tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:/blogs/wilton-said-happenings?p=3Wilton Said... Happenings2020-04-26T18:54:38-04:00Wilton Said...falsetag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/62953582020-04-26T18:54:38-04:002021-09-06T15:29:03-04:00Kandle - "Holy Smoke" review<p>Well it's not everyday that I hear a release (either from a band I follow, or a new band) when I really say "WOW!!!". I mean, I have done that in the past but it’s almost like an evolution of my musical tastes. First came the Beatles “White Album” when I first heard it way back when I was in high school. Next up was my Heavy Metal stage where I was introduced to Iron Maiden. However it wasn’t until hearing Judas Priests compilation of early 70's materials "Hero Hero" and then releases "Sad Wings of Destiny" and "Sin After Sin" (2nd side) that I heard what hard rock sounded like if it was more artistic. Queensryches album “Rage for Order” was another one of those WoW albums. “Hemispheres” by Rush and “Trick of the Tail” by Genesis were also inspirational to me. Jesus Christ Superstar was almost the pinnacle of concept albums to me. Next step in my evolution was Kate Bush, especially her albums “Never for Ever”, “The Dreaming” and “The Hounds of Love”. Listening to songs such as “Babooshka”, “Breathing”, Night of the Swallow” “Jig of Life” and “Hello Earth” were and still are an out of body experience for me. </p>
<p>Fast forward to 2019 and I heard the latest Queensryche release titled “The Verdict”. It was fantastic with not a bad song on the whole album. The songs were crafted brilliantly, so were the instrumental arrangements, and the production was superb. Very reminiscent of what Kate Bush would sound like if she had a heavy metal arrangement. A perfect mix. </p>
<p>This brings to me to the present with Canadian Singer Songwriter Kandle. She popped up on my Instagram feed with some interesting music. Checked out some more and ended up downloading her last album “Holy Smoke”. </p>
<p>There’s not a bad song on the album. It’s very eclectic which has always a plus for me. To my ears, it’s as if K.d. Lang, Adele, Kate Bush, Toris Amos, and Natasha Khan (Bats for Lashes), adopted a child and raised her on their own music. Then once a week, David Bowie, and Freddie Mercury came over to babysit. Peter Gabriel might show up on occasion and help out with the groceries and cook dinner. So it’s pretty Artsy Fartsy, Dramatic, Dark, and features Fantastic Sonic Textures and Changing Moods. It goes without saying that her voice is magnificent. A pop style with a country, bluesy attitudes. </p>
<p>What’s also great is that I think the songs in themselves are excellent. These songs would all probably sound just as moving with only vocal and piano, or vocal and guitar. Her choice of chords and melody notes are usually Consonant with sprinkles of slight Jazzy Bluesy Dissonance thrown in for something special. So great songs in themselves. Add all the arrangement and production bells and whistles and it’s fantastic. </p>
<p>I’ve only had this album a few days and I think if it was a CD or vinyl, I would’ve already worn it out. For a special treat, listen via head phones as this rivals any stereo effects that Pink Floyd ever did. </p>
<p>If you love any of the above artists or styles, I highly recommend you check out Kandle. </p>
<p>Thanks </p>
<p>Wilton</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/58314932019-07-21T11:54:30-04:002019-07-21T11:54:30-04:00Queensryche "The Verdict" Review<p>I've had the latest Queensryche release "The Verdict" on heavy rotation on my headphones and speakers at home. It is fantastic. Probably one of the greatest Metal Albums that I've ever heard, and that's going up against Sabbath, Priest, Maiden, and Metallica. It's very much a Queensryche album which is reminiscent of their earlier material with a great blend of Prog as heard on Rage for Order, and texture of Promised Land. And it's super heavy. <br>Vocalist Todd La Torre hits it out of the park with his uncanny similarity to previous vocalist Geoff Tate. To be fair, Todd does acknowledge that Tate is an inspiration for him vocally. <br>The guitar work of Micheal Wilton and Parker Lundgren is superb as they weave complex arrangements between their instruments. Drummer Scott Rockenfield was absent from this recording and features vocalist Todd La Torre on drums. And he does a fantastic job. It turns out Todd was first and foremost a drummer and got into singing later on in his musical career. <br>Bassist Eddie Jackson is as solid as ever holding down the lower end spectrum. <br>Over all a must buy for any Metal and Queensryche fan.</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/55621402018-12-19T22:29:32-05:002018-12-19T22:29:32-05:00Kansas in Fort Lauderdale<p>Got back from a holiday trip to Fort Lauderdale seeing the American Progressive rock band Kansas. You know the band, the ones who do “Dust in the Wind” and “Carry on Wayward Son”. Seeing as I’m from Toronto Canada and it’s December, this trip was great as it also meant warmth, sun, sea and swimming. The band played Saturday night at a nice theater called the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. The show and tour was in celebration of the 40th anniversary of their album “Point of Know Return”. </p>
<p>Of course spoilers below…. </p>
<p>The interesting thing is that currently, out of the seven members of the band, only two were present during the recording of this album which was from the 70’s. But take my word for it, it doesn’t matter, each member of this band played with fire, passion and precision as if they wrote and recorded the parts themselves. </p>
<p>The show was split into three main sections. An acoustic set, electric set, and Point of Know Return set. </p>
<p>The show opened up with a nice acoustic set starting with People of the South Wind. A few songs in, Drummer Phil Ehart joined the band for a great closing of “Lonely Wind”. </p>
<p>The 2nd set of songs were full on electric and prog with a wide range of material from the 70’s through to the current album. The highlights for me were the opener of this 2nd set “Cold Grey Morning” from Freaks of Nature. I was very surprised as it seemed that in the past, Kansas had shied away from doing material which wasn’t mainly from the 70’s, so it was great to hear this deep cut. Other stand out performances were “Two Cents Worth”, “The Wall”, “Taking in the View” and “Miracles Out of Nowhere”. </p>
<p>The 3rd set featured the whole “Point of Know Return” album in order. It was great to hear my personal favorites such as “Paradox”, “The Spider” (whoever says Kansas isn’t prog needs to listen to this song), and “Sparks of the Tempest” with it’s funky rhythms. The band left the stage but of course returned for the obligatory encore song (also featured in the show Supernatural) “Carry on Wayward Son”. </p>
<p>Overall, a fantastic concert with fantastic musicianship, great sound and nice lights. I urge any prog rock fan to see the show. One of my top 5 of all time. </p>
<p>Wilton </p>
<p>Setlist below… </p>
<p><strong>Acoustic Set</strong> <br>People of the South Wind</p>
<p>Hope Once Again</p>
<p>Hold On</p>
<p>Refugee</p>
<p>Lonely Wind </p>
<p><strong>Electric Set </strong><br>Cold Grey Morning</p>
<p>Two Cents Worth</p>
<p>Mysteries and Mayhem / Lamplight Symphony</p>
<p>The Wall</p>
<p>Song for America</p>
<p>Wheels</p>
<p>Summer</p>
<p>Musicatto</p>
<p>Taking in the View</p>
<p>Miracles Out of Nowhere </p>
<p><strong>Point of Know Return Set </strong><br>Point of Know Return</p>
<p>Paradox</p>
<p>The Spider</p>
<p>Portrait (He Knew)</p>
<p>Closet Chronicles</p>
<p>Lightning's Hand</p>
<p>Dust in the Wind</p>
<p>Sparks of the Tempest</p>
<p>Nobody's Home</p>
<p>Hopelessly Human</p>
<p><strong>Encore: </strong><br>Carry On Wayward Son</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/53372732018-07-09T10:50:46-04:002018-07-09T10:50:46-04:00Interview with Lyricist and Writer Barry Brown with the Burlington Post<p>A few weeks ago, "Do You remember Me?" lyricist and writer sat down with the Burlington post for an interview.<br>Please feel free to check it out below.</p>
<p>Wilton</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/28360/03b0e5dd1ce6511f56c21ba26db93de66396a447/original/burlingtonpostinterview.jpg" class="size_orig justify_none border_" /></p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/52257072018-05-09T20:16:10-04:002018-05-09T20:16:30-04:00Most recent review of Do You Remember Me? <p>Most recent review Do You Remember Me? by Jerry Lucky at <a contents="http://www.jerrylucky.com " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.jerrylucky.com" target="_blank">http://www.jerrylucky.com </a></p>
<p>Band: Wilton Said and Barry Brown </p>
<p>CD Title: Do You Remember Me? </p>
<p>Website: www.wiltonsaid.com </p>
<p>Label: Independent Release (2018) </p>
<p>Rating: Grand musical ideas held back by weak vocals </p>
<p>If you’ve ever played around the world of Progressive Rock music you quickly discover that one of the objectives of many musicians is to write some form of rock opera. Ever since S.F. Sorrow and Tommy artists have looked to that musical form as a bucket list item to accomplish. Well Toronto’s Wilton Said who worked with Barry Brown’s lyrical ideas can now cross that bucket list item of his list with the release of Do You Remember Me? This eighty-one minute extravaganza is made up of twenty-one individual tunes that as you expect are all two, three or four minutes long. The subject tackled here is the complex issue of removing children from their homes to educate and assimilate and while they don’t specify in the lyrics it’s an issue that represents many governmental efforts including here Canada, Australia and Ireland. It’s a heady subject and the project get’s underway with a quite spectacular “Prelude” [6:00] which covers many of the musical themes of the project. The cast of character is made up of six vocalists with the music written by Wilton Said and performed by Said, Brown and Frank Heisler. Given that the very nature of a rock opera is to tell the story, the idea of being vague or allegorical doesn’t make much sense, as a result the lyrical direction here leaves little to the imagination. And as it weaves it’s tale of pain and suffering it is nothing if not direct. Perhaps a little too much so for my taste. In addition the vocalists are not all on the same skill level, which may have been intentional given that some of the characters were intended to be children. In the end it’s a bit of hodge-podge as the music is written and performed at quite a skilled level while some vocal parts don’t live up to that level. And that tends to take away from the not only the overall performance but also the following of the message. Still, like anything the more you listen to it, the more accommodating the ears become but initial listens caused more than a couple winces on my part. It’s an adventurous project and even with the shortcomings it’s good to hear the music of Wilton Said once again.</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/50001742017-12-30T14:24:57-05:002017-12-30T14:28:32-05:00Neglected Live Material <p>Neglected Live Material </p>
<p>Are there any musical artists whose material you feel has been neglected during live shows? <br>For me a few bands come to mind such as Kansas and Iron Maiden. Kansas released a new album in 2016 and do you think they played much off of it? No! Instead they toured playing all of their classic Leftoveture album throwing in about 3 or 4 songs from the new album. Sure the band played a lot of rarely played songs such as Chasing Shadows, Reason to Be, Lamplight Symphony and that’s great. However, there are only two original members left in the band with five of them joining the band during the late 80’s and beyond. You’d think the these members would be chomping at the bit to play material which they had a hand in recording, arranging and or writing. Bassist Bill Greer joined with the release of Power and has been in the band pretty much ever since yet you rarely hear anything from the albums he recorded. Violinist David Ragsdale recorded and co-wrote songs off of Freaks of Nature. With 4 out of the seven current members having recorded this album, you’d think it would be a prime candidate to be played live. But I guess not for the band. </p>
<p>Iron Maiden has done a great job of doing alternate tours. One tour of newer material from a current album, and than a tour of older material. However, very little of their 90’s material gets played which means that guitarist Janice Geers gets the short end of the stick when it comes to playing material which he recorded. I’d love to see a tour of 90’s material from No Prayer for the Dying through to Virtual XI. It may not be the most popular era of the band, but it would sure shake things up a bit. </p>
<p>During the Clockwork Angels tour with Rush, they shook things up by playing a large selection of their 80’s sythn era material. The songs sounded fresh and it was great to hear alternative songs as opposed to the material which they had been playing on endless rotation on previous tours. </p>
<p>Marillion have proved that playing albums which have NOT necessarily been fan favorites, if played well can breath life into these neglected albums and songs.</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/47814832017-07-16T22:35:51-04:002022-09-25T21:28:20-04:00Iron Maiden Toronto Concert Review - July 15th 2017 - Toronto - Budweiser Stage Ontario Place <p>Iron Maiden Toronto Concert Review <br>July 15th 2017 - Toronto - Budweiser Stage Ontario Place <br>Spoilers….. </p>
<p>I saw Maiden last year for the 1st leg of the North American tour. It turns out that very little has changed at this show from the previous show. The setlist was almost the same, the stage set was the same, the band were pretty much the same (raw). I’ll give drummer Nicko McBrain credit, however, as I felt this was the tightest I’ve heard him play in a live setting in a long time. Unfortunately, Bruce’s vocals kept on dropping out and his high notes seemed to get lost. As I said in my last review, I think Maiden needs to lower the keys of the songs. <br>When my wife and I arrived, opening band Ghost was playing and they were very good. The sound was excellent, so I had high expectations for Maiden. I don’t know what was going on at the mixing desk but it sounded like the whole mix was being put through a Phaser as every once in a while the high frequencies would drop out and then return. </p>
<p>In the previous review for the show last year, I mentioned that I preferred the Molson Amphitheater (now called the Budweiser Stage) to the ACC. I might have to retract that statement. Sure the sightlines are better, but as stated above, the sound was not. Additionally, there is a no smoking policy in the seating and lawn area with signs everywhere. I don’t know why they bothered, as at least a quarter of the place lit up when it got dark. I did ask a few people around us to stop, but they continued a little while later. Security was coming around in their bright yellow shirts to ask people to stop, but the smokers would light up again when the security was gone. Personally, I think they should have a smoking section waaaaay at the back, that way everyone is happy. Also some security should be plain clothed to catch smokers and boot them out. </p>
<p>Over all, it wasn’t my favorite experience due to the almost identical setlist, the sound and the smoking. </p>
<p>Major Spoilers below….. </p>
<p>Setlist below…. <br>If Eternity Should Fail <br>Speed of Light <br>Wrathchild <br>Children of the Damned <br>Death or Glory <br>The Red and the Black <br>The Trooper <br>Powerslave <br>The Great Unknown <br>The Book of Souls <br>Fear of the Dark <br>Iron Maiden <br>Encore: <br>The Number of the Beast <br>Blood Brothers <br>Wasted Years</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/46990792017-05-06T09:30:23-04:002018-07-12T13:27:12-04:00Marillion Weekend Convention UK 2017 - De Montfort Hall, Leicester, England<p>My wife and I returned from the Marillion Convention and had a great time. In the past we’ve gone to the Montreal Convention, however Marillion decided against having one in North America this year due to the fact that they had toured NA the previous year. So it was off to merry old England to see one of our favourite bands. </p>
<p>We weren’t that interested in the opening bands although we did see Lonely Robot. They were really good although I wasn’t too keen on John Mitchells vocals. Sound wise, they were a little reminiscent of Porcupine Tree’s heavier material. A recommended check out if that style fits your fancy. </p>
<p>On to Marillion. What can I say, I’m biased but over-all, all three nights were great. The setlists which I’ll post below were probably the best ever with a great mix of old and new. Even so, I found that I didn’t get quite so emotionally involved. I think the main reason is, having seen Marillion 13 times on various tours and conventions, I’ve seen/heard most of the songs before. So the wow factor isn’t quite as high. Nevertheless, there were some unexpected tunes which were played which I really enjoyed. </p>
<p>The band played really well with almost no mistakes and were pretty tight. Guitarist Steve Rothery was his usual bluesy soulful self with his stand out solos in “Sounds that Can’t be Made”, “Sugar Mice”, and “This Strange Engine”. Bassist Pete Trewavas bounced around stage and continued to amaze me as to how much guitar sounding bass he plays. Vocalist Steve Hogarth was in fine vocal form and delivered lyric with passion and strength. Drummer Ian Mosley showed great restraint with regards to tempos and was probably the tightest I’ve ever heard. Keyboardist Mark Kelly spent most of the nights laying down textural atmospheres. However he proved he still was able to widdley widdley with the best of them during “Market Square Heroes”, “Incommunicado”, and “Interior Lulu”. </p>
<p> The sound was incredible with a healthy volume of drums, guitar and vocals. The keyboards did get lost a little in the mix but with both keys and guitar occupying the same frequencies; it can be difficult to get a great balance live. </p>
<p>Visually, the band had more lights and a larger screen for visuals. This made for a more encompassing experience. Most of the visual standouts were from the most recent release “F.E.A.R. with “El Dorado”, “The Leavers” and “White Paper” being excellent. </p>
<p>As I mentioned earlier, it was the setlists which really surprised me this time around. The first night consisted of what seemed to be a random selection, many of which were more obscure such as “One Fine Day”, “A Collection”, and “A Voice From the Past”. The opener “The Release” was a b-side and although not a favourite of mine, was still a surprise. “You’re Gone” got the crowd bopping. “Sounds that Can’t be Made” had the audience singing the guitar melody after the song had been completed. “Hard as Love” was done with H alone on piano. “Gaza” ended the first night on a powerful note. </p>
<p>The second night was the surprise. Many fans have mentioned that Marillion should do “Clutching at Straws” (the last album which former vocalist Fish sang on) as an album night. This night, they almost did it by playing all songs which vocalist H has sang. The surprise for me was “White Russian” which has only been performed by the band a few select times in the past. They also played a song from Misplaced Childhood, but not the ones you would’ve thought. They pulled out the rare “Lords of the Backstage” and “Blind Curve”. “Market Square Heroes” was the closer for the first set and had the audience rocking along with the band singing out “Are you following me?” </p>
<p>The second set was the whole of the recent album “F.E.A.R” in order, and again was great with the addition of the visuals. </p>
<p>The final night consisted of the whole of the Marillion.com album. Half of the songs on the album are great, the other half not my favourite. Nevertheless, all songs sounded great live. This night consisted of some guest musicians such as Praise of Folly, a string quartet which added additional textures to the songs such as “A Legacy”. Saxophonist Phil Todd played the parts to “Deserve”, “Berlin”, and “This Strange Engine”. Trumpeter Neil Yates joined in for “Deserve” and “House”. </p>
<p>Occasional co-lyricist, John Helmer got up and played guitar for “Tumble Down The Years”. </p>
<p>One of the highlights for this evening was a planned surprise for the band. A member of a Marillion Facebook group had been encouraging everyone to get finger lights which we’d all light up during the last part of “Go”. It was a success. When Hogarth sang "Wide awake at the edge of the world”, the whole venue was lit up with finger lights waving through the air. </p>
<p>So another great show by a great band. This has solidified my view that for North America, I believe Marillion should scrap the tours and do conventions every two years. Hopefully they’ll do Montreal again in a couple of years. </p>
<p>Thanks </p>
<p>Wilton </p>
<p>Setlist info at <a contents="http://www.setlist.fm/setlists/marillion-43d6b31b.html" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.setlist.fm/setlists/marillion-43d6b31b.html" target="_blank">http://www.setlist.fm/setlists/marillion-43d6b31b.html</a> </p>
<p><strong>1st Night</strong> </p>The Release <br>The Other Half <br>One Fine Day <br>You're Gone <br>The Only Unforgivable Thing <br>Estonia <br>Sounds That Can't Be Made <br>Hard as Love (h alone on piano) <br>A Collection (h with Steve Rothery on acoustic guitar ) <br>The Answering Machine (h, Steve Rothery and Pete Trewavas) <br>Faith (acoustic - whole band) <br>A Few Words for the Dead <br>A Voice From the Past <br>Beyond You <br>The Great Escape <br>Gazpacho <br>This Town <br>The Rakes Progress <br>100 Nights <br><strong>Encore </strong><br>Gaza <p><strong>2nd Night</strong> </p>Hotel Hobbies – Mainly instrumental with H singing the closing section. <br>Warm Wet Circles <br>That Time of the Night (The Short Straw) <br>White Russian <br>Incommunicado <br>Slàinte Mhath <br>Sugar Mice <br>Lords of the Backstage/Blind Curve <br>Market Square Heroes <br><strong>Slight Break </strong> <br>El Dorado <br>Living in F E A R <br>The Leavers <br>White Paper <br>The New Kings <br>Tomorrow’s New Country –<strong> </strong><strong>played over P.A. </strong>
<p><strong>3rd Night </strong></p>A Legacy <br>Deserve <br>Go! <br>Rich <br>Enlightened <br>Built-in Bastard Radar <br>Tumble Down the Years <br>Interior Lulu <br>House <br><strong>Small Break</strong> <br>Splintering Heart <br>King <br>Berlin <br>This Strange Engine <br><strong>Encore </strong><br>Real Tears for Sale <br>The Leavers: V. One TonightWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/45681592017-01-29T10:38:43-05:002017-01-29T10:38:43-05:00Digital vs Vinyl<p>There's nothing wrong with digital format if you're not that bothered with art work, lyric sheets etc. I do agree that with vinyl, cassette and CD there was more of an investment in music. First you had to save up for the release. Then actually leave your home to go to the store and buy the release. Then you brought it home, unwrapped, put it on and actually sat down to listen to the whole thing. If it was cassette or vinyl, you had to get up half way through to switch sides. In addition, one might have also followed along with the lyric sheet. There was also credits to read etc etc. There was much more involved. With downloads, it’s much more immediate, and dare I say disposable. The involvement of listening to music in download form can be next to nil. However, I’m sure there are lots of people who do spend the time to actively listen to downloads. So all is not lost. </p>
<p>I know there are people who believe that vinyl sounds better then digital. Vinyl over all has many sonic compromises (limited dynamic range, limited eq possibilities) which enable as much of the signal to be reproduced. Digital on the other hand has much less if no compromises making for the possibilities of a huge dynamic and Eq range. The interesting thing is that the loudness wars has made it so that this huge dynamic and Eq range is NOT utilized. As a result, with many digital recordings you get that LOUD LOUD consistently LOUD signal. </p>
<p>With music being so portable nowadays, this LOUD compressed signal is almost a necessity when one is out and about. Who wants to fiddle with their iPod or Phone to raise or lower the volume within a song when out and about. Vinyl on the other hand is obviously not portable and can only be listened in the comfort of a controlled environment. As a result, variable dynamics is not a problem. In addition, the dynamics of each song are tailored to fit the sequencing of the songs. </p>
<p>Over all, it’s not much the format that is the issue with sound quality, but the way the signal is processed at the mastering level. I’m sure that if more dynamics were brought back into all recordings, many would agree that the sound quality would improve. Even in digital downloads. </p>
<p>Thanks <br>Wilton</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/41243412016-04-06T23:04:29-04:002021-04-21T19:54:13-04:00Iron Maiden Toronto Concert Review 2016<p>Iron Maiden Concert <br>April 3rd 2016 - Toronto - Air Canada Center <br>Spoilers….. </p>
<p>It turns out that this is the twelfth time I've seen Maiden live, and this little tidbit of info will be relevant to my review of the show. </p>
<p>The opening band "The Raven Age", which had Maiden bassist Steve Harris' son on guitar, wasn't too bad. They were a mix of metal with more Alternative style vocals. Not really my style, especially with the rapid double kick, (god I can't stand rapid double kick), so I'm probably not the best person to review them. </p>
<p>On to Maiden. <br>Over all it was a good show and I enjoyed it. Why only a good show and NOT a great show? A number of reasons all totally subjective, or at least most are subjective. </p>
<p>First off, I really enjoy watching shows on the lawns at The Molson Amphitheater. I find the sound much clearer and there's more room to stretch out on a comfy blanket or move around if standing. Plus, pretty much all vantage points are in front of the stage at a reasonable sight level which enables one to see the show as it was intended. The seats at the ACC are tight and there's little room to rock out while sitting down. Sitting off to the side up high meant we couldn't see the back drops or the lighting very well. But again, that's also because I bought the cheaper seats rather then splashing out on the more expensive seats. <br>Nonetheless, Iron Maiden do put on a great visual show. Although they are a bit older, they still do move around the stage (albeit a little slower) with as much energy as possible. Vocalist Bruce Dickinson seemed to be the most energetic as at one point he was waltzing with the microphone and did a little jig as he made his way off stage during an instrumental section. He was also a little more theatrical than I had seen him in previous years. The opening song "If Eternity Would Fail" had him as the lone figure on the catwalk on the stage in front of a fiery smoking cauldron. He also donned what looked like a mexican wrestlers mask during the song Powerslave. (Wonder what happened to his S+M mask?) <br>The stage set itself was decorated to look like a Mayan temple complete with vines hanging from above. For anyone who hadn't seen Maiden before, this would've been an amazing sight, however other stage sets have been just as impressive such as Powerslave and Seventh Son. No Maiden show would be complete without the appearance of their mascot Eddie which appeared twice. Once as an upright walking mechanical puppet (or was it a man on stilts?), and as a giant inflated head peeking out from behind the catwalk during the song "Iron Maiden". Again always an impressive sight, but my favorite Eddie is still the one from the No Prayer for the Dying which had Eddie emerging from a huge coffin with torso and arms maniacally waiving around. </p>
<p>Musically, in a live setting, Maiden have never been that precise or tight. In fact I find them quite sloppy. But then again with members roaming around the stage looking like they're having fun, what does one expect. The drum tempos wavered, guitar solos were loose, and Bruce's vocals sounded like they needed a healthy dose of compression to keep the volume consistent. I've also been noticing in the last few years that Bruce's high notes have slowly been disappearing. Perhaps a lowering of keys might rectify this to enable Bruce to maintain the melodies and hit the high notes with more strength. If you haven't heard Maiden live, take a listen to any of their live albums and you'll get the same raw sound. However, I've come to expect this from Maiden so I'm able to put this aside and focus on the songs and the energy that the bands exudes. </p>
<p>Major Spoilers below….. </p>
<p>Song wise it was a good show. Again having seen Maiden many times previously, with the exception of the newest album, I think there's little they would probably play which I hadn't heard before. With their pattern of new album tour and oldies tour, I was actually hoping to hear more material from the 2000's, especially as I hadn't seen the Brave New World or Dance of Death tours. Even the Canadian dates of the Final Frontier tours only had one song from that album, El Dorado. And although they did play a lot of 2000's material, I would've liked to hear it again. But as I said that's just my personal beef. For this show, Children of the Damned and Powerslave were a nice addition and were a surprise, but they're just not favorites of mine. Bring out songs like Killers, To Tame a Land, Infinite Dreams, Sign Of The Cross, Paschendale, or The Final Frontier and I would've been really happy. But you can't please everyone. <br>The biggest surprise and most interesting aspect of the show was the song choices within the encore. Opening the encore with Number of the Beast makes sense and has been done many times before. But having Blood Brothers was a shock and closing with Wasted Years was an even bigger shock. Previously, Maiden's encores have consisted of older songs with them closing with an old song. In the past it's usually been, Running Free, Sanctuary, Run to the Hills or Hallowed be they Name, all older songs. So after playing Wasted Years and the band leaving the stage, I really thought they'd return for one more old song, but no. I guess they thought they'd change things up a bit. <br>So I can agree that for Maiden, this was a fantastic show, just not for me. </p>
