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Interviews

Colbie Caillat

 

Colbie Caillat has had quite a year. Just around this time last year her first single, “Bubbly” hit airwaves and her debut album, Coco, was released. Previously, Colbie was known more as a MySpace sensation. She was MySpace’s No. 1 unsigned artist for four consecutive months acquiring over 100,000 friends, eventually landing her a record deal with Universal.

 

Fast forward to 2008, “Bubbly” and second single, “Realize” continue to be played in heavy rotation and Colbie boarded John Mayer’s Mayercraft Carrier cruise ship to join him and other musicians and fans for a fun-filled music cruise. Apparently all this didn’t keep the California native busy enough, as she just penciled into her calendar a US summer tour with Mayer as well.

 

Colbie took some time out for a phone interview while driving from Nashville to Iowa City right before the US leg of her summer tour began. Having just wrapped up filming in Hawaii for “The Little Things” — her third single picked by fans on MySpace — Colbie talked a bit about her stage fright, how she became a MySpace phenomenon and why she thinks “Bubbly” resonates with so many people.

 

To listen to Colbie talk about how her life has changed in the past year, writing songs in the bathroom and advice from John Mayer click here. For more advice from Colbie to aspiring musicians, MySpace and why she thinks “Bubbly” is such a hit, click here. Feel free to read the full interview below and check out Colbie’s MySpace for when she’ll be playing in your area!

 

It’s been just about a year since your debut album came out. How has life changed for you?
So much. A year and a half ago I was just working at a tanning salon and I was recording my album. Now, I’ve been to . . . I can’t even count how many different countries playing my music all over the word, living on a tour bus. It’s a lot different, but it’s fun.

 

Did you ever imagine MySpace would have had such a huge impact on your career?
Not at all. No, I had no idea. I didn’t even know what MySpace really was or could do. My friend made the page for me and told me about it and he helped me upload my songs and everything so I had no idea.

 

How did the whole process on getting your record deal come about?
Well, because I was on MySpace and was eventually on the top of the unsigned artist chart. I was No.1 and I was easily noticed by people and the record labels would notice me easily and that’s how they found me and then offered me a record deal.

 

You pretty much had your songs written before the record deal happened, right? Did you have a certain concept for the album?
Oh yeah, the whole thing was written. The label came into it a month and a half after we were already into recording the album. I wrote these songs and every time we’d go into the studio we’d add instruments up until when we felt like they were complete. I just wanted the music to sound good, laid-back and really pretty and uplifting and sunny and that was the concept I guess.

 

I read that you write songs in your bathroom.
Yeah. I do. [Laughs]. It sounds good in there. Usually when I was at home in my bathroom, I felt like no one could hear me because I was in my own little world. It echoes in there so it makes your voice sound pretty and your guitar has some reverb on it. And now, on tour, being in my hotel room I go into the bathroom and close the door because if I sing really loud, people can hear me down the hall. It’s my comfort zone.

 

Do you remember the first time you heard “Bubbly” on the radio?
Yeah. Well, the first time I heard it I didn’t really count it because we were on our way to that radio station. But the first time I heard it randomly, I was back home on a little break from tour and my family and I, we went out to lunch at this restaurant we always go to. Halfway through lunch, we were outside and “Bubbly” came on and my family of course started freaking out. My mom got up and started dancing. It was really exciting.

 

Are you tired of playing “Bubbly” yet?
There are times when I am. Usually it’s for TV performances because I get so, so nervous on TV that I always mess up the song and then I just dread singing it the next time. Lately, we just went back on tour a week ago, so now I’m actually excited to sing it again. I just need little breaks from it.

 

You’re starting up a summer tour with John Mayer, you must be so excited!
Yeah. I’m kind of freaking out. [Laughs].

 

Has he given you any words of wisdom about the music industry?
Yeah, he has. I met him six months ago and we were talking. I told him I have stage fright and lots of fears. So he just told me to have fun up onstage and not worry because anything you do up there, people laugh at. Even if you mess up they kind of appreciate it more. As far as making decisions, like business decisions, he just said to do what you feel and go with your gut so I do that and it works.

