Carolyn Shulman is currently from Colorado. She had a lot to say, which I strongly encourage, so we'll skip the preamble and get around to amplifying her voice after the picture.

Photo by Jessie Matteson

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

I’m a folk / Americana singer-songwriter. I have played guitar since I was 9 years old and focus on acoustic guitar. I especially love intricate fingerpicking, but I also enjoy a good, old fashioned strummy song! I am also working on building my electric guitar skills. I would love to be able to improvise and play solid lead guitar, which would open up more possibilities for collaboration with other artists. I’m not there yet, but I’m having such a blast learning and working on developing that new skill set.  

When I perform live, I mostly play solo with my acoustic guitar. However, the album I released in May 2021, Grenadine & Kerosene, is a fully produced album with a band. It contains some songs that are solidly folk, some that are more folk-rock or Americana, and one that is straight up country.  

2.  I have gathered from your social media feeds that you are both culturally and religiously Jewish.  How does your faith and your culture influence the music you make? 

That’s such a nice question! Being Jewish factors into my songwriting indirectly in terms of how I view the world and my role in it. As Jews, we are taught that we should always work to make the world a better place than we found it (this is the concept of tikkun olam - repairing the world). I think also being part of a group that is targeted by violent extremists and hate groups has given me a heightened sense of empathy for the struggles of other marginalized groups. All of these ideas find their way into my songs.  

Being Jewish has also factored into at least one of my songs very directly. My song “Across the Borderline” is about a refugee mother and her two daughters making the perilous journey through the desert to what they hope will be safety in America, only to be separated when they finally make it. Writing it, I was thinking about the similarities with the Exodus story, when Moses led the Jews out of slavery in Egypt, across the desert, to safety and freedom in the promised land.  

Then, fast forward to more modern times, the line in the chorus that says “every footstep is a prayer” was inspired by something that Rabbi Abraham Heschel said after marching in Selma with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Some other rabbis (who had not gone to Selma) were giving him a hard time afterwards. Calling his level of religious observance into question, they asked him whether he prayed while he was in Alabama. He replied, “Yes. I prayed with my feet.” I really love that idea of praying with our feet - that taking action, either for ourselves or to help others, can be just as holy and important as praying in a more traditional way. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Michael Jackson’s Bad! I bought it on cassette tape at Peaches Music (which is sadly no more) in my hometown of Mobile, Alabama. That was how we rolled in the 80s!  

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last in-person concert I saw was Shawn Colvin, Marc Cohn, and Sara Watkins on December 1, 2021 at the beautiful Paramount Theater in Denver, Colorado. It was my first indoor, in-person show to attend since before the pandemic began. They were fantastic. Mary Chapin-Carpenter was supposed to be part of that tour, but she had to cancel due to I think a shoulder injury, and so Sara Watkins (Nickel Creek, Watkins Family Hour) subbed in, and she was an amazing addition to the show. They all sat onstage and played in the round, and it was a beautiful night. I cried when the music started, it had been so long. 

5.  You didn't get a chance to play a bunch of support shows for Grenadine & Kerosene, thanks to the pandemic. Are there plans of taking that album out on the road in the future? 

I hope so, pandemic allowing! I’m planning on booking some shows around Colorado for the spring and summer.  

6. You're a lawyer.  I've never met a lawyer who turned into an indie musician. Is there anything from your former career that you bring forward into this one?  

Definitely. I am sort of a geek about doing things by the book and treating my music like a business (because it is!). I copyright my songs. I set up an LLC through which I handle my music business. I know the value of seeking out the help of experts when I don’t know how to do something myself or when I realize I don’t know all of the subtleties. I would never sign a contract that could affect my rights to control or earn income from my music or my publishing without thoroughly reviewing it and would probably have another lawyer review it, too.  

I think in general, my background as a lawyer has taught me a lot about how the world works and has taught me that the devil is in the details, so to speak. 

7. If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be?   

I would have the streaming platforms such as Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, etc. compensate artists more fairly for the use of our creations. Right now, it takes approximately 5,000 Spotify streams in the United States to earn the same income we’d get from one album sale. That is insulting to artists and has resulted in a mind-boggling amount of profit for these streaming companies.  

Meanwhile, music has become devalued to the average listener. Maybe they don’t know that we only receive about $0.003 per stream (on Spotify), or maybe they don’t care because streaming is so convenient. I mean, I stream music, too! I love being able to do so. But, when I find something I enjoy, I go to iTunes or to that artist’s website, and I purchase a digital download of the album in order to support that artist. Most people, however, aren’t doing that. We have been conditioned in the last 15 years to expect instant, on-demand access to just about any song we want for very low cost. In the past, people had to buy an album if they wanted to listen to it on demand.  

8.  Making Grenadine & Kerosene was a lifelong dream for you.  Mission accomplished.  What do you do next? 

I am focusing right now on learning how to work within the world of sync licensing. Sync licensing is when a song gets licensed for use in television, movies, advertisements, and video games. As I explained in the previous question, music streaming platforms have sort of destroyed musicians’ ability to earn much income from recorded music. However, sync licensing is a great way to do just that. Music supervisors need music in order to enhance the emotional impact of their shows, movies, ads, and games, and they are required to pay artists to use it. More shows and movies are being created and released than ever before right now (thanks to streaming services! ha!), and I believe indie musicians can really benefit by working on getting their songs into this arena.  

In addition to working on that, I am also looking forward to connecting with fans in person and growing my audience through live shows this year! Fingers crossed for a better year in terms of the pandemic. I really want to play out more in 2022. 

***********************

Grenadine & Kerosene is not only a brilliant album title full of imagery, it's also the name of the album's title track. It's very good.  You should listen to it. Feel free to listen to it for free on the streaming service of your choice, but if you like it, well, you should probably head on over to Carolyn's Bandcamp page and buy it.

In addition to her official website, you can connect with Carolyn Shulman on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

I enjoyed getting to learn more about some talented folks this year via these written interviews.  I hope you enjoyed them as well, and I hope you found some new music to enjoy.  Below the picture is a review of the people we met this year.

with Baby Molly in Austin before the pandemic

Riley Hall - Bass player and singer in Snarls, a band from Columbus that you really should check out.

Jenee Halstead - Artist, singer-songwriter. She released an album called Disposable Love this year.

Baby Molly - Songwriter who recently moved from Toronto to Vancouver. You'll be hearing more from him soon.  

Chris Keats - Artist name is stylized as KEATS.  He released an EP this year called When the Sails Collapse, As Live.

Elyssa Vulpes - Italian songwriter who has moved to New Zealand since we did our interview.

Emmrose - Songwriter and artist from New York City.

Kyleen Downes - A music professional from right here in the Dayton area.

If you missed any of these interviews, or would like to re-familiarize yourself with any of these fine people, feel free to visit the links.  Listen to their music, connect with them on social media, and if you find any of the songs particularly moving, maybe tell a friend?

Kyleen Downes is a true professional. She plays, she writes, she sings, she teaches... and radiates joy when making music.  Every time I go see Kyleen play a show, I end up less grumpy when the show is over than I was before it started.  The community of musicians in the greater Dayton area is better for having her be a part it. 

This is her official music page. I have everything here on compact disc, and I assure you, it's all good.  Why not get yourself a copy of her latest album, Come On Sit Down, on vinyl or CD?

How about we get to know Kyleen a little better?  After the photo, I amplify her voice.

Photo by Jennifer Taylor

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

The best one I’ve come up with is my music sounds like if Tom Petty and Sheryl Crow were raised on TRL. 

2.  You have a Bachelor's degree in Music.  For musicians who are not formally educated in music, but wish to improve, what's a simple piece of advice you could give? 

While I was getting my degree I was inundated with so much information, I was discouraged that I wasn’t retaining what I was learning. But as the years have gone by, many concepts have clicked. So my advice would be, don’t feel like you need to know it all, incorporate what you do know (value it!) and more will come as you go. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

I made two album purchases that day with my own money: The Men In Black soundtrack and Weird Al Yankovic Bad Hair Day.

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

I saw Cat Power, Garbage and Alanis Morissette at Riverbend in September. A friend invited me and had 3rd row seats, I’ve never been that close before! Cat Power’s performance was gorgeous and humble. Then Garbage performed and they damn near killed me with the bass, but it was awesome. Shirley Manson now has a place on my badass women list. Halfway through one of her songs she called someone out in the audience and said “Hey Kelly” then proceeded to finish the song. Afterwards, she proclaimed how amazing the universe is that in a sea of people she saw their server from the night before, Kelly. She then told the audience that Kelly was in a band called Flying Underground and that she checked them out on the Instagram and said their stuff was great! SO fun! Finally Alanis Morissette came out with her stellar band and washed us all in her unbelievable voice and energy. The concert was incredibly uplifting and an experience that I got to have with two of my closest friends. 

5.  When did you start playing guitar?  Why did you choose guitar as your instrument? 

I started playing guitar when I was 12 years old after my parents gave me one for Christmas. I wish I knew why I chose guitar because it has become such a huge part of my life. As a kid I did love singing musical and Disney songs, and I also played clarinet, but I really don’t know why I chose guitar. I asked my mom once why they got me a guitar for Christmas and she said, “I guess you must have asked for it.” Makes sense Mom, haha! 

6.  You're a solo artist, even though you write full band compositions.  I can relate.  When you finish a song and are thinking about heading to the studio with it, how do you approach making choices for arrangement and instrumentation? 

The songs I take to the band, I work out structure and instruments parts with them. The songs I’ve worked out on my own will often take shape in the studio. I may have an idea of trying something on a particular instrument but won’t know until I try it. I now have an interface and some GarageBand skills to try out more arranging beforehand, I’m excited to see how it works out! 

