Introduction

First, let me begin with a short intro for Woosamonsa Road.

My name is Chris. Mike and I decided to start this blog, Woosamonsa Road, because we share nearly identical musical tastes. Woosamonsa Road is a road that me and Mike used to drive on throughout high school. We would usually get real high and proceed to blast whatever hip-hop we were listening to at the time through the speakers of our friends' A6. Years later, I would find that Mike and I had managed to neglect any further discussion of music past the mandatory high school soundtrack of Nas, 2pac, and Big L. When we finally did breach the subject, we found that our tastes were eerily similar. So eventually, after spending literally hours on end talking, swapping opinions on the artists and the albums we dug, recommending music to each other, we decided, 'hey, why not be semi-productive and put our opinions on the internet!' Thus, Woosamonsa Road was born.

When we were discussing the name, we both pretty quickly came to the conclusion of the title that you see above. To be honest, to me it was always just a road with a funny ass name and some funny ass memories attached to it. But without trying to sound cheesy or pretentious, I think that Woosamonsa Road, like almost everything else from our collective adolescence, holds a deeper meaning. The road is dark, winding, surrounded by trees, filled with creatures of the night. Driving through with your brights on, you're lucky if you see one other car pass you by. Lamp posts occasionally pop up, usually signaling the presence of some decrepit, spooky farmhouse on the side of the road. Hell, there's even one spot of the road where you can put your car in neutral and watch it roll uphill (a 'gravity hill,' for the paranormally-inclined)! Everyone believes what the want to believe, but there's no denying this road is a force to be reckoned with.

And though the picture you see above of Woosamonsa Road doesn't really offer any vivid portrait of what I am describing above, it does show the other side of Woosamonsa. During the day, and especially in autumn, the drive through the woods on the road is absolutely breathtaking. One of my favorite things about Woosamonsa, and the area of New Jersey we both grew up in, is the ability for one to escape the ugly industrial realities of cities like Trenton. Woosamonsa Road cuts through the dense woods that surround Hopewell Township, but other than the pavement itself, nature mainly remains untouched. As I said before, only a few quaint houses and farms pepper the scenic drive through the woods. A definite duality exists. At night, the menacing road that will seemingly swallow up your car in the middle of the next hairpin turn. During the day, a beautiful scenic drive that reminds all those who travel it the beauty of nature.

I remember my freshmen year of college, over winter break I became more or less obsessed with the album Strawberry Jam by Animal Collective, an album that would probably grace the number 1 spot on both me and Mike's all-time lists. A few days before Christmas, Mike, me and a few other friends drove around all night under the influence of some decidedly psychedelic substances. The album was the soundtrack of our adventure, an adventure that took us down Woosamonsa at least once that night. I remember the sheer sense of childish awe and wonder I had as I looked out at the dark woods around me being transformed by chaotic, powerful pieces of music like "For Reverend Green" and "Chores." It was definitely one of the more memorable trips on Woosamonsa, though all of them certainly fall under the category of 'memorable.'

Again, without trying to sound contrived, I feel like perhaps Woosamonsa had more of a lasting effect on me that I have ever previously considered. Even when I create goofy electronic tracks out of Garageband loops on my Macbook, I use the alias DJ Woosa. The road itself has taken on a deeper meaning for me. Woosamonsa is the unknown but also the beautiful. And that's how I'd describe all the music that I consider to be my favorite. Music that rejects the confining yellow parallel lines of conventionality and ventures into the dark forests of the unknown. The result is something inherently beautiful. So I hope you will join both Mike and I on one of our forays on the twisting road that although we have ventured down so many times before, remains mysterious and unknown. Hopefully, you will enjoy what you hear/see/feel.

Above all, Woosamonsa Road is a vessel for Mike and I to channel what we find artistically worthwhile in this world. Whether it be music, video, text, etc., we hope that you will see the common thread that runs through the material we feature on here. If you like what you see, come back again. That's all we can really ask. Thank you.