Category: News

The Foundation

This new website hasn’t become exactly what I’d planned . . . yet.

Every good building needs a foundation. You may have noted that I’m posting new essays, poems, and music on a daily basis. That was not the original plan. However, I want to present myself as a writer, poet, and musician. I want to set the stage.

How will I know when the foundation is complete?

It’s simple. I’ll continue to post on a daily basis until I’ve posted all of my previous musical compositions as Anderhill. I’m about halfway there. But this site isn’t only about my music, it’s about creativity and writing. It’s a place to for my poetry. That’s why I’m mixing it up.

Once I get caught up with the Anderhill catalog, there’s a good chance I’ll slow down. I’ll have a solid foundation. Then again, this habit of short daily writing drills is beginning to grow on me. – dse

Vault

I’ve been sitting on some music for a couple of years. It’s electronic music, but it’s less experimental and ambient than Anderhill or A Cult of Lies. I’ve hesitated to release it because it doesn’t sound like any of my other electronic work. It’s more rhythmic and pop-like. But I’ve decided to release the first of two recordings. I’ll release the second before the end of 2021.

Introducing The OWG…

I’m opening the vault.

What is The OWG? It’s another one of my many musical personas. OWG stands for Old White Guy. The name came from a one of my daughter’s friends. He heard me programming beats and told me I should rap to them. Then he dubbed me The OWG.

Okay, so I won’t rap.

In fact, one reason I’ve waited to long to release this music is that I’d always thought I might add lyrics to these tracks. I’ve decided that’s not happening at this point. Another reason I hesitated to release this music is that Anderhill is primarily ambient and drone music. The OWG is a whole different sound.

If you know a little about my musical history, I was a drummer first. I played drums for years before I picked up piano, guitar, and a host of other instruments. I also learned how to do drum-machine programming clear back in the early 1980s. This stuff comes natural to me. – dse

Album Art

When I started this site, I swore off using any kind of stock photography. I’ll be sticking to that promise… kind of.

I’ve decided to use the original cover art for music from the Anderhill catalogue. The photos have been used on both SoundCloud and BandCamp since each release. So I’m making this exception to my “no stock photos” rule. To add a little bit of color to the site, I’ve decided to include album art from each Anderhill music release starting from The Beginning. The photos also double as the audio player.

In the future, I’ll be getting more creative with images and developing my own cover art. But for all music originally released before 2022, I’ll be using my first choice of photos by other artists and photographers. – dse

Relentless

I compose many types of music under a few different monikers. Most of the recordings on this site are Anderhill works. But as a songwriter, I go by “Dan Steven Erickson,” I’ve composed modern beats as “The OWG” (Old White Guy), and some of my darkest and noisiest ambient music is created as “A Cult of Lies.”

I recorded a couple of albums by A Cult of Lies earlier this year. They include He called himself Michael the Archangel but he was born to destroy, and Everything you’ve ever dreamed is possible. Today, I released a new single track by A Cult of Lies. It’s called Relentless. It’s a dark ambient/industrial drone composition that represents the constant decay of the physical world.

Perhaps more tracks will follow and a new album by A Cult of Lies will be in store for 2022. – dse

The Long Wait

The Long Wait is an album by Anderhill. Released on November 6, 2021, the album continues Anderhill’s journey into darker experimental and ambient sounds. The album includes four new tracks as well as two tracks, “The Final Hour” and “The Light Shines Brighter,” previously released in 2021. Although the music has a dark quality about it, there is also an underpinning of hope and joy.

This may mark a short break in my my experimental work as Anderhill, as I’m currently working on some guitar-based songwriting for potential release in 2022. I may have a few other surprises in the vault as well. – dse

Skipping Resolutions

I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions. Setting resolutions for a new year is often a recipe for failure. If you can’t set and meet goals all year long, what will make January 1st any different? I tend to hesitate to set goals in general. Studies have found that most New Year’s resolutions fail.

Instead, I’ll just work hard all year long. I’ll do my best to do what I set out to accomplish. I’ll try to complete the things I want to complete. I might far exceed what I set out to do or I might utterly fail. I might change my mind in mid-stride. That’s okay.

Don’t expect any big news about my plans for the new year. I might slow down or I might become more prolific. I don’t pretend to completely understand the creative muse. For me, it’s always been a journey, not a destination. I’ll be skipping resolutions for this coming new year. – dse