7. Can you name three influences on your songwriting and sound, along with some details on how you incorporate those influences? 

I’m influenced by whoever I am listening to or perhaps learning to play on guitar. I developed one song on guitar when I was pretending to be Jimi Hendrix in my basement. It sounds nothing like Jimi Hendrix but who does!? It was more how he moves his fingers on the neck that I was trying to imitate. That song I co-wrote with Emma Woodruff for her album Longing for Something I Ain’t Got and it’s called "Yellow Springs Thing". 

A song of mine, not yet released, called "Tell Me What I Want to Hear" was influenced by Prince. I was hearing something in my head that sounded sexy and staccato, so I developed the song with his aesthetic in mind. 

A local influence came out when I was writing my song "Big Top" and that’s the duo Biscuits and Gravy. The acoustic punch of Harold Hensley and the sassiness of Cassandra Barker really drove the tone of that song. 

8.  So... when do we get more new music from Kyleen Downes? 

2022! No specific details but I’ve got new songs written and will be recording soon. They each have very distinct voices so I plan to release them as singles throughout the year.

***

The video for "Give Up the Ghost" is great, and you should watch it.  I've already linked to the official home of Kyleen Downes on the Internet, but here's her website again.  You can find her music there, as well as on all of your normal streaming services.  You can also find Kyleen on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

I am absolutely thrilled that Kyleen is willing to play with me THIS WEEK, when I play live on WYSO.  Again, she is a true professional.  Rehearsals have been solid, and I warmly invite you all to tune in on WYSO dot org Wednesday 13th October at 8 PM Eastern, and you'll hear Kyleen's fine guitar work and harmony vocals.

Let's get international again over here on Amplified.  Today we meet an Italian... an Italian who hosts a podcast called Dare to Be Seen. This podcast features independent female singer-songwriters and lets the world into their individual stories, songs, and lessons learned along their musical journey. The goal is to help women to shine in a male-dominated industry.   Click here to check out the Dare to Be Seen podcast. 

But wait!  That's not all that Elyssa does.  She also does free Kickstart Your Project Consultations as an artist and creativity coach. Click here for more details. 

Let's get to the interview after the photo.

1. Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre.

I make Indie folk rock with Cabaret and Celtic European influences and sound like a mix of Jade Bird, Neko Case and Martha Wainwright’s Italian Sister.

2. I saw some videos of you in your studio working on songs.  How long have you been doing your own engineering?  Do you also handle your own mixing? 

I started learning about audio engineering two decades ago as a result of getting frustrated with other people having control over my recordings. I decided I needed to learn how to do things myself so I asked some friends to help me. However, I decided that was not enough so I enrolled in some university courses so I could learn about recording techniques and midi sampling. I then decided to let someone else do the mixing for me. After a few years and a lot of money wasted I refreshed my knowledge by taking another college course in audio engineering but the truth is that I do not enjoy spending a lot of time mixing. So I tend to use logic or ableton to record and do a basic mix and then, unless it is a demo, I will ask a studio to finish it up and make it sound amazing. 

3. What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Weirdly enough an album by The Trees, a super obscure English psychedelic folk band of the 70s. I got the LP from a second hand shop after listening to it in someone’s basement in Edinburgh. I had other records before but they were either vinyl my brother gifted me (Queen, Led Zeppelin, Doors, Bob Dylan) or cassette tapes as a teenager. Yes I am that old. 

4. Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

Oh my , that was a long time ago, pre-covid. I think it was the Flight of the Conchords in Glasgow! they were amazing, and the the stadium was packed. I had first seen them in New Zealand two decades prior when nobody knew who they were and swore they would be famous. We used to play at the San Francisco Bath house together! (though they won’t remember me ;P )  Well they are now super famous which goes to show I am a good talent scout! Maybe I should change job…:) 

5. You're bilingual.  How do you decide which language to use when you write a song? 

The country in which I currently live has been the biggest influence. So when I lived in Italy I wrote in Italian and when I lived in English speaking countries I wrote in English. However, recently I have started writing more in Italian mainly because it really is a lot easier for me to remember lyrics in Italian. I also have been told that my voice sounds better in that language. I am not sure that is true, but I feel that writing in Italian can be easier and possibly closer to who I am.... ? At the same time, it depends on the subject matter too. I left Italy when I was 18 so there are some themes I 
learnt to explore only later. Especially when it comes down to feelings I learned to express myself in English a lot better after leaving Italy. So it’s a bit tricky. It is important to me that my audience understands my lyrics. That has always been the most important factor, but now I am beginning to think that maybe that’s not something I should focus on too much just because otherwise I would never again write in Italian! So I tend to have a 50% ratio, or at least aim for that. 

6. Which artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

I have lots of influences, but mainly Italian  singer songwriters from the 70s (De Andre’, Battisti, Guccini) , prog rock bands such as the King Crimson, classic rock such as Led Zeppelin, Doors and Queen, and English, Irish and Scottish folk especially from the 70s, like The Trees and Sandy Danny and  American  storyteller / poet songwriters such as Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and Joan Baez. 

7. If you could choose for a listener to learn one thing about you from listening to your songs, what would that be? 

That we need to talk about taboo and uncomfortable truths. We need not shy away from the darkness in our souls in order to transform,  transmute and transcend. Transformation begins with acceptance. Shining a light on our fears is the first step. Then we need to harness our courage to use our pain to help us learn how to be happy. Of course we cannot always be happy and that’s ok too. 

8. What's next for you? 

I have an acoustic album of new songs that I want to record. It will be more stripped down than the last three albums, probably just guitar and voice or piano and voice. I am re-learning to play the piano and it’s super exciting !! I also have an electronic project on the go which is completely different from anything I have ever done... recently I attended a Berklee School of Music Songwriting course that blew my mind. I am now inspired to go back to some of the songs I have already written and re-work them to make them even better. I wish I had three times for time in my day to do all the things I want to do… and if I could I would just play music all day! I also am into my drumming a lot and am planning to start a new band as a drummer vocalist when I move to New Zealand in September. We will see if I can keep a beat and sing at the same time!

***

You can connect with Elyssa over on her official website, and also on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Chris Keats is the first British person to appear here on this interview series.  After the picture, let's amplify his voice... and as I did with our Canadian guest recently, I have left the  English spelling unchanged.

1. Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

Music to me is better than therapy. After my mum died by suicide I promised myself that I would do something everyday to make myself a better musician & a better human being. I write acoustic folk pop songs to heal both myself & others. 

2. Your bio says you're a world traveler.  Can you give me three countries you have visited that are foreign to you, a favorite food you experienced there, and something you have learned from your visit? 

The first place that comes to mind is Kathmandu in Nepal. I spent 3 months there in 2013 volunteering with a charity called The Umbrella Foundation which helped children who were trafficked during the civil war get back to their families, as well as clothing & educating them. We ate a lot of Dal Bhat with the children for breakfast & dinner but my favourite was a Nepalese Thali! Lovely! I learnt first hand what malnutrition looks & feels like & the impact that had on the lives of the children. I also realised how lucky I was & am to live in the west & to have a fantastic quality of life. 

Secondly I went to Rome in 2018 for a solo adventure. The pizza was amazing! (I wasn’t vegan at that point so it was meaty pizzas!) I learnt that there are other ways to live, other than the live to work life I had led in England. That the Italian people love life & they live it to the fullest! Very inspiring. 

I went to India in 2015 for 3 months. I loved the Massaman Curries I had there. I had it a lot. With a little bit of spice it was so tasty! I’d go back just for the food. What did I learn there? I learnt a lot about just being, rather than doing. I learnt to appreciate the small things. I learn what it was like to live in a chaotic but beautiful society. I re-learned to love my own company & be with myself. 

3. What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

There are 2. The first one was 2 Unlimited’s second album called No Limits, which is a pop dance record which I loved! I’m listening to it now! 

I also remember buying Queen’s Greatest Hits 2 with my Dad at Virgin Records Stores in Brighton & then on the way home the car ran out of petrol and we had to wait by the side of the road for what felt like forever before getting more petrol & finally getting home! Such a great album! I love Queen! 

4. Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

Wow! The last proper gig I went to was in February 2020 to see City & Colour at The London Palladium! It was great. It was one of those gigs where I was incredibly into the band at the time & they had a new album out which was great. I miss playing & going to gigs so much right now! It’s been far too long! 

5. It seems like songwriting helps you to deal with trauma and pain and general life difficulty. When you write something to help heal yourself, how do you decide if you should also share it with an audience? 

Yes songwriting has been therapy for over a decade now. Since 2006 really.  

I have held back on some of the more painful songs I’ve written but I made the decision quite recently to start playing them & to record them. I’ve come to realise that I don’t know whether a song will be successful or not, or whether it is a good song or not. So I’ve decided to let the people decide. If I release a song & it helps one person that is a success to me!  

So going forward I won’t be holding back! 

6. Among the influences you note in your bio, I am only familiar with the music of Neil Young, so this question is about his music specifically.  What things from Neil Young's vast array of sounds, styles, and songs do you take with you into your own work? 

I love all of his music but my songwriting is influenced by his Harvest era work, After the Goldrush, Zuma & also Rust Never Sleeps. I love Harvest Moon too! I always planned to start with an acoustic set & then have the second half of the set be electric. That’s still a plan of mine! 

7. How has the ongoing pandemic affected your music career? 

I have meant not playing shows for the longest time I’ve had for decades. It is only recently that it has really started to bother me. I’m very patient but I’ve got to the point where I want to play live shows & go & see other artists perform. I want to go & perform at festivals & get back to travelling & playing shows!  

It has been a financial challenge as I would ‘normally’ be funding my music career with the money I make from working as a Physiotherapist! That isn’t possible right now.  

