Battle of the Bands

brian — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 18:11:46 +0000

Last month we entered Hard Rock Rising Battle of the Bands. Winners in this competition get some amazing opportunities so we were really excited. We made it to the first round of performance competition because of awesome fans voting for us and sharing us with their friends. It was very encouraging. And now we are headed to round two because we won our first performance! We played at Hard Rock last night (February 17th)and the next performance will be March 30th. If we win that battle we get lots of money (money makes the world go round), we get to play a Waterfront Wednesday this summer put on by WFPK here in Louisville KY, and we move on to the global stage of the Battle. It’s all very exciting. We really appreciate you all and your support. Check back to this site to be updated on how how we are doing and how you can help us keep making music.

A thought (that doesn’t have too much to do about music)

brian — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 19:53:26 +0000

Remember the saying “the Truth will set you free”? Not everything you read really works and not everything you believe will turn out to be fact, but what about Truth? Isn’t that pretty solid? You know, the idea that truth is good and that if you embrace it it will always bring you to a better place? If you believe in good and bad than I can’t see how Truth could ever be separated from good. We see it twisted all the time. We joke that a husband should always say he’s sorry after fighting with his wife even if he doesn’t believe it because it will be better for him in the end. And that we should hold back the truth from a friend who asks us what we thought of their crappy poem because it might cause them pain. But isn’t that just being a coward? Doesn’t that just delay the pain?

If you’ve never practiced being truthful in order to set yourself free…well, I highly recommend it. There is no better way to describe it than gaining complete freedom. Sometimes it’s best to find where it is you can most easily be honest. For me that has always been in music. Somehow a melody has always allowed me to say what it is that I truely feel. Sometimes that truth is a surpise even to myself. And that discovery can be (and usually is) extremly rewarding. But let me warn you. The truth can also be a little lonely at times.

Maybe if enough hipsters start saying that the truth is cool than we might all join in. Of course if we did that then the hipsters would stop because it became too popular. Maybe it’s a losing battle. But what if the important part is that we keep fighting no matter what? Truth is everlasting. Wouldn’t you like to be on the side of everlasting?

LEO review

brian — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 17:42:45 +0000

We got a generous review in the LEO weekly yesterday. Go pick up a copy or click on the link below to read it online.

http://leoweekly.com/music/reviews/come-back-son

goodbyes

brian — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 16:31:16 +0000

Bands are an ever changing force.

I first named this band Jubalson because it refers to all musicians being descendants of the first musician, Jubal, which allowed me to feel free to collaborate with anyone and still call it Jubalson. But there are some partners you don’ t want to see go. For the past 2 years Jubalson has been the combined efforts of Philip Turner, Emily Vacek and myself (Brian Ott). For me personally it’s been the strongest team I’ve worked with sfar. And they are both truly good friends.

So I’m sad on many levels to say that my dear friend and musical companion, Emily, will be leaving due to geographical differences. (she’s moving… far).

I can’t tell you how blessed I’ve felt to sing with her for the past few years. She has been an encouragement to me as well as a talented singer and writer. I’m glad her contributions will live on in the band for many years to come. Emily had a large part in the writing of one of our unreleased songs so in a way we still have more to hear from her.

We are saying goodbye July 28th at our next show at the Hideaway Saloon. I sincerely hope you put in the effort to come out and say goodbye as well. We would love to see you.

Album Review

brian — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 15:45:26 +0000

I recently did a show with a band from Bowling Green called the Reneaus. It was a pleasure of mine and after listening through their new album, Room for Roses a couple times I decided to write a review of it.

This album is easily catagorized in the mellow folk genre. Smooth as silk and as blue grass as the state it was made in. They aren’t trying to reinvent anytning or mix folk with some other techno dance movement. They just seemed to be concurned with making good music. And they did.

Ashley Cooper Winn sings her parts with an almost sleepy effort. And it works. Her voice has a weak quality to it cracking like any good country voice should, but never missing a note. An the band behind her does much more than just back her up. In fact you could take the vocals out and still enjoy driving down a country road listening to Steven’s chord proggressions and his brother David’s solid beats and still call it worth while.

My personal favorites on the album are Banks of the River, Logs and Specks and The Night Falls Insane. I tend to favor the dreary, sad works. But tracks like Old Front Door are plenty peppy enough to keep the album fresh and show you more than one emotion.

