Way back in 2002, shortly after moving back to the Black Hills, I found myself without a band. In the 16 years previous, since 1986, I had been actively engaged in some sort of musical collaboration. Sure, there had been brief lulls during that period, but I usually had a pretty good idea of what was coming next. This time, I didn’t have a clue, although I was confident that I’d find something quickly, if I wanted. That turned out to be a false assumption.

In the meantime, I decided to develop a website which would focus on the promotion and sale of CDs by South Dakota based Artists. I thought this would be a great way to develop musical connections all over the state, maybe make a buck or two, and experiment with MySql and PHP. The result was AMENDE.US. The site had a truly encouraging start. At the same time, I began going to open mics, mostly in Spearfish, seeking more connections to exploit for the site. For about nine months I took the effort seriously. Gradually, the whole process wore thin. Doing fulfillment wasn’t too bad, but I hated preparing and submitting South Dakota sales tax reports. Mainly, despite a few musicians who were very supportive, most artist simply weren’t. Who could blame them. I mean, I know I’m not some flake, but heck, they didn’t know that.

And really, what I wanted to be doing was making music. So I switched my energy to find musicians to perform with. In 2003, I think, I began working with a female vocalist on some electronic music I’d written five years earlier. It was going really well, then she moved.

I think it was in 2004, I started singing and playing guitar with a flutist in Rapid City named Diane Wishard. It was pretty informal and we worked up maybe four or five songs that we performed at a couple open mic events. It wasn’t particularly great, but I loved it because it was pretty damned different, at least for me. Then, she moved. A few months before, though, Diane made a comment that came back to me recently. She said that it seems the more activities in which we become involved, the more activities were able to do. Profound or obvious, or maybe both, I get back to this in a moment.

About this time, Max Carlson with the band Cordoruy Vinyl sent an email asking if I knew any bass players. I said how about me, and I’ve been playing with them ever since. It took nearly three years, but I was finally part of a band again.

I really enjoy playing with CV and I really like Mike, Max and Willie. After joining this band, though, I sloughed off the generation of my own creative material for a couple years. I could give plenty of reasons, but ultimately I think they’d be excuses. The truth is I had really become complacent in my role as bass player.

This last summer, I got involved with Derek Olson’s fast track production Scattering Tarnac The Great. I loved it, not only for the involvement in something new, but the strange inspiration it has given me. Since becoming involved with what is evolving into Dirty Sprocket, I’ve probably written and arranged more music than in the previous six years.

As all my old friends can attest, I have a hard time finishing things. Because of this, over the years I started far fewer projects, thinking the volume of commitments was the problem. My 20 year class reunion was in July, shortly after my first project in Dirty Sprocket. At the reunion, I visited super briefly with a friend and former classmate, Robyn Mckay. Her doctorate is in Counseling Psychology and she was working the creative teenagers, helping them to maximize their creative potential (or something like that, I kind of glazed over as scary smart people make me nervous.) At any rate, the motto on her business card is just do it or go for it (okay, I’m too lazy to go get my b-card file). Triteness (and Nikeness) aside,  the timing of its receipt on the heals of Scattering Tranac The Great was probably what made me think of Diane’s comment from a few years back.

So, at present, creative fulfillment for me is not necessarily in the completion of projects, it’s in the process. Sure, it’s nice to finish things, but for someone like me, who enjoys the creative journey, I suspect the more creative trips I start, the greater likelihood I’ll reach one or two destinations.