 

Has your stage fright gotten better over the past year?
It has gotten a little better, but it’s honestly different depending on the situation. If it’s not as big of a deal TV show I’m fine. If it’s Leno or The Today Show I freak out completely where I cry right before I go on. I do vocal warm-ups with my band before and breathing techniques and I have to remember to smile. Sometimes, depending what time of day it is, I will have a cocktail before I go onstage just to calm me down a little bit.

 

Your debut album, Coco, is approaching it’s year mark later this month. Are you working on another album?
Well, the third single comes out in August for “The Little Things.” We just shot the music video for that inHawaii a couple weeks ago. But yeah, I’m working on the next album. I’ve been writing for the past year and we’ve already recorded some of the songs. We’re not recording the full album until January and it won’t come out until next summer so we have a while to work on it still.

 

I know you worked with Jason Mraz on his most recent album. Are you hoping to collaborate with anyone on your next album?
I’m not sure. We haven’t talked about it for my album. I’ve done a song on Taylor Swift’s new album and Jason’s album and then a couple artists from different countries. I’m not sure about doing any on mine yet, but I would like to for sure.

 

Your fans have been included a lot on your MySpace, often picking the next single you release. Are you planning on continuing this for the new album?
That’s what I’m trying to figure out how to happen. I definitely want that, but I’m not allowed to put the songs up on MySpace. So now I’m trying to see, maybe having my band learn all the songs first and then we’ll start playing them randomly at shows, but that’s still not the best way to do it so I’m trying to figure out a way to do that.

 

Your songs were taken off of MySpace for a while.
There was some disagreement with MySpace and Universal. So everyone from Universal had to take either their songs off or put shorter clips. I was trying to fight that because as much as I want to respect my label, MySpace was what got me started and my fans, I felt like that was being disrespectful to them. There was a lot of negotiation, so I was able to put my original demos up for the meantime until the lawsuit passed.

 

What is your advice to aspiring musicians and singer-songwriters?
I would definitely recommend learning your craft, whatever it is. Take vocal lessons if you sing or piano lessons or guitar lessons, whatever instrument you want to play. Practice all the time because I didn’t and I wish I would have more now. I can play guitar and I can play up onstage, but I’m not a great guitar player so it kind of makes me nervous. So if you just practice your craft well so that you just have it in the bag. Write your own songs that mean something to you and just be in control of your career. As far as MySpace, make your page look all cute and post bulletins, keeping people involved in what you’re doing. That’s mainly the best thing, to keep them involved.

 

Do you have a favorite song on the album?
My favorite is “One Fine Wire.” Every time I hear that one come on I just like the melody and the music behind it, it’s just very uplifting. I wrote that song about my stage fright and how to overcome it, so that song just means a lot to me.

 

With MySpace, do you feel it’s more important to get fans that way rather than TV show appearances?
Well, it’s just different. My MySpace fans are the original ones that know everything about me. They know when I had all my original pictures up of me playing guitar in the bathroom, they were the ones from the beginning that heard all the demos. They’re different kind of fans than the ones that see me on TV. They [TV fans] become more of, I guess the screaming fans and the MySpace fans are the ones that are like, “I want to say that I’ve been listening to you forever.” They’re both different, but they’re both appreciated.

 

Why do you feel “Bubbly” has had so much success?
I think it’s because the song is about love. Well, it’s about having a crush on someone and all the things that I wrote about in that song, everyone has either experienced before, they’re feeling it right now or they’re dying to fall in love or have a relationship. I think by people being able to relate to a song, I think that’s what does it.

 

What would you be doing right now if it wasn’t for the music?
I was really into photography, so I would have tried something for that or I would have gone to school for interior design. I had fun with that, I was going to school for that a couple years ago. Otherwise, I’d still be singing and writing songs, maybe for other people.

