We just released our latest single, "Yours," with a music video by John Reyes. A lot of talented people worked very hard on the song and video, including our long-time mixing engineer/ producer Justin LaFramboise (of D'Indigo). Please share it on Twitter/Facebook/Reddit/LinkedIn etc. Coming soon to Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and all other major music outlets.
Things to Come
Since I've last posted, Josh and I have played a few intimate shows that we've really enjoyed. Our two piece sets have been gaining some momentum, and are really starting to develop a separate, identifiably different sound. At first, playing two piece sets felt a little weird, considering we had always heard drums with our songs, but it's nice how these songs are taking on different forms. It has really allowed Josh and I to expand our creativity structurally and lyrically and helped us to grow as musicians.
One of my favorite two piece shows to date was our recent show in Mobile, Al at a cozy venue called The Listening Room.
It is appropriately named in that the owner, Jim Pennington, requires the listeners' full attention -- and he means business! It is so refreshing as a musician to find a venue owner who cares as much about the music as he does about the bar tab. We can't wait to come back, and we actually have a show booked there again in early July.
The Listening Room, May 6th
Photo Cred: Toni Dovi
Thank you to all of our friends and family who came out, and to the new friends we made, especially Abe Partridge -- Abe is an amazing songwriter who plays solo, and also along with his band, Abe Partridge and the Psychedelic Peacocks. Give them a listen! They are from Mobile, but you can often catch them on the Gulf Coast:
I want to thank Johnny Cole for recommending us to Jim and also for featuring us this month on WKFK TV 7 where we perform a few songs as a duo and have an interview with Johnny himself. We always have a good time with Johnny, and he has new stories about new artists and shows every time we see him. This dude has earned some kind of title in the Guiness Book of World Records, in my opinion. :)
Josh and I have been working on new songs and will be playing them as a two piece at our next three shows:
Saturday, May 28th - SeaGrapes Wine Bar, Downtown Gulfport, 6-9
Thursday, June 16th - Sal & Mookie's Pizzeria, Biloxi, 6-9
Friday, July 8th - The Listening Room, Mobile, AL 7-10
We have also been practicing as a four piece with Wayne Mott and Tommy Mims (formerly in The Eves and Moonhawk) to prepare for our show at The Government Street Grocery on Friday, July 15th, 10-1.
So, whether you are looking to dance to some booming bass and drums or prefer to sit back with a glass of wine (or pizza), we've got you covered! Whatever tickles your pickle or...razzles your dazzle... or whatever idiom floats your goat.
We hope to catch you soon at our shows, and can't wait for you to hear our new songs, some of which will be on our upcoming EP!
Much love,
Em <3 <3 <3
Morning News
Hooray! Our newest single, Morning News, is out on YouTube as of today and will be available for purchase, along with the rest of a new EP in the near future and we can't wait - We are excited and anxious to get new music out! It's been a thought for a while, but we can't wait to make it a reality. Recording is one of my favorite aspects of being a musician, and it's so cool getting to hear it all come together after tedious time spent tweaking tracks. (I'm a novice when it comes to production, but it's cool for me to see Josh and Justin exchange ideas.) This EP will be a bit of a shift from the last one. Stylistically, it's a bit more laid back. Josh and I are recording DIY and are fortunate enough to have our talented friend, Justin LaFramboise (same guy who mixed Beautiful Dream) help us with mixing.
Josh and I tied the knot about two weeks ago and are currently recording things out of our house (which was my grandparents' house) - It's a bit nostalgic and surreal recording and producing music in the house my grandfather spent hours upon hours playing piano in.
The cover photo for Morning News is a photo of my grandmother when she was (I think) in her 20s. The writing in the background is taken from a newspaper clip about her and my grandfather's 60th wedding anniversary. I thought it was appropriate imagery for the track, considering we are living/ recording in their once home. There are little traces of them all over, and I know they would love to hear this. What I was going for when writing Morning News was capturing timeless love in a song. The kind that makes small, seemingly insignificant things more beautiful, and makes petty, seemingly significant things less important.
I hope y'all like the track, and we can't wait to release the rest of the EP!
