Every time I go in to write a record I have a clear and concise idea of what I want it to sound like, feel like, and elicit what response from the listener. I end up writing a batch of songs and that continues until I widdle down 13 from 30. Than I’ll go into the recording studio with a producer… usually just the two of us and start going over the songs. Laying down scratch tracks than listening back and re arranging from there until we cut the final song. All very immediate. Throughout the recording process those initial sounds, feelings and reactions from the songs I aimed for change, usually dramatically. Sonically you experiment and find different homes for each tune and all together as a whole the meaning of the record shifts. Again, all very fast and organic.
Having a label and people who count on you to write a “hit” or a “great” record changes all that. There are more opinions involved, oftentimes with people who don’t necessarily have a musical ear ( they love music but aren’t musicians). Even if they have great advice it adds to the pile of things needing to be done. Being a sensitive person as most musicians are I try to keep an open mind to everyones thoughts… I’ve learnt that doing that too long can drain you creatively and personally. They say ” we can’t move forward unless we have the songs where they should be” ( which don’t take that the wrong way if I was funding a project I’d say the same) …. and my instinctual response is always: ”where should they be?” I usually get a vague response if any as to what they mean by that. After all how do you judge art? or a hit? If there was a formula we’d all be selling gold records. At the end of the day, they just want the best from me… but how do you know when you’ve reached your best for what you are capable of right now? I miss the days of just writing, choosing the songs I like and than pairing up with one producer in one room to massage those chosen few. Simple. Money is a funny thing… It places a certain anxiety around what is expected. I can’t say I hate having a label, because I don’t. On the contrary I love them, so much. They give me so much; the exposure, the connections, the experiences that I wouldn’t normally get just by myself. They push me harder than I have ever pushed myself. Without them I wouldn’t have nearly as much as I do now. For that I am grateful.
I’m finding myself in a place 10 months after starting the writing of this record hitting a wall. I’m finding the songs already changed from the direction I started writing them with. I think it has to do with the time frame. I definitely am not where I was ten months ago, and that has probably changed a handful of times already. Crafting a body of work that is consistent and yet diverse is an art… and I feel like an amateur.
How do you get re-inspired? how do you find that spark again? I’m in the last leg of the marathon of this year towards the finish line of this record and I am feeling the burn, the exhaustion, the drain.. I keep over thinking, those negative thoughts come in and tell me ”you can’t finish this, your tired, you’ve got nothing more in you.” I feel like I’ve worked myself to the bone, sweat out a hundred peoples body weight in creativity and am shaking from fear. I never stop. I never will. It’s moments like these that hopefully force a breakthrough if I stick it out a little longer.
It’s days like these where I miss Dan ( Achen) the most, pray to him the most for guidance and if I’m lucky a song. Things use to be a lot simpler. I always think ”What would Dan say?” and today he says, keep running.
Well the time has finally come! I have played my last show for a while and now I am onto the time I’ve been waiting for since last May when I released Hymns for the hollow…. NEW ALBUM TIME!!! I’ll have lots more exciting updates soon, in the meantime here are some photos of what is inspiring me for the album right now…
XX
Amanda
This year was filled to the brim with some of the best shows I have ever seen live. I figured what better top 10 to go over than the incredible shows I saw in 2011…
1) The Black Keys- MOLSON AMPHITHEATER
#1 would be seeing the Black Keys at the Molson Amphitheater in Toronto. I saw them a few times in 2011 but my favourite would have to go to the show that I had the privilege of playing the “after show” to. It was shortly after this years NXNE where they so happened to come out to my showcase ( Royal Bangs was playing directly after me and they were in town for the Much Music Video Awards). I got a call that we were booked to play at the ACC directly after them and you can imagine what an incredible feeling took me over.It is an understatement to say that they are my favourite contemporary band to date ( very close being are The White Stripes RIP) They put on a hell of a show that night. When I heard the first few notes of Thickfreakness my heart started racing. I climbed as fast as I could down the make shift ladder they had propped up against the high as hell rooftop we were standing on to the ground of the lounge. I made a heated dash towards the stairs down to the floor. I ran past security and secured a spot front row stage left. . . Security tried to stop me from staying but I quickly whipped back that we were playing upstairs… The guy recognized me and said ” Hey it’s _______ from Twitter! I love you guys!” haha I laughed and said ” Cool man! so I can stay?” and he replied ” Yes, just don’t tweet n e thing or you’ll get me in shit” Of course, respectably the twitter fiend I am… Almost directly after he left I took a photo and tweeted it. Not in a malicious way but out of sheer excitement that this was something I had been visualizing for years and I HAD no choice but to document it. They played some of my favourites ( Stack shot billy, Girl is on my mind, The Breaks, Chop and Change….etc etc) Right after their second encore song I had to scurry away ( continuously looking over my shoulder to catch as much as I could) to go set up for our set. What a night! It will be forever remembered.