 

If you haven’t yet, to listen my interviews with Colbie click here for part one and here for the second half of the interview. Check out Colbie’s MySpace for more info. on upcoming tour dates and music!

 

Photo: Don Flood

Categories
Features

New Artist to Listen For: Jaymay

With her light, soft vocals and honest lyrics, Jaymay’s debut full-length album Autumn Fallin’ has the versatility to keep the album on rotate all day long. While many of the tracks are ballads, (some more somber than others) jazzy songs like “Hard To Say” have catchy choruses and instrumental accompaniment, often putting the listener into another time period. The first half of Autumn Fallin’ starts slower, but track six segues into almost another album entirely.

New Yorker Jaymay starts off Autumn Fallin’ with “Gray or Blue,” a lyrically honest song with light guitar strumming while tambourine and xylophone can be heard in the background. If you listen closely to each song, they all tell a story — whether it be about crushing on a friend or wishing to find love. The underlying theme on Autumn Fallin’ seems to be heartbreak and unrequited love while three of the ten song titles include the word “blue.” Coincidence? I think not. Lyrics such as, “Don’t second guess your feelings, you were right from the start/And I notice she’s your lover but she’s nowhere near your heart” get the point across.

On “Gray or Blue” Jaymay tells the story of two friends in love, who ironically both have significant others. She sings, “You haven’t written to me in a week I wonder why that is/Are you too nervous to be lovers?/Friendships ruined with just one kiss.” While the title of another track, “Blue Skies,” sounds like it might be more of an uplifting song, the listener can sense the angst. “Faith brings me back to the place I met you/I bet you miss me sometime . . . sometimes,” she sings.

While tracks one through five are mostly somber ballads, nearly 10-minute track “You’d Rather Run” has background music reminiscent of a carousel ride at a carnival, seemingly in opposition to the more serious story within the song. Stand-out track on the album is “Hard To Say,” a more upbeat, fun jazzy number featuring Jaymay’s higher vocal range. “Hard To Say” segues nicely into the next track on the album, “Big Ben,” a slower song, almost sounding like a song right out of an old black and white movie. Despite the stories within each song being somewhat of a downer, Jaymay’s debut album has the intrigue to keep the listener wondering what exactly she’s trying to get across throughout the album’s entirety. By the last track, I think she’s given us all the answer.

For more on Jaymay, listen to an audio stream of her song “Gray or Blue” here or check her out on MySpace.

Categories
Song of the Week

Song of the Week: “Check Yes Juliet”

Happy Fourth of July! I thought it’d be cool to feature a new song each week on my blog. Maybe a song I’ve been hearing on the radio a lot, or just a blast from the past. My first song of the week is Florida-based band We the Kings’ “Check Yes Juliet” — a catchy pop-rock song with an entertaining story book music video. If you like what you hear, be sure to catch them this summer on Warped Tour! Here’s their MySpace for some more music and check out their video for “Check Yes Juliet” below.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1R_txIuuio]

Categories
News

You Sing, I Write Hits 10,000 Views!

A few months ago I set up something called Google AdSense which basically calculates how many page views I get per day, giving me a certain amount of money per click on the ads on top of the blog. It seemed like a good idea at the time, just to get an idea of how many viewers I get and make a little money in the meantime. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought this blog would have become so successful!

I originally started “You Sing, I Write” back in October as a writing outlet, since my current job wasn’t writing related. I just assumed my family and friends would read it and leave comments and that was good enough for me at the time. It all began with my Switchfoot concert coverage and interviews which were eventually posted on the band’s homepage. Other blogs and websites linked to my blog and I began setting up interviews with more bands, practically covering a show every week or two. Eventually, that led to living my own version of Almost Famous when I spent a few days on tour with Army of Me.

I’ve come a long way over the past few months, but there’s definitely a lot more I want to do with my blog — set up a MySpace, branch out to more genres of music and update it more often. I’m always welcome to suggestions, so feel free to leave comments or e-mail me bands you’d like to see featured! It means the world that I can actually do what I love and you all enjoy reading it so much! Now on to finding a full-time job doing what I do now with my blog for a living…

Categories
Interviews

Starving For Gravity

Bass player Brett Lindenberg describes Starving For Gravity as being “one of the only bands I know that can pull-off ballads and hard rock.” I have to agree. While some of their songs are a bit more edgy, others start off slower and almost ballad-like. The guys of SFG were nice enough to send me a few songs to post on the blog for you to listen to, (I’ll post them below the interview) so check their songs out and decide for yourself. If that’s not enough for you, visit their MySpace. Below is my interview with Brett and singer Lucas Holter of Starving For Gravity.

Tell me about Starving For Gravity. How did it all begin?
Lucas: SFG basically rose out of a personal depression due to lack of music in my life. I had been in bands for a couple years, from [age] 17-20, and then I just stopped. It all started as just an outlet. Something to be creative. We did mostly cover shows for a long while, saving money to record an album. The rest is history.

You moved to California to record your latest album and worked with producer John “JR” Ryan (Santana, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Baha Men), how was that experience? Was it what you always imagined it would be like?
Lucas: Nothing like I thought it would be. It was much more personal, and much more business, all at the same time. If that makes sense? It was definitely one of those experiences you’re glad you had. It will hopefully come in handy in the future.

The California music scene I’m sure is entirely different than North Dakota. How was the transition?
Lucas: Well, the scene isn’t so much different as it is more diverse and large. It’s the same anywhere you go, musicians trying to play for people. The difference here as opposed to North Dakota is that the audience is much more receptive to originality, whereas back home, you were pretty limited to what the people wanted to hear. The transition was awesome, but slightly difficult at first. Mainly because we never had any experience putting a “show” together. We just got drunk and played classic rock tunes.

How would you describe your music to someone that’s never heard it before?
Lucas: I would say that our music is quite simply just a culmination of human emotion and stories of communication. Every song we write has a meaning behind it. Some of our stuff is very melodic and chill, and some will tear your head off, especially live, but it is all truth.

What makes Starving For Gravity different from other up-and-coming bands out there?
Brett: We are one of the only bands I know that can pull-off ballads and hard rock. Too many bands end up becoming one trick ponies by sticking to a specific style of song writing. We’ve made a conscious effort to write a collection of songs that cover a broad scope of human experiences. We want our music to reflect these different experiences.

You sent me three songs to post on my blog, tell me a little bit about each one.
Brett: I think these songs do a good job of showing diversity in our songwriting. “Shot Down” — a song we wrote about a former manager — is aggressive and melodic. “The Gun” features some great harmonies alongside a bridge that is one of the best we’ve ever written. Finally, “Urgency,” while it’s not a heavy song per say, has great tension. You can feel the tension being built in this song all the way to the bridge where there is an abrupt release.

What are your plans for the next year and hopes for the next five years?
Brett: Playing music, touring, writing, making a living. Maybe owning a condominium in an upper-middle class community.

Listen to some tracks from Starving For Gravity and let me know what you think!
“Shot Down”
“The Gun”
“Urgency”

If you like what you hear, check them out on MySpace and catch a show when they’re in the area.

Photo: Mike Cavanaugh of All Access Magazine

Categories
Interviews

Serena Ryder

A few weeks ago I chatted with Canadian singer-songwriter Serena Ryder just after she wrapped up recording her debut full-length US album, due out later this year. Having worked with producer John Alagia Mayer, Jason Mraz) as well as collaborated with songwriters Jim Duguid (Paolo Nutini) and Mikal Blue (Colbie Caillat), Serena explained the recording process as “effortless” and “absolutely magical.” Serena talked a bit about her experience winning Best New Artist at the Juno Awards (Canada’s Grammy equivalent), her views on touring and performing and her hopes for the next few years. Check out the interview below and her MySpace for a listen.

How is everything going?
Everything’s going great! I just got back from LA. I was making my new record out there in Santa Monica and had the absolute best time of my entire life. It was so much fun. Making the record was absolutely effortless and an absolute joy to be a part of that process. My producer, John Alagia, and the band . . . it was amazing, so much fun. I stayed right by the beach, which was really nice because I live downtown in Toronto so I don’t get to the water that much. It felt just like a big vacation.

