A song for Japan

When Japan was hit by the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 I was moved in a way that I had not been before. Sure, I’ve always felt for people who are suffering, whether it’s from hunger, poverty, war or  natural disasters. But this time it was different. The feeling was deeper. I don’t know why.  For some reason I have always been very fascinated by the country of Japan and Japanese culture and I would love to go there, but that’s not really the reason my compassion was so strong – it just was. So I followed the news in the media, I donated money and sent the people of Japan my thoughts.

Shortly after the incident I wrote a song called “Help a brother”. It came to me while I was doing the dishes one day. As I recall it, I wrote it all in one fell swoop. I started recording it right away, but then for some reason I never finished it.

Today it’s been one year since the disaster and a week ago I decided I would finally finish it. Here it is, and even though it’s specifically about the events in Japan its message is one of brotherhood and oneness.

The song is free to download and share. If you like it, please don’t donate to me this time, instead consider donating some money to people in need.

Get the mp3 in the download area.

Japanse flag cover art by Dominic’s pics.

Songwriting is a mystery to me – as is creativity in general – and I have learned not to think about the process too much. Thinking just gets in the way. However, the FAWM project has made me realize a thing or two about how the creative flow works. I thought I was writing one song at the time as separate units but that’s not at all how it works for me. Instead everything flows together and several songs are being written simultaneously and one song leads me to the next.

For example, last night I started writing a very slow and melancholic piece of music. I sat with it for about 45 minutes and as I was working with the break I came across something that I felt I had to try in a bit more up-tempo. So I did and then went on writing another song instead based on that little melody that came through working on the first song. The second song was not at all similar, it was more of a jazzy bossa nova. Come to think of it – that is exactly what happened with ”I’m on my way” and ”The dying voice too”.

You know what? I’ll upload the clips from one of my early FAWM sessions and let you listen to the sketchy recordings I always make as I sit writing. You can actually hear ”The dying voice” being written as a break for ”I’m on my way” One thing leading to another – and nonsense becoming something. Here it is:

Oh, and for the record: I’m a great dad and I do not neglect my children just so I can sit alone and write songs.

When I write a song I just try to stay with what comes out spontaneously. Often the best melodies and the best lines are stuff that I just blurt out. The trick is to know what is good and catch it on tape as quickly as possible. A tape recorder is a must if you aspire to become a songwriter. Too many different ideas and versions are passing through you when you sit there playing and writing, it would be impossible to keep them all in my mind and remember them all. It has happended to me many times that I have forgotten what I have written just because I forgot to record it. In my opinion, that is one of the most frustrating things you can experience as a songwriter.
So tip number one to any songwriter: learn to know when you are onto something and record every little bit of the stuff that could become useful.

Well, this wasn’t really what I was supposed to be talking about in this post, but I guess the creative source of the universe wanted me to write this down for some reason. Now I won’t forget it.

Let’s also do a quick sum up the FAWM status on the 20th day with 9 days to go.
I have written 5 songs that are completely finished.
I have 6 more songs that are pretty much done.
Then I have a few more seeds for songs that I’m not sure about. But all in all you could say I have written 11 songs in 20 days. I’m on track!

Peace,
Carl-Otto

Today I uploaded the third song called ”The dying voice”. It’s softer and more more dramatic than the first two songs. I took my time recording this one as I felt I needed to get the mood right. Also, I tend to work harder on songs that I really like -  and for some reason this one is special to me.

Tomorrow I’m off to Stockholm for the weekend and I won’t be able to record anything until next week. I guess this means I will fall even further behind. But I already have three new songs in the making that just need some lyrics and arrangements. Hopefully I’ll be able to catch up next week. Worst case scenario is that I have to record some of the songs with just guitar and voice and don’t put so much time and effort into arrangements and production. Writing the songs shouldn’t be a problem. Songs come easy to me.

Well, that’s it for now. I can’t sit here writing about writing songs, I have to get back to writing… and recording.

Peace,
Carl-Otto

Last week I got an email from a musician in Finland who spoke of something called FAWM – February Album Writing Month. Here is what it says on the website:

“You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.” — Jack London

At first I thought it was absolutely crazy, but after a few days I changed my mind and felt this was so brilliant I couldn’t miss it. My problem is that I write too many songs and record too few of them. There is an ever increasing gap between the number of song written and the number of songs recorded. So if I was going to do this FAWM thing should also record every new song and release them all as a concept album asap after the challenge is completed.

