Johannes Schult

This is my new single! It consists of two short songs. Check out jutze.bandcamp.com for further song details, full-length audio samples and various download options. NB: You can download the songs for free by entering zero Euros (0.00€) when naming your price.

This song is rather weird.

#30 Der Speckgürtel von Paderborn

Ein schwarzer VW-Bus hielt vor meinem Haus
Und eh ich mich versah, stiegen schwarze Leute aus
Der erste Vermummte hatte ein Gewehr
Er legte an und schoss und mein Körper wurde schwer
Getroffen!

Der zweite Vermummte griff nach meinem Bein
Und zu zweit hievten sie mich dann in den Bus hinein
Ich verlor das Bewusstsein wie in einem schlechten Traum
Und ich wachte wieder auf in einem fensterlosen Raum
Gefangen!

Dann kam ein Mann im weißen Kittel mit Blutflecken drauf
Er zerrte mich nach nebenan; ich stolperte im Lauf
Ich kann nur schwer beschreiben, was daraufhin geschah
Man zwickte und massierte mich und spielte danach Skat

Man schnürte mich auf Rollschuh und man drehte mich im Kreis
Man kniff mich in mein Ohrläppchen und fragte, wie ich heiß
So ging das viele Stunden und ich war total verwirrt
Ich konnte nicht entfliehen; ich war allein und sie zu viert
Gefangen!

Ich kann mich nicht erinnern, doch plötzlich war es aus
Und müde lag ich auf dem Rasen hier vor meinem Haus
Ich zitterte und fror und meine Kehle brannte
Und dann fiel mir wieder ein, wie der Ort sich nannte
Speckgürtel von Paderborn!

(words and music by Johannes Schult)

This is the last song I recorded on my old computer. I wanted to approach the 52 seconds of music without a regular song structure in mind. I combined various parts and slowly the track grew into what you hear now. The lyrics had no meaning at first but after tweaking a few lines a vague situation came to life. I also recorded a quick video of me playing the song.

#29 Your Smile

You said goodbye with a hint of regret in your smile
And finally I see that I am free
Because what you meant to me
Won’t bother me no more
It’s all I had in store
And the times we spent
Trying to meet ends meet
It feels so obsolete
And I bleed
I wonder why I liked your smile
Your smile
Your smile

(words and music by Johannes Schult)

Last night, Toto played at the Hohentwiel Festival in Singen. Now the Hohentwiel is an elevation about 250 m above the city. So when I arrived at the station (after cycling to the station in Konstanz and then taking the train to Singen) I was 250 horizontal meters away from the festival site. And 250 vertical meters. There was a bus service that took you halfway up the hill. I opted to walk the whole way, partly because the scenery was very beautiful, partly because I wanted to figure out the way back at night. Also, the bus shuttle queue wasn’t short. Arriving at the top I was in need of quite some water. I was also intrigued by the unconventional setting: the yard of the castle ruin seemed terribly small and rather askew in some places. (The opening band wasn’t particularly interesting to my ears.)

Toto started out with “Child’s Anthem”. The audience was immediately hooked. The sound was clear and thankfully not too loud. I still find the refrain of “Till the End” to be an anticlimax. But apart from that, the music, the atmosphere, the band and the audience were great! Steve Porcaro seemed to get a real kick out of performing live. He had his shirt wet with sweat after four songs already. David Paich throned on the opposite side of the stage and sported a hat and a gown along with short trousers. It was good to see him back in the limelight. His playing was fantastic and his voice, while not being very versatile, had the special vibe that worked so well in songs like “Lovers in the Night” and later on “Home of the Brave”. I hadn’t hope to see Joseph Williams back with Toto but there he was! Given the occasion the band included the two albums with Williams. “Pamela” and “Stop Loving You” were perfect pop songs. I dare to say you cannot play that type of music any better. Period. There were also less famous tracks like “Stay Away” and “Lea”, which were just great. I was very glad to have songs like these in the set instead of medleys or a simple collection of tracks that had been released as singles. My personal favourite was “I Will Remember”, the only song played that was released after 1988. I still regard it as one of the best songs ever written and the rendition in Singen was just sublime.

