what is going on in your musical life

Meanwhile, I had an interesting family music discovery, i.e. that the Chicago Museum of History has a whole trove of photographs of my grandmother and her folk duo as well as (!) studio recordings of them. Until a couple weeks ago I had no idea such recordings had been made and had only seen one photo of her duo. More in these posts (the photo in the first link is the only one I had seen before):
https://www.instagram.com/p/CUB2gMzs4ca/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
https://www.instagram.com/p/CUG7W5AsOv7/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
https://www.instagram.com/p/CUH9HTvl33f/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

― longtime caller, first time listener (man alive), Tuesday, September 28, 2021 11:22 AM (three weeks ago) bookmarkflaglink

Update, I got access to the recordings!!!

A little preview here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CVPOE5TjjVY/

More, please.

That’s very rad. Would fit right into the Folkways catalogue.

Love it! Amazing.

Xp I actually have this pipe dream of having it released along with some of the awesome photographs. Not really sure where to start on making that happen.

How many songs are there?

It's a little bit tricky to sort out - the files I got are a handful of varying lengths, each with multiple songs, some seem to repeat and I haven't figured out whether there are multiple takes of the same song or it's just they spliced the same tracks together differently on different tapes (just haven't had time to sit down and figure it out). I think there are at least 9-10 different songs. It sounds like they were planning to release it and I don't know why they never did -- included in the files is a clip from a radio show that their "manager" (also the photographer) DJ'd and in it he says something about how he's going to play a "pre-release tape" of the duo.

Album-length is easier than if it were just a couple of songs, for sure. Rare/unearthed stuff always has some cachet. I would think there’d be labels interested, especially as the music could be accompanied by photos & some good liner notes. The folk revival isn’t exactly the sexiest thing going at the moment, but it’s not the least sexy either.

What you’d want to do is gather the available documentation, then put together a short pitch plus a somewhat longer, more detailed proposal for if the pitch sparks interest.

As well, you’ll want to research which labels might be interested, and rank them by the criteria that matter to you — might be prestige, quality of product & attention to detail, distribution reach, whether they seem like decent folk, or any number of other qualities. Then start door knocking starting with your top choice and working towards the bottom. Many labels have submission guidelines posted on their website — read and obey! If they don’t, you can ask through their general contact. Many probably won’t accept unsolicited submissions, but you might have luck squeaking through anyway if you ask some genuine questions about how to get a proposal considered & have good reasons why the label would be interested (i.e. why the project is a good fit for the label instead of why the label is a good fit for the project). Some will just have a closed-door policy unless you’re going through an agent, although this is less likely to be an issue with reissue/archivally focused labels than with those focusing on active artists.

Honestly, Smithsonian Folkways might be a great fit for this. Their prestige and their commitment to perpetual access to the catalogue make them a very appealing choice by my lights, although the bar to entry might be high. (If you’re considering approaching them, lmk and I’ll see if I can get you a name or 2 on the inside; I know some folks who’re involved with them.) Asch was right there from the beginning to the end of this era & released tons of similar stuff, so it seems to me that this project would only enrich one of the core collections in their catalogue.

As a last resort, you could release it yourself, either physically or just digitally on bandcamp or even SoundCloud, although that’d be a labour of love.

Awesome, that's great advice. I also think Folkways would be the best fit out of the labels I know, especially because it has a historical and civil rights angle (politically conscious integrated duo that sang at MLK rallies and such) and also I think the sound fits and I think they would do it justice with a nice release that includes good prints of the photos and some good liner notes. And I don't know that it quite has the "cool factor" that some reissue labels might want (as you say, folk revival isn't the sexiest thing).

I would happily also release it myself through a kickstarter/bandcamp, I just don't have the time to put in. I don't ever expect this to make any money, but I feel like a decent label could give this the release it deserves.

you might want to look into Dust to Digital too if folkways isn't responsive
not only do they have an awesome instagram account, their thing is releasing old recordings and they make beautiful packages
https://dust-digital.com/

That’s a good idea. Thanks.

man alive, have you thought of adding your voice/playing into the mix with those pieces? Seems like an interesting approach to have a multi-generational recording, maybe their work by itself and a bonus EP of you as a quartet.

also would provide a narrative hook for press and attention that might help get it sold.

(please send me 1% of your royalties when you do this)

I sang a concert with live in-person choruses for the first time this weekend since 2019. Last night was a concert with a group called Musica Sacra where we did the Durufle Requiem, tonight was with my church gig where we did a piece commissioned for our music director’s 20th anniversary. I am exhausted but also super happy; I really, really missed this.

That's awesome! It's hard to go without singing in public for that long, glad you got to do it again

Forks, it's funny you suggest that, because when I was a little kid my grandma made me a recording of her singing along with Sam Hinton, and I used to not understand and think she was on the record.

It would be interesting but it feels like an entirely separate project to me, and not sure it's something I'd feel comfortable releasing. Cool idea though.

What is going on: My beloved band disbanded because the singer and bass player (who are married) moved to Austin. Fortunately we were able to do a couple farewell gigs over the summer.

