New Single, "Wherever You Are" Out Today!

Happy Year of the Rat everyone!  Hope you’re enjoying the start of both 2020 and 4718.

First I just want to say a huge welcome to all the new signups!  I’m so happy you’re here.  There will be some big announcements in the coming weeks, so I’ll keep this brief, but I just wanted to send a quick note to let you know that my new single “Wherever You Are” came out today and is available everywhere!  Click here to listen on any platform.

This song was inspired by a memory of watching a TED talk, where the woman speaker said something like  “to my other half… wherever you are… I’m coming as fast as I can”

This quote stuck with me and as I was gathering songs for the album about diff kinds of memory, I kept coming back to this idea that maybe the “chemistry” we are said to feel when we meet our person is more of a feeling of remembering them from another time. I went back to look up the quote as I was writing lyrics for the song… And it was nowhere to be found. To this day I have no idea if I just imagined it or not. if anyone happens to know the TED talk I’m thinking of, please let me know!

If you dig what you hear and want to help support this music, one really effective and simple  thing you can do is to FOLLOW me on Spotify or Apple Music.  This helps the algorithms get my music on more playlists and in front of a larger audience.  If you want to go above and beyond, I’d be so grateful if you would share the song with your friends by posting about it, or sharing this video.  The full album will come out on Feb 21, 2020.  More news about the release to follow shortly…

Thank you so much for being part of this family and for helping me spread my music into the world.  This is a big year of releasing music for me and I am so very grateful to have all of you on my side.  Let’s do this, team!

Much love,

A

Original Handmade Cards, December Shows

Happy December team!

Hello from Tornillo TX… I’m writing to you from Sonic Ranch, a magical studio hidden on a massive pecan farm five minutes from the US/Mexican border, where I am in the middle of producing Delta Rae’s 4th studio album, The Dark.  It’s been an intense, joyous, creative time with some truly special moments including tracking on a piano from 1864!  I can’t wait to share what we’ve been making with you.

Anyway I meant to write to you sooner, however time seems to move a little differently here on the ranch (or maybe it’s the 15 hour days?)… but there's a lot I'm excited to share with you this month so here goes…

HANDMADE HOLIDAY CARDS FOR PATREON MEMBERS

This year I’ve decided to make something special for the holidays for my Patreon subscribers.  I am creating limited-edition, handmade greeting cards using the original stamp artwork from two of my singles, “Show Yourself” and “In the Creases.”  The cards are 5x7 and made of 100% recycled paper.  Here are the images that will be hand-stamped on the front:

Become a patron at any level (or if you’re already a patron, increase your subscription tier by one or more levels) by DECEMBER 10 and I will send you a 6-pack of hand stamped cards as a special holiday thank you.  I will mail the cards promptly on DECEMBER 11 so you’ll receive them in plenty of time for the holidays.  These cards will NOT be available to the general public!  Click here to become a patron.

UPCOMING SHOWS

Feeling very lucky to get to play some shows this month with some of my favorite artists and humans, Delta Rae and Vienna Teng.  If you will be near Raleigh NC or Berkeley CA over the holidays, please come say hi!

DECEMBER 14 - LINCOLN THEATER, RALEIGH NC (SUPPORTING DELTA RAE). 

DECEMBER 30 - FREIGHT AND SALVAGE, BERKELEY CA (SUPPORTING VIENNA TENG). 

MARCH 5 2020 - ANALOG AT THE HUTTON HOTEL, NASHVILLE TN (ALBUM RELEASE SHOW WITH MADISON MALONE)

RECENT PODCAST INTERVIEWS

Last month Jesse Terry and I were interviewed on a couple of environmental/political leaning podcasts to talk about our new duo album KIVALINA (inspired by stories of climate change) and what moved us to create the record.  The hosts were both very intelligent and thoughtful and did a great job leading us through some really interesting conversations (at least for me).  Check them out here or wherever you listen to podcasts:

AMERICA ADAPTS - EPISODE 98

THE BOB CESCA SHOW - NOV 13 2019

NEW RELEASES AVAILABLE NOW!

First off I just want to say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has streamed my music this year.  This was the first time I’ve released music in over 7 years.  These stats may not mean much to some but they mean the world to me because they represent the beginning of a brand new phase making art under my own name, and I am grateful beyond words that anyone is out there listening to my music.

The first three singles from my upcoming album are officially released!  Just Enough, Show Yourself and In The Creases are now available on all platforms.

The Kivalina EP (duo album with Jesse Terry inspired by stories of Climate Change) is now available everywhere as well.  The album follows a young couple in Kivalina AK struggling with the effects of climate change on their everyday lives.