By the time the band played “Africa” the hot sun had given way to a thunderstorm. Rain started pouring and I don’t think many people blessed the rains up in Singen at that time. A few rows in front of the stage (where I stood) where able to find shelter under the roof of the stage. Unfortunately, the water caught by said roof came down unto the audience behind the first rows. So from then on there was a divide caused by this waterfalls. I was surprised that the change of weather didn’t diminish the applause and the enthusiasm of the audience.

“Hold the Line” was inevitable. Some of the previous songs had been extended with jams and sing-along parts, so was quite happy the band kept the song in its original short form. Of course, I would have loved to hear “Mushanga”, “Straight for the Heart”, “Bottom of Your Soul” and many other songs. But the actual set list was satisfying and who knows if Toto will ever come on tour again?

1. Child’s Anthem
2. Till the End
3. Afraid of Love
4. Lovers in the Night
5. Pamela
6. Lea
7. 99
8. Stay Away
9. I Will Remember
10. Africa
11. Somewhere Tonight
12. Georgy Porgy
13. Stop Loving You
14. Rosanna
15. Home of the Brave
16. Hold the Line

This is the backup song I had kept in case I couldn’t come up with a new song one week. Sadly, the computer I use for recording my music died (after almost ten years of use). So here is “Badreligion”. I had written the lyrics back in the 90s for the punk band I was in at that time. I don’t know if we ever came up with any music back then. Then in 2008 I resurrected the lyrics and wrote a quick punk rock song around them. I recorded the song along with “ANOVA”, “Proof of God” and “My Next Favourite Actress” on 8th-9th August 2008. I had to cut of the first two counts at the beginning to make it 52 seconds long.

#28 Badreligion

Seife ist das Manna
Duschgel die Pastille
Seifenschaum die Bibel
Das ist Gottes Wille
Wir sind die Jünger der Badreligion
Das Freibad ist der Himmel und Neptun Gottes Sohn

Quellen sind wie Kirchen
Wüsten wie die Hölle
Baden ohne Ende
Das ist Gottes Wille
Wir sind die Jünger der Badreligion
Das Freibad ist der Himmel und Neptun Gottes Sohn
Wir sind die Jünger der Badreligion
Das Freibad ist der Himmel und Neptun Gottes Sohn

(words and music by Johannes Schult)

Der Katze ist’s egal.

This is clearly a homage to Mike Oldfield. I started out with the 7/4 measure and the melody on acoustic guitar. It’s not really a melody, just four notes. Then I added several layers of acoustic and electric guitar loops. I also included a few melody lines that are not completely repetitive. Finally, I experimented with keyboard sounds. Only here did the opening keyboard line in 7/8 materialize.

#27 Loop Pool

This song is somewhat redundant. I mean, it’s about music I think is pretty redundant. I should rather sing about love, peace and understanding, I guess. But hey, it’s just a 52-second song! No big deal. At first, the lyrics were about politicians. But they don’t deserve such a generalization in my opinion. Fortunately, I started composing my songs at least one day before I record them. So I can still make changes and adjust whatever didn’t work out the first time around.

PS: Look, I made a video to this song!

PPS: Look, I also made a video for last week’s song, “Laundry Day”!

PPPS: I’m actually halfway through this endeavour, hooray! Only 26 more songs left to create.

#26 Department of Redundancy Department

When I turn on the radio
When I turn on the TV
The singers from all those casting shows
Are all I see
Send them to the department of redundancy department
Send them to the department of redundancy department

It was boring the first time around
And it didn’t get better
The plastic faces with their prefab sound
They get more all the time yet they all sound the same
Send them to the department of redundancy department
Send them there or shoot them to the moon

(words and music by Johannes Schult)

Find out all about SpinTunes (what? why? who?)! Spoiler: It’s a songwriting contest.

Listen to all the songs! For free.

And here goes my review: at first I was put of by the lack of band names in the file names (of the album download). But then I figured it’s a blessing, because new and old faces/voices would have an equal chance of making a good (first) impression. I avoided listening to the whole bunch in order – take that, primacy and recency effect! I only knew I’d start with the Poodlz. And the rest is, well, not really silence.

