I Feel Realistic

Return of the Paisley Angels My friend Christopher “Twist” Kramer and I made a new country & midwestern album. He lives in Chicago, IL, and I’m in Omaha, NE so that certainly added a certain layer of complexity to it all. I’ve also been learning how to play pedal steel guitar (it’s hard) and it’s all over these songs, but I just wanted to talk about the cover real quick. I wanted this album to have a photo of us on the cover. Not like how the Ramones albums necessarily look, but because they were usually on their covers. Ideally, I wanted a photo of us in our new Nudie-inspired cowboy suits that we’ll be touring in. As I mentioned, we live in different states. Chris’s suit is here with me, and he’s way over there, so it seemed like some sort of assemblage or collage was in order.

Going through old photos, I found this one. Taken in November of 2017 in Bloomington, IN while we were on tour as Chris Twist. We’re sitting on the stoop of The Cowboys house, in the morning before Mark showed me his motorcycle and we got out of town. The Cowboys are a great band that Chris now plays in, but at the time we were all just friends. You should check out their new album The Bottom of a Rotten Flower, it’s wonderful. The Cowboys house has been removed from the photo, and in it’s place is a photo of the Geode Grotto in Jasper, IN. Taken during the same tour, it was an interesting little spot that Chris had either heard of or previously visited. We’re both all about the interesting little spots and that always makes for a good road trip. The title of the album comes from a song, Paisley Angels, that Chris wrote for inclusion on this album, but I wasn’t able to finish. Adding “Return of the” is a clear nod to Gram Parsons, who's work we are both fans of. Chris first, and he then introduced me to it on either the same tour as the photos, or the one before it.

The logo is a complete and obvious lift of the Flying Burrito Bros. logo from The Gilded Palace of Sin, the second Gram Parsons nod. We actually thought about calling the album “Bean Burrito Bros.” We are both fans of the tasteful rip-off, and I hope this hits the mark, though it might be hitting the nose. I can’t do anything without putting hand-jumbled Helvetica bold on it, so there’s my personal touch on the stairs despite all the aforementioned lifting. Chris requested a digitally implanted cowboy hat, though I rather liked the Mickey Mouse beanie he’s actually wearing. I’m really proud of the album. I enjoy reminiscing about our previous tour adventures, and look forward to the new ones. Those adventures, the songs, the photos, and what inspired us to do it all feels, for me, all wrapped up here and it really, you know, takes me back.

I don’t know that anybody reads my Tumblr anymore. I just changed the name from “I Feel Realistic” to “Jason Steady” so heads up. I’ve recently become sort of fascinated with the act of actually explaining your uh, art. I’m going to try quietly doing that here. I suppose it’s just for myself, really. I’d like to be able to look at this years from now and wonder what I was thinking, the way that I do when I read my own Twitter. If you enjoy reading it as well, then that’s just additional icing on a Tumblr.

I recently added a CNC Router to the workshop, and couldn’t think of a better first project than this Giant Wooden Dinosaur Puzzle.

The CNC is open-source and had to built from scratch, so this project was cut on it while everything got dialed in and calibrated. Simultaneous machinery assemblage and dinosaur creation.

This multidimensional lobby installation was just completed at the new Highline 2100 apartments.

It allows residents to step into it and find themselves safely within the confines of their beautiful new apartment.*

*probably

The Feel Tight - I Think She’s Real

LEAKY EYES SKULL PRINT

Is it crying? Has it sustained injury? Is it cursed?

These are printed by hand on birch wood for your walls or canvas for the back of your jacket. 15″ x 20″ for a reasonable amount of coverage in any situation. 

Isosceles Trapezoid Shelf

Handmade from simple knotty (naughty) pine and finished in dark walnut with a hand-rubbed tung (tongue) oil finish, the Isosceles Trapezoid Shelf looks futuristic and feels... vintage’istic.