<p>Setlist below…. <br>If Eternity Should Fail <br>Speed of Light <br>Children of the Damned <br>Tears of a Clown <br>The Red and the Black <br>The Trooper <br>Powerslave <br>Death or Glory <br>The Book of Souls <br>Hallowed BeThy Name <br>Fear of the Dark <br>Iron Maiden <br>Encore: <br>The Number of the Beast <br>Blood Brothers <br>Wasted Years</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/41088042016-03-28T12:01:34-04:002016-03-28T12:01:34-04:00Staying Relevant<p>I've seen a trend with some bands such as Kansas, Styx, Yes, Queensryche and Judas Priest. The trend is at live concerts to focus mainly on the tried and true popular songs of the bands past, as opposed to playing a healthy amount of newer or at least later material. I know some of these bands like Styx and Kansas haven't released new material since early 2000, but Kansas has albums such as Power, In the Spirit of Things, Freaks of Nature and Somewhere To Elsewhere all which have some good songs on them. Musicatto, Ghosts, Freaks of Nature, Distant Vision are all worthy of being played live yet are ignored. <br>Styx has Cyclorama, the only album to feature vocalist Gowan, yet he never gets to sing material he recorded, or at least very little of it. <br>Yes have some decent later albums which Steve Howe played on like Keys to Ascension, The Ladder, Magnification all which have songs which are live worthy such as Minddrive, Homeworld, and In the Presence Of. </p>
<p>Even the bands which do have recent albums seem to skimp on this material played live. According to setlist.fm, Yes only played 3 songs "Believe Again" and "The Game", sometimes "To Ascend. Queensryche released a great album titled Condition Human and only play Arrow of Time. When I saw Judas Priest late last year, they only played three songs from the newest album and their later material was ignored. <br>It's interesting that while these bands are still going and going strong, their live fan base is not nearly as big as bands such as Iron Maiden or Rush. </p>
<p>Iron Maiden and Rush have always made a point of playing 4 to 6 songs off of the newest releases. In addition, both bands have had tours where they haven't focused on the tried and true popular songs. Rush's Clockwork Angels tour had a lot of 80's material. And while it was popular, I'm sure the casual Rush fan would've been disappointed not hearing The Trees, Xanadu, or Freewill. To them, the best part of the show was near the end with YYZ, Spirit of Radio, Tom Sawyer. Nevertheless, this may cause the casual Rush fan to check out material they may not have been aware of. <br>Iron Maiden have been the smartest of all. They satisfy both sets of fans, the die hards and the casual. They do a rotation of tours. A tour for a recent release where they play a great healthy portion of the newest album, some later material, and a few oldies (they've been known to leave out Run to the Hills). Then they do a tour which represents an older section of their career by focusing on older tried and true material. </p>
<p>Over all, it seems that if a band wants to maintain a consistent fan base or grow it, not only do they need to produce new material, but also play that newer material live. Only by playing newer material live will it become a new stage favorite. This would mean that perhaps Run to the Hills, The Trooper, Breaking the Law, Living After Midnight, Closer to the Heart, Xanadu, Queen of the Ryche, Silent Lucidity, Roundabout, I've Seen all Good People, Carry on Wayword Son, or Dust in the Wind may get dropped. But the world won't end if you don't hear these songs at a show. Enjoy the one's you did hear and if they're unfamiliar, check them out, you might like them. And they may become a favorite. It's the interest in the newer material by the fans which keeps a band relevant. And the only way to get the fans interested in newer material, is to have the band interested in their own newer material. </p>
<p>Wilton </p>
<p>What are your thoughts on this? Do you prefer to hear mainly older tried and true material, or do you like to hear newer material at a show?</p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/39256412015-11-17T18:14:26-05:002015-11-17T18:14:26-05:00Judas Priest show at the Toronto Air Canada Center - Thurs Nov 12th 2015The evening opened with the band Mastodon who is simply not my cup of tea. Too heavy and I didn't like the vocals. I do know that there are many who do love this band so I'll let them do their own review of their set.<br><br>Judas Priest were really really good. I say really really good as opposed to amazing because I save the "amazing" description for Iron Maiden and Marillion shows which in my opinion are usually…. amazing. On to Priest…<br><br>They opened with the first song off of the recent album Redeemer of Souls called "Dragonaut". While it's not the best song off of the album, it did sound great live. My personal favorites of the evening were "Desert Plains" and "Screaming for Vengeance" as this was my first time hearing either of them live. Other standouts for me were "Victim of Changes", "Beyond the Realms of Death", "Hell Bent for Leather", "Painkiller" and the two songs off of Redeemer titled "Valhalla" and "Redeemer of Souls".<br><br>Playing wise, the whole band was on fire and it seemed that new guitarist Richie Faulkner was really enjoying himself. Guitarist Glen Tipton played well but seemed to be physically low key. Unfortunately, it seemed that three quarters of the way through the show, Tiptons guitar got buried in the mix making most of his solos barely audible. However I was lucky enough to hear his solo in Beyond the Realms of Death as it is one of my favorites of his.<br><br>The most notable thing to me was Halfords vocals. I've seen the band on the last 4 tours and his voice was much improved at this show. The man is in his 60's and I can't fault him for not being able to sing all the high notes like he did in his younger years. But during the last few tours it seemed like he would growl his way, or sing recitative through most the set. At the Thursday show I heard more of a reworking of the melody lines, dropping them down a 3rd or 5th but keeping the same phrasing. For example in the studio version of "Metal Gods…", the first line "We've taken too much for granted", is sung on a high B and descends to an A, G, A, G, E, G, E. Live Rob sang it as B, E, E, E, E, E, D, E. While some might be bothered, I enjoyed it as it meant Rob actually sang the words rather then growl or recitative them. This also enabled him to save his voice for the obligatory high notes, especially at the end of "Victim of Changes".<br><br>I do find it surprising that Priest only played to the floors and 100 section of the ACC while Iron Maiden has played to the whole venue. Priest has been around since the 70's and I would've thought that any fan of metal would have attended the show. I mean it's Judas Priest, the almost Grandfathers of Metal. (Sabbath are the official Grandfathers of Metal). Perhaps the issue is that Iron Maiden have always put on a physical show with the band running all over the stage while Judas Priest have been more of a stay in one spot type of band. This probably explains why Iron Maiden is one of the loosest bands when it comes to live, and why Judas Priest is tighter.<br><br>WiltonWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/39064502015-10-31T18:11:34-04:002015-10-31T18:11:34-04:00Queensryche "Condition Human"Downloaded the latest Queensryche album "Condition Human" and I must say it's quite good. For those who are unaware, original vocalist Geoff Tate hasn't been with band since 2012 and has been replaced by vocalist Todd La Torre. There's more to the story regarding Tate's departure but it's pretty easy to find online if you so wish.<br><br>Condition Human harks back to Queensryche's progressive metal style of the 80's and 90's which is a good thing as their material throughout the 00's was not my cup of tea. I have Q2K and Operation Mindcrime 2, and have heard selections from Tribe, American Soldier, and Dedicated to Chaos, and while they all seem experimental and different then their older material (which could be a good thing), I find that the songs themselves aren't very good. For me, you can experiment, add newer textures all you want, but if the melody, chord progression, and structure doesn't move me, no amount of arrangement will make up for that.<br>The thing which I am undecided on is the vocal stylings of La Torre. His style is an exact match for Tate. While his range seems like a match (which it would need to be to sing older material), it's also puzzling that his tone and phrasing are an exact match for Tate. Perhaps that's always been his style, perhaps he felt that he needed or wanted to match the style, or perhaps the band wanted him to be a Tate clone. So while his singing is fantastic and does match the music and style of Queensryche, it would've been interesting to hear a slightly different vocal style with their music.Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/38438202015-09-05T16:48:33-04:002021-01-17T12:06:55-05:00Iron Maiden - Book of Souls First Listen Review.<br>Obvious Spoilers……<br><br><br><br><br>I just finished listening to the new Iron Maiden album The Book of Souls. The hype surrounding this album has probably been bigger then any other IM album ever. This is probably due to three things surrounding the album. <br><br>First, after the recording, vocalist Bruce Dickinson was diagnosed with having cancer on his tongue and at the back of his throat. He has since beaten it and has been on the road to full recovery. Second, there are two lengthy solo Dickinson compositions which bookend the album, If Eternity Should Fail and Empire of the Clouds. Third, Dickinson wrote on, and plays piano on, Empire of the Clouds. Overall, these three points are reason enough to get excited about the album, and I was. Now on to the music.<br><br>I was happy to hear that again they haven't relied on the chord cliche of Em D C or Am G F, but this has been the case since Brave New World. There seems to be more harmony guitars throughout the songs. I know this is IM and they're known for their harmony guitars, but it sounds as if they're in almost every song, so that got a bit tiresome for my ears. The longer songs also seem to be a bit patchy from section to section and lack a flow. For a great example of how they've made their longer songs work well, take a listen to Hallowed be thy Name, To Tame a Land, Alexander the Great, Sign of the Cross or Paschendale.<br><br>Over all I enjoyed the album and thought there were a few stand out songs. Opener If Eternity Should Fail is fantastic and probably one of my new favourites. Tears of a Clown has a nice groove to it with a syncopated riff in the intro. The tour de force is the closing Empire of the Clouds. This song is not bad, but for any fan of Progressive Rock (Genesis, Yes), the song is a bit of a let down. Sure the piano is different for IM and the song is 20 minutes, but Suppers Ready and Hemispheres are both superior due to their better execution and more cohesive song structure.<br><br>For anyone who hasn't been listening to Maiden for the past 15 years, this album will be awesome. It's just that for me, I find most of it the same old, although I really liked A Matter of Life and Death.<br><br>I would definitely put this album above the The Final Frontier, Dance of Death, Brave New World, Virtual XI and No Prayer for the Dying.<br><br>Wilton<br><br><br><br> Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/36791242015-04-27T15:16:49-04:002015-04-27T15:16:49-04:00Marillion 2015 Montreal Convention<span class="font_regular">My wife and I just got back from the Marillion Convention and once again had a great time. But who wouldn't, being fans of the band, seeing three 2+ hour shows over three nights, totally different set lists, all for the price of $150.<br>The Conventions have always featured a performance of one of their albums, but last convention as with this one, two albums were featured. Friday night was Anoraknophobia, Saturday was Marbles and Sunday was the surprise.<br><br><strong>Fri</strong><br>The performance of the band was not as good as other times I've seen them. Guitarist Steve Rothery, and Keyboardist Mark Kelly seemed a little out of it and there were plenty of mistakes. Don't get me wrong, they are human and the mistakes didn't detract from the show, but it was interesting to note. (I later read up that the band had been feeling under the weather but were getting better.) They attempted to open the night with the song "Montreal" but had to stop half way through due to technical problems with their in ear monitoring system. After about 5 minutes they came back out and started up "Between You and Me". Normally this song rawks, but it seemed a little lack lustered. Other rockers such as "Seperated Out" also suffered the same fate to my ears. Mellower tunes like "When I Meet God" and "This is the 21st Century" faired better. For me, things didn't pick up until the album closer "If my Heart were a Ball it Would Roll Uphill". This songs features some of vocalists Steve Hogarths worst lyrics but features a laid back heavy groove not normally associated with Marillion, but they pull it off and it has become one of my favorite songs by the band. Over all, it's quite possible that my slightly negative reaction to most of the performance is due to my less favorable opinion of most of the album as it's more of a Pop album as opposed to an Art Rock album.<br>With the conclusion of "Ball", the band left the stage for a few minutes to come back out for the obligatory encores.<br>For anyone in the audience that was new to Marillion who thought they might only be a Pop/Rock band, they were treated to the Prog side with performances of the lengthy "This Strange Engine" followed by "Gaza". Both performed extremely well, better than Anoraknophobia. With the last lines of "Some day surely someone must help us...", the band waved and left the stage for the night.<br><br><strong>Sat</strong><br>Marbles is one of the bands best and it's certainly their most eclectic. There's something for every one and this was evident in the performance of the album. What made this performance even more special was the visual effects and images that accompanied the music. Opener "Invisible Man" was amazing with vocalist Steve H's face appearing on the screen singing the opening verse while his face slowly disintegrated. Other standouts for me were "Ocean Cloud" with it's visuals of the sea, sky and stars. Pop song "You're Gone", their most dance oriented song, was a nice change up in style which got everyone moving and grooving. Album closer "Neverland" was as always fantastic.<br>Marbles was then followed by two songs off of Afraid of Sunlight, "Out of this World" and "King", both played fantastic with the latter showing images of celebrities who had died before their time.<br>The final song of the evening was "Sounds that Can't be Made". When the band had finished, the audience continued to sing the guitar melody. The band joined in on their instruments before bringing the evening to a close.<br>Over all, I felt that this was a better night for the band, both in material and in performance.<br><br><strong>Sun</strong><br>The show started off with a surprise with eight Fish era songs, "Market Square Heroes", "Garden Party", "Kayleigh", "Lavender", "Heart of Lothian", "Warm Wet Circles", "Suger Mice" and "Incommunicado". For fans of the band, we know how special this is as the band doesn't often perform this amount of songs from their earlier catalogue. By this point I surmised that they were performing songs off of albums in album order. The next songs were "Hooks in You", "Uninvited Guest", "No one Can" and "Dry Land". By then I had figured out that they were playing songs which were released as singles or promotion. At this point there was less of a surprise for me as I knew which songs from which albums were used. Nevertheless I enjoyed the show.<br>Additional highlights were "Whatever is Wrong with You", "Man of a Thousand Faces" and the closer "Three Minute Boy".<br><br>As a side note, I have noticed that for the past few conventions, the bass had been more prominent in the live mix, much the way it has been on the "Marbles ", " Happiness is the Road " and " Sounds That Can't be Made " albums. This had made songs like "Neverland", "Gaza", and "Sounds That Can't be Made" extremely rich and huge sounding. This time around, the bass was less evident which made for an arguably clearer sound, but lacked the richness. I'm sure for most people this wasn't an issue and almost wasn't for me except in the above songs.<br><br>Overall it was a great show and I do recommend these conventions to anyone who likes Marillion or their music on the arty side.<br><br>Thanks<br>Wilton</span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/36027102015-03-15T16:36:12-04:002015-03-15T16:36:12-04:00Doug Leblanc Tremble Release Review…Wilton Said played at the May Café Saturday night. It was to introduce the digital download release of ‘Tremble’, a three-song delight of brand new material from the band.<br>This was a bit different from other release celebrations, though. To start, he opened with a solo set on guitar, featuring a few surprises. He did ‘Sin’ from the early days, then did a few Beatle songs. Fortunately, for me, one of them was NOT “Why Don’t We Do It In The Road”. He has played this in the past, to my great chagrin. The Beatles songs he did do he did very well!<br>Then he did two sets with the band. Both were excellent! Wilton himself was in excellent voice, and at his entertaining best! The band was tight and strong. Chris Reid was excellent on guitar! He is an incredible musician, and in many ways is the engine that keeps Wilton Said on full throttle.<br>The bassist was, basically, excellent. He is the new old bass player, Frank Heisler. He had been absent for some time, but his return featured some very strong playing.<br>The biggest question, though, was on the drums. Richard Rizzo’s departure left some area for concern; after all, Wilton Said’s music is often long and extremely complex, with odd time signatures and difficult sections. However, there was no need for concern. Peter Karppi was superb! He had quite a few supporters in the audience, and they were treated to a tour de force of drumming! He fit into the music as if he’d been playing it all his life. I was truly impressed by his remarkable performance!<br>This show, however, was quite a bit different from other shows, thanks to a delightful lady named Paddy Aldridge. She added some wonderful visual effects, which added whole new dimensions to the show! Indeed, she made it a theatrical presentation, as compared to just a simple concert. I was delighted with her work, and look forward to seeing more of it in the future!<br>Which brings us to the audience. I realize that people are entitled to pay their admission, then completely ignore the show. WHY they would do that is a mystery to me, but it happens. Some of them last night seemed utterly oblivious to what was happening on the stage. Some great music and artistry was occurring on the stage in front of them, and they utterly ignored it!<br>Perhaps I am too deeply appreciative of the wonderful music being performed, and the incredible talent behind it, but I can’t help feel like visiting Oz while others are wondering how to fix the damn house after the tornado!Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/34926562015-01-28T21:35:02-05:002017-01-16T09:01:21-05:00Show Announcement<a contents="" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://wiltonsaid-tremble.eventbrite.ca" target="_blank"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/28360/1b74aa10bbe88461d3c302cbba8b58fd1327d098/large/tremble-release-show-march-14-2015-colour.jpg?1422511567" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></a><br>After more then a year, my band and I are ready to play and we're holding our "Tremble" Download Release Show featuring two sets of original Art Rock Music. This show also features the debut of drummer Peter Karppi as he adds his percussive flair to our music.<br>All admissions include a code at the door for a free download of the upcoming "Tremble" E.P. Download Release.<br><br>I'll be opening the show with a short set of light acoustic numbers for your listening pleasure.<br><br>The show takes place on Saturday March 14th 2015 at May Cafe located at 876 Dundas St. West Toronto, Ontario M6V 1J3<br>It's a Vietnamese styled venue with Tapas and selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Come on by for dinner and drinks before and during the show.<br><br>Venue opens at 1pm with the show starting at 8:30pm.<br>Cover at the door is $8.00<br>Advanced Purchases via Eventbrite is $5.00<br>http://wiltonsaid-tremble.eventbrite.ca<br>All Ages with Adult Accompaniment<br><br>For more information, please visit wiltonsaid.comWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/34851932015-01-25T10:48:05-05:002017-01-16T09:01:21-05:00The New Year<strong>Recording, Mixing and Mastering</strong><br>Recording has been completed as well as the mixing for the new Tremble E.P. For various reasons, Guitarist Chris ended up hauling his computer based Protool unit to my house where Bassist Frank and I diligently mixed the fine works of recorded musical art into even more fine works of musical art over three days. Once finished, Frank took the master stereo tracks home and is focused on turning this fine work of musical art into a brilliant work of musical art which should be completed soon.<br><br><strong>Live Show</strong><br>Our Release show is booked but we are waiting to have all of our ducks in a row before we announce the date, time and location.<br><br><strong>Cover Art</strong><br>Thought I'd give you a looksy at the cover for the new release.<br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/28360/cdeca45c5a1a2b7fbcbe29a421a5cd4a32c39c55/medium/tremble-ep-cover.jpg?1422197814" class="size_m justify_center border_" /><br><br>All the best and stay tuned<br>WiltonWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/31502222014-08-22T14:27:57-04:002014-08-22T14:29:45-04:00ALS Ice Bucket ChallengeMy ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in support of the fight against Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig's disease.<br> <div style="text-align: center;"><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="GKXJQIIe7ZQ" data-video-thumb-url="http://img.youtube.com/vi/GKXJQIIe7ZQ/0.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GKXJQIIe7ZQ?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="315" width="420" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/31225872014-08-06T23:22:13-04:002014-08-06T23:22:13-04:00Vocals and How to Sing Them So the band and I are working on a new song for the next recording. Guitarist Chris Reid wrote the chord structure and I arranged it into a song and texture format. The nature of the chords and the texture lent itself to what I think is an interesting vocal melody and vocal texture. The vocal texture I had in mind was channeling David Bowie's big rich open crooner/classical style as heard in the song "Sunday". A short while later I wrote lyrics for the song and due to the nature of the chords and texture, a slightly disturbing lyrical theme emerged. Rehearsals have proved a little problematic for this however as I haven't felt right singing it. Perhaps I'm not singing with the right amount of air flow. Perhaps I'm not singing with enough legato. Perhaps I simply suck. There was only one way to find out. <br> I recorded some basic background guitar into my trusty Korg 1600 Mkii digital recorder and then laid down a variety of vocal tracks consisting of different dynamics. You may wonder why there's any problem at all and why I don't just shut up and simply sing. And that's the crux of the matter, I don't want to simply sing. I love adding dynamics to my vocals. Different volume levels, different tones, different phrasings, anything other than just singing. I think this is due to my vocal influences of Kate Bush, Steve Hogarth, Fish and Maynard James Keenan. I love the way they vary their delivery depending on the song and the song sections. So rather then channeling David Bowie I decided to channel myself with my trusty influences as back up and ended up with a version of the song that feels good and right for me.<br><br>Hopefully it works in rehearsal, and hopefully you like it when it's released.<br><br>Thanks<br>WiltonWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/31174072014-07-31T19:42:56-04:002014-07-31T19:54:34-04:00A new Video from Paddy Aldridge.Paddy has been busy working on some more videos of Wilton Said… music. I think the latest one for "A Family Affair" is my favorite of hers so far. I think what I like about Paddy's style is that her ideas and image are more of a reflection of the mood of the song rather then a direct visual account of the song. Hope you enjoy and feel fee to check out more Wilton Said… videos at <a contents="wiltonsaid.com/videos" data-link-label="Videos" data-link-type="page" href="/videos" target="_blank">wiltonsaid.com/videos</a> and more of Paddy's videos at <a contents="http://www.patriciaaldridge.com" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.patriciaaldridge.com" target="_blank">http://www.patriciaaldridge.com<strong> </strong></a><br> <div style="text-align: center;"><iframe class="justify_inline" data-video-type="youtube" data-video-id="PksSyXp8wwA" data-video-thumb-url="http://img.youtube.com/vi/PksSyXp8wwA/0.jpg" type="text/html" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PksSyXp8wwA?rel=0&wmode=transparent&enablejsapi=1" frameborder="0" height="360" width="640" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/30760992014-07-14T18:53:59-04:002014-07-14T18:53:59-04:00Queen Adam Lambert My wife and I saw the Queen Adam Lambert show in Toronto last night and had a great time. Like many classic rock bands, I was resigned in thinking that I'd hear mainly the chart topping hits without any consideration to the more die hard fan base. I was proven wrong. The show did a great mix of more older and sometimes obscure material such as "In the Lap of the Gods", "39" and more classic rock friendly material such as "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", and "Radio Ga Ga". All musicians performed well with Adam Lambert taking center stage wowing us with his fantastic vocal ability. He showed that he was more then capable in filling Freddie Mercury's lungs and was able to sing the melodies which were originally on the studio albums, something Mercury never did. If I have to say one negative thing, it's that his Pop RnB style fit much better with the more commercial material then it did with the rocking songs like "Now I'm Here" and "Stone Cold Crazy". Standout vocal performances were "In the Lap of the Gods... Revisited", "Killer Queen", "Love Kills" and "Who Wants to Live Forever".<br> The two other draw backs were the lengthy guitar solo spot by Brian May that at first sounded more like a Brian May "Shreds" then an actually guitar solo. While he seemed to be having fun making all kinds of whammy bar feedback noises, I felt myself getting bored. I wish he had stuck to the delay driven melodies of his Brighten Rock solo. The rest of the audience however seemed to really enjoy it, so what do I know.<br> The other draw back was the drumming. Roger Taylor had his son backing him up on additional percussion. From what I could see through my binoculars, his son was basically playing snare, cymbal crashes, and fills along side his dad Roger, but not for every song. Perhaps they thought some songs needed more percussive OMPH! Or perhaps in some songs Roger was getting tired so they needed some extra WHACK! This in no way impacted the sound in a negative way, but I always find it strange when a band adds percussion to their live line up.<br> Over all the sound was fantastic, especially if you like guitar. There was the odd time when I could barely hear the drums, but the vocals came through loud and clear as did the bass and keyboards.<br> It looks like the band is playing in Toronto again on July 28th at the ACC and I do recommend this show for Queen fans. Setlist below.<br><br> <br>Procession - (Intro Over PA)<br>Now I'm Here<br>Stone Cold Crazy<br>Another One Bites the Dust<br>Fat Bottomed Girls<br>In the Lap of the Gods... Revisited<br>Seven Seas of Rhye<br>Killer Queen<br>Somebody to Love<br>I Want It All<br>Love of My Life<br>'39<br>These Are the Days of Our Lives<br>Under Pressure<br>Love Kills - (Freddie Mercury cover)<br>Who Wants to Live Forever<br>Guitar Solo<br>Tie Your Mother Down<br>Radio Ga Ga<br>Crazy Little Thing Called Love<br>The Show Must Go On<br>Bohemian Rhapsody<br>Encore:<br>We Will Rock You<br>We Are the Champions<br>God Save the Queen - (Over PA)<br><br>Thanks<br>Wilton<br> Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/30648962014-07-08T21:25:40-04:002022-01-07T08:58:59-05:00Bands I like, but shouldn't Anyone that knows me knows that I like music which is..., how do I say it, more artsy fartsy. In most cases, this means rock and pop which is more technically advanced in both playing ability and writing ability. (MUSIC SNOB! I hear you yell.) To some, this can conjure up the dreaded "P" genre. "PROGRESSIVE ROCK." Yes I like my music with some widdley widdley on the keys and guitar, some boom boom ba boom ba on the drums, bum bum ba ba do da do bum on the bass, and some la la la la on the vocals. Artists such as The Beatles, Genesis, Marillion, Yes, Rush, Dream Theater, Kate Bush, Jethro Tull, I.Q., Radiohead, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Bats for Lashes, to name a few. While these artists may sound different from each other, they all have one thing in common, the ability to shy away from the 3 or 4 chord simple pop song format. And I love that.<br><br> However, every once in a while I come across an artist which embraces the more simple things in music, and I still end up becoming a fan. Take The Cure for example. Their technical ability as players is pretty questionable but a bulk of their material just moves me. I think it must be their use of minor chords and swirling textures which I really enjoy. Songs such as "Want", "Plainsong", "Faith", "The Top", "End" and "Promise" go nowhere with regards to chord sequencing, song structure, and individual instrumental technique. However, songs like these don't need any of that as in some cases, they simply build in texture and intensity. The Cure do this so well that in my opinion, nothing more is needed. As a side note, they could take a listen to the Yes song "Soon" to hear how a textural build can be integrated with a slightly more advanced chord structure.<br><br> I recently read a whole magazine dedicated to The Cure (or Robert Smith) where he mentioned that he thought Queen was rubbish and pretentious. This coming from a guy who thinks that playing the same chord progression over and over again while building in texture is considered better then anything that Queen did. Perhaps if Robert expanded his influences beyond Susie and The Banshees, Joy Division and Echo and the Bunnymen he would realize that although he didn't like Queen, they certainly weren't rubbish. But I digress, what The Cure do, they do well, no matter how technically limited they are.