• Godz Poodlz appear to think that opposites attract. Or at least that’s how “The Human Bomb” sounds. Combining the explosive superhero trait with a soft, sad song Russ and Rhod flirt with They Might Be Giants-like vocals and a few well-placed sudden stops. This is certainly a fluent transition from Song Fu to Spin Tunes.
• Jenny Katz has a really good voice but the song drifts off towards jazzy regions. The hurried performance would have worked better with more obvious irony/humor in the lyrics (in addition to all those clever rhymes); or the other way round: the dark prequel story could have had a more serious impact with a bit more depth to let the emotions unfold. Bottom line: excellent vocals and a solid tune, slightly beyond my personal taste.
• Edric Haleen plays with opposites as well, I think (am at 1:30 now). What sounds like a charming Broadway rendition of a love song is in fact the evil speech of evil, the insane view of, well, a superhero gone bad. The orchestra sounds give the song a great atmosphere and the vocal performance is among Edric’s best.
• Heather Miller provides a somewhat monotonous pop song. I didn’t get the superhero connection the first time around and I’m not tempted to get it again.
• I don’t really get what Bram Tant’s song has to do with the challenge. I’m confused.
• JoAnn Abbott’s entry has the feeling of an old movie’s musical number; you know, those black and white dramas/comedies where halfway through the protagonist breaks in to a song to illustrate his/her emotional state. Naturally, the idea of a black and white superhero movie in the times of the recent Bat-/Superman flicks is somewhat ironic. The sincerity of the song works surprisingly well and makes it easy to relate. The lyrics are great. This is my favourite song so far, slightly ahead of Edric’s.
• Buckethat Bobby Matheson spices up his relaxed blues with some tasteful accordion playing. The outburst at the end helps to maintain the plot throughout the whole song. The lyrical approach shows a lot of creativity, I think. If I were to vote for five songs or so, this would be a contender.
• Kevin Savino-Riker has probably the most 70s vibes in this round. The vocals are quite passionate, making the song worthwhile. The melody lines tend to stray; the fuzzy guitar and the constant changes of mood make it a bit difficult (for me) to focus on the actual song. So its individual parts that appeal more to me than the song as a whole.
• Ross Durand is another singer I haven’t heard of before. His sounds fine, but at times he seems to try too hard. Also, the backing vocals could have been more subtle, more melodic, less just hanging there. The song itself has enjoyable feature, namely melody and catchiness. Still, the entry as a whole doesn’t convince me 100% with regard to the challenge. Maybe 75%?
• Dr. Lindyke: my first thought was ‘Is Mike Lombardo shadowing?’ Well, he isn’t. Dr. Lindyke starts out with a moody, good piano solo rock piece (?) and just when you want it to become more the vocals accelerate and provide the necessary increase of drama. And then the chords become even more tense. The superhero theme is woven seamlessly into the song, making it a highlight of this round. I can imagine this one with a full band, although it’s already great as it is. (And just afterwards did I figure out that this is actually Dave Leigh of Leigh & Hoover fame and who I first heard/saw playing Jonathan Coulton songs on his keyboard with passion and talent – great to see/hear him here in perfect shape!)
• Danny Blackwell: the guitar seems to be slightly out of tune; or maybe it’s just too loud. At any rate I struggle to follow the lyrical plot and the despite a few nice chord progressions I don’t mind that the tune is over after less than two minutes.
• Emperor Gum almost blow my speaker. And then things go to hell. I was intrigued by the song title, but the mellow vocals and the indistinguishable background noise are a bad combination. What I can make out from the lyrics the challenge was met well; still, this entry became a victim of the unbalanced production and the artifical drums.
• Charlie McCarron starts out more promising than the previous song. Is this going to be a Toto-ballad? No. The overly dramatic (?) vocals are irritating at first, but soon I found myself appreciating the change of tone. Bonus points for originality! The end comes rather suddenly. I’ll keep this one around and give it a few more spin(tune)s.
• Ryan Welton plays his e-piano very well. Too bad I’m more of a punk rock-inspired pop music junkie. The song does have its appeal – the vocals are fine and self-assured – but I just can’t connect. Sorry.
• Jon Eric plays his camp fire guitar well. Too bad I’m more of a punk rock-inspired pop music junkie. The song does have its appeal – the vocals come from the heart and sound good – but I just can’t connect. Sorry.
• Boffo Yux Dudes remind of the time I played in a big band. Songs like this make me wonder why there aren’t more geek musicals around. The tune becomes a bit repetitious after a while. Maybe a middle-eight in minor would have spiced things up. The vocals are a bit too much on the safe side – as a comparison, Jon Eric’s voice isn’t Freddie Mercury’s, but he managed to transport some kind of feeling better.
• Denise Hudson is behind the second song where the title had me curious. The song is a little opera in itself. The glockenspiel/vibes/whatever is really sublime. The vocals fit the song perfectly; they could have been more prominent in the mix, though. Good tune, anyway.
• The Offhand Band – Caleb Hines plays progressive rock? I like the parallel of superman and supervision. The orchestral parts sounds great. The vocals don’t; I mean, the melody lines are just too ambitious, so while not destroying the song they leave me with mixed feelings once the song is over. If I were to rank all entries this one would come before several alleged better songs. Still, it’s no top five candidate.
• Gorbzilla locked out Nick Nolte and pulled out his 60s folk singer personality. Frankly, I do like the general atmosphere of this song. The feeling of departure lingers even though I can’t really follow the story of all the -mans in the lyrics. The guitar playing is a nice contrast to all the digital recording loops that prevail in several of the other songs. The vocals are a bit low on the long run for my taste; how about a soaring middle-eight the next time around?
• Steve Durand must have known that I have a weak spot for minor chords. I’m not a big fan of brass, but hey, it just works fine here. The rhythm changes are great. The plethora of instruments is mixed well. A positive surprise from an artist I hadn’t heard (of) before.
• Caleb Hines – finally! Good intro. Is this a condensed audio book? Or is there an actual song coming? Ah, yes. The clock noises are awesome. The harmonies are, as expected, flawless. And just like that the chorus comes around and turns out to be something They Might Be Giants would have been proud of having written it. Too bad Caleb only has one voice. The chorus would be even better with a “dialogue”, meaning two voices trading parts. Anyway, beautiful song. Oh, and the middle part sounds different and while I’m still wondering why this is the clock starts ticking again and I realize it was the absence of something I had noticed. Vote – if I could vote. (Oh wait, I can!)
• Radiohead, eh no, Governing Dynamics start out promising. The vocals are a bit too soft and, wait, 1:25 now, here is the gripping vibration of charismatic vocal chords. I don’t really pay attention to the lyrics because I’m busy pretending they’re about rainy weather and how rainy weather isn’t so bad, after all, although it’s, well, rainy. /me likes “Origin”.
• Sara Parsons sings one of those songs that sound good but don’t linger on. I envy her talent for harmony vocals.