Ultimately it has meant I’ve started coaching the guitar & ukulele more and learnt a lot about how the music industry & the music business works & about marketing my artist career & growing my fanbase. I also wrote a lot of songs in the first lockdown that I must go back to. 

Overall I have made a positive time of it! 

8. So far, you have released a few singles.  What's next? Do you have plans to make an album? 

Yes I’ve released 4 singles since September 11th 2020 with a new single, SPOTLIGHT, out on April 9th. Then my first EP WHEN THE SAILS COLLAPSE, AS LIVE is hopefully coming out in May.  

I want to release my first album in either March or September 2022 & record a total of 3 albums by 2025. 

I’ve spent a lot of time in the last year learning the business side of the industry so it’s time to write a lot more songs & get back into the studio!

***

Did you notice that Chris Keats has a new single coming out this week?  "Spotlight" is coming your way on Friday, April 9th.  Click right here to follow Chris on Spotify.  

You can also find Chris over on Bandcamp, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Let's start by making sure we all pronounce Jenee's name correctly... it rhymes with the French name Renée.  Ok, there you go.  Jenee Halstead is a songwriter that comes to us from Massachusetts, and her new album Disposable Love will be released THIS WEEK, on Friday the 22nd.  I very much dig it, and I think you will, too... when you listen to these songs, you can tell that she feels every word she sings.  After the photo, an interview with Jenee Halstead.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

Skill set - I have no way or reason to give a skill set. Not sure how to even answer this question. I guess I would call myself an artist. Not considering a skill or ability. I play guitar, I sing my own songs, I seem to get better with each album. It's all about expression. I try to be pure in my expression. Not sure how that relates to my abilities. That is for others to judge I guess. 

As far a genre goes I guess I am just a singer-songwriter. I am not glossy enough to be pop, not americana.  You could call it indie pop or indie soul. The album is really all over the map. So I think singer-songwriter is the best answer.

2.  You've travelled with a choir that performed Gregorian chant music.  (I know this because I read your bio.)  Are there parts of that experience that filter into your songwriting and performing today?  How so? 

I guess the Gregorian choir just seeps in as far as purity and sacredness of music. I always want to hear a purity of intention and intentionality if you will in all music. It doesn't matter the genre. If it feels like it is sacred to the person: expressed, meaningful, passionate. Then for me that counts as pure intention. I think there is just a level of sacredness and appreciation in music that I like to hear and experience and witness from whomever I am listening to. If that is not there, it will in no way interest me.

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Maybe Eazy E. I think it was the Eazy E cassette Eazy-Duz-It.. I was a huge hip hop, rap and R&B fan and still am. Oh boy I knew every word to that cassette. Can you imagine a skinny, awkward 12 year old girl from Spokane spitting Easy E on the way to junior high school? Yep. I loved it.

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last concert I saw: live or online? 

I can't even remember. Maybe Lucinda Williams at The Paradise in Boston for the 20th Anniversary of Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. It was great. She was funny. Telling stories of what inspired the songs in between playing. Her stories were mostly about a failed love affair during tour and living on the road. So good. I had accidentally seen her twice that year within a three month span. I think friends offered a ticket each time. So good. She is just amazing when she is sober. I think she has been sober for a while.  Three months prior I saw her outdoors at the Blue Pavilion (I think that is the name) in Boston and a fricken fireworks show went off over the water during one of her songs. Amazing.

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

My biggest influences?  I am going to say Kate Bush. Although my music sounds nothing like hers. It's just her. She is a Master of the highest degree. A sorceress. Her music, expression, songwriting, vocal range, vocal color, vocal ability, all of it is just crazy. I think what I love the most about her is she is working with the elements and mastering the sonic space and alchemizing the planet with her voice, with her lyrics. I can't explain it. Just listen to "Love and Anger" off The Sensual World.  I guess she just inspires me in her purity, her intentionality and her ability to heal the world with her music, with the mastery in which she turns a phrase with her voice. 

Watch the video here:

Second would be Joni Mitchell. For all the same reasons. The ability to speak and sing of her emotions in a way this is still unrivaled. Her poetry, her insane and gorgeous musical compositions. 

Third would be Nick Cave. He is like my soul. He sings and expresses my soul in masculine form.

6.  How has the ongoing pandemic affected your music career?

The ongoing pandemic has changed things a lot. It pushed the album release back 8 months. I hadn't really booked a lot of live shows for the release, so that wasn't an issue. I guess for me it was just hard to make the transition online. I didn't want to play online at first. I was focusing on getting singles out from the album, so I didn't have to worry too much about being in the studio or anything. I am finally getting around to playing online and doing a Variety Show through Stream Yard. I just love the live show with people in the room. I work with the energy in the room from people. It felt so strange at first when I was trying to play online in early March. You don't get that energetic interaction. I guess I should have viewed it early on more like a service. Service to others. That may have helped me get over the fear of online playing. I guess it's also devastating seeing some of my favorite stages shutting down. I don't know what to think about a lot of it right now. There is just now way to know how things will be when all of this is said and done.

7. You sound just a little bit different on each release, and it's interesting to me to notice an artist's progress like that.  On Disposable Love you seem to have embraced some surprising changes of feel and instrumentation within the same song ("I'll Be Your Man"), showing off influences from blues and gospel at times ("In the Seams"), and even a song that feels like it's a country song except for the really interesting bass line ("Solitary People").  When you started putting this album together, did you plan to cover that much different musical ground, or did it just kind of happen? 

When we started this album I don't think we planned on covering this much ground. I have always dappled in several "genres" as a writer. In previous albums I have married folk with Americana, a little bit of Country or Alt-Country, electronic beats and having the album musicians run roots instrumentation through pedals and amps.  This was my work with producer Evan Brubaker on my first two full length albums. I knew on this album I wanted to cover more soul and pop sounds. I was clear on that.  I was writing songs that sounded more pop influenced and my co-writes with Berklee Songwriting professor Susan Cattaneo (who is a good friend) were each much more soul and pop driven. We co-wrote "In the Seams," "Mother" and "Disposable Love."  She also co-wrote the lyrics on "Skin," which to me is truly pop all the way.  I think Dave Brophy, my producer, is comfortable bridging all these worlds and in such a unique and masterful way. That was why I was excited to work with him. On any given day he will be working on a Jewish Klezmer album, a soul album, a straight up country Americana album and a high level jazz album.  He is a jack of all trades, multi-instrumentalist and he is comfortable swimming in many ponds. We both love Spaghetti Western and noir sounding music and I think that informed and was a thread through a lot of the music...but it also has a fresher pop approach to it.

8. The COVID-19 vaccine is slowly trickling out, which means that maybe - just maybe - touring could be back this year.  If we get live shows back, do you plan to go on the road with the album?  If we don't get live shows back, what are your next steps?

I honestly am not sure and haven't given this much thought yet. The continual on and off lock downs and insecurity around this whole thing has me table everything for now. If venues start to open in the next six months I may decide to book some shows.  I am hoping to at least do one big celebratory show in Boston sometime in the next year (fingers crossed). I just don't think we are going to know for a while how all of this will ramp down (unfortunately) and it's better for my mental health to look at the long game and not get my hopes up too high.

***

Trust me on this, you want to listen to Jenee's new album, Disposable Love, and I'd like to remind you that you can do so this Friday.  I linked her official website above, but just in case you missed it, click here to visit Jenee Halstead on the Internet.  You can also find Jenee on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

You might remember that Burst, the debut album from Columbus, Ohio's Snarls, was one of my favorite albums of 2020.  Let me give you just a little background on how I discovered this band.

Snarls opened for Sleater-Kinney in fall 2019 at Newport Music Hall on High Street.  Since the Southgate House down in Kentucky is no more, the Newport is my favorite concert venue.  It's exactly the kind of place that I would love to play, and I've seen plenty of outstanding shows there.  Sadly, there are plenty of people that don't pay attention to the opening act at rock shows, or don't even bother to arrive early enough to see them.  That's not me, I'll gladly take all of the rock you'll give me at a concert, thank you very much.  Snarls did not disappoint.  They did seem a little nervous, but I think playing a legendary venue in one's hometown for the first time is a reasonable thing to get nervous about.  The songs were good, the performance was good, and everyone in the band looked like they were enjoying themselves.

After the show, Misty and I headed to talk to the band and buy an album, but they didn't have one out yet.  We got to meet three of the four band members.  (We met everyone but Max, and I'd like to assure everyone that we are not biased against drummers.)  So, I've been going to shows at this venue since before some of these kids were born.  Misty and I are totally old enough to be their parents.  Suffice it to say that we are neither cool nor interesting, so Chlo & Mick & Riley (alphabetically) didn't have any reason to be nice to us, but they were.  Yeah, I'm not cool, but I am a musician, and they put up with me asking a couple of nerdy musician-type questions.  They're lovely individuals... so consider it a bonus that they also made a solid record.

Usually, when bands do press, the lead singer and/or lead guitarist end up doing most of the interviews.  For Snarls, that's Chlo and Mick.  They are the most visible part of the band, while the rhythm section labors in relative obscurity to drive the bus.  I mean no slight to the guitar players in this band (Mick actually did the artwork for my singles "Anecdote" and "Promise"), but I like to show special love to bass players.

After the picture, I amplify the voice of Riley Hall, who plays bass and sings in Snarls.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

I don’t know if I have any technical musical skills but I guess my skills include creating music that is true to my heart. That happens to be alternative emo rock.

