Unbelievable

This month has been such an incredible journey with the release of our album! People keep asking how it feels to finally reach this point after so long. Truth is it feels right and well-deserved. Not in a cocky sort of way, but in a way where it feels absolute to have so much love, creativity, determination, hard work, and perseverance create this body of work that is now in people's hands, and circulating the web. 

On top of all this we saw families come together to support, and old friends we hadn't seen in years come out of the word work!

The shows were insane. Before downbeat, I sneaked a peak out from behind the curtain to a few people waiting for us. It occurred to me that maybe most of the people wouldn't be able to make it. For a second I felt doubt but then realized no matter what we were going to have fun presenting a damn good show! By the time we huddled in the green room and did a little pep talk we filed out on stage. The lights were bright so you could barely make out what was out in the room. By the time I put on my guitar as approached the mic I noticed the room was PACKED. It was pre-decided, and this just solidified it, we came to party. And holy shit did we party!! That room was packed full of good vibes.

We had to release the secret weapon we had planned for the audience, The Circle. At the moment they came parading in you could see the entire crowd become alert. They stopped all at once to get there bearings on what exactly was happening. You could see heads bobbing from side to side trying to see what was going on. Almost simultaneously it seemed like the crowd at once realized that there was a drum circle parading around them as they all lost their shit! It was madness from where I was standing. The crowd undulated in this great wave of bodies dancing at a fevered pitch! It was insanity! It was a beast that couldn't be stopped! Haha! From then on there was no doubt that it was an epic night.

Gotta hand to everyone involved on the music production side that night: The Circle, Brandon Peterson, Tony Hampton, Liana Bowman, Canyon Cody, Flash, Novena, and The Virgil. Thank you for Being part of this and delivering one helluva show for everyone.

Huge thanks to all our fans, friends, and families that came that night ready to get down and celebrate. Together we all made that night something special. 

Since then we've had the pleasure of mentions and interviews on LA Talk Radio, Lurssen Mastering, Ojai Valley News, Enclave LA, Afroxander, and Keeping Up With Jones. We have a few more things in the works and hope to keeping building and acquiring more an more opportunities.

I will say that I'm learning the quirks of giving interviews. They're fun. I have realized that pauses are important cause if theres no distinct pause it can sometimes change intent. For instance, in the flow of conversation I have found that what I meant as a list of positive things turned out to make me look like a douchebag, but hopefully people won't hear it that way. I'm known as being mostly a listener, so I'm Getting used to speaking more apparently. I get so many ideas trying to get out that usually only fragments make it out.

I know I speak for the band when I say we're all very grateful for all the love and support. We intend to take this on the road, record more, and make this our sole career. We're in it for the long haul.

Gratitude

"Thank you" doesn't seem to match the immensity of this gratitude.

http://youtu.be/_pte_6gHyuk

We've been busy I can tell you that. I keep hearing that when you want something the world will test you. Proving grounds. As we are working on our album release campaign with 3 music videos, 2 release parties, 3 photo shoots for the album design, 6 making-of videos,  revamping the website, and booking an east coast tour delays and the like run amuck. I used to get discouraged easily, but that became exhausting. There's no time for that when you have things you want to accomplish. Energy is important. Better to focus on something that gives you strength.

For me that is the vision. Where and what I see for myself down the road. Setbacks scatter like dust in comparison. You can use the friction to stoke the fire, gain that momentum.

Lately it feels almost like water. There's an obstruction, water flows around it. When faced with an obstacle, frustration is now replaced by creativity and vigor. Almost to the point its become a game. Cat and mouse. It's a puzzle. Thinking 3 steps ahead. Always running...like water.

Not to say there haven't been times I've found myself cursing at my computer. These days its more because I know its slowing me down rather than feeling I don't have the resources. Truth is, now I do. I'm capable of fixing/working with it, but I know the time that it will take to get back on the workflow. There's a lot to accomplish. Time management has gotten a lot better.

Thankful for this developing perspective. Grateful for the support. Grateful for the opportunity to challenge myself and grow.

From 5 years to 2 weeks

After 5 years of obstacles and challenges, but always pressing forward, finally its come down to two weeks before we enter the studio.

Admittedly there's a small small voice telling me to stay on watch for anything that may derail this, but to that I say we're crossing the finish line one way or another. It's been set in motion. All parts are in play. As we have done the past 5 years we'll continue to work and press on towards our goals.

Glorious thing of it is, I'm not stressing about the outcome. I'm just SO GRATEFUL and happy to have this opportunity that I'm loving every step of the process. Even all those 5 years of obstacles just made this moment sweeter.

Definitely not getting ahead of myself trust. I'm still hitting the grindstone as always not taking anything for granted.

You gotta love the process. Do the best you can with what you have at the moment.

There's a whole lot of heart and life in these songs we've been playing. Even if some of their content is "taboo".

Looking forward to making this album with some great friends. Called in a few buddies that I've met in my time out here in LA. Crazy-talented people. There's not one person involved in this that I don't look up to and admire.

Excited!

The band's trip to the TV station!!

We had such an incredible experience with the crew of The Music Box.  Our first TV experience was so positive and unforgettable thanks to them. From the moment we stepped in that studio we felt like we had known everyone in the production crew for years!

Needless to say we were all pretty excited. We were cracking jokes left and right and every one was in high spirits. After shooting the interview they asked me if there was anything I would like to go back over. Honestly, I was so worked up and excited about the interview that I couldn’t really recall what I had said or done. There was a feeling that reassured me that nothing was out of hand so I followed that intuition. While being interviewed by Michelle, she made it feel like a natural and easy-going conversation so hopefully my responses read that way in the playback. Otherwise, I hope their editor is making some magic happen. Honestly though, speaking with Michelle was so much fun. I’m looking forward to more interviews in the future.

The crew was excited to try out new camera shots and try some new arrangements and we were stoked to be on TV. It’s a winning combination. When we started setting up a couple of the crew members put a camera to the end of my guitar. It was kind of like those cameras skydivers put at the top of their helmets to get some crazy shots of themselves falling from the sky. They showed us the footage and it looked deliciously fantastic. It’ll be a nice touch I’m sure. As we were checking my microphone I turned around to see them attaching another to the bell of Mackey’s trombone. I thought to myself, “this is going to be awesome.”

Before recording the performances I recall being ecstatic to let the first song rip. The lights were hot. There was an energy in the air that kept me well aware and alert. As I looked at all the members of the band and back to the production crew all I could see were happy faces and a feeling that whatever this is it’s extremely good. Francisco had some great ideas and explained a great deal about what was going on in the process. During recording I would glance over to Michelle and Jennifer dancing over in the corner of the room behind the cameras having a great time. The support, approach and execution of the production was professional and efficient. They were sharp and knew what they wanted to capture on film. We just had to come in and do what we love to do.

As we were wrapping up I heard audio playback of our performance. Jacob was in the audio room cooking up an incredible mix. It had a lot of punch and fullness. They had done some brilliant work capturing the sound. Everyone was gathered around the door an in the room taking in the music. The final mix is going to be remarkable I’m sure. We can’t wait to hear the mastered tracks from Jacob. The man knows what he’s doing no doubt about it.

We are very grateful to have had such and amazing experience with El SegundoTV: The Music Box. Now we look forward to finding our way more often to TV land in the following months and years. We’re hooked. A huge thanks to the production crew! Can’t wait to see the final product. A watch party is in order.