Boneyard Album Lyrics

Availible in FLAC and high quality digital files at BANDCAMP. 
Also availible at iTunes, Amazon MP3 and other online stores.


01. BONEYARD 

I'm heading to the field in my condition
Hellbent on revenge for all it's worth
Not much left to do in my position
Gonna put some bones into the earth

I walked a line but then I stumbled
Went down hard and took the blow
Now all my morals have just crumbled
I'm the last man you would want to know

Welcome to the Boneyard
I'm glad you made your way
Welcome to the Boneyard
Yeah, you're here to stay
Dig down into the dirt, dig down into your soul
You've done it all those years, just get down into that hole
Yes, your name is carved in stone
Tell me does it feel... does it feel like home?

I followed the footprints of angels
All the way until the snow turned red
In a world where lies are met with silence
We're just one step from being dead

I met this lady in Missouri
Dead dreams were dripping from her eyes
She fought 'em hard and in a fury
She reached the point where all faith dies

Welcome to the Boneyard
Yes you've made your way
Welcome to the Boneyard
Oh, you're here to stay
Dig down into the dirt, dig down into your soul
You've done it all those years, just get down into that hole
Yes, your name is carved in stone
Tell me does it feel... does it feel like home? 


02. RAPUNZEL 

From her lonely tower she will watch out
Waiting for her true love to appear
Paying for a crime she hasn't done now
Singing songs no one might ever hear

Just hoping someday someone comes her way
To ease her lonely, troubled mind
And hoping somewhere someone will tell her
That love is not just for the blind

Like abandoned flowers she would wither
As the winter reached into her heart
And the walls she built with fear will crumble
Only if she's open for a start

She's hoping someday someone comes her way
To ease her lonely, troubled mind
She's hoping somewhere someone will tell her
That love is not just for the blind

As the desert wind was painting pictures
With the sand right there around her door
She was watching nature take its part and
Realized her walls were nothing more

She's hoping someday someone comes her way
To ease her lonely, troubled mind
She's hoping somewhere someone will tell her
That love is not just for the blind 


03. AND THEN THE NIGHT 

I'm old enough to be sure no one here will find a cure
For love that's lost in seperated hearts
You try to carry on and find some place where you belong
To gather strength and stand for a new start

Surrender to the pain, burnt so deep inside your brain
To die and be reborn again all new

And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky

I know you think I should, but there's no way I ever could
Believe in what I don't feel deep inside
And even if that means I must crucify my dreams
The truth is what I can no longer hide

Surrender to the pain, burnt so deep inside my brain
To die and be reborn again all new

And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky

Been walking through the light, I've been burning through the night
I wonder: Does it matter anyway?
Before my eyes could see I had to learn how to be free
The shadows on my walls are here to stay

So I surrender to the pain, burnt so deep inside my brain
To die and be reborn again all new

And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky
And then the night comes falling from the sky 


04. SHADOWS AND LIGHTS 

It's shadows and lights all throughout life
We laugh and we cry and deeper in we dive
Still waters move once you jump in
So hurry up and don't think about your sins

And you know... that makes me wonder

You gotta be lost in the darkness to step out into the light
Is heaven just for those who had to suffer through the fight?
You gotta be lost in the ocean of a million scary thoughts
Letting go of everything you know and all that you've been taught
Just to see what you can be
And I'll be me, finally free

She came on shining like a star
And through the night she carried moonbeams in a jar
She gave me love so I could see
And then she tried to tame the beast inside of me

And you know... that makes me wonder

You gotta be lost in the darkness to step out into the light
Is heaven just for those who had to suffer through the fight?
You gotta be lost in the ocean of a million scary thoughts
Letting go of everything you know and all that you've been taught
Just to see what you can be
And I'll be me, finally free 


05. GONE WITH THE CROWS 

Where the black winds roar
All the way up to the shore
Forevermore
That's where I last saw her heart
On the night we had to part

Under bloodred skies
Where the black crow softly flies
Someone cries
As she crucified my mind
I let these shadows come alive

Where she's gone? No one knows...
I think she's gone with the crows
Where she's gone? No one knows...
I think she's gone with the crows

When they're setting fire
Throwing hearts onto the pyre
I get higher
You can see me toss and turn
I want to burn

I'll run to you
As soon as black has turned to blue
For it's true
With my back against the wall
I might just fall

Where she's gone? No one knows...
I think she's gone with the crows
Where she's gone? No one knows...
I think she's gone with the crows


06. SOME HEARTS 

Look out darling, there's a new heart in town
Seems to like to drag the other ones around
Take a warning from a good, old friend
I've been there before, I know how it ends

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill
Some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will
So take a close look on your own heart, some hearts are out to kill

Come on baby, let me hear your voice
And don't play games, you've got a choice
Darkness hides in every other smile
And don't you want to walk another while?

