Tag Archive for 'music'

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What I’m Listening To: Mumford and Sons

Published on February 18, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

  

Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

I don’t like the banjo. I can’t stand the sound of it. It’s whiny and pitchy and annoying. Unless it’s in a Mumford and Sons song. That is a completely different story. This band make me intensely happy. A few months ago I included them at #1 on my Top Ten albums of now and that hasn’t changed. I doubt it will. They move me with every passionate outcry and have, for now at least, claimed the all-time favourite spot in my heart.  

I stumbled across their awesomeness online in August last year and from the moment I heard the first few notes, they had my full attention. I ordered the album immediately and when it arrived on my doorstep a few days later, it was on endless repeat, as it still is now. Sigh No More is 12 tracks of passion and truth and ridiculous talent and I am obsessed. 

My favourite song from the album changes from time to time. There’s a moment in Little Lion Man that gets me every time I hear it, but at the moment Thistle & Weeds claims the title of favourite purely because it speaks to where I am right now. “But I will hold on, I will hold on hope…”. I’m sure this song has nothing to do with my struggle in an unforgiving industry, but “hold on hope” repeats in my head as I soldier on. I’m hoping to plot a little European tour for later this year if for no other reason than to see this band live, but for now they keep me good company as I hit the road again. Awake My Soul. 

“Spare me your judgements and spare me your dreams ‘cause recently mine have been tearing my seams. I sit alone in this winter clarity which clouds my mind… Plan your hope with good seeds, don’t cover yourself with thistle and weeds… Look over your hills and be still, the sky above us shoots to kill. Rain down, rain down on me… But I will hold on, I will hold on hope…” Thistle & Weeds, Mumford & Sons.

What I’m Listening To: Erin McCarley

Published on November 4, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Erin McCarley - Love, Save the Empty

I find it very interesting when I’m compared to other artists. It is especially interesting when I haven’t heard of them. There are some entirely uninspiring comparisons that pigeon hole me into that general class of female singer-pianists like “that chick from Evanescence” which has nothing to do with the music I play and more to do with the fact that, well, I play the piano, I sing and I’m a chick. But very often I’ve been exposed to new artists that I grow to admire as a result. Erin McCarley is one such artist.

An artist who opened at one of my shows in East London earlier this year (unequivocally South Africa’s version of John Mayer) compared me to her when we reconnected a few weeks ago. I have come to take anything he has to say about music pretty seriously, because apart from the fact that I find him irresistibly talented, he has proven to have impeccable taste (his Mumford and Sons recommendation being my find of the year). So I looked her up, was intrigued by the 30 second online samples and ordered the album, which just arrived and has been on repeat ever since.

The album is a perfectly impressive balance of subtle hooks and lyrical honesty. There are brief moments where she reminds me of one of my favourite artists, Fiona Apple (most notably in It’s Not That Easy), which is not surprising as she lists her as a huge songwriting inspiration as well. It’s a refreshing, well-produced album of elegantly written songs, and I am humbled to have been compared to her, and left inspired to produce an album even remotely as beautifully crafted.

You can check her out here: http://www.erinmccarley.com/

Fight A New Day

Published on November 2, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

I cannot wait to get back into the studio in Cape Town to record the new album! Over the past few weeks I’ve been working on pre-production demos, chatting with my crew about recording plans for December (which is fast approaching), and ignoring the fact that I don’t have the cash to get to Cape Town, let alone record and release another album… but that’ll figure itself out.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be in rehearsals with Dave McMillan (guitar) and Ray Goodfellow (bass), fine tuning the “oohs and aahs and kak” for the new tracks, and in December we hook up with my co-producer Tim Rankin (also on drums) to make some studio magic. One of the new album tracks is Fight A New Day – the last song I wrote for the record – which NoEyeDeer caught on film at a recent solo show in Durban… Let me know what you think!

www.noeyedeer.co.za

Filmed & Edited: Teight Productions • Photos: Geecee Photography • music.love

Billie Jean

Published on November 1, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

I am not a covers artist. I never have been. I guess I’m stubborn that way. It would certainly be easier to make headway if every audience knew every song I played, but that is not why I perform. I’m a songwriter. I am not a covers artist. But every once in a while, someone else’s song finds it’s way into my world.

