Philo Layne's Ego Trip
151 Stinson Street L8N 1S7 Hamilton, ON, Canada

I suspect anyone reading this will think I'm being an idiot, but I've been tinkering with piles of musical motifs gathering in my head since about... November? No! I think it started in September or October of last year, gave me a break in November, and started up again around Christmas. It's been off-and-on ever since, for several hours a day; these sounds and riffs and progressions and polyrhythms and occasional snippets of lyric... I wish I could just perform/record/expel ...them from my mind, but I'm having performance anxiety issues. I can't seem to make myself do much more than write thoughts on whatever paper comes to hand, or typed into a writing app on my aging tablet (FYI: Galaxy Tab4 10.1"; still working, tho' acting up a bit), and then... blank. I have perhaps HUNDREDS of new story ideas piling up in my current novel project, and this album is part of that project, so it needs to happen, but my nerves and my shambles of a life simply will not let me breathe long enough to collect my thoughts, get a plan I can follow through on, and actually record the damned thing. I'm not afraid of losing any good ideas; in point of fact, I have too many, and they keep coming back every day, like the ardent fans I've long yearned for, to no avail. ASIDE: I'm actually kind of afraid. I've been hoping I'm going to be alright... but I'm starting to aggravate my partner, so I try to shut up to keep from upsetting her, but I've been 'Defensensitived for months, overreacting to her rants, jibes, lectures, and disappointments, which she believes are quite mild. I can't call her out on this, either; she breaks down. I can't defend myself, because gas-lighting (forget that this was originally my own complaint). Even in the midst of my ceaseless depression, I'm 'too buzzy' (manic), and making her crazy. But any road... ...proof?

RECRUITMENT NOTICE : : URBANOIA [Glam Prog Funk Pop Soul Originals +Classic Album Covers Quartet] I want to start a progressive art pop quartet with three other singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalists with fairly broad vocal ranges and musical influences, and a willingness to master all four instruments of the standard rock unit. In drag.... I'm serious. We would actually be creating a series of alter egoes together, for both ourselves AND each other to wear, which we would each learn to imitate and we would swap in and out of between sets, as well as playing each other's parts/instruments. I started floating this multi-concept album cycle that I've been rebuilding from a series of abandoned, inferior projects that couldn't support the material... which I naturally believe will be my magnum opus, so yeah... everything goes up the pole, or against the wall. But I also have a crapload of ideas that require and extremely creative band to pull off. I desperately need to be a member of this band to record these things properly. I can do it myself, but it loses a lot if it's not a collective process. These are performance pieces, with a scandalously broad range of musical styles. It's over-the-top musical theatre performed by classic rock nerds with drag personas and the chops (or willingness to try) on vocals, bass, guitar, keys, and drums. I had a spare band name a while ago, called Urbanoia... but I think each project will be named after the album du jour for the live gigs. It's open for discussion. It's not set in stone. Yet. I might start tagging it as #NuvoArteRock, or #ProgressiveCabaret, though. I want as diverse a group as I can get for this. Straight, Queer, Trans, PoC, Asian, I would LOVE... to be the sole token white dude, if at all possible. I think I'll actually make that a standing membership recruitment rule: Balanced Representation, ALWAYS. All Voices Are Equal. No Exceptions. The only other mandatory requirements are: A Deep Musicality, innate playfulness, a refined sense of humour, stylish-but-eclectic sensibility, integrity, flexibility, sufficient patience and mutual respect, and comfort with performing rock music in full drag/cosplay. I'm extremely serious about this. I even have a fun project idea: we would rehearse and audition each new member by learning to perform a classic album together, and prrform it for at least a season, before choosing a new project, including recording original solo and collaborative songs and touring as a unit. #DavidBowie album, #ScaryMonsters, in its entirety, on all parts and vocals. #hamont #indieband #artrock #60sTribute #70sTribute #80sTribute #90sTribute #dragrocksuperstar ~ Lee/Philo.