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill
Some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will
So take a close look on your own heart, some hearts are out to kill

And wouldn't it be a shame to watch you burn?
Here's another lesson you must learn
Things like trust just have to be well earned

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill
Some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will
So take a close look on your own heart, some hearts are out to kill


08. TROUBLE 

And all I knew was trouble ever since I hit this town
Coming back here from another life, now I'm just burning out
All my demons and my angels, I'm trying to forget
Looking back has never brought me anything but regret

And in your eyes there's a freedom I've never known before
Something about you really makes me want to close the door
On the past and all these memories that are haunting me
If I could open up to you maybe that would set me free

Trying to fix a broken heart ain't no easy thing
Now it's all up to me and I'll see what tomorrow brings
Felt so stuck between my dreams and my private hell
I gotta pick it up again, give it all and do it well

'Cause in your eyes there's a freedom I've never known before
Something about you really makes me want to close the door
On the past and all these memories that are haunting me
If I could open up to you maybe that would set me free


09. SUMMER'S GONE

I walked up to the dead men on the top of the hill
Saw their empty eyes but to my surprise they were dreaming still
Some of them turned to nightmares, some of them turned to gold
But most of their dreams, or so it seems, will never unfold

My dream is dying
The bad guys have won
She left without a warning
I don't know where I belong
The throne they placed me on
Far away and upon
The last one turns all the lights down
And summer is gone

Look at all of us falling like the leaves of red and brown
Make me king of the broken-winged and hand me my crown
Now you've turned so cold inside, and so have I
Don't you feel the desire to regain this fire? No you deny

My dream is dying
The bad guys have won
She left without a warning
And I don't know where I belong
The throne they placed me on
Far away and upon
The last one turns all the lights down
And summer is gone

The last one turns all the lights down
And summer is gone


09. DEAD END ROAD 

Ridin' down this dead end road, a hundred miles per hour
Never looking back again for recklessness is power
Lost some friends along the way... I just drive on
If I don't stop I'll be okay... I'll soon be gone

But I was born into this
Dropped off like a bomb set to explode
Yeah I was born into this
The devil's on my trail on this dead end road

Waiting for another sign, a lovers touch
Since she kissed my faith goodbye it don't mean much
I'm sitting in this cage I built... these fragile bars
Can you help me see the difference between these wounds and scars?

But I was born into this
Dropped off like a bomb set to explode
Yeah I was born into this
The devil's on my trail on this dead end road
I was born into this
Dropped off like a bomb set to explode
Yeah I was born into this
The devil's on my trail on this dead end road
On this dead end road

All things new again

Halloween's finally over. I have a love/hate relationship with this time of the year. I enjoy the colours, the red and yellow, the leaves falling from the trees, the mist and the beauty of change. However, often times I feel like it's also a time to reflect and figure things out, which can be uncomfortable. I usually go through some sort of dark phase during September and October. I lost some people. I found some new people too, and I found back to a few people I have lost before. Life's funny in that way. I made mistakes everyone saw me do, I made some no one saw me do, and I made a few right decisions that a lot of people considered mistakes. I can't listen to all of that too much, in the end you gotta do what you gotta do. Often times it's also a pretty creative phase for me, Autumn. This time around I've mostly written a lot of words and lyrics and poems. They're probably not the happiest ones I've written, but they had to be written.

So, what am I gonna do with all these pages of thoughts? Right, probably put them in a drawer for a while. That's always a good thing to do. On the other hand, I decided I'll do one more album. I have a bunch of songs, probably almost enough already, and I'll spend the winter taking a break from a lot of things and just trying to write more and record them. I'll try to arrange them nicely, with a few more instruments (Boneyard was good but rather spartanic and simple. I enjoy simplicity, but I'll probably use a few more colours painting the picture this time around. Songs are called Sealed With Sorrow, Keys To My Heart, Good Things, Autumn Mist and a few more. I know I wasn't gonna do another one right away, but it feels like the right thing to do now. Sometimes things change.

