Tag: whitewolfsonicprincess

on by

Best way forward in 2026? Do the things we love to do with all our love, heart & soul. For the Lovely Carla and I, that means making music with our band, whitewolfsonicprincess, and the incredible collection of creative souls we are lucky to create with & know. Fellow creative spirits onto the next thing. Creating new songs, new worlds, exploring new territory. For us, the new year also means spending lots of time with our little flock of birds, and all the happy little furry creatures we hang with; living with body, mind & spirit aligned, navigating a fantastically strange existence as best we can.

Still, 2026 in America: difficult circumstannces, no doubt…

If you have read Cormac McCarthy’s post-apocalyptic novel “The Road,”  (2006) (it is a worthy read), you know one of the key existential questions, that “the Boy” asks “his Father,” after much drama & trama, and a long, winding journey across a bleak & scarred land, a question that sort of makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up:  “Are we still the good guys?” 

It’s a question that this particular American is asking himself this particular morning, the 1st day of 2026. This country I live in has taken a very dark turn. The USA is being led by a criminal & a criminal administration. All evidence points to the conclusion that “No, sorry to say, we aren’t still the good guys.”

Crimes against humanity near & far. The USA now seems to be a force for evil, corruption, murder, greed, racism, white supremacy & idiocy. It’s a major bummer. Makes living in the USA a very difficult proposition. A thorny, contradictory, porcupine-like existence.

It’s  a killer conundrum. I cling to a disciplined positivity as a basic & essential survival strategy, but also I adhere to a determined clarity. To see the world as it really is, not just how I want it to be, no rosy-colored glasses. Clarity. Stone-cold clear-seeing.

How to live a good life, knowing that crimes are being committed in my name every damn day? The only answers I can conjure up: Stay close to ground. Create music. Try to do my best to be honest, true, with positive thoughts for a better day and a better way. Love those I love. And resist, oppose the evil-doers,  refuse to go along with the idiocy, and the bad actions of others, to stand against them with every ounce of my being. 

The Lovely Carla and I choose Love, Grace, Beauty, Intelligence. Happy New Year! – Jammer

on by

Photos from our Studio Show on 12.20.25

Sometimes I do think chaos is my middle name. I wonder, am I the source, the channel, the generator or receiver, or the conductor of the chaos? I am not thinking of major, catastrophic, chaos, no, more like little, tiny, moments of micro-chaos built into the smallest of actions & thoughts. I can be orderly & disciplined, I enjoy & cultivate my silences & quiet times, I love working in the calm before the storm times, setting up a theater space or a performance space, arranging the deck chairs, running the cables, placing the microphone stands in just the right place, setting the lights, conjuring up a mood & a positive, beautiful vibe. But then fill that space with a rambunctious crowd of human beings in close quarters, with friendly noise, and chatter, and  the power of electricty animating everything, drinks flowing, a soft buzzing in the air, anticipation & expectation floating above us, things happen. Unsourced feedback, a drop of sweat in the corner of an eye, an imprecise instrument, a cable fail, a weird noise from some unknown location, a tiny almost imperceptible tuning issue, being slightly sharp or flat, a surprising demand or comment from an innocent, a dropped guitar pick, a teetering,  a nearly tripping & falling, a hint of mortality, a surge of energy running through the cells of my body; funny, unconnected thoughts, words falling from my lips in surprising ways, my head suddenly swimming, uncommon feelings of being unmoored, uncomfortable. Conducting moments of chaos, trying to corral & tame things, but watching, listening, experiencing the awesome powerlessness alive in every tiny moment.- Jammer

on by

Yes. It’s true. As of right now. This will be our last show of 2025. It will be at our own little humble rehearsal space. Details here:

12.20.25 – PM Woodwinds Studio Show – 826 Custer St. Evanston, IL – We decided the best way to end 2025 would be a little party/concert at our humble rehearsal studio, one door north of the shop at 826 Custer St. Evanston, IL We will have some of our favorite performers joining us.

