It’s been a while. Sometimes I wonder if blogs are even a thing anymore…
The last blog I wrote and didn’t post was a tribute to the legendary producer Keith Olsen who I had the pleasure of working with on my album Hidden Power. I’ll post it soon.
When I worked with Keith, I learned a lot. I was like a sponge. With every album I’ve recorded, and all the demos I’ve done over the years, I learn more and more. I learn the things that I totally want to do, and I’ve learned the things that no longer work for me.
I’ve been having a blast working on album #4. I wasn’t sure what it was going to be like to record a project totally remote, with my rhythm section in Nashville, one guitarist in Kamloops, one in Vancouver; my mixer in Ottawa, and me in the Shuswap.
It’s had its challenges so far, I ain’t gonna lie.
Mostly, the thing that I will not say that is making us all a little crazy, but also being a slave to others’ schedules and then to my own, with having a stupid crazy insane Wildfire season. BUT, I’m not that far behind schedule.
The release date is set for Feb 2022. Currently I have 9 songs demoed.
Of those 9, one is mixed and I’m getting ready to send another for mixing.
Never did I think in all my career that I’d “produce” my own project. I use that term loosely. Scotty, my drummer produced one song so far and I’m leaning heavily on my co-writers and the mixers and musicians to do what serves the song as well as the stuff I’ve learned over the years from the producers I’ve had the luck to work with.
Every song is different- has its own personality. They each warrant different treatment. Some need more TLC, some are more independent and just…happen.
No different than their birth in the creative process. Some were easier to write than others; Captivated took me 20 minutes to write the lyrics, Intimate Enemy took me a decade to get them how I wanted.
Song #10 that I’m writing and have been percolating on, just yesterday told me what it wants me to do with it…sonow I’ve got to tell my co-writer what I’ve come up with.
I think he’s going to be excited and inspired.
I’ve been learning to follow my intuition more on these songs. Not to say that I don’t love many of the songs I’ve recorded over the years, I do, but honestly, even though I’ve written them, and sung them, some of them just don’t resonate with me. The style just isn’t me.
But they had to come out.
As I get older, oddly enough, my music gets heavier, darker. I can’t explain it except music is the way I express myself.
If you know me, I’m pretty upbeat. I try to be positive; I laugh a lot and have a weird sense of humor. But even if you know me, I have a dark side that very few people see and a side that I rarely talk about other than to people I know who will understand.
These songs are more me. Dark, heavy, introspective and harder rock. This is my sweet spot. This is where I feel best expressing myself. With grit, growl, and even a primal near-scream at times. But always with passion and melody.
This is some of the best material I’ve written. Maybe it’s because I’ve allowed myself to “go there” in my lyrics and with my voice.
Maybe it’s just my dark side fully expressing itself and feeling free to do so. Whatever it is, every time I hear these songs in whatever state they’re in, I feel an excitement….a “holy crap that’s good, I LOVE that song”.
I can’t wait for you to hear them.
