Monday, July 28, 2008

Raining Diamonds
Current mood:  determined
Sooooooooo…. I just got back from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan today! It is a very remote place! I love being at one with nature…While there, I went on a 3 hour canoeing trip down this beautiful river…. It was amazing. You wouldn’t have believed the wild lilly pads and lotus growing….. The colors where incredible! About an hour and a half down the river…. It got cold… then dark.. Then KaaaaaaBoooooooom….. It was as if the world was really mad, and was yelling in it’s lowest voice, that I was in big trouble, and it was going to spank me!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ever since I was a little girl I had this fear about being struck by lightening! Growing up in Indiana… We had the most amazing lightening storms. You could see the lightening for miles…

As the thunder growled, I looked down at my Canoe. A metal boat, and metal oars… I looked for a place to land the boat, but there was no where. This was an uninhabitable area for humans……… I started wondering if my body would just disintegrate when the lightening hit the boat……If it was going to hurt? ……… I started paddling so so hard…… Then I got out of breath! I thought “This really Sucks” The harder I paddled…. The harder it rained…… I could hardly even see, because it was pouring so hard. At that point I tilted my head down and said a little prayer!

Just as I had given into the moment…. Out of the corner of my eye… this beaver started swimming by me…… We looked each other straight in the eye. That beaver was looking at me like “haha you idiot”.. I swear he was mocking me. Then I thought “animals know by instinct when to get out of the water”… “and he was having a nice time” … I thought things must be okay, he was in know hurry to get out! I focused ahead at the water….. and tried to hear music in the rain …. I did hear the most calming music… but I saw the most magnificent thing happen!!!!!!!

When it is raining hard…. and it get’s dark from the storm…… If you watch the drops hit the water…… They start to sparkle…. Before I knew it… It seemed as if I was drifting down a river of diamonds…… For the rest of my life I will never forget that…. If you get a chance to go to a lake or river when it is raining……. Stare at the water and before you know it…. It will seem as if diamonds are falling from the sky!!!!!

When I got home today……. I thought about how there is always a storm going on around me, with a lot of electricity and loud kaaaaboooms, and how I need to just embrace it….. Sometimes I get so caught up in the storm, that I miss the beavers and diamonds.

The day after the canoe trip, I performed “Let It Go” by myself with just me and my guitar….. in front of over 150 people. Although that may not seem big to you…… That was giant for me, because I always have someone play for me. I have been way to scared to sing and play alone. I am so excited!!!! Then I found out that over 22 countries have visited my website. I have always wanted to travel, and haven’t yet, so it is nice to know that even if I don’t get to some of these places, my music has……. and has hopefully touched the heart of some interesting people! Of course the dreamer in me is sad that I am not opening for one of my hero’s right now….(smile) but I realize that I have lots of diamonds on the river I’m floating down…… Most especially are the wonderful people that have come into my life and are helping me to stand alone with my guitar on a stage. I will be forever thankful for their presents!!!!!!!!!!(smile) They are some of my BIG FAT CANARY DIAMONDS!!!!! The most valuable in my world!

I hope that if you get stuck in the middle of a storm this week…… that the rain turns into diamonds falling from the sky……with a little beaver staring you in the eye…. And that you get a chance to enjoy it… even if you are cold and drenched!!!!!!!!!!!

Love,
The Lexers

Currently listening:
Some Mad Hope
By Matt Nathanson
Release date: 2007-08-14

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Tom and The Cha Cha
Current mood:  luminous
Category: Music
ZOWWWWWZER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tonight was a total trip…. A journey through the twilight zone of the LEXERS!!!!!!!! It all started last week. I was feeling a little blue. Stella definitely took my groove… and I wasn’t sure how to find it again. Then out of know where… The earth shook….. and the quake came back into my soul tonight, as I danced the night away!

Amazingly…..I got to go see Tom Petty. I wanted to go sooo bad, but could not get tickets. My friend and I decided to just go, and see if we could get tickets at the door…. Sure enough, luck was on our side!!! We grooved the whole night! But the best dancing happened on that stage. You have all these instruments dancing together…. Dipping each other….. the most beautiful Choreography in the world……..Seeing the lead guitarist take complicated steps on “Love On The Bayou”….. Or the pianist doing pirouettes with Stevie Wynnwood….. and then…. Mr. Petty walking to the front of the stage with his beautiful Black Acoustic guitar, as he and that guitar lit up the stage from the heavens above as he leapt through the air, as he sang “Learning To Fly!” Just blew us away!

It was just an incredible evening! I had been completely drenched earlier from the torrential downfall… we were a mess because it was super hot! I couldn’t figure out how Tom and the band could wear long sleeve blazers? It made me wonder…. Do they have air conditioning on the Verizon stage???????? I hope so!!!! That would be real nice! I would like that when I get on that stage!

Just when I thought the evening couldn’t get better….. It did.

After the show…. My friend talked me into going to meet up with one of her friends. As we were entering the building….. Low and Behold… T-Bone Burnett was entering. I couldn’t believe my eyes! I have wanted to meet T-Bone for a long time! As you know he is one of the Best dancers in the world! I said Hi…. And of course, like an unprepared fool… I did not have a CD to hand to him …. And as I stood there with my hair a total mess from the rain…. And my yellow rain coat wrapped around my waste…… Uttering pig latten to this incredible man….. and his super sweet friend…. I laughed at how the world can dance for you as well! Just when you feel doubt enter your soul….. The world can give you the greatest dip ever!!!!!!!!!!

I started working with a band last night. Our plan is to do some shows really soon that will knock you off your feet! I hope that I have absorbed so so much watching these great musicians, and that when I sing on the stage for you…. My band and I will put on a dance, that you will never forget! I also hope that when you need it, you will feel the Universe dance for you….. And you will enjoy the dip!!!!!!!!!!!!! There is nothing like the head rush of life, when it spins you the right way!

