Ladies and gents... The Idle Hours!

Here I am, many months later.  I promised I'd be better about blogging, but the last few months have been kind of an overload of thoughts and things happening.  You would think this would be the impetus for more blog posts, but it's the opposite with me.  I start to feel the snowball effect; I get lost in the thoughts and ideas and, instead of getting them out here, I kind of roll along with the avalanche.  Sorry, truly.

But let me attempt it anyway.

I've had a project going on in Nashville for 3 years now with Marc Lacuesta.  He's the producer behind half of "World Go Blue," and has been the other half of a duo I've started called The Idle Hours.  We write songs that we love, and we've been aiming to have them placed in film and television.  Much of that is out of practicality - Marc isn't an artist in the traditional sense and doesn't have time to tour - but we also have been interested in exploring the outlet of licensing a bit more.  Nashville (also lovingly known as Nashvegas) is a town that is built heavily on the idea of publishing music, so it's a very tangible goal for us.  I could tell you so much about working with Marc... but it'd be a hefty novel, so I'll tell you about the product of our work instead.

We are releasing our first-ever EP next week.  Not a lot of clamor or publicity about it, but we're OK with that.  We are quietly going out into daylight.  I feel like we're letting these songs escape into the world with the thought that doing so is accomplishment enough.

These songs have been benchmarks of our time as friends and collaborators, co-conspirators and penpals (2,000 miles of distance! Oy!)... there's lots of great nuggets in there, including one song that features Jeremy Lister from Street Corner Symphony, and another with prominent pedal steel genius B.J. Cole.  We tried to get Marc's bestie Ruby Amanfu in there, but her rock star schedule wouldn't allow.  :)

I learned so much in 3 years of writing and recording with Marc. The project has been half the reason for my 7 trips to Nashville since 2011 (the other being my last solo record, of course). It's also seen me and Marc through a lot of life changes.  When we first met each other he was single, and I was unsure about my own relationship; now he is engaged (to a very lovely person), and I am happily sure about my relationship (same guy; rough road, now behind us).

The good news is that even before these songs were really out in the open, we'd gotten "Bergenfield, NJ" placed in an upcoming indie film called "Old Fashioned," and have just been approached about placing it in another film as well (that one I will mention once it's final).  I guess it helped that this song was on "World Go Blue" as the final track.  During the week I spent in Nashville this past June, we were approached by a publisher about an exclusive pub deal, which means we may be on our way to accomplishing the goals we had for our songs (here's praying!).  After our EP comes out next week, we'll release a new music video, which I am producing alongside the guys at Homeroom Creative.  I'm really excited for this one, since it will be an illustrated video, with a story that is near and dear to me.

All good things.  But at the heart of everything, it's just amazing that Marc and I set out to do something and have completed it... or at least, gotten it rolling.  We've still got more music in store... but before I jump ahead of myself, I'm going to do what I'm not that great at doing: take a look at all that was created, and see that it is good. :)

Music Connection / Kacey Musgraves love / FilmOn TV

I see-saw over whether or not to divulge details of my non-artist/songwriter life on this blog, but ultimately have decided that I wouldn't feel right withholding the facts. So, I guess you should know that I teach music once a week at a preschool in Walnut, CA. I really love it, even if it means being out there from 9:30 to 5:30 with just a 45-minute break.  I teach 5 classes and 9 private voice students. All that time, I am in awe of how open and enthusiastic young kids are, how viscerally music affects them, and how my heart melts a little when they call my name excitedly (I'm "Miss Alfa" to them).  Once in a while, like today, I'll get reports from a student or teacher who has stumbled on my videos on YouTube. The reaction usually hovers around fascinated-shocked-amused on the general reaction scale.

Anyway, since I was out there today, I wasn't exactly plastered to my phone and therefore was a little slow on the uptake: Music Connection Magazine, which had critiqued "World Go Blue" last month 8.0 out of 10, wrote a bit about my recent endorsement with Kawai, and NAMM, and Walden.  Of course, I thought this was pretty rad. It's crazy to think of everything that's happened since "World Go Blue" was released just a little over a year ago.  You can see the whole link here, and screen shot is below.

In other news, I've been falling in love with Kacey Musgraves' album. I remember driving through Iowa, Missouri and Tennessee last year and hearing "Merry Go Round" constantly on the radio. I thought the song was really great - still country, but with a melancholic, introspective touch any folk-influenced writer can appreciate. I got around to hearing the rest of it, and wow.  I wish the best for her - the album is extremely well-written and sophisticated in its production (what I mean by this is that it's not overproduced, but exercises brevity in instrumentation and arrangement). Her voice isn't standout - she's no Allison Krauss or Kelly Clarkson - but she works what she has, and what has materialized is a well-crafted album with great lyrics, melodies that sneak up on you when least expected, and great vocal delivery. Some of my favorites: "Merry Go Round," "Step Off," "Follow Your Arrow," "My House." Turns out that Marc Lacuesta, who produced my record, lives a few blocks on the same street, and has spoken to her at various Nashville parties.  This is right around the time I fight the urge to buy a plane ticket to go out there...  Anyway, check her album out - I have been Spotifying it on a daily basis.

I also did a TV appearance yesterday with FilmOn TV. Guess who hosted the show?  None other than Kato Kaelin, of OJ Simpson trial fame. He was way sweet, though, and not too slathered in L.A. sheen, believe it or not.  The show has an interactive chat feature that goes on-screen simultaneously with the show. This made for some laughs and awkward moments. Apparently it's a popular primetime station in U.K., so shoutout to the folks out that way.