We celebrated with a successful performance at the Satellite in Silverlake! Thank you to all who were able to attend. If you missed it, I have a couple more performances coming up that I would like to make you aware of.
First, if you are a local Santa Clarita Valley resident, you can catch me at the LA SummerFEST Singer/Songwriter concert at Rivendale, which is a cool outdoor venue in the mouth of Towsley Canyon. The address is: 24675 The Old Road Santa Clarita, CA. The performance is Saturday, August 13th, and it's FREE!!!! More info here: http://www.lasummerfest.org/singersongwriter.html
For my LA friends, I will be performing at the Silverlake Lounge on August 26th. This concert is put on by Afton Shows. It's my first time booking with them, and the way that it works is, the earlier you buy your tickets, the less you have to pay. For example, if you wait until the day of the show to buy your ticket at the door, you pay $14. Presale tickets are only $11. But if you buy your ticket before July 27th with this Promo Code: BRITTNEY245, you can get your tickets for just $9! Click on the following link to buy your ticket today: www.aftonshows.com/brittneywestover
If you haven't scored yourself a copy of my EP yet, you can even add it to your cart as you are paying for your ticket to my show at the Silverlake Lounge! How convenient! I will also have hard copies of the cd available for purchase at all my live shows.
If you can't make it to either of these performances, but you can't wait to buy the EP, you can purchase it here: www.brittneywestover.bandcamp.com (or your favorite digital music store; it's available pretty much everywhere now!)
Thank you all so much for listening to my music! I really appreciate your support! Keep it coming! If you like my music, tell a friend! Like my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/brittneywestoverartist
I have a couple of new developments I'm super excited to share with you! First, I got a bit of press sharing my experience working as a backup singer in a great article written by Suzanne Raga of mentalfloss.com:
But my BIG announcement is that I finally have a release date for my first original Solo EP, "The Reward!" I will be celebrating with a Record Release Show on Tuesday, July 12th, at the Satellite! MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!
And if you haven't done so already, claim your FREE "Reward" by watching my music video for my current single and clicking the "Free Download" Button at the end! YOU DESERVE IT!
Thanks for keeping up with me, friends! I can't wait to see you on July 12th!
IT'S GOING TO BE THE GREATEST NIGHT OF MY LIFE THUS FAR, AND I'M ECSTATIC TO SHARE IT WITH YOU!!!!
Love & Grace,
Brittney
Saturday, May 21, 2016
Hi Folks!
Just a little update for you. My Spring Break Tour was absolutely magnificent. Here are a couple of pics from my show at Pies & Pints in Seattle, WA, with my dear friends, Helen Chance and Jef Shocki!
Lots has happened in the last month...my album was officially MASTERED by Will Borza of Double Hook Records. It sounds warm and supple and ready to envelop you in its intimate sensuality. Actually, my words don't do it justice, so I'll let my good friend, Rian Souleles give you his take on it:
"Many songs that we love might feel familiar to us when we first hear them, but in fact are original. This musical déjà vu builds an immediate trust of the artist's voice, and allows us to relate to universal musical qualities. This is obvious when reading the comments section of unofficial YouTube videos for many American popular songs of the last 75 years—as I do frequently amid late night Internet rabbit hole sessions. As you read these threads, it's clear people relate to these nostalgic sentiments and use them as time machines for their own lives.
Brittney Westover has spent her entire life absorbing songs and the musical signifiers that make up the lingua franca of vintage popular music. It's been her environment from the beginning, and through this absorption, she has developed an intuitive understanding of how songs are constructed and operate. Brittney is able to use this mastery to create universal pop songs. Unlike the vast majority of music generated today, her songs are memorable, way after they end and the next song begins. These songs manifest ear worms that swim into your nervous system, building homes in the mind's ear.
All of the songs on "The Reward" refer to love and romance. Love's ultimate relatable nature is the de facto theme of most classic popular songs. Like many great love songs, Brittney's lyrics eschew the abstract, and instead are direct, conveying intimacy, in conversational third person, towards a lover, or an ex, in the case of the opening song, "The Reward," which more specifically refers to love's antithesis, heartbreak, and the disillusionment it creates following a relationship ghosting. "The Reward" features doo-wop girl group vocals, spring reverb, Enchantment Under The Sea—prom guitar stabs on the two and four, and a carousel piano line.
