I used to think music would save me. It did in a weird way.  Ironically, the savior would be from the '90's, from a band whose lead singer had no one to save him from his own demise...

nonetheless, I ask you all out there: How can someone like me who has had music a part of her life but suddenly stopped short of the inspiration it used to be for 2 years-

How can I come back from the dead?

Are you dead? Cool. This certainly gives posting on an internet site a whole different dimension!
Quite plausible though, that the troubled soul of a person, so tormented that it cannot ''ascend'' when the time comes, jumps into the electrodes of the internet and starts communicating with people through a blog.
Bit like the 'lawnmower man'
So you've been dead for the last two years? Do you get out much? When I was dead I found that people started looking strangely at me, it was the smell, it gets bad after a while and kind of lingers after you. But it proved I wasn't completely dead so it was then that I decided to 'be alive' instead.

Maybe you took what you needed from it at the time, like kids drawing, they don't necessarily turn out to be Artists , they are mealy developing another aspect of their being.
Maybe you've been doing something completely different for the past two years which you also needed to experience in your life.
Could be an age thing , your own age or the turning of an Age, there are a lot of signs out there that point to 'music' as we've come to know it in the past decades turning away from what it has become, the producing and the hype, and now finds it's release through other channels.
I believe 'Music' to be an energy that has something inspirational to say and not the gibberish that we get on TV and Radio these days which only pollutes our intelligence.
90% of 'media music' is created by greedy bastards who try to recreate certain aspects of music just to make a killin', while missing the point the whole time.
This being so, our 'air-waves' being polluted, how else are we as 'receivers' of this crap supposed to react to it?.......
The turn away......
Pink Floyd

It can be confusing if you don't know what's happening.

As for coming back from the dead! Why?
Not many people can say that. Enjoy your unique position.

If you cant love the one you want
Then love the one your with.
Bucks Fizz

 

Nice words, kings...

Me, I'm in a similar situation - haven't had the motivation to record anything new for a long time, the last thing I did was with TK when I visited him in germany - and the occasional jam session with grainshifter, ok, but that's more to force myself to atleast do something than that I regard it deeply satisfying my musical aspirations...

So I came to think: What are my aspirations, really? I feel best if I can pump out some strong material on stage, directly to the people. That is what I find most inspiring, I'll be full of ideas and it gives me energy for weeks after a gig... But, it does fade, and the only way to get rid of the sense of ineptitude which follows seems to be by doing another gig... And my gigs are usually far apart... So that's not the answer anyway.

Do I want to become famous? I don't have what it takes to write a commercially appealing song. I'm not interested in doing that, I can't really write about generic stuff that will appeal to the masses (even those of subcultures). As kings said, the commercial stuff misses the point, and I don't want to miss the point.

SO, that doesn't help either. What used to help in previous years when I had a creative dip was by simply forcing myself to record something. Simply sitting myself at the mixing board and jam something out until it turned into something audible, following the "music is 1% ispiration and 99% transpiration" principle (some will give you a slightly better inspiration : sweat ratio). This did help, and what also helped was, if I was short on inspiration, making a cover of a song I really enjoyed. That would usually trigger a recording spree with mee, and I would've pumped out an entire album by the end of the week.

Right now I've just been on a sabbatical from recording music, and waste my time playing a stupid MMORPG instead (no it's not WoW, it's GW). My fingers are ticklish though, and my love for music is returning, gradually, after having been away for A Really Long Time (given that I haven't recorded a lot since I live where I live, and had been "dead" for about a year before I moved here, that makes it over 3 years of low to no productivity).

But the most important thing is: I Want To Make Music. I just need a new approach to outlet my daily agony and frustration of having to exist in this utterly useless, stinking and corrupted universe, without sounding (scr)e(a)mo or dated or scaring everyone away from me. Who knows, I might pull it off...

Anyway, that's how yours truly is dealing with things. It may not help you much but atleast you know it's not just you suffering from lack of inspiration. I know that spoon has similar problems (she even dared to blame me, saying my lack of inner fire may have rubbed off on her!!! ) And maybe I got it from others to begin with... Maybe it's an epidemic!

But,
 as long as the veins in our arms still stand up,
the spirit of life will keep living on...
Dead Can Dance

so we'll be alright, in the end

wow, awfully profound stuff. Im completly not emo, but i agree with pupx saying this world is shit, not just becuase of corrupion. If you walk down the street and look at people, everyone (or almost everyone) is so guarded and looks so grumpy. that makes me grumpy, which probably makes me part of the problem and in turn making other people even grumpier. can you imagine a few hundred years ago, normal people walking past you less than a foot away, and completly ignoring you. no wonder people get depressed. I think the internet is a way of letting your guard down and showing emotions.

anyway, i usually find inspiration just looking at someone elses tabs and using chords that they used, in my own playing. I hardly ever learn a whole song because i like to go off on my own tangent. also, what pupx said. just sit down and record anything, good or bad, just to get the juices flowing.

good luck

Wow, your response were quick and thorough! And most importantly, they were encouraging.  The whole part of music being in a "phase" in my development was actually accurate in a sense.  While music used to be in the forefront, the larvae of my writing tentacles also were starting to burst free. Therefore, my fingers exchanged roles.  Unable to focus on two skills at the same time, I focused on poetry without the music for a year...then my voice went and betrayed me for betraying my voice, I guess you could say.  Not entirely a bad thing....I focused on writing more and decided that perhaps I was changing creatively. I discovered a desire to learn something and teach myself how to write short stories and work on major novels/series.  Just  like the desire to write that first song (it's orgasmic when you hit those write chords in the right succession knowing that yes this kills and kicks ass,  not giving a f*%$ if it's marketable shit but just opens you internally and organically to the sounds that music offers).  I wanted the same from writing....Then something clicked...I saw Across the Universe. Don't get offended if you're not a Beatles fan or you are, I'm just not a hard core fan but I do love their melodies and appreciate their gifts of musicianship considering they never really wrote music in the traditional sense (so I hear)...