A friend of mine was helping me out with some promotion on my November tour to Cape Town last year and thought it would be fun to play a different cover at every show. Considering my standpoint on covers, her suggestion didn’t exactly go down well at first, but at that stage I considered any angle to make my mark, so I accepted. The only condition to this challenge, was that she would pick the song. So, this is how Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean ended up in my live set. At first I thought she had lost her mind asking a pianist to cover Michael Jackson, but when her business partner recommended that I listen to Chris Cornell’s version for a different take, I was hooked, and the rest is history. (Thanks Brenda!)

NoEyeDeer have had their eyes and ears to the ground in Durban, and have been doing a damn fine job of capturing the goings on of the local music scene on film. The lads were at a recent show in Durban and caught me playing what is now one of my absolute favourite songs to perform. Check out the video of Billie Jean below, let me know what you think, and feel free to share it. Then head over to NoEyeDeer’s facebook page for more radical video and photographic coverage of what’s going on in the Durban music scene, brought to you purely for the love of music. Much respect lads!

www.noeyedeer.co.za

Filmed & Edited: Teight Productions • Photos: Geecee Photography • music.love

Art Pop Defined

Published on October 8, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

When asked what I do for a living, the question that follows “I’m a musician” is generally always the same: “What kind of music do you play?” Personally, I’m not a fan of absolute definition when it comes to music, but am guilty of asking the same question to musicians I’ve met so it’s understandable and to a certain degree expected. At its core, the music I write and perform falls into the singer-songwriter category (although this is most often perceived as a guitarist’s realm), and while it’s not mainstream commercial within a South African context, my album would fit quite comfortably into the “vocal” section of retail store shelves with the likes of Norah Jones, KT Tunstall, Sara Bareilles and Regina Spektor. But Vocal isn’t really regarded as a genre in South Africa.

My personal definition dilemma was solved by chance. When met with the “what kind of music” question at a book launch I attended last year, I stumbled around a few loose definitions before being interrupted by a journalist who, having recently listened to my album, offered up the term “Art Pop”. I connected with it instantly and have defined my music as Art Pop ever since. But that doesn’t tell you anything.

I say again, I’m not a fan of absolute definition when it comes to music. While I appreciate the need for definition to a certain degree, music is a subjective experience, and I think that the idea of putting it into a neat little box before you’ve heard it for yourself can be dangerous. The term Art Pop offers something to my dilemma that I really like. A certain level of mystery. Using the term generates conversation about the music, because not many people know what the term means. Sneaky. But to alleviate some of the mystery, perhaps a (loose) definition of the term is necessary. Art Pop is “popular music with artistic integrity”. That’s my definition anyway. Most likely derived or adapted from the term “Art Rock”, it is “not so much for dancing as for listening” (according to Wikipedia) with a slightly more avant-garde influence than more commercially produced music.

So there you have it. Kind of.

Top Ten Albums of Now

Published on September 22, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

I am often asked what music inspires me, so I thought I’d throw out my top ten albums of the moment. This collection of radical beats is currently responsible for keeping me awake and entertained on the road. The full list of music that motivates and moves me is available on my PC in a ridiculously large folder called “My Music”, so this is but a small taste of the ever-changing sound that fills my space.

1. Mumford and Sons – Sigh No More

2. Regina Spektor – Far

3. The Hoosiers – The Trick To Life

4. Florence & The Machine – Lungs

5. The Fray – How To Save A Life

6. Audioslave – Audioslave

7. Fink – Distance And Time

8. Death Cab For Cutie – Plans

9. Feist – The Reminder

10. Emiliana Torrini – Me and Armini

Believe

Published on August 2, 2010 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: , , , .

I write honest music, generally about my personal experiences in this world and appreciate what that means to an audience. It has been incredible to have audiences share their stories with me when they’ve heard their truth in mine, when the words have sounded like their own. The format of their experience most often differs to mine, but the general emotional experience is the same. The notion of shared human experience is a powerful one, especially when you’re dealing with your own suffering. The idea that you are not alone in that pain is of some comfort and the fact that my music contributes in some way means a lot to me because I often work through my own turmoil through music that moves me, so I appreciate the power that a song holds.

“Believe”, a song I wrote a little over a year ago for my new album, has received the biggest emotional reaction since including it in my solo set. I wrote the song just after I left my day job to do music fulltime, and the song has meant a lot to me on a personal level and plays an important role in inspiring me to keep going. Essentially, it reminds me where I’m coming from, how far I’ve come, where and who I want to be, and to keep believing in the dream, and up until now, it has fundamentally meant the same thing to the audiences who have shared their stories. But on Friday night, these words about courage and belief spoke to a different journey.

