CD Release Show at the Foxhole

The Kaleidoscope CDs just arrived today - so I am excited to say that I will have them for the CD release show!  I'm really pumped with the way they came out (and that I finally can just enjoy listening to it without having to worry about what else I need to do to finish it).  I'm selling them for $5 - so let me know if you'd like one!

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The CD release show is going to be Friday, November 9th at the Foxhole.  I'll be playing some of the material on the Kaleidoscope EP along with some new tunes.  We Avalanche and The Dwells will also be playing and I'm honored to play with both of these awesome bands for my first show.  Should be a lot of fun and it's free - so come out if you're around for it.  Here's the FB event page for more details.  If you have any questions about it feel free to contact me.   

Hope to see you there!

AMTA 2012 Conference

WOW!  What a whirlwind of a week!

Last Thursday I left for Chicago/St Charles for the National Music Therapy Conference.  The conference was from Friday till Sunday and it was really an amazing trip.  It was so awesome to catch up and hang with some good friends, make some new ones, and just be around some amazing folks that I hadn't seen in a while.

(photograph by Georgia)

I definitely got more out of the presentations this year than I did when I went a couple years ago in Ohio.  A big part of the conference this year was celebrating the life and work of Clive Robbins.  There was one Nordoff-Robbins presentation for every block of time, and I can easily say that these were the presentations I got the most out of.  I also got a chance to head to Chicago to go see my friend Lucas's new funk band, The Krewe, which was a blast.

Lots of love to my music therapy folks and Chicago folks - you all rock. 

'ALLELUJAH! DON'T BEND! ASCEND!

Godspeed You! Black Emperor are one of those bands that I have trouble talking about because they have had such an impact on my life.  The first time I saw them was on their reunion tour after being on hiatus for over 8 years at St. Paul the Apostle Church in New York City.  It is probably the only show I can say literally changed my life.  

On Monday I saw them again at the Orpheum and it was a completely different experience to say the least.  I won't go into details here - but the set they played Monday night was much darker.  But the most surprising thing was they were selling a new album of theirs.  This information took a while to register for me when I saw this walking in, since there was no news about this coming out prior to seeing it for sale there and it is the first album they have released in ten years.  I can honestly say that their new album, "'ALLELUJAH! DON'T BEND! ASCEND!" not only actually exists, but it's amazing and among their strongest work to date.  It consists of 2 longer pieces (both over 20 minutes), and 2 drone pieces.  It is easily my favorite album of the year so far and I definitely recommend checking it out when it drops for the rest of the world on October 16th.  Here's more information about it from Constellation Records.

Here's the piece "We Drift Like Worried Fires" from the new album: