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I Am Experienced

by Mike Bankhead

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    This CD is swaddled in a 6 panel digipak, along with a 16 page booklet that contains lyrics and essays. The booklet also includes your key to access a hidden website chock full of demos, photos, exclusive studio footage, and other bonus content.

    Includes unlimited streaming of I Am Experienced via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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  • Full Digital Discography

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    releases

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    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of I Am Experienced, Good Times, Latent, For Misty, Hold the Wick, Wapakoneta, Baile Conmigo, Anxious Inventions & Fictions, and 7 more. , and , .

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1.
Latent 02:48
lyrics
Hey now it’s me Descendant of the enslaved I never knew Never knew my family name Long since overwritten by the one they gave us Hey now it’s me Don’t you think I trust you No no no Hey now a name Ain’t the only thing they stole Labor and lives They even took our rock and roll Phony smiling faces with a murderous intent How many names Don’t you think I trust you No no no Wake up black the book is green the line is red Wake up black Hey now it’s me See it everywhere I go Nowhere is safe Legacy of jimmy crow Used to keep it hidden now they flaunt the hate with pride Hey now it’s me Don’t you think I trust you No no no
2.
Plantation 04:11
lyrics
Say your vows in a stately manor Pose for pictures under the oak Sparkling cider and champagne in the foyer Setting sun casting idyllic orange You hear the nearby babbling creek I hear the echo of whips and of shackles This is where humans like me suffered torture This is where humans were beaten and bred This is where tears were poured out to the Lord Where the thirst for king cotton caused blood to be shed Ok, go make your memories Clap your hands for the happy couple Don’t leave without wishing them well Open bar so you have a double DJ is spinning all of the hits You hear the nearby babbling creek I hear the sound of the overseer shouting This is where humans like me suffered torture This is where humans were beaten and bred This is where tears were poured out to the Lord Where the thirst for king cotton caused blood to be shed Ok, go make your memories Would you gather to dance at Dachau? Why are you doing it here? This is where humans like me suffered torture This is where humans were beaten and bred This is where tears were poured out to the Lord Where the great racist evil caused blood to be shed Ok, go make your memories
3.
Good Times 04:53
lyrics
Today I wanna celebrate Remember what it’s like Drinks and high fives There’s another bill to pay Let’s pretend it’s fine Gimme more wine Wait a minute for the rhythm Hear it comin round Good times Lock me up with the good times Good times Put me down for the good times Catch me sleeping on the couch Take away my life Don’t you know why News starts at eleven but Truth don’t wait on lies Tell it on time Wait a minute for the justice Will it come around Good times Lock me up with the good times Good times Put me down for the good times Wait a minute for the justice Will it come around Good times Shut me up with the good times Good times Silence me with the good times
4.
We Are the Broken 05:01
lyrics
I know that look of suspicion I know your mind is a weapon I know that you’ll never listen So I am not talking to you I see the loaded guns The slaughtering of our sons We are the broken ones We are the broken ones Our hearts and our spirits crushed Abuse and oppression from every direction We are the broken I see a profitless mission In fighting off this depression I have lost all motivation So I am not talking to me I am your counterpart One half of a broken heart We are the broken ones We are the broken ones Our hearts and our spirits crushed Abuse and oppression from every direction We are the broken From a high and lofty place There is a promise spoken A healing of the spirit Revival of the broken We are the broken ones Our hearts and our spirits crushed Abuse and oppression from every direction We are the broken
5.
Hey Baby Take the Keys 05:16
lyrics
Hey baby take the keys It’s the safest way to get around Even when we are together That’s why your hands should be on the wheel You head off to work without thinking twice Without any fear without any plan Without worry of being a murdered citizen Go ahead take the keys Hey baby take the keys You won’t get detained for melanin You can even pass the limit So many of you do every day You head off to work without thinking twice Without any fear without any plan Without knowing innocence ain’t never any shield Go ahead take the keys Hey baby take the keys It doesn’t matter that I’m sober They only want me on my knees Hey baby take the keys Their twisted triumph in the trigger They only want to hear my pleas Hey baby take the keys It’s safer for us both
6.
Chameleon Skin 07:00
lyrics
Oh Mister Isbell, I heard you Jason I live in a corner of your world and nation The sneering high & mighty swear it is the best From the Alabama coast up to the Midwest Let me tell you about how these things are My life is at risk each time I drive a car Facts of Black living been giving me pause Stopped by police - didn’t break any laws I ain’t got chameleon skin I won’t change Another common thing that I know too well An elevator in any hotel Man on edge, woman holds her purse tighter Would they act that way if my skin were whiter? Billie once sang about a bitter strange crop Innocent blood was spilled - it will not stop Nina lost her rest, said everybody knows And I'm just as tired of how it all goes I ain’t got chameleon skin I won’t change Safe isn’t a thing, I’m anxious and tense The L is silent for us and lawful events Don’t that book tell us all that God is impartial Don’t that book tell us all that justice is divine Don’t that book offer hope of better days comin It’s about time I ain’t got chameleon skin I won’t change

