Chris Davis & Kevin Mahon at Angels Coffeehouse 2010

Oh, and in case you’re wondering…heres the setlist…

- “I Just Found Out” (a work in progress…)

-” The Dynamo of Volition” (an impossible to cover Jason Mraz cover)

- “Breaker” (a yet to be officially named original…)

Peace peace

- CD

I dedicated the first part of the summer to really listening to and watching other musicians.  I felt like I was at the point where I needed to switch back into full creative mode and try and move on and improve from Phases.  One way that I’ve realized is a good way to reset and open yourself to developing new ideas is observing and learning from other musicians, whether that is by seeking out and listening to new music, or if it is going to see one of your favorite bands play live.  For me, the beginning of the summer was dedicated to a mixture of both. I got the chance to see some of my favorite bands and artists from Dave Matthews Band, Counting Crows, Third Eye Blind, all of which were amazing experiences.  I also discovered some new music to listen to that soon worked its way to consistent play on my iPod, such as Band of Horses, Fiction Family, & John Patitucci Trio.

Since then, I have been writing more than I ever have and it has been great, but still a constant struggle. The past two summers have really taught me how tough it is to write a good song, but as with any struggle there is something you can learn from it. This time, I have come to see the real value in writing a good song. Once you write something you are kind of satisfied, it fuels the fire just a little more so that you can write something that you are a little more satisfied with next time…etc. It is a musical catch 22, I guess. It is what keeps musicians and songwriters going I think. No matter how frustrated they get, it can always be turned into motivation, just as anything else that we may have a passion for.

So, this summer I have been focusing on trying to perfect the way that I play guitar, write songs, and sing them.  Hopefully it will show on these songs that I have been working on lately. Writing often is truly what is helping me to grow as a musician. These songs come from time alone in a dorm room, at home, time spent on vacation with my family, with friends, and even time spent recording vocals from my car in a Target parking lot.

I still haven’t figured out if they are any good or not, but there will be plenty of time for you all to decide that later.

I also had the opportunity to go to Nashville and work with some great musical minds there (more on that in another post). Long story short, I think there is a lot more to come. In fact, I know there is because I have some songs to prove it

I will keep working to improve. Once again thanks to everyone for the support and please stay tuned

More soon,

- Chris

Alright, brain nap over…digressing…
So summer is upon us and one thing i have learned over the past few years is how much most of us relate past times, especially summers back to the music that we were listening to at the time…we all have our summer soundtracks, am I right? Well, if this is not how it works for you, just humor me for a moment because I am about to dish some serious musical suggestion action to help you form your SS ’09….
Here we go. Artist first, the the album…

- PARACHUTE, “LOSING SLEEP”: This is a solid pop/rock band from VA that have been making a lot of noise on iTunes lately, and oh boy, do they have hooks! And they are not shy about scoreboarding you with them. Bottomline, really enjoyable, solid pop/rock.

- AIR REVIEW -…..still waiting on an album (word on the street is that it will be dropping June 5th) but I just saw them live a few weeks back and they killed it!  Hints of both indie rock and Muse are sprinkled within this band’s unique sound.

- THIRD EYE BLIND – BLUE:  Ok, ok  so this is not a new one but I have been obsessed with this album lately.  Musically, Stephen Jenkins and Kevin Cadogen and the rest of the 3EB crafted this album so well.  If you were around in 1999 but still missed out on this album, be sure to check it out, its a jam.

- BLAKE & KATE – LETTER AND WORDS EP:  If you like any acoustic music, check these guys out. Vocally amazing, just trust me on this.

Enjoy!

More soon,

Chris

Chris

FINALLY sent in the final album artwork today, the last step in this process, and the album is done!

Look out over the next couple of weeks and it will be up on iTunes, CD Baby, and a bunch of other great places for you to pick it up!

Can’t wait for yall to hear it!

More soon…

Chris

www.twitter.com/ChrisMarkDavis

And also don’t forget to check out some music at purevolume.com/chrisdavis

There’s been a couple more delays with the EP, but hopefully everything will be ready to go and out there in the next couple of weeks!

- Chris