Part 1 of 3

So this journey is about to take a whole new direction. Part of leaving home is the eventual going back, and it's an experience in itself. I had a taste of this when I moved to Toronto, and was constantly going back and forth between the two places I call 'home'. However, I've never been this far away, and I've never been away this long.

It was a huge hit on my emotions when I dropped my bags in this room, and to be honest, I can't wait to pick them back up again. I know it'll be another emotional journey once I fly back to Canada and see my friends and family again, and then another new chapter begins by saying farewell again in February.

I leave in 25 days, and I'm pumped. But that will come when it comes. I imagine there's not going to be much for me to blog about in the next 3 weeks that's too exciting, but if something comes up, I'll for sure post it! I'll be doing a large overview of my time here (so far) before I take off again, so be on the lookout for that if you're at all interested! (I don't expect you to be, but I like to write! So it will be there either way.)

I have two more assignments to be done, and in 10 days I will be officially a 2nd year! That excitement will have to wait a few months though :) Soon ends the first part of my 3-part adventure. I'll see you all soon!

- Babz

The Formula

If you haven't noticed it already, here's the final song for this semester. Wrote this when I was feeling particularly homesick. After the "storm had passed" I realized the troubles I felt were temporary, and all I had to do was hold on to what made me strong. So, here it is. I hope you enjoy; it's my personal favorite of the three.

http://soundcloud.com/abbygardner/formula

Come Back Home

Home is a word that's always had a lot of meaning to me. It's not certain coordinates in the world; to me, Home is where you're happiest, with the people who make you feel on top the world. (Most of the time, at least ;) )

This piece is about finding home in a person, and having it torn away from you.

http://soundcloud.com/abbygardner/home


Me on guitar, and vocals. I need work on producing and engineering, but here's my starting point!

The Beauty of Love

We're told from a young age the concept of if you love someone, you must let them go; if you truly love someone, you want them to be happy with or without you.

If you're in a relationship already, this can be a hard rule to follow. This song is about a woman feeling that her man isn't happy anymore, and their love for each other allows for space to grow between them without any hard feelings.

I hope you enjoy!

http://soundcloud.com/abbygardner/aint-that-the-beauty

Music Video

This is embarrassingly bad. So, here you go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G4rGmkxxv8

Overdue Update

Yes, it's been way too long. I haven't really got an excuse, but I hope you'll forgive me anyway. Last you heard from me, I had finished the semester and was about to go to Hawaii to see Mom. This vacation = awesome. It's been on facebook, but in case you haven't seen, here are some photos: Click!

So the new semester is almost over - just a couple weeks left. The beginning was really slow, and the last half they've just piled on assignment over assignment. So I've been busy.

One class I've got is called Live Performance Project. My band is performing on Wednesday, so think good thoughts! It's been hectic trying to get everyone together and practice. We only formulated an official setlist on Friday, and we've got 1, maybe 2 practices left. No pressure. All of the performances are video taped and put online, so I should have a link for you eventually. I don't know if the whole thing will go up or just a few parts, but we'll find out!

My writer's block hasn't really stopped, either, which is unfortunate. I've written maybe three new ones that I actually like, and two will be in next semester's folio.

Nothing much exciting has happened in the last few months. For anyone who listens to dance music (doubtful anyone reading this has), I saw LMFAO at a club a few weeks back. A pretty fun time if you're into that kind of thing. Their main goal was to get the audience drunk - it's quite a sight watching teenagers open their mouth and get heaps of straight vodka poured in. (I was not one of these, don't worry). Other than this, a few beaches and local gigs, I haven't done a whole lot. Uni has taken up most of my time, the rest is occupied by sleep, and a bit of the boyfriend and friends.

So, since I still have nothing exciting to say, here are some photos from the shoot that my live performance band had. (Some of my favorites, though perhaps not the best for promotion!)

My lovely, silly mates. 

Good looking, no?

We have serious photos, but where's the fun in that?

Perfect.

Josh King (Rhythm guitar), Michael Cole (Lead guitar), Me (lead vocalist), Nick Rigby (Bass), James Jelliffe (Drums)

Success!

To Infinity, And Beyond!

It's 1:36am. I can't sleep. Seems these days I never want to go to bed, and once I finally do, I never want to wake up. So, instead of lying restlessly in bed, I'm going to blog!