4:00 p.m. – 4:35 p.m. – The Lightning Round of Cover Songs from: James & Carla, Chris Bock, Randy Farr, Pat McDonald.

4:45 p.m.- 5:45 p.m.
Solo Sets: Karen Singer, Daniel Connolly, Scott Judd

6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
whitewolfsonicprincess (6 piece)
The Telepaths (acoustic quartet)

BYOB if so inclined. There is limited seating. Suggested donation $10 (or pay what you can). – Jammer

on by

Yes, this Saturday, October 25 whitewolfsonicprincess the WWSP Trio (Carla, Michael & Jammer), is heading over to Oak Park, & Compound Yellow. We are playing a set as the WWSP Trio for this one: acoustic guitar, double bass, percussion. Two vocalists. It’s quite the combo. Sharing the night with a handful of creative dynamos. Oak Park, here we come…With Norman W. Long & Sharkey Zalek w/ special guests whitewolfsonicprincess + Sharon Udoh. There will be cake. October 25, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Tickets here: https://www.ticketleap.events/…/side-yard-sounds… – Jammer

on by 2 Comments

Relevant Question. Was the Chilean novelist & poet, Roberto Bolano, Antifa?! Anti-fascist? No doubt. We throw our lot in with Roberto. Last night we played as a trio in Kathy’s Living, a wonderful home & music room. Intimate, gorgeous, perfectly-appointed, welcoming, inspiring. A gathering of the beautiful people, you know the “beloved community” of souls.

We were so lucky to share the night with Lisa Zane. She is a powerhouse, a creative dynamo. She commands a room with every breath & move. She was backed by a tremendously gifted, mysteriously-un-named guitar player. A beautiful wide-ranging set. Songs from their gorgeous record “Mysteries of Spain,” new songs recently recorded with her “flamenco-punk band” Flapunco, and a couple of cool covers; Joni Mitchell, and yes, The Beatles.

Then we did a reading from Roberto Bolano’s “Amulet” (1999).

From our introduction: “Roberto Bolano often wrote about human beings living under a heavy boot.  Sort of an echo, a foreshadowing of  our new American Dystopia.  He emerged as a writer at a time when people  no longer believed in utopias, when paradise had become a sort of living hell. People disappeared off the streets, mothers and fathers taken away in the dark of night, children left to fend themselves.  Of course, as an antidote and response to the cruelty and horror of the authoritarians, there are always the artists, the poets, the storytellers, the musicians, all of us seeking love, wild abandon, living life to the fullest.  Truth-seekers. Truth tellers. Always searching, & remembering”

Sort of a code for better living. We refuse to knuckle under the new American Fascism. Finally our trio did a set. I fumbled at first, playing in the dim light, I could barely see the fretboard, but by the 2nd song I adjusted and the set flowed. Thought we played with power & enthusiasm. Seems much of the audience was truly with us. Lots of new folks who never saw or heard us before. Hopefully we made some new fans.

Yes. It was good one. Reminded us of the importance of community, love, intelligence, spirit. It was all alive in the room with us. Over-powering. The antidote to stupid shit flowing from this new ugly dystopia in Washington D.C. – Jammer

on by

Another Songwriting session. 

Sometimes we are just trying to catch the butterfly.  We want to catch it, but we don’t want to harm it, or squelch it, or hold onto it too tight. We need to be gentle, relaxed, not be trying too hard, trying not to chase. We find it’s best if we accidentally stumble into a song.  We try to short-circuit our conscious minds, and tap into the vast unconscious stream. A stream of creativity. It works best if songs come as an accident, a gift, a surprise. It is weird to write about it, best to do it.

Yesterday my partner, the Lovely Carla had all the lyrics, I had a few riffs and chord sequences up my sleeve, riffs I have been playing with over the last few weeks. We sat on a comfy leather couch in our rehearsal room, totally unplugged. My acoustic guitar, Carla with a classic bodhran. We tried out various approaches. I did some finger-picking, alternate picking, hybrid picking, vigorous strumming, tried some different tempos, weird time-changes. I think rhythmically, I was inspired a bit from my recent close listening to the Pogues, “Rum Sodomy & the Lash.”