I'll also have new promo pictures ready, maybe a video and some other stuff. Can't wait to get everything done! 


Have a great week,

Dani A.

Writing...

I'm writing... Autumn always sets a strange mood and apparently it's working for me. Hello muse. There's a whole bunch of new songs no one's ever heard me sing. We'll see where that leads. 

Have a great week everyone 
x
Dani

Summer's Gone

Hey everyone, 

September just ended and October's begun to spread out in my heart. I always feel like October's a time to slow down and think, a lot of voices in the wind and ghosts in the mist. To me personally, Halloween feels like the real New Years. So enjoy the time, think about the past and the present, when the time is right create the future. It's getting colder here and today's a lazy and gray sunday. I'll spend the day playing guitar, watching a horror movie or two and later I might go see the two girls from "First Aid Kit" who are playing in Munich tonight. 

Summer's Gone, 

have a good sunday 

Dani A.

Short update

Hey everyone, 

short update: After playing a couple local solo gigs I have decided to record a few more songs and then make some time for other projects.

Right now I'm working on a little collection of poems and thoughts, I've got bits and parts of it and need to organize it all, maybe write some more. I'll probably be trying to get that out as an eBook via Amazon towards the end of the year or early next year. 

Also, I'll be meeting up with my friend Chris on saturday, talking about Silent Hope and the future of that project. 

Least but not last, I'm involved in writing songs for a rock project (maybe even two different ones) which I can't tell you any details about right now. 

Oh yeah, and I've been jamming with my ex-bandmates from [HELL INC.] last saturday who will have a new record out shortly. To avoid rumours though: I won't be back with them. They're well on their way as they are now, and I'm happy for them. 



Have a great week! 

Dani

Boneyard Preview

Lovers & Fighters,

there are some more tracks from my forthcoming album #BONEYARD that can be heard by now.

I don't want to talk about the songs too much, everybody should be able to see their own images in their heads when listening to them.

They're all right here on my Soundcloud Page:




If you enjoy them, please remember to give my Facebook Page a "Like" and follow me on Twitter for updates and random sh*t I like to post now and then. Hashtag #Boneyard

The album will be out on iTunes, Amazon MP3 and a whole lot of other download stores September 5th 2014!

Have a great week everyone,

Dani A.

Welcome to the Boneyard...

...glad you've made your way! 

My record "Boneyard" will be out on iTunes, Amazon MP3 and other online shops on September 5th 2014! 

Here's the tracklist: 

01 Boneyard
02 Rapunzel
03 And Then The Night
04 Shadows And Lights
05 Gone With The Crows
06 Some Hearts
07 Trouble
08 Summer's Gone
09 Dead End Road

Some of these songs I've already made availible, like "Some Hearts" or "Summer's Gone". The full record has a few more I've recorded around the same time. 

Here's the first new song from Boneyard, the new single "Shadows And Lights": 





I hope you enjoy it! Keep an eye on my Facebook Page and Twitter account to hear more new songs soon!


Dani Arrow

"Open Road" availible now!

Hey everybody! 

Today I do not only celebrate the release of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers new Album "Hypnotic Eye" (which is fantastic in case you haven't heard it yet) but also the release of my E.P. "Open Road"!

I can't tell you how much it means to me to finally let go of these songs I've been carrying around with me for such a long time now. After all, the title track was the first own song I've ever played in public. Some of these songs are really old - I'm working on new songs as I'm writing this - and it feels good to have them out there now. They've basically been recorded in a garage and the record sounds like that too. It hasn't been mixed or mastered, it's just the sound I heard when I recorded them. I wanted them to stay that way. I'm convinced that the feeling is more important than the sound, and that the sound can sometimes ruin the feeling. Anyway, I think they sound alright and they're definately good song material. Listen to them and you'll get to know me, or at least where I come from. That Telecaster on the Cover was one of my main guitars for the record and still is my favourite electric guitar to this day. The other guitar I used was a Stratocaster (mostly for the leads). 

Open Road is availible on all the usualy online shops to download music at.  