<br><br> R.E.M. is another band which I enjoy, especially their older stuff from Fables of the Reconstruction through to Out of Time. I think it's their energy, their rawness, and in many cases their simplicity in their music. Sometimes I just don't feel like listening to loads of big expansive complex themes, and REM suits this mood just fine. Plus, listening to Michael Stipe sing gives me a boast of confidence with regards to my own vocals, as does listening to Robert Smith.<br><br> I guess the crunch of this ramble is the question, is one band or style better then the other? Are the bombastic sounds and techniques of Prog Rock better or not then the technically striped down REM or The Cure? The answer is, technically Prog Rock IS better as the players and writers do have a wider palette to draw from. However, in the end, the song and style is still what really matters and that is subjective, no matter how well or not well it is played or written.<br><br>Wilton<br> Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/29548232014-05-18T12:33:58-04:002014-08-15T23:32:31-04:00IQ Road of Bones Review The other day I downloaded and listened to IQ's "The Road of Bones". While I don't consider myself a huge fan of the band, I do have various releases, "Tales from the Lush Attic", "The Wake", "Are You Sitting Comfortably?", "Ever", "Subterranea", "Dark Matter" and "Frequency". The thing with this band is that I like various tracks off of these albums. I love "The Enemy Smacks", "Widows Peak", "Headlong", "Nothing At All", "Overture/Provider/Subterranea", "Red Dust Shadow", "Frequency", and "Ryker Skies". No one album stands out as being a favorite and current one is no exception.<br> I have a few difficulties with the new album and their music in general. First off, many of their songs use the same type of chord structures and sonic textures making many of their songs sound alike. This is particularly noticeable from Ever through to Bones. "Knucklehead (at 1:44) sounds really similar to "Capricorn", it's even in the same key. "Without Walls" (3:33) sounds similar to "Frequency". I know one could say this about many bands such as one of my favorites Iron Maiden. How many songs can you have using i VII VI chords over a gallop rhythm? But if anyone has been following the band in the last 10 years, they'll hear that they've gotten away from that style, mainly due to the larger songwriting contribution of guitarist Adrian Smith and less of bassist and founder Steve Harris. Unfortunately, to my ears, IQ has not followed that route and have gone the tried and true route.<br> The other difficulty I have is that they are the perfect example of newer Prog. Their song structures, chord progressions, time signatures, textures and production are exactly perfect. For me this means that they take no chances and play it pretty safe making for a generic sound.<br><br> Over all, Bones is a good album and I'm sure fans of the band will love it, and I do recommend it. However for me who enjoys a little more variety, and quirkiness to their music, it joins the ranks of the other releases without standing out.<br><br>Wilton Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/29528902014-05-16T21:02:16-04:002018-10-26T09:06:13-04:00Lyrics and Assumptions Myself and Wildside owner Paddy Aldridge were recently featured on a radio show called "Beyond the Mundane", (which is run out of realityradio101.com). In addition to talking a little bit about my music, I was able to talk about some of the lyrics to the songs "Pretty", "Whipped Cream", "All for You", and "Down" which were played on the show. If any one has read or heard the lyrics, there's no doubt that the first three have a sexual nature to them while the last one "Down" doesn't.<br> About a week later I found out that the lyrical subject matter of these songs led the owner of realityradio101.com to assume that I was gay. However I was defended by the producer of "Beyond the Mundane" who assured the owner that I was indeed not gay.<br><br> This made me think of a few issues. Was the owner just stating his opinion, or was he making a negative comment about being gay? After all, if I had been doing RnB music, he might have said that anyone who does music like that must be black. The issue for me isn't whether someone thinks I'm gay or not, or thinks I'm black or not, it's his implication that someone may look, act, or be a certain way based on limited evidence. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, it can be frustrating when it's a misguided one.<br> Another issue could be that perhaps he was simply ranting off on how he doesn't like the concept of gays and sex. Fair enough, I don't like eggs, I think they taste awful and are gross. Same with porridge. I could rant for ages about my dislike for these two well known hearty breakfast meals. However, I don't let my dislike of these two food items affect other people. I don't look down on people who like eggs and porridge and I don't think everyone should stop eating eggs and porridge. Perhaps that was what the owner was getting at. Just a rant at his dislike at the idea of men with men without judging them. <br> However, if in his misguided thinking of me being gay, he added that he didn't ever want me back on the show because of it, that would be a homophobic issue which I would have a problem with as I have no time for bigotry in my life.<br> For now, I'll file this issue under "no judgment until I get proof" category.<br><br>Wilton<br><br> 4:38Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/29393212014-05-11T13:28:44-04:002014-05-13T19:27:39-04:00Happy Mothers Day 2014 I know everyone, or hopefully most everyone thinks their Mom is special, and I'm no exception. The whole birthing thing must have been trouble enough without all the additional worries afterwards that come with being a parent. <br><br> For me, my Mom represents strength and determination. Raising me (a mixed raced child) as a single parent while working a full time job in the banking management sector couldn't have been easy. There were moments of sexism and racism which she was able to rise above all the while taking an active interest in what I was doing. She was alwaaaaays at the parent teacher meetings to access my progress at school, something which I couldn't say about most of my friends. She enforced an open communication with teachers to make sure I was getting the most out of my education. She taught me to do the best I could and not to simply take the easy path. While my high school had a 60% minimum to be exempt from final exams, my mom said I needed 70%. Thanks Mom, I think :).<br><br> Perhaps one of her greatest gifts to me was her love of music. Coming home from daycare at 8 years old talking about Elvis and the Bay City Rollers, I asked if she had any. She said "no, but I have these" and held up some obscure records by a group called The Beatles. I put on the first one called "With the Beatles" and loved the opening strains of "It Won't be Long". I was hooked and became a Beatles fan. My Mom also played piano and was always tinkling around on the song "Send in the Clowns" which became one of my favorite songs. Opera and orchestral music was also heard throughout the house on many occasions. I think the most important thing that stuck with me was her explanation of major chords vs minor chords. One sounded happy, the other sad. I preferred the sad.<br><br> With these introductions to music, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that most of the music I listen to is of a more dramatic, over blown, artsy fartsy style. It doesn't matter whether it's Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite", Iron Maiden's "Sign of the Cross", The Beatles "Happiness is a Warm Gun", Marillion's "The Invisible Man", Bat for Lashes "Glass", John William's Start Wars "Force Theme", The Cure's "Cold", or Queen's "In the Lap of the Gods", if it's dramatic, and in a minor key, chances are that it'll move me in some way.<br><br> And yes, she took an interest in what I was listening to, especially during my teen aged years as a metal head listening to Maiden, Priest and Sabbath. She would sit and listen (or at least pretend to listen) while I educated her on the various frequency differences of Toni Iommi guitar sound on Live Evil vs the guitar sound on Judas Priests Sin After Sin. She was also curious about the lyrics, possibly to make sure I wasn't getting into any "Evil" stuff. As I said she took an interest in everything I did.<br><br> Now a days, she lives a little further out but I still see her regularly (she even comes to gigs still) and we chat. She's still interested in what I'm doing and I'm interested in what she's up to.<br><br>So Mom, I love you and thanks for all you've done for me.<br>Happy Mothers Day<br><br>Love<br>Wilton<br><br> Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/22989642013-12-28T14:42:40-05:002013-12-28T14:42:40-05:00The Winter Wonderland, or not quite so.<span class="font_regular"><strong>Winter Wonderland</strong><br>It's been an interesting Christmas for me, as I'm sure it has been for many people in Ontario. The weekend before Christmas, Ontario was hit with an ice storm leaving many without power for up to a week. Fortunately for my wife and I we were only out for about 48 hours. Some of our neighbors had the misfortune of having tree trunks fall onto their hydro lines causing them to be without power until they could pay to have their hydro wand fixed. We did offer up our house for warmth and food storage, but they already had plans in motion. Thankfully they now have full power and heating to their house.<br><br><strong>Take A Deep Breath</strong><br>Somehow out of the blue I have developed a mild case of pneumonia. During the Saturday I started to develop a cough and didn't think any thing of it as it was only intermittent. The next day I started to feel like I had mild asthma (a condition I used to have more severely as a child) and took some huff and puffs on my blue puffer. Nothing much changed. I ended up getting some mucus medication and took it for almost a week, but still no change. Went to a walk in clinic where the doctor got me to "take a deep breath" in which he informed me it was most likely a localized infection. As you can guess, I'm on some antibiotics and I'm refraining from any sort of strenuous physical activity. (Darn, there goes my chance to renovate the bathroom) :)<br><br><strong>Hello Goodbye</strong><br>In music related news, the band and I are saddened to say goodbye to drummer Richard Rizzo. It turns out that commitments to family and the other band he's in, Second Pass, has left him with little time to commit to Wilton Said… He has been part of the band for just over 10 years and his great playing can be heard on The Butterfly Plague, The View and Half Life. We wish him and his family all the best.<br>Motions have been made to look for a new drummer and we do have a few leads.<br><br>We will also be saying goodbye to bassist Deb Ray who was on semi-permanent fill in for Frank Heisler. Deb has stated that he will be cutting down on all of his musical activities due to spending more time with his family and we wish him all the best.<br>Frank Heisler will be returning on bass after a hiatus of about 3 years due to medical issues. Frank is feeling much better and has stated that he is well and ready to contribute to recording and live playing in Wilton Said…<br><br>Rehearsals and drummer auditions have been scheduled for the new year and we look forward to getting the Wilton Said… music machine up and running again with a new recording and some live gigs.<br><br>Thanks<br>Happy New Year and all the Best.<br>Wilton</span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/18485112013-10-14T12:29:10-04:002013-11-17T15:46:26-05:00Fall Time in the CityIt's a beautiful day here in Toronto and I've decided to stay indoors for most of it playing video games with my wife. We've had a bit of a busy weekend with wine buying, seeing a DC Comic themed burlesque show, and visiting family (I'm still trying to figure out which was my favorite) so we're keeping this day pretty relaxed. Happy Turkey day (or vegan supplement) to you all.<br><br>The NUANCE show on Oct 5th at The Hideout was a nice affair with support from some regulars and with some new faces in the audience. It was a pleasure to see artists Steve Cochrane, Centrifuge and Bolus perform their great sets of prog rock. My own band performed well in-spite of the crazy lights which threatened to cause us all to have seizures. For those that care, our setlist was….<br><br>In a People Bar<br>Endorphin Crash<br>Down<br>Pretty<br>/Gender Bender<br>Merry Go Round<br>The Empty Sky<br>i) The View<br>ii) Goodbye<br>iii) Fallen<br>All for You<br>Drum Bit/Why Don’t...Road<br>Half Life<br><br>Musically, Wilton Said… band events will now be on the quiet side as the band have their own personal plans for the rest of the year. I however might do some writing and a bit of recording if inspiration hits. We'll have to see. There's the possibility of recording some vocal parts for the rock opera as I've had a bit of interest from a few singers, but we'll have to see how that pans out.<br><br>All the best<br>Thanks<br>WiltonWilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/17212322013-09-26T16:38:43-04:002013-09-26T16:38:43-04:00Production is in the Ear of the Listener<span style="font-size: medium;">Like many artists, I often try and take an objective look at or listen to what I do. In this case my music. Somedays I think it sounds pretty good and spiffy, other days I listen and it all sounds like crap. Before I go further, I'd just like to say that the things that do give me pause are things which I can change. As a result, my actual songs are never up for debate in my own mind. My songs and writing style are a part of me and can't be changed. For me to write something (like an "oh baby baby" love song) which I didn't feel was an actual extension of myself would feel… wrong. Yes, the cliche is strong with me, I can only be true to myself when it comes to my writing. However, the recorded production style is a different matter.<br><br>
I've always liked the idea of keeping control of my own art and as a result I've always recorded on my own terms with my own home equipment. My recordings since 2006 were recorded with a stand alone Korg D1600 mkii 16 track recorder. Sure it's no Protools or Cubase, but it does the job pretty well. Of course, like any technology, there are advances and since 2006, computer based recording systems have gotten better and better with more and more features. In addition, styles change and over the past 10 years there has been a steady increase in production fixes on recordings of every genre. It doesn't appear to be good enough that one is able to punch in a short phrase of music to get the perfect take. In fact it may not matter any more. If the timing is off a bit, no worries we can fix it by quantizing. If the vocalists pitch is off a bit, we can use auto tune it so it's in tune. All in all, the musician is having to do less work and the production is picking up the slack. On top of this we have the loudness wars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war) where the loudest music seems to be getting the most value. If it was just loud, it wouldn't be so bad, but these volume levels are at the expense of any dynamics originally played or sung by the musicians. We are moving further away from any spirit of the musician or performer and more into the realm of automated and un-natural perfection.<br>
As you can imagine, when I compare my recordings to anything recorded in at least the past 10 or 15 years, there is a noticeable difference. In most cases, any mention at all about my production is usually described as either being "retro" or "dated". Ironically, the thing which made me write this blog or blab is due to me listening to one of the most whacked out Prog bands ever, King Crimson. I came across their album Discipline on Youtube and started listening to it. While I wasn't too fond of the music (very very busy to my ears), I was surprised at how dynamic, how edgy, how live it sounded. After listening to a few songs, I switched over to my iTunes and took a listen to one of my own songs for comparison and realized that my stuff was on par production wise. No quantize, no auto tuned vocals, and lots of dynamics. So, it really is all about context.<br>
So in this context, I guess I feel pretty good about the production and recording of my own songs. Now if only I could write that love song. Everyone loves a love song.</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/15370792013-09-02T11:52:00-04:002013-09-02T11:52:00-04:00Depeche Mode/Bat for Lashes Concert.<span style="font-size: medium;">On Sun Sept 1st, my wife and I attended the concert in Toronto at the Molson Amphitheater. While I originally wasn't interested in Depeche Mode (although my wife was), I do like Bat for Lashes and was looking forward to her set.<br><br><b>Bats for Lashes</b><br>
I've got all 3 of her recordings and her music is extremely artsy fartsy with more then hints of Kate Bush, Tori Amos, and Peter Gabriel. She opened her set with "Lilies", the 1st track from her new album The Haunted Man. She followed with one of my favorite songs of hers called "Glass" of off what I think is a masterpiece called Two Suns. I was a little disappointed that she edited out the solo voice introduction of the song and went right into the full band section. Nevertheless it was great to hear live. The rest of the set was a great combination of material from the 3 albums with some additional highlights being the haunting "Laura", and the upbeat techno country beats of "Sleep Alone". My only complaint is that the band and Natasha were dressed in darker colors which made them hard to distinguish from the equipment on stage, especially as we were sitting on the lawns. <br>
Next time they are in Toronto, I hope they play a smaller venue as I think they would really shine in a more intimate setting.<br><br>
Setlist was...<br>
Lilies<br>
Glass<br>
What's a Girl to Do?<br>
Travelling Woman<br>
Sleep Alone<br>
A Wall<br>
Laura<br>
All Your Gold<br>
The Haunted Man<br>
Daniel<br><br><b>Depeche Mode</b><br>
Not being a fan of this style of music let alone the band, I approached their set with an open mind. Well I must say that I really enjoyed it. Part of the reason is that as a live band, they rawk a little more then they do on their studio releases. Yes the electronic genre textures were present, but they were more in the background. The drummer (hired sideman not officially part of the band) was amazing and helped kept the music lively. Leadman Dave Gahan, while not the best vocalist, was an excellent frontman as he moved/pranced/gyrated around the stage. Interestingly, guitarist Martin Gore was a fantastic vocalist as he sang lead on 3 mellower numbers while being backed by piano. His voice was that of a trained musical theater voice which made me wonder why he wasn't the lead singer of the band. What I thought was interesting was that many of their songs were quite dark in nature. With screaming guitars and vocals, these songs could early translate to the hard rock or heavy metal genre without changing a lyric or chord. <br>
Visually, the show was top notch and easily rivaled anything Rush, or Iron Maiden have done. There were lights that moved, and there were video screens, what more could anyone ask for. Oh ya, pyro, there was no pyro, but that's OK. <br>
Intrigued by what I heard at the show, I downloaded the recent album called Delta Machine and am enjoying it.<br><br>
Setlist was…<br>
Welcome to My World <br>
Angel <br>
Walking in My Shoes <br>
Precious <br>
Black Celebration <br>
Policy of Truth <br>
Should Be Higher <br>
Barrel of a Gun <br>
The Child Inside (Acoustic: Sung by Martin) <br>
But Not Tonight (Acoustic: Sung by Martin) <br>
Heaven <br>
Soothe My Soul <br>
A Pain That I'm Used To <br>
A Question of Time <br>
Enjoy the Silence <br>
Personal Jesus <br>
Encore:<br>
Home (Acoustic: Sung by Martin) <br>
Halo<br>
Just Can't Get Enough <br>
I Feel You <br>
Never Let Me Down Again <br><br>
Wilton<br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/10412912013-06-29T09:21:55-04:002013-06-29T09:21:55-04:00Indie Music Observation<span style="font-size: medium;">At the beginning of the week, I had the good fortune to get my Wilton Said… music, visuals, and brand critiqued by an owner of a promotion company. My music and live show sales are pretty hit and miss so I was interested in finding a way to increase my fan base and therefore increase these sales. This company was a possibility and had gotten many good reviews and comments from their clients. I even contacted these bands myself and they all raved about the great job that was done in getting their music reviewed and out there in the music press. So I emailed this promotions company an introduction along with some links to my website and music.<br><br>
A few days later I got a nice critique which basically mentioned that while my music and vocals were good and interesting, my visual presentation (Website, CD Covers, Video) was poor. He also mentioned that production on the songs was dated. To him, Wilton Said… seemed more like a hobbiest project rather then a professional one. (He's not totally wrong) He did mention that it was only HIS (one persons) opinion but nonetheless he would not work with me.<br><br>
I was gutted, and mildly depressed (only for a day) but thought over his comments. But then I realized the first thing I needed to do was to look at and listen to some of the bands which he had worked with. So I did….<br><br>
The first thing that struck me was that half the bands didn't even have their own website. Links were either right to their generic Band Camp, Reverb Nation or a Facebook page. Is this considered good online visual presentation?<br><br>
Looking at the CD Artwork for some bands reminded me of Clip Art. Others seemed just a little cheesy.<br><br>
As for the music, soooo much of it was sooo heavily compressed. I had heard of Brick Wall compression in Mastering where the signal is boosted so loud that any dynamics are eliminated, but I hadn't heard it to the extent that I heard it with many of these Indie bands. The production of these bands made Rush's Vapor Trails and Clockwork Angels sound dynamic. The actual mix itself wasn't great, just loud. In some cases the drums were so compressed and quantized that the music was lifeless. The vocals were also perfect. I don't mean sung perfectly, I mean pitch-corrected perfect. Again, lifeless and lacking any realism. So I suppose that if my production volume is quieter, more dynamic, more lively, then I guess my production is dated compared to much of the indie bands today.<br><br>
I guess my main point is that like any business, to really succeed you need to play the game to a certain degree. And I guess I'm not prepared to play the game to the extent that some of these Indie bands have. I will not have my music coming across lifeless, quantized, pitch corrected, and brick walled all for the sake of a small chance of getting ahead. I will however look into redoing my website.<br><br>
All in all, the critique was a positive experience as it did open my eyes to what the industry professionals (at least one of them) are expecting. Whether I can or should deliver to those expectations is another matter.</span><br><br><span style="font-size: medium;">Wilton</span><br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/9477082013-06-15T07:49:46-04:002013-06-15T07:49:46-04:00A review of our June 8th 2013 Show at the Black Swan.<span style="font-size: medium;">Saturday afternoon at the Black Swan. Wilton Said played to an enthusiastic audience. The opening set featured tracks from 'The Butterfly Plague', from a few years back. They were good, of course. However, there were two false starts, which is very unusual for this band. At one point Wilton was playing something a bit odd. It may have been Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 6 in D Minor, Op. 6, or it might have been 'Three Blind Mice', I'm not sure which. Also, Richard Rizzo had a new drum set. Very nice looking, too. However, there was a rattling sound coming from them that I found rather annoying. <br>
The second set, though, was classic Wilton! Great songs, featuring the excellent work of great musicians! Chris Reid was incredible on guitar, as usual. Richard Rizzo on drums was superb, as usual. Deb Ray, the newest member, was great on bass! Wilton himself was his usual best, a showman with excellent skills and timing. <br>
Another classic Wilton Said show at the Black Swan, always worth seeing, always worth the time! <br><br>
Doug Leblanc</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/9044032013-06-09T08:15:00-04:002013-06-09T08:15:00-04:00Butterfly Plague Show Report<span style="font-size: medium;">The June 8th show at the Black Swan turned out to be an intimate but lively affair. Thanks to those that came out to support the band (Guitarist Chris Reid, Bassist Deb Ray and Drummer Richard Rizzo) and myself. I'd also like to say that I'm honored that the show was the first show in which Richard got to play his brand new set of bright white drums. They sounded great, at least that's what he says. To me they just go boom boom boom and that's all I care about.<br><br>
I'd also like to thank my wife Kerry for greeting everyone at the door and taking your money. <br><br>
Janelle did a great job on live sound once again. Believe it or not, she stays at the board during the show adjusting the sound as needed. I know this seems like it should be a given, but many other sound mixers at other venues take off for a smoke or break during a bands set. Many and much thanks Janelle.<br><br>
The Black Swan has my thanks again for hosting the show and being flexible with timing and schedule. Owners John and Bill have always been receptive of me holding shows at the venue and it is much appreciated.<br><br>
For those that are interested, the set list was as follows….<br><br><span style="font-size: small;"><b>1st Set</b><br>
Star <br>
/Shopping Asia<br>
Endorphin Crash<br>
Holiday People<br>
The Butterfly Plague (pt1 A Journey) <br>
Halos<br>
Mom<br>
Bar<br>
Outside<br>
/Close <br>
For the Lie<br>
Stitch <br>
The Telling<br><br><b>2nd Set</b><br>
Heavy Motion<br>
Down<br>
Pretty<br>
/Gender Bender<br>
All for You<br>
Drum Bit/Why Don’t We Do It In The Road<br>
Half Life</span><br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/8267012013-05-27T13:23:18-04:002013-05-27T13:23:18-04:00England Trip and Rush<span style="font-size: medium;">Got back from holiday trip to England on Sunday and had a great relaxing time with my wife's family and friends. Lots of wine, food and great company. Can things get any better? I think not. <br><br>
With regards to wine, one often thinks of European countries such as France, Italy, Germany and Spain for wine, but not England. There's a good reason for that and it's cost vs quality. I had the privilege of trying some English wine and it was really good. Light but good. However, looking in a few shops it became apparent that the price for a decent bottle of English wine is higher then the same quality of wine from one of the previous mentioned countries. As a result I'm guessing that England just isn't able to compete on the world market. I would argue that Canada is in a similar position. Talking to a stall owner, she mentioned that much of the English wine is made from lighter less known grapes (which I can't remember off hand). Perhaps they're trying to be unique in the way that Canada is unique with its Ice Wine and Baco Noir grape.<br><br>
I was able to pick up 3 bottles of my favorite Italian wine Piccini. As of a few weeks ago I had bought the last two bottles in existence in Ontario but was delighted to find some in England. I bought three bottles with a vintage of 2010 (more recent then the 2007 bottles I bought here) and we had one at dinner. Even with having an hour to breath, it was veeerrrry young. Looks like I'll be saving the other two bottles for 2014 and 2015 which will hopefully loosen them up. But no fear, I do have two 2007 bottles to drink over the summer. So if you like wine and pasta, give me a shout and I may be able to share a glass with you. :)<br><br>
A friend of my wife is a huge Rush fan and he bought me a ticket to see them in England at the O2 Center, the main live music venue for well known international artists and events. While the setlist was exactly the same as the Toronto show last October, the sound was much better then that of the ACC. Less echo and reverberation meant a clearer sound which was really noticeable during the 2nd set which had the addition of a small string orchestra. Over all I enjoyed the show more then the Toronto show. And yes, I loved the setlist even though it consisted of lots of material from Power Windows at the expense of more classic material.<br><br>
Before leaving for England, I had spent about two weeks brushing up on my keyboard and vocal skills for the June 8th show. I was delighted to find that the work paid off as I played well during some practicing last night and today. Tomorrow is the first rehearsal with the band and I feel very prepared.<br><br>
That's it for now.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/5725172013-04-20T13:13:33-04:002017-02-01T23:33:54-05:00Another Importance that music can play in our Society<span style="font-size: larger;">Shows how important music is to some people. When you think of it, for most elderly people, music was the main source of entertainment for them, especially as they were groaning up as the visual media that we are accustomed to today was minimal. <br><br><br></span><iframe width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EgNLLelQYwI"></iframe>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/4072212013-03-25T11:35:52-04:002013-03-25T11:35:52-04:00Marillion Weekend Montreal 2013 Blog - Spoilers<span style="font-size: larger;">Just got back from the Marillion weekend in Montreal with my wife and as always it was a great time. Took Via Rail which was really relaxing as always. We stayed in our favorite hotel on St. Denis called Le Relais Lyonnais which I highly recommend to any one staying in Downtown Montreal. (Just not on the same dates as the Marillion Conventions).<br><br>
What is special about these Convention shows is that for $150 can you get 3 nights of Marillion music with each night being a totally different set, and that's in addition to any opening bands. The 1st night is always an album night where the band play an entire album along with additional material. The other 2 nights sometimes consist of some sort of theme such as, a song from every year, an audience vote, a song from each letter of the alphabet, long songs only. Previously I have had a preference for one night over the other due to song selections, however this time around I can honestly say that I enjoyed all 3 nights equally. I really can't choose a favorite.<br><br>