2.  When did you start playing music?  Why did you decide to play bass?  Do you play any other instruments? 

So the first time I picked up an acoustic guitar was when I was 10 years old and taught myself through grade school more as a hobby. I learned through YouTube tutorials of Taylor Swift songs (haha a simpler time). I picked up bass for a class in high school called band lab. The students formed bands and wrote songs the whole year. The band I was in was actually with Chlo and a different classmate from then named Austin. That was me and Chlo’s first live band experience and it was kind of spur of the moment that I decided to play bass. It’s funny actually I had never even touched a bass before but it came quite naturally since I had played guitar for about 6 years already. There was a time where I took piano lessons but that was only for about a year when I was 16 and I haven't practiced since.

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

I’m not sure if this is considered my own money, but I did buy Taylor Swift’s album Fearless on iTunes with a Christmas gift card when I was like 11.

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

I went and saw CAAMP with my mom at legend valley back in October. It was a drive in concert so it was nice to have the luxury of live music while also being COVID conscious. A little breath of fresh air in this day and age.

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences?  A brief follow-up, making this a 2 for 1:  Which bass players do you consider to be influences? 

I love this question. There’s so many artists that I have admired over the years but there is a handful that stick out. John Mayer for one. I was 14 when I started diving into his music and really becoming inspired by him to expand my guitar skills. This is when I started learning his cool plucking and strumming technique like in “Stop This Train” and his cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Falling”. I definitely immersed myself in my acoustic guitar and as I learned more I started to recognize and acknowledge my growth as a musician for the first time. It really started to click in my head that maybe I should be chasing my dreams, or rather that they weren't just “dreams”. I can’t say that I have ever payed attention to bass players specifically since I didn’t start playing until I was 16. Even still I have never viewed music like that. Looking for the best guitarist, drummer, bassist etc. I look for music that makes me feel. Music that reminds me that other people feel too.

6.  The pandemic did not treat you all kindly.  You had a tour cancelled right out from under you, and while I know you would have loved to go on the road because you love to play, it's also work, so that cost you financially as well.  How are you personally dealing with this lengthy disruption? 

Obviously it was very upsetting to first hear that all of our tours were cancelled but I never took it very personally just because I realized that it was all out of our control. I will say that I personally am very blessed, especially during lockdown, because I don’t pay rent (thanks mom!) and have very little monthly expenses. Given that, it has been really easy for me to just take everything day by day. There hasn't been any doubt thanks to all of our sweet fans that have been showing us so much love and support from the start of this whole mess. Also the Spotify recap thing was really comforting to see for Snarls and a really great reminder that we still have listeners from all around the world that are dying to see us play.

7. My favorite song on your band's album is "Burst", because, well, I'm also a bass player, and that should be obvious.  A sneaky second is "Concrete", I enjoy your work in that one.  What's your favorite song to play live and why? 

Thank you! “Concrete” was one of the first more intricate bass lines that I wrote so I appreciate that coming from a fellow player! I think my favorite song to play live is “Walk in the Woods” just because of how energetic we can get with it. My favorite thing about playing live shows is seeing everyone dance and let loose while they listen to us and that's very easy to do with that song.

8.  How do you intend to keep growing as a musician and writer?

I guess I just want to make sure that I continue to be as genuine to my emotions as possible. My biggest fear as a writer is making something just to stay relevant or to make money so pushing myself to make my music mean something in turn inspires me to discover everything that I possibly can about my own experience and emotions. I want to make sure what I express is real and not fabricated solely for the pleasure of others.

***

I strongly recommend the Snarls performance in Chicago at Audiotree.  This is it:

You can find Snarls all over the Internet, and listen to their debut album over on their Bandcamp page.  (Bandcamp Friday will resume in February, so if you are thinking of buying some Snarls merch, that would be a wonderful day to do so.)

Snarls is on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

You can connect with Riley on Twitter or Instagram.

Way back in April 2020, I began an interview series here on the blog.  I call it "Amplified" because my intent is to make the voices of artists louder.  We musician types desperately wish to be heard, and although I don't exactly have a mammoth readership, I figured I'd try to get some additional ears to the work of folks I respect.  After all, I'd love for someone to do that for me, and am grateful for every single listener.  Here's a brief summary of a very diverse group of people who agreed to participate this year:

Lauren Light - pop/soul singer/songwriter, podcaster, owner of a licensing company

Nina Pelligra - a capella looper artist, songwriter, engineer

Sarah Rudy - guitarist, songwriter

Dirty Doc - guitarist, songwriter

Shannon Söderlund - bassist, guitarist, songwriter

TINO - rapper, songwriter, performer

Greg Owens - guitarist, singer/songwriter

Treneti - vocalist, bassist, songwriter, producer

Megan Fiely - abstract artist, recovering musician

OriSoaring - multi-instrumentalist classically trained on saxophone, songwriter

If you missed any of these, I encourage you to revisit the interviews at the links.  Listen to the music, look at the artwork, connect with the artists on social media.

OriSoaring is a fascinating individual from Houston with clear passion for musical expression. I very much enjoyed these interview answers, and I think you will, too.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

My name is OriSoaring. I'm a multi-instrumentalist who creates songs in multiple genres. I'm heavily influenced by all styles of music, from jazz, alternative rock, neo-soul, to classical, to 80s synth-pop. I'm a classically trained saxophonist, who also plays bass, guitar and keyboards. I write and record all my own music. Also I love playing/recording with other bands and musicians.  

2.  We met pre-pandemic, at a music conference in Austin, Texas.  How did attending the conference benefit you and your music career? 

The DIY Musician conference gave me three things. It gave me perspective, community and inspiration. I am better to understand WHAT I want to do with my music. I loved learning about different ways I plan to be involved in music. For me, the challenge can be having enough information to make a good decision. The conference provided me with the information I needed to be able to start formulating a goal and working towards it. Being around such an INCREDIBLY diverse group of musicians and people who work in the industry felt amazing. Sometimes, it can be a bummer creating music in what feels like a vacuum. Currently, I live in Houston and have not been able to catch a groove with the musical community here. But that's ok, conferences like this keep me going and inspired to keep creating.  

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

TLC - OOOooooo On the TLC Tip! 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last concert I saw was the Incubus - Make Yourself 20th Anniversary Tour  

It was really incredible and really packed.  

This is the album that really broke into the mainstream. They were super jazzy and funky before that. I've listened to that album for many years, so it was really cool to see them live. Except, we were all 20 years older. It made me wish I saw them back in the day- but whatever. It was still a great show.  

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

Oh wow! An artists' influence on me is in flux based on where I am in life. For instance, I have been a Red Hot Chili Pepper for a long time. Watching and listening to Flea play bass inspired me to pick up and learn bass at 16. I would watch him for hours on VHS tapes I recorded from MTV and VH1. So, Flea just being Flea has had an enormous influence on my music and minimalist, intentional sound. Scooter from a Jacksonville Florida band called Cold has influenced my songwriting monumentally. I've put out the music to my songs, and there are words to many of them. I just haven't really figured out how I want to approach adding the lyrics. Part of me would like for a listener to READ the lyrics while listening to the song. I think that would be an interesting way to allow a listener to take a more active role in experiencing the song.  

Other huge influences are: 

The Gorillaz (The way they use sounds to create so many different universes is incredible to me.) 

Rick Rubin (Again, I love that he creates bangers in every genre) and  

Erykah Badu (Baudizm was the first time I FELT anything when listening to music. This was the first time I really heard and truly understood the connection between music. Music- this collection of sounds that I was drawn to and loved, but didn't quite understand how it all formed together. With words- another system of expression that I was drawn to (I've always been a huge reader, I loved to write stories, journal) etc. and was understanding the power and functions of language more and more each day. I was nine years old by the way. 

It's hard to call out specific artists, because I feel like I'm leaving so many out. Mr. Tanner, my 6th grade music teacher went above and beyond to make sure I had a saxophone in my hands and could play music. He was a huge influence too!  

6.  Has the current pandemic had impact on the music you make?  If so, what impact? 

I'm making more. I'm playing more. I'm listening more.  

The listening is a big thing, for a while I was deep in a jazz/chillhop groove. Since the pandemic, I've ventured out and learned about some new artists- and discovered older ones. I've been riding hard with jazz from Ethiopia from the early 70s lately and learning about more recent Alt Rock bands. 

I've also had the space and time to write and record more music. I've learned some great things in Logic X Pro as well, that's made a huge difference in my recordings. It seems as tho going into the office was leaving me more drained than I ever realized.  

7.  If you could choose for a listener to learn one thing about you from listening to your songs, what would that be? 

She most likely considered putting a saxophone solo in this song.  

Honestly, I would hope a listener sees that I'm truly all over the place when it comes to being open to creating music and experiencing life. My music can be super fun and get you ready to go running or dance. It can also be very meditative and speak directly to a specific subject or time. I don't limit myself to any genre and I approach life similarly. I'm like, bring it on! All of it. I'm here for all of it.  

8.  How do you intend to keep growing as a songwriter and musician? 

This is a lifelong journey for me. I wrote my first song at 13, before I really knew how far I'd go with music. Since then, a lot of life has happened -and with that, a lot of growing. As a musician and songwriter, I continue to seek out opportunities like the DIY Musicians Conference to advance my idea of what I could be doing with my music, and HOW I can go about that. For instance, I learned about composing for film scores, getting my music licensed, and in the hands of the right people. That's something I have been interested in for years, but just didn't know how to go about finding that path. Now that I know, I have shifted my focus more into creating songs that are extremely and concisely expressive. In writing with such specific purpose, I've had to grow as a musician and songwriter theory wise, proficiency wise, and also from a storytelling aspect. When I do have lyrics, I use them to compliment the overall song. The music is the main expression...the words are verbal anchors if you will.  

Before, I would write the song first, then add lyrics to the music. I still like using that technique, but with more structured 'verse-chorus'verse' songs. Again, in order to correctly convey some ideas...I had to stop and truly study song structure, phrasing, etc...more growing as a musician. Of course, sometimes I chuck the rules and create my own thing...but LEARNING those aspects of musicianship has helped me tremendously. Those are some more recent examples. I'm excited to learn more. 