According to the timeframe, in the next track, "To Give You My Love," the previous heartbreak is mended and transcended by true love, and is commemorated with a surprise cameo duet with her beloved. The song highlights the importance of intent in the game of love, that's acknowledged in the following song, "Make Things Grow." There, Brittney explores the loving symbiosis that was absent with the ghost player in "The Reward."
The contentment established in the previous songs create a bed for the pure gospel song, "Safe With Me," to bundle up in. The song conveys tenderness without being twee or saccharine. With its four blue chords and church organ gargles, it soothes and consoles with an earnest authenticity. It's as affective as J. Spaceman's pure gospel explorations on Spiritualized albums. I've heard a rumor that the song was written for Brittney's dog, which changes the initial connotation slightly, but not really, and carries on a long tradition of songwriters penning loosely coded love songs for their pets.
The last two songs, "Dream Come True" and "Don't Doubt," highlight Brit's modern influences. Listening to the intro to this waltz, I immediately thought of Kate Bush and Tori Amos, though the climax of the song is all Brittney, allowing her to exercise her inner diva, with Mariah whistle tones in Brit's upper register. The string arrangement on the last track aches, swells, and descends reminiscent of Sigur Rós and Radiohead. The strings are drenched with just the right amount of reverb to induce shivers. There's universality in Brittney's love songs, and someday, I'm pretty sure the comments section of Brittney's future YouTube videos will be festooned with their own nostalgia."
So now all that's left to do is find a venue for my Record Release Party this summer! I have put a few calls out and I am waiting to hear back from a few places in LA. I promise I will let you all know when I decide where it will be.
In the meantime, Mike and I are going to check out a potential wedding venue today. It's a lighthouse on an ocean bluff! Check it out: https://sanluislighthouse.org It looks absolutely gorgeous. Hopefully they have some dates available for next summer. We'll let you know if it works out for us.
After that, we will be returning to LA to play a show in Valley Village! It's at a church, but it's BYOB, which is pretty cool! Thanks to Dylan Vaughn for making this sweet flyer!
The address is Faith Presbyterian Church 5000 Colfax Ave Valley Village, CA 91601. Thanks to my friend and colleague, Kevin Story, for booking it!The show starts at 7:30. We hope to see some familiar faces there! Til next time, take care of yourselves, and each other.
I'm updating this blog from the beautiful Bay city of San Francisco, CA! This is my first stop on my mini Pacific Northwest Tour/Spring Break Road Trip! I have a week off from work, and Mike has some vacation time saved up, so we decided to take this opportunity to visit friends and family up the coast and play some music along the way. Our first stop is the Open Mic Night at Hotel Utah:
I've heard great things about this place from my cousin, Devan. She and her boyfriend, Brian are generously allowing us to crash with them at their luxurious 1905 San Francisco pad, which is just steps away from Haight & Ashbury and Golden Gate Park! I'm excited to get out there in the sunshine and soak in the cool bay breeze!
Tomorrow morning, we will be driving straight to Portland, to stay with my cousin, Gilian, and her wife, Bernice, for a day or two. No shows booked there yet, but I have my keyboard and equipment just in case something pops up!
Thursday, we will arrive in Seattle, where we will be among many close friends and family members. My dear friend, Helen Chance has lined up a show for us to play together, along with our friend, Jef Shocki, at a joint called "Pies N' Pints." My good buddy, DJ Rian Souleles will be spinning all the jams between sets. This is the Seattle collaboration I've been dreaming of for years now, and I'm so excited it's finally coming to fruition! The beautiful and talented singer & composer, Miss Kaley Lane Eaton, is putting Mike & I up in her apartment for a couple of days, and we are so grateful for her hospitality. Take note of these names...all of my Seattle friends are uniquely talented musicians and songwriters who deserve a ton of recognition. We are hoping to spend time with Mike's sister, Jennifer, her husband, Richard, and our nephew, the adorable Philip, while in town, as well. We are blessed to know so many great people in this gorgeous region of the Pacific northwest.
On the way back, we plan to stop and see some friends in Sacramento. We will be staying with my dear friend, Ernestine Ballisi, and will hopefully run into our friends, the O'Sheas (Cara & Jimmy, with kids James, Graeson, & Delilah). We haven't seen this beautiful family in at least 5 years, and it will be our first time meeting little Delilah.
We will be sure to post updates and pictures along the way, but first, take a look at my BRAND NEW MUSIC VIDEO for my single, "The Reward!!!" Watch it all the way through for a chance to get a free download of the song! Feel free to share, because we all know that sharing is caring! So spread the word about my new EP, titled, "The Reward," coming May 1st! Stay tuned for news on how to pre-order your copy! And now, enjoy "The Reward" (the music video)!
