Tag: Alastor

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10, 11 Jan: Atlanta

10 Jan – Eddie’s Attic (Atlanta, GA)
performing a song with Susi French Connection
11 Jan – Eddie’s Attic (Atlanta, GA)
w/ Eden; Annaray; Alastor

Still sick and a little preoccupied for these shows, I can’t really give a very detailed account. Friday’s show with Susi French Connection was fun, it always is. Not just for the chance to sing on an AM radio hit from the seventies, but just because the shows are fun to watch. The crowd this time was big, Eddie’s was packed. They seemed a little subdued at first but really seemed to warm up as the night progressed, which is good. There’s not much point doing these songs if the crowd doesn’t enjoy it. My song was pretty much in the middle of the set, a rendition of “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” by Elton John. Singing while not having an instrument to hold is always awkward to me. Usually when I get up to do backing vocals for people the whole point to me is to not be the focus, so I slip up to the mic when the part is there and back away when it’s not. Usually my hands are behind my back, I’m just trying not to draw attention to myself. But for these shows I’m doing the lead vocal. Last year I think I sang with my hands in my pocket, so this year I decided to make an effort, even if I felt foolish. So I grabbed the mic seventies rock star style and tried to EMOTE. The crowd seemed to enjoy it.

Saturday was an odd night, I had other things on my mind. Also, it was the first time I’d seen Mickey (drummer for my old band) since the split. I’ve played show with Alastor, the band she’s with now, since then, but they were both acoustic. So it was also the first time I’ve seen Alastor electric in a couple of years. They have really progressed and it was good to see. Mickey also looks happy, the same thing I noticed watching Jeff’s band play last year. We went on last, very late, and played to about 20 people, half of whom were band members from the other bands. But even so, we played a great show. I was very animated, for some reason, but it’s a good thing. Maybe it was just being on a larger stage with the band again. I did the seventies rock star thing during “Fine” and felt good about it. Who knew? Anyway, Mickey came up after the set for the first time and we hugged and gushed about each other’s current abilities. It was a good thing and a good bit of closure, I suppose.

I’ll tell you something else, though… my band? They kick ass. nyah, nyah, nyah.

I’m in a rush to get out the door.

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some of Friday

Friday afternoon I went out to Tree Sound to do some backing vocals for a band I’ve mentioned here before: Alastor. Elizabeth had given me three songs, lyrics and some muddy live versions, to try and see if I could work out anything ahead of time. When I got there I saw Rusty Cobb (who’s worked with Korn, Big Hate, and Injected, at least according to Alastor’s website) who’s producing their new CD. I’ve met Rusty before, I can’t quite recall where, though I think he used to run sound at the club that used to be the Dark Horse. I suspect he was the guy running sound back in 2000 when I played Gentle Readers’ CD release party there, and did it acoustic, and the sound guy was really complementary afterward and I gave him a copy of Slumberland. I suspect this because, according to Elizabeth, when Rusty found out I was coming he started talking about how much he loved my stuff, and when I was there, and they were asking me how I felt about the new CD I finished, he mentioned that he had Slumberland and loved it.

It was a good ego time for Paul.

So, I think the plan was to have me work on one of the three songs (“Good Night”), so I went in and did the parts and I think they went smoothly. Quickly, at any rate. So quickly that, in the end, I did all three songs (“Great Irish Plays” and “Monopoly”). They both seemed pleased with the results, and I told Rusty if he needed any more backing vocals on any project to give me a call. This is really something I love to do, and it seems to be something I can do well. I prefer it when they already have an idea of what they want, because I don’t know that my harmony IDEAS are all that evolved, usually I think I just default to singing thirds (and the funny thing, of course, being that I’ve learned that term over time to describe it, but honestly I don’t have a clue what it means. I know absolutely no musical theory). But when I have time to prepare beforehand I always try to make my ideas make sense with what the band is doing, I don’t try to impose my style or tastes on anyone else’s stuff. I always want to serve whatever the song is doing. I strive to be invisible when I work on other people’s music.

Anyway, it seemed to go well. It’ll be nice to add another CD to my resume.

