What News?!?

Hey y'all, i've got good news for you. J's Heaven is throwing open its gates, and opening the floor to outside opinions, interests, and viewpoints, with a couple of new writers signing on board. This means more music, more frequent updates, more cultural analysis, from a wider variety of viewpoints.

I've been kicking around this post for a couple of months in my head, trying to figure out what the fuck i was trying to say and how to say it, which is of course ridiculous, as this stuff is essentially all that i think about (just ask someone that hangs out with me in the flesh). The first, and most important, thing is that i got into writing this blog, and music journalism in general, as an excuse to listen to and talk about music, striving for precision in language and thought. I've been a bloodthirsty music fiend since i was 18, and i've been forced to teach myself on no budget, as i've been dirt fucking poor since i entered adulthood. I never really sought to be an authority, and i was (and am) endlessly inspired by creative music journalists that pump so much of their heart and soul into their writing, leaving you slavering to hear the sounds.

The next thing is, that i feel there are a lot of interesting cultural trends that are illustrated in music and art and general. I'm ecstatic about the works of Foucault and Simon Reynolds and other cultural analysts. The problem i encounter is never not having anything to say, or music to write about, its having too much to say, and worrying about its pertinence. So fuck it. I'm opening the floodgates, and speak my truth.

In regards to this, it makes sense that at this juncture i open the floor. When i created J's Heaven, i was filching internet from cafe's in Boulder, Co. and it was a predominantly solitary pursuit, in that there was very little experimental music scene out there, and i lost myself in endless terabytes of culture from other parts of the world. I always wanted to participate in a scene, to collaborate and make music with people, spread the word about shows, etc. The first three years of this blog have been representative of this solitude, but since i've arrived in Portland, i've been inducted a number of vibrant music scenes and art communities, and this blog has been focusing on a lot of scene reports, live reviews, friend's recordings. I want more of this, a wider vantage point to give a clearer representation of this 2012 we're living in.

I feel the role of the expert, the master, the rarefied listener, is dead. Its all subjective and open to interpretation. Rather than rattling on and on about my preferences, why not listen and take other people's opinions and interests into account? Its like the guy at a party that corners you and insists on preaching about the new Mars Volta record. Who wants to be a bore?

My main interest remains:
a. finding new and good music
b. writing about music with clarity, with engaging language that does not rely on tired genre-fication and regurgitated pitchfork quotes
c. spreading the word about music that has improved my life so drastically, trying to give something to the bands and musicians that give so much, all the time.

Expect the unexpected, and feedback is welcome and appreciated.