Sherwood – “You Are” [VIDEO]

Narrative: The band participates in an experiment involving dozens of helium balloons.  It goes awry.

Performance: During an experiment in an open field.

Song: Ridiculously feel-good pop.  A Third Eye Blind melody stuffed with Beach Boy harmonies.

Why You Should Watch It: As all good bands with a sense of self-promotion would, these guys approached me at Warped Tour ’04 (God, I’m old…) with an album and a plea: “Please, check this out.  Even if you don’t like it, it’ll brighten your day.”  I paraphrase, but they were spreading some serious love around.  Unenthused (I was a surly teenager at Warped Tour, pretty much incapable of any thuse at all), I brushed it aside and moved on.  I think a bought a crappy book from some forward thinking religious group instead.  Anyway, it was a mistake and I’m proud to say I now own almost every track this band has released – including the album I originally turned down.  They’ve been struck with bad luck and bad timing, getting signed to the debacle that was MySpace Records – and have constantly been stuck trying to sell that sunny demeanor that struck such a boring chord with me to a generally dour scene.  With their third full-length “QU,” the record this cut is from, they seemed to realize that they’ll probably always be a little more mature than their target audience, and the result is wonderfully complex, mature pop that sees only this track really return to their more straightforward days.

For a perfect summer track, try “Song In My Head” from their MySpace Records debut, “A Different Light.”  There’s a low-budget cleverness that runs through both these videos, and while the one above is definitely prettier, this one had a concept that stuck with me for a while…

If these tracks perk your ears, hit up YouTube and check out tracks more tracks from “A Different Light,” and “QU.”

In the words of the band: “Try it.  Even if you don’t like it…”

By: Chris Cullari | Beat-Play Ambassador Los Angeles | @ChriswithMWL|Music Without Labels & Beat-Play, LLC

A Revolution of Mind

“Revolution by Doxology”

This post is for people who for one reason or another, can’t seem to find happiness again. It may be affecting your work, or your relationships, and it’s definitely not pleasant. I want to paint a picture in your mind that might help you sort out the truth.

You’re wading alone in the depths; cold; wet; dark; frustrated; paranoid. Wandering hopelessly, until finally you’ve just had enough. Anything is better than this, and this feeling provokes action. The idea comes to you to try to climb out. So you find a vine strong enough to hold, and you begin climbing. And you’re climbing, and climbing, and climbing in the dark, with no signs of progress made, but you keep climbing, and never give up. Until one day, seemingly out of nowhere, you see a glimpse of light over an edge, and then more, and then you are able to climb out, and you’re surrounded by magnificent beautiful landscapes all around you, and you have a feeling of deja vu. You’ve been here before…you’re home. You know this is where you belong, and you’re never going to go back to the depths, because you already know what’s there, and know it could never compare to this. There, it is only darkness and uncertainty, and here, being in the sun shines light on everything, and it is beautiful beyond wildest imagination. This is where you decide to live, and your life becomes beautiful; every single second of it, a masterpiece. And you realize, there is no need for dark thoughts. They are only the absence of light. The darkness is useless, and leaves people paranoid for the unknown. With light, everything becomes clear again, and you can plainly see there is nothing to fear; there is only beauty to love and enjoy.

If ever I get a negative thought in my head. I think of this story. It is a metaphor. If you think negatively you can be 100% percent certain that you’re not helping yourself get to where you want to be.

If you happen to find yourself in the depths, remember, keep climbing. Don’t give up. One day the sun WILL come, and you will realize the beauty in every second of your life, that was before begging you to be seen.

Take ownership of that beauty, and use it to show other people its true glory. The good is there for us to use. The bad, well, it’s not worth messing with, it’s useless.

This metaphor is based on an awesome reasoning I’ve liked for a while now, and it is that there is no Bad, only the absence of Good. In the dark, anything could be there, or not be there, but in the light, you not only see what is actually there, but you can use it, where in the dark, it’s hard to use, or do anything.

Only with light(good), is there progress. With dark(bad), there is no negative progress, just none positive. There is only progress or not. Only Good, or not. “Bad” is an illusion that the lack of progress eventually turns into a horrible reality, and we must not stand by and let that happen, to ourselves or to others. I hope this post helped if you’re feeling blue..

Written by: Dante Cullari Founder & President Beat-Play, LLC