I don't want to be mister rebound and try to recreate that exact band (though it was good while it lasted). And while I've gone out solo a fair number of times, I don't think I'm a compelling solo act for more than 10 minutes at a time.

No one wants or needs an hour of 80s synthpop covers played on bouzouki, even with a good singer. (And I am not a good singer. Just barely adequate.)

But just recently I have discovered a new role: house drummer! Went out this way a couple times and it more or less worked.

I arranged and recorded a multitracked electric guitar version of an excerpt from a Schubert's sonata for the intro of this Chantal Akerman podcast, co-hosted by a currently inactive ilxor: https://open.spotify.com/show/00BFDrhXhoLMEZI0MEmJdQ?si=kwwGkkd-Tk-ECkNS14nTjA

The complete excerpt that I recorded is available here: https://soundcloud.com/sund4r-subramanian/schubert-piano-sonata-in-bb-d960-excerpt?si=9eaf7e69aad248c98c8efc415000f244

4=a

Neater URL (but 4 still = a)
https://soundcloud.com/sund4r-subramanian/schubert-piano-sonata-in-bb-d960-excerpt

Sund4r, I see a "track not found" when I click the link. Is it a hidden (private) track? You'll need to use "Copy link" from the audio player to get a URL including the key that makes it accessible to others, in that case.

It's not hidden. Are you sure you replaced the "4" in my name with an "a"?

Or is it still not working?

I was able to get to it by searching on your name

good stuff too! cool fx on that lead guitar

i see. pardon my confusion.

Thanks, Moodles!

i think my 4-track died :(

:(

Feeling good about my progress in bluegrass pickin'

https://www.instagram.com/p/CWhZVzmj3HN/

Damn, man alive, that's great! Do you do Soldier's Joy or Devil's Dream?

(That's about as far as I got before getting frustrated and going off to chase some other goal)

Thanks! I did in fact learn and record a clip of solider's joy a couple months back, could probably do it better today.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUOkpjDDVJJ/

Haven't learned Devil's Dream yet but maybe that's a good one to do next. I think I'm up to about 35 fiddle tunes now.

Rock on man alive

Band has rehearsal booked for early December. Not wanting to count my chickens, but … I’m stoked! Haven’t played together since the before times.

Nice

I got replaced in the band I was playing in :( the drummer's lament. i don't want to type out the whole story but the timing was very poor. my dad went into the hospital and 4 days later i got booted. their first show w new drummer is tonight.

i am less bummed about being replaced than i am about being the last to know i had been replaced.

Oh man fuck that >:[

Aw, that sucks, LL.

hey it means i am free to pursue other things, i guess. i have been working with my looper/synth a lot and recorded something i like. it's here https://soundcloud.com/marshmallowy/11-5-21-it-never-stops

i'm sorry, LL. that is really, really crappy. it sounds cowardly on their part, to me. i understand the tendency to be conflict-averse, but the worst part about that is when the conflict ends up getting completely offloaded onto you, at a distance, for you to deal with later, without them having to say anything. it makes me a little fed up, for you. i'm sorry. <3

I agree. But not much I can do about it. I don’t understand how informing me of a personnel change = conflict and something to be avoided. Just tell me!

More than that though, I’m excited about making music by myself that I think sounds cool and is different and interesting. I certainly haven’t heard anything like it bc no one else is me 🤗

hell yeah!

Scoring a short film and mixing a friend’s record. Not exactly the most creatively fulfilling but I’m having a good time.

I made a little live deep house jam with a bunch of hardware synths:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcbpT8Y02OI

Got the masters back from Mr. Saff on Black Friday for my new band's single. Should be starting to show up on streaming sites in the next few days.

Anyone that does any blogging on stoner rock, hard rock etc etc.. drop me a line and I will shoot you the 7 inch cover and the single.

Pretty cool, first thing I have had actually come to completion and be released upon the world since 2017. Already working on a 4 song EP to follow up with that band in Louisville and also practiced for the first time on Tuesday night with a potential band in Lex - so hopefully my personal musical drought is starting to abide.

best of luck to you LL, EvanP, DJI, and earlnash.

me, in the alleged post-vaccine paradise of the summer I played out quite a lot - but may have overextended a bit. I feel like I have more to offer as a sideperson than as a solo act. I pretty much hate my voice right now, so I'm trying to find situations where I can just play drums or mandolin.

The best situation for me appears to be as house drummer, playing with anyone who asks. Overall a pretty good joy-to-effort ratio on that activity.

That’s sounds delightful & super fun — I wish there were a house that needed me!! What kind of place are you serving in this role?

YMP - where do you live?

This is for open mics in Northern Va./DC/MD environs. A lot of venues are not drum-friendly, but some are! (At least, friendly to having someone play quietly and unobtrusively on small compact drums.)

I'd been around this scene for a while as a multi-instrumentalist, and I just approached the hosts / venues to make sure they were okay with it.

As people come up to play, they have the option of having drums (and sometimes bass) behind them. Some don't want support and that's fine, I just chill out and listen and drink.

For those that do want support, it might be anything from ABBA to ZZ Top, plus originals or whatever. I've gotten decently good at just getting a tempo and watching for changes.