bounce to disk, TW Walsh’s new recording blog, TW mp3s, other stuff.
I’ve been a reader of TW Walsh’s blog for a while, even though, I don’t always remember to check it because of the intermittent updating. TW was in Pedro the Lion (and, even wrote one of the best song on Achilles Heel, “Start Without Me”) and the Headphones (though mostly in the touring version). He now records and plays some shows under the moniker the Soft Drugs (myspace). He used to (and occasionally still does) record under his own name.
Soft Drugs – Start Without Me (mp3, original demo)
Anyway, he’s one of those slightly obsessive recordists (engineers/ producers/ whatevers), as evidenced by his recording journals, that I love, so I was pretty interested when It’s Hard to Find a Friend (and TW’s blog) recently pointed me to TW’s new recording blog Bounce to Disk. TW already has a few cool interviews and features up there.
I’ve definitely featured some of the TW/ Soft Drugs stuff in my mixtapes but I’m not sure I’ve written about him directly on this blog. He’s sort of strange/ revolutionary for deciding to give away (FREE) all his Soft Drugs material as mp3s from his website. I’m still glad I bought the CD version of In Moderation in the four months between the initial EP release and the free mp3 release. I like having physical CDs and it’s a solid and totally enjoyable EP.
My favorite from the In Moderation EP is “Defending the Paint”:
Soft Drugs – Defending the Paint (mp3)
You can still buy CD versions and some mp3s at TW’s label Tower of Song. It seems he’s no longer selling anything through Undertow which means that you missed your chance to get the totally sweet Soft Drugs shirt (I own it because I am a winner).
And while I’m throwing a million TW-related links at you, It’s Hard to Find a Friend also has a mix featuring an slow, older TW song called “The Wages of Dying is Love” that’s stark and beautiful.
I wear this shirt at least once a week. Not only is the design awesome, but the fit is outstanding. I do get weird looks sometimes, and a lot of people cocking their heads at me and saying, “The Soft Drugs?”
“It’s a band.”
Andy, ditto on the reaction. I get that all the time.
I also pretty much accidentally wore that shirt to a David Bazan show. I was talking to DB and was slightly embarrassed when he noticed it and mentioned as much–he said “no, it’s cool.”
[...] Chasing Lions (formerly puddlegum, which, yes, did proceed the other ‘gum.) You know I love me some Soft Drugs, so this comes as some exciting [...]