Marc Chase - a soulful singer with a gritty voice - has partnered with Driftwood Tide Music to complete an album of modern blues music. To find out more, and hear some of his music, watch the short video below!
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
New Website!
Hello friends, family, fans, and followers!
I have assembled a website to temporarily represent my business - Driftwood Tide Music. The website makes reference to the "core" services I am currently offering, provides a partial list of past and current clients, includes a bunch of feedback from my clients, and includes a few sound samples.
I do hope to have a more robust website up and going in the not-so-distant future, but in the meantime I believe this will serve my needs.
I'll be re-evaluating the role of this blog as I move forward, so keep an eye out for changes, as I may be migrating to a different blog or integrating the blog directly into my new website design.
Several exciting announcements to be unveiled this week - stay tuned!
www.driftwoodtidemusic.com
I have assembled a website to temporarily represent my business - Driftwood Tide Music. The website makes reference to the "core" services I am currently offering, provides a partial list of past and current clients, includes a bunch of feedback from my clients, and includes a few sound samples.
I do hope to have a more robust website up and going in the not-so-distant future, but in the meantime I believe this will serve my needs.
I'll be re-evaluating the role of this blog as I move forward, so keep an eye out for changes, as I may be migrating to a different blog or integrating the blog directly into my new website design.
Several exciting announcements to be unveiled this week - stay tuned!
www.driftwoodtidemusic.com
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Real, Raw, and Relevant - Album Insights
The date is December 29th, 2011 and the first copies of my debut solo album "Free" are beginning to "hit the streets". It's official, my album is now out!
It is with both a sense of pride and humility that I release this project... this has been a labor of love, a lesson in persistance, and an exercise in compromise. At times I was like a person with two personalities at war with myself over how to accomplish this project. I'd like to share with you a few of my feelings about this project, how I approached it, and why.
There is a basic theme and also a basic motto that sum up my approach to this album. This theme and motto have guided me through the long process of bringing this album to pass. My theme - "Guitar Driven Songs About Life" describes the general approach of my songs... guitar-heavy arrangements to songs that speak about real life.
Unlike so much of the shallow and frankly sinful music today, my songs speak about character... Character I have, character I want, and character that I have seen displayed in the actions of good people around me. My songs talk about overcoming bad habits, fears, misfortune, and trials. They speak about staying true to yourself, remembering your roots, and staying humble. They speak about love for family and friends. Topics such as hard, honest work, chasing your dreams, and doing the right thing permeate my lyrics. Making mistakes, falling short, but still giving it your best - thats in there too. Messages of hope line many of my lyrics, and I speak regularly about the wonderful influence music has had on my soul. I may not have the lyrical craft of Paul McCartney or Bob Dylan, but my songs are honest, real, and even the darkest of songs show a ray of hope or inspiration.
My motto (and secondary theme) - "Real, Raw, and Relevant" further describes my songwriting, but even more so, this motto helped guide the production of my songs. I have the necessary tools to create an album where every note is perfectly in time and perfectly in tune. I could have made everything louder, brighter, fuller, prettier... but my motto of REAL, RAW, and RELEVANT prevented me.
When I first started down this path years ago, my album was originally going to be 2 things...first, a collection of my best songs, and second, an awesome display of my skills as a musician able to play multiple instruments, but even more so as a music engineer and producer. I knew I had many limitations, but I still wanted that "perfect" sounding album and was willing to go to great lengths to achieve it.
But, somewhere between the time that I had fleshed out rough demos of over 30 songs and the time that I really started full production in earnest something happened... Life! I had grown up a little more. I became more comfortable with my limitations. Lets face it, I'm one person, not a full band, and for the most part I'm a self taught musician. I wasn't recording this in some elite studio, I was recording it in my garage, my basement, and my bedroom.
I was always (and still am a little) afraid to sing in front of others - I'm very insecure about my voice as I know that I have real limitations in my abilities. But, as I grew up a little more I became more comfortable with this, after all - THIS IS WHO I AM!