***

Why not take a few minutes and listen to OriSoaring's music?  You can find it at her Soundcloud page.  You can also find OriSoaring on Instagram.

Anxious Inventions & Fictions is officially being released this Saturday, September 12th, so yes, I am shouting it from the rooftops everywhere because I would really love for you to at least listen to it, maybe even purchase it.  (This is where you can purchase it.) Have you noticed the beautiful cover art for the album?  If not, well, here it is again:

Megan Fiely is the artist responsible for this painting that is hanging on the wall of my home, and also gracing the cover of Anxious Inventions & Fictions, both in the digital realm and in hard copy.  How about getting to know this artist better?  Interview questions after the picture:

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set. 

I am an abstract artist who works with bold texture and color, simultaneously exploring the celestial and the microscopic. 

2.  When did you first start painting? 

Visual communication, in one form or another, has always been my thing. My parents are both artists so I'm lucky to have absorbed art like a native language. I've taken a lot of different creative paths like music, clay, and quilting (!), but the painter you'd currently recognize as Megan Fiely started happening about 7 years ago. I have older paintings, but I was just fumbling around and imitating other artists, which is very important. I now feel secure evolving my own distinct style. 

3.  You are best known as a visual artist, but you are also a musician, and maybe folks who are familiar with your paintings don't know that.  What instruments do you play, and when did you start making music? 

I play the piano and sing at home, and have a guitar for fun too. I started doing all that stuff as a kid: first piano lessons in elementary school and then of course a Fender Stratocaster at 12 or 13, followed by a sanded down but rather nice repainted bass with a fairy painted on it. I had the typical 90s power chord cover band who played for 3 of our friends in the garage. Then in my 20s I dated a musician and one night his bass player didn't show up (again). I got out of the bathtub to go fill in and accidentally became a bassist for several years. Eventually I folded in one of those newer Hammond keyboards that has a built in tube, put it through a Marshall and played bass lines with my left hand on a Korg. I also always contributed back up vocals, and have a good ear for harmonies. 

Honestly though, I'm better with a paintbrush. I like leaving the music to all my talented friends and painting album covers for them when I get a chance. And on that note, thanks for including me in the Anxious Inventions & Fictions project Mike! 

4.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Pretty sure it was Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - Smashing Pumpkins. Or maybe No Doubt's Tragic Kingdom. 

5.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last official concert while not bartending at Yellow Cab was all the way back in summer 2019 when The Breeders played at Levitt Pavillion. (Mike adds: I wrote about that show in a previous blog entry.)  That was a lot of fun because almost everyone I knew was in the audience. I remember rocking out in the audience with you, Mike! Kim and Kelly are cool but Josephine's my babe because tall, bassist, British. 

6.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences, and why?  This can include any kind of art... poets, painters, sculptors, songwriters, etc. 

Van Gogh is everyone's favorite, including mine. He was more than just a painter though: Van Gogh was a part of the earth, and maybe some kind of human conduit for nature's beauty. My art doesn't look like his, but I think all artists are attempting to tap that same vein. 

Also Chagall, Klimt, O'Keefe. Again, my work doesn't look like theirs but I appreciate the spirit of their work, and of course all the color. I like when a figurative piece tells a story. 

7.  I imagine that artists like yourself face a similar challenge to musicians in that (1) art is generally devalued by the public just like music is and (2) there may be people willing to buy your art, but it can be difficult to find them.  How do you deal with those two challenges?

STAY IN THE STUDIO. I had to stop looking for gratification though sales or popularity. I'm a very sensitive and anxious person with big opinions, so I tend to find myself in difficult situations when I'm being too public. I'm happier just living simply and focusing on the actual craft of painting. It seems like putting my energy into the art itself, rather than sales, results in just as many sales anyway. I feel valued and recognized by friends like you, Mike, and I'm seriously not bs-ing you that it's enough. Plus you had me paint your album cover so.... things do tend to work out. 

It's important to consider your audience as well. Do I really want to sell my art to rich people or corporations as part of some interior design project? Sure, but you best believe I'm gouging them! I'd seriously rather sell 10 small paintings to my friends at $60 a pop than make one big sale and never see the painting again. I am so fortunate to have a lot of creative and supportive friends and to live in a city that values the arts. I want to encourage regular people to collect and commission original art, rather than seeing it as out of reach because of the art snobs. Understanding this allows me to opt out of the things I don't want to do. 

8.  How do you know when a painting is done? 

Finishing is the easy part, since by that point I've worked out all the technical aspects of the composition, balance, and texture. Perfecting the color happens close to the end. It's the mystical, meditative part of the journey. Once the colors are singing and dancing around the canvas, I know I'm very close to finished and I do some final technical adjustments. I'll dry brush metallics in places that need just a little more dimension, for example. Then I'll set it somewhere in my house for a few days and just cohabitate with the painting, and adjust anything that strikes me as distracting or otherwise bothersome. Then I sign it on the side of the canvas and it's done.

***

Big thanks to Megan for the lovely painting on my wall, being willing to do this interview, and being a genuinely kind and lovely human.  Also, look at the colors jump off the screen in those samples of her work!  You can browse what she has available for sale at her online store.  You can also find her on Instagram.

I mispronounced Treneti Brown's first name until I was corrected.  Here's how you pronounce it: Tre NET i, with the stress on the second syllable.  Everyone got that?  Good.  

Treneti plays bass, and those who know me well know that I have lots of love for fellow purveyors of the bottom end.  She released an album called Psalms of Saturn earlier this year.  It is soulful and moving and soothing, with some jazz influences.  You can find it on all of your standard streaming services, but since Bandcamp Friday is happening this week on September 4th, why not visit Treneti's Bandcamp page?

Interview after the photo:

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre 

I am a vocalist, bassist, songwriter and producer. My music sits in the space between genres, it has felt best for me calling it Avant Garde Soul. 

2.  It's always nice to talk to a fellow bass player.  Can you tell me about the instrument you most use for performing and recording?

Yes! I love that you play bass too. For performance I use a 6-string Schecter with flat wound gold strings. The flat wound strings are the key to my sound. It allows me space to play with the frets and bend notes without it sounding tingy or rough. For the recording of the album I use 3 different bass guitars, My OG acoustic electric bass, I call her Caress, was played on Sway, Bamboo and RA. This was very sentimental since I wrote those songs on that bass. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Wowzer that's a tuff one, I think it was a cassette actually and it was Aayliah. 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last memorable show I saw was Lauren Hill. 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

Bjork, Low Leaf for sure seeing Low Leaf live really helped me see there was space for my voice and my message in the music industry. I also am very inspired by Radiohead and Bob Marley. 

6. If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be? 

I'd destroy the record labels and CEO's who have investments in the prison system and are creating artists to be puppets, preaching and glorifying diminishing behavioral patterns to our brown and black youth, causing them to make decisions that land them in prison cells. Which is allow these insidious companies to make money on both ends of the deal. Its evil, mental and physical enslavement. I'd like to destroy them. Like literally dematerialize them and everything they have ever created. 

7.  You started as a professional dancer.  (I read your bio.)  I can kind of understand the appeal of bass with that background, given that its main function is in the rhythm section.  When did you start learning how to play, and when did you start writing your own songs? 

I really quantum shifted into music. You are absolutely correct, I grew a very strong love for bass as a dancer, to me the bass is the secret sauce controlling the whole mood and groove of the entire song. (Mike adds: Yes.  Yes, it is.) I loved the instrument so much as a dancer that I got the bass clef tattooed on my arm. I have always surrounded myself with high level musicians but I never saw myself as one. When I was 27 I started feeling a deep urge to create music. It became undeniable, I talk about this journey in the Book Psalms of Saturn that accompanies this debut album. A friend of mine who is a bassist saw my tattoo one day when we were at this jam I used to host in LA called Cosmic Soup, it was a place for musicians and dancers to come together and improvise while sipping yummy kava kava root. He asked me if I played kind of assuming I did since I had the tattoo. When I told him no and that I didn't know what my instrument was yet he looked surprised. Soon after, he invited me to his house to try playing his bass. It was love at first thump. I played for hours and then I went and got my own as soon as possible. I started receiving lyrics and simple melodies when I was 24 but I didn't actually start writing songs until I got my bass. The songs came through me intuitively and taught me how to play the instrument as they came through. Spending time in the woods was also a great teacher. I mimicked the patterns in the plants to create bass lines and listened to the plants in meditative states to learn how to sing. Everything happened really fast for me. It's like deep down inside I was already a musician and I just needed to say yes, remember some things and step into it for my career to activate. 

8.  What is your songwriting process like these days? 

These days I have been leaning more into my sound through adding some electronic music production to my palette, creating my own beat labyrinths is giving me even more freedom with my voice than I could have imagined. Having access to adjusting the textures of each tone in my compositions is allowing me space to pull in more of the cosmic melodies I hear in my head. I am enjoying really sinking into exploration right now and seeing where these new sounds take me. Lyrically, I keep my voice memo app handy I receive more lyrics than I can use. They come through all the time. I bath everyday and turn my phone on airplane mode and record with the app while I sing the lyrics I receive in the tub. I call it bath church! lol

***

This is Treneti's official website.  That's a good place to start to learn more about her.  You can also find Treneti on Facebook and Instagram.

You might remember that last week's blog was about co-writing "Won't Love You Anymore" with the gentleman pictured below.  I figure that this would be a good time for us to all get to know him a bit better.  Interview after the picture:

photo by Jon Estes

1. Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre.   

I’m a singer/songwriter that writes and performs songs about, and for people who feel like they’ve been left behind by the world or someone they loved.  

