2020 Q1

Hello and welcome to 2020! Well March 2020…

February 26, HiFi Indy

It’s been a fun year musically so far with some big highlights. I’ve been writing and performing and feeling more confident about both overall. My hope is to record and release some of these new tunes later this year so watch this space (or my Facebook page).

The big highlight so far this year and really my musical life has been getting to play New Faces Night at HiFi Indy. It truly was an honor and I can’t thank their staff for the opportunity! I’ve never had better sound live and everyone made me feel welcome. Checkout some video from the evening! https://youtu.be/nc4zK9pG1ZE

Stop Talking About It

The handful of you who know me know that I lean a little to the quieter side. A smaller group of you know that I can over analyze things. Well, for nearly a year I’ve been talking and thinking too much about making a record and not doing enough of making the record. This was making me a little crazy so I decided to do something about it.

What was holding me back? Part of it was cost. I had the cash set aside. But managing finances is about making choices and I was having trouble committing those funds to a producer or to studio time instead of towards travel, home improvements, etc.. The other aspect was good ole self doubt. What if others don’t like it?

So what changed? As I wrote more throughout the year, I recorded more. Recording is an art and skill itself and takes practice. The bad songs got an arrangement and recorded. The good songs that turned out to be just ok got arranged and recorded. And there were even a couple really good songs, in my opinion, that got tracked along the way. My workflow improved, recording makes anyone a better musician, and I got better at using my available gear.

My home studio, Sleeping Dog Studios, is a humble place, a 10×10 bedroom with some modest acoustic treatments, but I’ve somehow managed to cut down a bunch of the sound reflection. My studio gear is extremely humble. I tracked through Logic Pro X using a Behringer interface and old MacBook. Microphones used were an Audio Technica AT2020 and Audix i5. No thousand dollar mics here. This place was pieced together with value in mind. Plenty of amazing records have been made with cheap gear so why not my little project?

Getting quality recordings started to feel like reality so I began to project manage this thing. I researched distribution, made a task list, and took a day off to get the rest of the tracks recorded. It took more than a day but that’s an advantage of the home studio. It’s available almost anytime. Except when the dogs are barking instead of sleeping and the neighbors are mowing.

As with any DIY project, it’s good to know your limits and when to call a professional. For me this is in the mixing and mastering process. I know I’m pretty much guessing on those things. I took my tracks to Azmyth Recording in Indianapolis. Azmyth was recommended by other musicians I like both as people and musicians and this vibe was carried into the studio.

I’m feeling a nice sense of pride with this project which is the best way to beat ole self doubt. There are a few more tasks left but the list is getting smaller. We are shooting for an October 9th release date partly in homage to the now old days of Tuesday music releases. That’s the nice thing about being a truly independent artist.

This thing still on?

Hey, remember this thing? You probably don’t and truth is I barely remember it. Life can be that way. We start something with great ambition and intent then an entire season goes by without us following through. The original intent of this was to document my musical interests and personal journey so let’s jump into what’s happened this summer.

I’d say the theme of the summer has been experimenting while trying to catch my breath. Between a couple trips to Disney World, which were amazing, I found myself diving back into electronic music, ambient guitar, and learning how to program beats (try not to laugh too hard). I wrote some songs and did a little recording but found these weren’t where my interests were at the time. I’m blessed to have a fun variety of tools for noisemaking. More of my energy went into learning how to better use them and have fun, which is supposed to be the point of this. Right?

One of the downsides of a traditional career is that it starts to color other parts of your life. The corporate world has provided a steady income, healthcare, retirement plan, etc. and these are the reasons I followed that path. But it can color one’s view of progress or success based on checking a box, filling up a report, and showing it all on some nice spreadsheet. Thankfully art isn’t this way. I found my summer of experimenting was refreshing for musical creativity and skill.

I did publish a couple of the outcomes of this experimentation. These are ambient instrumentals that more or less scratched on itch at the time. One is titled ii IV and was inspired by a Twitter interaction with one of my favorite musicians, Phil Cook. Phil plays guitar and keyboards. He is a member of Hiss Golden Messenger but has worked with Justin Vernon as part of The Shouting Matches, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Megafaun, and many other artists. His tweet comparing ii and IV chords to licorice and then life, lead to my little ambient jam using just the ii and IV chords. Since I had two and four, I figured it needed six and eight so I followed up with vi VIII. I would appreciate if you give them a listen when you have a few minutes.

Keeping the Journey Alive

My mother always wanted to play piano so all eight of her kids ended up taking piano lessons. Thus, my journey with music began over 30 years ago. This took me to recitals, a degree in music from the University of Indianapolis, some minor recordings, and several rich music experiences along the way. Eventually, the usual excuses took over – burnout, life, “real” work, etc. In spite of all this, I still noticed the influence of music on my life. It showed up in my work processes, thinking, and general approach to life.

This journey picked up a few years ago when I started messing around with my wife, Rachel’s, instruments. First, the ukulele, then guitar. Both were gifts from her mother in hopes she would start playing. This started as and continues to be an outlet for the stresses of life. The more I played, the more my years of musical education began to reconnect and I started messing around with composition. Again, using something from Rachel, an old MacBook with GarageBand. I’ve written and recorded a handful of songs now and play these and others at open mic nights and whenever opportunities present themselves.

My friend, Jeff, has been kind enough to invite me into his group of friends. Occasionally we’ll get together for a night out or weekend away which Jeff refers to as “keeping the journey alive.” Any good journey has its share of detours, surprises, and meetings with friends new and old. My musical journey, especially the past couple of years, has mirrored this and is now alive and well. I’ll be documenting parts of this journey as it continues along with thoughts on music other than my own. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I do.