ilovefuzz.com

BitchPudding wrote:In all my 10 years of playing, I've never taken a break. For me, music (listening, playing, creating) is my lifesblood. Im always cycling through one of those modes every day. Its also probably why I'm in four different bands.

I don't take breaks, but I work really hard to maintain balance. When I'm not playing, im ether relaxing or busying myself with another hobby. Video games are big. I've also taken up skateboarding and jogging with my fiancee. Tea helps chill me out too. Even if its just for an hour or two, it helps clear my head for some fresh ideas.

So I guess my advice when your ready to return to music, is to have balance so you don't burn out completely. See friends, watch movies, whatever helps offset the burn out feeling.

Ultimately, if your not having fun, then something is wrong. So do it for the right reasons.

You know, this raises a good point I might do well to put more thought into. Whatever my virtues, moderation and balance have never been among them. Maybe a source of this constant cycle of burnout is related to inability to go anything less than Super Hard for unsustainable periods of time. Maaaaybe.

In a semi-related matter, it's been three years since I stopped performing live and I still have terrible performance anxiety nightmares, like last night's where I had to play an unrehearsed showcase solo and got harshly critiqued in front of the audience afterward. Love too have donkey brains.

Did you kick his ass?

yeah, if kicking his ass is a euphemism for breaking my tiny boy heart

A couple of random thoughts, because this seems like a great place to try and get back into ILF. I've taken a break from this for a couple months now. No idea when I last posted.

a) Do what you *feel* like. Listen to your instincts. If it's not fun to make music then it's OK not to. You have probably had phases when it felt like music was the best thing in the world and the only thing you ever wanted to do. Let go of those memories and ask yourself what it is you want now.

b) *Do* what you feel like. After analysing your feelings and needs at the moment, act accordingly. Put your music gear in storage, tell your band you need a break and you don't know how long it will be and chill out. Repeat step a once in a while just so you know when to get your stuff out of the closet and call the band. I would advise you not to do stuff half-assed. Going back and forth a lot will not bring you pleasure. And taking a break with all your recording gear laid out asking you to get back to it is also not advisable. It will either give you a bad conscience during your break from music or it will make you go back to making music prematurely.

c) Do what *you* feel like. You know, make sure your decision is rooted in your own will, not the expectations of others or what some dudes on ILF wrote.

d) Do *what* you feel like. This is the hardest part I guess. What to do instead? You wrote something about declining invitations. Stop doing that, seriously. No matter what I wrote in point c, take care of your real life friends. This will probably lead to some ideas about what to do, but if nothing comes up, just walk around town, keep your eyes open and find shit that interests you. Try and indulge in it. Me personally, I never lack ideas about what to do, but if you are different, then I would say that maybe you should just try to open your mind, let everything come in without filtering for cool/not cool and give it a real try to find something interesting about it, whatever it is. Fuck, a couple of months ago I really wanted to get into basket weaving.


And stage fright is part of the fun! I need it just so that it feels special to actually be on stage.

phantasmagorovich wrote:A couple of random thoughts, because this seems like a great place to try and get back into ILF. I've taken a break from this for a couple months now. No idea when I last posted.

a) Do what you *feel* like. Listen to your instincts. If it's not fun to make music then it's OK not to. You have probably had phases when it felt like music was the best thing in the world and the only thing you ever wanted to do. Let go of those memories and ask yourself what it is you want now.

b) *Do* what you feel like. After analysing your feelings and needs at the moment, act accordingly. Put your music gear in storage, tell your band you need a break and you don't know how long it will be and chill out. Repeat step a once in a while just so you know when to get your stuff out of the closet and call the band. I would advise you not to do stuff half-assed. Going back and forth a lot will not bring you pleasure. And taking a break with all your recording gear laid out asking you to get back to it is also not advisable. It will either give you a bad conscience during your break from music or it will make you go back to making music prematurely.

c) Do what *you* feel like. You know, make sure your decision is rooted in your own will, not the expectations of others or what some dudes on ILF wrote.

