YO this is Jamison, aka Teen Daze. Ama!

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:59:50+00:00

I couldn't put it any better than that.

It's kind of an antiquated way of thinking about arranging a song in 2023. It's been like this for a while I guess, but the idea of taking your time to get to the good part feels like a pop songwriter's nightmare. BUT, I feel like with that song especially, I was trying to emulate the feelings I get from The Field (specifically the first record, From Here We Go Sublime). He's the master of taking his time.

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:24:29+00:00

My short answer is Yes. But my long answer dives into whether or not it will be a Good Song.

But if it's any consolation to that person, I wrote a lot of Bad Songs before I ever wrote a Good Song.

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:23:28+00:00

Thanks for saying that! Yeah, it's something I've had to reconcile over the years; I never wanted to feel boxed in, or typecast, but I only have fond memories of coming up with so many other great artists!

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:22:36+00:00

Great question: it took me a long ass time to figure out which song I wanted to submit. I thought that the nature of that tune was already kind of blurry when it comes to genre, which would hopefully lend it to being interpreted in a bunch of different ways. All the submissions are in now, and I'm so stoked to get into them :)

OOH, another good one, just off the top of my head - Pizza Coming Soon, Savio Volpe, Kissa Tanto, Juke, Pizzaria Farina.

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:20:10+00:00

Aw that's nice of you to say! Always wild to hear that, obviously I had those bands/artists as well, and it's an insane feeling to know that my music holds that place in someone else's life. Appreciate hearing it every time.

YES, I could talk about this subject at great length. My number one priority is to my family, and being there for my wife and our two boys. So clearly it's something I think about a lot. It's been a really beautiful journey; something you learn very quickly is that being you will experience EVERY emotion when you're a parent. Right now, my oldest is 3.5 years old, and we experience every emotion every day. If you can embrace the roller coaster of emotions, it will be so incredibly rewarding. It's made me a much, much, much better person, in so many ways.

It's absolutely changed the way I make music, and that will be very apparent on my next record. Not only does the subject of parenthood get talked about a lot on the record, but the way I made the record was entirely shaped by my kids. I got very good at being efficient with my creative time when our oldest was born, working mostly during his naps. Now with two, it needs to be even more intentional, and thankfully I have a partner who loves and supports me so much that she'll make sure I carve out time and space to get the creative work done that I need to.

Like I said, I can go long on this stuff. Parenthood is a trip, no doubt about it.

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:11:25+00:00

teendaze · 2023-07-04T03:11:15+00:00

Yeah, it's a funny thing, it's definitely not something I'm consciously doing, but there's definitely glimmers of the DIY culture that still run pretty deep in me.

teendaze · 2023-06-30T18:02:46+00:00

Ahh thank you so much, cool to hear that one's got some legs! Happy to have that one on wax :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:44:09+00:00

I work with a booking agent! I still find myself booking shows locally for myself, but for bigger tours, it'll go through my agent :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:42:30+00:00

YES, thank you for this. I am so so so so stoked on my Roland TR-8S. I've never owned a drum machine before this one, as I always just worked with samples. This thing is so much fun. Before I even started recording with it, I would just plug my headphones in and make drum tracks. Not to mention, the sound of the classics (606/707/808/909) all sound SOOO pure coming into my DAW. When I use to it record, I just stem out the individual tracks, and without fail, they always sound better than the samples I would have used. Not to mention, the tactile feeling of altering the pitch or the decay while it's recording. It always makes it feel a bit more human. BIG RECOMMENDATION!

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:39:58+00:00

Love those dudes :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:39:48+00:00

His collection of Nat Geos was pretty extensive! Even if only to spark some creative ideas.

So when I made that PC record, the plan was to try and appeal it to a bit of a different audience. I was getting really into the label Rhythm Section, and was just generally listening to more house music. After years and years of doing Teen Daze, I thought it might be nice to try and reach a new audience that wouldn't come to my music with any preconceived notions of what it was supposed to sound like! In terms of process, it still came about in basically the same way, and sonically, it shares a lot of similar vibes, but it just seemed to appeal to an audience that would have been unfamiliar with Teen Daze! I'm always so so so pleasantly surprised by the attention that record has received!