As summer draws near to a close, I am proud of the accomplishments I have made. I finished recording all the tracks on my upcoming EP, and had my single professionally mastered by my friend, Will Borza of Sony. Have a listen!
The single will soon be accompanied by a music video that I directed, which was shot by my brother, Dustin Westover, starring myself and the devastatingly handsome and talented, Mike Escamillo. Be on the lookout for "The Reward" music video in the month of September!
My show at the Rep in Newhall on July 30th was a great success, largely due to my talented bandmates: Mike Escamillo on keyboard, Jesse Fletcher on guitar, Chris Wakelin on drums, Blake Collins on bass, and my lovely friends Jillinda Palmer and Stormie Cueto singing backup vocals. I was so excited and thankful to see so many beautiful, smiling faces show up to watch my show and hear my music. Thanks again to everyone who made it out to downtown Newhall that night. Live video recordings are still to come, but for now, here are a few photos, taken by people in the audience that night:
Here is the beautiful flyer for the show, created by my good friend, the talented artist, photographer, and graphic designer, Kay Kelman (nakedcanvasart.com):
Yes, the summer is ending, and a brand new and exciting year of teaching high school music is upon me, but my work here has just begun. As the music video wraps and the album is being mixed and mastered, I am planning my official Brittney Westover "Anything is Possible" EP Release Party! I'm still deciding on a date and venue, but I promise to update you as soon as it is decided! In the meantime, come see me and Mike perform at a Tribute to TV Theme Songs Night at the Satellite in Silverlake this coming Tuesday, August 18th! We will be performing classic cartoon and drama theme songs from the 80s, 90s, and today! Don't miss it! The fun begins at 8:30pm.
Enjoy what's left of the summer! I'll be at an SCVi Staff Retreat in Big Bear this weekend, hopefully escaping the brutal end of summer LA heatwave! Stay cool, my friends!
Love & Grace,
Brittney
(Here's a pic of me & my love in Washington state at the beginning of summer. Cheers!)
I realize it's been quite awhile since I last posted....there is a reason for that! One year ago, I graduated from Longy School of Music of Bard College, earning my Master of Arts in Teaching degree and Single Subject Teaching Credential in Music. Around the same time, I got hired as a full-time Music teacher at SCVi Charter School in Castaic and moved from Pasadena back to Canyon Country to be closer to my new job. Building a brand new high school Music Program proved to be a very demanding and time-consuming endeavor. From August 'til June, I poured every ounce of creative energy and every spare second into my job as a music educator. I'm very proud of the many accomplishments and learning experiences I garnered throughout the school year, but now that it's summer and I've got a little extra time on my hands, it's time to get back to creating my own music.
I'm very happy to announce that I am 3/4 of the way through the recording process of my very first EP as a solo artist. The 6-song record, tentatively titled, "Anything is Possible," was recorded, mixed, and mastered by my true love, Mike Escamillo, and produced by Mike and yours truly. I would venture to say that the songs are a good representation of my many diverse influences and eclectic experiences as both a musician and a scholar of music. One song is an obvious 60s girl group doo-wop throwback, while another is more of a country gospel lullaby. Several songs don't really quite fit into a clearly-marked genre box, and that's what I like about them. It may be hard to define me as an artist, but I revel in the complexity and take pride in the fact that I come from a diverse musical background and have an appreciation of music of all styles and eras. Three of my songs feature lush background vocal harmonies and three feature stunning string quartet arrangements. The recording process has been quite unconventional, as well, and features a little help from several good friends of mine, including Brian McLaughlin on drums, Dave "Mustang" Lang on upright bass, Blake Collins on electric bass, and Jake Gideon on guitar.
The album will be finished by the end of July, and I will be having a record release party in Los Angeles in August (date & venue TBD). For my local Santa Clarita friends and family, I will be having a sneak preview performance on Thursday, July 30th, at the Repertory East Playhouse (aka "the Rep"; 24266 Main St., Newhall, CA 91321) at 8pm.
I just wrapped a photo session for album art with my good friend, Karla Kelman, and will be starting production on a music video for my single, "The Reward," with the aid of my talented brother, Dustin Westover, next week. Stay tuned for these and other promotional materials, as well as info on how to get a free digital download code when the album comes out!
Thanks again for keeping up with me. I can't wait to share my music with you! Here is a little sample:
Now imagine this song with a full band and a string quartet! I hope you like it!
