2008 news

3/15/08
Diamond Dates & Firenews (Pt. II - The Details)

The new album, Diamond Days & Firenights, will be released on 11/11 with release shows on 11/14 and 11/15 (all ages and 21+, respectively). AND I'LL HAVE A BAND! The album's gonna be a little more rock-oriented, so I wanted to flesh things out more live. Diamond Days will consist of 22 tracks on two discs, and will have somewhat of a concept to it.

The first disc, The Snowglobe, tells stories through a very idealistic and romanticized view of the world (following the old adage that the world is like a snowglobe when we're young; everything is beautiful and pure and protected, and anything is possible). Even the lyrically-darker songs are so exaggerated that they almost sound like ghost stories told to those nestled warm in their beds, far away from harm. The disc ends by showing that the protagonist, if there is just one, has learned that the world can be quite cruel, and just about gives up on it.

Disc two, The Breakout, is just that. In order to truly experience life, we must break free of our shells and do things that we are afraid to do. The characters in the songs (myself included) have a more realistic sense of how the world works, and the lyrics are much more personal. The Breakout is told in a similar fashion to The Snowglobe, but with higher ups and much lower downs.

Pretentious, maybe. But four-part songs, Parisian waltzes, and kazoo breakdowns aside, Diamond Days & Firenights is about living life, for better or for worse. My own carpe diem, if you will. I've never undertaken a project like this before and I'm ecstatic about the way it's turning out so far.

Some of the songs from the 3/12 show at Birdy's will also be released on a live EP called Diamond Dust & Fireflies. I'll be giving this CD away for free (along with some other goodies) at the release shows!

10/13/08
Diamond Dates & Firenews (Pt. III - The Shows)
The DDFN release shows have been announced! Head over to the shows section for all the deets. In preparation for the greatest performances ever to happen on those certain dates at those certain places, I'm going to have a few 4-song samplers available at the usual local record stores in the next couple of weeks. Also, closer to 11/11, I'll premiere the entire album online, and finally, the site's gonna be redecorated a tad to fit the DDFN theme.

Oh! And I finally got the tattoos I've been wanting since I started writing this album three years ago: Pic 1 | Pic 2

10/28/08
Grace Note
I've been chosen to perform at Chicago's 11th annual Jeff Buckley tribute festival (there's that serendipitous number again)! Needles to say, I'm powerstoked. Read more about the shows here!

11/11/08
Diamond Dates & Firenews (Pt. IV - The Release)
New album out today or something. Release shows this weekend. Whatevs.