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MP3 R-Three - Something to Believe In - EP
6 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Emo, ELECTRONIC: Pop Crossover
Details:
Part groundbreaking, outspoken and emotionally naked electronic rock with an avant-garde edge and part who-the-hell-cares alternative pop, ''Something to Believe In - EP'' is at once more direct, lighter in mood, deeper of groove and more up front and revealing than R-Three''s debut CD "Perceptual Distortion" while retaining the uniquely off beat approach to songwriting and style that is their signature sound. This 20 minute EP of singles (SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN, THE INNER WORKINGS OF A HIVE & FREAK LAMP), one-off''s and previously unreleased demos from R-Three showcase a more straight ahead song craft and a sense of humor only hinted at in their previous work (CD: PERCEPTUAL DISTORTION).
Initially available only as a high resolution download to fans who purchased their full length CD "Perceptual Distortion", "Something to Believe In - EP" rounds out the R-Three experience, deepening the group''s reputation for writing passionately honest, asymetrical music with the title track ''Something to Believe In'' (an underground anti-war favorite among peace-loving fans the world over), ''The Inner Workings of a Hive'' and the ''Final Conflagration (demo)''. New to the R-Three palette is the quirky sense of whimsy and fun as evidenced in songs like ''The Nardo Dance'' (written for a young family member one holiday season) and the infectiously irreverent ''Freak Lamp'' and its self-effacing sequel ''Freak Lamp II for Interpretive Dance''.
ABOUT THE SONGS:
SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN {S2BI} -
"Initially I was uncomfortable writing a protest song about the war in Iraq and the war crimes of the Bush administration. Not because I was afraid of speaking out, I''ve commented on the human condition before with our music, but I''d never written so specifically about such a politically charged subject before. It''s much easier to write about one''s observations and feelings than it is to write about a specific issue and to take a definite stand. More to the point, I didn''t want to: A. Write the same folksy style protest song everyone''s heard already and B. Write a song that was anti-war, so much as pro-peace. If you don''t demonize those who disagree with you, it''s easy to understand why they might feel, think and do things you would never agree with and I believe this is the first step toward diffusing polarity and working toward working together. After all, most of the people who support the Bush administration do so because they''re being lied to. If you believe the almost non-stop rhetoric that comes from the supposedly liberal corporate TV and Talk Radio, then of course you''re going to buy into the lies. On the other hand, if you know just a little bit of the truth, you''re more likely to start asking your own questions and making more informed choices. I don''t, for example, have a clear idea why people resort to terrorism, but I suspect it''s closely linked to desperation and fear. If those of us in the US can be mislead into giving our consent to the war in Iraq, the supposed "war on terrorism" and the HUGE oil and arms cartel''s that are connected to the Bush administration and stand to benefit from this war, then it''s not such a stretch to imagine how terrorism gets support in other countries. Again, I think understanding each other is the key, not killing each other or hating each other.
Oddly enough S2BI has become our biggest song to date in terms of critical and popular success, being downloaded free from our site several 600 to 700 times each month as well as being hosted on other sites (such as https://www.tradebit.com), featured on 2 awareness raising CDs by the Dennis Kucinich Campaign and linked to from other activist music sites all over the world. S2bi was also covered brilliantly by Splendid and is featured on the soon to be released compilation CD from Sea Lion Records entitled ELECTION DAY USA. I wrote this song to make a statement about what the Bush administration is really all about and how different our world situation is from what the US based corporate media would have us believe. Every lyric in the song that sounds like a fact, comes from information that''s out there and can be found if you look for it. The cover art is like a trail of bread crumbs, featuring URLs to sites that will get you started on unraveling the lies. We''ve even put together a ''remix'' offer which is available to anyone who wants remix the song and add their own vibe. It just made sense to put it on this EP in the hopes it can get even wider exposure as part of this collection."
