The story of...

As an almost life-long musician (for 54 years now), I've worked to piece together my own personal recording studio, and currently have quite a few projects in the works. And now I'm looking forward to this new endeavor. First, a bit of my history.

I began playing bass guitar at age 14 (we don't need to talk about 4th - 6th grade clarinet, do we?). After a while I figured out that I was not going to be a great bassist. I was okay with very basic root note stuff, but that's where my progression stalled. 2 years later I found I was better off with a stick in each hand, hitting things. So I did.

Working with a songwriter friend of mine back then, we would write and record our work on a state-of-the-art TEAC A-3440 reel-to-reel tape machine. Since there was just the two of us, we would first put down rhythm guitar and bass guitar tracks on the TEAC, then play them back through our small Altec PA system (bought at a yard sale for $75), as we would play the lead guitar and drums along with it, while performing live vocals and harmonies. Tom would eventually move to Nashville in search of his songwriting destiny, and I moved on to pursue live performances.

After 20+ years of drumming in live settings (largely cover bands, although I was a member of the band 113 that recorded an album in 1987), Over time I developed a need to try my hand at producing something of my own, on my terms, and from my head. If you've already listened to some of my stuff, you've probably figured out that it could get frickin' weird. I have an interest in vastly different aural presentations and music genres. I've also taken on the enormous task of teaching myself piano & synths. I'm no stranger to them, but I'm not yet proficient at either.

My interest in an "avant-garde" form of aural presentation was awakened years ago when, in 1970, I heard the track REVOLUTION 9 on the Beatles White album for the first time. I've always had a thing for a path less chosen when it comes to my musical tastes, but this was something I had never even imagined. For a quite a while I could not listen to the entire track, as my mind conjured up images I'd not experienced listening to with other forms of recorded entertainment, and I wasn't sure how I was to perceive and process them. If you have never heard REVOLUTION 9, and this art form peaks your interest, do yourself a favor and listen to it. All the way through.

(Cover artwork for the upcoming MGS collection "Stonerscapes", scheduled for Fall 2024 release)

So now we come to today. I've found a new, interesting tangent. I have recently begun creating audio tracks and backing tracks as intro pieces for video, film, and podcasts. These are being used as background during the opening / closing credit rolls, or to set an atmosphere for a particular scene. Judging by the feedback we've received, and the numbers of downloads of our material on other sites, we've realized that there are both amateur and professional filmmakers, videographers, and students of the art that could probably use our talents, resources, and imaginations to enhance their own projects.

This is now the mission of Mad Gravity Studio - to play a part in helping someone define their cinematic or production vision by supplying the aural atmosphere for that particular scene, to draw out the emotion of the moment from their audiences.

I have enlisted the help of several of my fellow musicians and former band mates to work with me to assure that we can present a soundtrack that will not only hit the target, but will not be a big hit on your budget. Give us a chance to prove that what we say is real and true.