Since you're here, I will employ the time-honored Web FAQ technique of asking myself BS questions as if I were being interviewed:

So, what's your deal?
Alongside other pursuits, I write and record music. I have for a long time now, with varying degrees of dedication and success. A couple of years ago, though, I developed a peculiar case of writer's block facilitated by my installation of a computer-based studio at home. I got obsessed with the medium rather than the message, and spent all my time 'reconfiguring' the little digital boxes. That's where I'd been the past couple of years, tuning my studio setup and noodling but not really writing. Motivation was wanted; thus this site. The idea was self-imposed deadlines: every week, I'd post an mp3 file of a new recording on the Songs page.

The experiment was a success; I put 26 recordings up in 26 weeks, and refocused my interest on the songs themselves rather than the widgets I use to capture them.

These days, my postings are less regular--life intrudes fairly often anymore, and I'm spending some time rebuilding my piano chops and learning to play the guitar properly--but the project is still alive. On average once a whenever I'll be posting songs here; there will always be a few old tracks available as well.

Why Squeakyanimals?
I had a great story about aliens worked up here, but have been ordered by the Bootian masters not to reveal it. So, instead: when marg and I were living in Buffalo and I was playing regularly with Riley (this link is on the band's drummer's web page--great drummer and immensely cool cat), our rehearsal space and studio were in the basement of the big-ol house M&I lived in. For reasons I can't fully explain, a vast variety of squeak toys accumulated in the space. Some of them were brought in by Kurt, the abovementioned drummer. Some were bought for the annual Halloween party. Some were brought by friends who thought Riley the Dog After Whom the Band Was Named might like to play with them. Some we've never tracked down the origin of. Form follows function, name follows toys. QED.

Are you looking for collaborators?
Sure, why not? It might be fun. I like working with other people, and I'm not too impossible most of the time. As long as I've had my requisite 23 cups of coffee for the day, that is.

What kind of gear do you use?
I started recording on a Tascam 4-track Porta One back in 1986; "Whoa...it has four tracks, and it can run on batteries! What will they think of next?" At that time, my main axes were a cheap Cort acoustic guitar and my Mom's Story & Clark spinet piano. These days, things are a little more advanced. I use Digital Performer as my main recording app (a few more than 4 tracks, anyway). I tend to play Roland synths as well as a decent Yamaha bass, a Wissner Upright Artist Grand, and guitars by Seagull, Webber, Tokai, Gibson, Kustom, and Fender. A lot of other noisy items get shaken, pounded, played, or whatever in front of the mics as well, of course.

What kind of music do you play?
Squeakyanimal music, of course. Seriously, that's one of the most baffling questions a musician can be subjected to, unless they happen to play in a hardcore speedmetal country band with a Tom Jones impersonator singer. I'm not that, more's the pity. Just have a listen over on the songs page; if you like any of what you hear, come back and hear more later. Heck, if you don't like it, come back later anyway; I like to think I improve over time, and part of the spirit of this project is that I post stuff that's not necessarily as perfect as I might want. This week's track might suck, while next week's rocks.

You have a lot of songs listed on the songs page, but just a few available for download. how can I get the others?
You can email me. I can email you mp3 files of back tunes, or possiby send you a CD. Or you can search for "Squeaky Animal Songs" on the iTunes store.

Why aren't there more things on this page?
 Because the important stuff is elsewhere on the site. I suppose you can put this page's very existence down to peer pressure; everybody else has a FAQ page, so I tried to write one.