Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Ch-ch-ch-changes and what I did on my Summer vacation


While things are been rather quiet on the old Blog, I can't say there has been a lack of news. The simple fact is we've all been so busy living the news we haven't had time to write about it.

For those of you that didn't hear it through the grapevine, Lexie Smith had a few heart attacks about a month ago. Her situation was quite grim, but as you know, she's got a recording to make so she just could not die. That being said, the recording of our magnum opus “Ashes and Dreams” will have to wait until she heals from her “Heart Booboo”.

In other news, Kenn Kweder sold his house (Yay Kenn), so I had to find a new place to live. While cutting it super close to the deadline,I found a place in the North East part of Philly. I'm about 5 minuets from both Lexie and Ira house, so logistically this is a very good thing.

Much thanks to the fine friends that helped me move. Ira Norman Segall, Lyn Taylor and of course the man, the myth, the legend Ed Feldman. I think Ed is now the metaphorical Bella Lugosi to my metaphorical Ed Wood.

So Lexie is home healing up, and I'm in a new living situation playing shows. But wait there is more.

While the shit was hitting the fan with Lexie's heath, I needed some distraction from the worry, so I set about working on a new project, in theory the project after “Ashes and Dreams”.

The next project, “Zombie Apocalypse The Rock Opera ?”.

The title kind of says it all.

I've always wanted to write and Rock Opera and frankly, this is my second attempt. I did a very, very short operetta called, “The Group Session” when I was a teenager. If we are doing a Pete Townsend analog, “The Group Session” would be my “A Quick One While He's Away”. I actually got to preform this Operetta as “The Teen arts festival” to mixed reviews. Most were impressed when the psychiatrist desk exploded into flames.

But perhaps I digress.

Zombie Apocalypse the Rock Opera? Is a bit more complex and so far requires no exploding desks.

It all started simply enough, I wanted to write a Rock Opera and I wanted there to be a Zombie Apocalypse in it. The story wrote itself.

I'm going to do something unusual now and share the bear bones vision of this all. Most artist don't want the “Demo versions” of their work floating around. But I'm thinking on a project of this scope, it's probably best to capture people's imagination as early as possible.

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Now traditionally, a Opera has a Libretto. This is the story of the Opera, and because a Zombie Apocalypse is kind of a pulp fiction kind of motif, I thought the best kind of Libretto would be made up in a comic book, or graphic novel form. That is why there are comic panels on this page.

These are for the record “Demo Graphics”, and should be taken as such. While the demo Graphics include some famous people in them. The characters are NOT based on famous people. The famous people just seem, via there public perception to be much like the very fictional characters. So in effect they are standing in for fictional characters.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

The Setting of our story is a world divided between two world views.

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The curators,believing those in power by right of authority, wealth and privilege should always be in power. They have money, resource and own the government.




And the other world view....



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The Kynd. They dream of a more fair, tolerant and loving world. Because they don't have money, resources or any influence at all on government, they spend most of their time dreaming, and sucking down tear gas.

The first two panels and songs give you the respective themes for both factions.

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