thedrifter
05-16-08, 05:34 AM
Twentynine Palms Marine turns anger into words, music; Internet does rest
10:00 PM PDT on Thursday, May 15, 2008
By JOE VARGO
The Press-Enterprise
TWENTYNINE PALMS - Marine sniper Dane Kaehler picked up his guitar while serving in Iraq and poured out his feelings about what he viewed as bumper-sticker support for the Iraq war.
The Twentynine Palms corporal recorded a song titled "The Hardest Things" between stints in Iraq with the 7th Marine Regiment, which saw heavy fighting during its first tour and helped rebuild the shattered infrastructure on its second. The tune came to life in his dad's recording studio.
The composition tells of Kaehler's reasons for enlisting and the impact the war has left upon him. The song ends with the line "sometimes the hardest things to give away are the hardest things to keep," a reference to the innocence of new soldiers on the battlefield, the exuberance of fighting for the greater good only to see the devastation wrought by war.
Kaehler, 22, didn't expect it to be released publicly.
He never counted on the Internet and its ability to blast high-quality homemade music into cyberspace.
Kaehler's tune wound up on a compilation of other songs written by Iraq war veterans. Selections from To the Fallen Records have been downloaded more than 100,000 times and receive air play on Hooah Radio, the only free Internet station owned by veterans.
"I think I have a few more songs left in me, but I have no delusions about becoming a rock star," Kaehler said from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms.
Soldier-Poets
Kaehler is part of a new generation of soldier-poets taking advantage of new technology to reach out to a universal audience.
Aided by advances in musical recording technology and the Internet, hundreds of Iraq war veterans have submitted songs for consideration by To the Fallen Records, said founder Sean Gilfillan, a decorated Iraq war veteran. The label so far has compiled hip-hop, rock and country selections written by military personnel on the front lines.
It's not a new phenomenon.
Soldiers have been keeping diaries and writing poems for centuries. Alan Seeger's "I Have a Rendezvous With Death" and John McCrae's "In Flanders Field" were widely published during World War I, as was John McGee Gillespie's "High Flight" during World War II.
Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" became the anthem for World War II. Sgt. Barry Sadler scored a No. 1 pop hit with his "Ballad of the Green Beret" from Vietnam.
The difference today, Gilfillan says, is combat soldiers are producing top-notch songs suitable for Internet sales with recording technology not available in previous wars.
"The best musicians are the best storytellers," said Gilfillan, who received the Bronze Star for his service in Iraq. "Dane has a good story.
"We want to bridge the gap between the civilian world and the military. It's therapeutic to the service members and their families. It allows family members to see what their loved ones are going through," he said.
Gilfillan said the label has no political agenda.
"It's not about politics, it's about music," he said. "Through powerful lyrics, military artists tell the world about their lives in a way that few have heard."
Author Paul Davis, who has spoken about the impact of war to audiences throughout the world, said today's combat musicians provide "heartfelt reality" to their audiences, both civilian and those in uniform. The Orlando, Fla.-based Davis said their ability to "express themselves passionately" lets the audience experience life in the war zone.
"Songs are powerful vehicles to convey emotions, depict imagery and convey one's experience fully," he said.
Strumming by Sandbags
Kaehler began playing in bands as a teenager, and he enlisted in the Marines while attending Wyoming Technical Institute in Laramie, Wyo.
He arrived at the 3rd Battalion, 7th Regiment in April 2005. Five months later, he was in Ramadi, Iraq, a hotspot of insurgent activity. Kaehler found himself on patrols, taking part in raids and blowing up caches of enemy weapons.
"It was kinetic," Kaehler said. "The battalion took a casualty a day."
It was during this time, whenever he had a free moment, that Kaehler would pick up his guitar and begin picking to relieve tension. Sometimes, he plucked the instrument while sitting behind sandbags designed to keep Marines safe from bullets and bombs. Some songs were his own; others were well-known popular songs.
When he returned home, Kaehler said, he was at first put off by the reaction on the home front, especially from college-age peers who treated him with kid gloves or didn't want to know what he had seen in Iraq. Then he got angry. "The Hardest Things" grew out of that anger.
"I felt a lot of bitterness towards those back in the States," he said. "I was tired of college kids who claimed they supported the troops all the way from their dorm rooms.
"I was tired of people living cushy little lives and then asking me why I was so angry," he added. "I had it with people putting pretty yellow stickers on their cars as part of their duly paid patriotism.
"I wasn't trying to send a message to America. I wanted to tell my feelings. I sang what came out," he said.
Kaehler played acoustic, electric and bass guitars and sang on the recording. His father, Robert, played lead guitar and percussion. The tune was completed over a few days. His dad submitted it to To the Fallen Records, and Kaehler learned it had been accepted while he was preparing to return to Iraq.
Kaehler said pouring out his feelings in song helped him cope with the anger he once felt. He's not so bitter. He remains convinced that the soldiers and Marines serving represent America's best.
"I've never met better," he said.
