rekkids

Hey friends,

I hope you're all rocking out this spring season. Nashville is beautiful right now. While I'm not having the easiest time getting shows around here (don't ask me why - I've been trying), I do have good news on the music front.

As I've been mentioning for a while, my band Friendship Commanders has completed our first set of recordings and we're releasing them as an EP called Amos. The digital release should be in the next month or so, and we're working on making some vinyl happen, as well. If you're into hard, fast, melodic rock, then you'll probably dig what we're doing. Please like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to keep up with our shows and the EP's release.

My other project, which is both long-term and long-distance is finally putting a full-length album out this summer. THEY RULE is something I started with Michael Pereira a few years ago to pay musical homage to the sounds we grew up around in Miami in the eighties. Our first single, "Microphone Love" was released around this time last year, if you want to check it out on our site. The album is called Make-Ups & Break-Ups and should be in your headphones by July. You can also stay in touch with what we're doing via Facebook and Twitter.

Third, I co-produced the debut album for Boey Russell, a kick-ass musician on all fronts. He's having CDs pressed up right now, and you can already check out about half of the songs on his Facebook page, as well as see his first video - which is brilliant, I might add.

And me? I'm doing some stuff on my own, too. It's a bit different than what I've released in the past, and it's only partially cooked, so I'll wait to talk about it. But, I'm having fun, so that's pretty good.

Rock,

buick audra

 

shows and other rad news

Hey friends! 

Many cool musical things are swirling around me right now, so I thought I'd talk about them all in one place.

I have two shows this week in the Nashville area. The first is a full band show at East Nashville's own Family Wash on Thursday, March 7th. Sage + The Saints will start the night off at 9 pm, and then I'll take the stage at 10 alongside Jerry Roe, Todd Lombardo and Adam Gardner. The second show is at the historic Franklin Theatre on Saturday, March 9th. I'm thrilled to be opening for Sara Watkins that night, and can't wait to check out that venue - it looks pretty great from the outside. I'll play right at 8 pm, and will be joined by Jerry Roe, Lex Price and Todd Lombardo for my set. 

My band Friendship Commanders just finished our first EP! Jerry has been mixing it for the past few days, and we signed off on mixes last night. Mastering comes next and then VINYL. Yep. I can't wait for you all to hear it!

If you haven't checked out the demo series that I completed about ten days ago, please do! I spent a year demoing sixy songs from my back catalog and have made them available to stream here on my site.

Lastly, I have a new song out, with a new direction. It's called "Take Care" and it's available for sale now.

I hope to see some of you out this week!

Rock,

buick audra

sixty songs

Friends,

I just finished a project that has taken me more than a year to do. Last winter I set out to organize and catalog some of my songs that didn't have homes on albums past, present or future. They were, for lack of a better term, orphan songs. The bulk of the work was written between 2006 and the 2011, though there was one song from more than ten years ago in there, as well as a few new ones that were written during the project's life. My original plan was to post sixty demos in roughly as many weeks. A few of the recordings (maybe ten) already existed, and they were cleaned up and mixed for this purpose. The rest were done over the last year. They are in three volumes of twenty, complete with lyrics.

The songs were all written, recorded and performed by me in my home. I'm very grateful to Josh Fuson and Sarah Tyson who gave me my beloved SM7 microphone; I used it on every track. I also owe a huge thanks to Gary Paczosa for the use of his Telefunken V76 pre-amp for the duration of the project.

The process had a bigger impact on my life than I expected it to. For starters, it was like climbing into my old diaries and memorizing passages to recite in public. This is not a pile of lost hit songs; it's a collection of confessions, prayers, regrets, amends and admissions. The work also exposes how imperfect both the author and the product are. I had (and contunue to have) a decent amount of fear around showing this less polished and produced side of my musical self. It's hard enough to gain the appreciation and respect of your peers when you're showing your best side, much less your pitchy, off-time, tired and fragile side. But, as much as my strong side is true, so is this - possibly more so. It feels important for me to share it, at least for now.

There are more songs to document, and I'll get to them in time. But, for now, here is my body of work. I stand by it, and I stand by my effort to honor who I have been up to now. It's not easy to look at, but I feel better off for having done so. The songs are no longer orphans; they found a home.

If you'd like to listen, you may do so here.

Rock,

buick audra

take care

Fellow creative person Abigail Pope extended an offer to me recently, to collaborate on a short video that would spread the word about female condoms. She had plans to enter the final product into a competition of sorts, and wondered if I'd be interested in providing the music for her visuals. I accepted.

About ten days later, when I had the time to sit down and commit to the concept, I had to think about what a product like the female condom really means, and for whom. I built the electronic track with no real song map in mind. I added bass and some atmospehric guitar sounds, and then took a stab a some vocals. The lyrics and melodies are the pure ideas I had that day, unedited. I mixed it and sent it off to Abigail.

She shot her footage, edited it accordingly, and here we are. I'm proud to have contributed to this piece of work, the central theme of which is self-care. After all, if we don't take care of ourselves, who will? Enjoy. The song can be purchased and downloaded here.

Rock, 

buick audra

the day-to-day, in print

Hey friends!

I was recently interviewed by Mario Schulzke, founder of the very cool website IdeaMensch.com. It was interesting for me to try to outline what my life is really like, for another person to read. If you'd like to check it out, it's up here. And, the site truly is filled with some fascinating information from all kinds of people who are making it happen for themselves.

Rock,

buick audra