Redneck Jellyfish – A rad game with my music!

So, let's talk about Muses.  You might expect that a Muse would be a foxy Greek godess, or maybe a supermodel or maybe even Jodie Foster (Hay, maybe you are inspired to shoot a president, right?).  Well, in my case, my muses are a rad southern dude (who makes incredible pottery and ceramics and who also happens to write code) and his amazing wife.

Keith and his wife Gina (aka Gi Gi) have appeared in music I've been a part of for many years.  Going back to Volumen, Gina was the inspiration for the "That's niiiiice" in Underwater.  Years later, Keith and Gina warranted at least 12 lines of the PWT song BBQ Funk.  Most recently, Keith created a freaking rad video game called Redneck Jellyfish and he asked me to make the soundtrack for it.

Yup, you heard me right.  After a lifelong addiction to video games and a recent obsession with the Ukulele, I was finally able to dip that chocolate into that peanut butter.  I was part of making a video game!  I can die a happy man now.  Here's a trailer for the game:

When Keith first asked me about it, he wanted to know what I would charge him.  Charge?!  Pshaw.  I feel like I should have been paying him for the privilege.  Especially considering that he designed the original Volumen logo (which you can see at Volutunes) and also the logo for my wife's toy store (Walking Stick Toys, y'all!).  He didn't charge us for either of those so money was not changing hands.

Well, Keith got the last laugh by naming the main character in Redneck Jellyfish after my youngest son, August.  Yup, the jellyfish is named "Gus Hickey".  RAD.

Keith created this game with a lot of help from his amazing kids Greyson (age 12) and Iva (age 11).  The concept was based on one of Greyson's drawings and I think Iva had a lot to do with the design of "Gus" and also some of the other art in the game.  Gus's voice, in the game, is 100% Greyson and it's pretty freaking hilarious!  Also, his crazy sayings are probably going to be tough for you to figure out if you happen to have been born north of the Mason-Dixon line. 😉

Anyway, if you have an ipad/ipod touch/iphone then y'all should shell out the measly $.99 and get this rad game.  There are 64 freaking levels!  So, it'll definitely be worth your money.  Also, I think the most recent version posts your scores to Facebook so you can get in some bragging rights.

I'll make another post soon with tabs for the main song in the game, in case you want to play along with your uke. 😉  In the version of the song that appears in the video game, I was playing my aNueNue Banjolele and also my 1974 Gibson EB-0 bass.

Click here to download Redneck Jellyfish!

Video: Mystery TV Show Theme (It’s a Quiz!)

Ok, so it's not really that much of a quiz. My wife and I were just watching this show the other night and we both commented that we really dug the intro music. I thought I recognized it from someplace but I just couldn't put my finger on it. So, I spent a few minutes unraveling it enough so I could sort of recreate it on my aNueNue Banjo Ukulele.  It's a little rough, but this is about as polished as anything I do.  I'm not really much of a perfectionist, I just want to capture and idea and then move on.  Anyway, the theme song is a condensed version of a Brian Jonestown Massacre song.  And, if you aren't already watching this TV show, you need to be.  It freaking rules!

Video : You Must Be Out of Your Mind by The Magnetic Fields

Well the good thing about my new aNueNue Banjo Ukulele is that it doesn't take much convincing to get myself motivated enough to do a video.  I mean, chances are the uke is already in my hands, so I just have to turn on the camera.  I seriously cannot get enough of my aNueNue!

Anyway, the song I did today was You Must Be Out of Your Mind by The Magnetic Fields.  This is definitely my favorite song of the Realism record.  On an only somewhat related note, does anyone know when the Magnetic Fields movie is supposed to come out?  When my wife and I saw them in Seattle they had some cameras with them so I'm kind of hoping the footage from that show makes an appearance.  Maybe you'll even be able to see when Stephin Merritt walked offstage and right over to the person who had just finished videotaping "Papa was a Rodeo".   That guy got some harsh words, no doubt.

Anyway, you might notice that I switched the 2nd and 3rd verse.  This wasn't intentional, but I didn't feel like doing it over just because of that.  So, consider it an alternate rendition.

Here's the tabs:


You Must Be Out of Your Mind
by Magnetic Fields

F  - 2010
C  - 0003
Bb - 3211
Gm - 0231
Dm - 2210

INTRO: F  C  Bb  F

F           Bb            C         F   C   Bb   F
You think I'll run, not walk, to you

F           Bb            C         F
Why would I want to talk to you?

Gm                Bb
I want you crawling back to me

F                   C
Down on your knees, yeah

Gm           Bb
Like an appendectomy

C
Sans anesthesia

F         C       Dm          Bb
If you think you can leave the past     behind

F           C            Bb    F
You must be out of your mind

F         C     Dm      Bb
If you think you can simply press rewind

F           C            Bb
You must be out of your mind, son

F           C            Bb    F
You must be out of your mind

You want what you turned off turned on
You call it sunset, now it's dawn
You can't go round just saying stuff
Because it's pretty
And I no longer drink enough
To think you're witty...

You want to kindle that old flame
I don't remember your real name
It must be something scandalous
Lurks in your shallows
If you need a Santa Claus
To buy your gallows...

Video: Five Foot Two on aNueNue Concert Banjo Ukulele

Ok.  Now that we got that damned guinea pig quiet, I can actually play my new aNueNue banjo uke.  I picked this standard because I feel the Warner Bros. frog would appreciate it.  Now, I just have to remember which corner stone I buried him in so he doesn't bankrupt some poor bastard in the future.  Expect many more videos with this particular ukulele.  It is my new favorite.  When I finally get my novelty band off the ground, I plan to play this aNueNue for most of the songs. Something about it paired with a stomp box and possibly kazoo... I just know that's gonna sound bitchin'.

Guinea Pig Sabotage (listen all a y’all)

So, during the same lunch hour in which I recorded my introductory video for the aNueNue concert banjo ukulele, I also needed to record a song.  During this particular take, my son's guinea pig had something to say.

I guess I could have moved to a different room, but I've never a recorded a video in here before and I wanted to showcase my son's sweet Star War sheets and pillows.  So, I just put a pillow over the guinea pigs face and everyone was happy for the second take (which I'll upload later today or maybe Monday).  Jokes!

Jimmy the guinea pig is just fine and dandy, don't worry.  Besides we could always replace him the a Zhu Zhu Pet, right?  Gross.

I guess he had a reason to be pissed at me.  I had clipped my Flip MinoHD to his cage using my gorillapod, afterall.  Honestly, though, I don't think he was scared.  I just think he thought the gorillapod was food and he was mad that he couldn't reach it.  You see, he's a real lard ass.

Anyway, the real take is coming soon, but until then, enjoy the guinea pig sabotage: