refinery system is officially down.

ouch!

the prognosis is leaning toward the - side of things. this year has definitely served to test the drive to pursue my creative goals. if the vibes were not like breathing, i might have a problem finding inspiration...

i would say the Refinery is on shoestring, but it's more like that frayed end of an old shoestring after that casing comes off. no sob story, this comes w/the territory of being an independent creative.

for various reasons, primarily financial, this may take some time to address.

on a more + note, the Refinery is not shutting down. things are just going to be even slower than what they have been over the last few months.

i am working things out. stay tuned...

PEACE

...be calm...

Raw Fuel: Reserve II...

wow, it's been several weeks since a Refinery update. i won't go into the details as to why. life happens essentially sums it up.

i suppose i can be forgotten, but i won't be gone as long as i can help it. i still have a long way to go. traveling w/o certain supports can be quite challenging, but the journey is ultimately worth the trials. much thanks to all those who have been supportive thus far & along the way. as long as i am not in doubt, the rest is not that relevant...

on w/the program...

it took far longer than i expected or intended, but i got through the '09 tanks to isolate the tanks of the 2nd rendition of Raw Fuel. i had to work down from 66 tanks to 22. the goal is 21 tanks, 1 less tank & i'll be good w/the collection.

get at me...
PEACE

...be calm...

a day in the ear...

when i can & feel it, i listen to the vibes that i find groove me. the rhythms that get the juices flowing. the words that work the mind. the sounds that silence whatever drama.

if i'm not listening to some music something must be broken somewhere. today classifies as a great listening day.

watidilistenat?

BOOM!

Mos Def - Black on Both Sides

Bobbi Humphrey - Blacks & Blues

Herbie Hancock - Fat Albert Rotunda

Black Sheep - From The Black Pool Of Genius

Johnny Hammond - Gambler's Life

The Roots - How I Got Over

The Brothers Johnson - Look Out for #1

Grover Washington, Jr. - Mister Magic

Edo G - My Own Worst Enemy ft. Pete Rock

A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

Donald Byrd - Places & Spaces

RZA - RZA As Bobby Digital in Stereo

Organized Konfusion - The Equinox

Christopher Titus - 5th Annual End of the World Tour

this is howidowatitdoes...

get at me!

PEACE
...be calm...

getting back to it...

it's time to rediscover my foundation(s). the grand experiment has moved a little slower than what i may have liked so far this year, but it has moved. there are certain tendencies that i have had over the years that until recently i did not realize created relatively unreasonable expectations for self.

moving along w/today's knowledge, i have to change some of the ways i look at how i do what i do. this applies to my creative endeavors as well as life in general. for the purposes of this blog, i'll stick to the creative oriented concerns.

i've never been interested in becoming "famous." my essential goal as a creative is to live doing what i love. since my creative interests vary, this can be a challenge. i've chosen music as my primary form of output, but that in no way means i will ever try to limit my creative energies elsewhere.

1 of the issues that i have w/my current pursuits is the fact that historically i've never really had to put much effort into studying in order to do well academically. this does not work well w/all pursuits. it definitely does not work well w/my approach to creating. lately i'm feeling somewhat creatively stiff. it's not a block, but i'm not doing things as fluidly as i would like to be. since i have no intention/desire to stop doing what i'm doing, i have to change the approach accordingly.

that said, the work continues. i'm still on my ABB tip...

get at me...

PEACE
...be calm...

inspirational vibes...

there is something about being around other creatives, creative oriented activities, &/or creative environments that is truly inspiring. the vibes cannot be beat.
for me it's a reminder of the highly interactive nature of the human being. in my observations of life so far it's extremely odd when a human chooses to isolate self. the results can be quite disturbing. it's like starving the mind in many ways...

last night/yesterday i went the the DMC US Finals at Santos Party House. i enjoyed the experience on so many levels that i'm still kinda geeked about it. there is an excitement i observe in those who dig such events that those who don't just cannot relate to.

i suppose it is watitis. we all dig different things. it just seems some find a need to belittle or demean that which they do not find digable. how do you grow too old for hip-hop? James Brown literally did it to death!

the performances were pretty tight. there was 1 DJ that seemed a little lost compared to the others, but overall each contestant was solid. the crowd didn't agree much w/the judges decision of who won the right to rep the US in the DMC World Finals, but this wasn't the Amateur Night At The Apollo.

2 of my most inspirational moments were being handed a small book looking object in the darkness of the club prior to the competition getting started, & listening to some albums i had yet to fully listen to. the book turned out to be the latest chapter of Frank151. this is an amazing publication. since i've never heard of it prior, i'm very excited to be aware of it now. great images throughout, & plenty of Q&A interviews.

the albums i listened almost had me salty because i neglected to bring my handy miniature composition book & Uni-Ball pen. fortunately i realized that i could take advantage of the virtual QWERTY keyboard in the cell to catch some lyrical stylings. i'm not the 1 for memorizing lyrics after i make them up. if i don't write them down, they're lost in the universe. good thing i charged the phone before leaving. 4 hours on a bus RT means plenty of listening time. what was i listening to?

No I.D. - Accept Your Own & Be Yourself (The Black Album)

Baby Blak - Once You Go Blak

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot... The Son of Chico Dusty

The Roots - How I Got Over

gotta finish listening to that last album. i continue to be impressed w/the hometown heroes. the artistic maturity of their last few albums is very refreshing. i never thought i'd be listening to Black Thought singing when i 1st heard Pass The Popcorn...

watitis!

shout out to Vice Enigmatic who was also at the spot...

PEACE
...be calm...

2010: the year of the tech issue...LOL!

the Refinery has been operating slightly less smoothly so far this year. i have to admit it's as much operator error as it is equipment error(s).

progress regardless...

it can be difficult at times to maintain the patience necessary to continue to move forward in the face of certain obstacles. problem is, if you don't K.I.M., where are you everyday? remaining in the midst of these obstacles...

no thanks to that.

obviously it's easier to say such things than to do what's needed to be done, but again, you gotta K.I.M....

so on that note, i finally got into my Disc Makers account today. i've been trying to initiate an order for at least 3-4 weeks prior. now that i can actually login to my account, i can make the order in the next few days.

Pipeline will benefit directly from this progress.

patience is not a naturally occurring virtue in my environment...

requires some solid effort on my part, but it's highly necessary!

get at me!

PEACE
...be calm...