Dime Pieces
Hey, guys!
Some pretty cool stuff has been going on as of late. We have made a lot of progress working on the Macbook. I wouldn't say we are beat geniuses just yet, but we are well on our way. :) Be expecting to see some shows with the Macbook soon if you are in the Southeast Region. Although the Mac is cool, we think there is nothing quite like having a live drummer on stage. It takes the energy to another level, and we've had the pleasure of playing with a few very talented drummers over the last few months: Patrick Mcginley (Mobile, AL), long-time friend and drum extraordinaire, who also is responsible for laying down all the phat beatz on our album; Wayne Mott (Gulfport, MS), also a long-time friend who not only plays drums, but also plays some pretty sweet guitar with us when he gets a wild hair; and Vinson McMurtery (Jackson/Hattiesburg, MS), a new friend of ours who also plays with a killer band from Jackson, The Cut. After playing with his band, we knew we wanted to play with him again - which we did just a couple of nights ago in Hattiesburg at a coin toss party (to benefit the pine belt animal shelter) at the Keg and Barrel. (one of my favorite bars in college) This event was hosted by Dime Arts and Entertainment magazine. This is a magazine based out of Hattiesburg that focuses on local and regional art, music, and entertainment. It is truly something new, fresh, and exciting - and we had the pleasure of being featured in an article about our music ventures, written by our friend, Amanda Pavlov. I also got my face painted like a sugar skull for the cover by Amber Mauldin, who some of you Hattiesburgers may know from her involvement with the famous, Hattiesburlesque.
You can find copies of the magazine in bars, venues, and coffee shops throughout the region.
(Photography by Maria Newman)
(Photography by Maria Newman)
Since the release of Dime Magazine in October, we have played at Gasa Gasa in New Orleans and met two very talented ladies who go by the name of Hestina. They are a duo comprised of guitar, ukulele, and haunting harmonies - and I've gotta say, I'm quite a sucker for some girl harmonies. It was kindof a personal goal of mine to play at Gasa Gasa - and it didn't fail to impress. It's a cozy little bar with a super friendly staff and great sound equipment. Mutemath played there a few nights prior to our show, so it was cool to think we were standing on the same stage that they (and several other legends) have played on.
(Hestina on bottom right)
We also recently played at Long Beach Live, a city event in Long Beach, MS that hosts local bands. It had a great turnout and we loved taking part in such a cool community event.
Check out the news feature for it here.
We also played Moonvine Fest in Clinton, MS a few weekends ago. We got to play along with some very talented artists, and we are looking forward to our next Jackson show that will be at the famous Duling Hall on November 6th.
(Photography by Mallisa May)
Lastly, Josh proposed to me a few weeks ago - So we get to make music together forever, and that's pretty cool. :)
Until next time,
Em <3
Beautiful Dreamers
Heyo!
It has been an exciting few months. Since the last post, Josh and I drove to Orlando to shoot a music video with the highly esteemed photographer/videographer, John Deeb. ( http://www.deebstudios.com/) It is such a great experience working with him. He is one of the most genuine and talented people we have had the pleasure of working with. I got to play dress up a bit and we actually ended up getting two videos out of it! - Beautiful Dream and Something to Prove. We can't wait for you to see them! His crew was super cool and we ended up getting to eat dinner with them at this vegan restaurant down the road from John's studio after recording. We also got to explore Orlando a bit beforehand and stumbled into this cozy little coffee shop called Credo Cafe (http://downtowncredo.com/) that we recommend anyone reading this should check out if you're in the area. The next day, we found this locally owned juice bar called Grounding Roots. (http://groundingroots.com/) We both ordered a juice that consisted primarily of beets that even Josh loved. He is usually a meat and potato (and candy) kind of guy, so that speaks volumes! Definitely going back. What started as a trip to make our first music video turned into a little mini vacation, which is always nice. :)
shooting something to prove at john deeb's studio
To highlight a few shows that have stood out to us since the last post, I will start by mentioning one of the most recent gigs we played in Birmingham - There is this new, awesome venue called The Syndicate Lounge. Lined with eccentric art work, old records, and vintage furniture, this cozy venue has the same kind of feel as a coffee shop, but houses rockers like Dirty Lungs, the band that we got to open for. ( https://www.facebook.com/thedirtylungs?fref=ts ) Check 'em out when you can! They melted our faces and we can't wait to play with them again.
