Chicago

Full circle, is a phrase we use when a course of events arrives at the place they initially started from. Sometimes literally, sometimes metaphorically. As I lay on the fold out couch mattress, in my parents brownstone, listening to thunder and watching lightening, I think about the last week. I went to Chicago, my hometown, to go to a wedding. A wedding of friends, who moved a few years ago from Seattle. Where I live now. Chicago is a great place to grow up. There's a tremendous amount of diversity, art, music, good food and energy. A friendliness and directness I miss whenever I am away. I have spent half of my life living here. I can say all this looking back on the past. But for many years I felt no connection to it other then the place where my family lives. There was a spark, a few years back, I had an opportunity to work with producer Brian Deck. A dream chance, he helped me see my music in a whole new light. So there's been glimpses. But this last week, meeting new people, exploring old neighborhoods, and greatly appreciating the radio (WUOW is amazing). I feel connected to the place I grew up in a whole new familiar way. I think I will be visiting more often.

Choo Choo

Like the little engine that could (the best childhood story), I have been playing extensiving throughout the NW for the last year and a half. With a nice tour to France in the mix. Making an effort to play as many diverse and DIY venues as possible. I know a lot of people have been talking about how hard the music industry is right now. But I have been watching and experiencing a beauty growing within.

In the last ten years, with various projects, I have played all kinds of shows. From fancy theaters like On The Boards, a 13th century church in Marseille, to a local pizza parlor. Performing in front of 2 people to 500. And in the last few years I have been witnessing a stronger sense of community. A reaching between fans and musicians, that I have never seen before. For example- I have some touring friends from the east coast who could easily play a 300+ size venue. But prefer to play a DIY speakeasy because A. it's all ages and you can drink (some cities really seperate the two) B. get paid more and sell more merch, C. someone usually cooks a meal or offers you a place to stay and most importantly D. you get to know people. Another example- last year I traded a homemade (my dads secret receipe) apple-blueberry pie for an artist to make a music video. So what I mean by all this, is that there seems to be a strong sense of coming together to share an artistic experience. It has been very inspiring to participate in. And easier to make a living in, at least for me.

So I am taking April off, from performing, to start new songs. There's a whole wall of them staring at me every morning when I wake up. I am grateful for all the hard work, creativity, and adventure my bandmates share. Like the saying goes you are what you eat, you are who you spend time with, you are where you spend your time ..

Next stop- Columbia City Theater, Seattle May 17 and Folklife Festival, May 27. See you there.. choo choo

Who Doesn't Like a Challenge?

If you had asked me fifteen years ago what I wanted to do with my life I would of looked at you blankly or responded 'I don't know, travel, write poetry, eat good food.' Then 'the' experience happened. I was a mililtary wife, briefly, in Germany and had an out of body experience. Now, I suddenly heard music in my head, my heart, and my being (that whole story is for another time). Anyway, I moved to Seattle. I was in my early twenties and not sure what to do with these sounds. I had gotten a college degree with a major in poetry. So I decided I would take classical voice lessons. Put a voice to the words. And because, if you can sing an aria, you can sing anything. Right? After two years of private voice lessons, I did it. But stage shy and unsure, I still couldn't find a complete voice for the music I was hearing internally. By happenstance, I was asked to sing for a band and one of musicians went out and bought me a guitar. This moment changed my life, yet again. Within two years, I became the lead guitar player for the band Arkade. I was obessed. A left-handed jazz master copy, through a silvertone and vox pathfinder amp. Using  a vintage ibenez tube screamer, a big muff, and DD-6 Boss delay pedal on reverse. I was hooked, for five years. Then it wasn't enough anymore. So I sold all my gear (almost all kept the delay pedal) and got an acoustic guitar. I started  using garage band and guitar to write layered tracks, which became string arrangements for violin, cello and autoharp. Naively ambitous, I know. But with a lot of help and work it is the closest to that internal voice, that music. Diamond Matter, my latest release was the first time I had created a body of work solely based on my artistic arranging. Now this Saturday, another challenge, an hours worth of music for Sonarchy. KEXP's experimental music hour. Live, straight continous music for 54 minutes; new songs, old songs, interludes, preludes, samples. Here we go.....broadcast date TBA. Wish me luck.

Bit of February, March Madness and April

The lifestyle of a musician or any working artist is either ridiculously busy or nothing. Not that I speak for everyone, but the ones I know seem to share this pattern. And this spring has taken a turn for crazy town with a capitol 'C', March especially. The amount of things present since January has been so active that the nice, patient people, whom I play with, are getting daily updates. I have never been this busy and more to be announced..

February 23- Neon Sigh presents a musical showcase, Josephine, Seattle. With Golden Gardens, The Harvey Girls (PDX), Lou-Lou Hernandez
March 3- performing as part of the Candlelight Evening Live Stage Festival. A two part series with Derek M. Johnson,  Forest Friends, and LA Lungs to name a few. The festival will be at Teatro de la Psychomachia  A private Seattle venue for surveillance of theater, art and music which hosts performers whose work is rooted in ritual, esoteric, ceremonial, and the spiritual.
March 9- recording for KEXP Sonarchy Radio.  With the help of Jessic Gring, Bobby Wane and Dean Moore, I have created a new, unique, hour long set with interludes, preludes and story book samples. Sonarchy is recorded live in the studios of Jack Straw. Broadcast date TBA.
March 16- Da'daedal Festival at the Josephine, Seattle. I will be paired with musician Ambrosia Bartosek from Hekate, to create a piece simataneously with a visual artist. The  Da'daedal collectives goal is to not only provide an alternative platform for writers, musicians and artists to showcase their work, but to introduce different circles from the Seattle area and beyond.
March 23- A welcomed show at The Charleston (Bremerton) with Dante Manlo. The Charleston is a renovated old movie theather run by a DIY collective. It's all ages, with a bar and a beautiful mastiff.
April 11-12 with Dada Trash Collage, Chicago more TBA

poster by Chris Rollins