So all in all I’m (a) pleasantly surprised with the quality of this round – there’s some great stuff here – and (b) glad I didn’t participate because I have no idea what to do with the challenge. In the end I voted for Caleb, JoAnn and Gorbzilla for three very original and inventive songs. And Dave Leigh gets an imaginary vote from me for his excellent shadow entry.

This is possibly the first song in music history that’s sung from the perspective of a happy washing machine. I’m planning on making a video to illustrate the various actions described in the lyrics. I just have to wait until the next laundry day. It’s six days later: the video is finished and my laundry is clean!

The music was heavily inspired by Irish folk songs. I really like the first chorus. I wish I could have used it more often in the song. But the narrative demanded an ongoing flow and the time limit prevented me from a more traditional verse-refrain arrangement. By the way, the tin whistle in the beginning is a real one.

#25 Laundry Day

I woke up to the sound of coins and got myself a drink
Got ready for the 40 degrees the afternoon would bring
A line of that white powder is all I really need
Now I can feel the power that brings me up to speed

So up and down and around it goes
The red and the blue and the white
So in and out the water flows
And it makes me feel all right

Hooray! Hooray! It’s laundry day
I’m going round in circles
You can feel my bottom rock
I’m going to eat that sock
I’m feeling drunk as I’m tumbling away

(words and music by Johannes Schult)