-PROJECT : BRAINSTORM-

  JJB - guitars / bass / drums / voices
  
  # 1 "Top Metal of the Week" 4/12/06 !!! Thankya !
  
  10,000 downloads 12/4/2007 !!!
  
  See the free music download votebar at the bottom of the page or click the song titles in the list below !
  
  NEW ! Visit the PROJECT : BRAINSTORM AfterDawn Weblog ! Photos , music & lyrics , guitar building & modifcation help and more at http://my.afterdawn.com/project_brainstorm/
  
  Temporary Bonus Track ! Click the title for Hemorrhage (JJ's Fuel Audition!)
  
  ( Explanation ... Email to the Fuel website is bouncing due to massive traffic so lots of people are having trouble submitting auditions ! I'm putting mine here temporarily so I can send them a link to it . (Others are doing this also) I'll take it down A : very soon , B : if the admins or record label request , or C : all the above . My apologies in advance if it's a problem for anyone .
  
  
  
  NEW ! Click here to visit the Project : Brainstorm weblog at Afterdawn.com!
  
  

PROJECT : BRAINSTORM Free Music Downloads !

  Betrayal Be Thy Name
  
  Damage
  
  Deepskystarlight
  
  Portrait of Agony
  
  Scream to the Edge

  Project : Brainstorm - my labor of love since 1997
  Produced and directed at the original Muscle Shoals Sound studio building , on a Fostex B16 16-track with Ampex analog tape . Additional tracks from home on a Fostex E16 along with a Yamaha 4-track and Fostex FD8 digital recorder . JJB on all tracks , mostly first take , one instrument at a time. Drums first < no click track > then bass , guitars , etc . There are no sampled drums or instruments anywhere .
  
  

PROJECT : BRAINSTORM News

  
  8/8/04 - Your votes made -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Portrait of Agony" # 5 "Top Metal of the Week" - in its first week !!! Very inspiring !
   Thanks for your positive votes and responses, and thanks to the website here for providing this excellent site to air our variety of music . I am checking out the other bands here - hearing great stuff - best of luck to all of you too .
  
  11/21/04 - After a week on the MP3lizard "users recommend" list, -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Damage" is # 4 "Top Metal of the Week" ! Thanks again for your votes !
  
  12/18/04 - -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Deepskystarlight" is on the "our users recommend" list ! Thanks for the votes ( a nice early b-day gift - now all 3 songs have been there ! ) and a big thank-you to my lovely friend Josi for all the fun and inspiration -
  
  1/12/ 05 - Your votes and downloads have kept -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Deepskystarlight" on the "recommended" list for 4 weeks in a row ! Thanks again ! In appreciation of your help in reaching the 200th download today , I have upgraded it from 96Kbps to a slamming new high quality 192 Kbps version . Thanks again for your votes , downloads and interest !
  
  1/29/05 - -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Deepskystarlight" is # 3 "Top Metal of the Week" for 2 weeks after 7 weeks on the "recommended" list ! This is my highest chart position and duration to date . Thanks again for making all 3 songs top 5 ! You Rock !
  I very much appreciate your interest , votes and downloads - so I have added a new test version of one of my favorite speed metal grinders "Betrayal Be Thy Name" as well as upgraded 128Kbps versions of "Damage" and "Portrait of Agony" !
  
  2/5/05 - -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- "Deepskystarlight" is my first song to hit 300 downloads ! That's 250 in the last 6 weeks - and 90+ downloads above average for the site . Total downloads for the first three front-page songs are almost 800 now - if we could get all of you together in one place we would have a nice crowd , eh ?
   And while we're at it , "Damage" is back on the "recommended" list - thanks again for the support !
  
  2/14/05 - Heavy Metal Valentine's day ! February 14 is the 7th anniversary of the first -PROJECT:BRAINSTORM- live gig !
   "Portrait of Agony" reaches 200 downloads tonight - thankya !
  
   3/1/05 - Thanks to your votes and downloads , total downloads for the -PROJECT : BRAINSTORM- songs passed 1000 this weekend , and "Deepskystarlight" topped 400 (2-28-05) at # 2 "Top Metal of the Week" !
   The opinion and approval of this many people from the worldwide metal community means much more to me than a Grammy or some other official award - I don't measure "success" as satisfying the lowest common denominator of listeners . I have played a sold-out show for 5000 people as the opening act for a major country-music artist , but I am much more proud of what we are doing right here . Good luck to all of you - and keep it loud !
  
   7/4/05 - 2000 total downloads ! Thankya !
  
   10/7/05 - Over 2500 total downloads ! Thanks for keeping "Betrayal be thy Name" on the "recommended" list and "Top 5 Metal" for several weeks in a row !
   Tonight I'm adding "Scream to the Edge" , a new instrumental song . Make it squeal !
  
  12/31/05 - Total downloads are over 3500 ! 200 today and a 5 for "Scream to the Edge" ! Thankya !
  When I was in California recently total downloads reached 3000 and 1000 for "Betrayal be thy Name " on the same day !
  
