Jam Notes Podcast

Nick talks about writing songs, debates with Ben aboutthe importance of recording quality, and both discuss Rage Against the Machine’salbum of cover songs (Renegades of Funk) Talking about a jam from April17, 2024 (Maynard’s birthday). Talking about “funky monkeys,” “Brass Monkeys,”and Nick’s brother Trevor’s band FermentedBeats (from Pittsburgh, with clarinet).Ben notes the energy and poeticmastery of Kendrick’s “Not Like Us,” influencing his mood during the jam, whichis grungy, smooth “like ice on a lake,” with loops and unexpected turns.·        Quick banter about their unused Lander accountand collaboration.·        Discussion of releasing an album by Christmas. Nota Christmas album, just timing the release… and as of January, it’s still notstarted. ·        Joking about Christmas, Hanukkah, Tet, theWinter Solstice, and Saturnalia.·        Intended as a “quick funky jam” but stretched to10 minutes.·        Acknowledgement that their jams often divergefrom the original intent.·        Chord choices reminiscent of Rage Against theMachine (Battle of Los Angeles era).·        Discussion of Rage albums (Evil Empire, Renegadesof Funk covers, Devo’s “Beautiful World”).·        Reflection on Devo’s ironic/depressing themes of“de‑evolution.”·        No loops initially; use of reverb, lightoverdrive.·        Tempo shifts, experimentation with half‑timereverse loops.·        Hit drum rims accidentally, sometimes turnedinto purposeful rim shots. “I meant to do that”·        Recording briefly cut off; hosts joke aboutbeing “electrocuted.”·        They speculate whether the U.S. government orextraterrestrials shut them down.·        Decide aliens are simply “fans of the podcast.”·        More complaints about Ben’s old drum kit… ·        Reference to Jack Funk and songs like Good ForYour Soul and Mad Maestro.·        Nick explains adding new sections to old songs,giving them fresh life in live shows.·        Emphasis on saving ideas for the right momentwhen recording an album.·        Clarification of what a “demo” is.·        Debate between recording individually vs. live“ping‑pong” style.·        Agreement that their music thrives on organic,improvised jams.(C) 202620 years of jamming together, few actual songs written, noband name (yet?) – but 100s of recorded jams. So we’re talking about them onthe podcast. All rights reserved. Jam Notes (ep. XVIII): Aliens are Fans of the Podcast

Reaction video for improvised music on guitar and drums. Letus know if you prefer the jams cooked or raw. Jazzy syncopation at the circus? Ben’s brain farts? Don’t want to miss this one.  The podcast is getting pretty official – they’ve got anotepad and pen. Talking about uploading jams to platforms like Amazon Music and Spotify using the app “Lander” (not a sponsored promotion)Reacting to improvised jam on guitar and drums fromOctober 2021, called “Jazzy” or something. Not really jazz, but syncopated music.·        More complaints about Spotify·        Nick and Ben don’t like 2 dollar Steve andBasement Bill anymore·        Jack Funk is a different band that Nick Ringplays guitar for·        Is playing out of key… naughty? ·        Petals = flowers. Pedals, with a D, are used forguitar FX.·        Jazzy little Jazz punk·        Genre of the Jam: Post-Rock Jazz Punk·        Start playing loud music in a church basement…and the rest will follow. ·        The circus performance gets too intense… closesthe whole show. ·        Jack Funk album in progress… taking some timedue to, you know, life. ·        Here’s the store, get a hat:

In this episode, BW Derge (drums) and Nick Ring (guitars)are talking about an improvised jam from January 2024.  Something about bowling? The jam’s got loops, reverb – all that jazz. “Jam”-uary, get it? Playing clue with effect pedals instead of weapons… maybe? The jams are free, unlike bowling. Also – a review of the recent Puscifer, A Perfect Circle, and Primus 2025 spring tour. Possibly going to post the little video clip as a YouTube short… we’ll see.Follow-ups from episode 7 – delay and reverb. Which is more complex? Free drum lessons for Ben? Video game playing islagging. ·        Switch 2 still too expensive. ·        Signals to aliens or each other? ·        Ads suck. HBO has commercials now?! ·        Still need to add jams to Spotify…·         Listen on iHeart – is YouTube Premium worth it?·        Episode 11: Upside Down Tree Jam is on YouTube. ·        Reverb is the space, not the echo. (Natural decay)·        Delay is more complex, according to Nick. (Multiple delays!) ·         Getting old, talking about shoulder pain and massages