So as this album began to come together, some of my best songs were set aside for another day, and I began to focus more on songs that connected with who I was, am, and want to be. Some of these songs have been with me for many years waiting to be recorded, and so some newer, flashier, and probably better material was tabled to make room for a few old favorites who deserved their day in the spotlight after years of lurking in the shadows.
REAL - this is me. yes, there is some studio magic going on, I fully embrace technology, and I made good use of modern technology in making this album. But, what you won't hear is a vocal part that has been autotuned to the point where I sound like a robot. You won't hear guitars and drums where every last note was edited until it was perfectly placed. You won't hear music that sounds artificial, with no dynamics, gobs of synthesizers, and endless effects. If I played these songs live with a band, they'd most likely sound very much like they do on the album. Musically, I cover a lot of styles - rock, blues, jazz, classical, pop, country, and the list goes on. But, I recognize that my roots are really in the areas of rock, blues, and country, and as such - I gravitated to this style for this project, and those songs that worked best in these styles.
RAW - at some point I began to focus a little less on getting the pitch and timing perfect on everything, and just focused on capturing the feel more. This is particularly true with the music. In fact, many of the parts were largely improvised, particularly with guitar leads, bass lines, and keyboard parts. Vocals are particularly raw, running out of time to make a 2011 release, just as I was getting ready to track the vocals I got sick, and I stayed sick, coughing incessantly for several weeks. With my throat still a little raw, and my lungs still a little weak, I tracked the majority of the vocal parts over the course of a couple days. I had originally intended on spending about a month working on vocals in order to really get them right, but in the end, I recognized that with my vocal limitations, spending great amounts of additional time would likely yield only minimal improvements. With that acceptance, and the desire to be able to sing my songs live and sound just like the record, I accepted my parts and moved on. Mastering was another area where I made deliberate decisions to go with the "less is more" approach. Perhaps I should have sent this to another mastering engineer to really polish it up, but then again... this album screamed to be a bit RAW. So if you need a little more bass or treble, adjust your stereo, and if you want the music louder - turn it up. On a somewhat related note, I'll mention that I did spend the time to optimize my mixes for headphone listeners, as the feedback I have gotten is that the large majority of people who will listen to my album will do so on headphones significantly more so than on other systems, and as such I leaned that way slightly in my production style.
RELEVANT - While my songs may not fit in on the "top 40" radio stations, I believe my music and my lyrics are relevant. With a guitar driven sound rooted in blues and rock, heavily influenced by country, and infused with a bit of pop, I believe there is something on this album for just about everyone. Lyrically, my messages may not be popular in some circles, but certainly they are timeless messages that need to be
heard by all generations.
REAL. RAW. RELEVANT...
At times the perfectionist and the studio engineer in me resisted this approach strongly, and in some ways I'm glad - some songs turned out better because I didn't accept what I had, I challenged myself to do better, and I did. I found balance and leanred the art of compromise as I chose what songs to include, how to arrange them, and how to produce them. Overall though - I kept commercialism in check, and allowed my music to be honest, and a little rough around the edges...just like me.
REAL. RAW. RELEVANT. Did my GUITAR DRIVEN SONGS ABOUT LIFE hit the mark? You be the judge. I hope you enjoy what I've done, and I appreciate you letting me share it with you. Yes, there will be plenty of projects in the future that will be full of over-the-top productions, studio magic, and commercial appeal, but until then, I leave you with "Free" - a little piece of my heart and soul.
It is with both a sense of pride and humility that I release this project... this has been a labor of love, a lesson in persistance, and an exercise in compromise. At times I was like a person with two personalities at war with myself over how to accomplish this project. I'd like to share with you a few of my feelings about this project, how I approached it, and why.
There is a basic theme and also a basic motto that sum up my approach to this album. This theme and motto have guided me through the long process of bringing this album to pass. My theme - "Guitar Driven Songs About Life" describes the general approach of my songs... guitar-heavy arrangements to songs that speak about real life.
Unlike so much of the shallow and frankly sinful music today, my songs speak about character... Character I have, character I want, and character that I have seen displayed in the actions of good people around me. My songs talk about overcoming bad habits, fears, misfortune, and trials. They speak about staying true to yourself, remembering your roots, and staying humble. They speak about love for family and friends. Topics such as hard, honest work, chasing your dreams, and doing the right thing permeate my lyrics. Making mistakes, falling short, but still giving it your best - thats in there too. Messages of hope line many of my lyrics, and I speak regularly about the wonderful influence music has had on my soul. I may not have the lyrical craft of Paul McCartney or Bob Dylan, but my songs are honest, real, and even the darkest of songs show a ray of hope or inspiration.
My motto (and secondary theme) - "Real, Raw, and Relevant" further describes my songwriting, but even more so, this motto helped guide the production of my songs. I have the necessary tools to create an album where every note is perfectly in time and perfectly in tune. I could have made everything louder, brighter, fuller, prettier... but my motto of REAL, RAW, and RELEVANT prevented me.
When I first started down this path years ago, my album was originally going to be 2 things...first, a collection of my best songs, and second, an awesome display of my skills as a musician able to play multiple instruments, but even more so as a music engineer and producer. I knew I had many limitations, but I still wanted that "perfect" sounding album and was willing to go to great lengths to achieve it.
But, somewhere between the time that I had fleshed out rough demos of over 30 songs and the time that I really started full production in earnest something happened... Life! I had grown up a little more. I became more comfortable with my limitations. Lets face it, I'm one person, not a full band, and for the most part I'm a self taught musician. I wasn't recording this in some elite studio, I was recording it in my garage, my basement, and my bedroom.
I was always (and still am a little) afraid to sing in front of others - I'm very insecure about my voice as I know that I have real limitations in my abilities. But, as I grew up a little more I became more comfortable with this, after all - THIS IS WHO I AM!
So as this album began to come together, some of my best songs were set aside for another day, and I began to focus more on songs that connected with who I was, am, and want to be. Some of these songs have been with me for many years waiting to be recorded, and so some newer, flashier, and probably better material was tabled to make room for a few old favorites who deserved their day in the spotlight after years of lurking in the shadows.
REAL - this is me. yes, there is some studio magic going on, I fully embrace technology, and I made good use of modern technology in making this album. But, what you won't hear is a vocal part that has been autotuned to the point where I sound like a robot. You won't hear guitars and drums where every last note was edited until it was perfectly placed. You won't hear music that sounds artificial, with no dynamics, gobs of synthesizers, and endless effects. If I played these songs live with a band, they'd most likely sound very much like they do on the album. Musically, I cover a lot of styles - rock, blues, jazz, classical, pop, country, and the list goes on. But, I recognize that my roots are really in the areas of rock, blues, and country, and as such - I gravitated to this style for this project, and those songs that worked best in these styles.
RAW - at some point I began to focus a little less on getting the pitch and timing perfect on everything, and just focused on capturing the feel more. This is particularly true with the music. In fact, many of the parts were largely improvised, particularly with guitar leads, bass lines, and keyboard parts. Vocals are particularly raw, running out of time to make a 2011 release, just as I was getting ready to track the vocals I got sick, and I stayed sick, coughing incessantly for several weeks. With my throat still a little raw, and my lungs still a little weak, I tracked the majority of the vocal parts over the course of a couple days. I had originally intended on spending about a month working on vocals in order to really get them right, but in the end, I recognized that with my vocal limitations, spending great amounts of additional time would likely yield only minimal improvements. With that acceptance, and the desire to be able to sing my songs live and sound just like the record, I accepted my parts and moved on. Mastering was another area where I made deliberate decisions to go with the "less is more" approach. Perhaps I should have sent this to another mastering engineer to really polish it up, but then again... this album screamed to be a bit RAW. So if you need a little more bass or treble, adjust your stereo, and if you want the music louder - turn it up. On a somewhat related note, I'll mention that I did spend the time to optimize my mixes for headphone listeners, as the feedback I have gotten is that the large majority of people who will listen to my album will do so on headphones significantly more so than on other systems, and as such I leaned that way slightly in my production style.
RELEVANT - While my songs may not fit in on the "top 40" radio stations, I believe my music and my lyrics are relevant. With a guitar driven sound rooted in blues and rock, heavily influenced by country, and infused with a bit of pop, I believe there is something on this album for just about everyone. Lyrically, my messages may not be popular in some circles, but certainly they are timeless messages that need to be
heard by all generations.
REAL. RAW. RELEVANT...
At times the perfectionist and the studio engineer in me resisted this approach strongly, and in some ways I'm glad - some songs turned out better because I didn't accept what I had, I challenged myself to do better, and I did. I found balance and leanred the art of compromise as I chose what songs to include, how to arrange them, and how to produce them. Overall though - I kept commercialism in check, and allowed my music to be honest, and a little rough around the edges...just like me.
REAL. RAW. RELEVANT. Did my GUITAR DRIVEN SONGS ABOUT LIFE hit the mark? You be the judge. I hope you enjoy what I've done, and I appreciate you letting me share it with you. Yes, there will be plenty of projects in the future that will be full of over-the-top productions, studio magic, and commercial appeal, but until then, I leave you with "Free" - a little piece of my heart and soul.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
A Round of Thanks!
Today, the UPS truck showed up with a big box full of CDs. I'm so happy to have this labor of love finally done.
I really appreciate the support of friends, family, and fans who helped fund the pressing of the CDs through their advance orders of the CD and other generous contributions.
My next couple of posts I'll be taking time to say thanks. Rather than say them all at once, I'm going to spread this out over several posts.
Today, I wish to say my first round of thanks to a group of friends, co-workers, and neighbors who all pre-ordered CDs in order to help me out:
Andy Browning
Annette Reid
John and Kristy Anderson
Sarah and Jordan Glancy
Daniel Ramos
Eric Federspiel
Kelly Miller
Lezlee Monroe
Jesse Vasquez
Richard Marhoover
Connie Esplin
Nathan Foote
THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT! I'll be mailing or delivering your CDs shortly, and I hope you enjoy it.
I really appreciate the support of friends, family, and fans who helped fund the pressing of the CDs through their advance orders of the CD and other generous contributions.
My next couple of posts I'll be taking time to say thanks. Rather than say them all at once, I'm going to spread this out over several posts.
Today, I wish to say my first round of thanks to a group of friends, co-workers, and neighbors who all pre-ordered CDs in order to help me out:
Andy Browning
Annette Reid
John and Kristy Anderson
Sarah and Jordan Glancy
Daniel Ramos
Eric Federspiel
Kelly Miller
Lezlee Monroe
Jesse Vasquez
Richard Marhoover
Connie Esplin
Nathan Foote
THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT! I'll be mailing or delivering your CDs shortly, and I hope you enjoy it.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Soft Release of Album has Begun!
The kickstarter.com fundraiser was a success, and the album is done. And now, we wait... Soon, a truck will come to the door with boxes full of shiny, shrink-wrapped CDs and download cards. Soon, you'll see my album "Free" listed online at sites like iTunes. While the "official" release will be at the end of this month, I've started a "soft" release. I've already shared the first two tracks with my kickstarter backers and will continue releasing another track every 2-3 days to them. Over the coming weeks, you'll also start seeing new music being posted on my facebook, reverbnation, and blog site (both samples and complete tracks).
I'll also be writing a series of posts to recognize a special group of friends, family, and fans that generously supported my pre-release album sales and fundraising efforts. I can't thank them enough for their support, and helping make this project happen on schedule.
Also stay tuned for a series of posts that will explore some of the songs on my album in detail, the stories behind them, and notes regarding the production of the songs.
Thanks again for all your support, its been a blast making my music and I can't wait to share it with you.
I'll also be writing a series of posts to recognize a special group of friends, family, and fans that generously supported my pre-release album sales and fundraising efforts. I can't thank them enough for their support, and helping make this project happen on schedule.
Also stay tuned for a series of posts that will explore some of the songs on my album in detail, the stories behind them, and notes regarding the production of the songs.
Thanks again for all your support, its been a blast making my music and I can't wait to share it with you.
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