I started off and wrote my first song of the month on January 1st. It is called “Unhide your love” and the lyric speaks for itself. I recorded it in a few hours time and did a rough mix yesterday. I’ve added another jukebox here on the website where you can listen. I will add all new songs as we go along.

To spice up the deal further, I have challanged my friend and fellow musician Martin Johansson (Anikee) to join FAWM as well. We’ve decided to go to the Hultsfred music festival this summer if we make it. But if one of us should fail to complete the challenge, he would have to pay for everything…

Okay, gotta go. I’ve got 14 more songs to write… and record.

OMG! What have I gotten myself into?!!!

The FAWM website: http://www.fawm.org

Orphan Songs on FAWM: http://fawm.org/fawmers/orphansongs/

I got to know Nate in 2002 (I think) when he wrote a fan mail to my old band ”Eyedrop”. He was very impressed by what he heard on the website and said so in his email. I replied and thanked him for his kind words. Then he wrote me back again, asking some questions. I replied asking a few questions myself. Soon we were off in an frequent online conversation that went on for years. This way we developed a friendship that lasts til this day.

I later learned that he was thrilled that the singer of such a brilliant Swedish rock band as Eyedrop even wrote him back. Little did he know that we were completely unknown and that his fan mail was one of my very first. I was just as excited that someone in the United States would take the time to write us a fan mail. We had a fan! So Nate became our first (and some would argue ONLY) fan.

We often talked about music and Nate is one of very few people I entrust with listening to songs in progress. He’s a musician himself, he’s got a great ear and gives brilliant feedback. It was Nate who set the track order for the Orphan Songs debut album. In 2008 Nate came to Sweden for Midsummer and we had a blast. He came back a second time in the fall of 2009. Then it was my turn to go visit him. Soon after his second visit to Sweden he met a girl called Kristen. I think it was pretty much love at first sight and and he proposed to her up in Willis Tower in Chicago on Valenties day of 2010. Cool!

When I got the invitation to the wedding in late 2010 I had an idea for the grandest wedding present. On several occasions, Nate had insinuated that although Orphan Songs was great, Eyedrop was … better. He said it was such a shame we split up and that he really wanted to hear what our second album would sound like. So my idea was simply to get the old band together and record an album as a wedding gift for Nate. Simple enough, eh? After all, he was Eyedrop’s first and only fan. I told the guys in the band about the idea and everyone seemed excited. We got started! We already has some unfinished recordings from the time of the breakup and we also planned to get together for a weekend and lay down some tracks in a studio. I wrote new songs that would fit the album, some of which would be recorded in online collaboration.

But pretty soon the initial entusiasm wore off and nothing happended. The project died. I didn’t have the time nor the energy to complete an entire solo album so I just went back to working on my solo stuff again. One week before the wedding I had nothing. I thought of the circumstances of Nate’s proposal:
The location: Willis Tower – the tallest building in the United States.
The time: Valenties Day.
What a great love theme, I thought. Just like in a movie. Perfect for a love song.
I tried to imagine what went through his head that day as he was carrying that ring around in his pocket, waiting for the right moment. Then I sat down with my guitar and out came this song.

We left for Chicago a few days later and I got to go up in Willis Tower myself. The wedding was up in Wisconsin in a little place called Waukesha. It was great. I asked Nate to bring his guitar and I played the song after the wedding dinner. I believe they liked it.

So Nate, Krissy – here is your wedding present, again.
I wish you much happiness.

/Carl-Otto

Willis Tower by Orphan Songs

Willis Tower used to be called Sears Tower and most people in Chicago doesn’t like the fact that they changed the name. Thus, people still tend to call it Sears.

I got the idea from my wife when she posted the following on facebook: ”There are discussions about a new package to save the European banks. I’m soooo looking forward to the fundraising show on TV…”
Brilliant I thought, and got inspired to write a mock charity song and put together a supergroup of artists to sing different parts of the song and all join in on the chorus. That evening I wrote ”Save the banks”. However, I quickly realised that a supergroup project project would take a long time to finish– and time I don’t have a lot of. I then decided to record a full version myself first. I’m still up for the joint effort though if people are interested. And if you feel like doing your own version without me, please go ahead. There will be an instrumental version available on the download page soon. You will also find the chords and lyrics here on the website.

