Meet me in trofaiach

We met our friend Lena Koditsch on our first trip to Austria in 2018.  She was just starting to play the guitar, and had her first public performance with us, playing acoustic on a few covers. Going into this latest trip, we knew that we would be spending some time with her, and playing music together, but had no idea what an impact she would have on our 3-week experience. 

During dinner at the Koditsch’s home on our first night, we did a lot of catching up, listened to records, and discussed the very different style of logo that KISS used in German-speaking countries in the 70s. When we finally made our way to the family’s new music room, we realized how serious she had gotten with her musical pursuits. In addition to the acoustic guitars, there were now an assortment of electrics, amplifiers, and harmonicas laying around. She told us that she had learned a few of our songs, including Ed’s solo in Meet Me in the Morning. We invited her to play the song with us at Michi’s Seeschenke, and she pulled off the song and solo expertly. 

For Ed, it was a dreamlike experience to have a solo that he improvised in the studio be played note for note next to him on stage. Lena had also performed the song earlier in the evening with her guitar teacher at her music school. She played the song with us three more times during the tour, and was soon trading improvised guitar lines back and forth with Ed during the extended ending. 

For Lena’s final performance with us, we added Nymeria to the list with her playing the harmonica and harmonizing with Ed on the solo. It was the first time Kelsey had performed the song without the rack around her neck, and it felt like she was getting to hear the song from the audience’s perspective. 

Getting to hear pieces of our music performed by someone outside the band is new to us. It’s a unique feeling to hear our parts when we aren’t the ones playing them. It is an honor to have someone take the time to learn the things that we’ve written, and on top of that, to play them so perfectly. Lena added so much to our performances that it was sad to leave her behind, but we are already doing some long distance planning to prepare for next year. 

Photo by Savannah Butler.

Photo by Andy Marx.

Time Travel Tour of Austria 2019

The German word “Zeitreise” means “Time Travel.” Our 2018 trip to Austria inspired our song with the same title because we were often going back in time, thinking about our experiences. After returning home on Monday, we can say that this was a perfect name for our 2019 trip. It felt like we were able to travel right back to where we left off with all of our friends who we’d met in 2018. Now that we’re home, we wouldn’t mind going back in time to see all of these beautiful people again.

One of our main takeaways from this trip was the way our music was received. We were able to connect with audiences through our songs, some of which, they’d never heard before. Feeling their reaction to the music allowed us to effortlessly reciprocate that energy. Each show we played was unique in style, and each contained its own amazing scenery.

We again had the pleasure of sharing our music with the 3D Class at Altes Gymnasium Leoben, and were happy to hear the students share some of their own musical experiences. We attended our first Stammtisch thanks to an invitation from our friends Robert and Lena Koditsch, and got to connect with a great group of people who share our same enthusiasm for music.

In addition to the privilege of playing these shows, we are so lucky to have a group of friends who are always eager to show off different aspects of their beautiful country. This year’s trip included sight seeing in Gmunden, Hallstatt, Salzburg, Graz, and Leopoldsteinersee.  We went whitewater rafting for the first time with expert tour guides Mario Aigner and Gerhard Wendler, and we continued last year’s hiking trend with our friend Nico Aschauer leading the way.  For the Austrians, these were small things. For the Americans, this lead to a lot of napping in the back yard.

Each of our friends welcomed us into their homes and made us feel like a part of their family, and each audience embraced us and our music in the same way.

Savannah Butler and Sonja Hochfellner did a wonderful job at capturing a lot of these moments in their photographs, and our new friend Francesco Picasso helped tremendously with promotions.  

We must say a special Thank You to our Austrian manager, Anna-Denise Aigner-de Oliveria, who worked tirelessly putting together all of the shows and travel logistics. Without her, none of this would be possible.

Lots of music, lots of beer, lots of goulash, and a ton of pure beauty all the way around. We are grateful for our Austrian community of friends and family, and we aren’t done talking about any of this just yet.  We’re looking forward to sharing more stories with you, and are full of new ideas that you’ll hear this summer in new music.

Photo by Savannah Butler. 

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

Return to Altes Gymnasium Leoben

We were invited back to Altes Gymnasium Leoben this year to talk about music with the 3D class. Our visit there last year was one of the main topics of conversation when we got home because it was such a unique experience, so we were happy to be invited back and see the difference that one year made for the students.

First, the students are speaking more English this year, so we were able to have a more involved question and answer sessions. We talked a lot about the background of the band, what we have been doing over the last year, and what we do outside of playing music. This was a good conversation with some very respectful and receptive young people.

We also played a few songs, so it felt like an unplugged mini-concert out in the courtyard. One of our favorite moments was when we got a special request for Tea With Me.

We learned that about half of the students are musicians, and a couple of them even write their own music, which we were very happy to hear. This whole experience reminded us of the importance of art and music. We play music every day, so sometimes we get so immersed in it, that we don’t take a step back and realize the impact it has on both the player and the listener. To have a group of young people from another country, who are essentially strangers to us, and who don’t speak English as their first language, take an interest in our songs and our history is something so special for us. It took us out of our routine of “write, record, perform,” and allowed us to connect with a unique audience.

