The EP is now available for purchase!
Digital Download via Bandcamp.com
CD's are available at Tweed Music in Prattville, Alabama and from the trunk of Michael's car roaming around Athens, Georgia.
Available Now!
The EP is now available for purchase!
Digital Download via Bandcamp.com
CD's are available at Tweed Music in Prattville, Alabama and from the trunk of Michael's car roaming around Athens, Georgia.
EP Release Show
Monday, July 23, 2012, 8pm
Hendershot's Coffee Bar
FREE!
CD's will be available at the show. Digital downloads will be available here on the 24th.
Behind the Music: Take Me Back
I don't even know where to start with this song. Musically, it's disconcerting. Emotionally, it's draining. Relationally, it's dangerous. To be honest, I don't even like to play it live because it is so difficult to stay focused. A friend of mine, a gifted songwriter and musician, told me that he cried the first time he heard the chorus.
I blame Facebook.
The roots of the chorus date back to around the same time as "Between Athens & Atlanta," but the verses are a bit closer. Moving away from your family and friends is exciting at first, but it wears you out over time. Even with all the new friends we have found, there's something about the guys who've known you since you were riding bikes to the park, the girls that you dated (counted on one hand, in my case) that are amazingly doing just fine without you (did I mention that I have the spiritual gift of sarcasm?), and the dwindling number of places that you can point to and say "do you remember when...?". It never occurred to me then that they would ever not be a part of my daily life.
But you can't go back. The places you remember aren't there any more. All the people have changed. So have we.
I'm thankful that I was able to get these thoughts and emotions out through these songs. My hope is that now I can move on to other themes, the ones I'm living through now and looking forward to in the future. Musically, this is only the first chapter, and I hope that it's got you hooked enough to wait for the rest...it might be a while.
I blame Facebook.
The roots of the chorus date back to around the same time as "Between Athens & Atlanta," but the verses are a bit closer. Moving away from your family and friends is exciting at first, but it wears you out over time. Even with all the new friends we have found, there's something about the guys who've known you since you were riding bikes to the park, the girls that you dated (counted on one hand, in my case) that are amazingly doing just fine without you (did I mention that I have the spiritual gift of sarcasm?), and the dwindling number of places that you can point to and say "do you remember when...?". It never occurred to me then that they would ever not be a part of my daily life.
But you can't go back. The places you remember aren't there any more. All the people have changed. So have we.
I'm thankful that I was able to get these thoughts and emotions out through these songs. My hope is that now I can move on to other themes, the ones I'm living through now and looking forward to in the future. Musically, this is only the first chapter, and I hope that it's got you hooked enough to wait for the rest...it might be a while.
Behind the Music: Sometimes
When you've been with a person long enough, you begin to think alike, talk alike, maybe even look alike. There have been many instances over the years when I have been thinking intently as we drive, usually about something I am considering telling her.
"What?"
"I didn't say anything."
But I had thought it.
Then there are the things I don't talk about. Maybe things I tried to discuss unsuccessfully. Things we had settled but are still restless in my mind. Is it worth bringing up again?
I've learned to celebrate these eddies in our relationship and the unspoken ways people in love communicate with each other. The tone of this song is almost humorous, and I really like it that way. I may one day rearrange this song as a duet. I think it would be fun to have a back and forth conversation through the music, a little like Johnny and June.
"What?"
"I didn't say anything."
But I had thought it.
Then there are the things I don't talk about. Maybe things I tried to discuss unsuccessfully. Things we had settled but are still restless in my mind. Is it worth bringing up again?
I've learned to celebrate these eddies in our relationship and the unspoken ways people in love communicate with each other. The tone of this song is almost humorous, and I really like it that way. I may one day rearrange this song as a duet. I think it would be fun to have a back and forth conversation through the music, a little like Johnny and June.
Behind the Music: Evening Walk
For a novice songwriter, finding a good method and process can be difficult. My mother is a musician, so performing has been a part of my life almost since the beginning. I later started writing poetry, and I wrote a good deal of prose throughout college and professionally, but I had only written one song that had been performed publicly...that is, until about a year and a half ago.
As I searched for inspiration and direction, I browsed a photo gallery of natural scenes and rural decay. I came across a picture entitled "Evening Walk." A bridge over calm waters, hills and trees in the background. The story had already been written; I just had to find it.
Nostalgia is powerful, and this song moves me like no other that I've written. I keep thinking of that scene from "Up" showing the couple's life together. Powerful. A.J.'s guitar solo tells the part of the story I couldn't find words for, and Rachel's harmonies bring an emotional quality not found anywhere else on the EP. All of this on top of Ken's piano combine to make this the highlight of the project for me.
As I searched for inspiration and direction, I browsed a photo gallery of natural scenes and rural decay. I came across a picture entitled "Evening Walk." A bridge over calm waters, hills and trees in the background. The story had already been written; I just had to find it.
Nostalgia is powerful, and this song moves me like no other that I've written. I keep thinking of that scene from "Up" showing the couple's life together. Powerful. A.J.'s guitar solo tells the part of the story I couldn't find words for, and Rachel's harmonies bring an emotional quality not found anywhere else on the EP. All of this on top of Ken's piano combine to make this the highlight of the project for me.
Behind the Music: Unincorporated
When I first started writing these songs, I planned to perform under the name of the 4-way stop community described in "Between Athens & Atlanta." I took a picture of the road sign that described it as "unincorporated" and thought it would make a good album cover.
Those plans changed for several reasons, but I still had this idea for a song. Once I had the hook, "you fill my rear-view mirror, but you're not closer than you seem," the retrospective scene was set. I had moved on.
The Alabama community where I grew up had its own stories to tell, and some found their place in these verses. A friend that still lives there told me that this song felt familiar; a fitting compliment. There is still a lot that draws me back, but many things that I unconsciously counted on are gone. I've been to the "garden of stone" a few too many times over the years. The folks that recognize me there are getting fewer. They have moved on, as well.
Those plans changed for several reasons, but I still had this idea for a song. Once I had the hook, "you fill my rear-view mirror, but you're not closer than you seem," the retrospective scene was set. I had moved on.
The Alabama community where I grew up had its own stories to tell, and some found their place in these verses. A friend that still lives there told me that this song felt familiar; a fitting compliment. There is still a lot that draws me back, but many things that I unconsciously counted on are gone. I've been to the "garden of stone" a few too many times over the years. The folks that recognize me there are getting fewer. They have moved on, as well.
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