It just occurred to me that I haven't updated my blog in awhile. As a matter of fact, my last entry was in February, and a lot has changed since then.
The Damselles & the TC4 finally released our much anticipated, first full length LP on August 6th, 2013, entitled, "Know How to Party." You can buy the digital album or a limited edition cd here: http://thedamselles.bandcamp.com
Here is our awesome album cover art, photography & design by the great Sterling Andrews:
The release of the Richie West Band's first album, Last Two-Step in Texas, has been delayed due to lack of funds. It's 90% done being mixed, but we are still trying to save up for the mastering process. As most of you know, we started a kickstarter campaign in 2011 so that we could bring the band and a film crew back to my family reunion in Childress, Texas, to play my dad's songs for his relatives and visit his grave. I am very grateful to those who donated to our trip, and I am determined to fulfill your rewards, even if it takes me the rest of my life.
For those of you who are unaware of the Richie West Band, it is a country band I put together in order to honor the songs written by my late father. Here is a link to our kickstarter page, where you can find out more about the back story: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1259019086/last-two-step-in-texas
It's really important to me to get my dad's music into the world.
If you or anyone you know is interested in donating to the completion of this monumental tribute album to the songwriting talents of my father, the late Richard E. Westover, or Richie West, I am accepting donations of any size through Paypal. You may find me by my email address, which is brittneywestover@gmail.com.
In the meantime, while we are finishing up mixing the album and saving the funds for mastering, the Richie West Band has been performing every month in John Ennis's Country Western Show at the Trepany House! Here is a video from our show on June 6th, 2013:
It just so happens that we are having another show tomorrow, November 3rd, at 8pm! Here is the flyer for that show. We sincerely hope you can make it! If not, we host John Ennis's Country Western show the first Sunday of every month, so please join us on December 1st for our Country Christmas Show!
Last month was a very special time for me. I celebrated the turn of my third decade here on Planet Earth, and I had a show to celebrate. Here is a video clip of me performing a song I wrote called, "To Give You My Love," at my 30th birthday show at the Trepany House (courtesy of my nephew, E-Stro):
I also started a new Master's program this summer. Some of you know that I had started Boston University's Online Distance Program last year to try and earn my Master's degree in Music Education. Well, I wasn't exactly getting what I needed out of the program, so I quit that one and joined a different program in July, 2013. I am very proud to be a part of Longy School of Music of Bard College's MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching) and Teacher Credentialing Program. I am a member of the second cohort of students to join this very new program, but I have to say that I am extremely excited and privileged to be a part of it. Our campus is at the Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA) in the Rampart district, and since our school has a partnership with the LA Phil, we get to mentor and teach the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA). YOLA at HOLA is an El Sistema nucleo. El Sistema is a program created in Venezuela by Dr. Jose Antonio Abreu to stimulate social change through music. LA Phil conductor, Gustavo Dudamel, went through this program, and now endorses YOLA at HOLA. Here is more info about Longy/Bard's MAT program:
I feel really fortunate to be associated with the MAT students in my cohort. They are all amazingly talented and compassionate individuals who are excellent musicians and very competent and dedicated teachers. We are currently rehearsing for an MAT Chamber Orchestra concert together, for which I wrote an arrangement of the Italian aria, "O Mio Babbino Caro," from the opera, Gianni Schicchi, by Giacomo Puccini. Here is a recording of me singing my arrangement of the aria with the MAT orchestra:
And that should bring us up to date with what has been going on in my life in the last 9 months since I updated this thing! One new development in my personal life: Mike and I adopted a new dog last month. We found him roaming the streets of Pasadena with no tags, no collar, and no microchip. When no one responded to our Found Dog flyers, we brought him to the Pasadena Humane society, who put him in their online database. After a week of no one coming forth, we legally adopted him and named him Buster. Luckily, Buster gets along really well with our other 2 dogs, Pepper and Marley. We are very happy to welcome him into the Wescamillo clan!
Thanks for keeping up with me, people! I hope you enjoy some of the media I have provided! If you like anything you have heard or watched, please feel free to drop me a line! I always love to hear your input. I hope to see you at tomorrow night's Country Western show! Message me to get the password for 2 for 1 tickets!
Until next time, be good to each other, and yourselves.
We survived the dreaded Mayan apocalypse of 2012! That means 2013 will be extra lucky, with oodles of rewards for everyone! I am anticipating success, thriving, and pure abundance from every direction! It might not feel that way quite yet, but the groundhog predicted an early spring this year, and I think that's a good sign of what's to come. We better be ready to accept all the good that's coming our way. ARE YOU READY?!?!
