x

Kayt and the Hard Folks / Blog

Playin' Here and There

Oh, bars of Toronto! I love going back to play at places I've played at before. The best, is when folks recognize the tunes! I'm glad the original songs are having public lives of their own. Even if I've penned a tune that is special to me, I love that each person who hears the song has a unique relationship with it... thats different from anybody else's. Songs become personal to certain listeners, and that's super cool. Songs can also be personal to certain players. I'm really appreciating that the boys in my band are bonding with certain songs, struggling with others and going on missions to perfect the ones that are like puzzle-songs. Its inspiring! I, too, am feeling challenged, in the most awesome way, to really improve my playing and nail down some of the things I've written, but don't play easily. Its fun! And covers too! As much as the usual clubs are cushy and fun, it's always a treat to play at new places. Scary too, because its impossible to know how certain songs will live in new environments. I'm often surprised about the audience's reception -in many respects! Its totally impossible to know in advance what a crowd will love. ...Or what an unknown sound system will deliver! Sometimes my mandolin is perfectly EQed, and it's golden. Sometimes, it's like a telephone call on AM radio. Never know. All ye young sound guys out there are doing a great job! And if my mando is the first one you've ever mixed: Good luck! Be brave! And do your best to make it sound rich and lovely. And bartenders: For my visits, please stock grapefruit juice and and a nice basket of aromatic teas. (Just kidding, but not really.) See you around Toronto!

Joined the Club

Working with great musicians is such an experience! It's a real thrill to be challenged. Pressing and teasing out the qualities of the tunes in the company of a band that meets me halfway is beyond my expectations. I got to choose my players. What an interesting project. After surfing for quite some time, I stepped out to consider: What do I want my band to sound like? At its most basic, what instruments have got to be there to support the sound? So I made my calls to my first-choice players, and to my delight they all said "yes"! Rehearsals have played out for a month, and this-coming Thursday Feb. 2nd, we'll be premiering the project at the Hidout on Queen street in Toronto. (We're openning for a knock-out line up with Brad Fillatre, Robert Haley and Ask!) I'd like to introduce Roy Buna on electric, Bill Galloway on acoustic and Michael Menegon playing percussion. Our setlist is all original tunes that I wrote, including a few new ones. It's been a blast fine-tuning them with the boys. Can't wait to share what we've been working on. See you on Thursday!

Thanks. So much.

I'd like to take a moment and appreciate all the people who taught me new things over the last several months. All my fans are amazing! I've so enjoyed all the feedback about how the songs affected people. That's the most special thing of all about releasing music to the public. I've felt the devotion of so many, and it's truly humbling. I've loved the contributions of other musicians to this dialogue about music! To meet a musician AND their music at the same time is like a tiny window into their process. So cool! I've watched how other bands have conducted campaigns and communications with fans, and all the offline work that clearly went into promotions. I'd like to compliment the bands who answered my questions about how they engage band members and other collaborators. The insight that you gave me is paving the way right now. It's been helpful to see what works for musicians. Thanks to the players who have dared to introduce themselves at gigs and are part of my community now, and thanks to my local small venues that host evenings for musicians to meet and play. Thanks to the managers I talked to who gave me the inside story about bands who are doing terrific business to accompany their amazing tunes. It totally blew me away to discover how they do things. Thanks lawyers for setting me up for a creatively productive and fair game in the future. And thank-you to the friends who encouraged me to learn how to do music in their presence. Practice isn't always pretty! Takes a real friend to bear the pain of growth. Finally, I'd like to personally encourage all the mandolin and ukelele players out there to consider themselves real musicians. Even huge dreams are free. And success looks different to everyone, so have faith in it....whatever it looks like.

What a Crazy Business!

Music brings out the contents of peoples' characters. Sometimes these are the most pleasant surprises! Or, someone you think you know can turn out to be someone else, and the music business is not a particularly honest one all the time. If we don't know that going into it, we all soon find out. Looking forward to working professionally with musicians and producers within a community of creative and ganerous people. I intend to continue working on these and other songs. I'd like to thank all of those who have already expressed interest and I'd like to invite others to contact me as well. Most sincerely, I'd like to thank all the wonderful fans and friends who have been so positive about the work. I truly appreciate all your support.

Inspiration In All It's Forms.

Time to learn some covers! Gigs are knocking and the pleasure is too great to pass up. My playlist is many times more than I'd ever need.... but it'd sure be fun to learn some of the great sing-a-long, bring-the-house-down, classic anthems of all time. Singing harmonies at my local musician's open stage gave me some ideas. Years ago, before I could play an instrument, I had a book of songs that I'd written down. All tunes that had captured my imagination since I was a teenager. It was a thick sheef of 8 1/2 x 11s! Everything from grunge to jazz to classics from the 70s and pop from the 80s. So fun! I lent it to a friend about four years ago, and then lost touch due to really unfortunate circumstances. I've been carrying a small pocketbood with an ever-growing list as I try to remember what was in that book. And of course I've got to add many new faves. There is SO much new music out there! I know that folks typically hate what out there at any given moment, but really there will be classics from these days too. I've got bets (not real ones) on a few currently overplayed grand-slams. A few more months til my octave mando shows up. I'm so thrilled to imagine it in the hands of the craftsman who is building it. I don't even want to hazard a thought about the day we are introduced..... my instrument and me. Til then, I'll be rocking out in the small clubs of Toronto, and meeting the scene. And, of course, writing... cuz I can't help it.

