i eat when i'm hungry. i sleep when i'm tired. i work when i need money. i do what i love.
parkerquinn
twitter // flickr // vimeo // photography // iphone photography
tumblr themes:
kilo // abyss // fogbank // lost socks // classic americana
projects:
the real cool club // rocket shake // the greener grass
Music will save the world.
so, i’m in a band called the greener grass with steph. about a year ago we wrote an original christmas song called “christmas in LA”. since it’s that time of year again, i thought i’d share the song. enjoy.
“christmas in LA”
the forecast calls for sunny days
children run around and play
in shorts and shirts
it’s christmas
the tall palms swing and sway
wrapped with lights, as if to say
it’s christmas
it’s too hot for christmas
but we’ll drink hot cocoa anyway
even though it doesn’t feel like it
it’s still christmas in LA
the crackling fire and the crunch of snow
can’t be found around my home
but it’s christmas
it’s still christmas
it’s too hot for christmas
but we’ll drink hot cocoa anyway
even though it doesn’t feel like it
it’s still christmas in LA
“everything’s alright”
you remind me
of who i once was
cut me down with
the words from your tongue
see right through me
with piercing eyes
start all over
say your goodbyes
reasons why i shouldn’t care
are the reasons why i do
i should let you go
but I have to be with you
so, if you’re leaving
i’ll go with you tonight
pack a suitcase
and drive into the night
forget my past
and leave it all behind
cause when i’m with you
everything’s alright
when i’m with you
everything’s alright
where there’s shelter
we can build a home
turn out the lights
and disconnect the phones
start a family
and watch the kids grow old
remember when it started
on the open road
so, if you’re leaving
go with me tonight
pack your suitcase
let’s drive into the night
forget your past
leave it all behind
cause when i’m with you
everything’s alright
when i’m with you
everything’s alright
pack a bag and don’t look back
meet me in the car
bon iver played a sunrise show at the hollywood forever cemetery at 6am on september 27th. i was lucky enough to be there and be a part of something magical. here’s a video from when he played “blood bank”.
five years ago i thought i knew everything. if you would have asked, i would have told you that i had it all figured out. and, i would have believed myself.
the older i’ve gotten the more i’ve realize how little i actually know. i’ve realized how different everyone is and how people “grow up” so differently. when i was younger, i had such a concrete set of thoughts and beliefs. if someone older and wiser would have told me that i was being ignorant or naive, i would thought that what i knew, at the time, was so right that they didn’t know what they were talking about. it’s only now that i look back at myself five years ago and realize how ignorant and naive i was.
when i was 20 years old, i was amazed how much people changed from 15 to 20. but knowing that i had it all figured out, i didn’t think i’d change from 20 to 25 at all. the truth is, i’ve probably changed more from 20 to 25 than i did from 10 to 20. although i am currently content with how i think and how i feel and what i believe, i know that i’m only 25 and i don’t know everything.
with that said, here’s a list of things i’ve learned and think are important in my 25 years on this earth:
1. love.
2. all you really need are only the things you really need.
3. biggie was half right. mo’ money mo’ problems is only applicable when people know you have it and/or you’re spending it like an idiot. if you have a million dollars in the bank, no one knows about it, and you’re still paying 500 dollars rent, you won’t have any problems.
4. breakfast may not be the most important meal of the day.
5. don’t trust anyone. but, hold on to the people you can trust.
6. don’t care what other people think of you. i still have trouble with that one, but i know it’s important.
7. music is way more important than people give it credit for.
8. music and math are the only 2 things that are universal, it probably wouldn’t hurt to get better at either one.
9. time for yourself is sometimes the most important time.
10. whenever you can, travel.
11. everything in moderation. so important.
12. a day without laughter is a day wasted.
14. most elevators don’t have a button for 13. there was a joke here, somewhere.
15. buy a good bed. you spend one third of your life sleeping, spend the money. people will spend tens of thousands of dollars on a car and for some reason have trouble spending money on a bed. chances are, you probably spend three times the amount of time in your bed than in your car. trust me, it’s worth it. your body will thank you.
16. do what you love to do, as much as you can. you only have so much time.
17. God gave you life. be thankful. the rest is just circumstance, which He should never be blamed for.
never before have i seen a musician have such a love affair on stage.
the microphone was his girl, and the guitar his mistress. the concert started off calm; conversational. he spoke softly to his girl, while hiding his mistress from her sight. as the concert progressed, joshua dropped to his knees for two songs and pleaded with his girl, pressing his lips up against her softly, speaking beautiful, melodic words to her. he stood back up. everything changed. his temper was lost. he started yelling. and with each lashing out of emotion he would turn his back on his girl and take out all of his anger on his mistress while the feelings blatantly continued to linger from the on-going argument. he turned back around only to yell and then would turn away again and play more and more forcefully. as sweat dripped down his cheek, he moved his hair away from face, striking his own chest with fury. a whirlwind of emotion was bouncing back and forth between joshua and his two lovers.
it was beautiful watching sentiment become song and song become art. it felt like i was peering through a neighbor’s window and watching an argument that i shouldn’t be a part of. and amazing that someone would allow their self to be so vulnerable in front of such a large crowd of people.
twice now, joshua james has made me feel this way while watching him live. he’s an incredible singer/songwriter. but, he’s downright moving to watch on stage.
i’m in a band called the greener grass. we were asked a while back to have one of our songs put on a compilation cd. that album has officially been released on iTunes. click the link to buy/listen/buy our song “pictures in the park”.
i don’t like loud music. tonight, it couldn’t get loud enough.
the thing that keeps me coming back to concerts is the moment when you connect with the artist, the moment that you experience the same emotions they were feeling when they sat down to write what you’re hearing. as i closed my eyes during the second chorus of “creature fear”, the speakers began to swell. the room got smaller. i was surrounded by musical chaos. i was in a cabin in wisconsin, it was cold out, there was a quaint fire reflecting off of the empty bottles lying on the floor and i was sick with emotion. i felt the bass in my chest, and each hit of the snare echoed in my head like a ticking clock in a deafeningly silent room in the midst of a snowy night. the sounds grew louder and louder until i couldn’t decipher between squealing guitar, crashing symbols and falsetto. the room fell silent and, shortly thereafter, roared with applause. this was not the only time such raw sentiment was created.
a few songs later, the chaos returned. the audience began as a small ornament hanging from the song, but was quickly transformed into just as much musical pandemonium as each instrument being played on stage. it was beautiful.
i’ve liked bon iver for quite some time before tonight, but tonight, i love bon iver. i love the display of sincere emotion and the ability to transport an audience member to a place they’ve never been. and then, the ability to fill this undiscovered place with life and make it feel so familiar.
bon iver. itunes. make it happen.