Photo by Savannah Butler. 

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

Our First Week in Austria

We have been in Austria for one week now, and have been having some truly great experiences. We’ve been welcomed here by all of the friends we made last year, and we’ve been making great new friends as well. We’ve played three gigs, each very different from the others, and each very fulfilling for us. Aside from our gigs, we’ve been catching up with our friends over coffee, beer, and lots of food, we have been soaking up all of the scenery around us by hiking, and we got a further education in music by visiting the Mozart Museums in Salzburg.

Possibly our favorite moment so far has been the Stammtisch in Trofaiach on Tuesday night. This word is used to describe a regularly scheduled, casual get together, usually around a round table. We don’t have an equivalent to this word in English, and we can say that we haven’t had an experience like this at home either. On Tuesday nights, the group gets together with acoustic guitars and binders full of songs to sing and play together. We played a combination of well know pop songs and traditional Austrian songs that we’ve never heard before. One of the main purposes of music is to make a connection with others, and that is exactly what happened with everybody sitting around the table. We were all connected and on the same wavelength, just being able to relax, blend, and play music together.

Another highlight of the night was hearing our friend, Lena, play the guitar and harmonica. We met Lena last year as she was beginning to learn the guitar. One year later, she has really advanced her skills, and is on her way to becoming a very well rounded musician who is able to adapt to different musical situations and different players. She sat in at a couple of our gigs, and played very well, but it wasn’t until the acoustic guitar circle that we were able to hear some of the details of what she was playing on the guitar. It’s exciting to see her dedication to the art and to watch her grow as a musician.

Music is universal, and is meant to be shared.

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

 Photo by Savannah Butler.

Made in Mexico

Playing shows in Austria this year with our full, electric configuration of the band means that we need to take a bass guitar and a six string that is versatile enough to play a wide range of material. Insuring instruments is easy enough, but insurance doesn’t prevent an airplane from backing over a guitar case that’s made its way onto the runway. We needed great sounding instruments, but didn’t want to take guitars that we’ve been playing for years, and to which we have a deep emotional connection. After we upgraded tuners and put in some Seymour Duncan pickups, we found that these Made in Mexico Fender guitars play and sound as great as their American made counterparts. These guitars were intended only for traveling, but Kelsey has already recorded two new songs with her MIM bass, and both instruments have felt great at rehearsals. These will quickly be added to the list of instruments that we’d like to keep out from under the wheels of an airplane.

Tapestry Music Podcast

A couple weeks ago, we did our first podcast with our new friend and skilled host, Kelly Philips, for her show Tapestry Music Podcast. We got to discuss different aspects of our own music and some of our influences, as well as some of the work we do outside of writing and performing.

Good conversations about music could go on endlessly. Unfortunately, we only had a short amount of time to talk about what all these different aspects of music mean to us, but it was uplifting to be engaged in conversation with a fellow music lover and player like Kelly.

Listen to our conversation here:  

https://m.soundcloud.com/tapestrymusicpodcast/episode-12-shiva-skydriver 

Let Go Of All You Know

Our latest album, Let Go Of All You Know, was released on December, 21 st 2018. The album was recorded between August and November of last year in our studio, and features new drummer, Luke Zajdel. Many times, when starting work on a new album, it is normal to bring back songs that were left over from previous projects. Good songs can get put aside because they don’t fit in with the group you are putting together. However, we began writing these songs immediately after the release of our first album in 2015, so it contains entirely new songs with no musical or lyrical ideas that were left over from the previous project.

We took a more open-ended approach this time, and didn’t try to edit things down to 3 and 4 minutes. As a result, we ended up with a collection of songs that stretch out and go to different places than we have gone in the past. This album is representative of each of us as individuals, and how we all fit together to create something bigger. Hopefully, “Let Go Of All You Know” means something different to each listener, but for us, it represents being open to new ideas, letting go of old superstitions, and taking on each new experience as it’s presented.

We dug deeper, both musically and lyrically, to create songs that will hopefully take the listener on a different journey with each track. We certainly had that experience while writing, and especially still have that experience while performing these songs. We’re excited for all of you to go on this ride with us.

Album artwork by Alex Hess / alexhessofficial.com

Music Therapy

In January, we got to help facilitate a music therapy session with a group of students from Connellsville Area High School.  We joined our friend, Dr. Krista Boyer, in a discussion about the positive benefits music can have on mental health.  It was a great feeling for us to have these students all playing together in a percussion circle, and to see them really lose themselves in the music and watch aspects of their personalities open up.

We experience music from two sides, as the writers/performers and as the listeners. Listening to and playing music are a release for us, and its very rewarding to see this release happen in someone who is picking up an instrument for the very first time.  We can feel it in a room when we’re performing, everyone riding on the same energy and sharing in a positive experience.

So much of what we do is within the context of writing, recording, and performing, so it felt great to play music without any expectations, and blend in as participants of the percussion circle.

This presentation was recorded in the CAHS TV studio, along with an interview with student anchor, Ryan Craig.  Video of the session will be posted here soon.