2) ZZtop- Casino Rama
My dad blasted These Texan blues rockers throughout my growing years. When I was in LA Billy Gibbons asked me to play him all my songs in a little vintage guitar shop around the corner from my house… In doing so he revived my than beat down attitude about music (I was in school for guitar and down on myself for wanting to be better than I was…impatient , naturally) He said to me , ” I’ll see you again one day, I’m sure of it” That was it… He lit that fire right back up under my ass. I had tickets to see them the year before but they were opening for Aerosmith and Steven Tyler fell and broke something and the show was cancelled. My dad surprised me and bought us tickets to go see them at Casino Rama. The crowd was filled with beer drinking bickers and their spouses or lovers or girlfriends who looked like dog the bounty hunters wife. It was perfection. They age so goddamn well. Billy Gibbons may be old but once he starts playing he is the sexiest mother fucker around.
3) Gary Clark Jr- Rivoli
I had heard ” Bright Lights Big City” a few times before I got on guest list for this show ( thank you Adam Countryman) I had no clue what to expect. The place was packed and as they got going I felt like I was transported to some south delta juke joint. Bodies were grinding, voices hollering, blunts being smoked, shots being passed around, feet stomping… and the music BLARRING. They came as a three piece and slayed me. I have not seem a live BLUES show w/ this type of energy ever! Truly mind blowing.
4) The Dead Weather-Sound Academy (this was 2010… butttt who’s really counting)
So, yea this was 10′ … What matters is that it was The Dead Weather. And it was the first time I got to see them live ( I missed their Horseshoe show) They put on exactly the type of performance I thought they would. It was dark, loud, dynamic and sexy. Grimey, hookey, bluesy, sex. Their conjoint charisma on stage lurks in your veins for weeks after. Jack White is like some crazy conductor that drives The Dead Weather… They all own their parts but to me he will always be the star.
5) Tom Petty Tribute- NYC
You can see me in the darkness at the top right hand side of the stage...
I got to go to New York this year to see my darling friends The Sheepdogs perform as apart of the annual Tom Petty Tribute show(s). My birthday was just around the corner and it was the perfect celebration. 2 nights of hits! 2 great venues ( Music Hall of Williamsburg & The Bowery Ballroom) in NYC! Picture live band Karaoke with interchangeable famous people trading songs off… but legit and not off key kitschy. Some highlights were hanging and seeing a few cast members from one of my fav tv shows of all time : ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT ( Micheal Cera & Alia Shawka) sing Tom Petty songs. Also, Jared and Nathan from Kings of Leon, Jessie Baylin ( Nates wife) won over both nights with her insanely magnetic voice. Cute side story here… for all the saps, After Jessie was done she came backstage and Nathan ran up to her and said ” Baby, when you sang it was like the whole room turned technicolor! you’re amazing!” geeeeeeeezus, adorable. The Sheepdogs always make me smile but they really outdid themselves with a jaw dropping cover of ” Breakdown”. Other guests included: Pat Carney, Justin Long, member of The Strokes…. oh and Scarlet johanssen was beside me smoking outside haha…Open bar, great people, great venue, perfect tribute to an incredible songwriter.
6) Sam Coffey and the iron lungs- Horseshoe Tavern
Sam is one of my best friends. You will hear me gushing about him every few posts it seems. Seeing him play this year the The Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto with a huge audience in attendance brought so much happiness to my heart. They were opening for Shonen Knife… and somehow it fit so perfect. They are some of the most entertaining and talented performers that Ontario has to offer. To me, there is only a matter of time before they hit it big. I love them, this show was a small step in the direction they are headed… success.