Friday night I went out to 10 High to see IKE. IKE is John Faye’s new band, he used to be in the Caulfields and also had his own band called the John Faye Power Trip (which I always thought was a good eponymous band name). They’re based out of Philadelphia, and I have had them recommended to me by an online friend from there, as well as a friend in town. So I finally got to see them and they were really great. Very tight pop band and, a rarity at times, a very uncluttered sound. Went up to say hi after the show, and talked briefly… They’re playing the Elvis Costello tribute thing up in Albany in August that I am STILL debating whether I can afford to play, so we talked a little about that whole thing. It was a good night overall. Nicole, who books there, said she thought we’d make a great bill and that’d be cool if it occurs.

I think that’s it.

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12 May: Atlanta

12 May – Eddie’s Attic (Atlanta, GA)
with Alastor, weaklazyliar

The entire show seemed to go off without a hitch, really. Alastor opened with an acoustic set. Actually, it was just Elizabeth and Scott (who used to be in Alastor), but I haven’t seen them play together since last September, so that was actually really good to see again.

Then we went on. I felt really relaxed last night, and I couldn’t even begin to explain why. We rehearsed just before the show, but we’ve done that plenty of times. Maybe it’s the room, because Eddie’s is an odd room to do an electric show in, a small stage, less intimidating, but we’ve done a show there before and I can’t recall feeling that at ease. But whatever the reason, my heart or my shoes, I just felt really good. One thing I have noticed… I have always felt that a good deal of the success I am having with recording and with band shows is having surrounded myself with people who are extremely talented. I know it’s what you’re supposed to do, but when you have my mentality it’s hard to shake the feeling that the credit lies largely with them, since I’m the same guy who shortly beforehand was just playing solo at Borders and feeling very despondent. But lately I have felt a bit more like I am a part of it as well, some sort of sense that my abilities are growing, too.

Of course, one bad acoustic show will crush that right back out of me. 🙂

weaklazyliar played last. I was sitting in back talking with people, and talking about how tight they are. I think I am getting repetitive about them, so I’ll try to just sum up: they really went out on a limb for this record, and I know it was a beast to get it done. But it really is amazing, and the fact that they’re keeping the arrangements for live shows is just great. I know it probably can be daunting at times, playing songs that are sparse and quiet like that in a club, but I think it works, and if I had stumbled on them out of nowhere I would have just been blown away. I sang backup on a couple of songs with them. I keep telling them I’d do it on everything if they’d let me but so far they haven’t taken me up on it.

They seemed to be enjoying themselves, I hope I’m right about that. It was a fun show to watch. After the main set they played some older songs, a couple of them with other people doing the vocals. Elizabeth came up and sang “Rocketpop” and I sang “Secondhand.” Then we all did “American Girl” and drank a lemon drop shot (which, by the way, was really disgusting. I don’t know what’s in it). Then there was an encore song and Elizabeth and I tried to do parts on it even though we weren’t really prepared, I think we did okay, she played some guitar and I tried to find a backing vocal part on the fly.

It occurs to me that the last time the three of us all played together was last September and I remember feeling really great afterwards, and that was even me just playing acoustic. Clearly we should do it more often. For my sake, if nothing else. These are two bands who I want to see succeed, who I think are amazing for so many different reasons.

On a side note, I saw what is pretty much the final design for my CD last night. We went through one design already, which had a lot of things about it that I liked, but some things that didn’t work for me. Then, with the Daemon Records thing happening suddenly, all the plans went into the air, but now that they’ve sort of landed we’re back with more or less the same design specs, so we went back to tweak the last design. They brought it to me last night (they being Lauren and Rama at goodsforyou.com) and I just love the damn thing. It’s right on the nose of the feel I have wanted for the CD since I first started planning it back when recording on Slumberland was wrapping up.

It feels like things are happening. It’s fleeting at times, and still I remain overly cautious, I suppose. But when my negative tendencies are tired or weak, I can almost sense momentum of some kind. But I’m trying not to jinx it.

I forgot to mention one thing… after our set, Michelle Malone came up to say hi. She missed the actual set, I think, but said she had heard a lot of great things about me, and was working with her manager to set up some opening spots, so I guess that may actually come to pass. I am assuming Linda has talked me up to her, which would make one more thing I owe her for.