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.

A Quiet Day in the Office

Today I didn't have any meetings or people waiting on me for anything.  It was a wonderful feeling.  I got to play some guitar which is a real treat for me to get a chance to do.
My dog Scarlet and I hung out in our living room all day.  I have some food in the slow cooker, some fair trade coffee, a few books and my trusty laptop and no place to be.
It has been a great chance to get a few things done and put a few things back in perspective.
This weekend is an exciting one as Geoff Laforet and I get a chance to play some shows down in his neck of the woods.  Windsor on Friday night and Kingsville on Saturday night.  Unfortunately Neil our dear friend and bass player will not be joining us but that is due to the fact that his wife could have their 3rd child at any given moment.  So we gave him the weekend off.
I love days like this, and yet I find I can't really plan for this kind of thing, it just happens when the time is right.  I hope you too have a wonderfully quiet day in your respective offices'.

A Wedding, a Funeral and a Birthday

This week has been a whirlwind of emotions for me.  Last Sunday we were informed that my wife's grandfather had passed away.  From Sunday to Thursday night, our main focus was the funeral and the travel involved to be at it.  It was a beautiful service and we got to see lots of family that we haven't seen for years.
When we arrived home on Thursday night we quickly switched gears to the Wedding that I was officiating for my cousin on  Saturday morning.
On Friday we headed for Barrie Ontario through the beautiful Fall colours and enjoyed a wonderful outdoor wedding.  The music at the wedding was split between 2 groups "The Barrel Boys" and "Au Pairs" who were both brilliant.
By the time my duties at the wedding were complete I was really to kick back and enjoy the reception and the great music and that is what I did.
On Sunday morning I woke up and celebrated my mother's 60th birthday with her over breakfast and a cupcake that we had saved for her from the wedding reception the night before.
Over all, it was a very cool week with lots of family, travel and music.  I happy now to be back at home listening to Imogen Heap and enjoying some quiet time with my dog "Scarlet".

Eagle Ride for Youth Event

When Otic Poets were asked to provide the music for this event, we thought, what's more rock 'n roll than Motorcycles? 
Liberty for youth is an organization that creates a safe place for youth to be engaged, encouraged and empowered.
So this Saturday from 2pm to 4pm we will be playing music at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum for a a great cause and we are happy to do our part and rock out!

East Coast Tour 2013

Well our trip to the East Coast of Canada was amazing and left me feeling a real sense of love for the great people of our Nation.
We were invited into homes of people we barely knew, enjoyed some of the Atlantic Ocean's wonderful delicacies in kitchens and on back porches.  One thing was true everywhere we visited, we were greeted and sent off with tons of love.
On this Tour I was joined by dear friend and former Silas drummer "Jon McMurray" seen in these photos with the bald head and long gotee.  Once we arrived in Miramichi, NB we were joined by my brother in law Dan Froese who played Fiddle and guitar on the Tour.
These guys were amazing to play with and really helped to capture the more Eastern sound that I was looking for with this tour and the release of my new album "Lucky One".
On the Tour we played in Churches, a Fishing Lodge, A Bank, A Patio, A Bistro, A Farmers Market, A Kitchen and I started working on a new song in a bathroom.
We traveled to the Following Places:
Hamilton, Quebec City, Edmonston, Miramichi, Annapolis Royal, NS, Digby NS and home again putting over 4000 kms on our old van but enjoying every part of the journey.

Farmers Market in Annapolis Royal, NS

Digby Wesleyan Church, Digby NS

All in all it was a great trip and I'm so glad that we went again this year.  As a songwriter and performer, you hope and pray that your music will be well received and as I drove home from Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia to Hamilton, ON, I felt so assured that what I am doing with my life is the right thing.  

A big thank you to Jon McMurray and family for coming and spending your Summer Vacation with us.  Dan and Marissa, thank you for hosting the 2nd leg of the journey at your home and for letting us paint your new Photo Studio.