Welcome to the deep blue sea and TALES FROM THE BILGE. All life on our blue planet came from the sea. Scientists believe that over 4000 million years ago, a perfect soup of singled celled organisms was graced by the perfect amount of sunlight and slowly, very slowly over millions of years, through a process of combination, competition and most importantly symbiosis developed more complex organisms. Fast forward to this moment where YOU are simultaneously listening to ‘Tales from the Bilge’, processing the syntax on this page through reading, banking the information for the future, and hopefully being moved by this sensory experience while developing a deeper love and respect for the sea, the planet, and your fellow human and animal beings. You are the result of 4,000 millions of years of circumstances and chance that delivered you this specific moment, and it is whatever you wish it to be. I thank you for sharing it with me. In April 2018, I traversed the widest and deepest ocean in the world : The Pacific Ocean. I listened to the sea and saw the endless unseen wild wilderness that exists beyond the lands edge. For 23 days, this blue expanse filled my world to the horizon for 360 degreees, unbroken by land or any form in every direction — a continual eternity of nothingness and everythingness. The bones of this album were written in that space between it all, and brought me understanding and solace during this intense journey. We were three individuals on a 38-foot object floating in an ocean so big that when zoomed out on a map, we disappeared into an infinitesimal speck amidst an endless field of blue. As night fell and the billions of stars of the cosmos came into view overhead, the universal resolution became clear: We are small, however our combined impact is not. During our voyage, I saw more plastic than should ever be visible along a single path through what is the most remote wilderness in the world. We also witnessed massive mega trawlers in action hugging the international waters border and pillaging this natural wilderness like never before. Trawlers longer than 200 meters on multi-month voyages to fill the bellies of their freezers and feed the unchecked consumption of the East and West. Although the great forests of our planet create significant amounts of oxygen and our/my connection to land is stronger. The oceans were our mothers belly, where we all came from and they are the real lungs of the planet and a dominant force in the climatic cycles of our planet. I had never sailed an iota before pushing off. Though a sublime adventure, the journey was also persistent monotony and brought mind-bending pattern breaking as I simultaneously gazed outward and inward. The sea’s great waves smashed up against the hulls and shores the shores of our minds as perpetual sleep deprivation took its toll. It is only once you whittle away all the fluff that you realise we are all doing the best we can. I hope this tale finds you well, my fellow voyager. Be gentle to the earth and to yourself; we are all learning how to sail for the first time on an ocean that can throw chaos at us at any moment. And if you have some extra bandwidth, please think of what you can do for your water kin. All Bumble and Merkaba Music Label proceeds from this album will be donated to SEA SHEPARD AUSTRALIA to support their positive work. Though I am happy to be on land again, I am grateful for my opportunity to sync with the endless waves and creatures of the sea. I hope you meet some as you enjoy Tales from the Bilge and glimpse my journey. Look forward to sailing and dancing with you all soon.