Welcome to my Journal, Part 5.

"Journal" is a 25-part series of collaborations between me and some of my favorite drummers from around the world.

These cats play the drums, and I do the rest. Composition, arranging, tracking all other parts (live), mixing, mastering, production, and video editing.

Some of these pieces are brand new. Some are old ideas that I've breathed new life into. Some are inspired by pre-existing music.

It's an intellectual everything-must-go sale.
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The Fifth Element, the Quintessential, the Penta-gorific... #5:

Corey Foster.

I mean, what can I even say about this man? Corey is one of the cleanest and most professional sounding drummers I've ever heard.

The funniest part is, we both live in Portland, we literally play for the same band (he's the studio drummer, I'm the live drummer), I play at a venue he books for, and we both went to NAMM in January, but I STILL haven't met Corey in person.

I decided it was time to do something with him, even if we aren't able to leave the house and jam in real life just yet.

This track, "Back in Town", was a tune I wrote right before moving to Portland in 2018. I didn't even think about it as being thematic to my return to the Rose City, but I guess it is.

Anyways, I specifically wrote this tune on a (virtual) Wurlitzer because it's a timbre I never really incorporate into my production, and timbre affects the types of harmony I write. I found myself writing bluesier, more soul-oriented chords, then promptly forgot about the track until I started this project up.

I sent Corey the file as I left it in 2018, and didn't tell him anything about structure or how to develop it, but he sent back a single take of him just laying it down so clearly, that I instantly knew every single thing I was going to add to this recording.

Full disclosure: I sing on this track. Sorry.

But, it felt right for the mood of this piece, and I managed to do it in two takes without using any pitch correction, so hopefully its palatable.

I have no idea how to write lyrics, and I already picked the name of the tune in advance, so I just scribbled out a rough summary of the thoughts going through my head before diving into the music scene in Portland.