#1626386 - 02/23/01 05:26 AM
I feel old
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Dan Worley
Senior Member
Registered: 09/04/00
Posts: 379
Loc: Kelseyville,CA,UNITED STATES
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I'm forty-five, and have already gone through my mid-life crisis -- twice, actually. But now I'm really worried, because this is the first time in my life that I've felt like my music is old, tired, and worthless (oh, God, I agree with my critics).
I don't feel like writing anything, and the material I _force_ myself to write seems boring and uninspired. I've gone through dry periods in my song writing before -- I've never been that prolific to begin with -- but this feels like a terminal funk and I'm wondering if it's the end of the road for me, as far as writing goes.
Have any of you gone through this and gotten out of it? What did you do to combat the feeling of music-less doom?
CODE BLUE: defibrillate, stat... clear...
Thanks,
Dan Worley
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#1626387 - 02/23/01 06:45 AM
Re: I feel old
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Gil_dup1
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Registered: 02/10/01
Posts: 9
Loc: Wellington New Zealand,,NEW ZE...
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You could try learning a new musical instrument.....at the very least it would be a distraction, and you never know were it may lead.
I'm an engineer, but play and write stuff from time to time. I learnt the classical guitar for years, so that was my point of creative reference. I had to do a year of piano for a course that I was doing at university, it was amazing. made a big impact as it changed the way I voiced things etc etc. not that I ended up much of a pianist!
hope you sort this one out.
best wishes ,
Gil
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#1626388 - 02/23/01 02:01 PM
Re: I feel old
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miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
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Registered: 05/23/00
Posts: 12277
Loc: NY Hudson Valley, USA
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1)Break-up with your current girlfriend = 5-6 ballads
2)Get a new girlfriend = 3-4 pop rock/R&B
3)Buy a pick-up truck = 1-2 crossover to country
4)Get a dog = 1-2 MOR country
5)Do drugs(?), not recommended, but effective.
Sub categories
1)Pot = 3-4 Grunge/Alternative
2)Ecstasy = 2-3 Trance/Dance...second hit = 1-2 more
3)Coke = 1-2 Heavy Metal
4)Alcohol = 5-6 Southern Rock
6)Sell everything, move to wilderness = 1 New Age(one really looonnng one)
This should get you started (kids, don't try this at home).
**************
On a more serious(helpful) note...
Brian Eno had an interesting solution many years back called Oblique Strategies. They are a set of cards with instructions on each card that helped you to think differently.
Check this site out for more info. http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/
Along that line, I try to occasionally "change my environment", and often do without even thinking about it.
I'll listen to a very specific style of music, sort of "saturate my brain", and then just stop, and switch to something completely different, and then repeat the process.
For a few weeks I might listen to nothing but reggae/ska and then switch to 50's oldies and then to trance/dance music...etc. Good for lots of ideas.
Using more than one instrument to write with, really helps too, and changing the location/room where you do the writing.
But sometimes, you just have to let it go. In the last 20+ years, I've had 3 dry spells that each lasted from 2-5 years. I just waited them out.
If I still wanted to continue to play/record, but had nothing new, I would go back to something old or a song that was never finished or one that never really hit it, and just do them over.
Hang in there!
This message has been edited by miroslav on 02-23-2001 at 11:05 AM
_________________________
miroslav - miroslavmusic.com"Just because it happened to you, it doesn't mean it's important."
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#1626389 - 02/25/01 09:59 AM
Re: I feel old
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Doctor Al
Senior Member
Registered: 05/05/00
Posts: 192
Loc: ,,US
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The first two replies to your dilemma were quite good. Miroslav's humorous one was quite masterful. Where did that originate, may I ask?
I've had my share of dry spells and waited them out without fear or paranoia(just not the first time) I've found over the years that listening to music I admire inspires me to take a walk to the piano and bang one out. Also having something to specifically write for; an album, a film, a project, brings the muse back.
I sympathize with your plight - good luck and hope these various replies inspire you out of your funk.
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#1626390 - 02/25/01 03:55 PM
Re: I feel old
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Anonymous
Anonymous
Unregistered
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I, too, am 45 and go thru the same thing. My doctor says that it is a combination of lower testosterone levels and a slowing metabolism that goes along with being 40 something that is the culprit. You can take testosterone to get your levels back up- something I haven't tried yet. The other thing is to boost your metabolism. I take an over the counter thing called Q10 that gives me a big energy boost and has begun to help me take off some extra pounds that I have put on since my metabolism slowed down.
