We made a comic about The Hulk.

I wrote a letter to Lyra. It was something I think I've needed to do for a while (full letter in the alt text). Note: spoilers for a key scene in His Dark Materials/The Amber Spyglass, so if you haven't read or watched the series or book and plan to, skip this (or at least the 4th large paragraph)!

The news sucks. Sitting around reading the news waiting for someone to fight back sucks too. I’m not waiting any longer. I downloaded the 5calls app and made my first 5 calls today, even though I am VERY awkward on the phone and get anxious about talking to people. If I can do it, so can you!

BREAKING: Judge Ana Reyes blocks Trump’s anti-trans military ban EO and the orders implementing it. She stays her order until 10a March 21 to allow the government to seek a stay from the DC Circuit. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

More of this, please. A LOT more of this, please.

Just finished a new transcription of Warren Wolf's vibes solo on "Prelude / Someday We'll All Be Free," complete with piano fingerings! You can check it out for free on on Soundslice!

On a non-political note, if you want to do something nice, free & low effort for my birthday, you can subscribe to my YouTube channel! I post original music, covers and the occasional jazz piano tutorial. I’d love your support!

Also donating here.

For my birthday today, I am donating to a couple of organizations that need as much support as they can get right now. Contribute if you can! Here is the first.

Song of the Day: “Lydia (Among Other Tragedies),“ by Jared Dustin Griffin In Jared’s words (from Instagram): “Life is beautiful. Life is hard. Love is beautiful. Love is hard. This is a silly song about these not so silly truths Happy Valentine’s Day!” #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

My friend Liz Cole released her debut jazz album on Jan. 28 and it’s excellent. She’s a fantastic vocalist and has put together a stellar band to play with her—you should check it out! CDs: www.lizzycolemusic.com/store/p/i-wa... More links in the comments. #jazz #jazzsky #jazzvocals

Improv 2/10/25 - "Time" Fair warning: this ended up being a pretty sad piece & video. That's just the place I'm in right now, dealing with some ongoing grief from the loss of my cat Lyra recently, and just processing the world in general these days. #jazz #jazzsky #piano #SkyOriginalMusicTracks

A video I took of howler monkeys swinging through the forest in Playa Grande, Costa Rica over this past holiday break. https://youtu.be/g0aN7JjWbjY Background music: Jake Smolowe — "Funky April 13th" youtu.be/FgJbqM1DPWk #howlermonkeys #wildlife #CostaRica #funkymusic

Luke loves his heated bed. #cats #catsky #catsofbluesky

Today's #ios #coding milestone: Figuring out how to use Audiokit's Sequencer with the piano Soundfont I'm using. Haven't coded it in the app yet, but this will allow me to implement playback for scales, chord progressions, melodies, anything that requires precise timing.

Trying to make art in these times...sometimes it feels impossible, sometimes hopeless, sometimes meaningless. But that's why I keep doing it. Because if I stopped, then what do I have left? #skyoriginalmusictracks #musiciansky #jazzsky #jazz #musicsky #piano #improvisation #jazzmusic #jazzpiano

Song of the Day: “Aguantando,“ by David Binney & Edward Simon Lucia Pulido’s vocals & Binney’s sax layer to create a unique sound for the head. Simon takes an exploratory solo over the wandering A section, and then Binney goes beast mode over the B. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Omg, this is so funny. I am losing my mind listening to Dan Orlovsky pronounce the word “timpani” and watching the commentators try to figure out the word for “merengue” (narrator: they do not, but Laura Rutledge absolutely knows the word and just isn’t saying it). Good shit.

I was doomscrolling but then I decided to play with my cat and this feels like a much better life decision.

So this was fun to receive in my email today. #iOS #coding #goals

Song of the Day: “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was,“ by Dena DeRose Love this arrangement. DeRose floats her voice over the time even as she locks in on piano w/ Matt Wilson (ds) & Peter Washington (bs). Stellar trumpet solo by the late Jim Rotondi. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Song of the Day: “Magnolia,“ by Taylor Eigsti (feat. Becca Stevens) Moody & wondrous. Love the way the cyclical vamp at the end builds up to a fury with Eigsti soloing over Becca’s sublime vocals, & then the muted drum solo coda brings it down gently. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

New #ios #coding milestone today: My music theory app-in-progress now has sound via Audiokit! I finally figured out how to load a piano SoundFont into a sampler instrument, and now I can hear every chord that my app can display!

Song of the Day: “Long Way To Go,“ by Joe Bagale AKA Otis McDonald Everything about this tune is joyful. Warm & punchy synths. Drums, percussion & bass are super tight. Soulful vocal harmonies. Makes me feel like life’s a party & I just want to enjoy the adventure. #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Song of the Day: “A Man Within Himself,“ by GTO Trio youtu.be/3FAcPtMt3zo?... Warms the heart. Like sitting around a campfire with your best friends. The ending solo vamp gives strong Mehldau Blackbird vibes. Gadi Lehavi is one of my new favorites. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Really proud right now—on Sunday I submitted the final project for the on-demand iOS coding bootcamp I've been working on since Nov. 2023. I often struggle with followthrough and leave projects unfinished, so this feels like a big win. Not having it hanging over my head anymore feels amazing.

