THE START OF OUR YEAR.
It’s 10 PM on a Friday as I write this and I am in my pajamas at my dining room table in Philly, and honestly, that seems to be representative of my life now.
I hate that that sounds depressing because trust me I don’t feel down about it, but I meant more than anything that I spend a lot of time putting hours into the band, currently. It’s April 1st and I have a lot to catch you up on with the band. I thought that I would use these blog posts as a way to tell you about our story from our eyes. I was going to do monthly recaps only, but I am thinking that I can try to sprinkle in some more details on a random basis so that you can hear more of our story.
So back to it being 10 PM on a Friday night. I’ve been forced to step back and reevaluate certain areas of my life. For one, as a musician, I can’t drink like I did in college… which in turn also means I can’t party as much. I get sick, stuffed up, and really tired. Honestly, I showed up at the studio after a night of drinking recently and it was one of the worst experiences ever. I couldn’t stop coughing and I was so stuffed that I was slightly embarrassed for showing up in that regard. I’m normally pretty strict on myself and won’t drink 2 weeks before a show or surrounding studio time. That was a good reminder of why I have those rules for myself.
Being in a band is probably one of the most fun things I have ever done. Back when I started singing professionally in 2015/2016, I didn’t really know if this was a career that I had wanted. I knew the road to success was long and hard. The hustle to get there was going to be just about endless. Oh, and the chances of getting to be “famous” (or really just able to do this for a living), are so slim that I should have quit years ago. But there is a fire in me. There is a fire in this group… that has led us to this moment.
So what the hell have we been doing the last 3 months?
In January we prepped for our biggest show ever at Kung Fu Necktie. This gig was something I had been looking forward to for what felt like ages. Ever since I can remember knowing what the Philly music scene was, this had been at the top of my list of venues to play at. Did I basically beg for this show? absolutely. Did it work out exactly as I had manifested it to? absolutely. We sold out the show. I have never sold out a show in my life (now that could be because we really haven’t been playing THAT LONG together but still…).
We also stepped back into the studio in January, this time with Brian McTear at Miner Street Studios (War On Drugs, Dr. Dog). When we decided to ask Brian to work with us, I didn’t know what to expect. For the longest time, I felt like I had been used in the industry, just a pawn for what someone else wanted. When I took the hiatus, I was only coming back if things were going to be done in a truly collaborative spirit. When we worked with Todd Mecaughey we did JUST THAT. Todd made our opinions matter, he heard what we had to say… and we produced an incredible EP because of this partnership thanks to him. As we stepped into the next era of our sound, we wanted to continue this with Brian McTear in the hopes we would continue to expand our sound. AND DAMN… WE HAVE.
It’s funny because you guys have yet to hear any of these tunes recorded. We have sneaked a few in during our live sets, but have not told you too much about that except a TAD on Instagram. I am itching to show you guys these songs and if you are reading this you get a sneak peek: we will have some exciting things coming for you this June! (AKA music)
So what is this new sound?
I don’t want to give anything away, but it is a developed sound beyond compare. It is something that makes me want to dance, sing, and shout from the mountain tops. The guys have been working so hard with me to write tunes that you all will enjoy. You will feel things like you have never felt before. One. of the things we have been trying out is writing in a different way - starting with just words that I configure into a poem. There is not a real melody at that point. After that, bring them to Joe who is the curator of all things riffs, song structure, etc. Combining these two together has created some of my favorite tunes by us, including a soon-to-be-released 15th Street.
We also released a 2-part music video!
Yes, two parts. It was absolutely brilliant. Thanks to our incredible team put together by Will Martinko of That’s Fantastic Films, we were able to create a video for both Cry and All The Things I Could Do that blew our expectations of the water. These two videos were created together to bring you a new look into our minds… the crazy brilliance that comes from a song. There is so much more than the tune - there is a whole STORY that is concocted when we write a song. It is what helps us create our live show, visuals, photoshoots, and more.
So while that isn’t EVERYTHING we have been up to this year thus far, it is a bit of it! I hope that this gives you some perspective on our year thus far and gets you excited for the future.
Talk soon!! XX
Gina Zo