Here's some links:

iTunes

Amazon.com

Amazon.de

I will donate 2 bucks from every sold record to Amnesty International, so you're doing something good for the world as well. ;-) 

Open Road (Full Band E.P.)
released July 25th 2014
01 The Fire Still Burns
02 Water
03 Rusted Heart
04 Open Road
05 Forever Free
06 Summer's Gone

Love, 
Dani Arrow

Open Road - 2K12 Summer Sessions

Open Road - 2K12 Summer Sessions will be out July 25th 2014. It's the collection of old songs I talked about in my last post.

It'll feature 6 songs recorded in the summer of 2012. At the time I had a fractured leg and a torn ligament, so I wasn't able to move around much and spent the time recovering writing and recording songs. All of the 6 tracks on this release are full band recordings. I did it with the help of my friends and my brother. It's a fun jam. Also, it hasn't been mixed or mastered or anything. I just evened out the volume on the different instruments and vocals 'cause I wanted it to sound like what I heard when we recorded it.

The EP opens with "The Fire Still Burns", a song I've previously put out on the "Songs From A Haze" EP. This one is the rock'n'roll version, I like it a lot. Adds some spice to the soup. It continues with the song "Water", which I wrote in 2009. It's one of the few songs I wrote that tells a story I'm no part of. Well, not really anyway. I did hear that melody sitting at the river, and there was a kid that drowned in it. My brother Patrick does some awesome guitar playing on it. The third song is "Rusted Heart", which I wrote during the session in 2012. If you listen to it, it's pretty much explaining itself and how I felt at that point in time. The next track, "Open Road" is an older one again (2009). A simple 3 chord song with a nice message. Track 5 is called "Forever Free", I wasn't sure if I wanted to include it because I was insecure about my performance, but I think the song itself is a really good song, so I wanted to put it out. If anyone wants to record it in a better way, be my guest. ;-) It's also got a nice guitar solo from my friend Daniel (not me, I'm alright, thanks). The last track is "Summer's Gone" which I think I wrote in 2009 as well. This one is one of m favourites, I've played it live a lot. Well... "a lot" if you look at the small amount of gigs I was willing to play in the last few years. ;-)

Love,

Dani A.

Summer's here

Cheers everyone! 

I haven't been very active on my blog or facebook page in a while. Sorry for that. There just hasn't been much to tell, really. I spent the last few months practicing Aikido, Iaido and Kenjutsu. I've also tried to paint, which is very relaxing, but my skills are... undeveloped. I'll work on it though. I didn't write or sing or record much at all. Just didn't feel like it. Felt more like living and experiencing the moment than letting it pass by while I've got my head in something I want to get done. I've got about 9 songs recorded though, and this weekend I'll be looking at them again for the first time in a few weeks and pick out the better ones for a new EP release later this year. They've all been recorded with one acoustic guitar and one voice only, I might add a little solo or harp or piano here and there. Hopefully I'll be satisfied once I've done that, so I can share the songs with the world. They're pretty good. Some of the best I've written so far. 

Also, I've got 3 or 4 songs from a full band garage session done in 2012. I'd like to put them out there as well, just to get them off of my mind. There's some songs on there (like Water or an earlier version of Summer's Gone) that I'm proud of. 

I've been reading a lot lately! Mainly some older favourites by Hermann Hesse, Oscar Wilde and even some Nietzsche. 

If you don't know any of these authors (though I hope that since you're on my blog you do), you should definately read some of their works. I got myself one of them Kindle eBook readers which are fantastic. I love the smell and feel of a real book, I really do, but the comfortable eBook reader holds so many books and takes up so little space, it's amazing. I usually read 2 or 3 books at the same time so this really gives me a choice wherever I am, whatever I'm in the mood for. 

Are you watching football? I mean the soccer kind of football. The better kind of football. ;-) 
Unfortunately I usually don't have the time to watch every FC Bayern München game for the Bundesliga, but I always keep track and surely take the time to watch the Champoinsleague matches or Germany's World Cup matches. We've made it to the final match this time. Who would have thought? I'm really hoping Germany will win. It's about time, and we've got a fantastic, dynamic team. I'll be cheering for them! 