When are you expecting it to be released?
Well, for me, yesterday would be good. I was out of the edits and want to release the record as soon as possible. I’m hoping sometime fall or winter would be really great for me.

Is the record similar to your EP, Told You In a Whispered Song, which was released in the US?
Those songs were previews of what’s going on the record. The songwriting is kind of similar. Most of the songs that were on the EP are going on the record too. It’s more full band and it’s got a similar vibe.

How was the recording process?
It was effortless. It was amazing and inspiring. It was a lot of fun. It was absolutely magical.

This past year must seem like a whirlwind for you — getting signed to Atlantic right after SXSW last year, releasing your EP, touring. How has everything been going?
It’s been amazing. It’s been a really, really wonderful year. I’ve been traveling for quite a while and I’ve been touring and playing since I was a little kid and it’s a part of my lifestyle, but it’s been a lot more amazing now that I’ve joined up with family of Atlantic. It’s just such a great team of people. I call it family because they’re really, really an interactive A&R; based label, that’s why I chose them. I was on an indie label for five years, but Atlantic has been such a massive help for me. So, it’s been really good and also taking the opportunity to be able to record this record and do it the way that I wanted to with people I wanted to do it with.

In the last year I moved and there have been a lot of different changes that have gone on in my life. It’s been big changes, but they’ve been changes that have helped me be able to get stable and rooted and grounded enough to know where I’m metaphorically planting my seeds. I almost feel like I’ve been in training with what I’m going to be doing for the next, gosh, who knows how long. I’m still in love with what I do and I feel very blessed to be able to do what I do. I’ve been trying to be on the road, be healthy, eat right, work on my craft and my songwriting. I’ve been doing a lot of that in the last year with the new record. Different collaborations with people and learning from other people, it’s been fabulous.

Who have you been collaborating with for this album?
This album, I think is probably about four songs that were co-written and the rest of the songs I wrote on my own. I wrote with this guy named Jim Duguid in London. He’s actually Scottish. He’s Paolo Nutini’s drummer. He’s quite an amazing writer as well; he co-wrote and produced Paolo’s last record with him. I wrote with this fellow named Mikal Blue. He’s a really, really cool dude. He did all of Colbie Caillat’s stuff. It was so much fun. It was a great, great process.

You were on tour most of last year, how was that experience?
It’s been great. I’ve been touring for a long time so I feel very comfortable on the road. The last year has been really good for me because I’ve realized that is where my home is now. It’s not about going away from home and things need to change. I’ve learned that being on the road is being at home, so you have to treat your hotel room or your restaurant or the places that you eat at like, that’s your kitchen, that’s your room, that’s your house. And the more you treat it that way; you can really get some kind of normalcy or constant. Everything is different and everything is new. I just feel like I have a lot more respect for people who travel constantly. It can be really difficult to just to keep that home with you everywhere you go. I finally have the opportunity to really see it as that. I feel pretty blessed about that.

Congratulations on your Juno award for Best New Artist! How was the overall experience of being at the awards show? Was it everything you expected?
It was overwhelming and awesome. I was just trying to breathe and make it seem like I was calm and everything was normal. There is nothing normal about walking on red carpet in heels with flashes and cameras and blinding sequence everywhere. It was like being in a dream, or on TV. You only see that on TV. That’s not what your average Joe will experience and I really do consider myself a Joe.

I read you’ve been performing since you were 13.
Yeah. I started performing when I was eight. It was cover songs and stuff at legions and hotels, like Buddy Holly and Linda Ronstadt. I was the cute little kid with the band behind her with 40-year-old men. [laughs] It was fun. I started writing when I was 11 or 12 and got a guitar when I was 13 and I started playing up on stages and just anywhere I could possibly get my ass onstage I would get my ass onstage. I just had pure, absolutely unadulterated love for performing and singing and being able to communicate with people on a level other than conversation. Songs are like short stories, you have so much room to articulate and converse with people on a totally different level and I’ve always needed that, as a juice in my life, life juice.

