Walkdown Sound Joins Forces with Darin Martin Music

We are just about to go public with an announcement that I am thrilled about.  Starting in 2014 Walkdown Sound will be providing management for Darin Martin Music.

This will include things like concert booking, production, developing a touring and recording schedule and more.  Walkdown Sound has also invited me to be a part of the production team at Walkdown Sound Studio in Brooklin.
This is very exciting for me as I have reached a stage in my career where I want to pour more energy into the creative side of writing and performing and recording and less energy into trying to find gigs and working out all of the details with venues.  It will also give me the opportunity to give back by helping Walkdown to work with and develop other artists.

Meet Matthew Fretz of Walkdown Sound.  

Matthew is the owner and creator of Walkdown Sound.  The Vision statement for his company is simply "Dream, then Do".  Matthew is a husband, father, father in-law, and a dear brother of mine.  He is a very talented cat who does engineering,  music production, concert promotions, video production, commercial jingles, voice overs, writing, ...he'll even shovel your driveway for you if you need him to.
From the first time that Geoff and I met Matthew, I sensed that he was a man of God who was a creative genius and was doing his part to develop young artists.  By the 2nd concert he worked with us on, I knew that our relationship was just getting started.  Matthew also had the sense that the Big Guy upstairs had brought the two of us together.  So after recording an album at Walkdown Sound just before my East Coast Tour this past summer, I asked Matthew if he would manage Darin Martin Music and help me get to the next level.  I'm very excited that this partnership will not only benefit my music career as I still get to work with great artists like Geoff Laforet and Neil Brown, but it will also give me the opportunity to work with a fantastic group at Walkdown Sound in helping others "Dream, then Do".

Stay tuned as we get ready to launch as a team in 2014.

Follow Walkdown Sound on facebook and Twitter and stay connected:
To book a show email Matthew Fretz at walkdownsound@gmail.com.

"Christmas Time" Single

This year we wanted to put together a song for Christmas as a free give away for all of our friends.  So Matthew Fretz shared a song with us and asked if Geoff and Neil and I would take it and make it "our own".  We played around with it a bit and decided that that we found something that stayed true to the heart and vibe of the song, but had our own little flair.
On Tuesday December 10th we released our first Christmas single entitled "Christmas Time" written and produced by Matthew Fretz, recorded by Darin Martin: Vocals & Guitars, Geoff Laforet: Drums, all of the high harmonies and extra percussion, and Neil Brown: Bass, keys and BGV's.

Here is how it went down
A few weeks ago we crashed at Geoff's and played through the song a bunch of times before watching "Anchor Man" which I had never seen before.  This was in fact the first movie that Geoff and I had ever watched together.  We stayed up too late and in the morning Geoff and Neil and I headed up to Walkdown Sound in Brooklin, On where we met Matt and went to work.
The studio was tons of fun and we had a great time hanging with Matt and the Fretz fam.
After a day of tracking and some Swiss Chalet we were tired but pretty happy with the song.  The good Lord protected us on the way home as we literally watched cars and trucks go flying off the road just ahead of us due to icy conditions.
I was reminded that Geoff and Neil are more than just musical partners, but very close friends and really sweet dudes.
We truly wish you a Merry Christmas and Holiday Season and a Happy New Year.

Go to this link to get your free Download of "Christmas Time"
darinmartinmusic.com

Christmas Season

Every year on December 1st something in me changes.  It's like a light bulb goes on and I realize 2 things simultaneously, 1) It's not Summer anymore 2) It's almost Christmas.
I'm weird when it comes to Christmas because I have had a love/hate relationship with this entire season for many years and for many reasons.  As a young child it was a magical time of year where all my memories had 5 feet of fluffy white snow, 10 ft Christmas trees and family around laughing and eating for what seemed like weeks.  Growing up in a Christian home meant that we also had a big focus on Jesus' birthday and not just Jolly Old Saint Nick.
After my parents slip up when I was 8 Christmas became about a very difficult choice.  Which parent/siblings would I spend Christmas with and how much would my decision hurt my relationship with the parent I didn't choose.  It was a lose lose situation for a young boy.
For a few years my older brother and I actually went to my uncles' house and although that solved the "which parent" debate, it sure was difficult to not be with your own family for Christmas Eve and day.
When I went off to College I decided that I hated Christmas altogether.  Well at least the commercialization of the season.  Somehow the amount of love you had for someone was determined by the amount of money you spent on their Christmas gift.  I attended family gatherings and put on a smile but inside I loathed every minute of it.
Then one day something changed in me.  We started having our own family and had to decided what we would focus on and what our Christmas season would look like for us.
So we decided that Christmas would be a happy and magical time for us with a big focus on Jesus and his sacrificial giving, as well as family and the love and support that then can be for each other.  We decided that every Christmas eve we would give our girls a new pair of pajamas or as their British uncle Dom calls them "JimJams".
Then on Christmas morning they get a simple stocking and one special gift from us.
As a family we value living simply and giving generously to others and by not spending a whole bunch of money  at Christmas or wracking up our credit card bills, we are able to look for needs around us and help others.
I'm not suggesting that presents are bad and would not pass judgement on the way others celebrate Christmas.  We've just found that for our family this approach works. Now we look forward to seeing family we don't often get to see, eating great food and celebrating the birth of Christ and I've started to love Christmas again.