Dealing with some hand fatigue issues due to a project I'm working on so I'm putting song recs on pause for a bit. Back soon hopefully!

Song of the Day: “Waltz of the Flowers,“ by Natalie Cressman and Ian Faquini youtu.be/KpTZUHR5rik?... Really fun and interesting samba version of this classic Nutcracker theme! Made me smile today. Merry Christmas / happy holidays, all! #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

This is the best version of “O Holy Night” I’ve ever heard. Samara Joy, the McLendon family & Sullivan Fortner on B3 create something truly sublime. The reharmonization at 2:35 & the tag ending are mind-blowing. youtu.be/_GLc4k77470?... #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday #christmasmusic

I don’t have the energy for a full song rec today, but here’s Brad Mehldau playing the Christmas Song with his daughter Eden! youtu.be/YJVdAnvYO6I?... #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky

Song of the Day: “More Than Just Another Try,“ by KNOWER youtu.be/q076unR4U54?... Incredible vocal harmony written by Louis Cole; equally incredible execution by Genevieve Artadi. I listen to this to remind myself how it’ll feel to achieve my goals. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Song of the Day: “How It All Began (The Story of Mr. Potes,“ by Michel Reis youtu.be/Wq8Ua6HANe4?... I find this song/video incredibly moving—an homage to his piano teacher, I think. There’s a sense of tender reverence, & deep longing for times past. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Luke says goodnight. #cat #catsky #catsofbluesky

Song(s) of the Day: “Mirrors/The Message,“ by Shai Maestro youtu.be/apI_a2oqLRo?... Dark, deep & haunting, like searching for something you never quite find. The moment the band comes in is all the more heavy for how gut-wrenchingly simple it is. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Song of the Day: “Back in the Day,“ by Larry Goldings Trio youtu.be/CZPxdBInvhQ?... Smooth, soulful, bluesy & funky. Stewart is all the way in the pocket. Goldings & Bernstein take their time developing the narratives of their solos and it pays off. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

The “What We Do In The Shadows” finale was perfect. Which ending did you get? #whatwedoitheshadows

Song of the Day: “Golden Slumbers,“ by Brad Mehldau youtu.be/jYqH4juuGP8?... This is such a tender & poignant arrangement. Very comforting. I love the solo vamp on the chorus, and how he keeps taking it farther out before bringing it back home. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Song of the Day: “Sing to the Moon,“ by Snarky Puppy feat. Laura Mvula & Michelle Willis An anthem of hope for the broken spirit. Love the horn orchestration and the harmonized keyboard lines leading to trading solos. youtu.be/d0Ua9xZP6Lw?... #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

This man was literally born to play this role and no one could ever do it better. Ever.

Song of the Day: “Eternal,“ by the Branford Marsalis Quartet youtu.be/eeuxY4Gzljk?... Tranquil & quiet, ebbing and flowing, sometimes soaring to powerful & exciting heights. An epic, meditation on eternal love. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongiheardtoday

Thanks to everyone who wrote me a note about Lyra. I truly appreciate every single message. I want to respond to folks individually, but it’ll probably take me a while.

I just saw someone suggesting that it’s self-care Sunday. I write songs to figure myself out and that, in itself, is self-care…. right? Love is the best thing we do…..Always. on.soundcloud.com/x5zHbvbHzsAh...

Song of the Day: “Blake’s View,” by M. Ward I’m hurting so much right now, but this helps just a little bit. It’s so beautiful and comforting. The guitar solo over the organ is everything. youtu.be/Ee4-Y1gwHUE?...

My best girl Lyra left us today. Lyra, I’ll probably have a lot more to say later, but for now, I can’t. It’s too much. Just know that I’ll miss you and love you forever, my sweet baby. You can rest now.

There should've been Christmas records by: - The Miles Davis Quintet - The Jazz Messengers, with a picture of Art Blakey as Santa - Wes Montgomery and/or Grant Green - Bill Evans Trio and/or Oscar Peterson Trio - Kenny Barron & Charlie Haden I hear those in my mind. They're great. Jazzsky #jazz

PLEASE SHARE, COMMENT, QUOTE, &/OR REPOST 1/x Folks here from algorithmically-fiddled apps complain of a lack of engagement. It’s on all of us (to some extent) “Likes” don’t really do anything here. When you like someone’s post it just creates a notification TO THEM ONLY that you liked it.

Song of the Day: What Would I Do Without You,” by Ray Charles youtu.be/Xv9XbPiBE3M?... Feeling sad today. Listening to Ray Charles helps. So much raw emotion. Also features arguably the best 22-second, ~24-note sax solo ever. Thanks Ray. #jazz #jazzsky #musicsky #bestsongIheardtoday

Jesse Singal is evading blocks which is against your terms of service, and using screenshots of an account that has him blocked to harass one of your trans users on X. You are currently not enforcing your terms of service. ‪Shameful and cowardly response. Truly.

Trans people deserve to live in peace IRL and online. BlueSky needs to be better than Twitter about this or what's the point??? Sign the petition.