So why did I write and record this song?

The global finiancial system is failing. One way to restore trust in the system is to prop up the banks by printing a lot of new money and give them to the banks. But people are not buying this scheme any more. Pumping more money into the economy though bank bailouts and stimulus packages to corporations will hardly solve the debt crisis – only create more debt. Sadly, as the current system seems about ready to collapse, there is still hardly any public discussion about alternatives to the current system. The market, banking, GDP, economic growth and money itself is all pervasive in society today. Stick out your neck and criticise the monetary-market system and you will probably be labelled a communist, a freedom hater or a kook by the establishment and its henchmen. ”Go live in North Korea, see how you like it!” It’s ridiculous. It’s time we dare imagine a world beyond the monetary-market system.

Please note that the message of this song is not that bankers are evil. I believe that the behaviour of banks and other financial institutions only reflects the system we have. Thus, corporate greed, inequality and environmental destruction are merely symtoms of the monetary-market system we have agreed to live in. For example, people entering the world of finance will adapt a behavoir according to the established pattern within that sub culture – they are not bad people. Our environment shapes our behaviour. To get rid of unacceptable behaviour the system itself should be targeted, not the individuals. Thus, going after bankers is pointless. Instead, we should come up with fun ways to make more people understand how obsolete and insane the current system really is and then focus on discussing and supporting new and exciting ideas for a better system.

High finance of today is a perfect illustration of exactly how depraved the montetary-market system has become. This can be utilized as an entry point so that people themselves can realise the need for change. You can’t force your views on people. The whole point of ”Save the banks” is to give you a glimpse of the absurdity of the system – all in a playful manner.

It might seem as if I’m putting much of the blame on ”the system” here. Well, we’re all in this together and I’m trying not to blame anyone or any thing. I admit it’s difficult to refrain from pointing fingers. Just like everyone else I have been conditioned to assign blame to people or events outside myself whenever something upsets me or seems to go wrong. But like I said, I would like for humanity to move beyond the current paradigm – not necessarily fight the current one. What is happening right now is more of an evolution than a revolution. I believe in focusing much more on what WE are doing instead of what OTHERS are doing to us. We will change the system eventually, not because it is ”wrong” but because it doesn’t reflect who we are anymore. It does not reflect the way we want to be with each other. As we change, so will the world.

Peace to all,
Carl-Otto

PS. If you still haven’t got a clue why we need to move beyond the monetary system, I recommend you watch these clips:

”Fiat Money” (4 minute clip)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm7Z3sOqE84&feature=player_embedded

”The Monetary System” from Zeitgeist Addendum (10 minute clip).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_YxNG3nUUk

Occupiers, please read this. It’s good:

http://www.thevenusproject.com/en/component/content/article/245-response-to-occupy-wall-street

“Save the banks” is a totally free piece of music under a Creative Commons Attribution license (CC-BY). That means you can download, share, re-work, re-mix, make videos or whatever, but remember to credit Orphan Songs and also link to www.orphansongs.com when possible. And please let me know if you build upon my work. I’d love to hear about it.

Carl-Otto Johansson is a Swedish singer, songwriter and producer who makes music under the name ”Orphan Songs”. His solo debut came in 2008 and was re-released under a CC license in 2011. Right now he is preparing a new album.

Which was the beginning of your musical career?

In the nineties and early 2000s I was living in Malmoe in southern Sweden. Back then I had a band called ”Eyedrop”. We worked hard and wove dreams of some day making it big. Eyedrop only released one album: ”You and me vs. the machine” (2002). It won critical acclaim but was anything but a commercial success. While recording the second album there were some drama in the band which eventually resulted in a split. Being the singer and songwriter, I went on recording the songs Eyedrop left behind. I called them ”Orphan Songs”, and the name stuck to the point that I decided to name my solo project ”Orphan Songs” too. I worked for two years on my solo debut which came out in 2008. It was very well recieved by critics. I then worked with minor labels and publishers, but without much results. Good reviews, yes – but no record sales to speak of. I get occasional radio time and I’ve had some songs featured in films, but not enough to support a career that would enable me to quit my day job and focus on making music.

How did you decide to publish your own music in the digital universe?