We also played at The Howlin' Wolf Den in New Orleans. Playing in New Orleans as an original band can be a challenge in itself, especially if you're not local - so we were excited to have that opportunity. We met some new faces and saw some familiar ones. With a small, intimate stage, it was the perfect atmosphere. We can't wait to play in New Orleans again - Hoping to play at Gasa Gasa next.
howlin' wolf den, new orleans
I think my favorite show we have played as of late was the Record Store Day show at T-Bones. I am a sucker for intimate shows, and T-Bone's is definitely conducive to that kind of atmosphere. We have become friends with the owner, Harry Crumpler, who has been nothing short of amazing to us. Record Store Day was so much fun - we were provided with coffee and food, and that alone is enough reason to be excited. (My personal favorite is their veggie panini.)
our in-store performance at record store day
We found out recently that we are featured on a spread in a local magazine, the 'sip (http://issuu.com/thesipmag/docs/spring2015-print) discussing T-Bones support of the arts community and local music scene in Hattiesburg, which we have been fortunate enough to be a part of. Check out their website and like them on Facebook. You won't regret it. Coolest coffee shop and record shop in the south, in my opinion. (http://www.tbonescafe.com/)
(from left to right) Mik, Harry, and Will on record store day
Be sure to catch us at these upcoming shows:
Friday, 6/26/15 - Irish Coast Pub, Gulfport
Saturday, 6/27/15 - Thirsty Hippo, Hattiesburg
Saturday 7/4/15 - Shucker's Stadium, Biloxi
'Til then,
Em
New Things
Just wanna say thank you to everyone who has been supporting us after the release of our EP, Beautiful Dream. We couldn't be happier about the positive responses and encouragement from you guys.
We've been playing most weekends on the coast - usually in Ocean Springs and Gulfport, but we also had the pleasure of playing this past weekend at Kress Live in Biloxi. The Relic Room (upstairs of kress) treated us well. The atmosphere was a combination of swanky and cozy - and we made a lot of new friends.
We also had the pleasure of being played on the 92.1 ZEW radio station in Mobile and opening for our new friends, Knox Hamilton. They're an awesome band, widely known for their song, Work it Out.
We will be returning to Mobile January 20th to open for Generationals, which we couldn't be more excited about, and are thankful for all the hospitality and support that we've gotten from the Zew92 staff.
Yesterday we played the Electric Masquerade Music Experience. Although the festival was moved inside due to weather, we still had a good show and it was definitely one for the books.
Beautiful Dream is out on iTunes and Amazon!
We had a great CD release last night! We're very grateful for all of our family and friends who came out to support us and pick up a copy. You can buy it now on iTunes and Amazon! Please leave us a review-- We'd love to know what you think. We're booking several shows, so if you want a hard copy, keep your eyes peeled!
The Evolution of a Beautiful Dream - The Southland Music Line
Our good friends at The Southland Music Line did their November cover story on us! Check out the article by Johnny Cole, photos by Stephen Anderson, and art by Robby Amonett here.
Beautiful Dream
This has been an exciting month for us! We've got some really cool shows coming up in November and we are looking forward to ringing in the new year with new sounds!
Last week, we made our way down to New Orleans to record our first EP at The Music Shed with our good friend, Justin LaFramboise. (and of course indulged in some Nawlins po-boys on our way) We have been a three piece now for about six months, but the last few months have allowed us to really spend quality time with some new songs that we're really excited about. Those are the songs that will be on the EP.
We can't wait to show you what we've been working on, and how our sound has evolved as a three piece.
You can check out the EP, Beautiful Dream, which will debut on Thanksgiving of this year! It will be sold on the website, iTunes, and of course our live shows. :)
To follow us more closely, check out our Instagram account, "dellaband", like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.