I know it can be little confusing (for myself as well) to know the best way to support the artists you love in this weird post-profit streaming world.  Other than going to shows and supporting us on platforms like Patreon, the BEST way you can support independent artists is to FOLLOW us on streaming platforms like Spotify or Apple Music. Growing our follower number is what helps the most when it comes to our ability to reach new audiences on the platform, more so than impressive streaming numbers or fancy playlists.  Click here to follow me on Spotify and Apple Music.

That’s it for now.  Wishing you a peaceful holiday season and thank you as always for being here.  It means the world to me.

Much love,

A

Fall 2019 Shows, New Singles

Hey team,

Hope you’re all having a great… October?!?!  Where does the time go??  Oh yeah, it goes right by the studio window on the other side of those blackout curtains I installed so I wouldn’t notice time passing.

It’s actually been a great month of studio activity… I finished recording the first of two LPs with Delta Rae, straight off of their incredible Kickstarter run (they are now the 5th most funded music Kickstarter OF ALL TIME).  Our first single “Take Me There,” comes out everywhere next month and it’s a JAM!  So excited for y’all to hear it.  This month I have also been producing Megan Slankard’s next album.  We’ve gotten to do some really fun stuff on this record including arranging for harp for the first time (that's the wonderful Liana Alpino playing)!

All this studio creation has been really fun but sometimes in work mode its easy to forget about the Outside World. Luckily Charlotte the dog does not forget, and has no problem reminding me to go the f**k outside. Here is a pic of her mid-scolding.

FALL EAST COAST SHOWS

Speaking of the Outside World, I’m really excited to tell you about some cool shows I have coming up this Fall with some of my favorite humans, including Megan Slankard, Delta Rae and Jesse Terry.  I’ll be up and down the East Coast so please come say hi if you’re in the area!  Details below…

OCT 18 8PM - STEEL CITY COFFEE, PHOENIXVILLE PA (W/ MEGAN SLANKARD) (TICKETS)

OCT 21 9PM (MEGAN SLANKARD AT 8PM!) - ROCKWOOD MUSIC HALL, NEW YORK NY

OCT 29/30 - NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CITIZENSHIP, WASHINGTON DC (TICKETS)

DEC 14 - RALEIGH NC, LINCOLN THEATER (O/F DELTA RAE) (TICKETS)

NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CITIZENSHIP - OCT 29 & 30

I am honored to be asked to play and speak at this year’s NCoC, a nonpartisan gathering of civic leaders (held annually since 1946!) working on the front lines of democracy.  This year’s theme is Bright Spots: Local Leaders inspiring hope in America.  I will be performing some of my solo material as well as songs from my duo album Kivalina (inspired by stories of climate change) with my collaborator Jesse Terry.  Jay Nash, Chris Pierce, Terra Naomi, and Yosimar Reyes are among the other artists performing.  Register here.

LINCOLN THEATER SUPPORTING DELTA RAE - DEC 14

I will be opening for Delta Rae at their hometown show in Raleigh NC on Dec 14!  I will play a set of my solo material then join them to play some drums in their set!  The wonderful Carrie Welling will kick off the night.

This will be a special show for me as they will play the first album I produced for them, Carry The Fire, front to back for the first time ever, complete with my string and brass arrangements performed live!  If you’re in the area I can’t recommend coming to this show highly enough!

NEW RELEASES AVAILABLE NOW!

The first two singles from my upcoming album are officially released! Show Yourself and In The Creases are now available on all platforms. The next single, “Just Enough (Feat. Elizabeth and the Catapult)” will be released on Oct 25. FOLLOW ME on Spotify to be notified as soon as it drops!

The Kivalina EP (duo album with Jesse Terry inspired by stories of Climate Change) is now available everywhere as well.  The album follows a young couple in Kivalina AK struggling with the effects of climate change on their everyday lives.

I’ll be honest with you, the biggest challenge releasing music these days is getting heard above the noise.  We’re all so inundated with content from every angle that it’s easy to get lost in the constant stream of stuff… so I don’t take it lightly when you take the time to listen to my music.  Thank you.  If you like the music I make and want to help it get out into the world, the best thing you can do is to SHARE the music with your friends, and FOLLOW ME if you’re a Spotify user.   I’m working hard toward the release of my full album on Feb 21 2020 and spreading the word before then will help so much!  I put my heart and soul into this album and I would love to give this music its best chance to be heard.

FIND ME ON PATREON

For those who didn’t know, I am a PATREON creator!  I share all of my music with my patrons before any of it is released, including songs not available to the public, behind-the-scenes videos, and insights into my songwriting and producing process.  If you’re interested in learning more about my creative process while supporting my ability to make art on my own terms, please consider becoming a patron. 

That’s it for now.  Thank you as always for being here.  It means the world to me.

Much love,

A

New Single Premiere on The Bluegrass Situation

Hey Team,

Woke up to some exciting news today… The Bluegrass Situation has premiered “Landfall,” written along with Sierra Noble, the first single from KIVALINA, my upcoming duo album with Jesse Terry! Listen HERE.

