A year ago I tried creating an entertainment channel on Twitch where I played Fortnite while walking on a treadmill while trying to commentate my gameplay in German. I also spent time transcribing music, specifically learning Tim Reynold's guitar parts for Live at Radio City. And finally, I did some live coding.
It was an experiment, and it was fun while it lasted. Ultimately I felt I didn't have the energy to work, talk, and walk (since a lot was done on the treadmill). It's hard to do it all by yourself for long periods.
I might bring it back, though. Caleb and I have been recording more podcasts and with larger groups of people, and we've been toying with the idea of streaming it live on Twitch. That introduces at least one challenge: we're not immediately sure how easy it is to feel comfortable about having a talk show streamed live in a place where people are usually at least buzzed with booze.
While we figure that out, we've come up with other streaming ideas. At least one is streaming the creation of music for our show (all shows). We'd do that at the house. In preparation, we moved my standing desk to the living room and rearranged everything so that we could work side by side and both be involved in the process as much as possible. I even ordered a 55" TV so that I could broadcast my monitor in between us (along with to Twitch). The goal is to create an environment where we both share the burden of creating music and managing an entertaining live stream equally.
I might start solo streaming some music stuff on my old channel. It's easier for me to stay focused when I know that at least one person might be watching.
I've been using the dating apps for a week or two now, and I've realized that with my new reformed goal (# of dates that involve someone new + # of songs written + # of people interviewed = 52) I'll be writing a lot of new songs... I've had just 1 meaningful conversation with someone over text so far in this time. 1-2 others might evolve into that though. I'm okay with that, though.
I haven't been swiping right much. I can't bring myself to swipe right on someone who doesn't have a few interesting things written in their profile, and many people don't have any words.
We're finishing up our new album in the next week or two. I'll write a more significant post about that once we have a release.
On on song, "Come on Dave, Let's Go" (written by Brad years ago), I recorded a dobro solo. I enjoy making solos in songs. My approach is pretty different than other's I imagine.
Since I'm not a "real musician" and instead more of a composer, I compose a solo on paper, usually away from any instrument, so I'm not constrained by my lack of technique. Once I have a pretty specific set of ideas written, I record the solo in chunks and stitch it together. The above link to a rough draft of that solo was recorded in like 10 different chunks. It's not ideal, but that's really the only way I can get it done given my strengths and weaknesses.