Sunday, December 28, 2014
I love music because...
I love music because it connects. It creates.
I love music because it's interesting and passionate and unexplainable- infinite.
I love the muse because the muse is everyone and everything.
The muse is you and the muse is me and the muse is everyone and everything.
I love music because it is soul speak.
Because music is healing.
Monday, December 22, 2014
(Trendy) Ugly Sweaters, the Yuletide, and Bluegrass Happenings
Happy Winter Solstice from the Dead Horses!
Above you see our fiddle/mandolin player, Tim, with his Minneapolis doppelganger. Not only did she happen to wear a shockingly similar sweater, but she also is a GINGER! So great to cross paths!
Saturday we had the great pleasure of playing the 6th annual Yuletide Sweater Ball at the beautiful Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis. I really enjoyed spending time with Travis and Kendall from The Lowest Pair- if you haven't heard of them go check them out now! We also got to play with Sans Souici and The Pistol Whippin Party Penguins. There's SO MUCH great music out there!
I found myself with a couple hours after the sound check and before the show, so I decided to take a stroll. I found myself sitting in a booth drinking a tasty old fashioned and looking up information about winter solstice.
I love the Midwest, but winter is hard for me! I could write about that but I have to wonder if it's even necessary. For those of us who live here, we know. There's a knowing about winter. Every year I take on a somewhat different strategy as to challenge myself to accept winter in a healthier way.
The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year, and although winter is truly just beginning, it also marks the days getting longer. This is a day that has been celebrated by human beings for thousands of years! I really appreciate that as it stands for our connection to human beings of the past in the way of human beings connecting with the earth and the cosmos.
The Winter Solstice marks the return of the sun, (just like Christmas celebrates the coming of the Son) and I find myself respecting darkness and its place... as well as the return of light. It's a time to take a step back and look at your life- a pre winter cleansing- what to walk with and what to walk from.
Having said all of that, we are pretty excited to take a little bit of time off from traveling and spend time with our families! Our next show is on New Year's Eve at the The Source Public House in Menasha. There is so much to be thankful for this year and I'm thoroughly excited to be sharing the coming of the New Year so close to home. On January 9th, we have been very excited to announce that we will be headlining the Isthmus Bluegrass Fest at the Majestic in Madison. This is quite the opportunity for us and we are looking forward to playing in such a beautiful venue with a great lineup of bands.
Happy holidays everyone and we hope to see you all soon!
Dead Horses @ The Source Public House (New Year's Eve!)
Dead Horses @ The Majestic (January 9th)
Monday, December 1, 2014
The hardest part of being a musician?
Not really sure to be honest! My answer today would be different than tomorrow or next week or year.
One thing I do find to be challenging time and again is in regards to the performance aspect. We'd all like to think of ourselves as artists, but we're creating our art every single time we play, every performance. If there's not a recording (and even if there is, really) there's nothing left behind besides a memory. Imagine if every painting done was invisible as soon as it was finished. How would that change the way we perceive paintings?
A lot of these thoughts came to me while thinking about the difference of playing at home in a room by myself and how I feel when I'm on stage with Dead Horses. In addition to the sound being different (room sound, amps and speakers, crowd noise etc) as well as all that extra energy rolling around the room, the lights, the smells, the set list or lack of one, the energy the band before left on stage and in the room...
There's also the freedom in sitting at home alone... choice to pick up the guitar when you want to, play whatever you want to, sing or not sing, stop a song in the middle or play it five times in a row. There's therapy in that.
And on stage the idea of what's going to happen and what needs to happen is different in every person's head- especially in the audience. This whole idea is partially why it's hard to hear people shout out songs that you don't really feel like playing!
At the same time, there's challenge in staying fresh on stage- a challenge that requires some discipline. And the reward is getting to work with new energy at every single show, to experience every song differently every time you play it, and to do that is a give and take between all the people in the room.
This I find as very spiritual.. we pack ourselves in these rooms and move our bodies around to the sound waves, energy waves back and forth, back and forth. Push and pull, ride, repeat.
One thing I do find to be challenging time and again is in regards to the performance aspect. We'd all like to think of ourselves as artists, but we're creating our art every single time we play, every performance. If there's not a recording (and even if there is, really) there's nothing left behind besides a memory. Imagine if every painting done was invisible as soon as it was finished. How would that change the way we perceive paintings?
A lot of these thoughts came to me while thinking about the difference of playing at home in a room by myself and how I feel when I'm on stage with Dead Horses. In addition to the sound being different (room sound, amps and speakers, crowd noise etc) as well as all that extra energy rolling around the room, the lights, the smells, the set list or lack of one, the energy the band before left on stage and in the room...
