And So It Begins. Monday, August 30, 2010 "You live like shit, and suffer for your art. Is that what you call it?  Is that what you call it? It wouldn't be art if you didn't starve yourself to death, she said." - The Firebird Band, "Art" Welcome to Starving For Art, a chronicle of the ups and downs of forming a artist co-op in the weirdest city in America: Portland, Oregon.  I am Jordan Daniel (aka Benecio A. Jones), and sitting behind me playing a healthy game of Hot Shots 3 is Alex Marble (aka Walker Badadanko).  We are artists; musicians specifically.  We found ourselves here (living and working amongst shotgun blasts and strange neighbors) after leaving both a pop-punk Epidemic and a girl named Jane behind us in Denver, Colorado eight months ago.  Bored and restless with each of our respective situations, we gathered up our funds, our ambitions, all we could fit in Dustin's car and then headed out. It's a unique situation we've found ourselves in.  Having left our former band mates and the excellent chemistry we had built together as a group (so sad!), we're now reevaluating this 'industry' we belong to and the position a truly independent artist has in this world we live in.  We see a lot of obstacles; a lot of rivers to cross.  The percentage of what artists create in the world in direct comparison to what is found 'financially viable', 'politically correct', and ready for 'mass consumption' is atrocious.  The only "success" an artist can expect to achieve at this point is some nebulous helping hand from some sort of corporate ruler.  What if we took it in to our OWN hands?  What if WE had to power to come together and tear down THE MAN; the disgustingly simple expectations of society and commercialism? So begins our journey.  What might be overwhelming and extremely disheartening is only returned with feelings of hope and persistence.  We will continue to create, hell or high water, and share what we can with everyone who is willing to listen.  We will always take steps to reinvent the way people experience music. That's when this website comes in.  Sure, it's just a blog.  A blog about local Portland events, the people we meet and their livelihoods, the artists we collaborate with, new music and other media, exclusive Benecio & Walker tracks, craft beer, Elisabeth Shue, and more.  In actuality, it's more than that.  We will begin to build this site as a home base for artists all over Portland (and then the world!) who are willing to combine efforts to escape having to accept (and instead be able to dedicate themselves wholly to their work) - a co-operative of people keeping art alive!  More explanation will come in time, as things come together.  Come, join us! If you are an artist interested in networking with the co-op, please send us an e-mail (subject: SFA) at: beneciowalker (at) bsbw.org. Now, in 100% Benecio & Walker news, we have two brand new tracks online NOW!  You can listen to the tracks under the 'Music' sidebar to the right.  "A Pitcher Of Pabst For Batman" and "Cordelia" make up the beginning of a ten-single experiment in collaboration, word of mouth, and digital distribution entitled "The Infinite At Rest".  Needless to say, the world requires us to pay to keep operations going, so please DONATE!  The suggested donation is $1.00.  Every little bit helps us (you really have no idea!).  And who knows?  You tell five friends, then they tell five friends, and so on...the next thing you know you can't stop hearing about us! We are working up a press release to explain more, and there will soon be an additional website specifically for it up in short time.  Connect to us online (via Twitter and Facebook) for music news and information on our upcoming projects.  Our third single, "Shortcuts", will be available VERY, VERY soon. I think that is all for now.  Tomorrow: stars and straps, Hawthorne, and what happened to Tera Melos.

posted by Benecio