Emptyeye

Okay, I was prepared to say something to the effect of “Don’t download this stuff, it’s horrible, but it’s here as a document of where I’ve been musically if nothing else.” Indeed, I was dreading the prospect of re-listening to these songs for the first time in years (In most cases). I eventually summoned up the will, preparing to lock myself into a cringing position for the duration.

Then I actually listened. And I was surprised–pleasantly so.

There are some caveats. From a production standpoint, I had no idea what I was doing on pretty much all of these songs; additionally, I was severely limited equipment-wise–both of these facts become readily apparent when you listen to the results. Also, my voice has traditionally been a source of self-loathing–it’s not that I’m a bad singer per se, but perhaps this anecdote from high school will explain my self-consciousness:

My first session of chorus, which was freshman only, myself and the other first-year choral members were tested to see which parts our voices would fit into. I wound up in the bass section (It was a Soprano-Alto-Tenor-Bass chorus). My choir teacher, Mrs. Gustafson (A great teacher, by the way..she’s now retired) addressed the males as a group: “You, you and you are all tenors. You, you and you are all basses. I’ll probably have to re-test you all at some point.”

She then singled me out. “EXCEPT for you. You’re DEFINITELY a bass!”

This is not to say that she made the wrong call my any means (Though as mentioned, it was an SATB chorus. In hindsight, my vocal range would probably be more accurately described as a low baritone than a full-fledged bass per se). Rather, it was to illustrate that I sound great in a choral setting. I don’t sound nearly as great in a lead setting, at least in my own estimation. Anyway, the point of that ramble was that, while there are some self confidence issues evident in the vocal recordings, I’m actually a pretty decent singer, especially within a baritone range. And conceptually, there is in my humble mind some good stuff musically, even if my execution of the idea didn’t quite work most of the time due to limited equipment/knowledge.

Regardless of what I think about these recordings, though, here they are, with the stories behind them and the lyrics (Where applicable). The collection as a whole is titled what it is because I think it’s pretty accurate–I was in college when I wrote and recorded all of these (Though technically, I was on medical leave from July 2004 to August 2005–a minor detail in the grand scheme of things) The directions to obtain the songs should be pretty self-explanatory. The tables are in alphabetical as opposed to chronological order. Enjoy.

-EE

The Originals

The Dwelling of Duels Entries