It’s turtles all the way down. BW Derge, drummer, andNick Ring, guitarist, talk about a jam from May the fourth 2024. Ninja turtles, sea turtles… all about turtles. Turtle jam. We’re talking all about turtles. There’sninja turtles, Nick’s like a turtle, sea turtles, the phrase “turtles all the way down.” No follow-ups this episode, stay tuned!Bouncy turtles? Ben’s favorite animal. Are we turtleyenough for the turtle club? Listening to jam music, reacting to old improvised music.·        Overdrive and a little reverb·        Check out BW Derge’s upcoming novel, RememberMe, Nothing- ·        Nick’s band’s new single, Aftermath by@jackfunkmusic – ·        Possible band name or on-stage personas:two-dolla Steve and drunk basement Bill·        Remember when the internet used to be fun?·        Finding CD-ROM video games in cereal boxes… the1990s were a different time.·        Animorphs! Demo game with 1 level, that was fun.·        No politics on the podcast! (but F--- theCheeto)  20 years of jamming together, few actual songs written, noband name (yet?) – but 100s of recorded jams. So we’re talking about them on the podcast. All rights reserved.

Late 90s, early 2000s jam sound like Incubus, Radiohead,or Limp Bizkit. Ben’s more experimental on the drums – very nice. The jam itself is chill, sweet, and mellow. Guitar loopsreversed and halved. ·        Do chocolate starfish eat or swim in hot dogflavored water? ·        Like sunlight and drops of water, nice intro onthe drums·        Reversing loops, set it to halftime when you’restuck in a jam·        On a march to catch a butterfly – setting thescene.·        Stick toss crisscross? That could be the namefor something.·        Check out the new single on https://jackfunkmusic.com ·        Here’s some more information about Laenif, by BWDerge - https://bwderge.com/how-was-laenif-created-world-building-and-self-publishing-journey/

Jams from the past, starts pretty chill. “The BirthdaySong” (not THAT birthday song) written in memory of a friend who passed away in high school. Stories from high school – tool and cigarettes. Solid drumming and great guitar and vocals. One of thebetter recordings of this song. Shout out to the old St. John’s class of 2007. Does smoking ADHD meds do anything? ·        Reminiscing on old attempts at album·        Nick sings in this one! ·        Buy The Sun Will Eat You, Too here - https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Will-Eat-You-Too/dp/B0DN5XV875·        Watch a short story about suicide prevention - https://youtu.be/cogngx-9nis ·        Does anyone have an old copy of “Braining Wheelsof the Train”?·        Communism and Rage Against the Machine… andblindness.·        Becomes more of a jam, talking about smoking. ·        Microwaved blunts? Why was that a good idea? ·        Sounding like they know what they’re doing…·        The old me is a younger me…·        Don’t be so hard on your old self… in thiseconomy? ·        June* 2025…·        Information about “Remember Me, Nothing”:https://bwderge.com/remember-me-nothing-novel-by-bw-derge·        New Jack Funk song: https://youtu.be/_GkKMxmFkEw?si=4njuzsltG-t4SIMZ·        Why it might be better to write books instead ofsongs…·        Nick is King Jack? (Full length album on thehorizon?)

[audio file] Still no band name, tons of jams to listen to. What aboutLaser Fist? Band-Ter? Off the Roll? Snail Bear? Anyway, we also listen to a jamfrom April 2024: “Dreamy, Spacey, No Words.”A very peaceful jam. Finding the groove. Talking about drumheads. How long has Remo been around? BW Derge and Nick Ring complain aboutstock footage and streaming services.·        It’s episode 12! ·        Buy Ben a drum kit, become a sponsor. ·        Nightmare on Elm Street facts!·        Shout out to iHeart app. ·        Duplicate jams, unpublished episodes…·        Mentioning Fiona Apple, Val Kilmer, and BamMagera·        Can you trust A.I. about science? ·        Little tings on the cymbals, finding agroove. ·        Snare starts off… off (without the rattle).·        Happy jams… it’s a good one. ·        Limited edition VHS tapes? It’s bonkers! ·        We are not sponsored by the Watch Now app. ·        Here comes the tornado! ·        Consider this jam… tabbed. Starred. Noted. {youtube video} 20 years of jamming together, few actual songs written, noband name (yet?) – but 100s of recorded jams. So we’re talking about them on the podcast. All rights reserved.

Listening to a jam that has been published on the YouTubechannel already. (LINK) Talking guitar effects, how drumming is like skateboarding…in video games, and how much recording quality matters with music. Talking shit about the band Tool and how fans booed theband in Mexico. Perhaps some technical issues were going on backstage? CanadianCowboy was one of the first jams they did that sounded good. Guitars make mind-blowing noisesStarts with a drum soloThe bluesy shit we like Simple blues that feels goodGets a bit swerved.. or sloppy, whichever.Emotionally poetic jam music Locked in lo-fi two instruments2019 Single Material Music (Jammi Jam)Tool repeated setlist in Mexico Is it a big deal, worth booing? Danny Carey and Maynard are humansThe follow-ups are coming, next episode!

BW Derge on Drums, Nick Ring on Guitar – your hosts forthe jam notes podcast. Reacting to an old improvised instrumental music jam. Talking strategy like… keeping eyes open and head up whileon the drums. Transitions will make or break a jam. Bouncing a ball like the Tool song Reflection. Nick likes ‘em long… songs that is.·        Happy go plucky? ·        Clashing with old college roommates ·        Signals, switches, flags, and lights·        Recorded the first episode of the podcast justbefore this jam·        Different types of drumming… swimming,breathing… drowning? ·        Heads up – this might become a podcast aboutbaseball (just kidding)·        The super bowl is so stupid… Go Pack Go… ·        Pssh… Chiefs. Whatever. Eagles suck, too. ·        There’s a good little breakdown ·        A good, long rap song is a rare find (six ormore minutes) ·        In some kind of groove… ends nicely. ·        Pissing off Lars from Metallica… remember Napster?·        Possible band name: THE SMATTERING·        The follow-ups are coming! (This is the 10thepisode)

Talking about music we played on February 28, 2023. Thisepisode is about listening – Crank It Up. We’re talking Miyazaki movie settings (not America). True crime ASMR, right? Anything that makes a tiny sound,I guess. Hit the middle school brain hard (nu metal). This jam has vibes of a hero; someone with a purpose. Hero enters the wastelands…Talking some music theory – loops with different notes atdifferent times with wizards and demons. Mufasa (this is CNN)… Maybe fighting isn’t the way. Send your ideas for podcast segments… ·        The jam note is “Awesome”·        Deftones, maybe Radiohead·        Remember the band Orgy? ·        Congrats to Nick and Hannah (marriage stuff)·        Taking time with this one (nice)·        A wizard or something…·        Don’t mess around if the demon is watching.·        This is the second time we’ve said it was ourfavorite·        … but this was actually recorded first.·        That’s some Deftones right there. ·        Listen to Jack Funk! ·        We like to drink beer. ·        Will the jams end up on Spotify… I guesswe’ll see.

BW Derge on Drums and Nick Ring on Guitars. Simple, cleanbeginning makes it easier to get weird and more complex. First jam is like a soundtrack to a spy movie… there’s always a boat to save James Bond. Second jam was less than minute. Remember bikes? Remember playing video games without the internet on Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis. Get your own stars in  Mario 64. ·        Pedal tones or Petal tones? ·        Clean sounding guitar ·        No loops or distortion – nice and raw ·        Heavy on the bass drum ·        Isn’t everything to the East? ·        Weird ending, but very good. ·        Best song yet on the podcast? ·        Ends with chaotic 1-minute song ·        Flowery and weird ·        Random as hell, but spaghetti.

Listening and reacting to jam from December 2022,reminiscent of Legend of Zelda music vibes. Lots of burping, going on a journey, liking the sound of the guitar. Thuds and bangs make the drum go boom-boom. Ends with cover of the Legend of Zelda song.Drummer and host BW Derge and guitarist Nick Ring fromjack funk talk about delay, reverb, distortion, loops, drum technique, and more: ·        The podcast has a table!·        (This… is CNN.) ·        This is a basement jam·        Well connected to instruments·        Did you hear the banter? ·        Ironically, we completely forgot to recordthe audio ·        So both the prop mic and real mic were notworking·        Other cultures using drums to communicate?·        Dark alley, ninja turtle music.·        What is distortion? Crunchy. ·        What is delay? … ·        What is reverb? Not re-vibe. ·        Jam gets into a good flow…·        Breaks into Legend of Zelda song coverbriefly ·        Harry Potter on the Gameboy Advance ·        Discussing film editing… what is LAENIF?