The 1st night consisted of the whole Radiation album. Now any one who is a fan will know that this was a surprise as it is arguably the bands weakest release mainly due to trying too hard to sound relevant for the time in 1998. The songs are poppy, a little edgy, and simplistic. But like many things, over time you begin to appreciate the things you once disliked and sometimes even grow to like them.<br>
Live, the material was smoking. Lead off album track Under the Sun just rocked and the band looked like they were having a blast. Even their shortest song The Answering Machine was rockin. While some of the material played was not my favorite, the band redeemed themselves in the 2nd set with what was probably one of my favorite string of songs ever played. Hooks in You, Cover My Eyes, Slainte Mhath, Lavender, Heart of Lothian, King. And the encore caused me to lose my bowels as they played Script for a Jesters Tear. The evening finished off with Happiness is the Road with the audience singing the chorus a cappella.<br><br>
The 2nd night featured the Brave album in it's entirety. For many fans this was a very special evening as many consider this a favorite, although not mine. Nevertheless it is a concept album and I looked forward to seeing the whole thing as they didn't tour it in North America in 1994. It was FANTASTIC. They played and sang excellently and the visuals helped to add the appropriate mood.<br>
The 2nd set consisted of a few songs which don't sit well with me such as Rich and Genie, but that's just me. Following that they redeemed themselves again by playing Warm Wet Circles/That Time of the Night, Drilling Holes closing with the atmospheric Out of This World. Totally amazing. The encore consisted of Seasons End and The Space.<br><br>
The 3rd night was all of the current album Sounds That Can't be Made. Thankfully they didn't play it in album order but spread the songs throughout the set. Notable stands out were the 20 minute opener Gaza which was amazing. I don't think I've ever heard Marillion sound so HUGE. The song Sounds That Can't be Made had a real nice groove going throughout. The ending section is one Marillions most beautiful, melodic, and moving pieces ever and almost had me in tears. And it to was HUGE sounding. They surprised the audience with another long song This Strange Engine. Guitarist Steve Rothery executed 2 brilliant guitar solos which had the audience giving him a standing ovation. Included in the set were Neverland, again HUGE sounding and the incredibly emotional Sky Above Rain. There were also some more oldies thrown in such as King of Sunset Town (proving that Steve Rothery is human after all due to his mistake during the guitar solo). Ending the set and the whole convention was another Fish era tune Garden Party. <br><br>
What is notable about these sets was the amount of Fish era material played, 7 songs in total. In the past the band has made a point to either discount material from this era or play very little of it. But it appears the band have gotten over this and have realized that good songs are good songs no matter who wrote or originally sang them. Saying that, vocalist Steve Hogarth (H) did a fantastic job on all songs, F era and later.<br><br>
It should be noted that the band did play the song Montreal, twice. Once as an opener on the 1st night and then again as one of the encores on the 3rd night.<br><br>
Over all a fantastic 3 days of eclectic Marillion material. I just wonder how they'll top it in 2 years time.<br><br>
Wilton<br><br><br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/3150702013-02-17T08:00:33-05:002013-02-17T08:00:33-05:00Post Video Release Show Wrap Up Blog<span style="font-size: larger;">Just relaxing after the show last night. Over all it was a fantastic evening if I may say so myself. Opener Steve Cochrane who was joined by vocalist Aimee Matuszczak did a great job with his acoustic set. I really enjoyed his renditions from songs off of La la la Variations on a Happy Song, and The Purist of Designs. Thanks again Steve. Check him out at <a href="http://www.spiritcompass.com/" target="_new">http://www.spiritcompass.com/</a><br><br>
For my own set I thought the band and I played really well. Sure there were a few flubs and bulbs by all of us, but it is live after all. A huge thanks once again to the band - Chris Reid on Guitars, Deb Ray on Bass, and Richard Rizzo on Drums. Also many thanks to Janelle Eisler for mixing sound and not pressing the "Suck Button". Thanks to my wife Kerry for greeting everyone at the door and taking your money. Thanks to the Black Swan venue for having us play again and again. And of course and most importantly, thanks to all who came out to the show. There were a few newer faces in the audience which is always a great thing.<br><br>
Please visit <a href="./home.cfm">wiltonsaid.com</a> for info on music and live events.<br><br>
For those that care, below is the setlist…<br><br>
1st Set<br>
In a People Bar<br>
Endorphin Crash<br>
Merry go Round<br>
Bar<br>
Down<br>
Heavy Motion<br>
Shopping Asia<br>
/DrumBit/Why...Road<br>
Pretty <br>
/Gender Bender<br>
All for You<br>
In My Dreams<br>
Simple<br>
Broken Mind<br><br>
2nd Set<br>
The Empty Sky <br>
i) The View <br>
ii) Goodbye<br>
iii) Fallen<br>
Halos<br>
Half Life<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><a href="./home.cfm">www.wiltonsaid.com</a><br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/3048972013-02-09T15:08:54-05:002013-02-09T15:08:54-05:00The Light and Dark of Shooting a Video<span style="font-size: larger;">So I've got this music video which was shot and made back in Sept 2012 for a song of mine called "Pretty". I knew in August that I wanted to have a video made as a way of marketing my music. I knew I wanted it to be entertaining and I wanted it to be affordable. I emailed around for some tips and to see if anyone knew any directors and about four names came up. Upon contacting them I was able to get some great tips from a few of them. One director in particular, Eduardo Soto-Falcon did a great job of filling me in on approximate costs. I also had a friend who was briefly involved in the industry give me a few pointers. The most important tips and info to me were to do with keeping costs down. The range of price for what I was looking for could be anywhere between $500 up to $3000 and it was suggested that I budget for about $3000. To help keep costs down, it was suggested that I shoot outside in daylight using natural light, otherwise lighting and certain camera lens would need to be added to the cost.<br><br>
First thing however was for me to edit the song down to a reasonable length. The original version of "Pretty" clocked in at almost 5 minutes, too long for a commercial pop single. I ended up editing it down to about 4:30secs by cutting a phrase from each chorus (only two "Feeling Pretty" 's instead of three), and cutting out two guitar solos (sorry Chris). This meant I then had to re record a few vocal lines to sing over the edit. I also re recorded a few piano and keyboard bits to bridge the edits. Over all I think it sounds fine and even the band guys can't tell where the edits are. I also did a few edits with the drums where I shifted the odd drum shot or two to make it a little tighter. Next up was a re-mix in which I raised the vocal volume a little bit and reduced the over all reverb to clean up the sound. I also added the beginning strains of "Gender Bender" to the end of "Pretty". Remastering was done at Chris's house.<br><br>
Now that the audio was ready, I was able to email it out to give perspective Directors. Ben Stacey (<a href="http://www.benstaceypictures.com" target="_new">www.benstaceypictures.com</a>) seemed enthusiastic about the project and responded promptly to all my emails. Originally I was just gathering information with the intention of shooting in November, but Ben seemed so gung ho that I started thinking more about the video. A few weeks later I had done up a storyboard idea, and emailed it off to him. He emailed back an estimated cost which was a little over the upper cost range mentioned above. (Mainly because we would be shooting indoors and at night which meant lighting rentals). We then met at my place to go over the story board and he gave me the contract with the cost. The contract broke down the cost of everything which was great. A few days later after doing a money transfer of the deposit, we set up a date for the shoot.<br><br>
This brings me to the location of the shoot. My friend who was the inspiration for the song and video had mentioned buying his "clothes" from "Take a Walk on the Wildside" (<a href="http://www.wildside.org" target="_new">www.wildside.org</a>) which is located in Toronto. I emailed the owner Patricia Aldridge and mentioned my proposal to shoot a video in her shop and borrow the clothing and make up at the shop. She was thrilled and an agreement was reached. She even threw in a make up test a week before the shoot.<br><br>
The day of the shoot went smoothly and everyone was prepared. There was very little waiting around as Ben had organized what order to shoot in. We arrived at 4pm and went pretty much straight through to 12midnight. I offered a dinner break around 9pm but everyone was keen to keep going so we did. After the shoot, Ben mentioned he'd have a rough edit available in a couple of weeks, which he did. After about a week of edits and comments, the video was done.<br><br>
Overall, I think the video turned out fantastic and give great thanks to Ben Stacey and Paddy Aldridge for their services, help and enthusiasm.<br><br>
And of course, the video can be viewed <a href="./videos.cfm">HERE</a>.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2952212013-01-31T17:08:03-05:002013-01-31T17:08:03-05:00This Tarred Honky<span style="font-size: larger;">With February being Black History month, I was reminded of a conversation I had with a guy about 15 years ago. I was working at the local community centre and was responsible for setting up equipment and making sure no one got hurt. Participants were all late teens so they didn't need constant supervision. As a result I used to do a bit of homework while listening to music. On one occasion I had been listening to 70's Prog rock group Kansas during the session and afterwards was approached by one of the guys and asked why I was listening to "white" music. I said I liked it. He thought I should've been listening to music which reflected my skin colour, which to him was black. I said I was a mix but he still insisted that I should be following my "black" heritage and culture. In the end we disagreed and went our separate ways. Every once in a while I think back to this conversation and feel that it was unfortunate that this man indulged in stereotypes. He was black.<br><br>
This always gets me thinking about my own view of race and culture as it relates to myself. Yes, I am of mixed breeding which is Jamaican (daddy) and British (mommy), who divorced a year after I was born. Does that mean I have an obligation to follow either of these heritages or cultures? I would argue that environment can play a much stronger role in identification no matter the birth place of the parents. I was raised by my mother who played piano, listened to Orchestral music and had Soft Rock radio playing in the mornings. Perhaps if I had been raised by my dad I would've listened to Reggie and RnB music. (Perhaps that's just me using stereotypes, although the black guy at the community centre seemed to want to encourage that stereotype, so if it was OK for him to do so, I guess it's OK for me to do so). Anyways, I digress. This consistent barrage of Orchestral and Soft Rock music soon developed into an enjoyment of The Beatles, Elvis Presley, and Star Wars soundtracks. 80's New Wave, Heavy Metal and 70's Prog Rock soon followed. All in all, I loved "white" music. I've tried on a few occasions to get down and in touch with my "roots", but heavy rhythmic based dancing music just doesn't groove with me the way a great 7/8 time signature does. <br><br>
But it's not only the music which was affected by my upbringing, it was my fashion sense (:lol), and my speech patterns (bigger :lol). In fact I was so "unblack" that one year at a summer camp when I was 11, another kid shouted through the window "nigger nigger nigger". I was horrified, but not for the reason you might think. I was looking around to find the kid who this derogatory taunt was aimed at. Surely it wasn't me. A few of the other boys tried to console me but I assured them that I wasn't offended.<br><br>
Around the same time I started to realize that the rest of my family which I had contact with (my mothers side) were all of a different skin colour than me. I asked my mom about it, she explained the situation about my dad, and then it all made sense. But I never felt torn, split, or confused about who I should be. From that age on I had the opportunity to ask and investigate about my dad but I was never really interested. I had a family, I was happy, and I was me.<br><br>
In later years I made jokes about being mulatto, being a failed black man, or a failed white man. I made jokes about knowing white people who were blacker than me and jokes about black people who were whiter than me. All in all, despite my skin colour, I had my own sense of identity which was not based on any racial heritage, but based on my own sense of individualism and that continues to this day.<br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2874902013-01-23T17:43:49-05:002013-01-23T17:43:49-05:00The Queen Extravaganza 2013<span style="font-size: larger;">My wife and I saw the Toronto show of Queen Extravaganza a few nights ago at The Sony Center. For anyone not familiar with the band, it's basically a Queen Tribute band put together by Roger Tayler ex drummer of Queen. We saw the band in Toronto in the summer of 2012 at the smaller Queen Elizabeth Theater and it was great. There were 3 different singers which alternated songs, the set list had a great mix of hits (We Will Rock You, We Are the Champions, Another One Bites the Dust) and deeper cuts such as You Take my Breath Away, Lap of the Gods (1 and 2), March of the Black Queen. I knew that the Sony Center concert had cut down on the lead vocals and would feature mainly Marc Martel on vocals.<br><br>
Over all the show was great and extremely well received by the audience. However I couldn't help thinking that they would've done better in a smaller venue, especially since the show was only a 3rd full. In fact, they were offering free upgrades for seats closer to the stage. Needless to say, my wife and I jumped at the chance to move from our balcony seats to floor seats.<br><br>
My main complaints was that the show was much shorter then I would've expected. While the summer show had two full one hour sets, this show had a 40 min set, and then an hour set. As a result, less songs were played and there was an emphasis on the hits. I talked to Keyboardist/Musical Director Brandon Ethridge after the show and he mentioned that promoters wanted a shorter show and more hits. He himself seemed a little disappointed at this. Nevertheless there were some highlights such as "The Show Must Go On" which sounded HUGE and Powerful. Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon was nice and whimsical. Radio Ga Ga was fantastic, especially with the crowd participation. (I can't stand the studio version, but this live version rocks).<br><br>
So again, a really great show if you're a casual Queen or Rock fan, but die hards may be disappointed at the lack of deeper tracks.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2843002013-01-19T13:40:00-05:002013-01-19T13:40:00-05:00I'm "Pretty" Laid Back<span style="font-size: larger;">"Hey Wilton, … so uhmmm, how did you feel shooting the video, what with the clothing and all?"<br><br>
This has been the main question I've been getting in response to my video of Pretty. (check it out at <a href="./videos.cfm" target="_new">HERE</a> if you want to know what people are talking about.)<br><br>
The answer is that I was fine. The video shoot was fun, quirky and everyone involved did a lot of laughing including my wife who was on hand operating the play back in which I used to lip sync to. As to whether this one time cross dressing event has turned me into a raging cross dresser who can't wait to get home and secretly try on my wife's bra and panties, NO! I have a feeling that most people who have certain kinks and specialities haven't waited until their 40's to explore them. I would suspect that most people, especially in our more liberal North American City culture would've already reached out and tried out their "thing". <br><br>
I've had a few people who have also questioned my stance on alternative lifestyles. For me I believe that people should be free to do what ever they want as long as they're not hurting anyone else, at least not without a safe word. Sure the thought of some issues may make some peoples stomach churn, but so what!! The thought of smelling and eating eggs, porridge, rice pudding and sea food makes my stomach churn, but I don't deny these to other people. I don't call these people sick, twisted or un godly. I don't picket or campaign to get these food items banned and I certainly don't ask these people to take their food away from me. As stated in a previous blog, the song Pretty was inspired by a friend of mine who cross dressed for a while. I must give him courage for telling me about it and then showing me. One day while I was visiting him, he excused himself for about 10 minutes. I thought he was going to the toilet, but when he appeared he was wearing make up, a dress and high heels. While I did laugh a bit as I was surprised, I didn't condemn him and I'm still good friends with him to this day. As to whether he continues to do this, or whether he is gay or straight is of no consequence to me or our friendship and hopefully he knowns this. I accept him in whatever form or lifestyle he choses to adapt.<br><br>
It's fantastic that Patricia at <a href="http://www.wildside.org" target="_new">http://www.wildside.org</a> has provided a safe and comfortable place for men who like to dress up. And judging by how long she has been in business, this is not anything new.<br><br>
Over all, I think we all need to give some respect to people no matter their lifestyle or what we think of it. After all, would we like to be judged negatively for things that we enjoy?<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2789262013-01-11T13:50:00-05:002013-08-24T15:45:56-04:00Pretty Inspiring<span style="font-size: larger;">So it seems a few people have seen the video for Pretty which has led to questions of… "What inspired that"? The first thing was the song in which the music was written by me jotting down some music chords on a piece of paper. I purposely used chords which were not in the same key as I wanted something that sounded different, jarring or quirky. <br><br>
Ex. 1st chord is C with the 2nd chord being G#, then F# and then G. For anyone who knows music theory they can see right away that the G# and F# chords are both dissonant following the C chord, but then there's a resolution with the G chord. <br><br>
The chorus was also jotted down with the intent of being different. I started with a two chord in one bar phrase, followed by single chords in a bar to help mess around with the phrasing. In most songs, you might have a phrasing which has a pattern of: 1 chord in a bar, 2 chords in a bar, then repeat, or perhaps the opposite. But the starting 2 chords in the 1st bar of Pretty moves the phrase forward by a bar. <br>
The bridge is a typical jazzy type of section and is probably the most conventional section in the whole song. <br><br>
Over all I ended up with quirky sounding music and had to think of some lyrics that would match. Singing about addictions, poverty, abuse, or the end of the world wasn't going to cut it. I needed something… quirky. I then thought of my "friend" (he really is a friend) who was at one time into cross dressing and drag and remembered some of the things he had told me. He also once showed me. The lyrics didn't take long to come.<br><br>
When thinking of a video I knew it had to be s shorter pop length song which disqualified most of my material. I also wanted it to be a song which had a more streamlined structure, and more upbeat and… dare I say… fun. Again this disqualified the majority of my material. What was left was Pretty.<br>
Shooting the video was quite fun for all of us. Director/Film Maker Ben Stacey (<a href="http://www.benstaceypictures.com" target="_new">http://www.benstaceypictures.com</a>) and his assistant helped keep things lively and light with wise cracks. At one point, they actually mentioned that I looked sexy, so how about that. Paddy Aldridge was also on hand and did the make up, wardrobe and lent us her store location "Take a Walk on the Wildside" (<a href="http://www.wildside.org" target="_new">http://www.wildside.org</a>). I had heard about Wildside from my "friend" and knew it would be the perfect place to shoot as it's a store which caters to men who are lumberjacks and are OK. (They cut down trees, they wear high heels Suspenders and a bra).<br>
Talking to Paddy and being in her store was interesting as I got a glimps into what it might be like to be a man who cross dresses. Talk about walking a mile in someone else's shoes, how about in woman's heels.<br>
"But what did your wife think?" has been a common question. She was there operating the audio play back for me to lip sync to, so she was all fine with everything.<br><br>
This was my 1st time shooting a video and dressing up. I hope you all enjoy it, I hope it brings a smile to your face, and I hope it brings a little tolerance to the world.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2716672012-12-26T13:05:00-05:002017-01-16T09:01:20-05:00The Christmas Holiday Spirit<span style="font-size: larger;">Well Christmas has come and gone but the holiday spirit is still in my household, especially since I have the holidays off of work. Not that work would be too much trouble as the daycare only seems to get about 20 children in over the holidays. And for the most part, all they want to do is play with their new Christmas toys, no matter how much encouragement is given to do the arts and crafts provided. My holidays have been and will be spent listening to large quantities of music from my iTunes collection. So far it has been mainly 80's based music ranging from Duran Duran, The Cure, Marillion, Prince, Tears for Fears, Simple Minds, Billy Idol, Kate Bush etc. I don't know what it is but the holiday season seems to bring out the urge to listen to this style of crisp, clean and brightly produced music.<br><br>
Also been watching the 6th season of Dexter which my wife bought me, and which I bought her. Looks like one of us will need to return a copy.<br><br>
I've decided I don't need a gym my wife bought me the mother of all comic books. The Infinite Crisis Omnibus at about 1397 pages, 3.5 inches thick, it's all I need to keep in shape just lifting it to read.<br><br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/28360/3b1a6990f53981663ca7e2c94ffc27413f84e72b/large/Infinite-Crisis-Omnibus.JPG?1381264036" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="628" width="471" /><br></span><span style="font-size: larger;"><br></span><span style="font-size: larger;">As you can see it's a monster, but it'll be worth the read.<br><br>
Of course the most prized thing about the holidays is getting to spend time with my wife as we parallel play on each of our own computers. She's busy looking at youtube videos of "Who's Line is it Anyways" (laughing hysterically) while I do my regular Facebook/Twitter browsing. I think we'll be watching more Dexter as soon as my massive iTunes playlist ends. It still has some 80's Genesis, and Queen to go.<br><br>
All the best this Holiday Season and I hope everyone has a happy and safe New Years.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2704952012-12-23T06:26:16-05:002012-12-23T06:26:16-05:00Private Music Lessons Vs Group Lessons<span style="font-size: larger;">Over the years I have experienced both Private Music lessons and Group lessons. When I was 12 years old, I started learning the Viola through the String program put on by the Toronto Public School system. These were group lessons and they were great and I continued with the String program until I was 18 years old. I enjoyed the instrument and did a lot of home practicing. However, I didn't start to make any real headway until my mom enrolled me for private lessons over a summer at the Royal Conservatory of Music. That summer alone saw me progress much faster than my school mates who were schooled only through the group lessons. After a while I became bored with the music being played in the school lessons and orchestra and I left the Viola for the far more promising chick magnet guitar. I had picked up the guitar when I was 14 years old and was able to teach myself some basic chords and melodies. When I entered high school I thought about taking the group lessons, saw that it was a beginner class and opted out. Again, my mom enrolled me in private lessons and I learned much more than I would've ever learned in the group lessons.<br><br>
Years later I started teaching both private guitar and piano lessons. One of my guitar students was taking group piano lessons from someone else and I went to a recital. What I heard horrified me. The majority of players couldn't play the right rhythm and couldn't get through a song without stopping, in many cases these were only single finger melodies. I guessed that these 45 minute group lessons, which parents had paid $15 for, were really $15 for 5 minutes as I found out there were only 3 pianos available for the 10 students.<br>
The other day at the school I work at, a 12 year old boy played single finger melodies with a bit of difficulty. He was in a group lesson. Again I was horrified.<br><br>
Don't get me wrong, I understand that not everyone wants to be a musician and that some people are learning just for fun. However, I believe that if you're going to teach someone something, do it properly. I, for one, am a stickler for rhythm, if it's a two beat half note, then play it as a two beat half note, not a one beat quarter note. Students end up spending so much time on getting the right note that timing gets left behind and, in group lessons, it seems that this is considered OK. This is understandable as there just isn't enough time to focus on each student. Sure, group lessons may cost less than private lessons, but what the student isn't getting is the focus from the teacher, and that's worth the cost.</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2672662012-12-16T13:39:51-05:002012-12-16T13:39:51-05:00To Be Paid or Not to be Paid The Dilemma of the Musician<span style="font-size: larger;">A few months ago I had an online debate about being paid as a musician. The people who I was debating with thought that all musicians should be getting paid and should expect to be paid a monetary value from all and any of their performances. My stance was that it depended on the venue and context as to whether payment should be expected and by whom. Here's my take on the whole issue….<br><br>
First off, no one is entitled to be paid for anything just because they want to. To be paid a fair wage, one needs to prove that they are doing a benefit, in many cases a financial one, to the organization who is paying them. With regards to music performance, if you want a venue/booker to pay you for your musical services, then you'd better be prepared to have enough people who will come out and see you perform or be able to entertain the people who come to that venue. This, of course, usually translates to alcohol sales for that venue. It really is that simple, if not enough people are willing to drink or eat when you perform then good luck getting the venue to either hire you/have you play or agree to a guarantee fee.<br><br>
This brings me to my next point, venue type. I believe there are two types of venues. Bars which have a more regular clientele, and theater type venues which don't. <br>
The Bars often have cover and tribute bands and the people who frequent these venues aren't usually there to see the actual band, but to hear good music no matter who is playing it. In these venues, there may not be a cover charge either. The band is doing a service to the venue by either drawing people in by playing popular well known music, or keeping people in the venue by playing popular well known music. Let's face it, most people want to hear something that's familiar so there's less risk involved in seeing a band playing music you will probably know then by taking a chance on some indie band playing unknown music. In most cases the bars pay the band a guaranteed fee since the band is doing the venue a service.<br>
The theater type of venue, which can also include clubs, often have original bands. I believe these venues actually market themselves to the bands, not the general public. "Need a place to play, check out our club, our specs, our amazing equipment." In these cases, these venues are providing a service to the musicians and bands and it's up to the bands to bring out their own crowd. Sometimes they charge a rental fee, sometimes they don't. The places that don't will rely on alcohol sales to cover their costs while the bands take the door. Of course, if your band has a poor draw and alcohol sales aren't covering the costs, don't expect to be first on the list when a booking date comes available, or you may be expected to pay a fee which might cover some alcohol sales.<br><br>
One of the points brought up by someone in this debate was that promotion for these shows should be the sole responsibility of the venue. All I could say was "Wow"!!! Talk about wanting it all. Any smart business person knows that you need to promote yourself and not rely on others.<br><br>
Another point to think about is, who should pay for the performance of live music? Should it be the audience by paying for tickets or paying a door cover? Should it be the venue who pays the band a guaranteed fee in which people get in for free? By having the venue pay you and have no door cover , can't that be seen as encouraging the general public to not pay for live music?<br><br>