I think I realized rather early that the Internet would have a huge impact on the music business. In 2003 I tried something on my website called ”Pay if you want to”. The idea was basically that you could download everything for free and those who liked it could ”pay” (or rather donate) an amount of their choosing to support the music making. It was basically the idea of ”freeware”, but for music instead of software. I imagined a bright future for DIY bands in which we could sidestep profit seeking record companies, publishers, record stores and all other middle men that make records so expensive. The listeners would only have to pay a fraction of what they would normally pay in the record store but the band would still get more for each record ”sold” than they would get when beloning to a label. After one year of trying this concept the statistics showed thousands of downloads but only three people had sent me money. I did get a lot of appreciation from fans so I ruled out the notion that they considered my music to be poor. My conclusion was that people probably were too conditioned not to give anything back when given the option to pay for free stuff. Also, most people were not comfortable with online money transactions back then. Perhaps I was too early with that sort of thing. Anyway, I eventually scrapped the idea but the thoughts of a music revolution stuck with me.

Do you think Internet is going to change the music industry forever?

Yes. There is no turning back now. I am sure the Internet is the most important tool we have to bring about change in any area, whether it be culture, finance or politics. I think what is happening in the world right now is a major paradigm shift. It’s like there are two major opposing movements. One is represented by the old, rigid, ego-based structures, corporations and organizations which are trying to protect their power and wealth by building walls and cracking down on those who challange the status quo. The other movement is towards empathy, sharing, collaboration, participation and creativity. It’s not easy to put your finger on it or give it a name. But it’s not just the music community, it’s everywhere if you know what to look for.

Why Creative Commons? Why Jamendo?

I believe sharing is part of human nature. We feel good when we share with others and when others share with us. I’m certain there will be a shift at some point when enough people, so to speak, get off the profit-seeking bandwagon and instead decide to use their creativity for the common good of all.
To me, Creative Commons licenses represent a platform for people who want to free human creativity and change the world for the better. Just imagine what would happen if enough bands, artists, photographers, illustrators and film makers would distribute their works for free and ask for no compensation. There would be an abundance of free music, photos, illustrations and film footage instantly available to everyone. Who do you think would pay expensive licenses to use commercial alternatives? Once the tipping point is reached it would spark an enormous creativity and positive energy among people. Companies would probably also start using the free material to save money, not realizing that in doing so they would undermine the market system which they are part of. Furthermore, this shift would not necessarily be limited to art but extend to other areas of human creativity as well. Imagine new ideas within technology and medicine being shared and co-created within their respective communities without patents and protection of designs. But that’s for later. Revolutions have a tendency to start with the artists, writers, thinkers and philosophers. If we free the arts, the rest will follow.
My humble contribution to this process is that I share my music for free under a Creative Commons license (Attribution – Share alike (BY-SA)). I thought long and hard about which license to choose. The sensible choice seemed to be the non-commercial license, but I changed my mind after having read a discussion in an online forum where someone discussed the CC licences for music in comparison to the notions of ”freeware” and ”shareware” in the programming community. I then realized that setting a non-commercial restriction on music would hamper the movement towards a better world – so to speak. I’m not an idealist and I’m not exaggerating my own role. But I am trying to live life by the saying ”be the change you want to see in the world”.
Publishing my songs on Jamendo came naturally after I realized what I wanted to do. I think I just googled ”free music” and Jamendo was the first hit. After checking it out I decided it was the right place for my music.

Do you earn money with your music? How?

Except from donations, no. For a long time I considered making music an expensive hobby. I used to say: ”Some play golf. I play music instead. It’s just as expensive and time consuming, but it makes more people happy.” I’ve given up on ever making any money off my music. I’ll just do it anyway, because I love it and to reach out to people. It was actually a huge relief when I gave up the thought of “making it” in the music business. I realized that it is the money system itself that holds us back. The struggle for money keeps people trapped and it kills creativity. As an alternative for the future I support a ”Resource Based Economy” as described by Jacque Fresco of the Venus Project. In the current monetary-market system, the major aim is profit. Everything else comes second, if considered at all. I’m not sure the planet will survive another hundred years of ruthless exploitation in the name of “economic growth”. In fact, I have just released a pop song to help raise awareness about one of the many flaws of the current system. It’s called ”Not made to last” and deals with the fact that cheap, low quality products that break easily are actually considered ”good” for the economy. No matter the actual ”cost” for nature. We gotta keep the wheels of economy turning, right?

