Adam Gnade

1 Farm report: Heard gunshots all day. Somewhere off to the northend past the orchard. And, man, it’s been hot. HOT. It’s hot and it’s still summer but the walnut trees have begun to drop their leaves. The air is full of them. Yellow and brown leaves. Every autumn I can’t help but feel death. And I know the season/life-cycle is an obvious metaphor but whatever. There it is. The dying days of fall. Change. Stillness. Headed to the big sleep of winter. Still, when fall hits this whole valley will be beautiful. I can only imagine the colors. Harvesting green beans right now. Cucumbers too. New red and green bell peppers popping up all over. Dixie the baby goat is leading the sheep and goats around the fields. Which is funny because she’s the size of a breadloaf with legs. She’s better. Healthy. Still medicated. More on that later…

2 Made it through two more chapters in the book rewrites today. Beginning to feel like the three months I gave myself to finish this might’ve been too generous. Writing new songs in the offtime from the book. Nothing for release. Holding onto them and letting them become as good as they can before I show them to anymore. Gonna be my versions of pop songs. Which is obviously nothing like real pop but I’m trying to step it up. Oh, and the new long drive playlist: Fuck Buttons, Godspeed, Roy Acuff, Cash, Haggard, Kitty Wells. Country music and the loud noise epic. Solid gold for the cornfields and riverland.

3 Dialog overhead while looking for cheap wine jugs in Robert’s Liquor: “Dude, I saw her in those short shorts and I was like ‘I’m totally gonna jack off to that when I get home.’”

4 Big congrats to my pal Natalie Judge for making it on Billboard’s Top 30 Under 30 of the music biz. It’s a big deal and she deserves all that and more. Natalie handled a lot of my stuff when I was on Drowned in Sound’s record label. Now she runs Matador’s European division. We’re all proud of you, Judge.

Speaking of UK friends, Phil’s coming from London tomorrow. We’re going to the lake finally. I’m ready for a swim. Me and Thad went down to the Grove and I swam in the creek. Minor league. Floating and mellowing out. I want the real thing. I’m READY

-Adam

PS. Here’s Phil looking insane…