about

This group of songs was born before the COVID-19 pandemic started, but took the shape of what they are now during “those uncertain times”. What an odd cliché that phrase became in 2020, as if any time period had EVER come with a feeling of certainty. I saw the images of people who look like me dying, whether they happened decades ago, a few years ago, or this year, whenever this year happens to be as you read these words. I can see myself in the place of the child who was shot at play, the man who was suffocated or tased to death on the street, the man executed in his friend’s garage, the woman slain in her own home. These songs wanted to be together, needed to be together.

These songs are open. These songs are vulnerable. These songs are what it feels like. As you listen, notice that I do not call you to action. I am not asking for political or social solutions. I am not telling you what to do. I am telling you things that are true. I am telling you how I feel. I am telling you what I have experienced.

These are feelings and stories that people may sympathize with. A smaller subset of those people will have shared the same experiences and will have dealt with the same feelings. These songs are for everyone. However, Black people are likely to relate to them on a more personal level. For that reason, all personnel on this project are Black: the gentleman who engineered and mixed the music, the assistant engineers, all of the musicians, the art director, the writers who added context in these liner notes, the mastering engineer, the videographer. Sharing the feelings in these songs with them has been cathartic.

I now present I AM EXPERIENCED to you.

Thank you for listening.

credits

released June 20, 2023

Engineered & Mixed by Rizo at The Dreamcatchers Recording Studio in Reynoldsburg, Ohio

Recorded July 2021 to May 2022
Assistant Engineer: Wade Blair II
Assistant Engineer: Joshua Chan
Art Direction, Layout, & Design: Odd Hourz Creative
Photography by Mike Bankhead

Produced by Rizo & Mike Bankhead
Mastered by Adam Gonsalves at Telegraph Mastering in Portland, Oregon

Music & Lyrics by Mike Bankhead
©℗ 2023 You Could Be My Aramis Music (BMI)

Mike Bankhead - bass, keys, percussion, vocals
Rizo - guitar, keys, percussion, vocals
Austin Bankhead - guitar
Dion Black - drums
Joshua Chan - keys
KeShawn Honaker - vocals
Cherimondis J - violin, vocals
Mariah J - vocals
Hannah Mayree - banjo
OriSoaring - saxophone
Marnée Richardson - vocals
Kamden Webb - vocals

Thank you for contributing:
Austin Bankhead, Paul Barnes, Dion Black, Wade Blair II, Corduroy Brown, Joshua Chan, Quinn Foster, Adam Gonsalves, KeShawn Honaker, Cherimondis J, Mariah J, Justin Lipscomb, Hannah Mayree, Rob McCowan, OriSoaring, Oluwatobi Oshuntogun, Marnée Richardson, Kamden Webb, Casey Wolfe. I hope you are as proud of your work as I am.

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Mike Bankhead Dayton, Ohio

Mike Bankhead is a bassist and songwriter from the Dayton, Ohio area. His songs feature crunchy guitar, occasional dissonance, and a love of hooks.

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