The Big Picture

If you catch me looking off into the distance, it's the future that's got me wondering. I've struck a balance before... between my fundraising living and my uplifting life in the arts. I love what I'm doing. I figure if I can say that, there's a pretty sunset in the future. If not, then I have to wonder what kind of lifestyle I'm choosing! Making things makes me happy. The process is amazing! Kinda too bad that folks who enjoy an artwork, weren't actually there for the pleasure of its creation. Ideas really are like lightbulbs in that they bring lightness into the world. I know this from the upturning feeling I get from a good rhyme,or a lovely doodle on a page.... a perfectly mixed color, or a song that lives in me for days as its born. Artists share all this. I'm so glad that we're all here chatting away on these pages! And in between all the messages and the music, our community is striking a balance of its own.

Everything Changes, Nothing Stays The Same

Everytime I learn something new, it becomes a part of my life. And I am affected by the magic of meeting new people all the time. There's just no way to be in control of the happennings of time. Art forms capture moments in time, but even these songs, photographs, paintings, writings, plays change in their relation to the world around them. This ever-changing landscape can really break a person if they're unable to maintain an open mind. And yet the creation of art is such an open-minded experience in the first place! The truth is, it's impossible to keep anything. So, in a world where the only constant is change, isn't it comforting to embrace the flow of the currents instead of the ego of the establishments? It seems that artists, adaptable and creative, should feel the least discomfort in changing environments, but this is not always so. Like anyone, artists desire to hold onto successes. We want to hang our platinum records on the wall and make sure everyone knows of them. But....someone once told me that in this world, where the cult of celebrity is our monarchy, we're only as good as our last show. And it's true. The gifts of the present are those of our latest creations, as the past disolves in the sands of time. I am trying to do the things I love everyday. I am trying not to do the things I shouldn't be a slave to, everyday. I'm aiming to remain vivacious and generous, avoiding the temptations of the ego. Be well. And enjoy the day.

There's More To Life Than Perfection

Quite a week ahead and quite a week behind me. On Tuesday, I performed for the Springtide Resource Center. What an amazing group of people, who work to provide tools and information to those professions and people whose lives cross paths with the effects of domestic violence. There were many deaf people in the audience, and my songs were translated into sign language for them while I sang. It was breathtaking. While I'm so thankful that my life is full of wonderful people, I'm reminded that there are still people out there who aren't so fortunate in this way. My heart went out to a few people whose painful lives spilled into mine for a few days. The season is changing with invigouratingly fresh air and cooler temperatures. Since life isn't perfect, flu often strikes while we're busy admiring the beauty of the fall. I'm wishing wellness to all my unwell friends and family. Oranges, soup and restful sleep to you all! Away flu!!! Away! And Dried Leaves has become an anthem for the season. Enjoy the fireworks. xo

I'm Amazed.

My gratitude is overwhelming. Today my page on RN hit 1000 fans, and I'm truly humbled. Thanks to my listeners and all the other artists who have come aboard for the ride. I want you all to know that there is more music coming. I've really enjoyed the experience of relating with the fans and the public through music. I'm psyched to keep going forward, producing material to be enjoyed and savoured. With gratitude, Spynn and I are working on several videos. What a blast! Not particularly a new medium for us, but a new idea to put into the spotlight. A new public forum for sure! Hope you don't mind, but we're going to take our time and make them the best we can before thier release. It's been a great year for music, writing and recording. Happiness and gratitude, Kayt.

People are just the way they are.

People are everywhere. Asserting themselves. Being. With all this character and charisma, we're like a web of walking memories and theatrics. And this..... is why life isn't as simple as it might appear to be at first glance. We run into so many people everyday, with reactions like chemistry. Some produce friendships and Thanksgiving dinners while others produce acid and dissappointments. What a world we live in! So unpredictable! So constantly interesting.! This is the stuff of great stories and also great songs. All these feelings filtered through music and words, rhythms and the imagery of videos are our lessons. We see them, learn them, then quote them to our friends. How often does a line from a song just "say it all" when describing a situation? It's important to me to write about real stuff for the reasons I mentioned above. Because people are just the way they are, and even if I dislike someone intensely, they're there -in my life- to remind me that we're human and not perfect, and everybody has a story. "You don't always get what you want, but you get what you need!" -Rolling Stones.