The Wind Shift

Hello! Long time no post!

The EP was sent out for duplication Thursday, and is supposed to arrive on my doorstep on April 23rd, just in time for the CD release party. What's new on the music front? Well, I want to spend the rest of my time left in California (I'm moving to New York for an internship in three months...) promoting my EP. Here's what I have booked so far:

April 23rd-- CD release party for Elena Rossman and Dovely

April 29th-- Live interview/acoustic set on KZSC @ 2 pm

May 14th-- Asana Tea House show@ 8pm

May 27th-- show at Stevenson Event Center on UCSC campus

I am definitely open to booking more shows/events, but this is what I have so far. I am so excited for the world to hear the EP...it was a true labor of love, and I really am proud of it.

In the meantime, check out this amazing website for independent music here. This site allows you to sell and promote your recordings independent of any contracts or labels. Once the EP is released you will be able to buy and download the songs from this website and the money will go to directly to me, as opposed to iTunes and other sites where I only get a portion of the money. I am still going to put my songs on iTunes and CD Baby, but I am really going to push for this website. I think it's a great tool and resource for artists.

And with that, I'm out!

EP Updates

Updates:

The album art is being worked on pretty much as we speak. My good friend Sean Vranizan is working with Photoshop to create a really cool design that kind of connects with the story/theme of the EP. (You can check out some of his photography here). I am so grateful to have a friend willing to do this out of the kindness of his heart, and in exchange for lots of burritos and beer! It is really great to have someone else working on this, because I have no sense of visual artistry or technology whatsoever.

I am also in the process of planning shows for the upcoming spring. I hope to book a CD release show sometime in April, hopefully at this bar/pub near my house (The Parish). In addition, my dear friend Kaylinn (singer/songwriter of the wonderful band Dovely and backup vocalist on two of the EP tracks) and I are planning on putting together an intimate show at my house featuring Dovely, myself and maybe one other band, in early April, around the 9th. And finally, I have made arrangements to do an on-air interview and performance on a KZSC show called Girls with Guitars next quarter. WHEW!

In the midst of all this planning , I have been writing a couple of new songs that I am really stoked on. It just keeps on flowin'....

la vida buena!

p.s.

You can hear the unmastered version of the first track, The Fire, here. I wrote this song this summer when my house was filled with smoke from the Lockheed fire and I had some things on my mind.....;)

Almost there!

So, the EP is done being recorded and almost done being mixed. It just has to be mastered and packaged and it will be done. I want to take my time with the album art and make sure I really like it, so I'm shooting for them to be shipped to me by late February/early March. Then my plan is to have a CD release show sometime after spring break, where friends and family can get schwill-ay and listen to the songs live and hopefully be down to purchase the EP.

The recording process was an amazing learning experience for me. We spent all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday in the studio for about ten hours each day just pumping out song after song. Even though it was super tiring, I felt so motivated and rejuvinated by the experience.

Collaborative creativity is probably one of the most enlivening and enriching feelings on earth. To take these songs I've written over the past year or two and mold them into a piece of music using high quality equipment, with high quality musicians, in a really nice studio was soooo much fun for me. And being able to take each part (full band, guitars, vocals, etc.), break them down and do them seperately really allowed me to hone in and perfect each part of the song.

The two guys from Gadgetbox Studios that I worked with were incredibly hardworking and dedicated which made the experience that much more fulfilling. They really took time and care with my songs I think it shows.

So here is the final order of songs for the EP, which will be titled The Wind Shift:

1. The Fire

2. It's Not Easy

3. My Guitar

4. Setting Forth

5. Singing to Herself

I'll end with the line from the last song, which is where the title of the EP comes from:

and suddenly a leaf falls from a tree

and just like that, she sees the wind shift

and she's singing

she's singing to herself

New 5-song EP

Hellooo wonderful friends,

I will be spending the upcoming weekend in the studio recording my still untitled 5-song EP. I am soooo excited to get these songs recorded. There are lots of treats in store, such as drums, bass, the sweet harmonies of Kaylinn Douthett and more. This is my first time playing with a full band sound and it feels amazing to hear these songs that started out with itty-bitty me and my itty-bitty guitar come to life so gloriously.

The five songs I am recording are: Setting Forth, The Fire (II), My Guitar, It's Not Easy and Singing to Herself. Some, like My Guitar, are pretty old, and others, like Singing to Herself, have only been heard by a few ears in this world.

I'll try to update this with the latest news about the recording. Until next time! Que tenga un buenisimo fin de semana.

I'll end with my horoscope for this week from Risa in the Good Times:

A whole new world begins for Pisces this week. Jupiter in Pisces will create a greater life force, expanded energy, optimism and a fusion of heart and mind, from which wisdom will emerge. For long you’ve wanted to bring forth something in form and matter. Jupiter will assist in this creation. Jupiter provides abundance, blessing and beauty, strength of will, spiritual purpose and a demonstrated love that becomes Grace in the lives of others.

Agradecido

A new year has arrived as well as some new musical projects I am growing quite excited about. Fall felt like the turning of a new leaf for me, so to speak. I spent pretty much all of my time RUNNING like a mad woman.. literally. I trained for the Big Sur Half Marathon, which was in November, and spent many many hours alone, pounding pavement and writing lyrics in my head. It was quite a spiritual, meditative learning experience that I will always carry with me-- reminding me to keep in touch with my body and always push push push myself to reach a new challenge, a new height or a new level, whether it be athletically, musically, mentally or emotionally.

In October, two of my best friends, Kaylinn and Olivia, and I, drove up to SF for Hardly Strictly bluegrass. We decided to take Hwy 1, the long way, and enjoy the views. Along the way we saw two young men hitchhiking and very spontaneously decided to pick them up. They were two Australian travelers, Paul and Alex, and the second they entered our vehicle, history changed forever. It was as though these two guys were meant to find us! We talked non-stop the entire car ride, and ended up hanging out with them in the city that weekend, and then again in Santa Cruz that week. We played music and rev talked the days away. In this moment, The Beekeepers were born. The Beekeepers is the name of the musical project of Kaylinn, Liv and I. We sing together, we play together, we do life together. Expect some real musical developments from us someday, but for now it is mostly slightly drunken harmonizing of The Be Good Tanyas in our sundresses.

On another note, I have recently begun preparing to go into the studio (yeeee yeeeee) to record a sweet 5 song EP that I am SO pumped about. I am pushing myself to be very deliberate and thoughtful with the decisions I make regarding this recording. I want to be proudddddd of it. So stayed tuned for more. and with that, I'm out

"Let’s play this one out, until it explodes

Into a thousand tiny pieces
What’s the story universe
You are melody in numbers
You were shapes you were rhythms
There are signs that we can learn
Place over the heavens
To predict how long we’ll burn
How long will I last?
Can you turn up the heat?
What star am I circling?
What’s circling me?
Am I ebb, am I flow?
My lack of control
Turn it on, turn it up
Say yes, play no

Things keep changing
Things keep changing
Things keep changing"

-Sean Hayes