IDK with Gabe Garber

In which Gabe leans into an experimental new form (a slightly shorter episode) attempting to unkink the hose and let that water flow, baby! Summer is HERE Y'ALL, and I've been cleared by the Overlords(TM) to be FREE ONCE AGAIN! Let's hear it for the Overlords(TM), for real though, they're still really good at, you know, lording over us.ANYWAY, for this episode I tried my best not to overthink it, which is a loop I was getting caught up in, if I'm being one hundred (percent (honest (with you))). I've been spending a lot of time thinking about internal underdevelopment (in the sense of our own internal narratives about ourselves) and how it tends to manifest externally. (There's plenty more to mine there, so stay tuned for further exploration in future episodes.) I believe it's a valuable exercise to explore things at the extremes of any spectrum, so after pondering it universally for a while, I pivoted to my individual self and started looking for biographical examples of this inverse dynamic of internal vulnerabilities and external projections. I ended up pretty quickly stumbling onto the idea of DOUBLE STANDARDS—an all-too-familiar and particularly sensitive concept for me, personally—which, as you'll hear, is at the heart of this week's signal.Thanks for tuning in. I hope to have more to share with you soon.------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In which Gabe acknowledges his recent prolonged absence, touches on (very briefly) some of the circumstances surrounding his recent prolonged absence, and announces… a bit of a prolonging of the prolonged absence.Thanks for tuning in. Be back... hopefully sooner than later.------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In which Gabe throws caution to the (literal) wind and records an episode on foot, out in the real world, with all kinds of real life happening (out loud) around him!Note: I will (try to) come back and fill in some of the topics covered once I get a chance to listen back (as a listener). For now, let's say…creative sustainability;preciousness;acknowledging the partiality of our individual truths;offering our partial truths;accepting others' partial truths.Thanks for tuning in! Be back next week.------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In which Gabe sits down with Eddy and Danielle for a 2+ hour conversation in which they discuss...basement fondness;finding creative focus in shared spaces;media consumption;social media consumption;challenging our habituated behavior patterns;radio frequencies as metaphor;moving to New Mexico;realizing "the end thing" is never "the end thing" (until it is);making what you want to see in the world;daylight savings time and other time weirdness;pandemic as isolation chamber;performing in roles we create for ourself;budgeting vices;the miraculous free-ness of proactive health measures;tuning into the still small voice;why is it so difficult to say "freak flag fly"?;Danielle's lost marbles and Gabe's deflated sourdough;comparing ourselves to others;Danielle turns the tables and asks Gabe about podcasting;Danielle shares an embarrassing story;not knowing who we'll be tomorrow;coffeeshops as theatre;the financial benefits of wearing glasses as a barista;the importance of admitting that we're not sure;Eddy has a pile of facts;creating a sustainable life doing whatever it is we weirdos are doing;why "free" is better than "complimentary";and trying to understand the audience for whatever it is we're doing,among other things.Also, our very first CLIFFHANGER! History in the making, folks.Find, follow, and support Eddy & Danielle and HATHA HOUSE at HATHAHOUSE.orgon Instagramand Patreon------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In this episode, Gabe sits back down and talks through his rationale for making a more concerted effort to pivot away from focusing on music every week. He reviews some other topics of interest (meditation, psychedelics, travel, etc.) without really getting into any of them, setting the stage for future episodes. Once in motion, he attempts to flesh out a possible distinction between craft and art, exploring the differences in frequency and preciousness and playing with micro and macro levels of his body of work.------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In this episode, Gabe paces around the basement in hopes of keeping his mind active and alert while discussing influences, inspiration, and theories about how to trick himself into being more productive. Does it work? Well, the walking certainly generated much more verbalizing. But is it any good? Who's to say?Attempted topics include: how what we consume influences what we produce, how the tools we choose to use influence what we produce, whether or not becoming a recluse will result in the creation of pure forms of expression.------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In this episode, Gabe reflects on a recent conversation hosted by Co-Loop Podcast Network founders Andy J. Miller and Ryan Appleton, discussing the future of creative podcasts. The chat featured several podcasters on the network (check it out), but for today's episode, Gabe focused on the content discussed by Jessy Bryan and Brian McDonald (of You Are A Storyteller) relating to storytelling.Their message is one of looking deep within to find the story you want to tell — and served as the perfect diving off point for this week's episode of IDK.