We ran thru a few parts trying to marry words and chords naturally, organically. It’s all vibe and feel. When we felt we had come close to the heart of it, we turned on our little digital recorder. Best to capture the moment, turns out the best parts are always so fleeting and ephemeral. The defining character of a song is often found in the pauses, the silences, in a particular up-stroke, down-stroke, or oddly-weird strum. Carla’s voice floated in the air; ethereal, gentle, wonderful. We worked, meaning we played, for nearly two hours. Time evaporated. We were in the moment, the expanding moment.

We walked out with a 5 minute recording. Pretty sure it is the song. The song that really wanted to materialize before our eyes and ears. It was exciting, gratifying. It’s always a surprise too. The song seems old, so, so, old world, ancient; another time and place. That has been where we have been going with our songs. The lyrics point to the mystery, the beauty, the grandeur of our natural world. Yes. And the murmuration of starlings.  All sadly vanishing and imperiled by the careless, life-nullifying ways of Human Beings. How tragic.

Anyway, heady stuff for a little song. A song hopefully delivered in the most poetic and exciting way we can conjure up. We are playing forward to go back to another time and place. To my ears it all sounds very Druidic and Celtic, a sort of a Celtic blues alive in a Pagan world, a world ruled by The White Goddess. Handmade, homemade. Other. – Jammer

on by

WWSP_INDIEGOGO_HTML

Yes, it’s true, we are jumping into the “crowd-funding pool” today! We have been working on our forthcoming record for nearly 3 years. Shooting for an early 2016 release. So happy with the recording. 9 songs, 44 mins of new music. “The Shadow of the Marigold,” is certainly the most finished, fully-realized work we’ve ever done. Great contributions from some truly inspiring musicians. We feel like it’s a step forward from our 1st release “10+1”

Anyway, we are an “independent,” band, on our own, on the margins, doing the best work we can. No help from a label or corporate daddy. We thought we would try to reach out to friends and fans of the band to see if they are willing to extend a helping hand. Another little experiment for us.

It’s 30 day campaign, kicks off today. If you are interested in supporting our project, and scoring a cool perk in the process, check out our IndieGoGo site here: http://igg.me/at/wwsp/x/10209712   – Jammer

 

 

on by

IMG_7705If you play music, in a band, like I do, (whitewolfsonicprincess & The Telepaths), you know. And/or if you love music and listen to music, intensely, religiously, you know. Music is a branch of magic. “The repetition itself becomes the important thing; it’s a form of mesmerism.” As Maria Popova’s great blog post tells us: “Music takes place in time, but repetition beguilingly makes it knowable in the way of something outside of time.”

I have marveled at how essential and all-consuming music has loomed in my life. From a very, very young age. Yes, indeed, music “enchants the brain.”

I have lately wondered if other musicians/bands love to play music, and to rehearse as much as we do. They must. I find the process almost like a form of worship. It can transform a mood, a feeling, a day, a week. It can, and it will, transform you as a being. It helps that we play with extraordinarily excellent musicians. It helps that everyone is committed to the work.

Yes, it’s also rewarding to play in front of people, an audience, but it turns out that it isn’t essential. The communication between the musicians, sitting in a room, working intensely together, establishing a secret, nonverbal relationship is an essentially rewarding phenomena.

Yes, and the repetition takes you “out of time.” Working in a room with others takes you “out of yourself.” It is a sacred thing. Even if you are just banging out wanky, garage rock, or if you are playing beautifully lyrical and rhythmic songs. Seems, that the content doesn’t really matter so much, although, it helps if you play with heart. The form of the ritual is most important. It’s a form of Magic. A conjuring. Enchanting. – Jammer

photo by Nancy Chambers