darren r hill

the creative minimalist

The Habits That Quietly Kill Creative Output (And What to Replace Them With) Here are several creativity killers with advice on how to stop them and creative habits to replace them.
Read more…
How to Tell If a Creative Idea Is Worth Finishing (And When to Let It Go). Is that song, this painting, my story about an AI enhanced goldfish worth finishing? Here’s how to decide if your art, song or writing is worth continuing. The rhyme and reasoning behind deciding what creative projects to finish.
Read more…
Discipline and willpower are not the super powers of successful creatives. it’s about crafting effective systems that naturally guide behaviour. Learn how these creative frameworks can help you achieve more without the constant struggle.
Read more…
Creative projects with the most freedom are often the hardest to finish, or even start. The ones with tight constraints tend to move faster. And sometimes come out better. Three simple rules for creative freedom
Read more…
Sharing your imperfect creative work and art projects builds confidence faster than waiting. Whatever response you get will teach you something. We don’t just learn by doing, we also learn by sharing our art.
Read more…
Lowering creative standards at the beginning of a project can improve creativity. High expectations can hinder initial progress, as perfectionism prevents the full expression of ideas. By embracing imperfect first drafts, we create art for editing, ultimately improving quality through consistent creative practice and completion rather than avoidance.
Read more…

Lockdown Beltane Mixtape

I made a mixtape of songs that have been bouncing between my ears recently. They all have a vague link, in my head, with the current lockdown and Beltane, which has just passed. It’s just under 40 minutes long, so if you want to have a musical meander for a bit, scroll down.

The mixtape starts with wanting to be somewhere else and in love, onto trying to sort out life, via a dose of immortality and then getting a bit hippie and new age with Marc Bolan. To balance things out, for those who are not new age, it ends with a little witch burning. I like to please everyone. (Actually, please don’t burn witches, it’s not big or clever. Don’t bow to Hansel and Gretel’s peer pressure.*)

*Actually, Gretel pushed the old woman into an oven so technically it wasn’t a witch-burning as such. However, unless someone came and let the old lady out she would have burnt like anything left in an oven for too long.

Apart from that, and just like a FaceBook meme, I’m not going to say anything about the individual tracks. They are simply tracks that are hanging out with me at the current moment.

You can listen to the Lockdown Beltane Mixtape on

Apple Music

or Spotify

Or watch the individual videos of the tracks below…

Heavenly

Cigarettes After Sex

https://youtu.be/6LmzF7-8flk

Congregation

Low

Or a version using footage from Devs

Fixture Picture

Aldous Harding

Diary

Weyes Blood

Exhibition

Gary Numan

Immortals

Jean-Michel Jarre & F&%k Buttons

Ride a White Swan

T. Rex

Burn the Witch

Radiohead

I hope you enjoyed the Lockdown Beltane Mixtape, and remember mixtapes are not just for lockdown but for the whole year x

Original tape image by Bruno /Germany from Pixabay

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

9 May 2020
Proto music

I have moments of lucidity. These moments concern all sorts of things. I once had one such moment concerning this blog. In it, I thought of writing posts that related to the day. Saturday could be about stationery, Sunday spirituality and so on. Monday was to be about music.

Lucidity doesn’t last for long. Plans for this blog don’t tend to last long either. However, I find myself here on a Monday about to talk about music. In particular, some music that I have written and have recorded.

This afternoon I have been mixing and putting some final touches to three new pieces. They will be part of an EP that I’ll soon be sharing. All three tracks are inspired and influenced by three artists who I loved as a young teen… and still enjoy listening to today. John Foxx, Thomas Dolby and Gary Numan are the inspiration. Originally I had planned to record a collection of ten or more tracks. However, that moment of lucidity disappeared as well.

The EP will be called Protomatic Renaissance and all being well will be on all the major streaming platforms. I’ll let you have a sneak peek, or listen, in the next few days but didn’t want to miss the opportunity of actually sharing something on Music Monday.

As long as my lucid moments continue I’ll be sharing what I am creating here with a little more regularity than I have been. But that’s the problem with lucidity, it comes and goes… just like the creative muse.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

13 April 2020
Hello, my name is Darren

Welcome to my website. I am Darren, the creative minimalist. I have archived the previous iteration of this site.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

4 April 2020