Here is what you have to look forward to in 2013:
The Damselles & the TC4 will be releasing our highly anticipated first full-length album, "Know How to Party," chock full of original songs, late Spring. Love songs, dance songs, the-boy-done-me-wrong songs, the Damselles have a little something for everyone, and we know how to keep a party fueled with pink-hot GIRL POWER! Check out our latest music video for the funky single, "Man Like You":
The Richie West Band will also be releasing our first full-length record of my Dad's best country songs. The album, "Last Two-Step in Texas," is due out late April, and the documentary about the making of the album will be done by the end of the year, so keep your ear to the ground! Here is one of our latest mixes:
Yours Truly has reconsidered the notion of releasing an EP, and has decided to be a little more ambitious and release a full-length record this fall. This shall be the crowning achievement of my solo career thus far, so I'm hoping to have a huge birthday bash to celebrate my music and the event of turning 30 in October. Keep your eyes peeled for your invitation. Here is a single from the album to chew on 'til then:
So, these are just a few of the things that are keeping me busy this year. I also started a Graduate Degree Program last year, and am currently pursuing my Master's Degree in Music Education through Boston University's Online Distance Education Program. If all goes as planned, I should have my degree by September 2014.
Many of you know that I teach voice, piano, and musical theatre for a living, and I'm always looking for extra teaching opportunities, so if you know of any, holla at me! I'm going to be recording a series of Vocal Warm-Up cd's for Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced students soon, so let me know if that's something you might be interested in purchasing, and I will give you a special discount! In the meantime, I'm happy to share the first vocal warm-up cd I recorded back in 2006 with you FOR FREE! Just give me your email and I will put it in a dropbox folder for you. I would love to hear your feedback on that cd so I can gather ideas and suggestions for my next series of warm-up cd's. Here is a sample from my first warm-up cd:
Like I said, you have many rewards to look forward to! Get ready to reap them all, and be rich with happiness and abundance.
Be well, my friends. Have fun and enjoy yourself! The world is our discotheque! Let's dance!
Hey there, folks! I hope you all had a great summer and are enjoying your Labor Day Weekend. It's almost time to leave the lazy, lethargic, heat-stroke-victim feelings of summer behind, and get back into the swing of things as fall approaches. I, for one, am looking forward to cooler days, and being more productive. And Pumpkin Spice Lattes!!
This fall is going to be a very busy time in my life. I'm going back to school on Tuesday! Hooray for me! I'm beginning an online Master's of Music Education program through Boston University. I'm sure that will keep me busy. Here are the classes I have to complete: BU Master's of Music Ed Curriculum
The Richie West Band is almost finished recording our first LP, as well, due out in January 2013. I'd like to share a very rough mix of one of our favorite Richie West Songs. "Aching" rough mix- The Richie West Band
I've also been busy recording my originals, and would love to release a few of them as an EP by November. My life is a juggling act right now, though, so I'll have to see how many precious hours this Master's program is going to eat up. Anyway, here's one that's pretty close to being done. Not sure if I have posted this on my blog before, but I would like to post it here so that you may compare it to my other projects and hear the diversity of all the styles of music I like to sing. I hope you enjoy it! "The Most Important Thing"- Brittney Westover
Hey There, Folks! How's your summer so far? Mine is going great! The Damselles & the TC4 have been working closely with producer, Paul Smith, to finish mixing our first full-length album, due out this fall! Here's a preview of a preview of what to expect:
Stay tuned for the "Man Like You" official music video, coming soon!
The Richie West Band is a little closer to finishing vocals on our first full-length album, as well, thanks to Joe Napolitano and the efforts of lead singer, John Ennis and guitarist/backup singer, Adam Kurtz. John's lead parts are now finished, and all that's left are my lead parts and background vocals, and Adam's background parts in a few songs. After that, Jillinda Palmer and Joe Napolitano will work their hocus pocus and put all the pretty pixie dust and sparkly finishing touches on the recordings, and they will be done. The challenging part will be to find someone to mix and master the recordings at a rate I can afford, and then duplicate some cds. I'm working on putting together some shows for the Richie West Band to play, so keep an eye out and an ear open for that. It will most likely be towards the end of summer. I am really excited to be finishing up this record. It already sounds phenomenal, even missing some vocal parts and barely mixed. I know my dad would be extremely proud. :)
Here's what last week was like, as we recorded at Hillandale Studios in Highland Park on the hottest day of the summer thus far. We couldn't turn the a/c unit on in the vocal booth because it would have been too noisy. But we all sweated it out, because we are champions! Thanks to Nick Weidner for filming on that sweaty day, and capturing the moment with these beautiful HD videos!