Last weekend was a good weekend. Got out of the apartment, which is always nice. One night, a good friend took me out to Surfer's Paradise and showed me some bars. In Toronto, that's what I enjoyed most. Dancing is fun, but sometimes I just like to sit back and relax and chill out. So we went to a few bars and saw the sites of downtown. We were going to try out the slingshot ride... and I chickened out. Owned by two little girls screaming "can we do it again!?" *Wimp*

One thing that intrigued me, Infinity. My lovely friend didn't tell  me anything about this place! And the guy at the counter wasn't about to give anything away, either! I was nervous because I didn't know what to expect, but everything seemed very "illusion"-ey.

It was a mix of strobe lights, large medicine balls, mirrors all around, overall, really cool. But some rooms made me do what I haven't done for years: scream like a little freakin' girl.

Open the door to one of the dozen rooms, and it's all black. I mean pitch. black. Of course, my friend wouldn't allow me to follow - I had to go first. Something's laying on my face. Things are hitting. me in. the face. Cue scream. Cue minor freakout. I had no choice but to walk through the dangling whatever's.  And naturally there was ambiance music and I'm sure somewhere along the lines there was a loud noise that also made me jump.

Generally, I'm a pretty cool, calm and collected person. People tried tirelessly to scare me and make jump, but always failing. I learned something about myself in those dark.. small rooms....

It may have shocked me the first time round, but I had soo much fun. I recommend it (you know... if you're ever in the Gold Coast...). Next time I'll make a point of not being such a wuss.. x.x 


Enough of that. Kudos for you reading through that treacherous story.    I'm not up to a whole lot these days. The semester is over - I haven't gotten my final marks back yet, but I think I did fairly well overall. Going to have a real vacation and meet my mom halfway for a week; I'm quite looking forward to it.

I'm at a stand still with my music... I haven't written anything new for awhile. Writer's block, you could say. I've got no inspiration. Instead, I'm trying to put energy into learning to play the guitar better - still, that's not going too well, either. I haven't progressed much from the last three months. Trying to push myself, but I've hit a snag in the road and it's not easy to get out of.

I bought a new piano book - Adele. If you haven't heard of her, please, please go check her out. Attempting to learn a song (or a few), but finding free time with a piano is easier said than done. I go when I can. My fingers are slowly getting used to it again. Slowly ;)

All in all, I'm doin' well. I wish I was actually doing something, work or school; I'm terrible at doing nothing. Hopefully in a couple weeks I'll have some pictures from the vaca and a more interesting post :)

Ciao.

What this Semester has (really) Meant to Me

For our final assignment, part of our written journal was to explain what this semester has meant, and what we've learned. Technically, I've learned lots. I had never really touched recording equipment before, or even ProTools. Most of the theory learned was just jogging my memory (thanks to my former piano teacher!), although I did learn some new things. But I guess I've learned a few things I didn't mention in the report..

I've learned who I can work with, and who I can't- or rather, what personality traits get on my nerves the most! I've learned that when a group of people share a passion, there is always a connection. And I've learned that being away from home is really, really hard.

I'm getting what I wanted out of being here. I wanted an opportunity to find my love for music again. and I have. It's not easy to live on the other side of the world of places you happily call home, and this makes it hard to feel like I'm making the right decision by being here. But a couple weeks ago I was at the bluesfest downtown and the girl I was standing next to stared up at the sax player and said, "God I miss music."

I can't even begin to count the number of times I said that in Toronto. So I guess I've also learned that for now, this is where I should be. I don't know how long "now" is, but today, and this moment, I owe music to myself.

So! I have three songs for you. I won't explain what they're about, because one speaker once said, "Music shouldn't have a note." If a song can't be understood in some way by just the music, it's not good enough. I shouldn't have to explain the song, so take them how you will!


I Wanna Know

This is my least favorite of the three. Over time and after learning more about my voice and different sounds and grooves, I've decided there's lots I would do differently.  But, I hope you enjoy anyway, and maybe I'll re-track some things if I get the time.