THE INNER WORKINGS OF A HIVE -
"This track was one of our collaborations with Dan Catlin (aka Whispering Minstrel) and it''s one of my favorite R-Three songs ever. Usually, once I''ve finished a song, I try not to listen to it again; but ''Hive'' still really works for me. Dan Catlin and I met via the the original https://www.tradebit.com and quickly started a mutual admiration club. Dan worked completely with loops as a kind of ''found art'' composer while I was working with a mixture of found loops and original instrumentation. Dan already had a song by this title on his MP3 page, but it ended after the second ''chorus'' and didn''t have any vocals. He said he was interested in hearing what could do and so I reshaped a lyric I''d written a year before, put down a demo vocal and with his approval I started reworking the music so it would work as a ''pop'' song. Dan started an indie label called MRC Records and we agreed to release the debut R-Three album ''Perceptual Distortion'' as one of the first MRC releases. As I was finishing up the mastering of the disc, I sent Dan an email asking if he''d mind if we put ''Hive'' on as a bonus track. He wrote back a few weeks later to say he didn''t mind at all, but by that time the CD was already in production. Shortly thereafter, Dan''s hard drive crashed, all of his work was lost and he and his label sort of evaporated along with his musical identity as Whispering Minstrel. I hope he''s still out there somewhere working on something cool and I hope he gets a kick out of knowing that not all his good work disappeared."
FREAK LAMP (Parts I and II) -
"You know how sometimes you meet really needy people who act like you have some answer to their life''s problems or quality that will save them so they hang around you all the time, won''t take ''no'' for an answer, show up outside your bedroom window in the middle of the night, hang out outside your work, stalk your parents, call you at all hours, write you inappropriately erotic emails, violate restraining orders, try to dress like you and tell your friends that you''re secretly a psychotic killer so they can try and take over your life?
No?
Well I do.
Freak Lamp is a light-hearted, irreverent and politically incorrect song about those very special people in our lives who just won''t go away.
I occasionally write silly, fun little songs to take a break from the more serious work I do. The freedom from having to properly treat a concept or carefully craft the lyrics often results in a freshness and careless energy I really enjoy. It''s also a chance to say something inapproriate, which is very me, but not typically very R-Three. Initially I had intended to release songs like ''Freak Lamp'' and ''The Nardo Dance'' under the band name ''Timmy Stoopid and the Psuedo Intellectuals'', because R-Three was known for writing more experimental, serious and socially conscious music. Unfortunately I could never give the ''Timmy Stoopid'' project enough attention and I realized that by limiting what R-Three can be, I''d be putting unnecessary shackles on all of our creativity while charting a collision course with artistic pretentousness (and who wants that?). So with a deep breath, I present you with the disposable alternative pop of Freak Lamp and, as a cautionary tale about taking one''s self too seriously, Freak Lamp II for Interpretive Dance. As a bizarre aside, Freak Lamp !! for Interpretive Dance has sold better than any other song on this collection via ITunes. Which is funny, because it''s not really a song. It''s more like a minute and a half of me goofing off in the studio during a break with my Juno 60 and a microphone. But you know, whatever."
THE NARDO DANCE -
"We wrote ''The Nardo Dance'' as another "Timmy Stoopid" (aka disposable pop) project to honor (or lovingly ridicule depending on your perspective) my wife Heather''s cousin Jason, who, as a child of 7 or 8, used to run around singing ''Take off your shirt, take of your pants (which he would then do), everybody do the nardo dance!'' I thought that would make a great chorus and one holiday season Heather and I sketched out some lyrics and we presented the song to him and to his family as a gift. We sent the song out as a special ''thank you'' to all of our early supporters and I had the great satisfaction of hearing that the song was a huge hit among children and those still young enough at heart to do the Nardo Dance themselves! Heather''s talented, excruciatingly funny, beautiful, charming and very tall friend Rob Underwood was good enough to grace us with his rich baritone for the Barry White-esque bridge. Both ''The Nardo Dance'' and ''Freak Lamp'' were recorded using an old Do-me-in-the-back-seat metalic red Ibanez EX Series (budget metal) guitar, which accounts for that wonderfully trashy guitar tone. Unfortunately time and entropy took their toll on it''s cheap construction and I no longer have it. So, enjoy!"