My last point is to do with playing for free. On Craigslist there is often a poster who rants about musicians who play for free. They think that playing for free devalues performances and encourages venues not to pay. While I don't disagree with the poster, I also understand that not everyone is playing music to get paid. For some people, it's a great hobby and getting paid is secondary. For others, playing for free works as a great promotional tool and perhaps a way to make money via recorded music sales. Over all, if you put on a good show and are able to get people to pay money to see you perform, then those musicians who play for free will have no impact on what you do.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2603972012-12-02T22:45:00-05:002021-09-06T15:28:15-04:00NUANCE Black Swan Show Dec 2nd 2012<span style="font-size: larger;">Had a great evening at The Black Swan this Sunday Dec 2nd 2012. Everyone played great and it was nice to hear Ken Baird play his brand of Art Rock with his solo keys and voice. Zanzo was also great. Very tight instrumental band with strong musicianship. Think Rush meets King Crimson.<br><br>
My own band and I had a lot of fun and people said we performed really well. I guess the they didn't hear, notice or care about the additional piano notes I added during the solo piano section of No Other Way. :) <br><br>
Altogether we were also able to collect around 30 various toys for The United Way Toronto. Thanks to all who brought one, two or more to the show.<br><br>
Over all a great night and I'll be back with my own band on Sat Feb 16th for our post CD Release Show. Stay Tuned.</span><br><br><span style="font-size: larger;">For those that are interested, here's what we played...<br><br>
Endorphin Crash<br>
Merry go Round<br>
No Other Way<br>
Down<br>
Pretty<br>
/Gender Bender<br>
Simple <br>
All for You<br>
Why Don’t We Do it in the Road (Beatles Cover)<br>
Half Life</span><br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/2534412012-11-18T15:10:49-05:002012-11-18T15:10:49-05:00It's been a while<span style="font-size: larger;">It's been a while since I last posted and there's been some cool things happening in my musical world.<br><br>
1st off a shot a music video in Sept which turned out really really nice. It won't be released till the New Year so I won't ruin the surprise by telling you any details except that those select few who have seen it think it's quite entertaining.<br><br>
For anybody that has visited wiltonsaid.com you might have noticed a slightly new look to the site. I found the previous look was way to narrow on most updated screens. It was more like a brochure rather then a website. After a bit of help and work from the good people at Bandzoogle.com (where my site is hosted) I was able to get it looking better.<br><br>
Rehearsals have begun for the Dec 2nd NUANCE Toydrive show and they've been going great. Bassist Deb Ray has fitted in very nicely and has been adding some of his jazzy influences to the music. As a side note, a few of the songs in the Wilton Said... cannon have been co-written by Deb and feature his bass playing. So now after so many years he has had to re learn what he originally did on the recording. Over all it's been great. I don't know what it is about my band, but I seem to attract the most nerdy geeky musicians. Guitarist Chris is a dental hygienist and a computer hardware geek. Drummer Richard is an accountant (need I say more). Previous bass player Frank worked in fibre-optic technology, and current bassist Deb is a plant biologist. WTF!!!!? It seems like I'm the only one with a cool manly day time job working with preschool children. :)<br><br>
As stated above, the band and I are playing on Dec 2nd as part of NUANCE Toydrive along with two other great artists. Please check out <a href="./nuance.cfm" target="_new">www.wiltonsaid.com/nuance</a> for more info and <a href="./onlinesales.cfm" target="_new">www.wiltonsaid.com/onlinesales</a> for advance purchases for the show.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1896822012-07-14T10:20:00-04:002012-07-14T10:20:00-04:00Iron Maiden/Alice Cooper Toronto Review and Spoilers<span style="font-size: larger;">This was the 1st time I've seen Alice Cooper Live and he was great. I was a little worried that perhaps his voice would be shot as he was never the best of vocalist even in the 70's and he is getting on in age. However his voice was in as fine a shape as it could be and he sang all the songs with the flair and theatrics that one would expect. Having only 45 minutes to play he concentrated on a hits and best of set of songs from the 70's and 90's. I was sitting on the lawn so I was not able to see all the onstage visuals clearly which makes me think that perhaps I'll check out Alice when he's at a smaller venue. I really would like a better view of his guillotine act. Set list below…<br><br>
The Black Widow<br>
I'm Eighteen <br>
No More Mr. Nice Guy <br>
Hey Stoopid <br>
Guitar Solo <br>
Billion Dollar Babies <br>
Feed My Frankenstein <br>
Poison <br>
Wicked Young Man <br>
I Love the Dead <br>
Encore:<br>
School's Out (snippet from Another Brick in the Wall) <br><br><br>
This is my 11th time seeing Iron Maiden and I have never been disappointed. Their stage set hasn't changed that much over the years, the band usually run around the stage and Bruce likes to keep to the catwalks for much of the show. Overall, this show was more or less the same, but different and better. 1st off it was a really hot evening and the band are getting on in years which could explain why there seemed to be less running around then on previous tours. But that was OK because the stage set was fantastic. I know it's pretty much the same stage set from the 7th Son tour from 1988, (snow and Icebergs) but this time around it just seemed to be more vibrant and striking. The setlist had quite a few surprises in it. I was under the impression that it would be similar to the set of their UK 1988 tour which was captured for video and titled Maiden England. The set I saw last night had quite a few differences both in order of songs, and songs played. For instance, I was really hoping to hear the song "Killers" which appears on the Maiden England video but wasn't played at the Toronto show back in 88. Well, they didn't play it last night but I got to hear the equally if not better "Phantom of the Opera", a song which wasn't played during the 88 tour. We also got to hear other lesser played songs which weren't on the original 88 tour like Aces High, and Afraid to Shoot Strangers. Of source they played material off of 7th Son of a 7th Son with the highlight being the title track. I think out of the 3 or 4 "best of classic" tours that Maiden has done, this has been my favorite so far.<br>
Set list below….<br><br>
Moonchild<br>
Can I Play With Madness<br>
The Prisoner<br>
2 Minutes to Midnight<br>
Afraid to Shoot Strangers<br>
The Trooper<br>
The Number of the Beast<br>
Phantom of the Opera<br>
Run to the Hills<br>
Wasted Years<br>
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son<br>
The Clairvoyant<br>
Fear of the Dark<br>
Iron Maiden<br>
Encore:<br>
Churchill's Speech<br>
Aces High<br>
The Evil That Men Do<br>
Running Free<br></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1795542012-06-17T08:00:00-04:002012-06-17T08:00:00-04:00A little bit of Summer Music.<span style="font-size: small;"></span><span style="font-size: small;">A few things happening in musical world this Summer. <br><br>
1st off, British band Marillion will be playing Toronto's Opera House which I'm thrilled at seeing. I'll then be seeing their two shows in Chicago with each night being a completely different set. As one of my favorite bands this should be highly enjoyable.<br><br>
I'm just at this moment having a 1st listen to the new Rush album "A Clockwork Angels". It's very very good. So far the highlights have been Caravan, BU2B, Carnies, Headlong Flight and The Garden. Some of the textures remind me a little of The Cure. Looking forward to their show in October.<br><br>
I just got my Iron Maiden tickets for their July Toronto show. They seem to be into a cycle of doing a new album, touring for new album, and then a retro tour. I guess this gives the band a chance to play and fans a chance hear newer material, while the retro tours is a focus on older material. This upcoming July show will feature songs from the Seventh Son album and tour. While the 7th Son album is not my favorite, there were songs played on that tour, especially in Europe that I'm interested in hearing such as Killers, and Still Life.<br><br>
Fellow Ontario prog artist Steve Cochrane has also released a new CD titled "La La La: Variations on a Happy Song". It's his best release to date and is a little more off kilter, darker in some parts and a little dissonant in some parts. Over all a great release.<br><br>
I've been working on learning a song for another prog rock project that I'm involved with. At the moment it has no name except "Peters Band" as Peter is the one who has started it.<br><br>
One character part for the Rock Opera has completed by a woman named April Stevens. It only toke 3 sessions of 2 hours for her to complete her parts. Excellent job.<br><br>
I've started looking into another NUANCE event for sometime after the summer. While I'd love to do it at The Black Swan, I'll have to wait till they get their PA issues felt with as last time I played there, there was only 1 Monitor and the PA gave off a loud hum.<br><br>
Until later<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1707102012-05-21T07:05:00-04:002012-05-21T07:05:00-04:00NUANCE May 19th Show<span style="font-size: small;">Well it's been an exciting ride leading up to this show. 1st it was difficult finding bands to play with, but thankfully Vermillion Skye stuck by for the whole planning process. Then a week before the show our bass player developed a serious medical condition forcing him to pull out of the show. I had to decide whether to cancel the show and disappoint the other band or carry on. I decided to carry on and we got Bassist Jason Farrar in at the last minute. I'm sure it was a little hectic for him having to learn all the material in a week but he pulled it off and I've heard that members of the audience didn't hear anything off. So thanks again Jason. And of course thanks to guitarist Chris Reid and Drummer Richard Rizzo for the great playing.<br><br>
The show itself went smoothly with Vermillion Skye playing a blistering set of prog originals. My band and I did a pretty good job also (if I may say so myself). Thanks to all who came out to support the bands. Also, huge thanks to John Santos who runs the Dovercourt Retro Lounge for having us at the venue. He supplied al the PA equipment, bar staff (thank you bar staff) and lights. All for a very reasonable price. Sound Tech and Mixer Les Graham made us all sound so good, thanks. And thanks to my wife Kerry and her friends for maning the door and the merchandise table.<br><br>
Our set list for anyone that is interested was….<br><br>
Endorphin Crash<br>
Holiday People<br>
Pretty<br>
/Gender Bender<br>
Bydlo<br>
Down<br>
Heavy Motion<br>
A Journey<br>
Sin<br>
All for You<br>
Shopping Asia<br>
/Drum Solo/ Why Don’t...Road<br>
Half Life<br>
Halos/Shopping Asia (reprise)<br><br>
The band and I will be taking a break over the summer and fall and we hope to reconvene in the winter for a show, most likely a NUANCE event featuring some other bands also. Until then I'll be working on vocals for the Rock Opera and possibly working with another proggy band.<br>
We shall see.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1548572012-04-05T13:50:00-04:002012-04-05T13:50:00-04:00More Music PleaseIt appears I may be a very busy Beaver in the next few months or so. Musically singing that is. Not only do I have practice and rehearsals with Wilton Said... for the upcoming <a target="_new" href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com/liveevents">NUANCE Show</a> on May 19th. I've also been getting some responses from vocalists with regards to the Rock Opera. This means organizing and co-ordinating schedules to have them come in and record. On top of that, I may be involved with another prog project. Why another prog project you ask? With Wilton Said..., I am the captain and I'm the sole one responsible for promotion, marketing, setting up shows, writing, organizing rehearsals etc etc. While this has been a very rewarding experience and successful for me, it is also very tiring. Plus, it's not like we're rehearsing or playing shows every weekend or even once a month. So I thought it would be a change to be in a more democratic situation with everyone pulling weight with regards to promotion, writing, rehearsals, decisions etc. I'll be meeting up with a guy to discuss all of this to see if we can move forward. Either-way, it won't be the end of Wilton Said..., perhaps just a slightly longer break then usual. We'll have to see.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1451542012-03-04T07:55:00-05:002012-03-04T07:55:00-05:00Finding the Right Band to Play with.<span style="font-size: small;">As stated in my last blog, it's been a bit tricky to find bands for the next NUANCE Show. After much back and forth, confirmation and non-confirmation from various bands and artists, I've settled on just my own band and one other called Vermillion Skye. <a target="_new" href="http://www.vermillionskye.com">www.vermillionskye.com</a>. Not only are these guys great melodic Art Rock (a cross between Rush and Styx)</span>, they have been fairly quick with confirmations, and been very accomadating with the changes to the event. Members also came out to my CD Release Show last November.<br><br>
Thanks guys. I'm looking forward to playing with you guys.<br><br>
Wilton<br><br>
P.S. More details regarding this NUANCE Show will be coming throughout the month.<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/782222012-02-11T09:05:25-05:002012-02-11T09:05:25-05:00My Network and Support Rant<span style="font-size: small;">Well it seems like it's harder to find other Local Prog and Art Rock bands to play with or that I'm interested in playing with. There are a few artists like Steve Cochrane, Ken Baird and Plenty who I've played with in the past and hope to play with in the future. I am extremely grateful for their support over the years in attending a few of my shows and some of the NUANCE shows. Hopefully I've been able to show similar support in the past when I've been able to. This brings me to my rant.<br><br>
There are a few other local prog bands who have over the past couple of years been very glad to play at my NUANCE events, ask me for positive quotes for their websites, and invite me to their shows. In fact I used to frequent some of these shows as often as I could. However you'd think they'd at least return some of the support by perhaps coming out to a show or two. At the very least you'd think they'd watch the other bands sets before or after their own set. But no, they only appear to be interested in their own shows. I would understand if they just weren't interested in playing with me, or being a part of NUANCE. But when I announce the possibility of a NUANCE show, these will be the same artists who write back that they're interested in playing. These will be the same artists who ask me for a reference for their Factor Grant. These will be the same artists who email me or Facebook me to tell me about their shows. These will be the same artists who ask me to forward their gig information on to my own mailing list.<br>
No thanks, I'm not interested in supporting you anymore.<br><br>
As a result, the pool of Art Rock and Prog artists which I want to interact with is unfortunately getting smaller and smaller.<br><br>
Rant Over<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1362652012-01-27T08:50:00-05:002012-01-27T08:50:00-05:00The NUANCE of a Rock Opera<span style="font-size: small;">So I've been thinking about holding another NUANCE mini festival sometime in the spring. I've already talked to one particular venue and have gotten an amazing rental rate making this particular venue the only one to consider. Next up is to hear back from my band regarding playing. I know Frank, Chris and Richard have things going on at the moment but hopefully their schudule will free up in time for spring time. Hopefully getting 3 other bands to play won't be a problem. I've already got a few ideas on who to ask. So I'll keep you all posted.<br><br>
I was really annoyed at myself a week ago as I thought the Factor Grant Application for the Rock Opera would be settled by mid January. As it turns out I misread a date and I have to wait till the end of Febuary. Darn it!!!! It's also frustrating as I'd like to start recording the vocal charater parts but i don't want to move ahead until I know what type of (if any) funding I'll have. Grrrrrrrr!<br><br>
Wilton </span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1253462011-11-26T18:35:00-05:002011-11-26T18:35:00-05:00A Huge Thank You<span style="font-size: small;">I'd like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who came out to the CD Release Show at the Black Swan on Sat Nov 26th 2011. There was a nice size crowd and you all seemed very appreciative and supportive of our music. It's unfortunate that I didn't get a chance to chat with everyone, but hopefully at either our next gig, or your next gig, I can rectify that. Here's hoping you all enjoy the CD's, and if you really really really want to hear more Wilton Said... music, you can always check out http://www.wiltonsaid.com and purchase or download other releases through the various outlets.<br>
<br>
Many and much thanks to the band, Chris Reid - guitars, Richard Rizzo - drums, and Deb Ray - bass for the fantastic job. Also like to thank Sound Mixer Janelle Eisler for the great job of making us sound better in light of the dodgy sound equipment. Thanks to the Black Swan and bartender Shelley for having us again and for letting us hold the show at an unusual time. Thanks to Georgie Curry and Richards Friend (sorry, I forgot his name) for the photography. And of course, I'd like to thank my wife Kerry for welcoming you into the venue and helping you to part with your money.<br>
<br>
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You<br><br>
For those of you who are interested, below is the setlist we played...<br><br><b>1st Set</b><br>
In a People Bar<br>
Endorphin Crash<br>
Pretty<br>
/Gender Bender<br>
Bydlo<br>
Halos<br>
City on the Water (Wilton - solo vox/piano)<br>
Outside<br>
/Close <br>
The Telling<br>
In My Dreams<br><br><b>2nd Set</b><br>
Star<br>
/Shopping Asia<br>
Merry-Go-Round<br>
Down<br>
All for You<br>
Drum Solo/Kazzo Solo /Why Don't We Do it in the Road<br>
Half Life<br>
=================================<br>
The Empty Sky<br>
i) The View <br>
ii) Goodbye<br>
iii) Fallen<br><br>
Until we meet again....</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1231232011-11-13T11:15:00-05:002011-11-13T11:15:00-05:00Rehearsing with the Saviour<span style="font-size: small;">Rehearsals for the CD Release Show are going very very well, especially considering Bassist and Saviour Debashish Ray has only had a few weeks to learn the material. While his playing style is a little different then regular bassist Frank Heisler, he's able to play the material with the appropriate groove, low frequency rumblings and confidence that's needed. <b>Over all, he sounds great</b>. We've got one more rehearsal to go and then it's the show. Hurray Hurray! So for any of Deb's science groupies, this is the time to come on out and see that the man is not only great with his eyes and a microscope, he's also great with his hands and his.... uhm Bass.<br><br>
I'll say this again and I'll say it often. A huge THANK YOU Deb for stepping in for Frank for this show. And of course, we all hope for a speedy recovery for Frank so he can get back to playing music.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1214332011-11-02T18:20:00-04:002011-11-02T18:20:00-04:00How to Sing with Voice Problems<span style="font-size: small;">I'm sure at one time or another, everyone has woken up in the morning to find that his or her voice is hoarse, gravelly and/or sore. No problem for most of the population, as with some voice rest, it probably goes away within a day or two, or maybe a week. However, for those of us that use our voices constantly in our everyday life such as Singers, Teachers, Presenters and Drill Sergeants, this can turn into a bigger problem. Without proper care, this hoarseness and soreness does not go away and, in fact, it remains present often making it difficult to speak and sing clearly for long periods of time. Singers have the added frustration in that their vocal range may become reduced, a nightmare for any singer. This happened to me during the middle part of the year while recording the Half Life CD.<br><br>
I started noticing a problem at work. I am a Preschool teacher and my room had just changed over from the older children to the newer younger children. Anyone with young children will tell you that you need to be prepared to use your voice a lot as they need lots of vocal instruction, prompting and repetition. And repetition. Add to the fact that there was between 16 and 24 children at one time all acting and playing the way young children do, noisily. At times the decibel reading would be over 100. Of course, getting their attention often meant raising ones voice, there would be no other way. Add to this the fact that I was rehearsing and recording every weekend with my band and one can see where this was heading. <br><br>
I started to notice a mild hoarseness to my voice and would often jokingly think that "perhaps I could sing heavy metal after all". The tipping point must have been at a weekend show for the rock band Marillion in April. Bear in mind that up until that point, Marillion had rarely stepped on Canadian soil, so this show was very meaningful for us Canucks. As you can imagine, there was loads of cheering and singing along and I too got carried away with the vocal yelling and sing-alongs. It wasn't until the following day that I noticed a more than mild hoarseness in my voice. And yet, I still went ahead and played an hour-long acoustic gig that day.<br>
From that point on my voice was on extremely shaky ground with some days being pretty good, and other days being extremely gravelly. But did I give it a rest? No! During the guitar recording for Half Life, I had guitarist Chris Reid in another room and most of the time, rather then use the talk back microphone, I would shout directions to him. Pretty stupid, huh? As you can guess things didn't get better. I was starting to get concerned and thought that perhaps my week-long cruise vacation would clear things up. As time went on I started to get mildly depressed about the whole situation. The weekend before departure, I thought screw it, and I decided to lay down some vocals. With a lot of water, a lot of positive thought and a lot of takes, I was able to complete a song. Sure I had a bit of raunch in my tone, and my tone was a little thicker then usual, but it still sounded pretty good.<br><br>
I went for my week's vacation and when I returned, my voice sounded almost better. I was even able to record more tracks for the CD. That was until I went back to work with the children and my voice became hoarse again. I started drinking loads and loads of water, getting a good nights sleep and not raising my voice and things became manageable. In the end. With a lot of breaks and water, I was able to complete the vocals for the whole CD and they sounded fine.<br>
Afterwards, I got myself an appointment with ENT Dr. Brian Hands at Voxcura who specialize in voice disorders in singers. It turned out I had a very small Vocal Polyp and Muscle Tension Dysphonia. Vocal Polyps, I learned, are a result of a ruptured blood vessel in the vocal chords which form a lump on the vocal chords. Muscle Tension Dysphonia is when the vocal chords do not close properly during speaking and/or singing. In both cases, the results may be similar such as raspy and sore voice and/or the in ability to sing or talk for extended periods of time. I was also informed that vocal rest would NOT make this problem go away as the damage had already been done and the symptoms would return as soon as I started using my voice for extended periods. I was informed that I would need about 4 to 6 appointments with their speech therapist Aaron Low.<br><br>
The first appointment with Mr. Low consisted of having a scope down my throat with me saying and singing various things so he could get a good look at my vocals chords and how they were functioning. The following appointments consisted of being taught vocal warm ups (lip trills), exercises (humming, lick back), breathing techniques (keep stomach area expanded during singing), and having my neck and voice box physically massaged. You read that right, my voice box physically massaged. Basically this involved Mr. Low putting his fingers on my Adam's Apple (which is where the voice box is) and squeeze, pull, and massage it. Not the most comfortable thing. After 4 sessions, I could feel a difference and didn't seem to be having trouble with my voice. For the last session, a scope was put down my throat again and the Polyp was gone and my vocal chords where touching. It appeared that all was well again.<br>
Since then I've been; careful with my voice, doing morning lip trill warm ups, breathing and singing with an expanded stomach area, and keeping my speaking voice at a reasonable volume, and everything is sounding fine. A big thank you to Brian Hands and Aaron Low at Voxcura for their help.<br>
So over all, voice problems can be fixed if seen to in a reasonable amount of time. So if you're someone who uses their voice a lot and you've been experiencing difficulties that won't go away, see a voice specialist and get it dealt with. You'll be happy you did.<br><b><br>
Wilton Said... and band play their CD Release Show</b><br>
in support of their recent release<br>
Half Life<br>
on<br>
Saturday November 26th 2011<br>
6:30pm<br>
At<br>
Holy Trinity Eastern Orthodox Church<br>
201 Monarch Park Ave. Toronto, Ontario<br>
(1 Street west of Coxwell, 3 Streets north of Danforth)<br>
Parking and Entrance off of Glebholme Blvd.<br><br>
$10 Cover includes CD at Show.<br>
$6 Advance tickets includes CD at Show.<br><br>
Wilton and his band will perform two sets of original Art Rock Music from "Half Life", along with older favorites.<br>
Put on your 5/8 time dancing shoes and swing on by.<br><br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1116952011-08-28T15:30:00-04:002011-08-28T15:30:00-04:00The Vocal Chords and the Mix<span style="font-size: small;">I had my last appointment regarding my vocal chords last week and things are looking fine once again. The polyp is gone and my vocal chords close properly. I'd like to thank Dr. Aoron Low and Dr. Brian Hands at </span><a target="_new" href="http://www.artindex.com/voxcura"><span style="font-size: small;">Voxcura</span></a><span style="font-size: small;"> for all their help.</span><br><br>
Mixing for the next Wilton Said... CD titled "Half Life" has been completed, checked and will be mastered next weekend at guitarist Chris Reids studio. The only thing remaining is to get the approriate photos of the band guys for the CD art work.<br><br>
I'm hoping to start rehearsals for a CD release show in the next few weeks which means I need to start practicing my parts. Busy Busy Busy.<br><br>
I'm still waiting on news from Factor Grants regarding funding for vocalists for the rock opera. I'm hoping to get news in the next few weeks.<br><br>
Until next time<br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1076452011-08-02T18:15:00-04:002011-08-02T18:15:00-04:00Mixing, Children's Gig and my Voice<span style="font-size: small;">It's been an interesting few weeks for me. I was able to finally see a specialist, D. Brian Hands, about my voice and I seem to have two minor issues. The first is that I have a very small Polyp on my chords, and the secons is that my vocal chords don't close fully. I went to another appointment a week later and was given some vocal exercises to do which would help warm up my voice before work, and also help address the issue of the polyp. I go back again in a few days for more info and stratagies.<br><br>
Last week had me and the band playing a gig at the daycare where I work. Unfortuantly bassist Frankl Heisler wasn't able to play the gig and as a result we had Nabil Dursi fill in who did a great job. We played mainly Beatles tunes and threw in a few originals. Over all we had a great time playing and the kids had a great time rockin out.<br><br>
Mixing for the next Wilton Said... release has been going really really well. So far 4 songs have been mixed and one can expect a more warmer sounding mix this time around.<br><br>
I'm still waiting on news regarding a Factor Grant for the Rock Opera. Fingers crosses.<br><br>
Wilton </span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1044712011-07-01T09:00:57-04:002017-01-16T09:01:19-05:00The State of Vocals<span style="font-size: small;">Ya Ya! Vocals for the Wilton Said... recording were completed last weekend. I still had and still have my vocal difficulties but I was able to work around them and with some vocal rest between recording days I was able to pull it off. Next week will have me starting to mix, oh the fun, the fun, the fun of hours of listening to the same phrase over and over again to get the sound just right. Hopefully this will be time enough to help give my vocalsthe rest they need.<br><br>
I'm currently waiting on an appointment with a laranxologist to see what's up with my vocal chords. It seems strange that I need a referral to have someone stick a camera tube up my nose and down my throat to look at my vocal chords. If possible, I'd do it myself and save myself the time of waiting. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/regular_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /><br><br>
Wilton<br></span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1026462011-06-12T20:56:06-04:002011-06-12T20:56:06-04:00Supertramp Show<span style="font-size: small;">Just got back from the Sunday Show at Toronto Molson Amphitheater and over all it was a good show, I enjoyed myself. The band did a great job of playing, the sound was great, and the set list was great. For me the only draw back was that the visual mood was just a little too mellow for me. I wasn't expecting live Iron Maiden type of excitement, but I do think that for a band that doesn't physically do much on stage, perhaps they should've invested in a more exciting light and visual show. I found that for the majority of the songs, the stage light level was kept low with mainly a spot on Rick leaving the other band members in darkness. Perhaps this type of set up would've been perfect for a smaller venue, but for a larger venue like Molson Amphitheater where you have people way in the back, a good visual show is needed.</span><br><br>