I played a fundraiser for a 3 year old who needed R200,000 to get to Austria for medical treatment. His parents have been furiously committed to raising enough funds to help their son, with this last event on Friday night in a long series of efforts by this brave family, and I am thrilled to say they now have enough to get to Austria. At the end of my set I played “Believe” as a small tribute to their courage and strength through this incredible journey, and it was probably the most rewarding, most meaningful moment I’ve had as a songwriter thus far. To me, the song is about believing in and following ones dream, but having managed to find hope for her son’s future, hearing these words about personal power and bravery, his mother wept.

To have a song that spoke to her courage, to the hope that she held onto with such conviction in a journey very different to my own, was an incredibly moving and inspiring moment. I love what I do. I live for it. Sharing my story has been incredible, but it is moments like this that make my songwriters heart smile.

 

(Read more about 3 year old Jason Long’s journey here.)

The Difference A Venue Makes

Published on June 18, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

There is this constant search to find the right venues around the country for what I do, and when I stumble onto one that works just right, everything else falls into place without effort. I’m set up to play two shows at Chandlers Underground in East London this weekend, and it is just that kind of venue. It’s small and intimate and suits me just fine for the nature of my current touring in the smaller centres around South Africa.

These perfect, effortless venues are few and far between, and many tend to close down eventually, so I find myself so often fighting tirelessly for a platform for my music. Over the past year, several of my favourite venues around the country have closed their doors, a curse of this temperamental industry and a hurdle that grows tiresome.

But, when it works, it just works, and what makes it work is a combination of things, not the least of which is that first impression. When I walk into a venue for the first time I know exactly how it will all pan out, from start to finish. The combination of management, hospitality and plain courtesy are forefront in my mind. I pride myself on running my business as efficiently as possible, and on being as professional as I can, so I notice when the courtesy is returned and know that it makes a difference to the experience as a whole.

Having lost at least five class venues over the past year, I’m thrilled to say that, for now at least, East London is sorted.

A Year In The Making

Published on June 1, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

In studio recording S T I L L - December 2008

Hey Rockstars,

So, a year in the making and probably about time I started ranting and raving like the rest of the them… Welcome to musings of a professional dreamer, an account of life on the road from here to there, and all the spaces inbetween.

It is one year since I took the plunge and decided to do this music thing fulltime, and looking back over the past year I cannot believe where I stand now in comparison to those daunting days not so long ago. I’ve been so happy on the open roads of this beautiful country over the past 12 months, and cannot describe the intense satisfaction that comes from living this dream. As much as I regret not making the commitment sooner, I now know that everything leading up to this was a necessary part of the ride that got me here.

I’m home in Durban for three weeks after spending the most part of the last 3 months on the road, crisscrossing South Africa from Durban to Johannesburg and Pretoria, Bloemfontein to Cape Town to Port Elizabeth, and all the breathtaking spaces in between. Apart from playing some awesome venues with some radical local artists and meeting some super cool new faces along the way, a few highlights and interesting moments in May included breakfast at the Old Biscuit Mill in Cape Town (a must do); learning to make a fire out of pure necessity; meeting the man responsible for the first album I ever bought (James Stewart from The Usual); attending my first live stand-up comedy show (the comedy bug has bitten!); finalising some awesome partnerships for the future of my music; a very unexpected psychic reading from an audience member after a show that totally caught me off guard; some beautiful words by Fiona Gordon from Artslink, who reviewed the last Cape Town show (thank you); and falling in love with a piano named Kawai that I hope to own in the not-too-distant future. The first print of the album also sold out (with the second already in circulation), and I have to send a huge shout out to everyone for their support. Your support is my independence, and I truly cannot thank you all enough for making this dream a beautiful reality. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

The countdown has now begun for my debut at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, and I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am! The Durban girl is certain to experience her coldest winter yet, but the immense programme of awesome shows on offer will be my refuge, and performing 12 shows of my own is sure to keep me out of trouble. I’m setting up a few more major city tours following the festival as well, and I’m very excited for what’s still to come…

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for all the awesome support over the past year. I can’t wait to see what the next one brings… I’ll see you on the road, onstage, or online in some shape or form soon.

“Take every chance you can possibly take. Chase every dream you have ever believed in. Treat every moment as if it’s the last. What are you waiting for? Just believe.” Believe, from the forthcoming album by Shannon Hope (as soon as she finds the money to make it…)

Love & Rockets,

Shannon H