Yes, the music is still pinging around in my head. No, I haven't captured any of it yet. I hope to get some demos together next month. *shrug*

I suspect anyone reading this will think I'm being an idiot, but I've been tinkering with piles of musical motifs gathering in my head since about... November? No! I think it started in September or October of last year, gave me a break in November, and started up again around Christmas. It's been off-and-on ever since, for several hours a day; these sounds and riffs and progressions and polyrhythms and occasional snippets of lyric... I wish I could just perform/record/expel ...them from my mind, but I'm having performance anxiety issues. I can't seem to make myself do much more than write thoughts on whatever paper comes to hand, or typed into a writing app on my aging tablet (FYI: Galaxy Tab4 10.1"; still working, tho' acting up a bit), and then... blank. I have perhaps HUNDREDS of new story ideas piling up in my current novel project, and this album is part of that project, so it needs to happen, but my nerves and my shambles of a life simply will not let me breathe long enough to collect my thoughts, get a plan I can follow through on, and actually record the damned thing. I'm not afraid of losing any good ideas; in point of fact, I have too many, and they keep coming back every day, like the ardent fans I've long yearned for, to no avail. ASIDE: I'm actually kind of afraid. I've been hoping I'm going to be alright... but I'm starting to aggravate my partner, so I try to shut up to keep from upsetting her, but I've been 'Defensensitived for months, overreacting to her rants, jibes, lectures, and disappointments, which she believes are quite mild. I can't call her out on this, either; she breaks down. I can't defend myself, because gas-lighting (forget that this was originally my own complaint). Even in the midst of my ceaseless depression, I'm 'too buzzy' (manic), and making her crazy. But any road... ...proof?

RECRUITMENT NOTICE : : URBANOIA [Glam Prog Funk Pop Soul Originals +Classic Album Covers Quartet] I want to start a progressive art pop quartet with three other singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalists with fairly broad vocal ranges and musical influences, and a willingness to master all four instruments of the standard rock unit. In drag.... I'm serious. We would actually be creating a series of alter egoes together, for both ourselves AND each other to wear, which we would each learn to imitate and we would swap in and out of between sets, as well as playing each other's parts/instruments. I started floating this multi-concept album cycle that I've been rebuilding from a series of abandoned, inferior projects that couldn't support the material... which I naturally believe will be my magnum opus, so yeah... everything goes up the pole, or against the wall. But I also have a crapload of ideas that require and extremely creative band to pull off. I desperately need to be a member of this band to record these things properly. I can do it myself, but it loses a lot if it's not a collective process. These are performance pieces, with a scandalously broad range of musical styles. It's over-the-top musical theatre performed by classic rock nerds with drag personas and the chops (or willingness to try) on vocals, bass, guitar, keys, and drums. I had a spare band name a while ago, called Urbanoia... but I think each project will be named after the album du jour for the live gigs. It's open for discussion. It's not set in stone. Yet. I might start tagging it as #NuvoArteRock, or #ProgressiveCabaret, though. I want as diverse a group as I can get for this. Straight, Queer, Trans, PoC, Asian, I would LOVE... to be the sole token white dude, if at all possible. I think I'll actually make that a standing membership recruitment rule: Balanced Representation, ALWAYS. All Voices Are Equal. No Exceptions. The only other mandatory requirements are: A Deep Musicality, innate playfulness, a refined sense of humour, stylish-but-eclectic sensibility, integrity, flexibility, sufficient patience and mutual respect, and comfort with performing rock music in full drag/cosplay. I'm extremely serious about this. I even have a fun project idea: we would rehearse and audition each new member by learning to perform a classic album together, and prrform it for at least a season, before choosing a new project, including recording original solo and collaborative songs and touring as a unit. #DavidBowie album, #ScaryMonsters, in its entirety, on all parts and vocals. #hamont #indieband #artrock #60sTribute #70sTribute #80sTribute #90sTribute #dragrocksuperstar ~ Lee/Philo.

I'm LIVING for this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fe9xkQw4qzo