Current Moods w/ Joshua Wentz

How are you feeling? How would you like to be feeling? How can we help?

“Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it.” Terry Pratchett came up with the idea of slower light in his Discworld books - the magic that surrounds the flat planet causes the speed of light to decrease. As such, a sunrise creeps across the world like liquid.

I've always enjoyed this imagery, even if it raises a million questions about how anything would work on Discworld. You have to give up and realize that it's magic, and there's no point dissecting it.

We begin volume two of the podcast with a series of five pieces that were written as ambient/background music for preshow and intermission of a play for which I just wrapped up sound design and composition. I really enjoyed making these musical vignettes, and felt like it could use a second life outside of their primary use - mostly ignored music to enter a theater. I hope your week starts off with a sense of motivation, positivity, and peace.

I wanted to experiment with an instrument I don't have a lot of control over. Since I've spent the last few weeks trying to make very precise, mostly MIDI based music so that I can easily adjust and fix things, I needed a little bit of freedom to let loose. So I sat down at my Swinger organ, sent it through a KP3 effects pad, and did some improvisation. The results are mixed but hopefully interesting to you! Have a great weekend.

You are the center of the world, and everything you experience radiates from you. You have freedom and responsibility; all change can be enacted through you, but you cannot relinquish your centrality. Accept and possess your importance.

Taking a moment in a chaotic week to have a cup of coffee and record this week's intermission. Nothing big to report - but feel free to review and rate Current Moods on iTunes if you have a moment. Thanks for listening.

Do you dream of the future as a casual diversion? Or does the unknown lead to existential crisis? It's often hard to keep thoughts of what's ahead from overtaking the here and now. Remember to engage time as your partner and not your adversary.

This week I am focused on tech rehearsals for a play, and have a lot of composing to do outside of the podcast. As a result, today's episode is actually a collection of ambient pieces that were created for a different play. Hopefully you will enjoy them!

Today's live improv was done using a KORG Volca keys and an electro-harmonix Memory Man pedal. Enjoy this continuous drone as you enter what will hopefully be a successful weekend!

Rain falls. Water flows. A blanket of cloud hides the sky from view. What might be a gloomy day outside is an opportunity to look inward. Today's episode includes a steady rain recording from earlier in the week.