7) Rifflandia- Victoria – Metro Theatre (we played one of the most memorable shows of my life)
What can I say about Victoria… Or Rifflandia?! This past fall tour seemed like we were following some sort of whacky heat wave across Canada. When we got off the ferry in Victoria after leaving drizzly Vancouver we were hit with sunshine! Already a great start to an even better evening. We checked into the coolest looking motel ( it was so vintage and looked like it was straight out of Scarface).. We lugged our suitcases up a few tiny flights and were rolling down the outdoor hallway to our room…We heard some guitar playing in front of us with the door swung open. In the room directly beside us was our friends in Young Rival… Who we had coincidentally bumped into at some gas station on the 1 in the middle of no where (our tours were tagging one another all the way out) We had a good laugh of our happenstance meetings, shared a drink and went into town to check in. Rifflandia was perhaps the most on top of business and well organized festival I’ve ever played. Kudos to them for making everything smooth and proper. We loaded into the Metro Theatre (red velvet theatre seated venue) and got giddy about playing the damn place. Not often do we get booked in fancy old school theaters. This was a treat.. I had heard rumor about Victoria being killer audiences, very receptive and warm; still I don’t think I was prepared for what they gave us. We played our set that night and from the very first song people were engaged. I was looking side to side to Nick and Pat giving them the ” What kind of drugs r these kids taking? and can we get some and force feed them to every audience we play from now on?!” They were so respectful and into it. I could feel this hair chilling connection as the place filled to the brim and we went through song into song. It was a magical show to look out into a crowd and see directly in their eyes how much they were “getting it”. We finished to them roaring and quickly started packing up ( festivals are tight on change overs) They started screaming ” ENCORE” and we laughed figuring it would die down… 2 minutes later… it just got louder. At that point the sound man turned on the house music to coherse them otherwise and we intuitively knew to get the hell of stage and hide until they stopped. Nick and I stood in the backstage hallway sans Pat (who had run behind the side stage curtains on the opposite side) People started BANGING their feet on the theatre floor… It sounded like thunder. That’s when my heart started racing… I looked and Nick … Laughed and said ” What the hell are we going to do?!” You see, we had no more songs rehearsed for this tour. We had played them all… and we thought we wouldn’t be allowed to seep into the time slot of the headliners show. So we stood there and just as the audience was sort of dying down we hear them loose their shit … applauding… Confused Nick and I peer into the theatre and see Pat jetting across stage toward us. Well that did it, they weren’t going to take no for an answer. The program co-ordinator came over to us and basically said we HAD to play an encore. So in 2 seconds we looked at one another and Pat said “Heroine?” and I said ” Satisfied Mind”. That was that, we marched onto the stage…I remember throwing my water bottle somewhere side stage out of sheer bafflement and adrenaline. We played the song, jamming our way through it ( not knowing what was what) and finished with the shittiest of shit eating grins on our faces. Victoria we LOVE YOU.
8) Michael Rault- The Mansion
I first heard Michel Raults music a year or so ago and it got me excited. I looked into his stuff and thought ” my god it’s about time”. Time flows by and new music enters my ears so often that for whatever unjust reason I had put his stuff away in the back vaults of my memory. It wasn’t until a few weeks ago that I had a show in St. Catherines, ON at the OLDEST licensed bar in Canada called The Mansion… I looked at my calendar and realized a familiar name. When I knew for sure we were on the same bill I had high anticipation to see the live show. We loaded in, and soon after they marched up on the little stage. I was standing at the back holding my drink when they begun. A handful of people were sitting down gabbing away but it wasn’t soon after his first number that everyone myself included sprung to their senses and stood up to sway their bodies and have smiles adorn their faces. I felt like I was transported to the 1950′s when Elvis was in full swing, and all his peers were so eloquently writing catchy pop tunes that made your knees weak. It was such a pleasure to see the cohesive intuition and talent Michael and his band owned. It was so refreshing to hear songs that were tightly crafted… Oh and let me not oversee Raults incredible guitar playing. Darling was playing insane leads while singing flavorful and memorable melodies over top. Just such a talent. What a treat.
9) Portishead- NYC
It was the first day I flew into NYC for the Tom Petty tribute that I was surprised by my friend/confident/label big boss man Joel that he had tickets for us to see Portishead. We got there soon after arriving on the tar mat and eating some dinner. With drinks in hand we made our way over to the side stage box. The venue filled to the brim and you could feel the excitement of everyone buzzing in the air… Or maybe I was buzzed on the long island ice teas ( My first time trying one ever) The lights dimmed and you could literally hear everyone take in a deep breath as if they knew what they were in for and they had to get ready. I looked around me as the third song was heavily in weigh. In our box stood Brian Burton (Danger Mouse). As if I wasn’t already reveling in the fact that I was there and Portishead was blowing my soul away, this was the cherry on the NYC double cheesecake. The show was monumental. I have no other way of putting it. I’ve had that feeling of emotions crashing down like waves over the whole audience ( swaying everyone to and fro sometimes violently and other times calm and soothing … all very collective, with the band orchestrating the whole mass) at a Bjork concert years ago… Those are moments in music I live for. There was just such an engaging and magical feel to everything. Even typing this now I wish I could bring you all back in time to experience it. If music is healing, this sure hit the spot.