Later on that same night, I had the pleasure of working with Joe Napolitano and Jillinda Palmer again as we all supported Hi Ho Silver Oh onstage at the Echo for their record release show. Jillinda plays keys and sings backup vocals in that band already, and Joe recorded and mixed the album. I'm a big fan of Hi Ho Silver Oh, so I was flattered and honored when lead singer, Casey Trela, asked me to be part of the chorus of backup singers at this very special event. He even let me have a vocal solo in one song! Check it out:
(Thanks to Mike Escamillo for filming these lovely videos on his iPhone 4S.)
This was how the show ended. Casey decided to take the whole band into the middle of the audience for an intimate, acoustic encore. I have never heard the Echo so reverently quiet. It was truly a magical moment:
I want to thank my friends and family for supporting me throughout my musical journey. Just the fact that you have made it this far through my blog means a lot to me! I am still working on recording my own tracks with the help of my boyfriend, Mike Escamillo. My goal is to have an EP ready to release digitally by my birthday this year. That's only 3 months away, so we better get cracking! I will be posting various stages of mixes along the way to get your opinions. Like this one, for example!
I would love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for listening.
Oh, and there's one more thing I'd like to share with you all! I have an appointment to audition with the producers of The Voice on August 15th (thanks to Rebecca Balin for hooking that one up!). They want me to prepare 3 songs to sing, preferably contemporary, up-tempo tunes (within the last 5 years). They warned against ballads. I don't listen to a whole lot of popular music, so I was wondering if you have any suggestions of songs that you think might suit my voice well. Thanks for any input or feedback you can give. I love you all.
Enjoy the rest of July, and stay cool!
Love & Grace,
Brittney
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Howdy, Friends!
I've had a busy couple of months...how bout you? It's been fun, though. I've been enjoying the sunshine, and leisurely getting things accomplished. Mike has been helping me record my original songs, and my good friends, Joe and Jillinda have been helping me record vocals on the Richie West record, so that's still coming along. Nick Weidner just sent me a video from the first recording session we did back in February, so take a look! (Click the link below!)
Here is a link to a duet that Mike and I recorded together. It's still not quite finished being mixed, but we are getting closer, and I would like to share it with you and get your opinion if you haven't heard it before!
I threw a couple other unmastered tracks from the past onto Soundcloud, so if you enjoy that track, be sure to check out the others!
Mike and I will be performing this Sunday night, June 10th, at 1642 in Echo Park at 7pm. I am excited to have the backing vocal talents of Jillinda Palmer and Emily St. Amand-Poliakoff on 3 songs with me this time! Here is a flyer for the show:
And now, just for fun, here is a video of me singing Led Zeppelin at karaoke recently:
American Idol doesn't know what it's missing! Haha. Maybe the Voice will take me.
Howdy, People! Happy Passover & Easter & other festive spring holidays! Just writing a little update to let you know what's been going on in my little world! I recently got a new job as a cocktail server at a really cool bar/restaurant in South Pasadena called the Raymond & Bar 1886. I've been training and taking tests on menu & cocktail knowledge, but tonight is my first night on my own, which means I get to keep my tips! Hallelujah! Here is a fun little interview with my friend Eve Hammond Bushman, a Santa Clarita-based wine & food blogger. It should give you a little taste of what I do to make money when I'm not playing shows: West Ranch Beacon- Pairing wine & cocktails with song
The Damselles & the TC4 are taking a much-needed break in our usually-hectic performing schedule this month to focus on finishing up our full-length album. The Richie West Band is *hopefully* going to be tracking vocals this month, if I can find a way to afford the studio time and fit it into my busy schedule. Mike is going to be taking a little time off work this month, and we hope to spend some time FINALLY recording some of my original songs! Yay! Hopefully you will see a few tracks on this website by the end of the month.
We are also excited to be going to COACHELLA the weekend of April 20th-22nd. Mike and I love Coachella, and I'm especially stoked because TWO of my friends' bands are in the line-up this year! My dear friends Ben Jaffe and Suzanne Santosuosso are in HoneyHoney, and my good buddy James King is in Fitz & the Tantrums. Ben and I have been friends for years, and we have collaborated on many Andy Paley-related projects, including the Thrilling Adventure Show and Spongebob & the Hi-Seas. He also backed me up in 3 annual Jeff Buckley tribute concerts! Suzanne just recently lended me her fiddle and banjo talents on the Richie West recordings back in February. James King and I have been playing in Spongebob & the Hi-Seas together for years, and his incredible Sax talents can be heard on the Damselles' self-titled EP! I'm so proud of my super-talented friends!
Well, that's all for now. I will be sure to post new recordings as soon as they are finished. Stay tuned! I've got a lot of material coming out later this year! Happy Spring, Everyone!
Love & Grace,
Brittney
P.S. Here are some photos for your enjoyment! The picture above is me and Helen Chance chillin' on the Sunset Strip after we played in the Hollowbody Lounge at the Viper Room!
And here are some pics of me, Mike, Pepper, and Marley during our family outing last month when we hiked to the waterfall in Eaton Canyon! Hiking is one of my favorite outdoor spring activities. This is the perfect time of year to get out there and be one with nature. It's great exercise for people and dogs!
I'm just writing to update you about my fast approaching solo shows. I've got one at El Cid in Silverlake this Tuesday, March 13th, at 8pm:
And another at the Vu in Santa Clarita on Saturday, March 17th, at 3:30pm. This is part of a huge block party where they will be shutting down 8th Street in Newhall and setting up stages, vendor tents, and food trucks. I will be playing inside the Vu. I will be interviewed by Jenna Syde of RadioBuzzd.com right before the show, and I believe part of my set will be broadcast live on internet radio! Here is a flyer for the block party:
I have one more show at the end of March, at Lot 1 in Echo Park. As the date approaches, I will remind you all with yet another flyer! I apologize that I haven't yet added any of my original music to this page yet. Mike and I have been working on a couple tracks, and I plan on uploading them to SoundCloud and posting the link on here very soon! In the meantime, here's a little sample of one of my original songs:
This video was from a performance I had on November 16th, 2011 at Roman Holiday Wine Lounge in Valencia (where I will be bartending tonight! Come visit me if you're in SCV).
I've been really enjoying the sunny weather lately. I'm having a lot of fun working out at the gym, gardening, and cooking at home with my sweetheart, Mike Escamillo. I hope you've been enjoying this lovely March we are having, as well. Keep a positive attitude, remain optimistic, and good things will come your way.
You really took me by surprise! I've been plowing through at full steam, and I hardly noticed that we're nearly 3 months in already! An update is long overdue!
I hope your holidays were as fun-filled and gracious as mine were. I am endlessly appreciative for my family and close friends. Their love and support is what keeps me going.
Mike and I moved into a new place together with our doggies, Marley and Pepper, on January 8th. It's a sweet little 2-bedroom house in Pasadena. We love the house, despite its many quirks, and the location, and are having a great time fixing it up and turning it into our home. The only thing that sucks majorly is that we were robbed approximately 2 weeks after we moved in! My computer and most of my jewelry was stolen, but thankfully, we were not home when it happened, and they didn't harm our dog, Marley, who was there at the time (Pepper was at my mom's house in Santa Clarita). All that really matters is that we are safe, and we are strong, so we are able to push past this terrible event and move forward with our life together. Thankfully, we had just invested in renter's insurance a mere 3 days before the burglary occurred, so we should be getting a check in the mail soon to compensate for our losses. We're finally getting comfortable here. We love gardening and watching our dogs run and play in our spacious yard! We made friends with the neighbors, and we even planted a Meyer lemon tree a week ago. Things are very peaceful here now.