So, before I'll stop taking up your time here's a little advice: drink green tea. I do, I love it. Especially the japanese ones Matcha (which has a lot of vitamins and caffeine, perfect for the mornings), Gyokuro and Sencha. They're healthy and they'll make you feel good. And never forget to breathe and feel the energy. Never. ;-) 

Alright then - look out for those garage band songs from 2012 and the new EP sometime later this year. I'll keep everyone updated, here, on Facebook or on Twitter. 


Have a great weekend! 

Dani A.

New Directions

Wow. February's gone about as fast as it came. It's the 24th already, only a few more days... does anyone else feel like the older you get, the faster time flies by? I've not worked on my solo songs for 2 weeks or so 'cause I was busy with a bunch of other projects. I've got to pick that up again next month.

Last week was great though. I went to see A Pale Horse Named Death with Sal & Johnny (Ex-Type O Negative) - they even put me on the guestlist which was very cool of them. Then I had a cool jam at the rehearsal room on thursday and worked on songs with Chris on friday. Saw the Truckfighters on friday night as well. Rock'n'Roll week! 

I fixed up my Fender P-Bass before and got some new sh*t for my pedal-board. The jam thursday night was pretty neat, we even came out with a song, but I can't tell you what that's going to be yet. Metal, but very bluesy. I loved it. It's awesome to really rock the bass again after not having done that for about 2 years. My favourite basses have always been Fenders, and right now I'm playing a Marshall amp through vintage 4x12" Dynacord speakers. For effects I don't really like to use too much, you can get really lost in that stuff. My board basically consists of a Boss Tuner, Phaser and Noisegate and a T-Rex Bass Juice Distortion pedal. I like the amp distortion as well, but the T-Rex has an extra boost which is nice if you're playing with just one guitar and a drummer. Might get some kind of graphic EQ pedal but I haven't really tried them yet. I hope we can get together again soon and write another 2 or 3 songs. This is the kind of music I really have fun playing the bass to. 

I've also been working on some gothic rock/metal songs with Chris. I said that many times before and we never really made anything public, but it's true. We've got a whole bunch of demos ready and by now we've figured out which songs to get done first. There'll be an E.P. out sometimes soon with about 3 or 4 tracks. We've decided not to do it under the name ÆTAS though. We've got another name that suits the band better and also sounds better. Can't say much about that either right now but I'm happy to finally put some of those songs out there after having worked on them for so long. We gotta get a band together and rehearse. One of these songs was written on my birthday last year, one's really old and the third one's pretty new. There'll be a pumping bass sound, heavy guitars and lots of keyboards in there. But it's still gonna sound dirty somehow. It's a rock band after all.

 


So I hope you all had a wonderful valentine's day? I sort of ignored it, wasn't even sure if it's the 14th or 15th or whatever. I haven't given anyone flowers in a real long time. But hey, to all the lovers out there: Flowers and chocolate are things that smell good and taste good, so go for it. ;-)

Summer's coming up. But where to go to? I've got to plan holidays for this summer sometime soon, but (as usual) I've got no idea where to go and who to go with. Usually I check out tourdates of bands I like and if they happen to be in a city I'd like to see, I'll just go there for a week or so. This year I haven't got a clue where to travel to though. I was gonna meet some of my fellow Dylan fans on the road, but they're all coming here now since he plays Munich in the summer, and so do Sabbath. I thought about Helsinki but then again I've been there every year for the past few years or so, maybe something else would be nice. Ireland? Or maybe somewhere sunny like Greece? Hm... I guess I'll see if the next months bring me some news about the bands I play in or gigs we could do abroad, maybe that'll take me anywhere. Or, if you've got a couch for me to crash on, I might accept invitations. ;-) 


So long, have a great week everyone! 

Dani Arrow

New Charity Single "Summer's Gone"

"Summer's Gone" is the second single (following "Some Hearts") I've released this year! 

I wasn't planning on releasing another single before I've finished a whole EP or album until I saw the the possibility to release a song for a good cause via Reverbnation. They sell the song for me through their website exclusively and great part of the sales will be donated to World Vision.

I liked the idea of being able to have Reverbnation handle the distribution and give something I wrote for a good cause, so I decided to put out this song before the album gets released as well. 

You can download it here! (right click)

The song itself was written way back in 2009 and has been a part of my performances ever since. It's never been recorded well until now though. 

I hope you enjoy it! Help me raise some cash for a good cause! 

All the best 

Dani Arrow

Back to the bas(s)ics!

