essays & reflections on crafting a creative career
It’s 1:13 am Thursday January 15th, just a few hours after performing with a band for my record release. All I want to do is go to sleep. Well, watch one episode of The Office, then go to sleep. But tomorrow I won’t be basking in whatever glow (or cloud) that is the experience of […]
I’m deep in prep mode for my first full-band, real live show in three years. It’s a special show, one I wasn’t even going to do, but something was telling me you’re not done yet. It’s a record release show. And it’s draining the shit out of me. The Venue Getting the venue wasn’t so […]
Published on Discmaker’s Echoes blog. Traveling can bring excitement to your life, and it can bring stress and upheaval, as well. Here are four simple travel tips to help you endure life on the road without feeling like roadkill. I’ve been wanting to write this article for a while… but I’ve been traveling. I am […]
As published on Discmakers Echoes Blog. Getting nervous before a show is something most performers go through. These six simple ideas can help you overcome your performance jitters. We all know practice makes perfect, but sometimes perfect isn’t enough to calm performance jitters, cool sweaty palms, and relax the nerves. So whether you’re heading out […]
Published in Discmaker’s Echoes Blog. “Outside the box” is a term that can be both very helpful and frustrating for so many musicians, myself included. I am constantly looking for “what else” when working at my career trying to sell more albums, gain new fans and be authentic, while at the same time being original […]
As seen in Discmaker’s Echoes Blog. Spring cleaning is not just for ridding your closet full of worn sneakers, destroying dust bunnies, and scrubbing windows. I like to take the “It’s spring, I MUST clean something” energy and put it towards something other than the grossest stuff in my apartment. This year, it was my […]
Bodies, Butts, Ears
I work in waves. I can write a ton of songs for a few months then nothing. Boom. Blank. I used to freak out that my creativity was lost and gone forever. Now I know that this is just how I work. I have three “phases” of my music process: the touring, the creative and […]
It’s not even 9am in Hamburg, Germany, and the city is rocking. I can’t find eggs for shit, but bars are open and people are sipping morning beers. I really just want eggs. Heavy metal is blasting out of one window while a car passes me with two girls bouncing to a rap song. And […]
And though I’d like to call it vacation, because I am having the time of my life, I’d feel lazy calling it such. A whole month on vacation? with no pay? Impossible. Idiotic. Especially in these times…. right?
Possibly. Or not.
A few months ago, I was telling a good old friend (the kind that tells the bitter truth no matter what) that one of my articles was being published in Keyboard Magazine. His response: “Now you’re a writer too? Well aren’t you the jack of all trades, master of none.” I hung up.