BW Derge on Drums and Nick Ring on Guitar, listening to ajam session from the previous year. It’s a crunchy primal piece supposedly about a bear taking a piss. Uncontrollable piss. Does a bear piss in the woods?Maybe. Hot damn. The drummer for Primus retired. Danny Carey from Toolstepped in. Who will be the next permanent drummer? Also – the origins of the podcast! Follow us down the halls of reflection! ·        Squeaky cymbals and octave shifts·        Sounds like Phish a little·        Evil fish….·        Don’t rush the beat·        The Packers lost… a dream predicted it. ·        Don’t hide in the freezer·        Second attempt has a different vibe·        Don’t blame the bear for that shit. ·        Bears had a side quest dream·        … and did beat the Packers later that week. ·        Animal facts that no one knows… ·        Slowly becoming an uninformed animal podcast·        …demonstrated through music and commentary·        How long would you last jamming in a bearcave?·        Do bears eat mice? ·        Are koala bears actual bears? ·        Is there an album called “Animals” yet?·        And more juicy banter… how much did Ben eat? This podcast was not sponsored by Taco Bell

Talking about, reacting to a jam we did in November 2022and why Spotify is not a great platform because of how they pay their musicians.“Off the Roll” possible band name? Everything will fall apart once there’s aband name. Angry periods in life and how they come about. Talkingabout babies, slam-demics, and missing jams. We shut up and we don’t talk for alittle bit, just listening and winging it. Song sounds like Willow kind of. ·        What is a reaction video, exactly? ·        Jam starts right away – pow! ·        Snare drumroll – getting ready for battle ·        That last humans left will be drummer slaves ·        Future robot armies… ·        Duracell beaver vs. the Energizer bunny ·        Your expected segment of Ben complainingabout his drumkit ·        The title was Tidal… learn why Spotify sucks ·        We’re not bleeping out the word COVID… ·        Naming an album “Just Sitting in It.” ·        What’s going on with Bam Magera? ·        Steve-O and Theo Vaughn have podcasts ·        Ewoks, Lord of the Rings, and Willow!

This one is kind of all over the place. The Jam Notes guysare talking about an improvised instrumental jam from October 2021 called ‘Lotsof Space… Beautiful.” Builds up slowly and nicely. Gets a little grungy. Discussing discipline as it relates to jamming and writingmusic. Can you have discipline and still call it “jamming”? And of course,discussing Rock and Roll HOF induction ceremony: Keith Urban, Maynard JamesKeenan, and Dave Matthews. In this episode: ·        Holidays and the release schedule ·        This was the 6th podcast recorded but4th released ·        It’s a spooky jam for Halloween season ·        Nick remembers this jam as “Epic” ·        Santana was in Woodstock? ·        Discerning different types of artistic advice ·        [Belch] Go to the moon! ·        The velocity of arms and headbanging ·        Just making it up – Nirvana at their best? ·        Are we against the Nirvana wagon? Commentbelow! ·        Ben complains some more about his drums(sponsorship opportunity) ·        How do high hats even work? ·        Is jamming making music without discipline? ·        The awful sound at the Rock and Roll Hall ofFame Induction ·        Maynard James Keenan sings “Crazy Train” ·        Dave Matthews botches his acceptance speech,he’s a weirdo. ·        Julia Roberts’ relationship with DMB ·        Hopefully we didn’t go over this same jam ina previously recorded episode

“It’s Alive!” Nick and Ben discuss a jam from early 2023.Snare sounded good. Loop is possibly reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails. Gets a bitgroovier. One of the more intuitive improvised instrumental rock music jams. Whatare differences between writing poetry and songwriting or writing lyrics? Featuring: ·        True crime and ASMR crypto-currencies? Nope.Just jams and notes. ·        Ominous space-age loop is a little off ·        Breaking screwdrivers ·        A showdown of sorts (a soundtrack) ·        Pretty good drums beats to boot ·        There is no dead air if music playing ·        Adding lyrics to our music? ·        A sliding solo – not too fancy. ·        Throwing fist lasers … or “Laser Fist” ·        Wah pedals - a little woozy. ·        Is rock and roll dead? ·        What is post-rock music?

After playing music together for over 20 years, Ben andNick listen to one of their jams and talk about their approach to music andmore. This episode-·        Have they written any songs?·        What is a “jam”? ·        The many meanings of jam music·        Nick’s got some wicked solos·        Ben loves playing drums in a certain space·        Syncopation ·        One is the loneliness number