10) Dwayne Gretsky- Dakota Tavern
Dwayne Gretzky is this pseudo-super-group-cover-band here in Toronto made up of Sweet Thing, but with a continuously rotating line-up, the make-up of Dwayne Gretzky always contains an element of surprise and is known to have included members of Arkells, Flash Lightnin’, the always unpredictable Allie Hughes, and whoever else might jump onstage. They had this residency at my favourite bar in Toronto called The Dakota Tavern. We got booked to open for one of the last 2 nights. We finished and when they started up I swear to god I have never seen more audience participation, dancing, sing alongs and overall hutzpah for a Toronto audience in my life. They lit up the dark little cove- like -tavern with so much spirit it probably illuminated all the street lights from Dundas and Ossington to King City. For a cover band to engage me that much impressed me beyond my standards of regular bands blowing me away. They played classics but than in the same swift slay played everyones guilty pleasures including busting out some rapping! Hollllla!
Hallelujah, the cover band gods can rejoice in peace.
So it’s closing to another year and that calls for top 10 lists… Or so I am told, and so I shall deliver. Seeing as I have not the best memory and go through fazes: food fazes (where I eat the same thing everyday, for every meal, for a few weeks) music fazes (where I spin the same vinyl till it gets tired) etc.etc. I will break up the categories in separate posts: Albums, Movies, Food, Books, Live Shows I saw…
ALBUMS: I am going to approach this Top 10 list a little different. I’m going to put down the top ten that infiltrated my being this year. Not necessarily the ones that were put out in 2011 but the ones that inspired me the most. Make sense? Here we go…
1) The Black Keys- Brothers
Ahhhhh, you may have a slight feeling of Deja Vu if you read the Top 5 albums I listed for last year. That’s because Brothers remains at the top of the tops for me in 2011. It is such a strong album that just one year wasn’t enough time to full devour it. I love this record. It still hasn’t grown old on me. I think that is the tall tale sign that a body of work is timeless. Well done boys.
2)Ann Peebles- I can’t stand the rain
This is an old record. It was originally put out in 1974. I found out about her through my friend Ewan Currie (who you may recognize from a little known band called The Sheepdogs) Ewan is one of my many sources for great tunes. I have this thing where I will text, email or call one of my “music dealers” at obscure hours in the night…morning (maybe after a few glasses) and demand a fix… Something new, something old, something for that night, morning, next day… something, anything to open my ears and penetrate my heart. Ann was a golden gem for me in 2011. She was considered the female Al Green… The Queen if you will of soul music mamas. Many could argue that there are others who could snag this spot (i.e Aretha Franklin) but Ann was a breathe of fresh air. I love Aretha, grew up on the womans voice but hearing Peebles croon and wail over great arrangements and deliver heartfelt lyrics with a performance that could kill a man…slayed me. What a woman, what songs. This album in particular was a revelation for me and really molded a few of the new tunes I have written for my next record. You may recognize the title track “I can’t stand the rain” As it has been covered by numerous artists… Hers, to me, is still the best.
3) Sam Coffey and the iron lungs- self titled
What can I say about Sam Coffey? You probably don’t know him. You probably should. I was playing a gig this year in Kitchener Ontario… We got there early and loaded in our gear & was greeted by a highly energetic, eccentric young man named Andy. He approached us for an interview for a zine he runs. His charming energy was so infectious we couldn’t help but agree if just for the laughs he brought out of us. As he shot off question by question in what seemed to be light-year speed I looked around me at the few boys walking about the large empty dark lit bar. They seemed unassuming enough, dressed like regular rock and roll kids with a punk swagger… A little scruffy on the edges and all together a motely crew. I thought for sure they were going to be a straight ahead garage punk band. After we finished our set (we were the openers) they took the stage. I think I was in the midst of eating of Pats leftovers fries when they hit the first verse of the first song. HOLY FUCK … was all I could say repeatedly as the food fell out of my mouth. The interviewer from earlier was up there with them jumping around like a maniac playing killer guitar… Sam (The lead singer, guitarist and primary songwriter) at times had more swagger in his voice than Elvis… The songs were melodic, hooky, loud, grungy… everything I want in music. Picture 1950′s do wop mixed in with garage rock and a flicker of country twang… Gang vocals and the most exuberant performers I have seen to date. I fell in love. Immediately after their set I rushed Sam and basically told him we were getting together next week to write some songs together. He humbly accepted (Not that I would have gave him a choice) and a friendship was born. Their album is stunning. If you don’t mind rough on the edges production and live for great songwriting you will LOVE this record.