There's also the freedom in sitting at home alone... choice to pick up the guitar when you want to, play whatever you want to, sing or not sing, stop a song in the middle or play it five times in a row. There's therapy in that.
And on stage the idea of what's going to happen and what needs to happen is different in every person's head- especially in the audience. This whole idea is partially why it's hard to hear people shout out songs that you don't really feel like playing!
At the same time, there's challenge in staying fresh on stage- a challenge that requires some discipline. And the reward is getting to work with new energy at every single show, to experience every song differently every time you play it, and to do that is a give and take between all the people in the room.
This I find as very spiritual.. we pack ourselves in these rooms and move our bodies around to the sound waves, energy waves back and forth, back and forth. Push and pull, ride, repeat.
Sunday, November 30, 2014
White Winter Wisconsin
A resounding theme in my life- PERSPECTIVE.
This tends to come up more this time of year- how my perspective can completely shift my reality.
On Friday afternoon we found ourselves in a beautiful living room full of beautiful people- gathering for friends, family, music and food. High ceilings and organic sound. Many of these faces were familiar- some were new. The humbling experience of being brought into someone's home, into their family for the afternoon- it's one of the most rewarding things I get to be a part of.
And I just kept thinking, "Man, we're so lucky!"
This is the time of year we start really preparing ourselves for the coming winter months. Winter for me now means perfecting the art of dressing in layers so that I can be comfortable outside, in the van, in a stuffy bar, and playing music in a stuffy bar. This last weekend I found myself exchanging my wool socks for some cotton ones on stage right before our shows.
Yesterday we drove from Wausau to Madison. White Wisconsin winter, rural and flat and the orange sky during dusk which goes so quickly during the winter... we were driving right into it and if I can't be present in that moment I'm not so sure I'm alive anymore.
And a lot of things on the horizon we are looking forward to this winter! A new Daytrotter Session, a new music video, releasing our album again on a different format, playing with talented musicians, making new friends, seeing the countryside, seeing some cities, seeing new art, new energy (never really new,) and swimming, swimming, swimming.
This tends to come up more this time of year- how my perspective can completely shift my reality.
On Friday afternoon we found ourselves in a beautiful living room full of beautiful people- gathering for friends, family, music and food. High ceilings and organic sound. Many of these faces were familiar- some were new. The humbling experience of being brought into someone's home, into their family for the afternoon- it's one of the most rewarding things I get to be a part of.
And I just kept thinking, "Man, we're so lucky!"
This is the time of year we start really preparing ourselves for the coming winter months. Winter for me now means perfecting the art of dressing in layers so that I can be comfortable outside, in the van, in a stuffy bar, and playing music in a stuffy bar. This last weekend I found myself exchanging my wool socks for some cotton ones on stage right before our shows.
Yesterday we drove from Wausau to Madison. White Wisconsin winter, rural and flat and the orange sky during dusk which goes so quickly during the winter... we were driving right into it and if I can't be present in that moment I'm not so sure I'm alive anymore.
And a lot of things on the horizon we are looking forward to this winter! A new Daytrotter Session, a new music video, releasing our album again on a different format, playing with talented musicians, making new friends, seeing the countryside, seeing some cities, seeing new art, new energy (never really new,) and swimming, swimming, swimming.
Friday, November 14, 2014
Fine Line Art
"I just do the things I do, I don't know why except that it makes me happy to do them."
It's a fine line for artists.
We don't want to make money off our art. We just want to make a living.
We love the road- new places, new people, new towns, new stages, new ideas and new ways of living.
But we all need a home... a place to lay our heads.
"After all, a man has to have something to tie to, something he can trust to be there in the morning."
And to our families and lovers- we want you to miss us, but we don't want you to miss us too much. Sometimes I feel like a stranger when I come home. Sometimes I feel like a stranger when I leave.
"Be still a moment... there's something here. You are afraid of it, but I know it. Somewhere, perhaps in an old dream, I have seen this place, or perhaps felt the feeling of this place... This is holy- and this is old. This is ancient- and holy."
This morning I feel so very encouraged by all the people I've met along the way who want to dedicate their life power to enabling the arts- dancing, painting, music making, theater... It's true- it's a hard life! But it's easy too. Trust me. And when it gets a little too trying, there's a million other souls doing the same thing you can draw from and feel connected to. Because on some level, we all really are doing the same thing.
Here's a video our friend, Nick put together for us. The audio track is off our new album:
PS: Quotes taken from the novel To a God Unknown by John Steinbeck
It's a fine line for artists.
We don't want to make money off our art. We just want to make a living.
We love the road- new places, new people, new towns, new stages, new ideas and new ways of living.
But we all need a home... a place to lay our heads.
"After all, a man has to have something to tie to, something he can trust to be there in the morning."