Offered as a single shelf, these look great when hung in pairs or in groups. Appropriate hardware comes installed to easily hang each shelf using either orientation.

Dodecahedra.

There are 12 sides to every story, and there are 12 sides to every dodecahedron.

A 12-sided geometric figure made of pentagons, a dodecahedron never shows more than 6 of its faces at once, and looks different from almost every angle.

These are hand-constructed of ½" premium birch plywood and stand approximately 20" tall. They make excellent end tables, ottomen, or decorative pieces. The only limit to their use is your own imagination.

Concrete Human Skulls.

Your brain is arguably your greatest asset, which makes your skull the essential guardian to your intangible personal wealth. Why not commemorate the protector of your thoughts with a solid concrete likeness?

These life-sized, concrete human skulls were hand-cast by me in my kitchen. Individually numbered, the first three contain droplets of my own blood and additional adornments. The following seven are pretty regular skulls. 

MODERN LOVE BROOKLYN

MODERN LOVE.

Quick and beautiful wall art piece for Modern Love, Isa Chandra Moskowitz’ swanky vegan comfort food restaurant in Omaha, NE.

Milled down simple pine to ¾", homosote panels to help with echoes/acoustics in the space, and some shimmery upholstery fabrics chosen by Isa to compliment the wall pattern.

A table saw, a mitre saw, a nail gun, a drill, and a Sunday afternoon. The stain color is red mahogany. Overall dimensions are about 10’ long and 4’ tall.

HOUSE DESTRUCTION PT. VI

I am completed. It is done. Oh, except for building out the new lighting situation above the closet. Give a guy a break, I just worked through my entire vacation.

New duvet is from society6.com, quality was better than expected for the price ($99). Would recommend.

Wall art was handmade, but the photo prints are from Mount Eerie Pts. 6 & 7 by Phil Elverum. Pwelverumandsun.com

Moon tarot tapestry is from Urban Outfitters. I believe it is no longer available. $69. Glows in the dark.

Rickenbacker 4003w pictured on bed to suggest coolness. Solid walnut. I do actually play it in bed.

Headboard/record storage was custom built. Birch plywood. Super simple.

Not including decor, price of materials and supplies was just shy of $400. I didn’t keep track of labor, but 40 hours would be a low estimate, maybe 60 on the high end.

That means this project was $400 for the DIY'er, and easily approaches the $10k range for a client. Buy a saw and a nail gun and figure it out, kids.

HOUSE DESTRUCTION PT. V

HOUSE DESTRUCTION PROLOGUE

I just realized I didn’t put up any before photos of the room. Here they are. It was just your typical, white, drywall ceiling. I didn’t have much say in the way any rooms in the house were originally painted, though I did choose this particular color. I generally paint the ceilings the same color as the walls. 

HOUSE DESTRUCTION PT. IV

I think I’ve turned the corner with this one. House Construction Pt. I.  Nobody thinks I’m stupid or crazy anymore. “He’s actually doing it” or “It’s really happening” is something that gets said at least once, by someone, with every major project I take on. You gotta start believing in me, you guys. I do stuff.

I want to talk about total budget and feasibility for others at the end of this project, but right now, I want to say that I’m only $300 deep in supplies (wood, insulation, nails/hardware). Time and labor? Well, if I was doing this for your space, I think you’d be about $6k deep in labor so far. Not awful by any means, but every homeowner should buy a saw and an air compressor and learn how to use them.

HOUSE DESTRUCTION PT. III

Continued progress on self-vaulting of bedroom ceiling. 

This is after the wood slatting started to go up on the vertical walls. I’m using simple 1x4 pine boards rather than any sort of tongue-and-groove siding or an actual appropriate material. This will allow for easy replacement and removal of specific boards in the future, if needed. I also like working with just basic lumberyard materials.

The boards might get stained a slightly darker color, and everything (including the newly-exposed joists) will get a nice satin polyurethane coat.