The album was inspired by stories of the people of Kivalina, AK, who have the unfortunate distinction of being some of North America’s first climate refugees; the village will completely disappear in less than ten years due to rising sea levels.

I’ve been feeling a bit helpless lately about our climate situation... it’s such an urgent issue and we just can’t seem to move the ball forward because of, basically, greed and tribalism. Sometimes I feel useless because I’m not an expert on the science or the policy surrounding the issue. Writing this album with Jesse was a way to process some of that pent up frustration. I hope this album can at least help move the conversation forward in some way.

Much love,
Alex

NYC Show May 14, The Paper Raincoat Premiere

Dear friends,

Happy mid-spring!  Jeez, those first 4 months of 2019 blew by… Hope you’ve all had a great year so far and are enjoying the energy of things growing around us again…

A lot has been growing so far this year here in my little Nashville studio… I produced an album for Delta Rae in January, one for Megan Slankard in February, and one for Paul Freeman in April.  It's been exhausting but also incredibly energizing as they are some of my favorite artists around and I feel like we pushed each other to do some of our best work yet.  I can’t wait for you all to hear all the new music!

There is also quite a bit of motion in my solo album world right now that I’m very excited to share with you soon, but I wanted to focus this missive on a couple of very special events coming up over the next few weeks…

NYC SOLO SHOW MAY 14 - “ON YOUR RADAR” SPONSORED BY WFUV

I’m excited to get back to NYC with my solo music for a special show at Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 3).  The evening is curated by John Platt of WFUV and features Jesse Terry, Alan Fish, Emily Mure and myself.  I will be playing songs from my solo album as well as premiering songs from my and Jesse's upcoming duo EP. Here are the details:

TUESDAY MAY 14 7PM
ROCKWOOD MUSIC HALL STAGE 3 NYC
GET TICKETS HERE

For those who don’t know, Jesse and I wrote and recorded an EP inspired by the story of Kivalina, a town in Alaska that has the unfortunate distinction of being one of the first places in North America that will be completely submerged within 10 years due to rising sea levels.

After reading this article on Kivalina in late 2015, I was compelled to learn more, and what I found had a strong emotional impact on me.  I was really affected by the personal stories of the inhabitants of the town who are being forced to face a strange and tremendous decision... do you abandon your homeland and the spaces that define your heritage or do you try to preserve your culture in spite of your land literally disappearing before your eyes? It seems likely that that the same questions facing these villages will soon be confronting some of our biggest coastal cities as well, such as the one where my family lives. It is painful to imagine having to make these life-altering decisions about my own home and loved ones.

The record doesn’t come out until September, but you can learn more about the project and preview the album now when you sign up to my Patreon page.

THE PAPER RAINCOAT MUSICAL DEBUT PERFORMANCES - JUNE 1 & 2

As many of you know, I’ve been writing a musical called The Paper Raincoat for the past 5 years with two of my favorite co-writers, Amber Rubarth and Devon Copley.  I am absolutely thrilled to announce that the show has been selected to be produced by Bay Area theater company Musical Cafe for two full-length concert performances on June 1 and 2 at the Osher Studio in Berkeley CA.  This is the first time ever that the show will be performed in its entirety.  We will premiere 14 brand-new Paper Raincoat songs and present the entire story.  If you’re in the Bay Area, we would absolutely love for you to join us. Here are the details:

MUSICAL CAFE PRESENTS THE PAPER RAINCOAT
JUNE 1 at 8PM, JUNE 2 at 6PM
BAY AREA CHILDREN'S THEATER, OSHER STUDIO
2055 CENTER ST BERKELEY CA 94704
Reserve your tickets here!

This premiere has been over ten years in the making.  For those of you who don’t know the story of the project, Amber Rubarth and I started the project back in 2008 and wrote an album based on the beginning of the story that would eventually become the musical.  We toured as a band for several years and our songs found their way into movies, TV shows and commercials.  We’d always hoped we’d get a chance to tell the whole story of The Paper Raincoat, and we are so grateful to theater companies like Musical Cafe and TheatreWorks in Palo Alto for supporting new work, for taking a chance on a bunch of singer/songwriters with very little theater experience and allowing us to develop this show under their expert guidance.  

You can learn much more about our creative process behind the show and our journey up to this point on my Patreon page!

NEW PODCAST INTERVIEW!

I was recently interviewed on a podcast here in Nashville called The Slow Drag. The show focuses on people working in the creative community and discusses their experiences, struggles, successes, etc.  It was a really fun talk and we covered a lot of unexpected ground about my creative process, perspectives in the studio, how I work with synesthesia, and how I (attempt to) battle perfectionism.  Hope you enjoy it, and check out their other episodes as well!

You can listen here.

Thanks as always for reading to the end and for your continued support of what I do.  I am so grateful for all y’all!

Much love,

Alex