2.  It seems like "Five Years From 21" was written when you were 26 years old.  You're older than that now.  How do you feel your life has changed since then? 

Quite drastically really. When I wrote that song, I was feeling really depressed and defeated. I was 26, working a retail job that I hated with coworkers that were mostly teenagers. I wasn’t playing a ton of music. I just wasn’t pursuing it at the time. I was lost.   

Fast forward to now: I’ve got a great “day job” that is flexible enough for me to still focus on music but also affords me an income to live comfortably. I’m married and couldn’t be happier! I’ve never been more confident in my music and my ability to connect with fans than I am right now. I’m feelin’ pretty damn good! ha  

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

It probably would’ve been either Gish or Siamese Dream by the Smashing Pumpkins. I got the “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” single for Christmas when I was nine and fell in love with the band. One of my siblings already had Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness so I set out to buy the rest of their discography.  

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last concert I saw was in October of last year. Just typing that is really depressing! It was Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit at the Ryman here in Nashville. I’ve seen Isbell a handful of times but this may have been my favorite show of his. Our seats were great! We were pretty close (although there’s really not a bad seat at the Ryman). I drank significantly less than I have at past shows which led to less having to get up and get a drink or go to the restroom. Haha That was kinda a revelation! Maybe I don’t need to down 10 beers at a show! The band was fantastic as always. It was just a really great experience.  

5.  I happen to know you love The Smashing Pumpkins, like I do.  Let's get granular here... give me three of your favorite Smashing Pumpkins songs, and tell me specifically why you love them. 

"Bullet With Butterfly Wings" – It’s not a song I listen to regularly now but it had a profound effect on me as a child. I remember getting the single for Christmas as well as a boom box. I sat in my room and played that song over and over. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but something about that music just really spoke to me. I immediately vowed to be a rock star and got my first guitar on my tenth birthday six months later.  

"Geek U.S.A." – Between that crazy guitar solo and Chamberlain’s incredible drumming this is just a straight up bad ass rock song! There’s tons of energy complete with a super quiet down part that then gets loud which is so wonderfully typical of the Pumpkins. It’s perfect.  

"Blissed and Gone"  – This an outtake from Adore. There’s several different versions, but I couldn’t find the original one that I heard anywhere. I think I probably illegally downloaded it on Napster or Kazaa (sorry ☹). It’s one of the saddest songs I’ve ever heard and that’s probably why I like it. It’s just super sad. Ha  

6.  You are the first person I have co-written with, and the experience was so positive for me that now I have a music project built around co-writing with a friend.  How has our collaboration influenced you? 

Our collaboration wasn’t the first time I’d co-written with somebody, but it was the first time I was actually happy with the final product! Ha The experience has encouraged me to want to co-write more. It was also cool that we were able to do it remotely. I was kinda surprised we were able to make that work, but we did! 

7.  If you had the power, what would you change about the music industry? 

It’d be easy to say, “I wish it was like the good ole days when people actually paid for music.” However, the major labels were in power back then, and folks like me and you wouldn’t stand a chance. In the digital age, we have more power. As an artist, I guess I’m kinda okay with how it is. As a consumer, I really hate paying extra for TicketMaster fees! Is TicketMaster really necessary?!? 

8.  How do you intend to keep growing as a songwriter and artist? 

When I was younger, I often wrote about my own life. It was very self-absorbed. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started putting myself in other people’s shoes and writing from their point of view. I want to keep on doing that. Getting better at it. Meeting new people with different struggles and shining a light on that with my music. I also started learning how to play harmonica and I really want to step up my guitar game next. Basically, I just want to keep getting better at every aspect of my music. 

***

Why not go visit Greg's website?  You can also find him on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.  I'm not going to ask you to send Greg messages and emails to bug him about when he's going to get around to recording "Won't Love You Anymore" himself, but I'm not going to NOT ask you to do that, either.  Or something.

You can listen to my recording of "Won't Love You Anymore" on all digital streaming services tomorrow, 11th August.  Would you do me the kindness of clicking here to pre-save on Spotify, or here on Apple Music?

An interview with a musician in back-to-back weeks!  What's with this craziness?  Glad you asked.  The song that TINO and I collaborated on is available tomorrow, Tuesday 14th July, on all streaming services. I figured this would be a good time for all of us to get to know him better.  First, and you might have already guessed this, but "TINO" is a nickname and stage name.  His "government name" is Valentino Halton.  (I need to remind myself of this, as I misprinted his last name as "Hamilton" in the liner notes for the compact disc version of Anxious Inventions & Fictions.  He's chill though, so he has forgiven me.)

TINO recently released an EP called Past Due.  It's solid, you should definitely check it out.  You'll probably enjoy the groove on the track "95 Tribe", which is about the baseball club in TINO's hometown of Cleveland.  (He's a Dayton fella now, but is originally from Cleveland.)  I happen to personally enjoy this track very much, partially because of the excellent groove and lyrics, but also because I remember the World Series that year quite fondly, it being my senior year in high school, and my favorite team being involved.  My favorite team is the National League club, by the way.  Just to remind everyone, the World Series lasted six games that year.  In Game Six, there was only one run scored.  This was it.   Do you remember how that game ended?  I do, but let's refresh everyone's memory.  This is the last out.  TINO managed not to mention Carlos Baerga in "95 Tribe", but it's ok.  My personal favorite from the EP is "Gov't", which also has a fantastic groove.  

Strangely enough, all of the previous interview subjects in this series are women, so I'm breaking new ground with this one.  Interview with this gifted gentleman after the photo.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre.

I’m a high energy performer who is at home over uptempo production. My music ranges from deeply personal to ubiquitous in theme. There’s something for everyone, but not in a generic and vague way. 

2.  I remember meeting you because first, I saw you perform with Sidekick Complex, and second, I would see you at the indie rock shows, and that's my genre.  Then I checked out a couple of your solo sets.  At some point if/when we can all go to shows again, I imagine there are folks who go to the rock shows who also enjoy hip hop, but don't know much about that music community in our town.  Maybe it works the other way as well.  How do you think we can cross-promote so the music community has fewer silos?

I think it’s as easy as “Hey, I like your music. Want to play this show with me?” That’s how I got my first shows and I construct a lot of bills I put together in a similar fashion. I try to attract fans that enjoy a wide spectrum of music and not just one genre so variety is welcome. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money?

Mobb Deep, Infamy. I bought it to score a movie I made in high school 

4.  What is your creative process like?

For me it always starts with a beat. I hear something, fall in love, and I start writing. It could be production someone sends me, a song I heard on the radio, or even a moment during another artists live performance. I don’t use everything I write. 50% of what I do will never see the light of day or I’m not good enough yet to flush the idea out. 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences?

Michael Jackson for his showmanship, Prince for his musicianship, Lauryn Hill for her spirit, Amy Winehouse for her ability to channel her pain, Kanye/OutKast for re-popularizing music that wasn’t gangster rap, and Drake for his ability to sum up a lot of these qualities in one hip hop artist. 

6.  If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be?

I would hope a focus would be placed back on full bodies of work instead of collections of singles. I miss the cohesive journey music used to be about. 

7,  How do you intend to keep growing as an artist?

As long as I’m willing to admit there is still room for improvement in my art and I don’t get content with where I’m at I don’t believe I can stop growing as an artist. 

8,  I know you've done a ton of studio work over the last couple of years.  If you don't want to give too much away here, that's fine, but what can we expect from TINO in the near future?

The pandemic has afforded me the opportunity to tweak and refine my next work as well as slate some releases before it. I will say my next full length will be the best version of my work to date.

***

Personally, I strongly believe in the album as an art form, and am disappointed at the general listening habits of folks today.  I agree with TINO on this 100%.  Having TINO in the studio for "Anecdote" was a very educational experience for me, as he has a skill set that I do not have, and I was able to learn from his preparation and his approach.  The man is serious about his craft, and it shows in his results.  I linked to his website above, but you can also find TINO on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Please check out "Anecdote" tomorrow on Spotify, YouTube, iTunes, Deezer, or wherever you stream music, and also please check out TINO's work on these platforms.

You ever listen to an album and immediately love it?  That's not something that happens all that often with me, I usually take a few listens to warm up to something.  Brevity is an exception.  I loved this one right away... the lyrics, the melodies, the nineties rock sound that reminded me of my youth.  Brevity is still in regular rotation for me, and that has been the case ever since it showed up in April.  The people responsible for this album are Punch The Sun, from New York.  The person responsible for writing the songs is fellow bass player and lead singer Shannon Söderlund, shown at the bottom right of this photo:

Shannon has songs.  So many songs.  Good ones.  Great ones.  She keeps making more.  Remember that songwriting challenge that I previously wrote about where you write five songs in five days?  Shannon is part of this same group of songwriters with me, and the songs that she writes for these are so good that I generally question what in the world I am doing.  

Ok, you've heard enough from me.  Let's amplify Shannon's voice.

***

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

My elevator pitch, eh? I grew up singing and playing in a family band, so music has always been - quite literally - my life. After us kids grew up and the family outfit wasn't playing as often, I tried out a bunch of different musical areas (Wind Ensemble, Jazz vocals) until I found my home among what I listened to in high school: Alt Rock. 

2.  You joined Wheatus for a European tour.  (For my readers who don't know that band, they are a New York rock band who had a hit single in 2000 that was on radio and in movies.)  How'd you get that gig?  Can you talk about your experience touring Europe and playing music? 

As happens so often in this industry, it was mostly a circumstantial thing. About 2 years ago, I shared a bill with an artist (Gabrielle Sterbenz) who was in need of a singing bassist. And she saw me playing bass and singing in my own band, right after her set! So we got together and I played with her band several times in the following months. Then last year, she needed someone to head out on tour with her, as she was supporting Wheatus. Obviously, I said yes. 