Growing up, have you always wanted to be a performer? Do you remember the moment you were like, “This is what I want to do.”
Oh yeah, dude. I wanted to be on Star Search w

hen I was a little kid. I would
watch Ed McMahon and all those cute little kids and be like, “I want to do that!” I did initially want to be a performer, but now I think, for me, it’s not necessarily about performing. I don’t really like to call it that anymore. It’s more about being able to relate to other people, just to share it and to inspire is my main goal now. As a songwriter as well, I feel like I’ve had the opportunity with this record to really plant my roots in that I am a songwriter and I adore it as a craft and I have so much respect for it.

What is your typical songwriting process like? Do you carry a notebook wherever you go?
There are lots of different ways to write a song and I’m still trying to hone it as a craft. With this record, I actually for the first time consciously sat down and was like, “Okay, what do I want to talk about? What’s my message?” Most of the time songs would just come to me. Now I totally believe that there’s no ownership in art. You create something, it doesn’t belong to you. It’s like a child; your children don’t belong to you. They’ve chosen you to be their parent and they’re going to learn from you and they’re going to leave and they’re going to hopefully take something. I think music is like that as well, songwriting, everything really. There have been so many different ways…sometimes a song just comes to me, sometimes I sit down and contemplate, meditate on what I’m trying to speak about or trying to articulate or communicate with people.

Did you go into the studio having a concept for the album?
When I went into the studio I had all of the songs finished. It was definitely a body of work and a vibe but I also went into the studio knowing I was working with an absolutely phenomenal producer and band. I went in with an open heart and open mind and trusted they would bring a lot to the record. And they did. They took it places that I didn’t know it would go. It was better than I had imagined it would be, pretty phenomenal.

Do you have a favorite track on the album?
One song “Is It Ok” is one of those songs that was just written. Sometimes it’s difficult to write songs when you’re in the middle of an emotion. You need to step outside of yourself to see. It’s like writing a movie with your experiences. The lyrics came to me in this big burst of passion and the reason why it’s my favorite song is because the band makes me want to listen to it. The band was so phenomenal, they brought it to another level. The band made it so powerful. They brought this whole other life to it. It was the song that surprised me the most.

What are your hopes for next few years?
I feel absolutely satisfied with where I am right now. I look forward to really being at home wherever I go. I’d love to help people feel comfortable in their own skin, if that’s possible. Everyone has their own karma and their own lifestyle and their own choices in their life to be or do whatever they want to. I really would love to shed a little bit more light on the fact that it is a choice to some extent, especially to us who are very blessed to be in Western society in certain ways. There are always ups and downs and there are different things that are great and there are things that are horrible. I just really hope that I can make people realize that they are so huge and so wonderful and so capable of leaving so much greatness in the world.

What is your advice for singer-songwriters or aspiring musicians?
That’s the thing; I don’t think I could have heard anything. Even if I went back and talked to myself as myself, just time travel and go back and knock on my own forehead and say, “Hey, don’t do that, do this.” I don’t really think there is a place for that or people who would really actually be able to hear. I think the only way I know personally how to do that is by writing music and just being as honest as possible in the moment.

How would you explain your music or lyrics to someone who has never heard one of your songs?
I wouldn’t. I really wouldn’t. I would just let them listen.

Listen to Serena’s song, “Brand New Love” here and see for yourself. For Windows users you can listen here.

Categories
News

Help An Unsigned Band Land A Record Deal

Music lovers can vote for their favorite unsigned artist, ultimately picking who will land a record deal with Original Signal/Epic as well as gear from Gibson Guitar and the chance to perform at Spin Magazine’s Year In Music Party in December. Not a bad deal for the struggling musician, eh?