Wilton<br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1019122011-06-05T06:59:50-04:002011-06-05T06:59:50-04:00Cruise Ship Music and Singing<span style="font-size: small;">My wife and I just got back from a 4 day cruise in the Bahamas and we had a wonderful time. There was soooo much food available that I'm sure we both gained some extra pounds. One of the most interesting aspects of the cruise was the music. Every day and every night there was some sort of live music playing from the solo piano player playing Pop hits, the white mans Reggie Band (consisting of Afro-centric musicians), and the easier listening Latin band called Soundwaves. Out of all the bands, the Sounedwaves was the most interesting to listen to and watch. Being a musician myself, (as if you didn't know) I was able to tell when mistakes were made, especially by the body language of the musicians. Over all, Soundwaves were a very professional band who showed their chops when needed. They were also tight and were able to follow each other on songs which were not in their regular catalogue. In one case, they played Hotel California with the bass player playing all the guitar licks on his bass. Pretty cool. What also made the band interesting was that their drummer was the only white guy in the band and was much older then the others. One got the feeling that perhaps he didn't normally play with the band, which was correct as he had been drafted in for the cruise at the last minute. Nevertheless, hearing them play, you would never have thought that he had just joined.<br>
I know that cruise ship bands sometimes get a bad rap for the type of watered down music they play, but the musicianship can be incredibly high as much of the playing can be improvised within a song. It may be a challenge to be able to sight read music, but it can be equally challenging to play when you don't really know a song and don't have the charts.<br><br>
It seems my vocals have returned to a rested and singable state. Before leaving for the cruise, I decided to lay down some vocals to two songs, and they sounded great. Upon returning from the cruise, I redid a few parts and added some backing vocals to one of the songs, which sound great. So it seems my voice is back in shape. I will still visit the doctors however to make sure my vocal chords are physically OK.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/1004812011-05-22T09:40:45-04:002011-05-22T09:40:45-04:00Phlegm and Heavy Metal Singing.<span style="font-size: small;">I still haven't been able to get my voice back to it's singable shape which has been frustrating to say the least. I've been talking quieter, not whispering, drinking water, drinking herbal teas, staying off caffeine and reducing my alcohol intake. But still my vocal chords feel like there's a layer of phlegm sitting on them making me sound like a bad heavy metal singer. Reading up online, this is probably the result of my vocal strain condition which means I still have more work, or rest to do. I'm hoping that a good week of holiday away from the day job will do me good.<br><br>
Wilton<br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/987392011-05-01T18:20:45-04:002011-05-01T18:20:45-04:00Guitars, Guitars and more Guitars!<span style="font-size: small;">For the past several weekends I've had guitarist Chris Reid over recording his guitar parts for the new CD titled "Half Life"</span>. While the outcome of the recording is going well, the actual recording has been a little frustrating on both our parts. Chris is a great guitar player, but I also play guitar and most of the songs were written by me on guitar, so it's been odd to hear his interpretation and style. I imagine it would be like a full timeTaxi driver having to be in the passanger seat of another Taxi cab with another driver. A little unnerving at times. In the end I have to realize that we are two totally different players with two totally different styles and I need to respect that. After all, reviews of our last CD "The View" have pointed out that Chris's style "lends grit" to my unconventional writing and that the music is better for it.<br>
So I have to say, thank you Mr. Reid for your putting up with my endless requests for multiple takes, and to the Guitar contributions to my music.<br><br>
Wilton<br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/971652011-04-11T10:04:57-04:002011-04-11T10:04:57-04:00Marillion Weekend Convention 2011 in Montreal<span style="font-size: small;">Well what can one say. For about $150, you got 3 full 2 to 3 hour sets of Marillion music. This has been the 4th time my wife and I have attended these conventions, (the first 2 in europe) and everyone has been a great experiance. For me the thing that makes it is the song selection. Previous convention highlights have included Fugazi, Splintering Heart, Hotel Hobbies, This Town/100 Nights, Out of this World, Lavender/Heart of Lothian, This Strange Engine, Invisible Man and Ocean Cloud. For those of you that attended this years convention, you'll agree that many of the songs played, have been previously played before. A a result, the 2009 Convention still ranks highest in my opinion. This is not to say that I didn't enjoy myself, quite the opposite. The band played extremely well and tight and vocalist H was on fire right from the start.<br><br>
SPOILERS BELOW...<br><br><br>
The first night consisted of the Holidays In Eden album played in it's entirety. They followed that up with two b-sides from that album the acoustic based A Collection and the riff rocker How Can it Hurt. Closing the set was Beautiful. The encore consisted of Man of a Thousand Faces, and Memory of Water (big beat version) finishing with The Invisible Man.<br><br>
The second night was song titles in alphabetical order. A few of the highlights were the opener of Asylum Satellite #1, Grendal (intro guitar teaser), Gazpacho, Jigsaw (sung by audience), No Such Thing, Pseudo Silk Kimono (1st time sung by H), Three Minute Boy, Voice from the Past, The Wound, You're Gone and Separated Out (with Zepps Black Dog as intro and Kashmir insert).<br><br>
On the third night, everyone was given a glow stick. The band gave the audience a choice of two songs to play, and the choice was made depending on amount of glow sticks waved in the air and cheer for each song. Some winners were a little surprising such as One Fine Day winning out over Don't Hurt Yourself, others were not surprising like Between You and Me winning out over Most Toys. Some were a difficult choice such as Out of this World vs Estonia with Estonia winning by what seemed like a narrow margin. In a few cases the band gave into chants of "Both, both, both" and played both choices of The Great Escape vs Easter, and Ocean Cloud vs This Strange Engine. I was lucky to see the latter as after the band played Easter, the house lights came on and I was ready to leave. My wife however wanted to stick around for a few extra minutes which was good as the band came back out and finished with all full 20 minutes of This Strange Engine. A great way to end the weekend.<br><br>
Hopefully there'll be a 2013 Montreal Convention in which case it'll be interesting to see what album they'll choose to play on the first night. Previously there's been, Brave, Afraid of Sunlight and Marbles, all which are considered to be Marillion's top albums. We've also had This Strange Engine which was a strange choice, Seasons End which is a little special as it was H's first Marillion album, and as mentioned above, this years Holidays in Eden. For me there really aren't any other H era albums that warrant being played in their entirety. Perhaps Marillion will bite the bullet and play the Fish era Clutching at Straws. I say bite the bullet because Marillion and H have made no secrets in the past about their lack of enthusiasm of playing some of the Fish era material. Nonetheless, Clutching has been performed in almost it's entirety by H in the past with performances of Hotel Hobbies, Warm Wet Circles, That Time of the Night, White Russian, Incommunicado, Slainte Maith, and Sugar Mice. Really, there's only the two songs Just for the Record and The Last Straw to add and you've got the full album. While one can dream, we won't know until next convention.<br><br>
Until next time<br>
Wilton<br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/969422011-04-08T07:10:00-04:002011-04-08T07:10:00-04:00Recording Bass, Keyboards and Guitars<span style="font-size: small;">It's been a busy and productive few months with the Wilton Said... recording. We finished recording Richards drum tracks just over a month ago with very little trouble. I say very little because we did end up having to rerecord drums to one song after power was lost to the recording unit when "Someone" accidentally jiggled the plug of the unit. Nonetheless, rerecording of the track was done the next week without incident.<br><br>
The following two weeks were spent recording with Bassist Frank Heisler tearing through the songs with a tightness and confidence of a seasoned professional. Following that I decided to get a head start on my keyboard parts as I originally was going to do them after the guitars. The recording went so well and easy that I ended up completing all my keyboard parts earlier then anticipated.<br><br>
The past few weeks consisted of recording Guitarist Chris Reid's parts. I find recording Chris's guitar parts the most difficult as I'm probably more picky with him then any of the other parts. This is mostly due to the fact that I myself am also a guitar player and that the songs were mainly written on guitar. As a result I have some preconceived ideas on how I want the guitar to sound. My sound and style however is completely different to Chris' sound and style, something which I need to get used to. So far he's recorded 3 tracks successfully with some direction from me without any fist fights. :) We will be continuing over the next few weeks with me recording vocals in-between guitar sessions.<br><br>
Over all, everything is sounding great (do you expect me to say everything is sounding like crap?) and hopefully everything will be ready for mixdown by the middle of May.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><br><br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/944032011-03-05T11:45:00-05:002020-10-12T17:11:04-04:00Drum Recording and Flip Flop<p><span style="font-size: small;">The band and I have got one more day of recording Richards drum parts. All in all it's turning out fantastic and Richard has been laying down some nice solid tasty grooves and fills. After this Richard will be taking a break from Wilton Said... as the rest of the band continue to record their own parts.<br><br>The name of the currently worked on CD will be switched back to "Half Life". The reason for this flip flop is that after going through some appropriate photos to use for the title "Simple", and doing some rough design work for "Simple", it came off looking like a folk or counrty release. And I'm sure everyone knows that's not what we're about. It turns out that the title "Half Life" lends itself more to the Art Rock genre that we're in.<br><br>Here's a rough design idea for the cover of Half Life.<br><img src="//content.bandzoogle.com/users/wiltonsaid/images/content/CD-Cover-Test.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="322" width="359" /><br><br>For the end result, I'll be using a different picture but applying the same type of effect to it.<br><br>Thanks<br>Wilton </span></p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/620602011-01-10T19:14:53-05:002011-01-10T19:14:53-05:00Back to Rehearsals<span style="font-size: small;"></span><span style="font-size: small;">The band and I took a short break for the holidays and we are now back rehearsing for the recording of our next release titled "Simple". For those of you who may be thinking that this next recording will be full of 3 min pop songs due to the title, fear not as we are continuing on in the genre of what would best be called Art Rock.<br><br>
The title of the CD is also the name of one of the songs which happens to be 14 or 15 minutes long. It's a multi sectioned piece full of changing moods and time signatures. Other songs such as "Endorphin Crash" feature a punchy groove oriented 5/4 rhythm underneath some smooth legato vocals from moi. We also cover the mournful yet majestic instrumental classical piece "Bydlo" which originates on Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition". "City on the Water" is a mellow gentle, loose jazz type of tune with some dissonant vocals. Guitarist Chris Reid has also leant us a cool interesting rocker called "Down" which is great fun to play and sing. "Half Life", while having a simpler structure, will probably be one of our most textural and dynamic songs we've ever done and will feature some mega screaming from my vocal pipes.<br><br>
Over all, the songs are coming together and we hope to start recording in February.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/876982010-11-23T13:00:00-05:002023-10-16T10:44:24-04:00Musical Movies - Across the Universe vs Moulin Rouge<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-size: small;">The other day I saw the movie "Across the Universe", a love story taking place in the late 60's about a guy named Jude and a girl named Lucy. While the story line wasn't much to talk about, the music was very interesting as it featured cover versions of Beatles tunes which were sung by the characters. And sung very well to boot. Most of the versions were different then the originals in that either their structure was changed or the instrumentation was changed. In some cases, such as with "Come Together" or "Something", the main instrumental riff or melody was subdued and hinted at rather then actually played which gave for an interesting yet great effect.<br>Over all, I enjoyed it more for the music rather then the story line.<br><br>Contrasting "Across the Universe" is "Moulin Rouge" featuring Ewan McGregor and hottie Nicole Kidmen. Like "Across the Universe", the movie features cover version of well known Pop/Rock songs sung by the characters, but arranged differently then the originals. Although I liked the music of "Across the Universe" better (it is the Beatles after all), I thought the story line of "Moulin Rouge" held together much better as did the placement of the musical numbers. To me, when the characters in "Moulin Rouge" broke into song, it seemed more believable then it did in "Across the Universe".<br>It would be interesting to read opinions of anyone else who has seen either or both movies.<br><br>Wilton</span></p>
<p> </p>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/541362010-11-13T18:50:00-05:002010-11-13T18:50:00-05:00Grants, Applications and Mixing<span style="font-size: small;">Another busy few days spent doing musical stuff, mainly for the Rock Opera. 1st off was getting the Ontario Arts Council Grant application organized which took a bit of doing. It's not the best written application form and the download had some glitches which meant I had to hand write a few things. I swear they made it difficult in the hopes that less people would apply. Also had to mix two rock opera songs with my guide vocals to send off with the application. Over all, it's sealed in an envelope and I'll be mailing it off during the week.<br><br>
Tomorrow, (or today depending on when you're reading this) the band and I resume our Wilton said... rehearsals for work on the new release. I'm sure we'll be a little rusty but I'm sure over all we'll be fine. We'll leave off working on the newest song "Simple" until next weeks rehearsal.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/874072010-10-24T06:38:16-04:002020-12-04T07:19:01-05:00Live Bands, Demo Recording and Title Change<span style="font-size: small;">This weekend has been very musical. First off, I saw Ottawa indie prog band </span><a href="http://www.therebelwheel.com/" target="_new"><span style="font-size: small;">The Rebel Wheel</span></a><span style="font-size: small;"> at Clintons Tavern on Fri night. A great band with some King crimson influences led by David Campbell. Previously they had been a 5 piece with drums, bass, sax, guitar/vox and guitar/keys. A few years later they became a 4 piece by dropping the guitar/keys and then became a 3 piece (Sax player Angie is on hiatus having a newborn) with David handling the guitars and keyboards.<br>
The band were extremely tight, and played really well. It really is a shame that there weren't more people out to see them. They missed a great show of prog.<br><br>
The other musical part of my weekend involves recording a basic demo for the song "Simple". While the other songs were charted and jammed out to give some freedom to the band as to what to play, this song has more specific composed parts and this demo should make it easier to get that across. So far the recording is comming along fine, but i have to keep telling myself that it's only a rough demo as I have the tendancy to want to record a perfect take. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Over all, I'm happy with the way the song has turned out and it'll be much better once the band gets a hold of it.</span><br><br><span style="font-size: small;">Lyrically the song "Simple" is my take on living life in a clearer mannor and not getting hung up on the small things. It's also about accepting that other people have different ways of thinking and doing things which can be just as valid as your own. For me this has been an important message and lesson in my life as I've tended to believe in the past that "my way"</span> was the best way. So...., I've decided to change the name of the next release to "Simple" as it reflects my state of mind with regards to my way of thinking.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/855422010-09-28T14:13:07-04:002020-07-13T02:49:13-04:00Wilton Said... Interview<span style="font-size: small;">For website link, please click <a href="http://billsprogblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/more-than-10-questions-withwilton-said.html" target="_new">HERE</a>.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br><br><b>(More than) 10 Questions with...Wilton Said</b><br><br><br>
I first came across the music of Wilton Said in 2007, if memory serves. Actually, I don’t have to rely on memory, as I still have a copy of my review of his then most recent album, The View, and it’s dated 8 February 2007. His take on progressive rock to me seems to veer more toward the art rock side of things…less Yes and Genesis, more Bowie and Roxy Music. This shouldn’t necessarily imply loads of glitz, glam and make-up, but rather a penchant for the tastefully and artfully composed bit of quirky pop-infused rock with influences a little different than English pastorals and church music.<br><br>
From my standpoint (actually sitting point…I am a prog fan with osteoarthritis after all), things seemed overly quiet from Wilton Said HQ for far too long. Apparently there was good reason for this, as the man himself has been busy with some fairly big projects that are in varying states of completion.<br><br>
Wilton actually contacted me, hoping I’d be willing to review The View for Bill’s Prog Blog. I’ll be offering that review up a little later today, but in the meantime, let’s sit down with Wilton to get a feel for his life, his music, and what lies in wait for the dedicated WS fan out there…<br><br><br><br><b>1. Let’s get things started at the very beginning. How did you get your start as a musician?</b><br><br>
Wilton Said: My mother has told me that I always loved music. When I was a toddler, she says I would stand in front of the stereo and move to the music. When Mary Poppins came out, my favourite song was Feed the Birds, not exactly the song most young children would understand. When I was 8 (1978) or so, I took piano lessons which I enjoyed. However, that died off in a couple of months when I opted to spend my leisure time playing baseball instead of practicing. A few years later I enrolled in the string program in my school and learned the viola, which I continued to play for about 8 years mainly through the school system. During that time, I went to a summer camp and learned basic guitar chords and then continued on my own afterwards. By the time I was 13 years old, I was writing my own songs on guitar and performing them off the third floor balcony of my apartment building for all the world to hear. Some years later I started taking private guitar lessons and learned some basic theory, jazz and classical styles.<br><br>
Throughout high school I tried to form my own band playing guitar but found it hard to find people who were dedicated, (or maybe they thought I sucked), so I continued practicing on my own. I did however jam with a bass player friend of mine (Chris Reid) who was a huge Rush fan and got me into Rush. However, he wasn't able to commit to anything serious at the time.<br><br>
At the end of my High school year in 1989 I finally joined a real band. They were called The Dust Rhinos and were a 50' 60's rock n roll cover band playing Stones, Beatles, and rocked up RnB. It was great and I learned a lot from the band guys who were almost 10 years older then me. The drummer was really into prog rock and leant me a few albums, which I loved. However, the band broke up and I started my search again. In my first year of a Compositional Music Degree at University, I joined a heavy metal band playing covers by Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Black Sabbath. However, I didn't stick around long enough to play a gig as it turned out most that of the band were pot heads, something I wasn't into.<br><br>
In 1990 I met a drummer and we started jamming my original material. We found a bass player and a singer and my first original band called Crisis Ten was formed. We did a few cassette demos and gigged around for a couple of years but it seemed that the other guys were becoming less interested. I left the band and the band basically broke up. In 1994 I contacted Chris Reid and we decided to form a band with me on guitar and him on bass. For about 4 years we had three different bands, one after the other with the singer and drummer revolving around us two. The first band was Shopping Asia which featured a female singer with a softer voice with me playing crunchy guitar along with a crazy proggy drummer and bass player Chris inspired by Geddy Lee. I thought the four of us were great and really think that if we stayed together we could've become possibly more then independent. However, two members turned out to be not that serious and left the band. Over the next two years we had another band called "Wish Machine" which was heavily influenced by Rush, and then a band called "Edge of Sense" which had more alternative influences with some prog mentality. Again in all cases, members turned out not to be that serious and in the end I left.<br><br>
Around the time of Edge of Sense, I started to get bored with guitar playing. We had just done a cassette in which I had given everything I had to the guitar parts and I felt there was nothing left that interested me in guitar playing. In 1996 after leaving the band, I took up singing lessons and then formed my own project "Wilton Said..." singing lead and playing keyboards. I figured that naming the project after my name would enable me to work in a variety of musical situations regardless of other band members.<br><br><br><b>2. What were your earliest musical influences?</b><br><br>
WS: As a child, there was always music in my house. It was just my mom and me and she often played piano, sang me lullabies, and played classical, blues, rock, and opera records. At the after school program, I got my first exposure to pop via Bay City Rollers, Elvis Presley and The Beatles. At first I didn't realize who any of the artists were, I just liked the songs. One day I went home and asked my Mom if she had any Bay City Rollers. She said no but pulled out some of her vintage 1960's Beatles albums instead. The first song "It Won't be Long" hit me like a brick and I loved it. When it got to "All my Loving", I recognized the song as one of the ones played at the after school program. From there, I ended up getting my mom to buy more of their recordings, which I loved. However, the love affair diminished when I was bought The White Album on cassette. My 9-year-old brain could only get into the first side and thought much of the rest was too weird.<br><br>
Around 1981 I really got into the Star Wars movies and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Not only did I love the movies, I loved the music. Along with my orchestral education with the Viola, I started to learn and enjoy orchestral music, especially from the Romantic era and the 20th Century era.<br><br>
Around 1983, I began watching music videos and started to learn about and enjoy the new wave music of the time, namely Duran Duran. A few years later and I can't remember why, I started to listen to the Beatles again and gave that old White Album cassette another try. This time my older more musically mature 15-year-old brain could understand it and I loved it. I also dug out my Abbey Road, Sgt Peppers, and Magical Mystery Tour recordings and really got into them. I loved the eclectic-ness of them, I loved the big sound of them, I loved the musicianship of them, I loved The Beatles and to this day I still think they are the best thing to happen to humankind since the invention of the wheel.<br><br>
However, I still developed interests and influences in other styles of Rock and Pop. I developed a love for Heavy Metal, most notably Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Black Sabbath. That later developed into a love for Progressive Rock with artists such as Marillion, Queen, Genesis, Rush, Kate Bush and the album Jesus Christ Superstar. A few later bands that I enjoyed were Soundgarden and A Perfect Circle.<br><br>
I guess the main thing which can be said about my listening habits and influences is that I like my music BIG, texturally thick, dark and minor keyed, and preferably with some arty elements to it.<br><br><br><b>3. Tell me a little bit about how the band formed, if you would?</b><br><br>
WS: As stated above, I got bored of guitar and was looking for another musical outlet. One evening in 1996 I rented a video of Kate Bush, which had clips of her live performances. I went out and purchased Live at Hammersmith and was blown away. I loved it and instantly and was inspired to take singing lessons with the hopes of forming my own band. After about a year, I felt somewhat confident in my new found singing ability and did an acoustic gig with Chris Reid helping out on guitar and bass. It went over pretty good. I also recorded a demo cassette that I was proud of at the time, but like many artists, I'm now embarrassed listening back to it.<br><br>
From about 1998 through to 2001 I had a rotating roster of musicians that I played with and recorded with. While that worked for getting my music out and about with live gigs and recording, I started to feel that a more stable line up would tighten up the material. Around 2002 I was able to work with a more stable line up of musicians with Chris Reid taking on Guitar duties, Richard Rizzo on Drums and Andrew Buntain on Bass. This became the core group. We were able to record two CD's, The Butterfly Plague and The View. After the CD release of The View, Andrew left to pursue other musical interests and was replaced by Frank Heisler who had ironically been in the band previously to Andrew. It's a bit of a musical chairs situation that in the end has turned out to work great.<br><br><b>4. You’ve released three albums with your band. How would you say your sound has evolved since your debut record?</b><br><br>
WS: Actually I've recorded 5 releases and writing wise, each one has been not so much an evolution, but a change depending on my influences. Production and performance wise there has been an evolution, for the better to my ears. <br><br>
The 1st release was a cassette release, which had me singing, doing all guitar and keyboards. It's a very raw recording and my vocals were still in a very early learning stage. I cringe when I hear them.<br><br>
The 2nd release called World up my Ass also had me singing, doing guitars/keyboards, and even some bass on a few songs. Many of the songs on this release were written years before the release and so I consider this more of a compilation of old songs and ideas. As a result, it's a very eclectic release. I feel the performances were OK but the vocals and production are a little rough.<br><br>
The 3rd release titled Broken had pretty much all newly written songs and was greatly influenced by a more alternative vibe. At the same time, I was being introduced to some jazz via my singing lessons, which is apparent on a few tracks also. This release also had me playing all guitars, keys, and bass. For me, Broken is the start of when I feel my songs, singing and recording production got better. I have a soft spot for this album as so much of it was me.<br><br>
The 4th release is a concept album called The Butterfly Plague. It was actually written 8 years earlier but I didn't feel confident enough to record it at the time, so it sat on the back burner for a while. Musically and texturally, it was influenced by Jesus Christ Superstar and is pretty much in the style of progressive rock. This was also the first release to be recorded by a stable line up of band members. As a result, some of my musical ideas were interpreted differently then I had imagined, but in the end it turned out nicely.<br><br>
The last release titled The View had a range of influences going on. 'Heavy Motion' was influenced with A Perfect Circle vibe while 'The Empty Sky' had a Kansas influence. The finished products probably don't sound like those influences, but that's what was going through my mind at the time of writing them. Two of the other songs were written by me just jotting down some chord progressions on a sheet of paper. I thought it would be a great way to come up with some interesting ideas without fully knowing what they would sound like. This is also the release that has the best production to my ears.<br><br>
Over all, my writing style changes with what ever I've been influenced by. I try not to write the same song over again but in some cases, it's inevitable. Vocally, and production wise I feel I've gotten better with each release.<br><br><b><br>
5. What would you say sets your band apart from other current prog/art rock bands?</b><br><br>
WS: I think the main thing is that most of the musical texture is guitar based. While I do play keyboards and there are some songs that do feature keys, guitar is still at the heart of the texture of my music. I'd also say that the material is stylistically eclectic, similar to how Queen was. We have some rock songs, some prog songs, some bluesy influenced numbers, some jazzy influenced songs and some more humorous songs. So ya, I think the music is more eclectic then other prog/art rock bands.<br><br><br><b>6. I understand you’ve begun work on some new material for two different releases. First, what can you tell us about the music you’ve been working on for the next Wilton Said release?</b><br><br>