d) Do *what* you feel like. This is the hardest part I guess. What to do instead? You wrote something about declining invitations. Stop doing that, seriously. No matter what I wrote in point c, take care of your real life friends. This will probably lead to some ideas about what to do, but if nothing comes up, just walk around town, keep your eyes open and find shit that interests you. Try and indulge in it. Me personally, I never lack ideas about what to do, but if you are different, then I would say that maybe you should just try to open your mind, let everything come in without filtering for cool/not cool and give it a real try to find something interesting about it, whatever it is. Fuck, a couple of months ago I really wanted to get into basket weaving.


And stage fright is part of the fun! I need it just so that it feels special to actually be on stage.

I've been trying to follow this advice since you posted it.

Update: I've been slowly getting back into recording piano noodling and doing sound design stuff, building up stockpiles of sound, repairing my guitars, etc. Still no songwriting. The most disturbing development is that for the first time in my life, I barely listen to music anymore. I really don't want to be a bitter, jaded bore but I feel like that's what I've become? How do I not that?

friendship wrote:

phantasmagorovich wrote:A couple of random thoughts, because this seems like a great place to try and get back into ILF. I've taken a break from this for a couple months now. No idea when I last posted.

a) Do what you *feel* like. Listen to your instincts. If it's not fun to make music then it's OK not to. You have probably had phases when it felt like music was the best thing in the world and the only thing you ever wanted to do. Let go of those memories and ask yourself what it is you want now.

b) *Do* what you feel like. After analysing your feelings and needs at the moment, act accordingly. Put your music gear in storage, tell your band you need a break and you don't know how long it will be and chill out. Repeat step a once in a while just so you know when to get your stuff out of the closet and call the band. I would advise you not to do stuff half-assed. Going back and forth a lot will not bring you pleasure. And taking a break with all your recording gear laid out asking you to get back to it is also not advisable. It will either give you a bad conscience during your break from music or it will make you go back to making music prematurely.

c) Do what *you* feel like. You know, make sure your decision is rooted in your own will, not the expectations of others or what some dudes on ILF wrote.

d) Do *what* you feel like. This is the hardest part I guess. What to do instead? You wrote something about declining invitations. Stop doing that, seriously. No matter what I wrote in point c, take care of your real life friends. This will probably lead to some ideas about what to do, but if nothing comes up, just walk around town, keep your eyes open and find shit that interests you. Try and indulge in it. Me personally, I never lack ideas about what to do, but if you are different, then I would say that maybe you should just try to open your mind, let everything come in without filtering for cool/not cool and give it a real try to find something interesting about it, whatever it is. Fuck, a couple of months ago I really wanted to get into basket weaving.


And stage fright is part of the fun! I need it just so that it feels special to actually be on stage.

I've been trying to follow this advice since you posted it.

Update: I've been slowly getting back into recording piano noodling and doing sound design stuff, building up stockpiles of sound, repairing my guitars, etc. Still no songwriting. The most disturbing development is that for the first time in my life, I barely listen to music anymore. I really don't want to be a bitter, jaded bore but I feel like that's what I've become? How do I not that?

Just don't be one.

Seriously though. Being a bitter jaded fuck isn't about any listening or not listening to music. It's about how you perceive the world that's all.


Edit. I mean: don't beat yourself up about it. If you are missing listening to music, don't block the joy it brings by obsessing about not listening to any music. Find a way to discover new stuff that feels good and exciting. For some time this forum has been that for me. Now I mostly discover new music through the unbelievable algos that Spotify uses. But putting up too much pressure will not make you happy. If you really feel you need to go down that route, I'd say it's probably best to fix a time of day that you reserve to listening to music. In your preferred way. Maybe in the car on your commute. While jerking off, before you go to sleep, while taking a run, just sitting down and taking notes. Maybe go to shows more often, that can also prove inspiring.


(I think that "taking a break - by friendship" should be at least an album title.)