Has Arrived

We are going in a hundred directions at once with the new material.

There’s some folksy stuff, some dance stuff, some melancholy stuff, some experimental stuff, etc., but we’re not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. By that I mean, should an album stay in the same vein for the duration, or do people prefer more of a scattershot approach?

My gut reaction is: keep everything in line. Make a dance album, or an experimental album, or whatever.

BUT then I got to thinking about the way people purchase music these days. Typically, people buy by the song not by the album, so lately I’ve been thinking that a scattershot album might be a better approach in order to get a wider range of people to buy at least one song.

People who like to listen to music by themselves in their rooms can buy the melancholy stuff. People who like banjos and beards can buy the folky stuff. People who wear really tight pants and neon shirts can buy the dance stuff. And people who like drugs can buy the experimental stuff.

(Also, it makes us feel more like the Beatles when we put a huge range of styles within close proximity to one another…so it’s got that going for it…which is nice.)

All that to say…No decisions have been reached. We’re still mulling that one over.

In the mean time, we’re in the process of ramping up our live show schedule (which is easy to do when you only have to play one show in order to make it look like you’re playing more shows).

I don’t have any dates for you right now. The Haiti benefit show is still in the works. (The guy in charge is less than cooperative right now…but I promise that it will happen, even if we have to go over this guy’s head and set up our own thing.) We’re going to go to Warrenton soon, because we’ve been neglecting them and they seem to like us there (sorry guys).

I guess that’s about it for now.

Later gators,
-Terry

Have you ever heard of the “Sophomore Slump” as it pertains to bands?

Here’s what happens (assuming the band becomes moderately successful) and how it applies to Pollock:
1. An unknown band (Let’s call them “The Band”…but not like Bob Dylan’s “The Band”…oh whatever. You get what I’m saying.) spends two years writing, perfecting, and recording their first album, “The Origin.”
2. The Band spends the next two years playing the crap out of “The Origin” at shows to get people to know who they are.
3. They get successful.
4. People demand another album, but The Band can’t afford to not be playing shows, because that’s where they make their money.
5. The Band goes into the studio and records the first 12 songs that they come up with.
6. They release “The Follow-Up” to mixed reviews….mostly, people are disappointed.
7. “The Follow-Up” sells half as many albums as the “The Origin.”
(8. Hopefully, The Band gets the opportunity to record and release “The Redemption.”)

Pollock is not willing to record and release a lackluster “The Follow-Up,” but the only way to do that is to think things through way before you’re under “The Follow-Up” pressure. So…before we get out and play the crap out of “Ghost,” we’re spending a little time planning and writing our next album.

So far we have at least the outline (and in some cases the entire song) for about 12 songs, that range from simple acoustic guitar arrangements (like To Be Alone With You by Sufjan Stevens) to heavier dance grooves (like anything by Death From Above 1979) to epic arena rock anthems (like Sex on Fire by Kings of Leon).

It’s going to be a pretty epic album…I’m just sorry we won’t be able to get it to you for a while. We will, however, be playing some of those songs at our shows while we’re promoting Ghost, so feel free to record some videos and post them on YouTube or Vimeo or whatever site you like…we have no problem with that.

See you out there,
-Terry