Thanks for visiting…. And I hope you go to bed doing the CHA CHA tonight!

Love,
The Lexers!

Currently listening:
Into the Great Wide Open
By Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
Release date: 1991-07-02

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Keep A Song In Your Heart, And A Smile On Your Face!!!!!!!!!!!
Current mood:  focused
Gosh……. Where to start? Tonight was such an a special night! I went to my favorite listening room to hear an old musician I used to love from back when I lived in Indianapolis. He was in a band that was called “The Floating Men”, and the lead singer is named Jeff Holmes.. He performed solo tonight…….The added treat, was his opener. A girl named Holly Long from Venice, California. She was ABSOLUTLY amazing. Her keyboard broke in the middle of the first song, and this horrible buzz took over temporarily. The sound man ended up hooking an external mic to this funcky keyboard (my keyboard won’t make any noise with out a line in)…… Anyways…. It was actually better with the external mic. It was magic!!!!! She was such a wonderful performer…… Watching her tonight and how she handled this dilemma was one of the best lessons I could have ever experienced! One of her songs about a Poet… litterally brought tears to my eyes! As I sat, I wondered…… if any performers ever feel like they have learned enough????? I know I haven’t….. Far from it…… I am no where near that place! I talked to her for a while after she finished, and she told me that she had seen Emmylou Harris several years ago, and how it had changed her!

That thought leads me to this…….. I take lessons on my mac with iplay music……..I take lessons with a man named Eric…. I read music books…. I watch people perform….. I write songs daily…..and I wonder…. when do you ever feel like you can know enough! In one way, it is so incredible to have this big giant thing called music to dive into…. But on the other… It burns your soul, because time is so fleeting, but the knowledge to aquire is so vast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As I go to bed tonight….. I smile because this world has shared it’s music with me. My grandmother used to say to “keep a song in your heart, and a smile on your face” ……… But for that to happen, everyone must have the ability to hear and feel the music! Better yet… The knowledge to play it……….

If you are reading this…… And you have the ability to give a person or child that gift….. make it happen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will go to bed grateful, that I have the ability to dive into this world of music, and savor every morsel of what I can learn from it, in this lifetime! And hopefully, I can give the gift of music to some of the children in this world who have not yet experienced it! Without a song in your heart…. How can you have a smile on your face????????????

To end…. I want to say that if you’ve read my other blogs…. I DO love the “Hollow Man”…. I wish he would have called it the Hollow Human……… I hoped Jack wasn’t the Hollow Man, because I sooooooo hoped his life was full of only happiness… But that is not what life in this world is about!!!!!!!! At least not my life, and the lives of people that surround me! There is the good with the bad!!!! But as I say goodnight I will hummmm the song about the POET and SMILE, and say thank you so much for visiting with me! And I will be humbled that the Universe has given me a song to hold in my heart!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love,
Lex

Friday, June 06, 2008

What happened to them?
Current mood:  contemplative
Category: Music
I’m getting ready to leave one of the most special places in the world to me.
It is a place where the the pines are tall, by the big beautiful sea……
and as a child I found refuge from laying in the sand,
My imagination would wander,
Empowered I would stand ……
As I sit and watch the world as it’s changed,
there is still one question that continues to remain!!!!!!!!
What ever happened to Jack and Diane?
Those two American kids, from the heartland?
Did they really loose the thrill of living, as life went on?
Did the bible belt come and save Jack’s soul?
I’ll always wonder about how they are doing now!!!!!!!!!!

If some one has the answer………… Please let me know!!!!!!!!

Now I got to run…. I got to go !!!!!!!! Got to go listen to the new REM album I bought at Starbucks this morning!

The Lexers

Friday, May 23, 2008

Love Will Follow You and Head Banging
Current mood:  excited
I just posted the video from the CD release party for Love Will Follow You!!!!!!!! I really hope you like the song! One of my favorite things to do is to just belt a song out. I love to just let it loose. When I was younger my favorite music was Heavy Metal…… I was even in a Motley Crew video when I was 18. My friend and I delivered balloons to there concert and they were like hey….. “You want to be in the video”……. We were like… “VERY COOL!” It was a trip….. Imagine one minute you are delivering balloons for Balloon Invasion, and the next… You are rocking it out on the Girls, Girls, Girls tour. We ended up on MTV!

My favorite was Axl Rose though!!!!!!! In college I loved to put on a do rag, and get on the bed and sing to my friends like I was Axl!!!!! If you look at the pictures from the CD release party, you will see my girlfriends with napkins on their head! They are actually imitating me from my college days! After a few drinks I thought I could channel the Axl’s….. Someday I want to sing with that man. He was from Indiana like me, and I knew someone who was friends with his mom. She was supposedly the nicest woman! I hoped I’d meet him…… Never have yet!

The funny thing is that I never sang in front of anyone until I was in college and had some help from Quervo! It was rare that I sang in front of anyone, but when I did…. everyone listened. But I never really took their interest seriously. I thought they were just being nice, and liked watching me be crazy with my friend Agave Nectar! I used to sing Tom Petty’s “Free Falling” when ever I was doing a performance from that bed in my dorm room. That song did something to my heart that I still to this day can’t describe. The first time I heard it, I just stopped dead in my tracks.

I would never presume to put myself in the same catagory as Axl, or Tom…… But I do hope “Love Will Follow You”, will stop you dead in your tracks….. especially when I belt it out. It may not sound like Heavy Metal, but there is definately a Head Banger inside of the Lexers! There is nothing like Rockin that Head!

Love,
The Lexers