Wow. January passed by quickly, didn't it? I bet this is gonna be one of those years where you're just busy getting stuff done, not noticing how fast time flies by. The weather's been bad lately which always has an effect on my mood. I'm very much influenced by the looks of the world around me, and I can't take these dull, gray skies for too long without getting depressed. It's a drag for me. I'm hoping the sun will tear up the sky sometime soon and let me see some light. Some white clouds on a shiny blue background. And some warmth. That's what I need for my energy to return. Today, it's the couch and Criminal Minds on TV. 

Recording the bass tracks for some of the songs I'm working on was the first time in a long time I actually played bass. I think I haven't done that for over a year. And it got me thinking. I'll fix that old Fender Precision up, give it some new strings and see if my Marshall still takes the feed. I've got this awesome crunch/distortion pedal, the T-Rex Bass Juice. It's the best pedal distortion you'll get for bass, if you ask me. Then I'm gonna sit down with my brother and try to get a few riffs together. Just create sounds. I want it to be like a wall that can bend. Maybe we'll get a couple songs from that and maybe we'll find someone to sing them. That would be nice. I miss playing the bass on stage, but I don't miss the stuff I used to play. I need to play something else. Something I feel!

Other than that, I'll have one more song from my upcoming record for you to listen to very soon. 

Have a nice weekend, 

Dani A.

Dead End Road (Demo)

I've wanted to share this with you. It's not done yet, not mixed or mastered or anything. I've been working on a couple tracks this weekend and this song will be the last track on the album. It's a dreamy, reflective song. I hope you like it, and I hope you'll like the finished version even more. 

Have a great week everyone! 

Dani Arrow

Some Hearts are out to kill...

 
Hey everybody!

It's January 31st, the first new song I've recorded in a while is out now. 

It's called "Some Hearts" and you'll find it on iTunes, Amazon MP3, Spotify and many other online retailers. 

Here are the links: 

iTunes 
Amazon.com 
Amazon.de 


The song was the first one I wrote for this album. It goes like this: 


Look out darling, there's a new heart in town 
It seems to like to drag the other ones around 
Take a warning from a good, old friend 
I've been there before, I know how this ens 

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still 
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill 
Yes some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will 
So take a close look at our own heart - some hearts are out to kill 

Come on baby, let me hear your voice 
Now don't play games - you've got a choice 
Darkness hides in every other smile 
And don't you wanna walk another mile? 

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still 
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill 
Yes some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will 
So take a close look at our own heart - some hearts are out to kill 

And wouldn't it be a shame to watch you burn? 
Yeah here's another lesson you must learn 
Things like trust just have to be well earned 

The sun will rise each new day and its light is on you still 
But listen to my words now: Some hearts are out to kill 
Yes some of them are loaded guns, set to fire at will 
So take a close look at our own heart - some hearts are out to kill


Sure hope you enjoy it! 

Dani Arrow

More News From Nowhere

The end of January is almost here, we're heading into the coldest part of the year right now. At least in Germany. The snow doesn't look like it's going to go away for another while. I wasn't gonna write another one of these blog entries 'til February but then I came down with a cold a few days ago and wasn't able to do anything really. No training, no singing, no clear head for writing. It's slowly getting better and I'm drinking a lot of tea right now. Usually green tea with ginger and lemon in the morning and fennel-camomile tea with honey in the evening. Or peppermint. I love herbal tea. There's so much good the earth gives us and I truly believe in the healing powers of herbs. Still I'd rather be somewhere warmer than here right now. Florida maybe. Yesterday, a friend from Florida told me there was an alligator sitting in the pond outside the house so all the dogs and children have to stay inside the house until they figure out what to do. It's not the first time for them that something like that happens, probably not the last. So they're getting the ropes and guns ready.

I didn't watch the Grammys last night. Didn't want to. I figure that looking at the artists nominated and the ones who won these awards over the last few years, it's very much like awarding the artists who made the most money which has nothing to with artistic integrity or good music. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that anyone nominated or winning a grammy has no artistic integrity or good songs, but I am saying that it's not what's being recoginzed at the Grammys. So they shroud the commercial ceremony in appearances by legendary performers to cover it up and make it look like the most meaningful event. Oh well... 

