I’ve been kicking this idea around for a long time. American Gods by Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite books, and is one of the only books I have read 3 times, and will likely read it again in another year or two.
This is one of those rare times where I write a “pop” song. I was inspired by the recent collaboration between Neil Gaiman, Ben Folds, Damian Kulash, and Amanda Palmer, so I sat down at the piano, and plunked this one out. It’s the first time in many years I have actually recorded my piano, rather than using samples from the computer. Part of this is because I am not a great piano player, and part of it is because the piano hasn’t been tuned in over a decade, and in that time has been moved between 6 different houses. Needless to say, it is not sounding it’s best, but it had a vibe for the verse that I really liked (although I did use a sampled piano for the chorus and bridge, since I wanted it to sound in tune with everything else).
The lyrics are based off of the idea that gods get their power from the belief and rituals of their followers, but from there I took it in a slightly different direction. I thought I would present it from the point of view of someone teaching a new god the ropes, and how it’s all just a con game to get people to follow you. I think the song could also fit in with the idea of fame, with the power it brings, and the fickle people who will turn on you in a heartbeat.
[audio:http://markblasco.com/media/evilmachine/tests/No%20You.mp3|titles=No You|artists=Mark Blasco]
Purchasing the song will help enable me to write and record more songs more often, so if you find you got something out of listening to it, please consider plunking down the $0.99 (or whatever figure you feel is appropriate). I’m thinking that I’ll probably follow the trend of making this song available for free once I upload the next new one, so if you can’t spare the dollar, it will be available for free before too long.