Touring Europe and Great Britain was really fantastic. I basically grew up touring with my family, so even though I hadn't done it in years it felt very much like hopping back on a bike, y'know? I love all the parts of a touring production: moving equipment, setting up, soundcheck, finding food in a new city, the show, sleeping in an unfamiliar place (though we had the bus to go back to, which was lovely), meeting new people every day, traveling with the same dozen people for weeks on end. It's one of my favorite things in the world. And I feel so blessed and honored that I got to do it with a truly special group of people. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Hmmm... either Norah Jones' Come Away With Me or Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine. I might've gotten them together? I listened to a LOT of my brother and sister's music in high school until they left to go to college and I had to fill my own silences. Those two albums, along with Hot Hot Heat's Elevator, where basically the soundtrack to my senior year in high school. 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

If I'm honest I don't even remember the artist's name; it was a show my friends were excited about, so I tagged along. The music was fantastic - kind of experimental prog-jazz - and I remember there was a female bassist, whose left hand I was staring at literally all night. 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

Fiona Apple is a big one. Cake is another. Weezer, definitely. Most of all though, it probably was my parents and the Christian Rock we played (oh yes, it was a missionary family band). I definitely see that 90s-worship-music as defining a lot of the music I write. I think music is about connection and relationships. And in my mind, songs should be catchy and sing-along-able, which is almost certainly a holdover from worship music. I definitely sing more about existential dread these days instead of Jesus, but hey. 

6. At the moment, COVID-19 has you stuck in Liverpool.  I imagine there are worse places to be socially distant.  How are you managing being that far away from home for so long?  [Note from Mike:  This interview was done in May, Shannon is back on this side of the Atlantic now.]

In a weird way, Liverpool feels very much like home. I'm here with someone I love dearly and consider family. I think it would be much, much harder if that were not the case. But there's plenty about this town that feels familiar - all the flora here is like, exactly what my mom has in her garden in the PNW (that's Pacific Northwest, for those of you who are unfamiliar). And videochatting, both over Marco Polo (hi, Shiree and Danielle!) and in realtime has been life-saving. Being able to stay connected with friends and family has been huge. 

7, If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be? 

This... I have complicated feelings about this. Many of the problems I have with this industry have to do with money, and the people on top who want too much of it. It's much the way I feel about our society. 

That being said, I think there are a lot of things that musicians (especially ones starting out) complain about that come from a basic misunderstanding of how businesses operate. Money is obviously a necessity for society to function and businesses to run. And there are a lot of ways in which the industry is surprisingly functional, especially when it comes to touring and live gigs. It's hard, but I understand why it's hard. And this has ALWAYS been a hard industry. So... *shrugs shoulders* 

8,  Brevity probably didn't get the big marketing push that it deserved, due to the pandemic.  Assuming the situation improves, will you all re-visit promotion for that album and perhaps tour?  Also, what's next for Punch the Sun and for you personally? 

I definitely want to tour on Brevity! Once the pandemic is over, that's a route (#tourpun) that we will certainly pursue. I can see us perhaps making some music videos down the road (omigosh ANOTHER #tourpun) to highlight some songs on the album. Ultimately, though, I'm really glad it's out in the world for people to listen to and think, "wow, that's what Punch The Sun sounds like!" 

Next up, though, is more music - of course. I'm already working with Campbell (our drummer) on some new songs. We're just in the demo stage, since we're on opposite sides of the Atlantic, but we're deep in the writing process again, which feels fantastic. Music forever!

***

I linked to both the website for Punch The Sun and to Brevity up in the first paragraph.  You can also find Punch The Sun on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. 

I met Doc a couple of years ago at a music conference.  She has a signature look... a hat, a rat, and always a guitar.  Her artist name is Dirty Metal Lefty, partially because of an innate southpaw status, which is something we have in common.  (I mean, I do play bass like a right-handed person, but I eat, write, throw, golf, swing baseball bats, and shoot basketballs left-handed.)  This is a very talented person who wields the guitar with all kinds of skill... this is the kind of wizardry that eludes me, as I find guitar strings to be too numerous and also way too tiny.

Here's my favorite song from the Neva' On Sundays album, "Ain't No Friend of Mine."

The last time I saw Doc, we sat in a hotel lobby down in Austin singing and playing Chris Cornell songs.  Well, I didn't do the playing, and I did the singing rather poorly, but it was a great time.  No, not that Chris Cornell song.  No, not that one either.  Yeah, and this is also not one of them.  Here's one. Here's another.  Here's a third, that almost makes me cry every time I hear it.   Interview below the picture.

When I run these, I usually put my questions in bold... but Doc used some unique formatting in her response, and I think it's best to show you this interview the way she intended.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 
Blues Inspired Indie-Alt Rock with Jazz and Metal undertones 
Think "If Sade had a baby with Alice In Chains who was REEEALLY into CSN (Crosby, Stills, Nash) and Albert King" 

2.  How did you get started making music?  How soon after you started learning to play did you start to write your own songs? 
I guess from the moment I could make noise and bang on stuff.  Music for me and a headache for others. LOL 
If memory serves me proper, I was around 9 or 10 when I first sat down and intentionally tried to write a song; on a keyboard, surprisingly enough. The songs conjured from lyrics only were usually set to the melody of a song I already knew. #UnintentionalDerivativeCover 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 
Remember Columbia House music club with their "10 cassettes for 1¢"? 
Alice In Chains - Dirt. And spoiler alert, those cassettes weren't really a penny. Boy did I learn that lesson the hard way. . .   
[Mike adds: You and me both, sista.]

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 
Mon., Mar. 9th - Michale Graves (ex-Misfits) w/ special guest JJ Speaks 
Covid ruined everything after that (>_<)* 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 
In addition to the elevator pitch in question 1: 
Chris Cornell, Nina Simone, Fantastic Negrito, Deftones, Afro Celt Sound System, The Absence, Dave Brubeck, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Fleetwood Mac, Lamb of God, Nevermore 

6.  So, you're a guitarist.  Most guitarists that I know tend to be really into their instruments, their pedals, and their rig.  This is your opportunity to indulge in a lavish description of your favorite musical toys, if you would like to do so. 
I LOVE gear but I don't have or use a ton of it. I don't want to "hide" behind too many effects. . . aaaand I don't like having to keep up with too much stuff. [LMAO!!!!!] 

Boss Metal Zone pedal is my absolute jam for electric. It pairs well with most of my guitars and Vox tube amp; just kinda sucks that the price hasn't gone down in over 20 years. For Acoustic: I use a series of loopers, a Digitek Trio, a dope vocal dohickey from TC Helicon, and devices for backing track playback. On occasion, I'll also use a A/B box to split my guitar between two different amps with separate pedal setups. The concept adds more texture to my overall tone. It also affords the opportunity to alternate my set between full band sound and intimate feels. 

7,  How are you dealing with this pandemic from a music standpoint?  Touring is out of your toolbox for the moment, has anything taken its place? 
Maaaaan, Covid swooped in and snatched my gigs like an owl pouncing on an unsuspecting field mouse. [Mike interjects: This might be the greatest of all similes.] That was painful; financially of course but even more so on the emotional and mental front. I figured I try to use the "mandatory" down time to work on writing and finally getting around to cleaning my house. It's amazing how many pieces of life get neglected when you don't take enough time to tend to stuff. As for the music as a whole, live streaming has become the new trend but it does not and cannot replace actual live music IN PERSON. 

There's a special, uncanny bond forged in the heat of the moment between musicians and their audience; a sort of energy exchange that breaks down barriers. I miss that. Genre aside, music, in general, is one of the only few things we [humans] can all agree upon. I don't think I've ever met anyone who doesn't enjoy music on some level. 

8,   It's cliché, but it's a good question to end with:  What's next for you? 
A resurgence of gigs, I hope. I miss connecting with people. In the meantime, I do plan to release a single or two or three. . .maybe a video to accompany them. No dates yet but new stuffs ARE indeed coming. I'll keep adjusting to our new normal as well supporting my mates and local small businesses around town. A friend and I have even paired together for a side project, busking around town and such. Busking is the next best step until we're able to navigate proper live gigs in the midst of this pandemic madness and social distancing.

Let me know when it's safe to pop in for a slot in your neck of the woods.

***

Dirty Metal Lefty has indeed stopped by our state on a previous tour, playing in Columbus.  I had planned to go, and ended up not being able to do so, which still makes me sad.  Here's hoping she stops by Dayton someday.  I linked to her website above, but you can also find her on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.  Also, you know how Bandcamp has been waiving their fee on the first Friday of every month recently?  Well, Friday July 3rd would be a good date to swing by the Dirty Metal Lefty Bandcamp page and buy some music.

The calendar has turned to June.  That means this is a great time to tell you about Sarah Rudy, who is a songwriter, guitarist, and singer.  Her band is called Hello June. They hail from the State where I was born, West Virginia.  Those of you from Dayton might already know about Sarah and her band, as the folks over at WUDR play their music.  Sarah might not be all that great at elevator pitches (unless the building is very tall), but is pretty great at writing songs, at playing guitar, and generally being awesome.  

Interview below the picture:

photo by Josh Saul

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

We've been called, "indie rock," but I honestly don't even know what that term means. We're not hard rock, but we're not soft rock either. We're not fast and dance-y, but our shows are full of energy. I/we create every aspect of the music, the videos, the designs, the marketing - if that is what they mean by "indie," we are that (haha).I'm an artist who is drawn to writing and creating songs that mean something to me and that others can relate to. The one thing I can say wholeheartedly is that we are genuine - the music that you hear comes from experiences and stories and real life events that mean a lot to me. My hope is that I gather people around me who relate to the music, regardless of the "genre" it happens to be called at the time. I'm sorry that this was possibly the worst elevator pitch to ever hit anyone's ears. 