As for my musical projects, The Damselles & the TC4 have definitely been keeping busy! Last month we branched out from our usual Eastside haunts, and played shows in Studio City, Long Beach, and San Diego. We honored the late, great Whitney Houston at our latest show, which took place at Harvard & Stone on February 15th. Here's the video, in case you missed it:
The guys and gals of the Dams & TCs went into the studio in December and January to record our first full-length LP of all original songs. We recorded at comp-ny studio in Glendale (the same studio where we recorded the majority of our self-titled EP last year) with producer/engineer Paul Smith, formerly of Capitol Records. We are very pleased with what we got out of those sessions, and can't wait for the album's release in late spring/early summer of this year! The next Damselles show is Wednesday, February 22nd at the Echo with touring Seattle band, Pickwick. We're also playing this Friday at the last night of the TC4's residency at Casey's in downtown LA. For more Dam-tastic action and current events, including photos and video from our recording session, click here: http://thedamselles.blogspot.com/
I've had such great experiences each time I've recorded at comp-ny that I decided to book the studio to record the Richie West Band's LP this month. We were in the studio all weekend on February 18th and 19th. Be Hussey engineered, and John Ennis and I sang scratch vocals as the band tracked the songs and overdubbed solo sections and additional instrumentation. I can't even tell you how lucky I am to be working with the extremely gifted talents of my Richie West bandmates. I would just like to take a moment to acknowledge them all by name. The Richie West Band is: Adam Kurtz on guitar, Mike Escamillo on piano, Keith Karman on upright bass, Kevin Milner on pedal steel and lap steel, Charlie Woodburn on drums, Suzanne Santosuosso on fiddle and banjo, and of course, my good friend John Ennis singing lead vocals (supported by Adam Kurtz and myself on background harmonies). I am extremely pleased with what the band laid down this past weekend, and I am looking forward to tracking vocals in March or April.
For those of you who don't know, the Richie West Band is a project that I started with John Ennis a year and a half ago, to resurrect the many country songs my late father wrote in the last few years of his life. This is something I've been wanting to do for the last 14 years since he died. Currently, filmmaker Nick Weidner is making a documentary about the process of getting these songs heard. Last year, I launched a kickstarter campaign to take the band (which was half its size back then) back to my family reunion in Texas so we could play my Dad's songs for his family. It was the trip of a lifetime. We piled into a 13-passenger van we borrowed from my good friend, Rufo Chan, Jr., and drove 24 hours to Childress, Texas. It was an epic experience that I'm sure we will never forget. Although my father has been dead nearly half of my life now, his memory is still very much alive inside me and I know he would be very proud to hear his music rise again. I am absolutely ecstatic about the arrangements and instrumentation we have used on this album, and I am very anxious to present it to the world!
Here are some photos from the recording session this weekend, and a couple of videos to give you a sneak preview:
As for my solo project, I have a few gigs coming up! First on the list, I have a very cool show in the Hollowbody Lounge at the Viper Room on March 4th.
I will be opening with a 35 minute set for my very good friend, Helen Chance, at 7:30pm. Our dear friend, Jenna Syde booked this show for us, and her band, Rue, will be playing a reunion show in the main lounge at the Viper Room that same night! Tickets are $10. Purchase them at the door on the night of the show, and you will have access to the entire venue. There are drink specials for those who ASK for the Happy Hour specials, which include $5 Jim Beam, Tanqueray, Skyy Vodka, wine, etc, and $4 cans of PBR. There is 2-hour metered street parking on Sunset, as well as a $10 pay lot on the property. I also heard that there's a new public lot that's only $1 per hour a block or so down from the club, near the old Tower Records (across from Red Rock). The address of the Viper Room is 8852 W. Sunset Blvd. West Hollywood, CA 90069. This will be my first time playing an entire set of my original songs on the Sunset Strip, so I need all the support I can get! Mike will be accompanying me on various instruments, and will probably sing a duet with me. Please come out and see us and the divine Ms. Helen Chance! Here is her website (she's a super-talented musician and a very clever songwriter!) http://helenchance.com/
I have been invited to play a St. Patty's Day block party in Santa Clarita on March 17th. They are shutting down 8th Street in Newhall. There will be vendors, food trucks, and stages set up outside. It's an all-day party beginning at noon, with free admission up until 2pm. I will be playing inside the Vu at 3:30. My good friend Nikki Kilker will be playing inside the Vu later that day, as well. That same night, I will be interviewed by Jenna Syde on RadioBuzzd.com and play a few songs live on the air, starting around 9pm. So don't drink a bunch of Jameson shots and Irish car bombs before 9pm, because I don't want you to forget to tune in and listen!!
Finally, Mike and I are playing a show at 10pm on March 30th at Lot 1 in Echo Park. My good friend Rebecca Balin booked this one for us, and we are very excited to play there! I will post more details about that show as the date approaches.
That about wraps it up for the first 3 months of 2012. If more cool, fun, and awesome stuff pops up, I will be sure to let you know! Thank you for reading my novel, and I will try to blog a little more often so that my updates will be more like short stories or vignettes in the future.
Have a fantastic February, everybody (what's left of it, anyway)! Oh! And happy leap year! I hope to see you soon at one of my shows! Feel free to leave me a comment or say hi to me on Facebook. Don't be shy! I want to know about YOU, too! I love you all.
