This week, I'll be focusing on The Choice Remains , the tenth and final track from Revolution Rising . Originally intended for Brand New Relic, this track was in the writing process when the band split up. It seemed appropriate for me to make this the final track for the album since it dealt with the concept of learning from the past. The story for this song follows a woman contemplating her life and the future of her unborn child, a man (loosely based on my ex-lead guitarist) who struggles with …

 This week, I'll be covering my masterpiece, the title track from Revolution Rising . For over 10 years, this track has been slowly developed. From the theme song to the film concept to the title track of my first full-length album, this purely instrumental piece clearly defines me as an artist. The epic scope of this track is what drew me to make this my "masterpiece", and it's the predecesor to tracks like Dark Lullaby , Down the Path to Destruction , and Breaking Point . Every part of …

 This week, I'll be covering A.I.M ., the eighth track from Revolution Rising . This track has been in the planning stages for about as long as Revolution Rising itself. It was originally designed as background music for an elaborate chase sequence I had envisioned for the film concept. When it came time to write the album instead after shelving the film idea, I made it a point to put this song on the track list. It holds up to its name (the acronym stands for "action in motion") with a …

There’s a lot to cover in this month’s edition of updates, so here’s the list as follows:

• I’ve posted some new tracks from the next LP I’m writing to my ReverbNation profile, including a new collaboration with my good friend and colleague Tim from Thirty 2 Twenty. This is the first time we’ve worked together since the split of our last band Brand New Relic in June of 2009. To give you a little bit of background on the new album, it’s much more heavily influenced by some industrial rock artists I listen to, so this one is going to be louder, harder, and more aggressive compared to the last two LPs. Also, I’ve been pushing myself harder on my vocals (I’ve been working on hitting notes much higher than I normally do), so you’ll hear some surprising things on this next album.


• As I write this, I’m waiting to receive word on my license application that I sent to ASCAP, a leading performing rights organization. My colleague and producer Breck Stewart informed me that I could sign up with BMI (another leading PRO) for free, so if I don’t get the ASCAP license, I’ll go with BMI. The reason behind this is once I have the licenses for Songwriter/Composer and Publisher, I can participate in the Song Licensing opportunities that ReverbNation is currently offering.


• Semi-finalists will be announced soon for Rock The Space 2, a competition hosted on MySpace by Toyota Music. Basically what will happen is in September, the winner will receive a recording contract with MySpace Records. My new single Perception is currently entered, so hopefully, I’ll make it to the semi-final round in a few days.


• Production is already underway for the next L.A.L.S.R.M. Ghost Train. My friend and colleague Aaron has me doing a sound design for a new display he’s co-designing.


• A couple of my tracks have been used by Dystopian Snowmen Productions, an independent film company founded and operated by a friend of mine from college. I’ll post a link to their YouTube channel below.


• Work is still progressing on the sound design for Miss Julie, which will open in October. I’m also still waiting to start on the next production by The Upstairs Crows this September. We’ll be doing another run of The Last Days of Judas Iscariot with some casting changes & a new-and-improved set.

That about covers this month’s updates, so please stop by my profile at http://www.reverbnation.com/jwhitman to take a listen to all the new tracks, and visit the YouTube channel of Dystopian Snowmen Productions at http://www.youtube.com/user/DystopianSnowmen. </p>

 This week, I'll be covering Sic Vis Pacem Para Bellum , the seventh track from Revolution Rising . This purely instrumental piece is based on the Latin phrase that makes up the title, which translated into English reads as follows: "if you want peace, prepare for war". I was fascinated by this phrase when I heard it quoted repeatedly in the film "The Punisher" (the 2004 remake with Thomas Jane and John Travolta). I wondered what would the whole process of preparing for war …