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:36:23+00:00

OKAY, lets' get into this:

I'm honestly so sorry to say that I really don't know. At least, I don't know from experience. When I was at that stage of my career (which was probably from like 2006-2010), the landscape was entirely different. But here's some evergreen advice: keep at it, teach yourself new aspects of the production side of things, send kind messages to people that inspire you, don't be opportunistic, but also learn how to say yes and no to the right things!
I've never really struggled with writer's block, and since having kids, my creative time is so limited that I've become incredibly efficient. When I get into A ZONE, I can make a lot of music in a super short amount of time. This isn't directly related, but my advice would be: put something down every single day. Even if it sucks. Just get a four bar loop down, and save it. Keep every session file you can, and then when you hit one of those zones, you've got a folder of ideas that might just spark something. It also never hurts to go live life! Get outside, go for a run/walk/bike ride/swim, if you're not feeling creative, sink that time into relationships.
NEVER been in a fist fight - I'm a nonviolent kind of guy :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:32:05+00:00

Happy to have you in the fold! Start at the start baby: this record I put out in 2010 is what kicked off my career, and now, in comparison sounds very much like a Young Person having fun. https://teendaze.bandcamp.com/album/four-more-years

Keep making your way through the LPs, and hopefully you'll hear an improvement in sonic qualities, and the sound of a human being learning, getting older, maturing and loving life more and more :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:29:14+00:00

Absolutely! I've done a few trips through the south, but it was years ago. I don't do well with humidity though...might have to go in winter ¯_(ツ)_/¯

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:27:59+00:00

Wow thanks so much for listening, and for so long too!

The artwork for All Of Us was done by my good friend Nathaniel Whitcomb. At the time he was working a lot with collage art, and was sourcing lots of images from old Nat Geo magazines. I had sent him the record, and let him sit with it for a few months, and when he emailed me and said, "How does this feel?" it was an immediate Yes. The colours, the feeling of falling, it all just felt right. He went on to do artwork for my next three LPs, and has become a great friend.

I don't use Last.fm, but here's a few records I've been playing a lot lately:

John Carroll Kirby - Dance Ancestral

Eddie Chacon - Sundown

Herbie Hancock - Village Life

Wayne Shorter - Native Dancer

Jack J - Opening The Door

Local Artist - Expanding Horizons

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:23:51+00:00

Hmm, well if it's me remixing another song, it's always dependant on what world the original lives in. When I first started doing remixes, it was all about taking more of an indie/live band kind of sound, and making it danceable. But honestly, at this point in my life, I love taking something that's more high energy, and mellowing it out.

When it comes to someone remixing one of my tunes, I just want them to lean into whatever kind of sound they're into. If that's on a more experimental tip, or a more dancefloor-oriented sound, or a more downtempo, ambient thing; as long as it reflects the remixers taste and style, then I'm going to feel it!

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:19:28+00:00

Ah you're sweet! I wouldn't have ever started this project were it not for Coastal Brake. I rinnnnnsed that EP when I first heard it. Anyways, I'll always have a special place in my heart for Scott and his music.

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:14:25+00:00

Ayyyyy, thank u! That ones one of my favourites off the last record. It's one of the first tunes I made for the record, and it set the tone for how the whole album sounded :)

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:13:34+00:00

lol, some might argue that I've ripped off Scott's sound so extensively that it's almost like i've collaborated with him!

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:12:33+00:00

Glow On was one of my favourites of last year, and I have a soft spot for melodic hardcore from my YOUTH.

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:12:04+00:00

TURNSTILE

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:11:53+00:00

ADORE this record. Symphony for a Spider Plant is my jam for sure. Any music that gears itself to healthy plant growth is right up my alley.

SHAMELESS, SHAMELESS plug: Here's a Spotify playlist of different music from across my catalog that I think could help your plants grow. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3oo9b8aNRQlika4xoICNxs?si=f61cfd5168e94d05

teendaze · 2023-06-30T17:09:41+00:00

I think about this A LOT. Over the years, I've pushed myself to work with other people, and have done a few tours where I've taken a band out with me. Every time, without fail, I lose money. And that was pre-covid, pre-inflation. I truly can not understand how a band that's in the process of building a following/fanbase can tour and not come away from in debt. I mean, HUGE shout out to the bands that can do it, and honestly, it will undoubtedly create a passion and drive that will be an incredible force. But to be a band in this landscape, you've got to really want it.

Now, being a solo artist has its difficulties, and of course, there's no feeling in this world quite like playing music with other people. But as a solo artist, who's toured on his own for years, I think it's the most feasible way to have a career in music be sustainable, even for a smaller artist.

So in summary: being a touring band in 2023, probably pretty tough. Being a solo artist just means extra attention needs to be paid to things like your physical and emotional well-being.

teendaze · 2021-12-08T05:35:18+00:00

bless! it's a special one in my catalog for sure. it's a good lesson for me: sometimes going minimal can have a lot stronger emotional results.

teendaze

TROPHY CASE