In this episode, Gabe welcomes another longtime friend and fellow aspiring creative renaissance man, Clay Blackwell, to the podcast. The two discuss their influences, processes, and struggles, all while weaving in plenty of personal anecdotes. Clay is a Brooklyn-based multi-disciplinary artist (with work spanning ceramics, music, visual art, and writing). His work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally, most notably at the Museum of Art and Design in New York City and in China's porcelain capital, Jingdezhen.Clayton Blackwell on Soundcloudclaytonblackwell.com

In this special episode of IDK, Gabe welcomes his first guest, Pacific Northwest-based multi-media experimental artist Chelsea Sherman. Their diverse collaborative history stretches back years, giving them plenty to draw from in this conversation. However, instead of focusing entirely on previous collaborations, Chelsea gives us a look into her current creative endeavors, namely the forthcoming debut release under her new solo project ChellaJay, “A Promise Kept” (out February 22, 2021), an album she recorded over 4 months during quarantine in Summer 2020, as well as it companion multi-media livestream performance set to air Friday, February 26. In this conversation, we learn about some creative challenges Chelsea has faced over the years, as well as the uncertainty she is currently dealing with in preparation for the upcoming one-woman livestream show.ChellaJay - "A Promise Kept" Out February 22, 2021 https://chellajay.bandcamp.com/ To attend ChellaJay's livestream multimedia performance of "A Promise Kept" on Friday, February 26 at 7:00 PM PST, visit https://orcascenter.org/event/chellajay/ ------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

Gabe struggles once more before powering through and playing a bit with the idea of commitment, drawing from experiences OTHER THAN the bkwalaBEATS project (though the project does make a brief cameo). He focuses at length on his experiences attending a couple 10-day Vipassana silent meditation retreats, with a brief nod to future topics such as walking the Camino de Santiago and psychedelics (though not at the same time).------- THEME SONG "untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginalsTITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In episode 4 of IDK, Gabe reflects on a few pieces of work he recently had the pleasure of taking in. First, "Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time," a film by Hungarian filmmaker/director/screenwriter Lili Horvát (and Oscar selection for Best International Feature Film). Second, Gabe's first foray into classic Russian literature, "Invitation to a Beheading" by Vladimir Nabokov. Both of these works deal largely with our relationship to uncertainty, so it's no surprise that I'm wrapping these into the podcast. In hindsight, I realized there's much more ground to cover "Beheading," so look for a deeper dive in the future.

IDK's first mental block provides the opportunity to explore the lessons learned during the bkwalaBEATS project. One of the main lessons explored here is that of establishing a consistent practice and committing to it especially when it's difficult to connect to the process itself. There's power in recognizing that what's being documented on an “off day” has plenty of value, and actually might expand into new creative dimensions. By limiting creative output to periods of “connectedness,” one stands to compile a fairly one-dimensional body of work.In episode 3 of IDK, Gabe stumbles through one of these “off days.” Whether it makes for entertaining content remains undetermined; undeterred, Gabe pushes through and explores the doubts that arise throughout the process.

IDK turns 2 episodes old! In today's slightly more rambly offering, I attempt to answer a question from a listener* while fleshing out an idea I initially laid out last week, all the while introducing a few new ideas to be expanded and explored in future episodes. Thank you for tuning in; as always (2/2 thus far), more to come. *an actual listener (shout out to Dan from Louisville for providing me my first opportunity to engage with some listener feedback!) ------- THEME SONG "Untitled/bkwalaORIGINAL_2020-05-30" by BK WALA http://bkwala.bandcamp.com/album/bkwalaoriginals TITLE GRAPHICS Gabriel Lee Garber / BK WALA http://www.bkwala.com/design

In the inaugural episode of IDK, I attempt to introduce the thoughts and ideas that lead me to (finally) get started, including the value of doubt in the face of the fundamental underlying unknown. It's a bit meandering, which is to be expected, and will likely continue to unfold similarly moving forward. Thank you for tuning in; more to come soon.