September 24, 2012
Interviewer: “You’re toolin’ down a desert highway on your way to Las Vegas in a convertible Cadillac El Dorado. What would be the ultimate song playing in the background?
Ric Size: Is this a “Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas” question? Do I also have to be completely whacked out of my mind on drugs at the time, like Johnny Depp? Tom Pearce loaned me that movie once and I think I made it about one third through, before giving up.
Music for the desert Southwest would be Captain Beefheart “Trout Mask Replica”, which has an earthy quality to its music. It would fit the scenery nicely.
Boiling it down to one song is tough for me, as it is a long trip through the desert, and I would hate to be limited to deciding on one song. To me it would be like saying: what is your favorite part of sex?, and then limiting yourself to just that part. I love foreplay; I love penetration; I love playfulness; I love intimacy; I love the orgasm; I love whatever comes after. I wouldn’t want to have to make a choice, because the entire experience is what it is all about.
The same idea relates to music. I’m a complete artist. I like to think of songs as they relate to each other, and create an ongoing narrative where the whole album is greater than the sum of its songs. To me, it is what separates a great album from a good batch of songs. Do you understand what I mean?
One last request: Can I get a more reliable and fuel-efficient car, than a Cadillac El Dorado?
Interviewer: Oh my…I’m so very grateful this interview is of the cyber variety. Had it been in person you would have witnessed a confident, sophisticated woman revert back to a gawky 16-year old high school girl, with disproportionately long, lanky legs; giggling and stuttering through the rest of the interview. You would have heard me ask you for a glass of water, to dampen the heat radiating from my entire body, courtesy of the sunburn I just received, among other reasons. I’m quite certain I would have begun fanning myself with my notebook and giggling. Internal panic would hit a fever pitch as I tried to remember what the fuck my original question was; let alone if you answered it or not. Sexual conversation with rock-stars does that to me….apparently.
Do I have another question for you? Absolutely. First, however, this girl needs to take a deep breath, change her clothes, and get back to that confident, sophisticated woman….who, by the way, has grown nicely into those long legs of hers……
RS: Take all the time you need.
October 1, 2012
Int: When did Ric Size come to fruition?
RS: I guess it’s happening now. It still hasn’t really happened in a global sense, so that’s what I’m working on. It’s a grind, but I’m not going to stop until everyone respects the music and the message. That’s the goal every musician/artist should have for themselves when they go into this.
Everything I’m doing now is an expression of a lifetime’s hard work. There’s a lot of thought & maturity to the music, which only sweat & experience can bring. Listen to the songs.
As far as my style goes, I’m with the working class. I prefer to be comfortable and real. The delivery of the songs on Magnified is straightforward for a reason, which is: now is the time for clarity and honesty. The lyrics themselves range from playful to deadly serious. I try to make each song its own piece, while weaving it into an album that makes sense from start to finish.
Each song is not for everybody, but I have at least one song for everybody on that record. Understood? It really depends on how passionate you are about music. I remember the first time I heard rock & roll; and I always love that feeling of hearing a totally fresh, new sound. I remember the first I heard the Beatles, “She Loves You”, and just loving that energy.
So I say: Let it blow you away. Let it wash over you. It’s liberating, dangerous, and exciting. That’s how it’s supposed to feel.
I’ve noticed the women like it a lot; strong demographic appeal with women.
That is what great music does. And let’s be clear, we’re talking about all styles of music; world music, classical music, jazz, rock/pop, and anything else you can think of. Any music that is written & performed with passion can do that to you, if you engage it actively and honestly.
The biggest problem over the years, has been finding time to devote to this. It’s another full-time career, and another choice you make in life. Currently my biggest challenge is getting promotion. That will likely be the story of my career in music.
“It’s Pay to Play/ It’s always been that way…”
So I’m on a budget, which means I rely on the cheapest, most effective promotional tool ever invented; which of course, is the Internet. Website, essential. Social Media, essential. Free Downloads, essential. Cool Videos, essential. The music industry and the dinosaurs who populate it, have not truly realized the essential nature of the Internet. It’s how you connect with kids. Having conversations with these industry-types is mostly fruitless. It usually ends up being me, explaining basic concepts to them. It is frustrating being expected to put up with incompetence, simply because the industry is so degenerated. That’s the excuse they’ll give you, after you’ve paid them. Setting quick limits, so they don’t drain your reserves is the only way you can approach them. I honestly don’t think I will be able to work with the music industry, ever. It’s just too corrupt at this point.
What a Facebook Fan page is about is low-cost, high-quality, consistent promotion. When an artist can not find a suitable venue to perform, mostly due to that fact there are not many suitable venues anymore, with this permanently depressed economy; the artist still has to find a way to promote the art to the world. A serious artist can not quit. All obstacles must be successfully navigated.
Social media allows instant, and varying levels of contact. Today, it is the way to build a fan base for all DIY artists. The ones who are the best at doing everything I’m describing, will be the best artists. Like I said before, that should be everyone’s goal to start. In reality it isn’t. There’s a lot of mediocrity here, just like in everything else.
I’ve been told that true talent, always rises above mediocrity. I’m putting that theory to the test. There are days where I feel like I’m going up against the whole music industry, which I actually am. That’s the grind that wears an artist down, and I ask, “Is it necessary?” It seems ridiculous to me.
Why are we, as a society making it harder for artists to be heard? Or more generally, “Why are we making it so hard on ourselves?” It gets to the point where we have to ask basic questions, and then demand serious action until the issue is completely addressed to the vast majority’s satisfaction.
Here’s a simple, yet serious question: Are we going to globally disarm in the very near future, or are we going mutually annihilate the human race?
Do you ever see such a question even raised anymore? It’s an election year [2012]. It’s a pretty important question to everybody, and the answer is most definitely not clear, so we must discuss it rationally; and then decide in the best interests of everybody, how we are going to achieve a solution to which the vast majority of the human race can agree on. Then we must apply revolutionary action to carry it through.
These are revolutionary ideas, and therefore must be artificially suppressed by the minions of the ruling elite. The ruling class has not one good answer to any serious question today. Serious topics include: inequality, war, global warming, democratic rights, hunger, homelessness, education, health care, etc.
This music seeks to explode through all the rhetoric and nonsense, into the consciousness of 18-30 year olds everywhere. This is the most energetic & revolutionary element of humanity. They will be the ones to carry through an international socialist revolution in permanence. The alternative leads into an abyss of world war & barbarism.
That is the purpose of this art.
October 2, 2012
Int: What did you cook for dinner?
RS: I roasted a chicken with sweet potatoes & broccoli.
Int: Oh my god….you just squarely hit my g-spot.
RS: Is it possible for me to send you one message, without arousing you?
Int: Well, yes. Stop telling me your specific loves about sex, start warming food up in a can, make sure to leave your dirty dishes all over the place, and then tell me about it. That’ll do it.
I’m a woman with a lot of useful life experience behind her, who feels sexier at my age now than I did at 22….and I’m not ashamed to show it or admit it. And I’m part of your fan base. We empowered, sexy women are a strong force……
RS: I love my fan base. It consists of many women like the one you just described.
I’m pretty sexually liberated, also. I know exactly who I am; I try to keep it under control for the most part. It’s the nature of man to send signals to beautiful women. We just want to receive love back, in any way a woman chooses to love. Each woman has their own situation and code of ethics, that makes her unique. I enjoy turning women on just for the sake of them knowing they are being appreciated for their beauty & uniqueness.
Women make life worth living. Without them, I wouldn’t want to be around.