WS: It's been tough writing for this next release. I had writers block for a couple of months and just wasn't happy with what was coming out of me. I'd write something, come back to it a couple of days later and it just wouldn't feel right. It was as if I was forcing the material, and that didn't seem good to me. I think I was trying to be too clever, too progressive, too arty for my own good. It wasn't until I relaxed and allowed the music to emerge almost on its own that things started to work. I think the result will be that these songs will be a little less complicated then what was on The View, but by no means less arty.<br><br>
We're also working on a song written by guitarist Chris Reid. He played me a demo of it years ago and I always liked it. It's a little more straight ahead then what I usually write, but it does have a few interesting twists to keep it interesting. Another first will be the addition of an orchestral piece done rock. Mussorgsky's Bydlo from Pictures at an Exhibition has always been one of my favorite pieces. This album seemed to be the right time to record it.<br><br>
The final difference is the way we're learning the material. Previously, I would make a demo of everything and send it to the band to learn. This time around I thought it would be better to jam the ideas out. Working this way enabled me to hear textures and arrangements that I wouldn't have come up with myself. In a few cases, this caused me to change the arrangement and direction of a song to fit in with what the band had come up with. So for me, this next release from a writing standpoint is very different.<br><br><br><b>7. Your website also mentions a rock opera that you’ve been working on. Is there anything you feel you can share about this project yet?</b><br><br>
WS: Ever since hearing Jesus Christ Superstar, I've wanted to do a rock opera. My fist attempt turned into the concept album The Butterfly Plague, which is not a rock opera. I realized the harder part would be writing the lyrics or dialogue, something I wasn't comfortable with, so I put an ad out looking for a lyricist. I got a few responses and ended up working with a guy named Barry Brown. We met up and discussed some ideas. He had a bunch of ideas written down on a piece of paper and one of them said Rabbit Proof Fence. The title struck me as a little quirky and he mentioned it was a movie about aboriginals in Australia. Their children had been forcibly removed from their parents and shipped off to schools to learn how to be come "better citizens". We agreed that this would be a great topic to do and we discussed the structure. Subsequently, we found out that this type of thing went on in many different countries. In Canada they shipped off the aboriginal children to Residential Schools. There was a movie based on a true story about children and youths in Ireland who were shipped off to special schools if they were deemed to be needing some straightening out. In many of these cases, the church and government ran the schools and abuse of the children was rampant.<br><br>
The musical writing was different and simpler then on other Wilton Said… recordings. For starters, I wrote music to the lyrics that Barry gave me. The lyrics came first. Usually when writing, I'll get an idea and try to really expand it and make it artier, cleverer. For the Rock Opera, I used ideas that I thought were fine as is and therefore didn't tinker too much with the original ideas. Also, Barry's lyrics didn't always lend themselves to odd time signatures. As a result, the music for this project is more rock as opposed to the more proggy arty stuff of my Wilton Said… material.<br><br>
For recording, I recorded demos to a click track, which had a basic drum machine, some basic guitar and guide vocals. Barry, who is also a drummer, then recorded his drums to the click and I re-recorded guitars and keyboards. The keyboards took me the longest to record as I don't consider myself a keyboardist. I was challenged in that I had to learn how to play in a more rhythmic style then I was used to. The keyboard solos also took me a long time to record. The guitar parts were pretty easy as I've been playing for about 27 years. But the keyboards had me banging my head against the wall. Never the less, the whole thing is written, and the drums, guitars and keyboards have been recorded. Wilton Said… bassist Frank Heisler should be in to record his parts during the fall. After that it's finding vocalists to sing the parts.<br><br><br><b>8. People may not know that you were the driving force behind the NUANCE festival. What was your goal for the festival, and do you think it succeeded at that?</b><br><br>
WS: I found that there were live prog festivals and live prog outlets in other parts of the world, but nothing in the Toronto area. I knew there were bands and I thought there would be an audience. So I held the first one in the spring of 2007 featuring 5 indie bands from the Toronto area including my own band of course. The turn out wasn't too bad and everyone really enjoyed themselves. The next one 6 months later had a smaller attendance and the last one in the fall of 2008 didn't have many people there. As a result I gave up the festival idea. People suggested getting a semi well known act to headline. I had a few musical acquaintances offer their help in setting this up, but in the end it fell through.<br><br>
After that, I organized and held smaller events called NUANCE Sundays Showcases, which featured 3 proggy bands on a Sunday evening. The great thing about these events was that the whole thing wrapped up around 11pm, early by club standards. With most of the musicians and fans of this style of music being dare I say, "older", and therefore having day jobs, the early finish was much appreciated by all. The event attendances were up and down but nevertheless, a great time was always had by all who performed and attended.<br><br>
Overall, I wanted to be able to hold the festivals and/or the showcases on a more regular basis, but alas, it didn't seem that there was a big enough audience for these events. Perhaps things will have changed in the new year.<br><br><br><b>9. Will there be any future NUANCE festivals or performances moving forward?</b><br><br>
WS: As stated earlier, I'm working on the new release so live performances and NUANCE events have been put on hold until the completion of the album.<br><br><br><b>10. One topic that has been discussed to death has been the role of downloads, official and otherwise, and how they affect musicians. I know that you have several free downloads available on your website; have they been popular, and do you find that they have aided in promoting your work?</b><br><br>
WS: The free downloads seem to be popular on the day and day after that I post information on them. I have been able to get a few sales due to the freebies, which is the whole idea.<br><br>
Speaking of downloads; I'm still toying with the idea of making the new release a 320kbps download only release. I would sell card stock with the album cover printed on it at the gigs and on the back would be a code. This code would enable the buyer to download the album directly from the wiltonsaid.com website. I would also include a PDF file with lyrics, credits, photos etc etc so people would have something to read and look at. I know a lot of people like to have a physical item to play, but I'm finding more and more people are uploading their CD collection to their computers and iPods anyways, so a download release would cut out that middle step. <br><br><br><b>11. Connected to that, of course, is this; how much has illegal downloading hurt Wilton Said’s sales?</b><br><br>
WS: I have not come across any illegal downloads of my material, which is a good thing in one sense. In the other, I guess my material isn't quite popular enough to warrant any. Personally, if I found any illegal downloads of my material, I would hope that it would only be the freebies that I have available through my site anyways. I wouldn't have a problem with that.<br><br><br><b>12. What would you say the future holds for the independent progressive/art rock musician?</b><br><br>
WS: Very difficult if any of us are expecting to make any real money. I wouldn't be surprised if more artists started going the download only route, as it's a lot cheaper then paying for 500 CD's.<br><br>
The technology has been a blessing and a curse to the entertainment industry as a whole. It's made it extremely inexpensive to produce and publish ones own work. As a result however, everyone and their grandmother’s cat is producing and publishing their own work. So now there's so much to wade through to find something that's appealing. And even if you do find something that's appealing, there's usually at least ten or more similar works to be found. So the consumer's dollar is stretched thinner over each artists work.<br><br><b><br>
13. Influences and musical interests change over the years. Are there any newer bands or performers that you are inspired by these days?</b><br><br>
WS: Not too much, most of my listening habits revolve around artists I grew up with. However, I really loved A Perfect Circle when they were around. To me they combined the atmospheric darkness of The Cure with the artiness of a prog metal band. I like OK Computer by Radiohead, and Chris Cornell's first post Soundgarden release Euphoric Morning. But I believe all these releases are at least 5 years old. In the independent market, I really enjoy Toronto prog band Half Past Four, which I've had the pleasure of playing with a few times, and US prog artist Phideaux.<br><br><b><br>
14. When not working on music related things, what do you do to relax or recharge?</b><br><br>
WS: I love wine, especially red wine. I love the fact that there's always something different and unexpected to discover. Just when I think I've categorized a certain type of wine in my mind, along comes another to blow my perception and expectation out of the water. It's a great challenge to my mild OCD.<br><br>
I also like to take bike rides and enjoy long walks on the beach. (Sounds like a dating profile).<br><br><br><b>15. Do you have any parting words for our readers as we wrap things up?</b><br><br>
WS: Buy my CD's! Promote independent musicians, and keep on dancing in 7/8 time.<br><br>
Thanks so much Bill for the interview. It's great to know there are people out there helping to promote music of a more artistic nature. It's much appreciated by the musicians, bands and fans.<br><br>
Below is a review of <a href="./musicinfosales.cfm" target="_new">"The View"</a> done by Bill way back in Feb 2007 not long after the release.<br><br>
Artist: Wilton Said<br>
Album: The View<br>
Label: Private Release<br>
Website: <a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com" target="_new">http://www.wiltonsaid.com</a><br><br>
Reviewer: Bill Knispel<br><br>
Track List:<br>
Carnival?<br>
Heavy Motion<br>
Merry-Go-Round<br>
Pretty<br>
Gender Bender<br>
A Family Affair<br>
The Empty Sky:<br>
i. The View<br>
ii. Goodbye<br>
iii. Fallen<br><br>
Wilton Said (the band) AND Wilton Said (the musician) hail from Toronto Ontario. Said’s quirky mix of art rock influences (Queen, Bowie, Kate Bush battle with Sarah Slean and A Perfect Circle for prominence) is on full display on The View, his newest release.<br><br>
Said holds a degree in Musical Composition from York University, and his contributions on vocals/piano/keyboards are joined by those of Andrew Buntain (bass), Richard Rizzo (drums) and Chris Reid (guitars). Sonically the band has forged a sound that focuses heavily on rock, with buzzing guitars, a punchy rhythm section, and Said’s dramatic, inflected vocals flitting in and out of the mix. The tracks on The View are pretty immediately accessible, but with enough quirk and twisted arrangement to move the band out of the mainstream. Art rock is quite possibly the best categorisation for their music, as it seems in many ways the logical extension of the direction bands such as Roxy Music or the Spiders From Mars took in the 1970’s.<br>
“Carnival?” opens the album with found sound; children laughing in a sonic collage with calliope music and loops of undiscernable whispers and a strange vocal line. This shifts into “Heavy Motion,” which starts with a thick, rolling bass line and processed vocals. Wilton Said’s vocals are extremely flexible here, bending notes in a way that sounds extremely close to falling off the melodic line, before snapping back. The song itself goes through a number of changes, with heavy strummed guitar at 2:00 moving into a syncopated and brief bridge before a warped synth solo takes center stage.<br><br>
“A Family Affair” opens like a restrained track, with dream like slide guitar and precious, fragile vocals, before said vocals are run through what sounds like ring modulation, moving the dream into nightmare territory. The song is an exercise in contrast, with alternating heavy sections adding tension to what is otherwise a pretty straightforward song.<br><br>
Prog fans will likely go gaga over “The Empty Sky,” a 3-part mini-epic which closes out the album. The opening movement, “The View,” is a keyboard lover’s dream come true, with layers of organ, synth and piano battling over a pounding rhythm and thick rhythm guitar before the track shifts gears, bringing the speed down a notch while keeping the sonic richness as high as possible. An organ fanfare leads to clean, chorused, picked guitar reminiscent of 1980’s Alex Lifeson. “Goodbye,” the second movement, features laser beam sustained guitar lines, starting clean before adding fuzz and overdrive in ever drenching layers, over an orchestral synth foundation and militaristic drumming. The final section of this suite, “Fallen,” starts by picking up the pace with quick drumming and a propulsive organ line, before downshifting to a somber semi-dirge, with emotionally saturated guitar line and rich, mellotron-like synth textures. Said’s lyrics are sullen and somewhat distressing; a number of potential interpretations likely exist, all of which reek with finality. His vocal delivery on the three tracks that comprise this epic is the most dramatic and emotional on the album.<br><br>
The View is an album packed with a variety of musical twists and turns. All the more amazing is that this is done in just over 34 minutes. In a modern musical environment where quantity is held as having far more importance than quality, it is a joy to listen to an album that hits hard and fast, with no throwaway tracks. The View is just that sort of album, and positions Wilton Said (the band) AND Wilton Said (the musician) as voices to keep an eye (and ear) open to.<br><br>
Wilton Said: vocals/piano/keyboards<br>
Andrew Buntain: bass<br>
Richard Rizzo: drums<br>
Chris Reid: guitars<br><br><br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/852292010-09-22T17:01:40-04:002010-09-22T17:01:40-04:00The Music is Happening<span style="font-size: small;">The music is once again happening. Rehearsals for the next Wilton Said... release </span><span style="font-size: small;">with <a href="./about.cfm" target="_new">myself, Guitarist Chris Reid, Bassist Frank Heisler, and Drummer Richard Rizzo</a> </span><span style="font-size: small;">are underway and have been very successfull. Working on these songs is different then <a href="./musicinfosales.cfm" target="_new">other releases</a> as I haven't made any demos of the songs. This means there are no preconcived ideas as to how the material will actually sonically sound. As a result, we've been jamming out different arrangements of sections to find ideas which work best. It's my hope that the band guys will feel closer to the material as they'll have had a hand in the sound and arrangements. So far, what they have come up with has been great. Looking forward to the next rehearsal where'll I'll be able to showcase the <a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.bandzoogle.com/blog?feature=1143883&postid=437929" target="_new">keyboard solo</a> which I've been feverishly working on the past few weeks.</span><br><br>
The other happy news is that Frank Heisler has been in to record some bass parts for the rock opera. Recording has been going smoothly and his parts sound great. At the rate we're working, all instruments will be done by Christmas. After that it'll be rounding up vocalists for all the character parts.<br><br>
Wilton<br><br>
I know turn my attention back to the Iron Maiden I have playing.<br>
"To Tame a Land"<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/845312010-09-09T20:29:27-04:002010-09-09T20:29:27-04:00Keyboards Keyboards and More Keyboards<span style="font-size: x-small;"></span><span style="font-size: small;">I knew the time would come. It was only a matter of time when I would have to actually start PRACTICING. The band and I have made arrangements to start rehearsals in a few days which means I need to be prepared. So for the past week or so I've been a busy boy polishing up on my vocals and practicing songs. Vocally I'm not too concerned, but keyboards are another issue. As I've stated in past blogs, keyboards have always been a challenge for me. The cover of <a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.bandzoogle.com/blog?feature=1143883&postid=198530" target="_new">Bydlo</a> has come along nicely but I still need to really concentrate as I haven't built up the muscle memory yet. The other hellish piece I've been working on is the keyboard solo to "Half Life". You may exclaim "but Wilton, you wrote it. Why didn't you write an easier part for yourself?". Why indeed. I guess I wanted to challenge myself, and a challenge for me it is. After 6 days of practicing at least two hours each day, it's finally coming together, a little bit. Nevertheless, tomorrow I'll descend into the basement for some more keyboard pain, suffering, and joy.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/839872010-08-31T20:50:00-04:002010-08-31T20:50:00-04:00Summers End<span style="font-size: small;">Well the summers rolling to an end and it'll be back to school and work for most if us. That includes the band and I as we start rehearsals again for the next Wilton Said... release. Over all it's been a great musical summer as I've had the chance to see a few of my top favorite bands. Rush and Iron Maiden both made stops in Toronto at the Molson Amphitheater, and my wife and I saw a few great bands such as Heaven and Hell, Marillion, Zappa Plays Zappa, and Steve Hackett in England at the High Voltage Festival. <br><br>
I also picked up the new release from Steve Hackett called Out of the Tunnels Mouth which is just fantastic. For those of you that don't know, Steve Hackett was the guitarist in Genesis before they went all poppy and poopy.<br><br>
The latest Iron Maiden release called The Final Frontier has been playing in my house for the past few weeks also. It's a pretty good album with some new textures not heard before by Maiden and does have some progressive rock influenced moments. Overall a release that an iron maiden fan would enjoy.<br><br>
Anyways, time to go off to bed at this late hour as I've earlier returned from a prog gig by tribuite band Drukfarben who do covers of Yes, Genesis, Gentle Giant and others. A great time.<br><br><br>
Please feel free to check out and download the free compilation called <a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com/additionaldownloads" target="_new">Hand Plucked</a> at <a target="_new" href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com">wiltonsaid.com</a><br><br>
Wilton</span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/825442010-08-06T19:30:00-04:002010-08-06T19:30:00-04:00Changing some songs aroundWriting for the next Wilton Said... release has been a challenge due to the writers block I had. However, over the past little while things have become unblocked and I've been able to write a few decent tunes. However, the song structure and pacing of the release was bothering me as I felt the first few songs would be too prog oriented while the remaininder of the songs were more jazzy and mellow. This didn't sit with me, so I started to come up with an extra proggy type song to put near the end of the release to help balance out the proggyness. I came up with the music for one song and while I think it's O.K., I feel it's too forced. I also had trouble writing lyrics for it, so I put it aside, picked up the guitar and fiddled around. I was able to come up with a very simple guitar picking pattern which sounded even better on piano. From there I continued to write and have come up with 2 sections of music so far, and with lyrics. For the 3rd section, I'll be using a piece of music which was previously written but had no home. It seems to fit very nicely as a 3rd section. <br><br>
With the way things are going, this is looking to be a longer song, possibly 6 or more minutes, with the song broken up into a few different sections. (I know, how progressive). At the moment the song is called "Simple", but titles and lyrics have been known to change so we'll have to see if this title sticks. I'll probably be taking out the song <a target="_new" href="http://wiltonsaid.bandzoogle.com/blog.cfm?feature=1143883&postid=196471">"No God"</a> and replacing it with "Simple" as it seems to give the release a better flow.<br><br>
Now I just need to finish it, chart it, and possibly demo it for the band guys.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/820582010-07-29T11:00:00-04:002010-07-29T11:00:00-04:00High Voltage Festival Uk<span style="font-size: small;">My wife and I attended the High Voltage Festival in the UK last weekend and we had a great time. It's great to know that classic rock or Dinosaur rock as it was called in the 90's, is still alive and going strong. The amount of people in attendance from all over the world proves this. We weren't able to see every band as there were three stages and some of the acts overlapped. Luckily there weren't any severe choices and sacrifices to be made.<br><br><b>Gary Moore (main stage) </b>- My wife wanted to see Gary Moore as she was a bit of a fan. I've heard his music before and he is an excellent guitar player and songwriter, however for me, this performance didn't do any thing for me. While he played well, his performance seemed lack lustered. We left after about half his set to see Zappa plays Zappa.<br><br><b>Dwesil Zappa (prog stage)</b> - Not a big fan of Zappa's music as it's just too weird and off the wall for me. Although Catholic Girls is a funny song, which they didn't play. The band was tight and energetic and looked like they had a great time. We saw most of the set and I did appreciate what they did, it just isn't my cup of tea. great to have heard it though.<br><br><b>Heaven and Hell (main stage) </b>- We took a break got some food and then saw Heaven and Hell (formally known as Dio led Black Sabbath). Earlier on in the year lead singer Ronnie James Dio passed away due to stomach Cancer and Heaven and Hell pulled out of the show. Then it was announced that they would be back in doing a tribute to Ronnie with Glenn Hughes and Jorn Lande handling the vocals. The show was great starting off with The Mob Rules and continuing with music mainly from Mob Rules and Heaven and Hell. They did one song off of Dehuminizer which was I. My song highlights of their set were Country Girl, Turn up the Night and Falling off the Edge of the World.<br>
While I think both vocalists did a great job of singing, I think Jorn’s voice is more suited as he had more of a metal voice where as Glen’s voice is a little smoother and bluesier. Over all a fantastic show.<br><br><b>Transatlantic (prog stage)</b> - Transatlantic was the last band we saw on the Sat night and they were excellent, although not what I was into. I don’t know why, but they’ve never been able to hold my attention. Nevertheless, they’ve got my respect.<br>
Their encore was a huge surprise as they brought out Steve Hackett (guitarist for Genesis during the 70’s) and played the 1970 Genesis song Return of the Giant Hogweed. Totally blew me away.<br><br><b>Wishbone Ash (prog stage)</b> - The Sunday started off with Wishbone Ash. I had seen and heard a little video of them on the High Voltage site and thought they were pretty good. However, their performance left me disappointed. I couldn’t get into their songs and they weren’t very progressive which left me wondering why they were on the prog stage. Also, their playing was loose and sloppy which too me sounded like a band which hadn’t had time to rehearse that much. However, the crowd really enjoyed their set so what can I say.<br><br><b>Steve Hackett (prog stage) </b>–I had only heard a little bit of his solo material before so I was looking forward to hearing more. It was amazing. What I thought was really great was the diversity of his material. With most guitarists’ solo material, the texture usually consists of guitars, guitars and more guitars, and the guitar as the lead instrument, in every song. Hackett is more of a song writer who uses his guitar to fit in with the song. As a result, guitars were not always at the forefront of his music. This gives his music a wider texture which is something I loved. Again, I loved his set and will be picking up, or downloading (legally iTunes) some of his material.<br><br><b>Uriah Heep (prog stage) </b>– I have a few compilations of Heep’s music and I do enjoy it. However I’ve never seen the band live so this was going to be a treat. They played all of their Demons and Wizard album which meant that many of their songs I did not know. They were great, energetic, played well and were tight. Their vocalist (Canadian born) Bernie Shaw was great and handled all the melodrama that original vocalist David Byron had. A great set.<br>
We grabbed some food and then returned to the Prog stage for headliner Marillion. Anyone that know me knows that I’m a huge Marillion fan so this review will be biased.<br><br><b>Mariillion (prog stage) </b>– They opened with their lengthy number Invisible Man and unfortunately fell into some technical glitches with Bassist Pete’s equipment. Also it seemed that Keyboardist Mark Kelly was having a few problems of his own playing the right parts at the wrong time. However, that didn’t stop the rest of the band from performing well with vocalist Steve Hoggarth giving his all. Highlights of the set were the lengthy 20 minute opus This Strange Engine with Hoggarth being overjoyed at finally getting his midi controlled cricket bat to work at the crucial time. Neverland was huge and majestic with guitarist Steve Rothery’s guitar lines slicing through the mix. Surprisingly, the set ended with the trilogy of This Town/The Rakes Progress/100 Nights. Over all a great set by one of my favorite bands and I’ll be looking forward to the 2011 Montreal convention.<br><br><b>ELP (main stage) </b>– We missed the first quarter of ELP’s set due to overlap with Marillion. We arrived during Knife Edge. Instantly I could hear that something wasn’t quite right. They sounded loose, a little sloppy, and keyboardist Keith Emerson wasn’t playing as well as expected. I did know that Keith has had nerve damage and surgery in his right arm so it could be expected that there would be some deficiencies in his playing, but not to the extent that I heard. Also, I found out after the show that this was their first gig together in about 15 years, but again I didn’t think it would be as noticeable as it was. But perhaps that was just me as most in the crowd seemed to really enjoy the show. Highlights of their set were the solo piano Eruption, and the full band version of the rest of Tarkus. Over all, a good set which was enjoyed by many.<br><br>
Over all, my wife and I had a great time at the festival. My only complaint was that the Metal Stage was too close to the Prog stage which resulted in some rumble during quieter parts of songs. Hopefully the festival made enough money to be able to hold it again next year.<br><br>
Wilton<br></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/812292010-07-14T18:29:02-04:002010-07-14T18:29:02-04:00Rush Review from Molson Amphitheater Toronto July 13th 2010<span style="font-size: small;">Rush Time Machine Show<br>
Toronto July 13th 2010<br>
Molson Amphitheater<br><br>
Saw the show last night and thought it was very good. The only "very good" rating is a purely personal one as I had sent Rush an email stating that there were a few songs in their catalogue that I didn't really like, and asked them not to play them. I think they misread the email and thought they were the songs I DID like and put them all in the first set. I did however enjoy Workin Them Angels, the instrumental Leave that Thing Alone, Freewill and Subdivisions.<br><br>
The 2nd set was much better as I liked most of the songs. Yes they played all of Moving Pictures (or is that moving Pitchers) but I've seen most of those songs played on previous tours so it wasn't that spectacular to me. However, I reaallly enjoyed Camera Eye which hasn't been played in over 20 years. I also loved Witch Hunt which has got to be one of Rush's darkest songs. The new songs Caravan rocked. 2112 Overture/Temple of Syrinx is always a blast. Those longing for the days of hearing Closer to the Heart which had been dropped the last few tours, were not disappointed as Rush still played this song as if it was fresh and new. They even rearranged the last verse by playing it in 6/8 time as opposed to the regular 4/4 time.<br><br>
The show closer of Working Man had the first two verses being played in a white mans reggae style before rocking out to the instrumental section in regular 4/4 time.<br><br>
The video's that preceded each set, and closed the show was really funny and dealt with the early years of Rush. Gotta love those bar waitresses.<br><br>
The lighting and stage set was probably the best I've ever seen by Rush. Ya gotta have the flashing, blinking lights and video show if you're a band like Rush as the three of them don't do much physical action on stage. If you're not sure what I mean, compare the physical stage energy of Iron Maiden to Rush.<br><br>
Over all for me, it was a very good show which was hampered by the lack of my personal favorite songs, but I'm sure others thought the show was great. Highly recommended to the die hard fan and to those casual fans who only know the radio songs.<br><br>
Spoiler Alert...<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>
Set 1<br>
The Spirit Of Radio<br>
Time Stand Still<br>
Presto<br>
Stick It Out<br>
Workin' Them Angels<br>
Leave That Thing Alone<br>
Faithless<br>
BU2B (Brought Up To Believe)<br>
Freewill<br>
Marathon<br>
Subdivisions<br><br>
Set 2<br>
Tom Sawyer<br>
Red Barchetta<br>
YYZ<br>
Limelight<br>
The Camera Eye<br>
Witch Hunt<br>
Vital Signs<br>
Caravan<br>
Love 4 Sale <br>
Closer to the Heart<br>
2112 Overture/The Temples of Syrinx<br>
Far Cry<br><br>
Encore<br>
La Villa Strangiato<br>
Working Man</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/806862010-07-04T03:33:53-04:002010-07-04T03:33:53-04:00Iron Maiden and Dream Theater (Spoilers)<span style="font-size: small;">Just got back from the Iron Maiden/Dream Theater show in Toronto and thought overall it was great. Unfortunately, DT only played for 45 min which was really really surprising as they were billed as Special Guests, not an opener. Plus, I think that about 10% to 20% were there mainly for DT, so I'm sure there were some that felt a little ripped off.<br><br>
