I was driving to visit a friend in West Seattle for the day and my Google driving app told me it was 17.1 miles to her house. The idea for this project came to me in a flash: I could probably walk there in a day! Doing walking pilgrimages is a great way to roust demons, promote the circulation of brain thoughts, drum up musical riffs from the ground up, and generally experience the lengthy solitude I need to process a lot of life stuff that's been going on. More about that later. The flash idea was to walk to people's houses, and ask them to take care of me. I started talking to a few friends about it and everyone was so enthused about cooking me dinner at the end of a long walk, listening to an album together, and having a sleepover! I can get to feeling antisocial, so having my idea warmly received has been a balm for my soul. Along the way, I am making some field recordings with my Zoom H4N. Eventually, all these experiences, interactions, and collected sounds will become the basis for my album, The Walking Album. I'll record stuff, ask friends to record stuff for various tracks, and there will be music! When we do the album release party, we'll have a feast made up of one dish from everything my people cooked for me. I feel loved. Summer in Seattle, with its long, long days and mild-ish temps is a perfect environment for long urban walks. #TheWalkingAlbum
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