I'll be going back to Hamburg at the end of March. I took a liking to that city. The Pretty Reckless will be playing there around that time, so I might go see them. Taylor Momsen, she's interesting. Taylor Swift is playing in Berlin in 2 weeks. Looks like if you're a young, blonde singer named Taylor, now's your time. ;-) Princess Victoria of Sweden will be in Hamburg soon too. So was Obamas sister. It seems to be the place to be. There's something happening there. I'll figure out what we're into. 

I was passing by a demonstration the other day, I think it was workers wanting more money. I heard two of them talking about a third ones clothes. He was coming to demonstrate in a suit, straight from work I guess. They weren't too happy. Apparently you can only demonstrate looking like you don't have much of anything. And don't miss the keffiyeh. I can't believe some people are actually spending money for clothes that make them look like activists or protesters and then demonstrate 'cause they're not having enough money. What's wrong with you?
I'm following the demonstrations in Kyiv on TV. There's an update every morning. Apparently, last night the protesters cleaned up a government hall in the city center, forcing out the cops who were in it. They want the President to resign. Ex professional boxer Vitali Klitschko is involved too. I heard him say he's ashamed of the corruption and the lies. I'm not there, but from what I hear this feels like the people taking back the power, which hasn't happened anywhere for a long time. That's why this is interesting to me. I hope the good guys will win, and I think Klitschko is a smart guy who's doing the right thing. speaking of boxing, I was recently reading Mike Tyson's biography. It's really an impressive story. I'm not much of a fan of wither Tyson or boxing, but I enjoy reading stories that life wrote. I'm reading a lot of biographies. Just recently finished one on Nick Drake which was quite good, though I wished he had written one himself. Such an interesting guy and great writer! Right now I'm reading "Sentimental Education" by Gustave Flaubert. No one else describes Love this way. I was shocked to recognize myself between these lines now and then, and I'm still figuring out what that means.

 

About music, I've got all the songs I need by now. And a new Martin guitar. Recorded all of them as acoustic demos, now I'm trying to figure out what each song needs. Some piano, maybe bass, maybe cello or violin. It's hard deciding, so it'll take a while before the album's finished. Some song titles: Boneyard, Shadows & Lights, Some Hearts, And Then The Night, Wayward Wind, Trouble, Summer's Gone, Dead End Road...
Soon as I got the recording done I'll be out to play some gigs in and around Germany. I'm looking forward to that, 'cause it feels like I haven't played in forever. 

Alright then, take care everyone! 

Dani A.

It's not true I had nothing on, I had the radio on.

A Marilyn Monroe quote, up there.Or how about this one: "The radio makes hideous sounds!"?
Bob Dylan said that.

"Some Hearts", my new song, can be heard on Hamburg's local radio's folk show on sundays on UKW 96,0 from next week on. Also, internationally, the Australian Tamil Broadcasting Corporation will add it to their folk and singer/songwriter shows which are broadcast in Australia and Canada from next week on. The guys at Folkalley Radio also got a copy, though I'm not sure when they'll play it. Anyway, I'm glad for everyone's support! Thanks a lot.

The song was the first one I wrote for this new album I'm working on. The first full-length album to be released. I've written a lot of other songs and thought about albums in the past, but I never felt completely satisfied with what I had. This time I feel like all those songs have their reason to be there, and I enjoy playing every single one of them a lot. 

It should be on iTunes, Amazon MP3, Spotify and whatnot on January 31st 2014!

That's a Vincent Black Lighning, 1952. Here's some songs to listen to this weekend: 


Richard Thompson - 1952 Vincent Black Lighning

Willy Mason - Oxygen

Battleme - Hey Hey, My My

Glen Hansard - Bird Of Sorrow

Dave Matthews - Gravedigger

John Lennon McCullagh - North South Divide

Tom Petty - You Don't Know How It Feels

Rodriguez - I Wonder



Have a great weekend everyone! 


Dani A.

2014 - Year Of The Horse

Christmas has been sort of rough. I'll admit I don't like it very much. It's nice to see the family and eat and chat a little, but on Christmas it all seems so forced. Like I'm expected to be all cheerful. Well I'm not, not all the time anyway. Full Moon in two days, and I'm not sleeping well right now. Strange and confusing dreams about the past. Who knows. I think when we're past Full Moon, it'll change. It usually does. This may sound like a negative start for a Blog, but I'm actually feeling quite good. I've felt focused and in good shape for a while, probably as a result of picking up the Aikido training again (I've let it slide in December, too much sh*t to get done). So here we are now, starting again. Take it as another chance. The things you didn't like about yourself or last year, change them if you can. 2014 is a spiritual one, and there are a lot of chances to be taken. If you recognize them. 2014 is the Year Of The Horse. 