4) Norman Petty (Produced Mexican Surf Music)- That’s Swift // Richard Swift-Ground trouble jaw EP
There is a split for 4 here:
First:
Norman Petty was an American musician, songwriter and producer who was born in Clovis New Mexico. He is most famous for recording with people like Roy Orbison, Waylon Jennings and Buddy Holly. Norman cut a record in the early 60′s with mexican musicians playing Surf music. It was put out under the title ” That’s Swift” and it is brilliant. It was in the spring of 2011 that I read on my favourite blog : Rubber City Review about this compilation. At the time I was heavy into surf and finding anything related turned me on. I immediately bought the album and played it on repeat while driving through the early spring and hot summer. There is something to say for instrumentals with no vocals that keeps you wanting more… and more… and more.
Second:
I literally JUST found out about Richard Swift through Kevin Augunas (who I will talk more about in #7) Aside from the EP being clever, arranged masterfully and sonically killer his voice is something special. It’s insanely unique. You can hear he is technically proficient and has stunning tone . He captures the same magic as some of the great soul singers of our time yet and in the same instance in a flick of a switch he will play around with it and it comes out sounding like Wanda Jackson; drenched in attitude and swagger. (ie.” Would You ” this is the very first song on the EP, listen to it and you will agree). I am always so overwhelmed with joy when I realize there are killer artists out there who have a very “throwback” type sound but re-establish it with their own flare and charisma. If you don’t own this you should. Enough said.
5) The Kills- Blood Pressures
I will admit I never got into The Kills until this record. We were on tour across Canada this fall and my friend Greg ( who we were touring with… he is in a great band called The Dirty Mags) couldn’t say enough about them. One night in the hotel after the show partying it came on someone’s ipod dock. All of a sudden it reeled me in and had me listening. I knew a lot about Alison because The Dead Weather blew me away with their 2 records. Maybe it was being involved with that project that really rubbed off on Blood Pressures. There were hooks, it was blues-ier, had more grab to it than the others I had heard and tried on many attempts to get into. After tour I bought the record. When I got home I watched a video they shot of an acoustic performance of ” Baby says” to promote the release. It was after that when I became hooked.
6) Dinner Belles-West Simcoe County
I will start by saying I am a sucker for roots music. Over the past year and a bit I kept hearing about the ” Dinner Belles” through friends who knew friends who were in the band, to strangers etc. so forth… but for whatever reason I never went out of my way to get a copy or go to a show. It wasn’t until about a month ago… Maybe even a few weeks, when I played a show at Fanshaw College in London Ontario with my beautiful friends Monster Truck that this band was brought up again in conversation. This time, the dots connected and I realized that my good friend Brandon Bliss (Who plays keys in Monster Truck) was in the Dinner Belles! Well! That did it, some lightbulb went off & That night I went online and scoured for something, anything of theirs… I came across a La Blogotheque post about them which included a bunch of off the cuff videos of them performing some songs in an incredible old barn surrounded by family , friends and kids. I was completely floored. You really just have to listen for yourself. If anything it will make you want to dance, maybe sit on a porch with a drink and a smoke, go walk outside and smell the air around you… I got the music finally as I was driving from Alberta to Vancouver. I haven’t stopped listening since. What a golden record.
7) Michael Kiwanuka-Tell me a tale (Isle of Wight sessions)
I was sitting down a few days ago at the Dine Alone office having a meeting with Kevin Augunas (accomplished producer, engineer and mixer, who has worked with exceptional talent including the The Black Keys, Cold War Kids, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros etc. etc.) We were shooting the shit about music and analog and vintage… Talking about modern day recordings that sound soulful and old. He stopped me and said ” you need to hear this” he pulled out his Iphone, tapped through it and pressed play on what may be one of my new favourite artists. Michael Kiwanuka. He sounds like he should have been born in the late 60′s and sung next to Al Green, Otis Redding and Ray Charles. The arrangements on this EP are phenomenal. I am sold.
