My brief history as a GarageBand artist...

Kevin (and anyone else who gives a flying fig):

Below are a handful of my musical conceptions from 2006 till now—in chronological order—that represent the various “eras” of my short GarageBand history. Most of them are either little "brain farts" (as short as 34 seconds), or partially fleshed-out experiments or "works in progress" (not longer than 4.5 minutes).

Also, these tracks have not yet been mastered—optimized for most playback systems—and the "musicianship" may be rough around the edges, here and there. But regardless, I hope you enjoy listening…and please feel free to leave comments!

2006: The Introspective Era

Back in 2006, I was really into creating this cinematic, serious, and mostly dark-sounding body of work. At the time, my main view of the world was still introspective—if that makes sense. So for me, this was comfort music. Today, Amanda just calls it “sad"...

• Overcast (3:03 / May 2006)
• C0nquest (3:49 / Oct. 2006)
• Desert Commuter (0:53 / Nov. 2006)
• Precious Little (2:05 / Nov. 2006)
• Solo in Solitude (3:02 / Nov. 2006)

2007: Quirks Mode

Anyhow, after I met Amanda in early 2007, I suppose I stopped carrying around so much baggage, and started feeling free to experiment with the quirky, slightly-more-upbeat side of my music...

• McGyver's Theme (4:21 / Feb. 2007)
• Sundown 2 (1:02 / July 2007)
• Peter Parker (o:37 / July 2007)


2008 to Today: The Evolution Continues...and Only Gets Better!

By 2008, the influence of my musical family—working jazz and R+B musicians whom I’ve always highly admired, but could only ever aspire to be—was starting to show up in my music. Plus I’d begun creating songs for someone’s personal enjoyment other my own—Amanda’s.

• Valentine (2:09 / March 2008)
• Things (1:12 / April 2009)
• Serenade Intro (1:28 / May 2009)
• Spoiler Alert (1:34 / June 2009)

So yes, by now, the sound has become more relaxed and sentimental, on one hand—but also more funky and beat-driven, on the other...

• It's Who You Know (0:34 / July 2009)
• Good Thing (1:33 / Aug. 2009)
• Spoiler Reprise (2:54 / Dec. 2009)

Most of my stuff still maintains a serious or dramatic edge. But Amanda's presence has been a very positive influence on my life—inspiring me to experiment with music that doesn't always have to be so “deep and heavy.”

Since 2006, Change has been the only real constant in my life. (I was laid off for a second time, lost a close relative, gained a fianceé, watched and helped siblings go through their own life-changing events, and took my business full-time.) But only after putting together this humble "GarageBand retrospective" do I realize how much the Music has faithfully reflected those changes, over the years. It's kinda nice!

By the way, this is the first time I'm putting my music "out there" for others to freely listen to—as music creation has always been very personal and "introspective" for me. But that's another way Amanda is changing how I look at things. Because of her, I'm learning to share more of myself with others...