All's Well that Ends... Well

So yesterday was very busy.  First big event was the game extravaganza, which wasn't so much an extravaganza as a small get-together, as it turned out.  Counting a cute and intelligent 8-year-old girl, there was a total of 6 people who showed up.  We played a game, spent a long time organizing tubs of games and doing actual meeting stuff, then made hot dogs and ate, and finally played a couple more games.

After that, it was time for the dreaded singing tryout.  It wasn't nearly as bad as I feared.  Turns out that most of the songs that were sent to me--you know, the ones that sounded like they were transported from the '80s--were recorded in 1992-93.  So that explains that.  And most of those did indeed sound different when I was there--not a lot different, but enough.  I'm gonna give these guys a try.  We'll see what happens...

Let's give it a shot

I've decided to go ahead with the try-out for the band.  The worst that can happen is I wasted a few hours practicing the songs and a few more singing with live instruments.  And the best is I might make some good connections or even join a decent band.  Who knows?

All I know is that I've got a full day of excitement ahead of me, from an all-afternoon game day extravaganza to band try-outs tonight.  I'll fill you in on how it all turns out!

And then there was music...

So I created an account with a site called BandMix about a month ago.  I contacted a couple people on there, asking if they needed a singer, but they never got back to me, which is slightly irritating.  If you say you are looking for a singer, after all, why wouldn't you try a guy out?  Or at least tell me, "Hey, we're not looking any more," or "We're not interested in you."  Something!

I'm not as bitter about it as that last paragraph makes me sound--just a bit of a pet peeve that I had to get off my chest.  Anyway, before I left for my trip to Lincoln and New York, I received an email from a guy who saw my profile on BandMix.  We spoke more after I got back, and I was excited to try out for these guys (a guitarist and drummer).  The guy I was talking to was the guitarist, and he kept talking about how they are different from everything else, how they want to go in a new direction, and how he shared some of the same contempts I have for many of the trends in music over the last decade.

Then last night he sent me some songs and lyrics that I'm supposed to learn for the tryout.  "Let down" is an understatement.  I'm really disappointed by what I heard, which didn't sound new or fresh in any way.  It was bland, slow-moving 80's hair metal.  The vocals were stereotypical in the same vein.  To be fair, he said they want the vocals to go in a different direction, but from what I understood, they were mostly fine with the music portion.  I have problems with that.

So now I am re-considering even trying out for them on Saturday night.  In order to really give it a go, I will have to put in at least a few hours of work learning those 5 songs that deaden me inside, actually sing those songs with them, and hope beyond hope that they are more than they sound like.

With my plate as full as it is, I don't know if it's worth the effort.  On the other hand, if I go, I might be able to at least network a bit--possibly find other musicians through them with whom I would actually like to do music.  But in order for me to become a valuable commodity on that market, I will need to put on a good show for these guys, and that means tormenting myself with their songs for the next few days.

We'll see...

Blink and you miss it

Wow, the last couple weeks have gone by fast!  I was a groomsman in a friend's wedding, sent out notices to my former tenants of the amount they owe me (and have subsequently been following up on that with the one that responded so far), traveled to New York for a few days, and got a couple playtesting games done in Lincoln while I was there for the wedding.

I REALLY need to find some gaming groups in the Iowa City area, by the way.  I've found a couple good possibilities (one of which I would have gone to if they hadn't scheduled their meeting for the same day as the wedding), but haven't been able to actually go to one yet.  The lack of playtesting is the main thing holding me back from finishing development of my two most complete games.  I have resorted to playing against myself once in a while with one of the game, but that's time-consuming and does not give a good play-test.

Anyway, I think I'll watch an episode of Terminator and head to bed.  Hopefully it won't be so long before I post again.

Eureka!

A new idea struck the other day while I was pondering some minor problems I had noticed in my primary game of invention (tentatively named "Path of Dominance").

Just to let you know what this game is, it is a turn-based strategy war game, along the same basic lines as Axis & Allies and the various Risk games, but with mechanics and strategies borrowed from games like Farlander, Race for the Galaxy, Settlers of Catan, and Puerto Rico--not to mention ideas all my own.  It is fully customizable for 2 to 8 players.  The possibility for the eighth player is part of the eureka! moment I had.  Now all I need to do is re-do the "board" (which I was going to do anyway) and test the new version.

Habits

Wow, it's hard to start a new habit like this.  I need to keep up the blogging.

So what's new?  Well, I had to deal with a turnover process at a rental house of mine over the weekend.  The exiting tenants left the place in an atrocious condition--so bad, in fact, that the thousand-dollar security deposit did not cover all the expenses for repairs and cleaning.  It'll be a joy working to get that money from them...

Because of that distraction, I haven't done much with music or games lately, except for play-testing one of my games on Saturday.  It was really fun, and the new mechanics that I introduced worked out really well.  Everyone likes the game even more than they did already.  I can't wait to try out the other ones that I put on hold (so I could judge each change on its own merits).

I really need to get to work on my Master's thesis, too.  It's taking me too long to finish it.  I hope to have it complete by the end of this month, so I can focus on my passions, and making some money.