Reach Joe Vargo at 951-368-9289 or jvargo@PE.com
Ellie
10:00 PM PDT on Thursday, May 15, 2008
By JOE VARGO
The Press-Enterprise
TWENTYNINE PALMS - Marine sniper Dane Kaehler picked up his guitar while serving in Iraq and poured out his feelings about what he viewed as bumper-sticker support for the Iraq war.
The Twentynine Palms corporal recorded a song titled "The Hardest Things" between stints in Iraq with the 7th Marine Regiment, which saw heavy fighting during its first tour and helped rebuild the shattered infrastructure on its second. The tune came to life in his dad's recording studio.
The composition tells of Kaehler's reasons for enlisting and the impact the war has left upon him. The song ends with the line "sometimes the hardest things to give away are the hardest things to keep," a reference to the innocence of new soldiers on the battlefield, the exuberance of fighting for the greater good only to see the devastation wrought by war.
Kaehler, 22, didn't expect it to be released publicly.
He never counted on the Internet and its ability to blast high-quality homemade music into cyberspace.
Kaehler's tune wound up on a compilation of other songs written by Iraq war veterans. Selections from To the Fallen Records have been downloaded more than 100,000 times and receive air play on Hooah Radio, the only free Internet station owned by veterans.
"I think I have a few more songs left in me, but I have no delusions about becoming a rock star," Kaehler said from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms.
Soldier-Poets
Kaehler is part of a new generation of soldier-poets taking advantage of new technology to reach out to a universal audience.
Aided by advances in musical recording technology and the Internet, hundreds of Iraq war veterans have submitted songs for consideration by To the Fallen Records, said founder Sean Gilfillan, a decorated Iraq war veteran. The label so far has compiled hip-hop, rock and country selections written by military personnel on the front lines.
It's not a new phenomenon.
Soldiers have been keeping diaries and writing poems for centuries. Alan Seeger's "I Have a Rendezvous With Death" and John McCrae's "In Flanders Field" were widely published during World War I, as was John McGee Gillespie's "High Flight" during World War II.
Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" became the anthem for World War II. Sgt. Barry Sadler scored a No. 1 pop hit with his "Ballad of the Green Beret" from Vietnam.
The difference today, Gilfillan says, is combat soldiers are producing top-notch songs suitable for Internet sales with recording technology not available in previous wars.
"The best musicians are the best storytellers," said Gilfillan, who received the Bronze Star for his service in Iraq. "Dane has a good story.
"We want to bridge the gap between the civilian world and the military. It's therapeutic to the service members and their families. It allows family members to see what their loved ones are going through," he said.
Gilfillan said the label has no political agenda.
"It's not about politics, it's about music," he said. "Through powerful lyrics, military artists tell the world about their lives in a way that few have heard."
Author Paul Davis, who has spoken about the impact of war to audiences throughout the world, said today's combat musicians provide "heartfelt reality" to their audiences, both civilian and those in uniform. The Orlando, Fla.-based Davis said their ability to "express themselves passionately" lets the audience experience life in the war zone.
"Songs are powerful vehicles to convey emotions, depict imagery and convey one's experience fully," he said.
Strumming by Sandbags
Kaehler began playing in bands as a teenager, and he enlisted in the Marines while attending Wyoming Technical Institute in Laramie, Wyo.
He arrived at the 3rd Battalion, 7th Regiment in April 2005. Five months later, he was in Ramadi, Iraq, a hotspot of insurgent activity. Kaehler found himself on patrols, taking part in raids and blowing up caches of enemy weapons.
"It was kinetic," Kaehler said. "The battalion took a casualty a day."
It was during this time, whenever he had a free moment, that Kaehler would pick up his guitar and begin picking to relieve tension. Sometimes, he plucked the instrument while sitting behind sandbags designed to keep Marines safe from bullets and bombs. Some songs were his own; others were well-known popular songs.
When he returned home, Kaehler said, he was at first put off by the reaction on the home front, especially from college-age peers who treated him with kid gloves or didn't want to know what he had seen in Iraq. Then he got angry. "The Hardest Things" grew out of that anger.
"I felt a lot of bitterness towards those back in the States," he said. "I was tired of college kids who claimed they supported the troops all the way from their dorm rooms.
"I was tired of people living cushy little lives and then asking me why I was so angry," he added. "I had it with people putting pretty yellow stickers on their cars as part of their duly paid patriotism.
"I wasn't trying to send a message to America. I wanted to tell my feelings. I sang what came out," he said.
Kaehler played acoustic, electric and bass guitars and sang on the recording. His father, Robert, played lead guitar and percussion. The tune was completed over a few days. His dad submitted it to To the Fallen Records, and Kaehler learned it had been accepted while he was preparing to return to Iraq.
Kaehler said pouring out his feelings in song helped him cope with the anger he once felt. He's not so bitter. He remains convinced that the soldiers and Marines serving represent America's best.
"I've never met better," he said.
Reach Joe Vargo at 951-368-9289 or jvargo@PE.com
Ellie