8) Monster Truck- Brown EP
Monster Truck is one of my favourite bands ever. I feel so lucky that a lot of the names on this top 10 list compiled of friends. MT being one of them. The first show we played together was in Hamilton at a club called ” This Ain’t Hollywood” I remember as soon as they started (not knowing what they were like aside from my manager telling me I would fucking love them) I couldn’t stop head banging. Yes, Head Banging, feet stomping, hair whipping, ass shaking. It was involuntary and infectious. the whole crowd moved like some wild tribe together. It was to me what ACDC is to me… incredible-riff based-hooky-have a good time-loud-kickass- rock and roll. Fronted by Jon who plays bass and can sing smokey circles around most of many, Jer who rips your head of with his insane guitar playing swagger, Steve who hits the drums like he wants revenge and Brandon who plays keys almost zen like but with the soul notion as if tomorrow could never come…these boys slay their audience. The recordings are nothing short of what they give off in any live setting. It’s music you throw on to get ready to go out, in the car to get your day or night going, while you are out, at home just for kicks, in the shower, in bed to have sex to… you name it I’m into it.
9) My Morning Jacket- Circutial
I kept reading about My Morning Jacket this year. It was almost as if I couldn’t escape them. Reviews for this album were everywhere and always were 4 stars. I think anyone who pays attention to music would have been blind not to know about My Morning Jacket in 2011. I admit, I am so tardy on this one… Call me a late bloomer but it took me until this past winter tour to get a hold of the damn album. I remember driving through the gorgeous rockies and Southern interiors of British Columbia with Circutial playing. It seemed to paint the perfect soundtrack to the scenery. This album is nothing short of it’s hype which is hard to accomplish these days. What a feat! I’m a self professed sap so my favourite on the record is “ Wonderful- the way I feel“. Stunningly poetic, hair raising body of work.
10)Alabama Shakes-Alabama Shakes EP // Shovels and Rope-Cary Ann Hearst & Michael Trent
There are 2 in my 10 spot…
First,
There was a video passed along to me from Joel (DA) of Alabama Shakes performing “You ain’t alone” As soon as it started up and Brittany Howard opened her mouth I had chills. I know I’m going to love something if in the first 25-30 seconds I get hair raising on my arms. I searched to find more material from them and came out with their Bandcamp page that has a stunning 4 song EP.
Second,
I was in Buffalo, NY for my birthday this year with a friend visiting a friend who was playing a show. That said friend is a talented musician/producer named Butch Walker. I walked into the green room and there sat Cary Ann Hearst doing her make-up and talking in the most infectious southern drawl I have ever heard! I swear to god I wanted to record it so I could hear her voice throughout my day just to bring a smile to my face. She could be saying the dirtiest shit and it sounded so goddamn charming. Dressed up in a frilly white country bumpkin dress to the floor she was sipping a glass of Jameson and chatting away. Beside her was a skinny little guy with a smile that could kill a girl… wearing a trucker hat and I’m pretty sure a western shirt of some sort…Or maybe it was a jean jacket…or well, ya…the smile was distracting. I stood there sipping a beer and talking away to friends only to catch myself trying to listen to what those two southern drawls were going on about. You could tell they were special … They had that same spark and spunk (Well Cary Ann had most of the spunk) that reminded me of Dolly Parton. Butch had told me a little bit about them… That they were opening, they were called : Shovels and Rope that he loved them and he knew I would too, oh and that Cary Ann sung like ” the devil was coming out of her”… So as the show commenced I hoped into my seat and waited with baited breath for them to start. And start they did, with Cary Ann commanding attention stomping her feet on the ground strumming an acoustic, wailing… Michael pounding on a kick drum and banging on a snare and singing harmonies… They were magnetic. A perfect duo. I don’t think anyone could leave there without falling madly in love with them. Their full length album it such a feel good record. I swear it’s the gloomiest day outside in King City right now but with this record spinning the sunshine seems to find its way into my heart.
* Honorable mentions : Michael Rault-Ma-ME-O & Alberta Cross- Broken side of Time
It’s my birthday today. I’m gonna ride if I wanna…
thanks to the Boogieman Jordon for passing this along.
X
Amanda