Sorry, I'm babbling...

Back to my movie experience. So, if you haven't seen it, the movie opens with Jude on a beach singing one of the Beatles song (one of 31 featured)....I soon fell in love with this film...And so another muse started to be born. Perhaps the other muses who are now older have grown tired of their jealousies with each other and are focusing on my newest love - film making.  If only I could post a video here. I made a iMovie to the song Transatlanticism by Death Cab for Cutie. It takes place on the shores of Atantic City.  The beach is like my church. It is where I seek inspiration. Perhaps I need to dive back into the well and see how I might combine all three muses into one...

As you read the above, it sounds like I may not be dead any more...perhaps I'm no longer grounded and even beyond reach, beyond comprehension....So now I ask, how can I get back down to Earth 

Naa! Dont bother, stay up there, your communications are comprehendable enough. So keep it up!
You must be off on one, that last post of yours is brimming with light, and I'm picking up on it.
So music/artists find a different channel.....Videos! Makes all the sense in the world considering the popularity of youTube and alike. Big companies cant get their hands on the "art" and because music alone doesn't carry so well on line.
Minds has already started a thread looking for fellow journey men into the world of videos.
Hey Any Videographers out there?
So some great opportunity's for some full-on collaborations.  

True that! I still need to take that step, though I have made two videoclips before (I'm shy to share though you can find my maelstrom video on youtube ... DON'T LAUGHHH)

anyway, earth? eww, earth = humus, spores, molds and fungi, ... Earth is a bumpy ride which may seem exciting at first, but kinda gets tedious after a while, not to mention the ever more bends and the breaks seem to lead at nothing but get to your stomach instead.

All come to the planet of Love! (isn't that where we all come from, anyway? Love is good though one can't expect everyone to be a hippy (I'm not even a pacifist), but those who have this passion, this raging drive inside called Creativity know that this is something which never truly dies, it just changes form, it follow the principle law of Conservation of Energy (first law of thermodynamics), doesn't it?)

Yes, allow those Muses to be in your life, and give them a right to exist! I sure as hell will... Right now I'm off to do some medieval/fantasy warfare on a online game... if one thinks that has nothing to do with creativity I suggest you guess again -- (it not called fantasy for nothing)

Be well, and check ya later!

I find it refreshing that someone takes the risk to express such feelings and thoughts. I, too, can relate to this topic. I am currently going through my own version of this. Despite the fact that I have spent most of my life with a passion for music and a dream to join my idols in their pursuit of a musical "Nirvana", I find I have occasional periods of doldrums, which affect not only my passion for music, but my energy for life. Over the years (and I've had quite a few...years I mean) I have found these episodes to be fleeting in the grand scheme of things. Furthermore, I find that, for me, music and life are interwoven. When my passion for life begins to wane,  my passion for music follows suit. Thus, this becomes a signal that I need to examine my life and take measures to do anything necessary to rekindle the "flame" (be it life, music, work, relationships...whatever). I believe this is life for many people (I've had brief conversations with several friends here on this site....all across the world...who share similar feelings at times...oddly enough, it seemed many of us were going through it at the same time!) Right now, my musical "flame" is not completely snuffed....but it is flickering. I feed it some "kindling" (I listen to music...review others music, play my instruments, study music, study other musicians, etc) on a regular basis, just to ensure it doesn't die completely. (and despite myself, I find some occasional enjoyment in music again), all the while, attending to the other areas of my life that are screaming for attention. Meanwhile, I will attempt to remain patient....

It's refreshing to know there are others like me out there...Perhaps I wasn't meant to stay on "earth" per say. I guess artists like ourselves -forgive the cliche- march to a different drummer, and thus what we experience in reality doesn't come close to what we envision for our own reality, a more colorful and more open life which might grate on the patience of those who do not see or hear things as we do....

The embers still burn and so must all our creative ideas lest they all die and never have a chance to be shared with others...

Thanks for your responses...I am really enjoying this exchange. It provides Fuel to my Muses

I had a similar experience with music in my own life.  Currently I'm going through a divorce, part of the reason was a lack of support and understanding of my musical aspirations....

It had been about 4.5 years since I thought about taking music seriously, and I find that networking with other musicians and playing their stuff is lending itself into my own creativity.  Plus meeting others who are excited about it and are encouraging is very helpful.  Craigslist is a good place to start...

I happened to be lucky enough to move next door to some people who were looking for a guitar player for their band.  So now I do that amongst 1or 2 other projects.