Song #3: "Machine"

Our latest and hopefully greatest is here, and we're offering it as a free download to anyone who digs it. 

And we hope you dig it!  :)

Song #2: "Blue Skies"

"Blue Skies" is actually the first song that I ever wrote.  I was the lead guitar player in a band called No Blue Circles in Tempe, Arizona, and it was written in collaboration with Chris Hrubes, the very talented singer/songwriter of that band.  Chris was already an accomplished songwriter from whom I had learned a great deal.  I'd only recently realized that I would never be the fantastic lead guitar player I'd always dreamt of being, and was in the process of discovering that I was much better suited to being a vocalist and songwriter. 

If I remember correctly, I wrote the verses and Chris contributed the choruses.  We used to sing it in two part harmony from beginning to end, and I always felt it was the strongest song in our set, even though it was very simplistic.  (Though I might have been a little biased.)  After that band split up, I rarely played it.

I started to play it again lately in rehearsals for acoustic gigs because I liked its big open acoustic chords and sustained melody.  When Chad and I began work on "Arrows" it seemed like it would be an interesting tune to really flesh out and have some fun with.  After he sent me his first round of tracks, I knew the tune had taken on a new life. 

One of the really interesting things about a long distance collaboration is how the character of a song can change from one round of edits to the next.  Since each person is working in isolation and has complete control of their parts, he can dramatically alter the direction of a tune.  This was very much the case on "Blue Skies".  Every time Chad would send new work, it would inspire new ideas in me, and vice versa.  As a result, blue skies quickly went from being your standard lovelorn break up song to something considerably darker and more textured.

Song #1: "Dry"

"Dry" is a melancholy little number written from the perspective of someone who has chosen to work a dependable 9 to 5 job instead of pursuing their life's passion.  Probably most of us are in this boat at least some of the time, and anyone who ever got the "you can always keep it as a hobby" speech from their parents can relate. 

This song was written as an acoustic piece about five years ago and it's basic structure has remained pretty much the same since then.  I remember performing it at an office talent show just after I'd started a new job at in Nashville, Tennessee.  I think I appreciated the irony a lot more than my new boss did.

It was nice to be able to add more depth and layers as we recorded and produced "Dry".  The song dictated that we keep the arrangement pretty spare and simple, which made it a pleasure to record and mix.  Some of the vocal harmonies weren't arranged until they were actually being recorded, and with the addition of the piano, the tune kind of came into its own.

A video for this song would pretty much make itself.