Do you do concerts?

I don’t have time to go on the road nowadays. I’ve got a daytime job and two kids. When I do concerts, it’s only because I really want to as there is no money in it. A few years ago I went to London for a couple of shows. And I intend to do more acoustic sets in the near future. It’s easy to do concerts when all you need to bring is yourself and a guitar.

Which has been the best and the worst moment you have ever had during your work in Orphan Songs?

I can’t recall any major catastrophes, although the break-up my old band Eyedrop left an emptiness at the time. My major concern today is finding the time to record. I have so many ideas for songs, but very little time for arranging, recording and mixing. I could make music all day long.

Spanish version is here.

But why am I releasing an up-beat pop song with seemingly blunt lyrics about this ”boring” topic? Well, first of all I’m fed up with new products which break or stop working far too soon. Today, the phrase ”high quality” seems to have almost nothing to do with the durability of a product – instead it has more to do with nice features or a pleasant user experience. Also, most products today cannot be repaired or upgraded. But why is this?

Everywhere you go there are cheap, poorly designed products with short lifespans for sale. We buy them. They break. We throw them away. Then we have to go out and buy the same inferior products again and again and again. But hey! According to our current economic model, this is actually considered ”good”. Ever heard of ”economic growth”, or a ”rise in GDP”? This is of course totally devestating to the environment as we keep creating more and more waste (often toxic). The root cause is our monetary-market system. It is basically encouraging us to thrash this planet asap in the name of profit. And most people are in ignorance about how the system actually works or they just don’t care.

I believe the global socio-economic system must and will change. Either people will wake up and and revolutionize the system from within or we will see a total collapse of the old system. The latter seems more likely, but I hope for a smooth transition. This song is a humble contribution to that process.

I can’t possibly give a full picture of the problem here. I could go on some more, but I won’t. I’m happy if you just listen to the song. Perhaps it will inspire you to learn more about how the economic system works. Perhaps you will disagree with the song’s message and write me an angry email. Or perhaps you don’t understand a word of English and just feel like dancing when you listen to it (like my two kids).

If you are interested in learning more about this issue, I recommend the following clips. The first one is from ”The story of stuff”. It only deals with electronics, but the problem is, of course, much bigger than that.
The Story of Electronics (2010)

The second one is from ”Zeitgeist: Moving Forward”, the 3rd Zeitgeist film.
Zeitgeist: Moving Forward (Planned Obsolescence)

Thanks to Martin Johansson (Anikee) for excellent bass playing.
Thanks also to all the writers, film makers, philosophers, designers, bloggers etc. who inspired me to write this. Something tells me this is not my last activist song. But hey, don’t forget to enjoy it! I’d much rather bob my head through the revolution than angrily shake my fist.

”Not built to last” is released under the Creative Commons license Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0). Share, re-record, make videos or whatever you’d like, but give credit to Orphan Songs and link to www.orphansongs.com when possible.

I got a request for an instrumental version of “What you want is lost” from an animator who wanted to use it in her bachelor project. I didn’t have an instrumental version, but I went back to the tapes and did a new mix without vocals. I also dug up two instrumentals I recorded some years ago. One was recorded as a signature tune for a radio show called “Flampunkt” (flashpoint), hosted by one of my friends. The other one was just a melody that got stuck in my head and that I just had to record. To me, it’s sounded almost like a Russian dance melody of some sort. So I wanted to give it a name with a Russian touch. I called it “Karelin” after Aleksandr Karelin, the greatest wrestler of our time. I’ll share them here for free download and under the CC license BY-SA. Perhaps they will come in handy for one of you film makers out there. Give it a listen!

“Midsummer’s dream” is a song I wrote in 2007. I remember my son Svante particularly liked this song. He was just nine or ten months at the time I wrote it, but he always listened carefully whenever I played it. At times when he refused to eat I used to go get the guitar and play this song. He would sit perfectly still… listening… forgetting that we were shoveling food into his mouth.

I will try to keep the Youtube channel alive by uploading old and new clips – live recordings, demos and other stuff. Unfortunately, I neither have the time nor the skill to make proper music videos for my songs, but perhaps you do. Feel free to use my music for any music video project. I’d love that.

Peace and love!