  2/16/06 - Total downloads are over 4000 ! Average downloads per track site-wide are 309.77 today - "Betrayal be thy Name" will go 1500 this week !
  
  4/12/06 - # 1 "Top Metal of the Week" , # 3 overall ! Far out ! Thanks for all the downloads and votes !
  
  4/20/06 - 5000 downloads ! Woohoo ! Thankya !
  
  5/30/06 - 2000 downloads for "Betrayal Be Thy Name" ! Total downloads are 5500+ ! Thankya !
  
  6/8/06 - 1000 downloads for "Deepskystarlight" !
  
  9/5/06 - Total downloads are 7000+ ! Thankya !
  
  12/1/06 - 8000 downloads ! Thankya !
  
  12/4/2007 - 10,000 downloads ! Thankya !
  
  
  Cheers-
  
  JJB
  
  
  NEW ! Click here to visit the Project : Brainstorm weblog !
  
  
   Check back here again - I'll add more songs later - thanks for your interest !
  
  Big ol' thanks to RkR & Phil for their help on the live gigs!
  
  All original songs (c) JJB 1997 , 2004 , 2005
  
  
  

Lyrics

  
  ====betrayal be thy name ====
  
  people are talking can you hear them
  prying eyes and jealous lies all around
  do they know too much they are too in touch
  little words can turn our lives upside down
  
  all the things they say and do make us who we are
  all becomes love and war forever wears the scars
  dirty hands on destiny
  look what they've done to you and me
  
  nothing is the same
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  no one left to blame
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  
  friendly voices life is choices
  stay and play or run away safe and sound
  all hail the secret we are the breaking news
  past eats up the future in the here and now
  
  hear them going on and on cause talk is nearly free
  accusations making love impossibility
  dirty hands on destiny
  look what they've done to you and me
  
  nothing is the same
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  no one left to blame
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  
  let the stones fly from the hand of he who bear no sin
  the truth will set you free
  you will never be the same again
  
  nothing is the same
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  no one left to blame
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  tomorrow's history
  turn your head in shame betrayal be thy name
  live for another day
  nothing more to say betrayal be thy way
  
  
  
  =========damage=========
  
  mother's wannabe society girl
  didn't think i was funny
  sweet revenge tastes like living well
  if you marry the money
  daddy used her as a substitute
  for what he couldn't keep
  little puzzle pieces fall together
  remember little sister walking in her sleep
  hell yeah
  
  she learned it from her father
  her mother taught her well
  working together
  creating jezebel
  
  evil made not born
  innocence lost now scorned
  evil made not born
  i arose full of thorns
  
  on the inside where the damage is
  things much like we left them
  there's not much left to see
  hey are we going where the damage is
  take me in the back way
  i don't want someone to see me
  
  i remember our last kisses
  big money date let her down
  expensive lessons taste like weakness
  i barely felt her hands in my pockets
  
  she learned it from her father
  her mother taught her well
  working together
  creating jezebel
  
  evil made not born
  innocence lost now scarred
  evil made not born
  i arose full of thorns
  
  on the inside where the damage is
  time brought me no peace of mind
  too much left behind
  always returning where the damage is
  take me in the back way
  i don't want someone to see me
  with you with you with you with you
  
  that brand new car just looked nasty on you
  all leather and white your heart as black as the night
  that you drive through
  i know what you do i know how you've been
  buying self respect with the wages of sin
  i know what you do i know who you are
  time heals the wound but never the scar
  
  driving down
  
  down to where the damage is
  
  
  ======= deepskystarlight ========
  
  narrow eyes and open mind we dare to dream
  shiver at the mind wheels turning
  brilliant moments deep connections driving me
  trapped too long i let my thoughts run free
  
  if i sleep the dreams will win
  need the night so i can see again
  
  darkness raining down on me in the deepskystarlight
  re-awakening is heartbreaking
  comes together finally in the deepskystarlight
  temporarily infinity
  
  timeless beauty wears a veil of shattered dreams
  red and black bleeding burning
  primal urges through the lens of subtlety
  i can't focus i can barely see
  
  long forgotten flame within
  looking up and you are there my friend
  
  darkness raining down on me in the deepskystarlight
  the awakening is breathtaking
  reaching out a hand to me in the deepskystarlight
  temporarily infinity
  
  darkness raining down on me in the deepskystarlight
  re-awakening is heartbreaking
  comes together finally in the deepskystarlight
  temporarily infinity
  
  wish i may wish i might
  deepskystarlight
  wish i may wish i might
  deepskystarlight
  
  
  ============portrait of agony==============
  
  wrestled to the ground by forces i don't comprehend
  deafened by the sound of choices i'm not listening
  superiority complex in its simplicity
  dominating me tramples on my liberty
  
  bending over backwards staring through my knees
  assuming the position everyone is pleased
  
  portrait of agony got the wrong side of me
  shiny mirror image lie inner vision never die
  
  struggling commands
  juggling demands
  
  writing in the dark deciphering the hidden marks
  clinging to my soul symptom of obsessed control
  trampled underfeet transformation incomplete
  conformity of will inner vision stronger still
  
  bending over backwards staring through my knees
  assuming the position everyone is pleased
  
  portrait of agony got the wrong side of me
  shiny mirror image lie inner vision never die
  