So here’s where you and I come in. Check out this website. Two artists are shown on the screen in which they call the “head-to-head player.” A simple hover of a mouse plays a song (sometimes a live video!) from whichever artist you choose to listen to first. Listen to both tunes for as long as you wish and select which artist you prefer. If you can’t make a decision and they both sound the same to you, click the equal button in between the player. For four weeks music fans can vote for these 500 artists and then the top 20 artists will be sent to the judges who ultimately decide the winner. Either way, you win . . . check out some new, relatively undiscovered bands and if you like what you hear, visit their artist page for more info. The winner will be announced July 31st, so keep voting!

Categories
Features

New Artist to Listen For: Jessie Baylin

While her voice is somewhat reminiscent to a blend of an edgier Carrie Underwood and Lucinda Williams with that country-pop blend, Jessie Baylin’s major label debut is much more distinctive. Jessie’s second full-length album, Firesight, has her branching out from today’s mainstream music with a jazzy and almost folk-like feel on some songs. With performances on past Hotel Cafe Tours as well as this year’s Bonnaroo Festival, she is definitely making a name for herself.

First track on the album, “See How I Run” starts off with Jessie singing, “I’m not stopping, waiting on nothing/Moving quickly trying to catch what’s mine/What’s destined inside the dreamer/I’ll be rushing, making a lot of noise” to a catchy guitar and drum beat. A solid first track for what’s to come on the rest of her album — strong collaborations with Grammy-winning songwriters (Jesse Harris) as well as various co-writers Mike Daly (Whiskeytown), Mark Goldenberg, Greg Wells and Danny Wilde (Rembrandts) and accomplished musicians including Brett Dennen and Cary Brothers as well as Ryan Adams’ drummer Brad Pemberton and guitarist Joe Pisapia of Guster among others.

Each track on Firesight varies from the previous, some tracks sounding jazzy while others have more of a country vibe. “Leave Your Mark” features Brett Dennen on backing vocals and is one of the stronger songs on the album, having a full sound both vocally and musically. The keyboard, guitar and bass as well as percussion and strings round out the track well while Brett’s vocals blend well with Jessie’s. “Not A Day More” has a faster beat, but darker vocals and even drearier lyrics while “Lonely Heaven” sounds like a jazz number, Jessie’s voice accenting but not overpowering the piano feature in the background of the song. Her voice in this track is timeless and could not have been performed any better with the crescendos in her voice in sync with each note played on the piano.

“Tennessee Gem” is more of a folk song with a country twist to it, immensely refreshing with guitar and pedal steel accompaniment while “I’ll Cry For the Both of Us” sounds like it could be a track right out of the 1970’s. Definitely versatile, Jessie Baylin’s Firesight has something for everyone. Due out in stores, Tuesday, June 24th, if you like the tracks below pick it up!

Listen to “Was I On Your Mind” here.
Check out “See How I Run” here for Windows Media and here for QuickTime.
For more on Jessie, check her out on MySpace

Categories
CD Reviews

Jakob Dylan Releases First Solo Album

Debuting your first solo album after nearly 20 successful years with the Wallflowers is no easy transition. Now add being Bob Dylan’s son to the mix and that leaves a large shadow in your wake, daring you to be different. With these two hurdles to jump over, it’s an accomplishment to have even tried.

Jakob opens Seeing Things singing, “It doesn’t always have a shape/Almost never does it have a name/It maybe has a pitchfork, maybe has a tail/But evil is alive and well” on track “Evil Is Alive and Well.” A simple song, both with acoustic guitar and Jakob’s deep and at times, raspy voice, the track encompasses what’s to be expected throughout the remainder of the album — a heavy, emotional album with little voice inflection or climax in guitar accompaniment.

While Seeing Things lacks the energy and power of a full band, the album isn’t all a journey into a brooding comatose. Songs such as “Something Good This Way” has a pop style and catchy chorus. With lyrics like, “Got my window open wide/Got a good woman by my side/This kind of day has no night/Ain’t got much on my mind/’Cause I know something good this way comes” the light guitar and soothing voice lightens up the album. The following track, “On Up the Mountain” is almost reminiscent of a lullaby, Jakob singing “You’ll get tired and you’ll get weak/But you won’t abandon your masterpiece/Off to sleep you’ll go.”

