Way back on October 2nd, I wrote about a 3-day, 1400+ mile road trip that I took and the long list of albums that we listened to along the way. Well, last week I took a related 1-day, 430-mile road trip...and hopefully very soon I'll be able to show you why I have been taking these trips! But until then, here is the playlist for the 1-day road trip:
Matchbox 20 - North
Rob Thomas - Cradlesong
Jimmy Cliff - Rebirth
Billy Joel - Piano Man
Billy Joel - 52nd Street
Billy Joel - Songs In The Attic
Billy Joel - The Nylon Curtain
Billy Joel - Glass Houses
Billy Joel - The Bridge
Billy Joel - Storm Front
Billy Joel - River of Dreams
I guess we went a little heavy on the Billy Joel, but it felt appropriate. In fact, it's a bit of a clue as to where I was. Hmm. You'll find out soon...
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Thursday, June 13, 2013
Favorite Album Launch Party Moment?
There are a lot of great moments from Saturday night's Album Launch Party that I could point to and highlight. Performances of certain songs, friends coming out, the pizza - I could go on. But I've been trying to think about and pinpoint my favorite moment. And I don't know if I can, to be honest! But let's pretend that I can and I'll focus on the song I closed the night with, "The Hands of Angels."
On the album, "The Hands of Angels" is a comparatively sparse recording with a fantastic string arrangement by Brian Zeller. But obviously I can't have a string section for live performances, right? Right. So, I had to figure out something else, and the idea came in to arrange the string section for alto sax - an idea that was kind of inspired by Billy Joel's "Where's The Orchestra?" If you've ever seen me soundcheck you may have caught me playing it, and through the link you can hear that the song is also sparse and uses the alto sax very effectively. I wanted to try to capture that feeling with the live version of "The Hands of Angels."
Strings and saxes have very different characteristics and are capable of very different things, but upon listening back to the recording of the night I think it came off really well. The alto almost adds of bit of a jazzy flavor that gives the song another dimension, and since it essential makes the performance a duet between me and the sax player (in this case, Christopher Brellochs), it really showcases the intimacy that the song needs. You'll be hearing that again.
You can get your copy of "The Hands of Angels," and the entire Over The Edge album, here.
On the album, "The Hands of Angels" is a comparatively sparse recording with a fantastic string arrangement by Brian Zeller. But obviously I can't have a string section for live performances, right? Right. So, I had to figure out something else, and the idea came in to arrange the string section for alto sax - an idea that was kind of inspired by Billy Joel's "Where's The Orchestra?" If you've ever seen me soundcheck you may have caught me playing it, and through the link you can hear that the song is also sparse and uses the alto sax very effectively. I wanted to try to capture that feeling with the live version of "The Hands of Angels."
Strings and saxes have very different characteristics and are capable of very different things, but upon listening back to the recording of the night I think it came off really well. The alto almost adds of bit of a jazzy flavor that gives the song another dimension, and since it essential makes the performance a duet between me and the sax player (in this case, Christopher Brellochs), it really showcases the intimacy that the song needs. You'll be hearing that again.
You can get your copy of "The Hands of Angels," and the entire Over The Edge album, here.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
One Week Out
We're one week out from the full release of Over The Edge, and some things are starting to happen. A few of my new songs are getting some placements on various podcasts - one based out of South Carolina, another dedicated to jogging to up-tempo indie music. TheCelebrityCafe.com is current hosting a contest where 5 winners will receive a copy of the CD. I'm traveling up to Albany on Thursday to be interviewed for on The New School's internet radio, and June 21st I'm going to be featured on The Hudson Valley Music Spotlight on 100.7FM WHUD. All the lyric videos are done and will be posted on YouTube by this Friday. Other things are in the works.
The thing that still remains a challenge is booking - specifically outside of the Hudson Valley. Albany, New York City, western Connecticut, northern New Jersey - I've reached out to venues in each of these areas and haven't had much success. I've contacted other artists to talk about splitting shows in our respective home markets without anything panning out so far. It's almost like a catch-22: they won't book you unless they know you, but they won't know you until they book you. It's not a very easy environment to make headway in.
Most everything else are detail things. Making sure everything is lined up for the Album Launch Party on June 8. Rehearsing with the band. Planning the food and raffles. Following up with my PR company every day. Finishing up the next video (not really a details thing, but it is waiting to be finished). And as always, the thing that I never get to do enough is write. One day I will have resources, and do-it-yourself will no longer be do-it-all-yourself. I see other artists releasing 2 or more albums in the time it takes me to do 1. They're able to put together a tour and I struggle to book shows.
But there are better things coming up on the road ahead. I can feel it.
The thing that still remains a challenge is booking - specifically outside of the Hudson Valley. Albany, New York City, western Connecticut, northern New Jersey - I've reached out to venues in each of these areas and haven't had much success. I've contacted other artists to talk about splitting shows in our respective home markets without anything panning out so far. It's almost like a catch-22: they won't book you unless they know you, but they won't know you until they book you. It's not a very easy environment to make headway in.
Most everything else are detail things. Making sure everything is lined up for the Album Launch Party on June 8. Rehearsing with the band. Planning the food and raffles. Following up with my PR company every day. Finishing up the next video (not really a details thing, but it is waiting to be finished). And as always, the thing that I never get to do enough is write. One day I will have resources, and do-it-yourself will no longer be do-it-all-yourself. I see other artists releasing 2 or more albums in the time it takes me to do 1. They're able to put together a tour and I struggle to book shows.
But there are better things coming up on the road ahead. I can feel it.
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