The Kaleidoscope of Arts and Musings of James Guastaferro

Does the “Golden Rule” apply to masochists?

Now you can download any and all of Tones from the Underground’s music for any price that you want, yes my friends, that includes for free.  Come get em and give em a spin here:

http://tonesfromtheunderground.bandcamp.com/

The New Tones… album is out and available on itunes and amazonmp3.  If you have a Spotify account or Grooveshark, it’ll be up on those soon as well.  The name of the album is Cinema.  It is a collection of 6 ambient songs that could fit nicely into a non-diegetic sequence in a film/video.  Enjoy (particularly if you want to relax or fall asleep, or are looking for sound-tracking to a film). .



As the clock strikes bidnight on January 1, 2011 the latest Tones… album will drop with that Waterford Testicle.  It is a peaceful and accepting exploration in ambient music.  It will be called Cinema. Stay tuned.

This was a digital art piece that I produced under the complete inspiration of an Agua Trip song entitled Venus Moonrise (check out founding member and writer of the song Lindsey Boise’s video representation at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNpEq0tGmjU&hd=1), from their album Genetics.  It was put on auction as part of their multimedia album release and fund raiser back in November of 2008.

This is an old painting I did several years ago, but it has a special place in my heart and in my apartment (right above my bed).

Forgive the lack of cropping.

Indecision begets indecision.

Sleeping Painting

I used to be afraid

That if I fell asleep

I’d turn into a painting

And stay that way forever

So I tried my best to stay awake

But when sweet sleep inevitably set in

I would dream in vivid colors

Then wake up in a 3D moving world

And I was a mobile sculpture

Right on time for the summer, my band Tones From The Underground has released a 3 song ep largely inspired by the vibes of reggae music.  It can be purchased on amazon.mp3 and itunes and can be heard on spotify.com, last.fm, and myspace.  Please check it out and enjoy.  The song Moonbathing from the album features interviews with Jacob Gossett, Lindsey Boise, and Amos Fisher.

The album is called Dystopia.

Here are the lyrics for the songs on the Tones From The Underground album Anemology.

Air Reform

If it’s under the sun

Then it’s made ‘ mistake

When it’s all said and done

We’ll all watch the ground fall away

We’re falling apart

But the shards fall right into line

Our chaos makes art

Everything is gonna be just fine

If you’re lacking a muse

And the sky’s gaining weight

Trust it’s not only you

Sorrow don’t discriminate

We’re falling apart

But the pieces fall straight into place

As flawed as we are

It’ll all be safe

Now we’re caught in a cloud

Can’t see the light that surrounds

Trust we’ll figure it out

A silver lining will embrace the crowds

We’re falling apart

Let the cards fall where they may

An end marks a star

It’ll be OK

Hints

Enchanted by the breeze

I’m in the midst of memories

My worries are camouflaged

For now I am at ease

A hint of heaven’s grace

As the the sunlight caresses my face

This life won’t meet infinity

So this moment I’ll embrace

Old Man

Did you second-guess yourself

And suck up some wind

Did you leave it on the shelf

Forfeit your win

Did you watch your dream subside

And not throw it a lifeline

Did you turn your back while it died

And let them eat it alive

Or did you sing it back to life

He said, “A fruitful tree will grow

if a faithful seed has been sewn.”

I hope

Did it tear you up inside

There’s no one to blame

How many times did you ask why

To no avail

Did you watch your mother die

And soak in all her strength

Did you lose your love for life

And label it a gain

Or did you trade it in for fame

When the comfort of routine sets in

The terror’s strength comes back

Ain’t that a fact

You tried and you failed

Did you try again

Did life beat you up

You were a good man

But karma stood you up

You bought the bluff

But you tried

Fall Into Winter

Fall into winter

So heavy

Drowned in  thought

Drunk off reverie

I found a friend in your memory

The glass is half full

But my heart is half empty

The city lights

How they temp me

But this comforting fear

Is weighing me down at home

Stuck in this lonely room

Far far away

From anything

Resembling my fate…

is more than me perched up on a windowsill

A gargoyle, aware but absent

Let the absinth spill

and fill the cracks

Now I pick up my  bones

I’m tired of hiding under stones

Maybe

My skeleton’s of glass

My dreams and I

Need to rekindle our romance

When you feel the steal of the gun

It makes you change your wager

And your life and your bed

Is a torture chamber

The vultures circling the bedroom ceiling

Were soaring in my head

The past leaves behind emotional land mines

Drops bombs of nostalgia napalm (with no hints

you walk head on)

I see the leaves die with so much grace

I wish I had that faith

cause I need it now

Story

Last night I lost my spine

Spilled my guts ‘cross the room

Never thought that I’d come unglued

I remember swimming through my father’s mind

Vague, scattered, confused

Now a black inky mess of

Blood and breath, and tissue

Got sick once, I was starting to die

They injected me with ink

Those cold steel blocks saved my life

now it seems my skeleton won’t change

I used to variate

Spent time in a pen

Got prison tats etched in my skin

So many cages and cages of pages

Would keep me alive through the ages

Spent my youth in grunts and moans

Seen the world through the eyes of my clones

Thought it was ended

But I kept my appendix

Broken and mended

But I kept my appendix

Paper

I’m trying not to lose my head

And trying to keep my cool

But it’s hard when

When you’re not around
To keep my feet on the ground

to keep my feet on the ground

Imagine what you could see

If you just opened your eyes

And take my hand

Hold on as tight as you can

You’ve got my paper heart

In the palm of your hands

Cause a paper heart

No it won’t let you stand

Paper Heart

*Lyrics by Jacob Gossett

Broken Bottle Beach

A blank face

Like a thirsty page

Yeah I’m just a slave

to the waves

Please spare me

I thought they understood my pain

It was written on the sheets of rain

It tore my clothes and

Washed my hopes up

On a shard glass shore

(When I dropped the floor)

But I’ll keep hunting happiness

I know