When it comes down to it, Jakob’s solo debut is mostly an acoustic album that doesn’t strongly showcase his guitar playing or lyrical writing. Seeing Things lacks the energy and strength of a band behind him, with no catchy choruses and few stand-out songs. While Jacob has the previous track record set with the Wallflowers, he needs a lot more to make the high jump into a solo career.

This is only my review of Jakob’s new album, I’d love to hear what you think. If you agree or disagree, feel free to leave me comments!
To listen to “Something Good This Way Comes” click here.
For more music, check out Jakob’s MySpace or Website.

Here’s a video of Jakob Dylan playing “Evil Is Alive and Well” live.

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GigMaven: An Easier Way to Book Shows

I’m always interested in what’s going on in the constantly changing music industry. I originally started this blog to feature interviews with musicians, but there are so many aspects of the music industry to cover. I think I’m going to try to branch out on things that I find interesting that might intrigue others as well. GigMaven is just one example that is helping with the rapidly changing industry. Below is my interview with Howard Han, founder of GigMaven, a new website dedicated to helping musicians find and book gigs online. Check it out for yourself at http://www.gigmaven.com. As always, feel free to leave comments or E-mail Me! on suggestions, artist features or ways you’d like me to improve the blog!

Tell me a little bit about GigMaven. How did you come up with the concept?
One of my friends, Richard Pan, was a musician for three years out of college. He was working at Abercrombie and Fitch in Ohio while driving out to NYC every couple of weeks to play gigs. He was doing pretty well, consistently booking gigs in NYC. He played at the Knitting Factory and at CMJ ’08 and got signed to an indie label, but he was having a bit of trouble getting gigs outside of NYC. Ultimately, he ran out of money and decided to go to law school.

At the time, I was helping him out while working in finance, and I started thinking about ways to help him get exposure and book gigs outside of NYC. After doing some research, we realized that booking is still very much an old-school process where people walk around and try to get their press kits to bookers at clubs. We felt like there had to be a better, more efficient way to do this. Out of Richard’s struggle and decision to forgo his music dreams, came our idea for GigMaven.

How are you working to get this project off the ground?
Currently, we have close to 300 musicians and 15 live music venues in NYC helping us beta test the website. We are slowly looking to expand to Boston, Philly and DC over the next couple of months and then expand to the rest of the nation in 2009.

What stage do you think you’re at right now?
We’re at the very beginning of something that will change the way the live music industry operates. We want to make everyone’s lives easier and allow them to book gigs online, lowering the average cost and time to book a gig.

Are you planning on eventually helping out with merchandise and releasing these artist’s albums, or just gear it towards finding venues?
We’ve definitely thought about the opportunities around helping musicians sell merchandise or mp3s and we have some interesting ideas around how we can make that process easier. That being said, we are 100% focused on our core business right now, which is booking gigs for musicians and venues.

What type of artists are you working with?
We primarily work with indie rock musicians, some unsigned and some signed to indie labels. Although our core is indie rock, we don’t focus on one genre or specific type of music or club.

What type of venues? Is it just based in New York for now?
Currently, we are only booking gigs in NYC, but we plan on expanding to Boston, Philly and DC in the next couple of months. In 2009, we aim to expand to the rest of the country.

How do you decide what venue to book these artists at?
We do not make any decisions regarding the actual booking. GigMaven is a platform for musicians and venues to find each other. Venues ultimately make the decision who they want to perform and musicians ultimately make the decision where they want to play.

Do you think what you’re doing is the future of the music industry?
We believe that it will be the future of the booking aspect of the live music industry. The music industry is going through a period of turmoil, which I believe will result in a tremendous amount of innovation and opportunity. We believe that booking gigs online is a natural solution to the inefficiency in the live music booking process.

For more on GigMaven listen to the guys explain their concept in more depth on a previous radio interview here.