THE FINAL CONFLAGRATION -
"When Dan Catlin sent me the mp3 for "The Final Conflagration" he asked me to sing something Thom York would do a'' la "Kid-A". I like Radiohead immensely but I don''t feel my vocal style has much in common with Thom York''s and it''s not my way to consciously emulate another''s style. Around that that time, my wife suddenly started exhibiting what doctors call "Generalized Anxiety Disorder", bursting into tears over small things (like whether or not to get fries with that), locking up her neck and jaw with unending, uncontrollable terror, unable to sleep and being generally unable to make decisions, as every option and every decision seemed to be equally stress causing. When you realize that you get through every day making a million little decisions, like which coffee cup to use, and they all become impossible decisions to make, you get a sense of how debilitating this disorder can be. If you''ve ever lived with a loved one who''s going through this, it''s like watching them melt away in front of your eyes. What''s kind of interesting is that while 10 million Americans are diagnosed with ''generalized anxiety disorder'' every year, the drug companies are almost making the problem worse by encouraging doctors to treat the symptoms with drugs that, in many cases, have horrendous side effects far worse than the symptoms they suppress.
It occurred to me that "The Final Conflagration" with its frantic beat, non-linear-pop structure, sensational title (Dan titled all our collaborations) and Dan''s request that it be "Radiohead-like" might be the perfect opportunity to for me express what was happening to our little family during this terrifying time. Instead of writing linear lyrics, I wrote down feelings, impressions, fears, statistics and my own difficulties maintaining a smooth, calm and almost saintly exterior at work while the turmoil and terror that was plaguing my wife was doing it''s work on me as well. I recorded these bits and then shuffled them around in Acid like little bits of paper, letting them scatter, some out of order, some intact. The result, although challenging, pretty accurately conveys my state of mind at the time.
I guess if there''s any link to the Christian interpretation of the Final Conflagration, it''s that we''re making Hell right here on Earth. Or, rather, we''re allowing it to be made for us; in part by not paying attention to what the major corporations are doing. How many of us do hard research before taking a new drug? How many of us read the ingredients on the packaged food we eat? More to the point, who would understand those ingredients? Do YOU know what riboflavin is?
It was right after I finished this song and was waiting for Dan Catlin''s notes on what he liked and what he''d want changed when his hard disk crashed and the original tracks were lost for good.
It''s with a mixed sense of pride and regret that this piece could never be finished that I''m sharing it with you now.
If you''re interested in learning more about the dark and murky waters of drug politics in this country (and I''m not talking about contraband), check out https://www.tradebit.com .
"
Rhett Redelings-MacDermott
May 2004
R-Three | Changing the world, 2 speakers at a time
https://www.tradebit.com
https://www.tradebit.com
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R-Three was honored by the campaign to elect Dennis Kucinich President of the United States who chose to put the ''Something to Believe In'' single on not only 1, but 2 of their Kucinch Kompilations.
These other people said this:
song of peace
rhett redelings-macdermott, who wrote the heartfelt essay "America Is Shamed", has written and recorded a song called Something to Believe In.
i always wondered over the last two years, as bush launched his "war on terra", what happened to the tradition of challenging mainstream political thought through music. the 60s had spawned a generation of talented musicians who protested injustice and greed through the humble acoustic guitar (melanie safka and pete seeger come to mind).
music is the most accessible of all forms of communication. one does not have to be literate to understand music. but most rock and pop "stars" today are either too wasted or too scared (after what happened to the dixie chicks) to speak out against bush''s vision of a worldwide reich. its only anti-establishment bands (system of a down, pearl jam, korn) that rant against the way the world is being turned upside down for the greed of a few men with dollars for dicks. however, you need to be able to appreciate loud music to understand the message of songs by such bands, and not many people appreciate heavy metal or even prog rock. usually, excellent anti-war songs like "boom" by system of a down never make it to the mainstream because of the musical style.