Northern Lights

I wrote this with my friend Leah. I don't have any audible contribution to this! But I mixed most of it and tried to focus on the sounds I was hearing rather than giving. (She's great, isn't she?) :)

Leah: http://www.myspace.com/leahtharlai

Some Love to Spare

One of the first songs I wrote after moving here. Josh Lovegrove was my producer. He sang the male harmony in the chorus, and played guitar. (He's also pretty damn good)

Josh: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Josh-Lovegrove/160105477383377


For the folio we also had to have artwork for front and back. My photographer unfortunately isn't as keen as she once was! So I took pictures of my own. First is my album cover (without text), and the second is my back album art, again, no text. The rest were just options that I thought came out half decent.

If you're reading this and helped me get through this first semester, thanks! (that's pretty much everyone ;) )

The Thing About Success Is..

Tonight I found a new female artist, JJ Heller. I'm still listening to her songs, but so far I'm quite intrigued. One in particular moved me enough for me to quote on Facebook.

I thought of a common statement musicians have: "I wish I had written that!" Most, not all, but most will say it about top hits. My prof just the other day wish he had created a chord progression that makes up "Price Tag." I thought, yeah, that'd be cool. But the songs I wish I had written are songs that move me. I don't care if I get on t.v. and get played at clubs. Sure, to change the world with music would be incredible, but my realistic dreams are pretty simple: to make music I want to make that moves me. I wish i had written "Love Me" by JJ Heller. It's so simple, yet it's beautiful.

That's the thing about success. We define it. I may be at a music school to learn all I can; I may have top teachers; and I may have all the tools required to be the next big thing.

But that's not what I'm looking for here. I'm just looking to do what pleases me. And if it so happens it pleases lots of others, fantastic! Everyone here asks me what I play, and I'm quiet for about 5 seconds. They're expecting some genre of music to get an idea. I've decided to just say "acoustic pop" for now. What I really want to say though, is, I play what I want to. Sometimes it's country.. sometimes it's hip-hop.. sometimes it can be anything! I'm in my own mindset right now. I'm not going to let someone make me categorize myself. It's not necessary.

Enough ramble. Folio is due in 3 weeks. That means I will have all my songs done. What I have coming for your ears: 2 originals, 2 original collaborations, and maybe a remix of a pop song. We'll see if it turns out or not. Ttfn!

What I've Done for Fun

My friend K has been a big lifesaver so far. Every other Saturday or so, he takes me out. I've met some of his friends and they're all really nice. The first night out was pretty terrible, but the second time (I feel like I've already said this, so I won't say much about it) was pretty fun. We went clubbing with 3 of his other friends for a birthday. This was the first time I've really enjoyed going to a club. Me and the girls seemed to click pretty well.

A few weeks ago we went to dinner and then to another club with B and her boyfriend. This was pretty interesting. There were fire dancers!

Her partner came on first (you can see him in the corner) and was throwing short-chained fire balls around and very close to himself. She just put out the fire wads with her mouth. You know. No big deal.

Then they came out on stilts dressed in fairy costumes.


This weekend was good. Well, last night more specifically. K and B's friend was in a band that was playing at the Hard Rock Cafe. We went. There were lots of people there! Quite a few I've met before but never sat down with, and even some I just met that night that were really nice. The band was "Oceanics", a local punk-rock band, so it was fun, but I wasn't feeling dancing to it, so I stayed behind with these people i wasn't familiar with and chatted most of the time. Just had fun.

So good times to be had! Perhaps the highlight though, was after K picked me up and before we went to the Cafe, we parked in front of this thing:

Except, it was at night and this was lit up the colours of the rainbow. I asked: "What the heck is that?" "Oh, that's the Vomatron. B tried to get me to go on it with her but I chickened out. ..... Hey, wanna do something spontaneous?"

So yes, we went on the Vomatron. The girl who was working it was from Toronto, so we bonded :P

This ride is pretty crazy. You can youtube it, I think. It spins, forward and backward. I was freaking out at first because I haven't been on a ride since last summer. Turns out it was ridiculously fun! Actually quite refreshing and invigorating. When it went backwards, we had the opportunity of facing the ground as it was coming at us and then being flipped around. This made me want to go Skydiving. (No, I'm not kidding!)

However, right behind it is the slingshot. You've got to know what that is just by the name. That may take a little more convincing from K. But I wouldn't be surprised if I went on that, too, in the next few months. 

