I realize that I'm playing a bit loose with the concept of “year” by putting this blog post up in March.  That said, two episodes of my podcast that I recorded in 2023 just went up last week.  I apologize to those lovely guests - Anthony Church & Valerie Vonn - for taking that long.  After my first year of podcasting, I wrote a blog post reviewing the conversations that took place, and setting out a goal for the following year.  Let's see how I did, shall we?

The last episode I released was number 113.  This means that during what I'll loosely consider as the second year of my podcast, I recorded 39 episodes, since this group started with number 75.  That's down from the 75 that I released in the podcast's first year (it had an “episode ½”). I had a goal that at least 50% of the episodes would include women, since that didn't happen in year one.  How'd I do?

I count 22 episodes that included a woman as a guest.  That's more than 50%, so mission accomplished.  This was a diverse group of women as well, a Latvian, a Ukrainian who lives in France, a Persian of Jewish descent, a young Ohioan of Moroccan descent, an Aussie, and other ethnicities. There were musicians, of course, but also a comedian, a lawyer, a competitive trail runner, and a film producer, among other things.

Here are what I think are the most notable episodes of the last year or so:

The longest episode

This dubious honor goes to Tim Minneci, who was my guest for episode 90. Tim is co-host of the Dig Me Out podcast, which takes a deep dive into 90s music, album by obscure album.  Tim is also an author, having released two novels that I have read so far.

The most popular episode

That would be episode 98. This was a conversation with Kyleen Downes, a professional musician who happens to live in the same city as me. Kyleen is one of my favorite people to go see play and sing songs, and just recently released an excellent new music video for her single, “Left on the Pavement”.

The most important episode

You might know that I spent an awful long time working on I Am Experienced, which I released in June 2023.  That project wouldn't have been nearly as successful artistically without Rizo, who engineered, produced, played a bunch of instruments, and put up with me in a small room for a LONG time. We sat down one day to listen to the final mixes, then had a conversation where we reflected on the work.  That conversation is episode 110. 

I should mention that the project around I Am Experienced is not over. The video portion is underway.  Each of the songs will have a music video, even the two bonus ones that you won't find on any streaming services.  The project also includes essays, photos, demos, studio footage, sheet music, and a mountain of other goodies.  If you'd like to dive in, head right on over to this link.

The episode that isn't in English

I only had one conversation for the podcast in the last year that wasn't in English.  You'll find that it was with Maxime Cholley, number 85.  That conversation is in French. If you don't speak French and would still like to get to know Maxime, you're looking for episode 84.

The episode with a famous author

100 is a nice even number.  I wanted a special guest for that episode, and I got one.  His name is John Scalzi. He's a well-known science fiction author who only lives a couple of counties away from me. This was my first conversation with a bone fide public figure, a famous person. For this conversation, I zagged where others may zig. You see, in addition to being a well-known science fiction author, church owner, creator of abominable burritos, husband, and father, Scalzi is also a musician.  We talked about his music, and I challenge you to find any other conversation he's had in the press where all they talked about was his music.

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Like I said last year in a post very much like this one, if you've listened to my podcast, thank you for choosing to spend some time with me. I sincerely hope you have enjoyed sitting in on my conversations, and I warmly invite you to keep on listening.  Maybe you could even subscribe to the You Could Be My Aramis podcast on your streaming service of choice?

To the wonderful people who have been guests on my podcast, THANK YOU so very much.  I wouldn't have a podcast without you, I'm not one of those people who can just ramble on about nothing for a half hour.  If you happen to be a musician, or have something you are passionate about, and would like to let the general public listen to us have a chat about it, reach out to me, and we'll get you scheduled.

I met new people in 2023.  I very much wish to introduce all of you to them.  I'll make an effort to get more than 39 episodes finished this year, ok?

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!

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