2.  During the time of social distancing in March and April, which albums or artists did you listen to the most?  (Note from Mike... I thought some semblance of normality might resume by the time I published this interview, but yeah, not quite.)

I have listened a whole whole lot to TK Blockstar's self-titled album - the way that she conveys emotion in her message is exceptional and even though the genre is completely different from whatever we would be considered, I've found her presentation of emotion very inspiring. On top of that, shes from the great state of West Virginia - her album's have been giving me strength during a tough time. I've also listened a whole lot to The Band's "Music from Big Pink" a good bit and I'm always circulating back around to Big Thief - their music is so genuine and beautiful. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money?

As soon as I caught wind of Alanis Morissette, I felt deeply empowered in a way that I did not even understand. I bought the "Jagged Little Pill" album and played it a million times. Up to that point, I was just playing stuff that an older cousin of mine had given me. 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw.

We saw Big Thief in Columbus - the last show of that tour. Although I've watched live performances online, I hadn't gotten to see them in person and that was something that I was really wanting to do. I have such a visceral reaction to her songwriting - she has such a genuine realness that you don't see very often. The experience was surreal and beautiful and thinking of it makes me miss the magic of live music. 

5.  Imagine you have a gig tonight.  How do you decide what goes on the setlist? 

When I'm creating the list, I consider who's going to be on stage with me that night (some songs just translate better full band), the venue (do I anticipate poor sound quality or will I hear every breath I take?), the likelihood of an attentive crowd, and now, with livestreams, I'll tailor my setlist to what some sweet fans have asked me to play. I've been known to cut a set or song short when the crowd is being rude - so sometimes the decisions about setlist are made right there on stage. 

6. If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be? 

This is a hard question because the system is so broken. I've thought about this so many times, but I usually end up running in circles. I wish there wasn't a need for a record label - I wish that independent musicians had a platform that they could use to reach their fans AND find fans that would enjoy their music. Facebook doesn't like to show posts unless they are paid; Spotify, Apple Music, etc gives artists a couple cents for what people are buying, but yet, these are reliably and interestingly enough, our best tools? I also have seen that the problem with a few people having the power leads to the abuse of this power - there is a lot of gate-keeping by powerful people who could "make a career," and so many ways to fall into bad/unsafe conditions due to this. We have a long way to go in a lot of ways. 

7.  What is your biggest challenge when it comes to making music? 

My biggest challenge has been finding good "fits" for our band in terms of long term band-mates. Whit Alexander has been around since day one and together we've played with a revolving cast of characters for years. We actually really love playing with different people and learn from doing this, but sometimes there are challenges to what we have done for most of our time as a band. We've played many shows where the only practice that we'll have with the band would be an acoustic run-thru in the hotel or even no practice at all. Our current lineup is an interesting one - we've brought Travis Evans back to play drums. He originally helped me back in 2013 when I moved back to WV from Baltimore - we didn't even have a band name back then and I was just developing the songs (Whit was around and playing bass at that time). Whit is once again on bass and the way that he plays is so melodic and full that it allows me to play much more lead guitar than I've been able to do in the past. When you're moving your line-up around, one frustrating but efficient move is to keep things relatively simple so that everyone in the band knows where they are in the song, etc. This three piece line up is as freeing as I've ever been able to experience and it's much more true to the songs, I think. 

8.  How do you intend to keep growing as a musician and songwriter? 

My goal is to be able to more fluidly create songs that more accurately depict what is in my head/what is the intent for the song. In order to do this, I intend to keep listening to those who do this well and working on my craft. There is so much good music to consider - the bar is high. I've also got some collaborations coming up - for me, there is always a learning curve to that and I'm always pushed by other people.

***

Sarah and her band have gotten some very positive press for their self-titled debut full-length.  You should listen to it, and if you dig, maybe by a copy to support them?  You can also connect with Hello June on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Our interview subject this week recently released her first EP, called Sense of Self.   Listen to it here.   She does her own arranging, engineering, mixing, and production.  She is based in Boston.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

I'm an a cappella looper artist. I perform solo vocal arrangements of covers and originals using a loop pedal. 

2.  Your song "Sense of Self" shows some vulnerability.  How long did it take before you were comfortable singing out those feelings in public? 

Honestly, I try not to think about it. When singing in front of an audience, I treat it like any cover I would sing. The song already exists, and my job is to perform it to the best of my ability. It's not about me, anyway. Each person projects their own feelings onto a song, or at least that's my goal - to have a song resonate with them personally. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Believe it or not, it was the soundtrack to the Broadway musical Next to Normal. It's my favorite musical. The sound is all in the rock genre, and it's about a family dealing with mental illness and loss. 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

My most recent concert was Ingrid Michelson at the House of Blues in Boston. I think my favorite moment was when she forgot the words to one of her songs. She just started laughing, and started the song over with the band, but then the whole place, band included, got the giggles so badly at that point, that they weren't even able to finish the song. She was like "Who forgets the lyrics to their own song??" But we've all been there. I love those moments of imperfection at a show. 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

As far as a cappella looping goes, I draw most of my inspiration from a jazz singer named Cyrille Aimée. I bought my looper because of her. The first song I learned on the looper was hers - "Nuit Blanche". My new album is more in the vein of singer-songwriters like Sarah Bareilles, Ingrid Michelson, and John Mayer. I have lots of experience in jazz, musical theater, classical, and popular music, so my influences are vast, but that's where I'm living musically at the moment. 

6. Based on your background, when you write songs, I imagine your process is very different than most other songwriters.  Would you be so kind as to describe how you approach songwriting? 

I've been writing poetry since I was very young, about 10 or 11 years old, so the lyrics almost always come first. I recently learned that most people have an "inner monologue" of thoughts. I actually don't. It's more of a sensation than complete sentences in my head. Writing, talking, singing, and sketching come naturally when I'm simply trying to organize my thoughts. Then, use those ideas to write the lyrics in a more structured format. I edit so that the accents fall in the right place, and I break out a rhyming dictionary. Sometimes, I'll just write down a group of words that rhyme that I feel resonate with the emotion or mood, and I'll write an entire verse around those words. When I'm happy with that, I'll write it in musical notation so I don't forget it. From there, I can analyze the implied chord structure of the song and add those to make a lead sheet for myself. Sometimes I'll borrow chord substitutions from other songs that I like at the time. 

7, You have some experience on the engineering side of the business as well.  Can you tell me about how you got in to that, and about what you try to get done in the studio for your clients? 

Before considering myself an engineer, I'm an arranger. I create arrangements of songs for live performance using sheet music. I was able to break down the different elements of a song to create memorable moments within a song. Recording and producing is just another way that I can do that. 

I primarily work in a cappella, so I focus on vocal arrangement and production. Typically, the song is already arranged by the group, so my job with a musician in the studio is to get the best performance possible out of them. Notes and rhythms are second to the emotive energy you need behind a vocal. As a vocalist myself, I also have the pedagogical skills to coach singers on getting a stronger sound, or a completely different vocal technique. Everything I do after that is to honor that performance. 

8,  What is your biggest challenge when it comes to making music? 

Creating the music isn't really challenging at all. I think the challenging part of being a musician is taking the thing that you created and sharing it with the world in a way that they're going to love. People don't realize how many grueling hours and meticulous planning go into an hour-long show or an album release. I love the marketing and management side of music, but it's very hard to do it for yourself. It feels very weird to put yourself out there and promote yourself. I wish there were two of me!

***

Did you notice that Nina actually writes in musical notation?  I find that most impressive, and also very much enjoy the way she builds songs with only her voice.  Why not visit her official website?  You can also connect with Nina on Instagram or on her Facebook page.

Welcome to a new series on the blog!  Amplified will consist of interviews, mostly with musicians.  This is a place for me to share with all of you the voices of folks whose talent and art I respect, and maybe introduce you to some sounds you haven't previously heard.

Lauren Light is batting lead-off.  (I miss baseball.  SIGH.)  I met Lauren at the CD Baby DIY Musician Conference in Nashville, way back in 2017.  Lauren is a gifted songwriter, beautiful singer, talented performer, effervescent personality, coffee addict, all sorts of professional, hard worker, and savvy about the music business.  She is insanely busy, but generous with her time, as she always manages to find time to discuss the music business with the likes of untalented folks like myself.  

Click here to listen to her single "If I Could Only Love You".  Interview appears below the photo.

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set and genre. 

Pop soul Singer-Songwriter, owner of Licensing company and Music business Podcast Host. 

2.  When did you start making music? 

Singing since day one, writing songs since I was 6 (and those first songs were bad!  hahaha)  but actually performing would be senior year of high school. 

3.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Backstreet Boys 

4.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

Actually took my Mom to see her favorite artist for her birthday.  So it was with Lauren Daigle and Johnny Swim.  They were phenomenal! 

5.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences? 

I would probably say female artists like Alanis Morisette and Kelly Clarkson 

6. If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be? 

Rights and laws to protect Songwriters, but I see a change in the works! 

7, How do you intend to keep growing as a musician and songwriter? 

Always writing, and writing outside of my comfort zone!  And never stop learning, I truly believe the industry changes so much so you have to keep studying what's new and different, and change with the times as they happen. 

8,  You host a podcast where you dispense valuable advice about the music business.  What's one brief suggestion that you would like to see musicians in general apply immediately? 

Believe in yourself! And Dream, BUT make sure you have actionable goals/tasks set in place to achieve your dreams!

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Lauren is dropping a new song just about every month these days.  Follow her on your steaming platform of choice, or on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.