Coffee

As a kid, I always thought coffee was weird.
My dad loved (and still loves) his double double from Tim Hortons.  Coffee smelled funny to me.  But somewhere along the line I was introduced to sugar and cream with a shot of coffee and then I too was hooked.  Now I spend a good portion of my week hanging out in coffee shops.  I write papers in them, I meet people in them and I play music in them.
What is it about the wonderful beverage that draws people like me in?
Why is it that I get excited to get to a coffee shop to set up my workstation and order a hot cup of Jo?
I know it's full of caffeine and other stuff that is probably not good for me, but it's the whole experience that draws me in.                      
As I write this blog post, my view is what you see in this picture.
It's perfect!  It's simple, I see a bunch of brown which is my favorite colour, and it makes me want to order another coffee and get more done.
Nowadays my dad and I drink coffee together. He still orders his double double, but I don't add sugar cuz I'm sweet enough already:)

Slippery Sidewalks Are Bringing Me Down.

It's February and the snow outside is starting to get me down.  I know that is common in February but I'm just in need of a pick-me-up.  So I have been working really hard to book a bunch of Spring shows once the better weather hits.  Working on a bunch of church events and a possible Summer tour.  I am reworking my press kit right now, recording a bunch of new songs and I even chopped my hair off to try and get a fresh start.
So now I'm just waiting for the snow to thaw, the patios to re-open and my record to get finished.
Stay tuned for more updates soon.

Something New for 2015

So I haven't posted on my blog for a long time but this is the start of a new year so why not post a wee update.  

The last half of 2014 was spent back in school trying to finish my Masters in Divinity, launching a second group in our House Church Plant called "GreenHouse" and working on a bunch of new songs.  Not to mentioned working on new music and a single with Otic Poets.  I felt like I didn't do very much performing but as I reflect, I suppose I was still pretty busy.  It's funny, when you are busy doing something you love, it doesn't seem like such hard work.  

I am very excited about 2015 as I am currently starting a new acoustic album at Sheepdog Studio which is so close to me that I can literally walk across Gage Park and be there in 10 mins.  Walking in a park is a beautiful way to prepare for recording.  After each session I get to walk home through the park and reflect.  This is going to be my best record yet.    

I will blog again soon about some other things happening.  Please stay tuned.  This picture was taken by my friend Kaz who is a brilliant photographer, videographer and owner of Verity Creative.  I'll share some more of his shots soon.    

What to do when you are on tour and you have little to no voice

About 10 days ago I began a string of gigs and now I am on the last day of my Spring Mini Tour.  Today is Sunday and last Sunday I started getting a sore throat.  Knowing that I had lots of singing to do I really took it easy, drank a ton of peppermint tea.
By Tuesday's show I was struggling to hit any high notes which I have to do often in my own songs and in the covers that I play.  On Wednesday I woke up and my speaking voice was a mess.  At this point adding coughing to the mix I knew I needed to get something so I bought some generic Cold and Cough stuff.  I don't think it did anything except for cost me way too much.
Wednesday night I was in London with my buddies' Hooper and Neil playing at St. Joseph's Hospital Annual fundraiser and with the help of my sister's boyfriend coming along and singing a few songs, we made it through and it was a great event.
On Thursday I had a much needed day off so I slept and had lots of tea but things appeared to be getting worse.  On Friday morning I had to drive to Downtown Toronto and pick up the CDs that I had printed at Indiepool.  Then I continued on to Brooklin, ON where I was playing with my friend Jonathan Manafo at a pub on a golf course called "The Hound Over the Hedge stone".
My voice was a mess at this point and the worst part was that I had no confidence in it at all.  It was a horrible feeling knowing that I still had to play Saturday night and twice on Sunday.
I hacked through the first 2 sets and Jonathan Manafo helped me out for the third set by singing a bunch of covers and once again we got through it.
Saturday was spent on the deck at Walkdown Sound with my good friend Matthew Fretz.  I lazed around all day alternating between hot and cold drinks with a mid day trip to Baldwin St. Burger.  I was still feeling poopy though so Matt and I took a trip to Shoppers and bought a bottle of Buckley's.  On Saturday night the Buckley's must have been working because I felt like I was starting to get some of my voice back.  That night I was once again joined by Jonathan Manafo on bass and Jonathan McMurray on drums.  As we started into the first set I was flying.  I had about 60% of my voice, Matt Fretz was mixing and had us sounding really good and the band was having tons of fun playing through popular covers and the original songs that I thought I could still hit.
The 2nd set was also good but I started noticing that I didn't have any voice when I tried to hit high notes.  This was freaking me out once again but the band and I kept jamming out the instrumentals and kept a brave face.  Jonathan McMurray sang a few covers from the drums which helped us get through set two.  When we took a break before set three I knew that I still had my Sunday shows to do and didn't want to totally lose my voice so Jonathan Manafo took the 3 set and sang a bunch of high energy covers that he does and I got to rock out on my electric guitar.  Our 3rd set was definitely the most spirited.  When we ended last night it was a little after 1am and we still had to pack up and drive 30 mins back to Walkdown Sound.  All of that worked out and I got a good night sleep.  So here I am now, still with about 60% of my voice and I'm heading in a few minutes to Jonathan Manafo's church to sing some songs and share some stories.
I am so thankful for so many great friends who have surrounded me this week and filled in gaps when I couldn't.  But by the grace of God the support of Hooper, Neil, Manafo, Fretz, McMurray and Buckley's go I.

