Dearest Dorothy,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Not gonna lie; I have a feeling that these letters will get few and far in between. But that’s only because I have a feeling that 2015 is going to be a busy year. I’ve got a brand spankin’ new calendar and everything! You’ll see what I’ve got down the pipeline soon enough.

Getting back to business…

My last letter to you got a bit dramatic, didn’t it? I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean for that to happen, I was just writing from the heart. Regardless, I stand by every word. However, I should note that in a most serendipitous way, it ties-in rather nicely with what I’m writing about today.

I want to tell you about me. I want to explain myself to you, clarify why I do what I do, and why I shall continue to do so for as long as I am able.

Are you willing to take a peek behind the curtain, Dorothy?

Good. I knew you would be.

To understand me, you need to understand my name. What’s in a name, anyway? The answer, as you should already expect from me by now, is EVERYTHING.

Spells and Curses spellsandcurses spells & curses

Regardless of how you stylize it, one must wonder; why “spells and curses”?

Dora, this answer ties into the very philosophy behind my art (which I’ll also get to into). The simple answer is that I believe for all music to be modern-day spells and curses. How can anyone deny this? Who hasn’t listened to a song while in a funk, only to feel a little better afterwards? Or have a song help them get through the last set in the gym? Or perhaps vent some frustration in a scream-along with a metal song? Maybe get transported to another place or time? Be put in the middle of a very tense or dramatic scene? Vividly see someone you love and miss when they’re not around? Vividly see someone you don’t love or miss but can’t stop thinking about?

We’ve all had songs conjure up experiences for us in some way, shape, or form; experiences that are more than just hearing sounds. Listening to music can change our mood, keep our focus, heighten our senses, or even diminish them.

Ok, so songs are like spells and curse. Why the name yourself that?

Because I want to be the best conjurer in the world. I want to help people who feel lonely summon a friend through my music. I want to help people with terrible days, or broken hearts through their troubles. I want to augment the experience for anyone wanting to feel or express love, beauty, friendship, desire, anger, sadness, longing, etc. I want to help people through my music, by being there for them, and offering them my homemade brew of spells and curses, like a present-day Henry J. Fate.

You ever hear that Screamin’ Jay Hawkins song, “I Put a Spell on You”? It was also in the Halloween classic, Hocus Pocus? Well there’s a scene in the movie where the Sanderson sisters sing that song to a large audience during a dance and in the process “enchant” them.

I was put on this earth to do the same thing, except you can rest assured that I lack their nefarious intentions. I’m here to enchant, elevate, inspire, and motivate those who need it. Be it the dreamers or the downtrodden; I want to offer something that would enhance their lives.

How would I go about doing that?

Here is where the philosophy behind Spells and Curses comes in:

As I’ve already mentioned, I believe that things happen for a reason. Whether that reason is of our own accord, or simply the work of “the divine” is up to you to decide. I tend to believe the truth in both, because think about this; if we can make sense out of random chance, isn’t that in its own way divine? But I digress…

When I started to create music (and I mean REALLY take songs apart, examine them, and put them back together), I realized that all my favorite songs had one thing in common. They all had the ability to transport me to somewhere exclusive; to a place where only that song could take me to. But while they opened portals to different worlds, the key with which they opened said portals were the same. Made from the same quality, these keys were the visceral essence of each song. That visceral essence was inimitability of each artist. That’s why you always go back to your favorite artists, songwriters, musicians, and singers; because the very essence of their humanity (with which they created their music) has also made an impression on you. It had connected with you to show that you’re not alone, and that someone is going through what you’re going through. It’s the closest step towards benevolence and understanding.

I find this to be even more so the case as a songwriter. When writing a song, I never have a set intention for what I want it to sound like. I’ll get into this with more detail some other day, but let’s just say that when writing a song, it never starts off about someone or something. However, only a few months after the song’s release do I start developing a relationship with it from a listener’s perspective. What the song was about to me would change as I relate its subject-matter to my life. Perhaps it’s my subconscious speaking. Either way, the same thing happens: I reflect. From there, I can be the outsider looking in on the situation I relate the song to, and from that birds-eye view, I understand the groundwork of events. Everything is illuminated; motivations, emotions, consequences, everything. That leads to the benevolence and understanding.

So I guess you could say that I figured I might as well put in the elbow grease to create with the aural-playgrounds where people’s imaginations can run free. Perhaps then the listener can also stand outside themselves, with the vigilance of an eagle, and replay the events, thoughts, or emotions that they need the song to help them through. That’s what all the best songs do. So as you can imagine, in my journey of becoming your personal Merlin, I take all my spells and curses very, very seriously.

Sincerely,

theRave