And to our families and lovers- we want you to miss us, but we don't want you to miss us too much. Sometimes I feel like a stranger when I come home. Sometimes I feel like a stranger when I leave.
"Be still a moment... there's something here. You are afraid of it, but I know it. Somewhere, perhaps in an old dream, I have seen this place, or perhaps felt the feeling of this place... This is holy- and this is old. This is ancient- and holy."
This morning I feel so very encouraged by all the people I've met along the way who want to dedicate their life power to enabling the arts- dancing, painting, music making, theater... It's true- it's a hard life! But it's easy too. Trust me. And when it gets a little too trying, there's a million other souls doing the same thing you can draw from and feel connected to. Because on some level, we all really are doing the same thing.
Here's a video our friend, Nick put together for us. The audio track is off our new album:
PS: Quotes taken from the novel To a God Unknown by John Steinbeck
Thursday, September 18, 2014
Women Music Producers?
I had a revelation and a little giggle tonight while I was listening to some mixes and was thinking about the recording process and where we might want to record our third album and whose influence we would like to have on it... and for some reason, I thought, "What would it be like to work with a woman producer?"
And then I thought... and I thought some more... and I realized I couldn't think of one producer that is a woman.
Which I think is pretty interesting!
From what I've observed, the role of a producer is never completely the same from one project to the next, and I imagine it's hard to know what you're getting into with any project. A good producer has to be pretty versatile from one role to the next.
And that's generally true when you're working with musicians- whether you're the sound guy (or girl!) or the person printing our flyers, or the person designing our flyers, or the person taking our order at the cafe... musicians are funny people and you never really know what you're going to get. Some weeks I spend about three or four days living out of a backpack with one or two showers and not brushing my hair, wearing dirty clothes, and the other three or four days of the week I walk around town with a laptop, drinking espresso, and feeling like some weird business lady. We play a lot of roles too.
Anyway, what I was getting at is that since their are so many different roles a producer could fill on any album, I'm surprised that there aren't more women producers. I'm curious... if there had been, say, if Bob Dylan had done some albums with a woman producer, or the Beatles, or Radiohead for that matter, I wonder how that could have changed music? And maybe it's not such a thing.. I mean, any person on any project being different, especially the producer, that would change everything regardless of gender.
It turns out there are some pretty cool women producers out there. A woman named Sylvia Massy produced Tool's Undertow. I also ran across a woman named Susan Rogers. Currently a professor at Berklee, she worked with David Byrne, Prince, Edie Brickell, Violent Femmes,... I did a little bit of research- there are actually quite a few articles about why there aren't many women producers. I found a list of the "50 Most Influential Producers" and not one was a woman. I found lots of speculation on why there aren't more women producers, all just speculation it seems.
I should also definitely mention a pretty rad recording engineer I personally know named Natalie Fores. She was our sound person for a while before she moved to Madison to do an internship at Paradyme Productions, where she recorded the audio for our video to "Eureka Bridge." She was a pleasure to work with at shows as well as in the studio.
And who knows, maybe I'm overlooking some well-known women producers. Do you know of any?
That's it for me.
And then I thought... and I thought some more... and I realized I couldn't think of one producer that is a woman.
Which I think is pretty interesting!
From what I've observed, the role of a producer is never completely the same from one project to the next, and I imagine it's hard to know what you're getting into with any project. A good producer has to be pretty versatile from one role to the next.
And that's generally true when you're working with musicians- whether you're the sound guy (or girl!) or the person printing our flyers, or the person designing our flyers, or the person taking our order at the cafe... musicians are funny people and you never really know what you're going to get. Some weeks I spend about three or four days living out of a backpack with one or two showers and not brushing my hair, wearing dirty clothes, and the other three or four days of the week I walk around town with a laptop, drinking espresso, and feeling like some weird business lady. We play a lot of roles too.
Anyway, what I was getting at is that since their are so many different roles a producer could fill on any album, I'm surprised that there aren't more women producers. I'm curious... if there had been, say, if Bob Dylan had done some albums with a woman producer, or the Beatles, or Radiohead for that matter, I wonder how that could have changed music? And maybe it's not such a thing.. I mean, any person on any project being different, especially the producer, that would change everything regardless of gender.
It turns out there are some pretty cool women producers out there. A woman named Sylvia Massy produced Tool's Undertow. I also ran across a woman named Susan Rogers. Currently a professor at Berklee, she worked with David Byrne, Prince, Edie Brickell, Violent Femmes,... I did a little bit of research- there are actually quite a few articles about why there aren't many women producers. I found a list of the "50 Most Influential Producers" and not one was a woman. I found lots of speculation on why there aren't more women producers, all just speculation it seems.