Another big help is getting some aerobic exercise a couple of times a day even if it is just a brisk walk. This has helped alot.
This next tip is really cool. I read a book by psychologist, Daniel Goleman called "Emotional Intelligence" that has some really profound theories that are very helpful to artists. His theory is that the amygdala, the emotional side of your brain is just as trainable as the analytical and knowledge portions of the brain. According to Goleman we enter a creative "flow" when all parts of the brain are in sync and the noradrenalin is flowing smoothly from one part to another. We can actually attain a sort of creative peak when this happens. Probably one of the reasons that this doesn't happen as much when we are in our 40's is because we don't have nearly as much time to play as when we were younger. Repetition has alot to do with getting into this flow of creativity. The more we play the easier it is to get into this "flow". Sometimes we just have to keep playing until everything is aligned and it begins to happen. Meditating on it will not help. You just have to be persistant- sometimes for days- before you see results. I know for myself that when I am not on the road and have time to play that the more I play the easier it is for me to get into that creative groove. Problem is that just when I start really getting it together it's time to leave again. 
But, even when I am running an intense schedule, I find that a combination of the afformentioned tips have really boosted my creativity. I am never without my Triton, my Telecaster, my POD, a pair of headphones, and my trusty old 1202 Mackie. I have a 12 volt inverter so I can hook up virtually anywhere if the juices begin to flow.
Don't worry, bro, that creativity hasn't left you. In fact the depth of life's experiences have given you a much deeper well of resources from which to create from. It just takes a little longer to get kickstarted than it used to. Good Luck. 
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#1626391 - 02/26/01 01:05 PM
Re: I feel old
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miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
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Registered: 05/23/00
Posts: 12277
Loc: NY Hudson Valley, USA
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Originally posted by Doctor Al:
...Miroslav's humorous one was quite masterful. Where did that originate, may I ask?...
I was just feeling a bit creative, and bang...out it came.
Glad you enjoyed it...use as needed!
_________________________
miroslav - miroslavmusic.com"Just because it happened to you, it doesn't mean it's important."
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#1626392 - 02/27/01 06:16 AM
Re: I feel old
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jermush@flinthills.com
Senior Member
Registered: 01/11/01
Posts: 53
Loc: Manhattan,KS,UNITED STATES
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Head down the local pub where mostly college age kids hang out. After you buy them about 10 beers, you'll be considered hip. Listen to what they talk about, thing that are important to them... cars, chicks, more beer, new tech stuff...whatever....then think about your college and high school days....that should give you some reflection. In the vary least, you'll have a new experince....
Also pay close attention to what is being played on the juke box, or if there is a DJ, what they're playing....
David Crosby once said, " as songwriter, we're supposed to see life around us, absorb it, process it, and then give it our perspective..." ( I'm greatly paraphrasing...). But maybe that approach will help. I've just completed my second solo disc, that became more of an instrumental do to going through the same things you've described....don't worry, it's gets better.....JT
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#1626393 - 02/27/01 04:32 PM
Re: I feel old
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murph
Member
Registered: 03/04/02
Posts: 12
Loc: Plantation,FL,UNITED STATES
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First suggestion: a book called "The Artists Way." It not only will help you in the creative aspects of your life, but also in the non-creative. It just gets you to live more right-brained.
Second: Of all of the advice I've ever heard from songwriters, this one sticks out. Take your everyday activities and do them differently. When you drive to work, take a different route. When you shave, shave the other side of your face first. We get into routines, and that helps our lives get old. Think of the great chefs: they've made this pasta dish a thousand times... what if I bake it this time? What if I add this spice instead? That's how you teach the old dog new tricks!
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#1626394 - 02/27/01 11:28 PM
Re: I feel old
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Dan Worley
Senior Member
Registered: 09/04/00
Posts: 379
Loc: Kelseyville,CA,UNITED STATES
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I really appreciate everyone's reply. Good solid advice, very funny, innovative, and, most importantly, enlightening and encouraging. Thank you all very much.
I'll let you know what happens after I process all this in my little brain, come up with a plan of attack, and put it in motion.
Thanks for having this forum, Doctor Al. Blessings upon you and yours.
Regards to all,
Dan Worley
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