but if john mayer and bruce springsteen won''t talk about it, thanks to technology, common folks can, as demonstrated by rhett. Something to Believe In has some real kick-ass words
I want peace, peace, peace / I want a chance for an honest life / Not an endless war for a bigger slice
and the song does a great job by coalescing the three evils facing the world- war, big business and compliant media- into one great hummable tune.
so check out rhett''s song by visiting https://www.tradebit.com and please pass it on to those who refuse to accept as karmic inevitability the world according to the puppet and his handlers. you know who they are.
rhett''s website is at https://www.tradebit.com
-kalia_kraa
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Something to Believe In
We do the best we can. We watch the news with concern, try to stay informed, forward a few emails, and even make an online donation here and there. We sense the world getting more dangerous, our communities becoming more divided, and our children''s futures having precious little in common with "The American Dream" of times past.
But what more can we do? We have to go along and try to make the best of it, right? Rhett Redelings-MacDermott, a good friend of mine, has decided to go beyond "making the best of things." He is not a wealthy man, but between serving his family and a demanding job, he has made the choice to devote his "free" time to the development of a ground-breaking artist collective called R-Three (https://www.tradebit.com). The group''s latest song, "Something to Believe In" is a great example of artists taking responsibility for putting out messages the RIAA won''t. Rhett is also a tireless activist and writer - an example of his latest article can be found here: (https://www.tradebit.como/https://www.tradebit.com).
Of course it''s easy to imagine, from the look of high-gloss "news reports" that things are under control. Our elected politicians, lawyers, corporate and religious leaders, while not perfect, at least are keeping it all together, aren''t they? They must know what to do. We can trust them to make decisions which effect the financial and physical health of millions despite rapidly changing and unpredictable world conditions, can''t we?
Do we need to actually review budgets, study the fine print of treaties and legislation, or compare the voting records of our elected leaders against their campaign promises? Can''t we just trust them to tell us the truth? It sure would be more convenient!
Of course, just because it is EXTREMELY profitable to monopolize public information, from books and magazines to television and radio (not to mention the advertisers they support), doesn''t necessarily mean those in power would compromise principles of truthfulness and decency just to make a profit.
But what if pressure from stockholders to say whatever maintains public confidence on one hand, while focusing on the bottom line on the other, was the only way to stay in power in the first place? Isn''t this the fundamental design principle of our corporations?
Any good parent, no matter how honest they know their child to be, would not sign over the house, bank account, their retirement fund and credit cards, trusting him or her to make all the family''s monetary decisions. And yet, in a system where the best funded candidates and lobbyists with a lock-out on media access win every time, and we ALLOW that system to operate unchallenged, aren''t we essentially "handing over the keys" and forfeiting our rightful ownership of this country?
Sooner or later, aren''t more and more ordinary people like us - those of us reading this email right now - going to have to participate MORE if we truly want society to reflect OUR vision for the future?
Just because we live in a modern world of internet and iPods, doesn''t mean we are any less bound by a moral imperative than our counterparts were throughout history when confronted by powerful economic interests seeking to capitalize profits and socialize costs.
Doesn''t it start to become obvious that no matter how much we visualize and wish for a saner world, the only thing that can ever actually make it real is our willingness to get more involved, even when we don''t have time; and to act more meaningfully, and with more passion, even when we can''t afford to?
It''s something to believe in.
tso
https://www.tradebit.com
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This song grows on you. The more I listen to it, the more positively "addictive" it becomes.
There''s a real powerful message here - at last, a song with lyrics that aren''t mere fluff.
And although "hard" rock isn''t the kind of music I normally choose to listen to, I''m moved by the song''s strong beat.
If ever a peace activist needed a song to identify with, this is it!!!
Thanks for giving me something to believe in.
- Bloomin'' Shirl - listener
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