I should also definitely mention a pretty rad recording engineer I personally know named Natalie Fores. She was our sound person for a while before she moved to Madison to do an internship at Paradyme Productions, where she recorded the audio for our video to "Eureka Bridge." She was a pleasure to work with at shows as well as in the studio.
And who knows, maybe I'm overlooking some well-known women producers. Do you know of any?
That's it for me.
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Five Albums of My Infatuation
ALBUM INFATUATION/LOVE- A Preface
Released in February of 2014, I first heard this record on vinyl on a sunny, lazy day in my apartment at the tail end of last winter. It's got a polished sound. It's slow, it's melodic, it's heartbreaking and captivating. I have had some of the most intense conversations of my life while listening to this album. I fell in love within the very moment I heard the first note- an indulgent symphonic chord. Morning Phase is so thick I could drown in it. It is music that makes my heart well way up to the brim and I can surrender to that.
This one is new to me and I haven't listened to it more than a couple of times. It's spiritual, interesting rhythmically. I don't really know what he's talking about, but I know what he's talking about! It's great driving music- especially on sunny September days. There are many layers to this album but it's not complicated. It makes my body flow with its rhythms. This is a feeling album primarily- sensual.. trippy.. instantaneous connection.
Oh man! I re-stumbled onto this one again sometime in early summer. It made so much sense to me. It melted me into an excited little puddle of a girl. It's genius. It takes you for a ride that can become almost too intense at times depending on where you're at... This album is powerful and shakes me to my core.
Of the five, this is sort of my soul mate album. It's got a timeless feeling, an organic vibe. The whole thing is consistently good. It's sort of simple and subtle as well as graceful and gentle. If it were landscape it would be gently rolling hills with a big open sky, sharp greens and blues and puffy white clouds. I fell in love with this album late spring-time this last year and soon after realized that it was recorded at Hyde Street Studio- where we recorded Space and Time. Beautiful Beautiful Beautiful.
Every album is different, but in general I fall hard and fast. Whether it's a melody, word or string of words, rhythm, or some other aesthetic seasoning, I hear and feel and think and I am so quickly infatuated. I've fallen in love with many albums throughout my short life- all different kinds and for all different reasons- sometimes it lasts for a long time- continually finding new things to love about the music- and other times it's more short lived... Either way I'm thankful for all my relationships with music. In regards to music, I suppose you could call me a polyamorist?
So here we go- judge me or don't, try out these albums or don't, here are five noteworthy albums I've been infatuated with this summer:
1. Beck- Morning Phase
Released in February of 2014, I first heard this record on vinyl on a sunny, lazy day in my apartment at the tail end of last winter. It's got a polished sound. It's slow, it's melodic, it's heartbreaking and captivating. I have had some of the most intense conversations of my life while listening to this album. I fell in love within the very moment I heard the first note- an indulgent symphonic chord. Morning Phase is so thick I could drown in it. It is music that makes my heart well way up to the brim and I can surrender to that.
2. Tallest Man on Earth- There's No Leaving Now
I've been enamored with Tallest Man on Earth since I first heard him around five or six years ago. The Pabst Theater was doing a run of free shows on Tuesdays. There were maybe 50 people there or less! I really enjoyed his first two albums, but "There's No Leaving Now" really stole my heart. The song-writing is over-all beautiful, but there are certain strings of words that really stick out to me. His nitty-gritty voice attracts me as well as his rhythmic and decorated guitar playing. Released in 2012, I have come back to this album time and again.
3. Damien Jurado- Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Son
This one is new to me and I haven't listened to it more than a couple of times. It's spiritual, interesting rhythmically. I don't really know what he's talking about, but I know what he's talking about! It's great driving music- especially on sunny September days. There are many layers to this album but it's not complicated. It makes my body flow with its rhythms. This is a feeling album primarily- sensual.. trippy.. instantaneous connection.
4. Radiohead- In Rainbows
Oh man! I re-stumbled onto this one again sometime in early summer. It made so much sense to me. It melted me into an excited little puddle of a girl. It's genius. It takes you for a ride that can become almost too intense at times depending on where you're at... This album is powerful and shakes me to my core.
5. Sun Kil Moon-Ghosts of the Great Highway
Of the five, this is sort of my soul mate album. It's got a timeless feeling, an organic vibe. The whole thing is consistently good. It's sort of simple and subtle as well as graceful and gentle. If it were landscape it would be gently rolling hills with a big open sky, sharp greens and blues and puffy white clouds. I fell in love with this album late spring-time this last year and soon after realized that it was recorded at Hyde Street Studio- where we recorded Space and Time. Beautiful Beautiful Beautiful.
There they are! I could name several more but I wont. Well, I will make two more notable mentions! And they are:
Jim James- "Regions of Light and Sound"
Townes Van Zandt- "Our Mother the Mountain"
Cheers!
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