Relax. Don't panic. It's perfectly normal for me to be crazy. It's what my good friend
Charlie would call his "sustained burn." I'll let him explain:
When rocketships have to drastically change their trajectory or rapidly increase their speed—when they have to move—they perform something called a "sustained burn." Rather than simply using short bursts of gas, this is a prolonged expenditure of fuel, using up a lot of energy. In the end, though, it allows the rocket to do a lot of work in a short period of time.
When the muse strikes I have to answer her, and it's been a delightfully productive month. Here's a few highlights from some new projects that have just launched here at Refresh:
Braddigan's Watchfires
I've been working furiously for the past week on the album artwork for the reissue of Brad Corrigan's popular release,
Watchfires. It's scheduled to arrive on shelves in both Tokyo and across the United States later this month. Both a version with lyrics and info printed in Japanese and an updated English edition were part of the project, so look for it in stores! If you haven't heard Brad before, consider this perfect timing to get to know
a brilliant musician.
The Metropolis Ensemble
New York City is in for a real treat this fall. It's called
The Metropolis Ensemble, a new orchestra that will change the way you listen to classical music. Young, relaxed, lively, and unabashedly passionate about sharing their work. I have the privilege of working closely with the music director,
Andrew Cyr, to relaunch their website. Along with his other colleagues in the ensemble, Andrew has a professional background that rivals some of the most celebrated of the classical world. This is one group not to miss.
Alpha NYC's Fall Kickoff
I've also done a set of invitations for a unique organization called
Alpha. All over the world, churches hold courses that explore the meaning of life in a friendly, low-key setting. This fall, the NYC chapter of Alpha is hosting
an evening of music to kickoff another year of courses.
The Haven
For almost a decade, an artistic collective based in NYC has been on a mission to serve a wide range of artists (actors, dancers, musicians, writers, directors, educators and dreamers). More recently, Haven embarked on a new set of artistic initiatives that promote mercy and social justice. I've just launched a realignment of Haven's
community site,
email newsletter, and
outreach site.
Kevin & Stephanie
Lastly on a more personal level, I've worked with a couple here in the city over the summer to help them celebrate their upcoming wedding with a bang! A full website (sorry, it's private) complete with a customized city map, photo gallery, and forthcoming videos. What a delight to work with dear friends!
As a matter of housekeeping, I've decided to offer a delicious, new blended feed. In one fell swoop, you can subscribe to my blog, Flickr, and the infamous Cool Kids Table, thanks to some clever folks I have the pleasure of working with at FeedBurner and FeedBlendr. It's not quite the all-encompassing tumblelog, but perhaps someday, faithful reader, you can subscribe to all my activities: new music videos, myspace updates, voyeuristic peeks into my bank statements, GPS coordinates of where I'm lost in Lower Manhattan (again), ekg readings during screenings of Event Horizon, and alerts from my refrigerator informing the world that the yogurt from six months ago has gone horribly bad. Subscribe to Refreshing Blend...