Have you ever seen this movie? It has nothing to do with the chinese year, it's just a coincidence. It's about a tour that Neil Young & Crazy Horse did in 1996. An interesting view behind the scenes mixed up with a couple of awesome live cuts. Like A Hurricane. I recently watched it again and realized how deep into the friendship and energy these four guys share it actually goes. It's no secret I'm a big fan of their music. I've seen them in Stuttgart, Germany last year and I will see them in Ulm, Germany this year. I'm feeling quite lucky these guys are still around, as good as ever, and still on the road. My brother Patrick will join me on the way to Ulm. I'm looking forward to that, I love roadtrips and concerts. Do you? Ever travelled far to see a show?

Speaking of road trips and of my brother, in December we jumped into his car and went to Prague. We heard the mighty Black Sabbath would play the O2 Arena there, so we decided to go. When I was 15 and had just started out as a Bass Player, Sabbath were my favourite band. Geezer Butler's sound is just about as good as it gets. I learned a lot from him. Same goes for my brother, who plays the electric guitar (and damn well too, if I may say so) and Tony Iommi. One of his idols. His daughter, Toni Marie Iommi, is a singer too by the way. I talk to her now and then and she's an amazing person. Her single "Parade" is on heavy rotation in Finnland, where she lives now. Go find that on Youtube! My brother plays in a band called [HELL INC.] by the way. Check it out if you like harder metal music. No question we had to go see them. I had never been to the Czech Republic before, so I was eager to travel and see what it's like. Prague itself is an adorable city, so many wonderful buildings, it's almost dreamlike. The city has quite a vibe about it. I sort of felt set back in time a little bit, but comfortably so. Lots of hills too, the roads go up and down, up and down. It was interesting to just drive through all the parts of the city and walk through others. We did a lot of walking, which I don't mind. I like walking. There was a museum of torture hidden in the middle of prague. A small place, but once you bought tickets you'd be taken down into the huge basement where all sorts of cruel torture methods, bones and swords, stories, woodcuts and pictures were ready waiting for you. 

This is an old one, I don't know what year , but it's from an old book about the witch trials and the burnings. Makes you think about how easily all rational thinking can be pushed aside by fear, greed or other emotions. Anyway, Prague was well worth travelling there. I had good company, saw some amazing things and the Sabbath show was really good. 

I also spent a couple days before Christmas with my friend Chris to work on some music. It's more of a Gothic-Rock thing with a bunch of hard cutting guitars and synthesizers. Which is fun for me to do 'cause I've always been doing very organic music. It shows some other options. Some of them I like, some of them I would use on certain projects, not on others. Anyway, we've got about 8 songs finished. Everything recorded but the vocals. We will hopefully get around to doing that early this year, and then get some of those songs mixed and out there. I'll leave it up to Chris. We started this together, but the project is in his hands mainly. The songs will be out when he wants them out there, and that's alright with me. I'm in no hurry.

Talking about getting songs out there: My new single is called "Some Hearts" and it should be on iTunes, Amazon MP3, Spotify and all those online retailers on January 31st 2014. If you'd like to keep in touch, please look at my Facebook and Twitter pages.

It's the first taste of what I'm writing on, a simple song on acoustic guitar with a nice melody. It's also the first new song I wrote in a while, so it stands for a new beginning of sorts. By now, I've got about so many songs written which might see the light of day sometime this year. I'd record them (just acoustic guitar and vocals, mabe a little solo or mouthharp) and then think about arranging them. Some I like to just leave as they are, others might sound better with a little bass, piano or strings on them. I'll see. What I can say though is that I'm proud of the songs, I think I wrote good ones and I can't wait to finish this and maybe even travel and play live for a while. 

You've heard it in the news. You must have. We're slowly gettin' there. It's gonna be good. Less fighting, less hangovers, less accidents. More enjoying the moment, more peace, more laughing. I probably sound like an old hippie right now. Well maybe I am. 


Have a great start into the new year everyone, thanks for reading! 

Dani A.