The entire album is currently available to listen to on their Facebook page. If you enjoy folk music that’s true to the artists who made it than you might want to give them 30 minutes of your time. And don’t be surprised if you decide to give them more when the 3

Spider wisdom

brian — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 17:44:29 +0000

I’m gonna start this post with a really nerdy quote. “with great power comes great responsibility.” Because of the absolutely atrocious Spiderman films this quote became widely known as a wise lesson from Uncle Ben to Peter Parker. Spiderman was always my favorite of the costumed super heroes. Probably because he was lanky and (at least in my mind) not particularly tall. And I could relate. But it was also lines like the Uncle Ben quote above that I really related to in a deeper way than my outer appearance. I have always felt music held great power. At its core, music is an emotional experience. And emotion drives us all day long. It effects our decisions, our temper and mood. Even how we drive or what we decide to wear for the day can be motivated by our emotions. And inside music we find a bubbling bowl of hot emotion. Whether it’s a lyric that finally expresses what we’ve been trying to say for years or a note that hits us so right that next thing we know we have a very unexpected tear in our eye.

And THAT is what I call power.

So as a musician I felt it was a great responsibility of mine to take my music seriously. When you like how something is being sung you tend to be more open to the message that is found inside it. You find yourself screaming it out while you sing along like it’s the truest statement you have ever uttered. The listener is still held responsible for their actions, but the writer better understand their influence. If not they might find themselves inspiring large crowds with empty words. Oh so dangerous. so very dangerous.

Be careful with your talents. They were given to you. Your mind, your love, your art, your body, are all gifts. So lets take our passion seriously. And lets put a good message out there.

medical symptoms of sorrow

brian — Tue, 31 May 2011 20:13:46 +0000

It seems as if your stomach is very sympathetic to your heart. I say this because every time your heart hurts your stomach rumbles. And I don’t mean a little growling for food. I mean people mistake its moans for the war horn of Helms Deep. Its like the voice box for your sorrow. Sure yourheart may feel like it’s being used to hang pigs from meat hooks, but it can’t seem to make a sound. So its dear friend, the digestive system, speaks up and cries audibly. Other symptoms are in the arms. They feel as if they are emtied out. And then all the hollow limbs can do is shake. Sometimes dizziness can occur. If so please stay off the road. Some types of heart ache havebeen linked to turrets due to random screaming and irrational outbursts. Shivering is also a natural occurrence. Even when its 93 degrees outside.

The Cure? Some argue it takes diving deep into your pain until you are numbed over. Others say a healthy (or not so healthy) amount of alcohol is the perfect solution. Distraction, exercise, a haircut. I’ve heard them all. And tried them all. ONE has worked. brace yourself for this cliche clarity.

TIME

As much as we may want a quick fix, to wake up one morning and just shake it all off, it just doesn’t happen. The Spirit moves you, stretches you, grows you. And it does it quietly. slowly. And without you noticing. Until one day you laugh at something and you realize “hey, I’m happy! When did that happen?” We not only have to be okay with pain in our life, but we also have to be content in never knowing why it happened. In time, this builds trust. Trust that the one who started a work in you will see that it gets finished.

Krogers

brian — Mon, 23 May 2011 17:03:25 +0000

When I was a kid I would frequently visit the local Kroger with my mother. There was a man who worked there that always gave me the creeps. His hair was wet with gel and his eyes were sharp in the corners. And he smirked at you in a way that made you think he knew something. As I child I was also certain that angels and demons lived among us. Out of all the tons of people who you saw in your life surely a few of them were spiritual beings. It just seemed logical. This man at Kroger was obviously a demon. One day I told my mom what I thought. I mostly just wanted to see her reaction. She reprimanded me and told me it was a horrible thing to say. The strange thing was that after she told me that I all of a sudden saw the man in a new light. He no longer seemed like the devil. Instead he seemed like a man who was mistaken for the devil all the time. This sounded like a horrible life so I stated to feel sorry for him. I stopped avoiding eye contact with him. I even gave him a head nod a couple times. I felt very good about myself for doing so. I still believe there are spiritual beings among us. But I no longer jump to rash conclusions. Only time will tell if my friends were angels, demons or just people. I hope there are a couple angels.

Albums in time

brian — Fri, 20 May 2011 02:38:49 +0000

There are some songs that get tied to moments in life and they refuse to let go. When you take something as emotional as music and combine it with memories from your past you are bound to come up with something that stirs deep and long inside you.

When I was 9 years old I was first introduced to the Cranberries “Everyone else is doing it so why can’t we”. During my first week of listening to the album my parents left on a trip to Mexico. This was the longest they had ever left at one time. I remember looking out my mama’s window and thinking I would never make it through the week. I was overcome with sadness. But songs like “Dream” kept me going. Upon their return though I found I could no longer listen to the album without crying. I was instantly shot back to a time I did not want to relive. A time where my parents were gone and my hope was lost. It sounds dramatic, but thats how I felt.

Now, as I drive down Bardstown Road and I sing along loudly with Dolores I dream about my young self. I hope he would be proud of me. And I wish I could tell him how there is so much hope in the world and at the very least that there will come a day when you will be able to listen to the Cranberries and not cry. But instead be inspired.

Promo Video

brian — Thu, 19 May 2011 01:51:46 +0000

Come Back Son promo