Tim Neufeld

On Saturday May 3rd The Otic Poets and I have been asked to open for Tim Neufeld and the Hallelujah Glory Boys.  This is a real honour as Tim's band "Starfield" has been very influential in my life and in the lives of many others.
Over the past little while DM&OP have been working very hard to craft a sound that is really working.  It has my acoustic vibe in a bed of Geoff's creative acoustic and electronic drums, Neil's silky-smooth bass and Jordan's melodious guitars.  This combo really sings!
I'm excited to share our new sound with a larger audience and this show will be a good opportunity for that.
We will also be featured on the Radio show "Redeem The Beat" this Sunday at 4pm to promote the show on May 3rd and play one of our songs live.  Please tune in to that at 1015thehawk.ca and listen live.  You can also request songs from Otic Poet's "Frontiers" record or any of my solo material.
Also, you can get your tickets for the Tim Neufeld show from Harbour Fellowship Church in St. Catharines, ON.

Trying To Find an Abandoned Home

I want to share a video with you that tells a cool story from this past weekend.  As you hopefully know by now, Matthew Fretz of Walkdown Sound has started working with me to help take my music to the next level.  On the weekend we were shooting a little video for a cover of a Neil Young song I did which we are planning to release next Tuesday, February 18th right before my first T.V. debut on Cable 14 on Wednesday February 19th.  We had shot the video on Friday night and were editing it on the Saturday when Matt left for a few hours.  When he returned he told me to "grab my coat and one of the guitars from the studio."  It turns out he had found an abandoned house on the side of the highway and wanted to go take a few photos and shoot a quick video.  So we trudged in through the deep snow, walked into a house that was missing it's windows and doors and had been left in a terrible state.  It was a total mess with birds nests in the corners and stuff everywhere but I couldn't help but think of who used to occupy that place.  I'm sure at one point there were many family meals and Christmas mornings.  What had happened to this family home that was now nothing more than a rotting house on the side of the highway?  Matt was a little more brave than I so he wandered around the house looking for some sort of spot to take some pictures and shoot a video.  We eventually landed on a tipped over book shelf that was laying on it's side infront of the window shown in the picture above.

It was very cold that day so we didn't stay long but Matt shot this video of me singing "Trying To Find A Home" and we decided to release it and share the story behind the abandoned house.
Although my fingers felt as though they were going to fall off at any point and I was using a slightly out of tune guitar, it was a very cool moment for us to experience together.
On the way in to this house Matt walked through the deep snow first and told me to follow in his footprints.  That is the kind of guy that Matthew Fretz is and I am thrilled to walk in his footprints as we work together on this great adventure.

Link to the Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9iPLG6vU-w 
Please share if you like it.

Introducing The Lovelocks

Last night Geoff and Esther and I had the honour of sharing the stage at the Cameron House with The Lovelocks. "The Lovelocks are a female alt-country duo comprised of Ali Raney and Zoe Neuman hailing from Toronto." They were also backed by an amazing band "The BroLocks" who didn't miss a beat.  Read more about The Lovelocks here Bio.  
I mentioned from the stage last night that I had heard a whole bunch of facebook hype about these gals and they absolutely lived up to the hype.  With a killer combination of high energy songs, huge stage presence and good looks to boot, they are definitely going to make their way onto music lover's radars very soon.  With the release of the Debut EP on Friday February 13th I can see them jumping into Canadian Country Music stardom.  So I would like to invite you to join them on this journey by coming to their EP Release party on the 13th, buying their new EP and whatever other merchandise they have and help them on their way to greatness.  
The thing that impressed me most about the Lovelocks was their down-to-earth personalities and passion for what they do.  It is obvious to see that they are very grounded and very honoured themselves to be in a place where they can follow their dream of making great music.  Let's help them share their story with audiences around the globe.