  "just be yourself" ? they dont want that at all
  they enjoy that feeling of my back against the wall
  search for inspiration they will never find
  locked away inside a little corner of my mind
  
  bending over backwards staring through my knees
  assuming the position everyone is pleased
  
  portrait of agony not the best view of me
  shiny mirror image lie inner vision never die
  
  ===============================
  
  

Gear & Recording Info

  
  Betrayal Be Thy Name
  Back to the Yamaha kit -
   My friend / bandmate had a window of opportunity between sessions and invited me over to rip the wonderful Yamaha Stage Custom kit once again ! He owns that kit now , all rigged with excellent miking and Drawmer compression for a session - he had a little downtime and some bugs to work out and I was happy to comply ! We did a multitrack go-round on 2 Fostex digital 8 tracks and burned that to CD , which I dropped into my FD-8 at home and added the 2 guitars , bass , and 2 vocals .
   This is my second attempt at this one , which involves a very difficult set of shifting feels and time changes . It is all about the drums , driven by the "train groove" on the snare , which is my own deeply-tuned standard size Yamaha that I brought along this time .
   The original version was the keeper performance-wise , but the sound quality wasn't so hot . This one is sort of the opposite - the sound quality is better , but I put a little more rage into the performance the first time . Capturing both is difficult - as Dimebag used to say , I am trying to "beat the demo." The "strike three" version will be out of the park . Stay tuned ! 8 )
  
  
  Damage -
   A haunting tale of young love gone wrong ...
   This is the second try at this one - I did it in '99 with my usual drumset - but this time I had use of a friend's beautiful Yamaha Stage Custom kit in a Gibraltar rack with Zildjian cymbals everywhere . The Flying Dragon direct drive double-bass pedal (Aquarian Super-kick 2 head on the bassdrum) is the best kick setup I've ever played . I really liked the contrast of that huge kick sound with my little Tama 12" piccolo snare ( I had his Pearl free-floating 14" to the side for the side-stick clicks - the 12" is so small it doesn't do the "wood-block" sound too well. ) The cymbal setup was fun too - a nice mix of brilliant-finish A's , A customs , & Z's with a 10" splash up front . I Really Liked this kit - can you tell ? 8 )
   The guitar is my flame-maple-top Dimarzio Explorer with a mahogany body , Chandler maple neck and Bill Lawrence L500XL's & Floyd Rose - tuned Way Down There to C# - through the Marshall Jubilee 100w miked with the AKG 414 . I don't usually record effects during tracking but for this I used the Electric Mistress for the "wobble" effect in the verses & a Rocktron noise gate to keep the feedback squeals at bay . The bass is a 70's Dean ML with Dimarzio humbuckers run direct .
  
  
  Deepskystarlight -
   I wish all my songs turned out this well ...
   This is my most recent song and probably my favorite so far . I did the whole thing in one night - writing , recording and all . I had never done the Styx / Kansas type harmony vocals before in the studio , although I have done three-part things live with a band. All the voices are mine , first take with the AKG 414 mike .
   The guitar on the right is a '78 Les Paul Special with the stock single-coils , the left is an 80's Kramer Pacer USA with H-S-S Bill Lawrence pickups . Both guitars are through my gig-rig , a Peavey Renown 112 . Bass is the neck-through fretless Daion Power XX run direct . The music track is mixed to a CD then dubbed to the digital 8-track . There are 6 tracks of voice : one lead , 3 on the harmonies , and 2 in unison in the half-time bit at the end .
  
  
  Portrait of Agony
   Bad day in the key of D ...
   I woke up & looked in the mirror one morning & thought to myself "Oh yeah - picture of health - right ..." and 'portrait of agony' popped into my head . All day I had one interruption after another while trying to get the words down , with the music bouncing around in my head too . I'm sure that's why the music is all jagged and disjointed - like the riffs seem to abruptly elbow each other out of the way .
   This one is 16 track from Jackson Highway . EV & AKG mikes on the drums , Daion bass direct , & my favorite red Randy Rhoads V with Bill Lawrence pickups through the Jubilee Marshall . The dirty vocal is a ProCo Rat insert done in the mix .
  
  Scream To The Edge
   Make it squeal!!!
  
  
  --------------------------------------------
  All current -PROJECT BRAINSTORM- MP3s are now higher quality stereo at 128Kbps - 192Kbps !
  
  PS : My earlier MP3s were encoded in the MP3 PRO format to keep the filesize small for dial-up. The shareware "Thomson MP3 PRO" player (for Windows) or "Audion 3" (full version now free for Mac) will play these 96Kbps MP3s with drastically improved quality . There is also a Winamp plugin at the Thomson website .
  These files play fine on any MP3 player but the MP3PRO players give near-CD quality at 96Kbps . You can easily find these players & plugins via a "google" search .
  
  
  NEW ! Click here to visit the Project : Brainstorm weblog at Afterdawn.com!