My cousin Joe Graves made a really cool cover version of "Friend for the Ages," along with a trippy autumn lyric video.
“Friend for the Ages” Cover by Joe Graves
“2020 Vision” Cover by Brittany Benjamin
Brittany Benjamin just sang a gorgeous cover version of "2020 Vision" from my upcoming album 2020.
“Thinking of You” Cover by Bubba Holly and Nicole Wilder
Bubba Holly and Nicole Wilder are two super talented singers and friends from my college days, so it was very special to hear their cover of my song "Thinking of You." They even turned my "bridge" into a chorus by repeating it at the end...a duet I was really craving to hear again!
“No Turning Back” Cover by Tinynormous
Dev Jana is a talented dude. I first knew him as a video game designer, but it turns out he plays a ton of instruments and sings! He covered "No Turning Back" from my upcoming album 2020, and I think of it as the equivalent of Joe Cocker's "With a Little Help From My Friends" – more raw energy and cooler than the original!
“2020 Vision” Cover by Carrellee
I put a call out to musicians to record cover songs from my upcoming album 2020, and Carrellee is the first to finish her cover. It's amazing to hear such a talented singer and piano arranger put her spin on the song.
Burren Girl
Earlier this year, I composed for Rita Davern and Melody Gilbert's film Stories I Didn't Know, about the struggle between the Dakota people and Irish immigrants moving to Minnesota.
But Rita wasn't finished with her story. She still had years of footage from her trips to Ireland, searching for her family's roots, and finding out why they moved to America. That's what her follow up documentary Burren Girl is all about.
I was pleased to work with Rita again. This time around, I acted more as music supervisor and editor, helping find existing Irish songs and gluing them together with custom composition.
Two Hour Album Challenge: “Cast a Pastel Spell”
My buddy Ben Burnes invited me to participate in his Two Hour Album Challenge. The idea is that bunch of us make songs in two hours, and we put them all on a compilation album.
HELIUM REQUIEM Instrumental Album
Back in 2017, HELIUM REQUIEM started as a post-midnight electronic songwriting binge, that I recruited my cousin Nathan Graves to write lyrics and sing on.
But I recently discovered my instrumental-only version that I had sent to Nate for inspiration. It was basically fully-formed and flowed nicely, so I thought I'd release it into the world as is.
Meet the Musicians on 2020
With just 48 hours left in my Kickstarter campaign, I wanted to highlight the musicians that will be contributing to my album 2020. They're all incredibly talented and creative, and I can't wait to hear their recordings (all recorded at home studios due to COVID-19). Thanks to those of you who've donated to bring this dream team together!
How to Create Meaning in Games
When making a board game, how do you turn meaningless objects into things that inspire laughter, cooperation, backstabbing, or even table flips? That's the subject of my talk at last night's International Game Developers Association Twin Cities meeting. I also talked about what I learned in designing and art directing my game Four Humours.