DT played well with precision as always and although I don't fully remember their setlist, it didn't matter to me as by the time they got to the instrumental sections of their music, I forget what song they were in anyways. Don't get me wrong, I've got all their albums but live they're just not my thing.<br><br>
Maiden was great. Hard to believe the amount of energy these guys still have. However as with all Maiden shows I've seen, this comes at a cost of precision. Maiden are and have always been one of the loosest bands I've seen, and although I love Dickensons vocals on record, he forgoes much of his range and clear phrasing in exchange for running around the stage. Of course Maiden wouldn't be complete without their great light show. I tell you, these guys don't scrimp on the visuals. Overall they put on a great show and I will be seeing them next time they come through to tour more of the final Frontier.<br><br>
Setlist spoiler below......<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>
The Wicker Man <br>
Ghost Of The Navigator <br>
Wrathchild <br>
El Dorado<br>
Dance Of Death <br>
The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg <br>
These Colours Don't Run <br>
Blood Brothers (Dedicated to Ronnie James Dio )<br>
Wildest Dreams <br>
No More Lies<br>
Brave New World <br>
Fear Of The Dark <br>
Iron Maiden <br><br>
Encore:<br>
The Number of the Beast <br>
Hallowed Be Thy Name <br>
Running Free<br><br>
As you can see, most of the material was taken from the last 3 releases which suited me just fine as I've never seen many of these songs live. I'm sure however that there were some disappointed Maiden fans as there was nothing from Piece of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere in Time or Seventh Son. Of course to see these songs, one would've had to be at the Somewhere back in Time tour from a year or so ago.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/803562010-06-27T08:30:00-04:002020-07-11T03:48:33-04:00Teen Aged Prog Band Kicks Ass at Local Music Festival<span style="font-size: small;">Last Friday I ventured to a St. Bridget's school yard where there was "The Last Day Music Festival" taking place. The event billed itself as some of the best youth bands in the city. $5 cover got me entrance, a Pizza Square and a can of Pop, not bad. The event was an all ages event so there were a variety of ages present. I knew some of the people and children present as the event was held not far from the Daycare where I work. <br><br>
I arrived to hear a solo accoustic set by a teen whose name I can't remember. While he played and sang well, to my ears he wasn't very original as he sang with that teen angst style that so many of the newer alternative/pop/punk bands sing with. <br><br>
Next up was another band whose name I couldn't remember, but they were quite good. These guys had more of an Iron Maiden/Metallica style happening which explained why their two songs took up about 20min total. The drummer was amazing and handled all the vocals, the two guitar players were excellent, and the bass player held down bottom end while doubling much of the guitar parts. All together, a good young metal band.<br><br>
The following band was called "What the Funk" and featured the drummer from the previous band on bass. The band also consisted of a drummer, horn section, guitar player, bass and a keyboard player who had forgotten to bring his stand and had to play with his keyboard resting on his lap. As their name suggests, they were a funky groovy band who played two songs. One of which was a more jazzy based on where practally everyone in the band took a solo. Overall not to bad.<br><br>
"Done with Dolls" featured an all girl band which made Avril Lavigne seem like a heavy and deep artist. Yes this band knew how to market themselves as a tween hard rock band, but only they weren't very hard. But I do believe they were the most popular band of the evening.<br><br>
"Chasing Sam" should've been the headliner and closing act as this band consisted of Samantha the now 14 year old drummer who has been in numerous commercials. The band also had the festival organizer Chris on guitar and vocals, his what looked like to be his 8 year old son on guitar, and some other guy on bass. The sort of reminded me of Catherine Wheel with their more lush chorusy guitar sound, their simple arrangements, and no guitar solos. Drummer Samantha held her own fairly well although I do believe she needs to work on her endurance as her tempo and timing slipped a few times. My main gripe with Chasing Sam was Chris' vocals. He's not British at all but sang/shouted with a heavy cockney accent in the style of Blurs Damon Albarn. Again, these guys shyould've been the closing act as everyone started to make a move to leave after they played. Over all a good band in my eyes.<br><br>
The last band of the evening was "Antithesis". All I can say is WOW! These guys were weird, progressive, crazy, and man could they play. Think Tool, Primus, with some King Crimson thrown in and you have these guys. Their singer was not afraid to roll around on the stage, scream, shout and sing. Their drummer was subtle in that you wouldn't think he was doing much complicated unless you actually saw what he was doing. But that could be more to do with the sound rather then him. The guitar player and bass player kicked some serious ass with their chops. These two were speedy when needed, mellow when needed, and everything in between. Over all a fantastic band which perhaps one day I'll get to play at a NUANCE show or festival.<br><br>
A few weeks previous to the show, I talked to organizer Chris and he told me all about the festival. He pays for most of the stuff from his own pocket although he was able to get some nice endorsements. Never the less he takes very little of the income as most of it goes to the bands and back to the school where the festival was held. What I liked about this festival was that it was a music festival with not much else going on. This caused people to actually watch the bands which were focal point of the evening, rather then having other activities and having the music as background music. From a technical and sound point of view, I couldn't believe there were no vocal monitors on the stage. I'm assuming due to the Show Pro endorsement that they also set up and mixed the sound. How could they not have vocal monitors? Also, instruments sans drums should've gone through the mixing board for greater control. But that's just me. Over all the sound was decent and most people seemed to be fine with it. Everyone seemed like they had a great time which all you could ask for.<br><br>
Over all, I do comend Chris for putting the festival together as I know how challanging it can be.<br><br>
I guess Chris heard my band and myself play at the Earl Beatty funfair a few weeks ago as he stated that we could play a few songs for next years "Last Day Music Festival".<br><br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/797402010-06-16T10:11:29-04:002010-06-16T10:11:29-04:00Wilton Said... part of website which contributes to Charity<span style="font-size: small;">Please check out my profile at </span><a href="http://jackthedonkey.com/user_Wilton%20said....html" target="_new"><span style="font-size: small;">JacktheDonkey.com</span></a> where your online time benefits the charity of your choice.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/796572010-06-14T23:26:09-04:002010-06-14T23:26:09-04:00Rock Opera Guitars/Keys are done!<span style="font-size: small;">Well, after about a year and a half, I've finally finished the guitar and keyboard parts for this project. I didn't really expect it to take this long but it turned out that there was a lot of experimenting and fiddling to do, especially with the keyboard parts. The guitar parts were more or less written as the songs were written on guitar, so I knew what I wanted to play and was able to execute it. Plus my style of guitar playing basically requires three sound choices, clean, a little dirty, and overdriven, so my palette wasn't too large. The keyboard however (my Roland Fantom X6 or whatever it is) has a ga-zillion sounds to choose from and anybody that knows me, knows that for me too much choice is not a good thing. For example, I might have an idea of a string sound for a part, but I would have to go through ALL 50 or so of the string sounds to find the one I like. Now imagine me doing that with horn parts, lead sounds, piano sounds etc and all of the sudden, it's an hour later and i haven't even recorded the part much less figured out exactly what to play. So all in all, the keyboard parts were the most time consuming.<br><br>
Another thing which added to the length of time was my perfectionist nature. I wanted to make sure I was as close as possible to the kick and snare beats which meant redoing simple grooves and rhythms until I got it right. And even when i got it close, i still wasn't always happy. But listening to it a day or two later usually resulted in me not hearing those nit picky parts and being generally happy with what was put down.<br><br>
Other things to contend with were the break down of my old keyboard rig during the beginning of recording resulting in an expensive new one which took me about 3 weeks to learn about and program. Plus the day to day of living life sometimes meant i couldn't record when i had planned to. C'est la vie.<br><br>
But it's done and hopefully my job will now be to record Barry's songs (he's playing all parts on his keyboard), produce the bass parts, organize the vocal parts, and then finally record the vocal parts. Still a ways off from being finished, but at least this step is done. And now i'm going off to bed and plan to enjoy my week off work.<br><br>
Wilton<br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/786232010-06-06T18:30:00-04:002017-01-16T09:01:19-05:00A Busy Weekend with Drywall and Smiley Attack.<span style="font-size: small;">Life sure does get in the way of doing things we want to do sometimes doesn't it. While this weekend was meant to be a weekend of relaxation and a bit of shopping, it turned out to be a weekend of minor basement renovation. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/whatchutalkingabout_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /> Saturday afternoon, our phone lines weren't receiving any incoming calls. My wife<img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/heart.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /> and I called Bell (our telephone company) and send a repair guy over to take a look. Four hours later he couldn't do much as he and we couldn't find a particular box or terminal which connects the outside wire to the inside wires. Soooo, I call up my good friend Chris and he graciously comes over and we start to rip away the drywall in the basement ceiling looking for this elusive box. We finally find it and he goes on his way. Sunday, we call Bell and a repair guys comes out, checks the box, checks all the wires, checks the phone jacks, checks the phones, detaches some wires, reattaches the same wires, and our phone line ends up working properly. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/confused_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /> Weird. Hhhhhmmm.<br><br>
Now I'm left with a small portion of the basement ceiling all chopped up. But no fear, as I have a drywall patch kit which I've purchased at our beloved Canadian Tire. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/thumbs_up.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /> However, this means that my basement studio is out of commission until I patch the ceiling up, (It's the right thing to do as I don't think our landlord would appreciate the look). Which means that I won't be able to record any rock opera this week which is annoying as I only have two more songs to do. Sooo clooose, but sooo faaarrr.<img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/cry_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /><br><br>
On a more positive note, things could be a lot worse.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br><br><br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/774942010-05-29T14:10:00-04:002022-05-10T19:06:36-04:00Wilton Said... Fun at the Funfair<span style="font-size: small;">I just got in from our set at the Funfair a few hours ago and I am beat. Setting up equipment, playing for an hour, taking down equipment, moving equipment, all in the sun and heat can really wear one out, nevertheless, the band and I had a great time playing. It was great to see some new faces, some familiar faces, and also some faces which I haven't seen for a very very long long time. Unfortunately I wasn't able to talk at length with some of you due to equipment set up and take down, but I do very much want to thank you for coming out to see us play. Hopefully you were also able to enjoy the rest of the Funfair food and activities.<br><br>
I also want to thank the band, Chris Reid - Guitar, Richard Rizzo - Drums and Frank Heisler - Bass for once again playing a great show. And not to forget, thanks to the Earl Beatty Parent Council for putting on the Funfair and having us play.<br><br>
Until next time, enjoy the sun. I'm off to drink wine.<br>
Wilton</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/769752010-05-22T10:30:00-04:002010-05-22T10:30:00-04:00New Songs in Player at wiltonsaid.com<span style="font-size: small;">Hi everyone.<br><br>
I just wanted to let people know that I've got some new songs for streaming at <a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com" target="_new">wiltonsaid.com</a></span><br>
Stop on by, have a listen and take a look around.<br>
Hope you enjoy.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/760122010-05-18T13:48:39-04:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Wilton Said... one of the featured songs on Westside Will Unsigned Artist Showcase Radio<span style="font-size: small;">My song Merry go Round is featured on today's Westsidewill.com Unsigned Artist Showcase that can be found at: </span><a target="_new" href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase/index.php"><span style="font-size: small;">http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase/index.php</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">.<br><br>
Please vote for the song <a href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistdirectory/1714-Wilton-Said" target="_new">here</a>.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><br>
www.westsidewill.com is home to westsidewill radio, and unsigned artists from around the world. We debut a new show Monday through Thursday at <a href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase">http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase</a> , and Friday at http://www.westsidewill.com/top10<br><br><br></span><br><a target="_new" href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase"> <img src="//i137.photobucket.com/albums/q238/MrBigTimeHustler/WSWBanner2copy.jpg" class="size_orig justify_center border_" alt="" /></a>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/742782010-05-11T16:55:00-04:002010-05-11T16:55:00-04:00Lady Madonna<span style="font-size: small;">One of the cover songs the band and I will be doing at the <a target="_new" href="./liveevents.cfm">Family Funfair</a> is a cover of the Beatles song "<a target="_new" href="http://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/lady-madonna/">Lady Madonna</a>". While it's not a hard song to sing as it fits right in my range, it is tricky to play on piano, especially for someone like me who doesn't consider themself a piano player. The song has a bit of a <a target="_new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boogie-woogie">boogie woogie </a>style going to it, something that I haven't really explored on piano so it's been a challange to coordinate</span> the moving bass line of my left had with the more melodic chordal playing of my right hand. After a week of solid practicing, I've pretty much got it. Now I just need to relearn the lyrics as I've been singing the week days out of order. I've got three rehearsals with the band and I'm sure by then I'll have it all sorted out along with the other songs we'll be playing.<br><br>
Until next time, See How They Run<br><br>
Wilton<br><br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/692182010-04-19T19:24:16-04:002010-04-19T19:24:16-04:00Yet Another Song and an Outdoor Event<span style="font-size: small;">Well it seems like I've got another song idea rolling around in my head. At the moment it's called <b>Endorphin Crash. </b>It started by me picking up the guitar and strumming a few ideas. My first instinct was to censor these ideas as they didn't seem "arty enough" or "crafty enough". However, it is possible for one to try TOO hard and I decided to use one of the ideas and keep it in it's simplified form of 5/8 time. You may be thinking "what's simple about that?!" In the past I would have and have taken that 5/8 time and found ways to manipulate it and alternate it with other time signatures, clever me eh?! But as I stated earlier, after a while one can get tired of trying to be clever, especially when one has done it before, ohhh the boredom. So 5/8 it remains and I like it. I have already written two verses of lyrics for this idea and I think I've got an instrumental section worked out. Before going any further with the song however, I want to jam parts of it out with the band to see if any arrangement ideas take the song in another direction. It happened with "Half Life" (a new song to be on the next release) and it might happen with this one.<br><br>
On the live music front, the band and I will be performing on Sat May 29th at an outdoor Family Funfair event. We'll be playing a chunk of originals along with a few rockin cover tunes. Stay tuned for further details.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton</span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/659352010-04-03T20:35:00-04:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Practicing New Songs<span style="font-size: small;">First off, I hope everyone is having a nice long Easter/Passover weekend. I am as I have been out and about doing regular boring personal stuff like buying new shorts and undershirts. I've also been spending a few hours practicing for the upcomming rehearsal/jam with the band later this week. We'll be working on Guitarist Chris Reid's song called "Down" and possibly "Bydlo". I'm looking forward to "Down" as it's a rocker featuring lyrics from a time of conflict in his life. It's a song which features a wide range of emotions such as love, hate, sorry, anger, lust and confusion. It'll be great to sink my teeth into it. "Bydlo" from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition has been the most challenging of any song I've learned how to play on keyboards. But nonetheless, with alot of work it's coming together.<br><br><img src="//content.bandzoogle.com/users/wiltonsaid/images/content/mu_pic_g-300.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="424" width="300" /><br><br>
Until next time<br>
Wilton<br><br><br></span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/631432010-03-16T19:45:00-04:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Wilton Said... music to be used in film<span style="font-size: small;">Some of my music will be appearing, or heard in an upcoming British student short film. It's called "Hot Rodding" and was writen and directed by Paul Stears with the cinematography by Ryan Daniel Young. I believe the film involves cars and sex, or maybe sex and cars. The songs which they asked to use were "<a target="_new" href="./musicinfosales.cfm">Pretty</a>"</span>, "<a target="_new" href="./musicinfosales.cfm">All for You</a>" and "<a target="_new" href="./additionaldownloads.cfm">Whipped Cream</a>". Judging by the songs, I'd say the film has a possible pervie under tone to it. Perfect. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/tounge_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /><br><br>
I'm hoping to get a copy emailed to me which I can post. (With the artists permission of cource.)<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/628632010-03-13T17:05:00-05:002010-03-13T17:05:00-05:00Thanks and hope you enjoy the free downloads.<span style="font-size: small;">Looks like quite a few people downloaded the <a target="_new" href="./additionaldownloads.cfm">"Hand Plucked" </a>compilation release. I hope you enjoy the music and if you're interested in hearing and having more Wilton Said... music, please check it out <a target="_new" href="./musicinfosales.cfm">here</a>.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton </span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/621752010-03-06T13:53:57-05:002021-08-21T15:19:29-04:00Music for Bydlo - Pictures at an Exhibition<span style="font-size: small;">For the next release, I'm looking at doing an arrangement of a classical piece by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictures_at_an_Exhibition" target="_new">Mussorgski called "Bydlo" from Pictures at an Exhibition</a>. Some of you might recall that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictures_at_an_Exhibition_%28album%29" target="_new">E.L.P. (Emerson Lake and Palmer)</a> did a reworking of some of these songs back in the 70's. However, they didn't do Bydlo which is one of my favorite pieces from this suite. For those who don't know, Pictures at an Exhibition was originally a piano piece with each section inspired by a painting viewed at a gallery. Bydlo is simply a painting of a lumbering Ox pulling a cart. The origanal music reflects this perfectly with it's minor key bass 3rds plodding along and the slow melodic minor melody. For our arrangement, I'm thinking of Guitarist Chris Reids ebow guitar for the melody while Bassist Frank and I carry the bass tones. It'll be interesting.<br><br>
Wilton</span><br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/619262010-03-03T15:30:00-05:002010-03-03T15:30:00-05:00Lyrical Inspiration finally hits with "No God".<span style="font-size: small;">Sometimes inspiration can kick in at the last minute as I've finally gotten around to writing some lyrics for one of the newer songs which the band and I will be working on tomorrow. The songs is a slower piano based jazzy tune inspired by Supertramp. In fact, the working title for myself was called "Supertramp Song". But now I have a real title, "No God" inspired in part by Richard Dawkins.<span style="display: none;" id="1267669791381E"> </span><br><br>
I'm hoping the lyrics will make some people uncomfortable.<br>
I'm hoping the lyrics will make some people angry.<br>
I'm hopping the lyrics and song will make people think.<br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton </span><br><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br><span style="font-size: small;"></span>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/613972010-02-25T13:35:00-05:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Wilton Said... one of the featured songs on Westside Will Unsigned Artist Showcase<span style="font-size: small;">My song Merry go Round is featured on today's Westsidewill.com Unsigned Artist Showcase that can be found at: </span><a target="_new" href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase/index.php"><span style="font-size: small;">http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase/index.php</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">.<br><br>
Please vote for the song <a href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistdirectory/1714-Wilton-Said" target="_new">here</a>.<br><br>
www.westsidewill.com is home to westsidewill radio, and unsigned artists from around the world. We debut a new show Monday through Thursday at <a href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase">http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase</a> , and Friday at http://www.westsidewill.com/top10<br><br><br></span><br><a target="_new" href="http://www.westsidewill.com/artistshowcase"> <img src="//i137.photobucket.com/albums/q238/MrBigTimeHustler/WSWBanner2copy.jpg" class="size_orig justify_center border_" alt="" /></a>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/602322010-02-13T13:15:00-05:002010-02-13T13:15:00-05:00Free Album Download<a href="./additionaldownloads.cfm"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Acoustic Guinea Pig</span></b></a><span style="font-size: small;"><br><br>
Back in 2003, I did a solo one day marathon session of recording for students of the Harris Institute. These students were enrolled in the production cource and needed musicians to record as part of their training. I was that musician, I was their guinea pig. The recordings turn out to be half decent, even though they were roughly mixed and fueled by loads of coffee by your truly. Hope you enjoy. It's free. As a note, I've included the song All for You (which is originally released off of Broken) in this album as I think it fits the acoustic theme.</span><br>Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/600292010-02-11T18:29:05-05:002010-02-11T18:29:05-05:00Band Workshop of new songJust got back from band rehearsal, although it was more of a workshop then rehearsing. We were able to go through the song "Half Life" <i>which I've now changed to "Fractal (Half Life)"</i> and we were able to recod rough versions of the different sections of the song. We now have and idea of how the dynamics will sound and an idea what our individual parts will generally be. Over all it was a lot of fun and it was a great way to work. it beats spending 3 hours in my basement by myself recording demos.<br><br>
For the next band rehearsal/jam, we'll be laying down rough versions of a lighter jazzy tune called "City on the Water" and a untitled song which I'm currently calling "Supertramp Song".<br><br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/596762010-02-09T13:35:00-05:002010-02-09T13:35:00-05:00Wilton Said... got some airplay.<span style="font-size: small;">One of my songs "Heavy Motion" was a feature song on </span><a href="http://artistlaunch.com/podcastgen1.3/" target="_new"><span style="font-size: small;">The ArtistLaunch Radio Show</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">, a great site to expose yourself to independant music. Check it out.</span><br><br>
Wilton<br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/596902010-02-08T19:15:00-05:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Another Song down for the Rock Opera<span style="font-size: small;">Yes, guitar and keyboard parts for another song have been recorded for the rock opera. But over all, the recording proccess is taking longer then I would like. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/cry_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /> This is mainly due to my keyboard playing. While I’m able to put down the guitar tracks relatively easy and quickly (I’ve been playing guitar for 25 years), it’s not quite so for the keyboard parts. This is mainly due to the fact that I don’t consider myself a keyboard player (I’ve only been playing seriously for 6 years) and as a result it takes me longer to find arrangements and sounds that fit with the guitar and drum tracks. Once I’ve experimented and am happy with the arrangement and sound, it then takes me a little while to actually be able to play it up to a reasonable level. All in all, it’s a learning experience which will only make me a better keyboardist.<br><br>
Wilton<br></span><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/595922010-01-31T10:05:00-05:002010-01-31T10:05:00-05:00The Musical WeekendSo far it has been quite musical. I was able to pick up a Queensryche album titled "Operation Mindcrime 2". For any metal heads, you may have guessed that it is the sequel to the 1988 break throughlease called "Operation Mindcrime". I listened to about half of it on Sat and it's not bad. One of the highlights is a song called The Chase which features a duet with Ronnie James Dio on vocals along with Geoff Tate. Texturally, I find the sound more similar to recent queensryche such as Q2X and most probably Tribe. (I don't have tribe but I've heard a few songs off of it).<br><br>
Sat night found me visiting a very small bar called the 490 which is located right beside the El Mocambo (spelling?). It was a friend of mines birthday celebration and he was holding an open jam. I showed up with my acoustic guitar, voice and kazoo and managed to stay up on stage for 3 hours. Much fun. Joining the jam were members of a band called <a href="http://www.boxfullofcash.com/" target="_new">Box Full Of Cash</a> featuring a guitarist named Chris who was just amazing, and a stand up double bass player who held down the groove with his thump thump. There was also a Saxophonist whose name escapes me, and of cource the Birthday boy himself Rick Hicks.<br><br>
Today Sun has seen me getting side tracked by adding more photo's to the website while listening to The Cure and AC/DC.<br><br>
Well that's it for now, as my wife wants to use the computer which means I should go record some guitar parts for the rock musical.<br><br>
Bye for now.<br><br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/592592010-01-26T13:25:00-05:002017-01-16T09:01:18-05:00Working on new song called Half Life.Well, this new song is now up and running around my head and has made it to paper in lyric form and basic chord outlines. I'm also in the process of composing an instrumental section for it which the melody will be played by yours truly on keyboards. It's coming along nicely and I hope to have it finished by the weekend. Of cource, I'll then need to learn how to play it. <img src="//bandzoogle.com/common/FCKEditor/editor/images/smiley/msn/cry_smile.gif" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" /><br><br>
Next Thurs will see me jamming with the band guys to probably work out more specific arrangements for this song. It should be interesting as quite often what I hear in my head will probably turn out a bit different once the guys get a hold of it.<br><br>
That's it for now.<br><br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...tag:www.wiltonsaid.com,2005:Post/591042010-01-24T06:00:00-05:002010-01-24T06:00:00-05:00I've got the new Wilton Said... site up and running.After about 12 hours of uploading content and typing in content, i've got the site up and running. Feel free to drop on by and look around. I've also got a song available for free download on the <a href="./pressroom.cfm">press room</a> page.<br><br><a href="http://www.wiltonsaid.com" target="_new">www.wiltonsaid.com</a><br><br>
Thanks<br>
Wilton<br type="_moz">Wilton Said...