Well anyway, today is Mother's day and I'm just chillin' out in my room. Hope you've had a great weekend! 

Writing from the Heart Sucks.

So I missed my first session tonight.


I booked 2 hours at midnight to record guitar for a song I recently wrote. However, 30 minutes before I was going to go in, I had a mini revelation. I became overwhelmed with a feeling that is quite the opposite of what the song I was going to record ("Trickster") is about. The feeling I had came from a real experience, and the song I wrote was directly related, but completely opposite.

It's hard to explain this without telling you an intimate detail of my life, and because this blog is public, I'm trying to be discreet. "Trickster" is about a vice. And not being ashamed of it. It's actually about being almost proud of this vice. But the sudden feeling that came over me was that of sadness, and being hurt.

I just can't bring myself tonight to go in and record that song- it would feel like a betrayal of sorts. 

Yup, I realize how ambiguous I'm being. Sorry.

I hate it when people don't show up for bookings- so I guess from now on I can't complain about it. But because of this, I've set myself on an even more strict timetable. It was only 2 hours so I don't think it will hurt me too much. If I can't write a song to counter Trickster, then I will go ahead with it anyway.

Probably for the best anyway. I'm tired. And walking alone at 2am on the Easter holidays probably isn't the safest thing to do. Time for bed, I think!

Peace Off.

Well hello again!

Not too much has happened since my last post. A lot of writing, assignments, etc. One thing is worth mentioning though:

Last weekend I went out to Surfers Paradise (clubbing area) with a friend, and met 3 of his female friends. We all clicked pretty well. And I looked all right, too.

The night was fun. My ears were ringing until I fell asleep because the music was so loud, but dancing is a good way to relieve stress. On the ride home I learned a very important lesson. You see, back home, my "sign" is the peace sign, palm facing me. It's my go-to thing when someone takes a picture. It's accepted as a fairly nice symbol as far as I know. So as we were driving home (my friend was the DD), we were at a red light and the car next to us looked over, two young guys, so I smiled and gave them the peace sign. This is my greeting. They didn't like it. The driver flipped me the bird, and at the next light, he got out of his car and started coming toward us. I told my friend to just run the light- thankfully he did.. who knows what would have happened.

Then the girls in the back seat begin to explain that it doesn't mean the same thing here. In fact, it means f*ck you/off. Just another way of flipping someone off. I felt sooo bad. I keep asking my Australian friends if they have heard of it, and about 80% of them say that yes, I did tell them to f off. Whoops. I've gotta start turning my hand around...

Late Night Jams

So far I've had two late night jams. The first one was with a third year, Josh. We're going to record one of my songs together and we got down structure and a guitar sound last week. We started in the studio around 11:30 and left at about 3. Don't have pictures from this one, but next time maybe!

I also went to the beach the other day. Second time since I've been here :P This one is surfer's paradise. It was windy and mostly unenjoyable because of the wind. But hey, I still swam. The pictures don't really capture the waves, they were pretty big, and the current was so strong I came back to shore. My legs aren't used to it yet..

Thursday night (or, Friday morning if you want to be proper) I had another midnight session with two guys who want to start a band. We wrote two songs that are mostly rock. I hear a bit of punk in the first one we did but I'm hoping that our original idea of "Evanescence-esque" comes back soon. 

That's what 5am looks like. This could have been a pretty picture if I had the ability capture it properly.

Just For Fun

Livin' on top of the world

I had it all to lose

With one glass too much

I blinked, and I lost you

I ripped away the best I ever had

You ran away and you're not coming back

Can you spare a moment, for one more thing...

This is all for you. 

'Cause you saved me right before I hit the ground

And you taught me how to love

You shed the light on all of my flaws..

Well look at me now, 

darling I think you missed out.


I really wanted to write a song, but I didn't have much inspiration, so this is what I hashed out. It started out as a serious moment that happened in my life, but the very last line turns it into kind of a humorous and snide song. I will have better quality things eventually, like the title says, it's just for fun. :)

Today, I Went Hiking

Well, after it was canceled at the last moment last week due to rain, I finally got to go. Here are the bajillion pictures I took:

Behind the waterfall, looking through the waterfall into the sun:

Double rainbow!:

This, just from standing behind the waterfall:

If a tree falls in the forest, but nobody's around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Inside a tree trunk!: