There's so much I could say about my wacky Hollywood experience with 'The Voice', but I'll keep this as brief as possible.
I am grateful to have had this unique experience and to be able to say I took part, met some very cool people and learned a lot about the real realities of how "reality" TV really works (Holy Moses! Grant Peeples, we've got some serious fat to chew)...
Some folks were pretty surprised to hear I had auditioned for a situation of this sort. I think anyone who knows me at all realizes that singing cover songs to impress pop stars is not where my artistic pursuits lie; I had no delusions of winning, or even going terribly far on the show (c'mon, I'm over 40 and never have taken well to any kind of 'coaching' - just ask my mom)... However, where my pursuits do lie - being a dedicated musician and songwriter - still requires funds to stay alive and feed a family, which requires bookings, which requires exposure to as many humans as possible in order to draw crowds from town to town and make it all worthwhile.
When I received an email invitation, completely out of the blue, to do a private audition for a prime time TV show viewed by 18 million people - well, OK... First I was convinced it was bulls#% and sent a mildly flippant response. Then, after some tardy digging, I was overjoyed and horrified to discover it was indeed real, and that this could be one heck of an opportunity to be heard.
...Heard singing! In front of 18 million viewers! Just please, God, don't let them give me a lame song (and they didn't, thank goodness - I sang "Fortunate Son" by CCR).
I don't mind that I didn't move forward on the show, and I don't judge my own talents/abilities as an acoustic roots artist based on four pop stars' (who I'm sure are very nice) opinions of what real music is all about. If you're looking for the next Big Hollywood sound (and they are), these are your go-to folks, my friend. The truth is, not being particularly interested in mainstream pop music myself, I hadn't heard of any of these people other than Christina Aguilera before being invited to audition, and I'd only heard of her because I had teenage daughters. We exist in different dimensions, musically for sure; and it's kinda silly to suppose that anyone can form an honest opinion of your 'artistry' if they've only heard you sing half a song that someone else wrote, and that someone else chose for you. I'm really OK with it. I'm in this game to say what I have to say and bask in the heavenly joy that is music. It's what I do, it's who I am, it's all good in the hood. There are some GREAT singers on the show so far that I'm proud to be able to call friends, and I look forward to seeing how it goes for them.
I am rather disappointed that they didn't show more than a few seconds of my participation on the show, only because those precious couple of minutes of back story and full song performance could likely have invited more public curiosity and Google-tappin' than just flashing on the screen for a couple of seconds. HOWEVER... Hey guys, check it out, I was on prime time TV for a couple of seconds! Woo hoo!
I had a very full, rich, interesting and educational experience swimmin' around in the belly of the very strange beast that is Hollywood. And now I will go back to building my audience organically, one, two, five, twelve at a time... Show by show, song by song, name by name on the mailing list, as my incredible wife and musical partner Kim and I have been doing for the last 5 years together.
I thank everyone who was watching for me, and especially those who find this show painful to watch but hung in there just to support me. I imagine it was just as disappointing for you, having endured endless Kia commercials, to not even get to see a song performance.
THANK YOU TO ALL MY FAMILY, FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS, FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HOPELESSLY MUSICAL HEART. I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH. CARRYING ON...
http://www.royschneider.com
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Reckless Saints / Blog
Obviously I'm not a Blogger
...And I guess I can live with that. But it is a bit embarrassing to see how much time passes between these entries.
It's not that nothing's been happening; plenty has, and I've actually been yakking about it plenty too. It's just that, like most folks these days, I do that sort of stuff in smaller bursts on social media. I've been a regular Facebook user for many years, which is where the majority of pictures and updates from tours, what's happening with recording, videos, etc have appeared. I have a Twitter and an Instragram account, and have neglected them quite tragically. Planning on getting a lot more into the Instagram thing for those great from-the-road photos... In the very immediate future. Hey, look me up on Instagram!
So, since we're here, news: A fresh new web site is coming to royschneider.com! I've had a very outdated situation for years, and am very excited that soon the web site will enter the present century. Content will all appear and resize appropriately, depending on the device used. Imagine! After eight years of touring and recording, this new site might make it look like we're almost serious about this music thing.
Kim and I hit the road in a couple of days for 'Schneider & Mayfield' shows in Texas, New Mexico and Arizona... Really looking forward to those. If you're anywhere near Phoenix, Dallas, Austin, Taos or any of the other westerly places you can see on the show schedule... Please come on out and say 'hello', and let us sing yer blues away.
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'Ten from the Pen' up to #10... And New Old Cartoon Books!
Pleased to announce that my newest album, 'Ten From the Pen,' rose to #10 on the Roots Music Report's Americana chart this past week! Thanks so much to all who supported and continue to support this new record... That's everyone from the fans who helped get it made to the DJs who are playing it - and even those who haven't but will soon be playing it. Many thanks!
Also, yes, the long-awaited first book collection of "The Humble Stumble", my formerly-syndicated comic strip, is out and available! To get your copy, email me at hello@royschneider.com with your snail mail address and either PayPal or check for $20 (15 + 5 s/h), and we'll get you hooked up!
The first run of the book is 120 units, each is signed and numbered and even includes a special bonus inside while supplies last! Now, aren't you curious?
I've wondered lately whether revealing more of my cartooning background is beneficial or detrimental to my musical pursuits, as these different expressions are so - well, different - from one another. But what I always end up answering myself is, "It's all part of what makes you you."
So here ya go.
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"Ten from the Pen" Released June 1!
Yes, the newest CD from Shiny Gnu Records, "Ten from the Pen" (SG-103) was officially released June 1st, and is making the rounds to Americana and Folk radio programmers all over the U.S. and some points abroad. More accurately, it has already 'made the rounds'... And is now either being played or, hopefully, awaiting its chance to be played, in the coming days or weeks and beyond.
Getting this record to the level of quality that it is and out to radio stations everywhere would have been impossible if not for the collective generosity of our incredibly kind music-loving friends and fans. This makes 2 Roy Schneider albums that have been completely crowd-funded now, and Kim and I are endlessly grateful for the outpouring of support. CDs have been shipped to our supporters, and other perks are on the way shortly!
All that being said, we look forward to being able to produce new music in the future without having to crowd-source so much. The idea is that more airplay gradually leads us in the direction of better name recognition, gradually leading to higher-profile shows, gradually leading to a few more dollars in the bank when it comes time to cut a record. I really don't like using social media to promote myself in the extreme like that, rallying folks to pull out their checkbooks and credit cards. With any luck, crowd-sourcing will not be something we'll have to rely on forever. (But we sure are grateful for it right now.)
The quality level of this disc also wouldn't be where it is, of course, without its great supporting cast including Gurf Morlix ('Guidance Counselor'), Mark Hallman (Mastering Engineer Extraordinaire), Rob Pastore (Co-Producer & multi-faceted musician) and the additional musical talents of Freebo, Richard 'Hombre' Price, Pat Wictor, Hans York, Michael G. Ronstadt, Erik Alvar, Danny Shepard, J. Robert and of course Kim Mayfield. The many hundreds of hours spent recording, sorting and mixing were well worth it; the fact that I can still put the CD on in the car and listen to it with a smile a full week-plus after its release is probably a good thing.
I can't thank the DJs/programmers enough who have already added "Ten from the Pen" to their rotation, and look forward to every single Folk and/or Americana programmer on earth giving it a spin before months-end.
Visualize... Yes, visualize...
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IndieGogo Crowd-Funding Drive is ON for the New CD!
Kim and I are excited, nervous, anxious, happy and a weird salad of just about every other emotion known to man (and woman) as we start to achieve lift-off with the support campaign. As of this writing, we're at 18% of our goal in just 2 days. That is incredible and makes us feel that much more optimistic about the reality of reaching our ultimate $11,000 goal to get the CD pressed, promoted by a top-notch agency and distributed to as many DJs' hands as we can get it into. YOU CAN HELP! Just by essentially pre-ordering the new CD or maybe grabbin' a stylish guitar T-shirt, sticker or any number of 'perks' available for your contributions, you can help ensure that Kim and I can keep moving forward and making more music. To check out the snappy video that explains what we're doing, just copy-paste this URL into your browser: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ten-from-the-pen-adventures-in-americana/ Thanks much, in advance! We can't do any of this without our support base, and we're glad you're part of that.
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"Ten from the Pen" preparing for Mastering
In writing this post, I am officially procrastinating on crawling into the remaining 6 or 7 songs on the new record that need a final hair-combing. Mainly because I know once I go in there, once I actually achieve focus and the music starts gelling together, it'll be difficult to crawl out of the cave. Don't worry though, long as I can schedule Kim to toss a hunk of raw meat in about midday tomorrow, all should be good. We'll have crystalline mixes ready for mastering by Tuesday.
Huge thanks to my good friend, very talented musician and Technical Guru Rob Pastore. This past week, he added his delicious upright bass to a couple of songs, then spent many hours with me tweaking and finding the sweet spots, just the right ear-pocket for each instrument in each song, using only standard EQ and "limiting"; which just insures I won't suddenly yell your eardrum out while you're trying to enjoy your new "Ten from the Pen" CD. That would be very rude of me and I'd feel terrible.
In the next week or two, we'll be kicking off a new "Kickstarter" campaign to raise money so I can actually manufacture and promote the new CD. As the politicians say, "I hope I can count on your support." Ugh. Remind me never to be a politician. I'd be the worst.
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The Alleged New Album: What's Happenin'
Seeing as I've mentioned on and off for over a year now that I am working on a new studio album, I thought it might be time to offer a detailed update as to what's been going on with that. There is new stuff coming!
The good news is, it's really getting close. There are 10 songs, and the instrumentation is about 75-80% complete. Much of the mixing has already been done, and by the time it's mastered, well, I suppose I should maybe have a title and artwork in mind, eh?
This record's been through some vigorous starts and stops due to going on the road and other life occurrences. Then one day, through the miracle of networking, there arose a possibility that I might be able to work with a respected producer I admire, whose ears and perspective I would welcome to help shed a different light on this new project. Not something I take lightly, mind you, as I can admit to being a bit of a control freak when it comes to any creative project. I knew this could mean scrapping the many hours of work already sunk into it (by me and a few respectable colleagues) and starting from scratch, which sort of hurt to think about, but I was willing to chance it. I was not, however, going to put another minute into recording in my own studio until I knew. Life happened, and the record - since it had already developed the habit - faded back out of the forefront for a little while, until one day we both finally had time to discuss the demo I'd sent.
I was pleased to receive wonderful feedback on each song, and by "wonderful" I don't mean that it was all good, I mean that it was thoughtful and made sense. It was mostly good, thankfully, with a gentle nudge to drop a few particular songs and add one more to make a solid 10 tracks. After licking my initial wounds and really thinking about it, I could easily see why these particular songs were singled out and might be better put aside, maybe tweaked and combined with some other songs some other time.
So, as it turns out, I'm very pleased and fortunate to be getting the best of both worlds in this scenario. This producer and fine musician has said in so many words that the recording part seems to be in good hands already (thank you, thank you), so no need to go anywhere and start anything over, but I am welcome to ask questions and seek opinions/advice/input anytime through to the end of the project. I am very pleased with the arrangement so far.
Excited about where the album is at this point, and am looking very forward to finishing up the recording shortly after the first of the year. New music's comin'! I promise.
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Facebook, Kerrville, Falcon Ridge
Since the advent of the whole Facebook phenomenon, I have pretty much switched to letting all my little spurts of information about touring, shows, photos, etc come out over there instead of through email (you're welcome), and as a result, have neglected not only this blog space but have also not sent out a newsletter in ages. I am a pretty steady Facebook user and would appreciate your "like" over at http://www.facebook.com/RoySchneiderMusic, as that's still the best way to get up-to-the-minute information, plus photos of my lunch and of my cat in various outfits, and - wait, that's right... I don't do that stuff ever.
What you will find over there is a slow-but-steady stream of photos and (hopefully) interesting scenarios from the road, updates on when and where we're performing, that sort of thing. So there's that.
It's been a great year here at Shiny Gnu Records... Had my 3rd shot at the Kerrville Folk Festival's songwriters' competition in Texas, which is always an amazing experience and a tremendous honor. So far I have entered that fray 3 times, and been fortunate enough to be invited to participate all three (2009, 2011, 2014). I know several folks who are excellent writers and performers who have entered numerous times and for whatever bizarre reason haven't gotten in, so I can't complain even a little about never having won. We love Kerrville and all the relationships we have forged and/or nurtured there, and will keep coming to the festival whenever we can.
After Kerrville, you can imagine my joy and surprise when I found out I'd been chosen to also appear at Falcon Ridge Folk Festival's "Emerging Artists" showcase August 1st! Kim and I were so darn happy, in fact, we went ahead and had our first official T-shirts printed up in honor of the event. Falcon Ridge is a wonderful festival in New York (a good distance from the "apple") featuring great gobs of glorious music and fun, and I hope you can make it! Tickets on sale now at http://www.falconridgefolk.com/tickets.html!
Lucky for you, I can't ramble here because I have to ramble there. Specifically, George & Wendy's Seafood Grill on Sanibel Island, one of the few local venues that's kind and sensible enough to switch up their entertainment, allowing us touring musicians to have a way to work when we're not on the road. Tonight I am especially excited, as my good fiddler friend J. Robert will be sitting in. Whoop! Whoop!
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2014: New Album, New Name, New Venues
As we wind down 2013, Kim and I are very excited at the prospects for the coming year. We've got the wheels rolling on a new album, we're considering naming ourselves as a musical entity (rather than just going by my name, since she's with me every show now), and we're booking shows in some new towns and venues we're excited to discover.
Due to the unpredictable scheduling in working with NBC's "The Voice" over the past year, we've found ourselves with more at-home time lately than usual (didn't want to book shows that we might have to cancel)... While there are obvious 'cons' to not doing as many shows for a spell, the big 'pro' is that we've enjoyed being able to focus on some of the more time-consuming domestic projects we've put off for so long; home improvement, yard work, fixing and selling off stuff we've been draggin' around and don't need, new art projects (including painting up an acoustic guitar for a local fundraising raffle)... And now with the holidays on the horizon, we look forward to some family time and then diving head-first into the new year.
Kim and I wish you all the warmth and wonderfulness you can stand in 2014, and we look forward to seeing you in person. If you can make it out to a show, we promise to make the best music we can for you.
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The Voice... The Heart... The Soul... The Intention...
There's so much I could say about my wacky Hollywood experience with 'The Voice', but I'll keep this as brief as possible.
I am grateful to have had this unique experience and to be able to say I took part, met some very cool people and learned a lot about the real realities of how "reality" TV really works (Holy Moses! Grant Peeples, we've got some serious fat to chew)...
Some folks were pretty surprised to hear I had auditioned for a situation of this sort. I think anyone who knows me at all realizes that singing cover songs to impress pop stars is not where my artistic pursuits lie; I had no delusions of winning, or even going terribly far on the show (c'mon, I'm over 40 and never have taken well to any kind of 'coaching' - just ask my mom)... However, where my pursuits do lie - being a dedicated musician and songwriter - still requires funds to stay alive and feed a family, which requires bookings, which requires exposure to as many humans as possible in order to draw crowds from town to town and make it all worthwhile.
When I received an email invitation, completely out of the blue, to do a private audition for a prime time TV show viewed by 18 million people - well, OK... First I was convinced it was bulls#% and sent a mildly flippant response. Then, after some tardy digging, I was overjoyed and horrified to discover it was indeed real, and that this could be one heck of an opportunity to be heard.
...Heard singing! In front of 18 million viewers! Just please, God, don't let them give me a lame song (and they didn't, thank goodness - I sang "Fortunate Son" by CCR).
I don't mind that I didn't move forward on the show, and I don't judge my own talents/abilities as an acoustic roots artist based on four pop stars' (who I'm sure are very nice) opinions of what real music is all about. If you're looking for the next Big Hollywood sound (and they are), these are your go-to folks, my friend. The truth is, not being particularly interested in mainstream pop music myself, I hadn't heard of any of these people other than Christina Aguilera before being invited to audition, and I'd only heard of her because I had teenage daughters. We exist in different dimensions, musically for sure; and it's kinda silly to suppose that anyone can form an honest opinion of your 'artistry' if they've only heard you sing half a song that someone else wrote, and that someone else chose for you. I'm really OK with it. I'm in this game to say what I have to say and bask in the heavenly joy that is music. It's what I do, it's who I am, it's all good in the hood. There are some GREAT singers on the show so far that I'm proud to be able to call friends, and I look forward to seeing how it goes for them.
I am rather disappointed that they didn't show more than a few seconds of my participation on the show, only because those precious couple of minutes of back story and full song performance could likely have invited more public curiosity and Google-tappin' than just flashing on the screen for a couple of seconds. HOWEVER... Hey guys, check it out, I was on prime time TV for a couple of seconds! Woo hoo!
I had a very full, rich, interesting and educational experience swimmin' around in the belly of the very strange beast that is Hollywood. And now I will go back to building my audience organically, one, two, five, twelve at a time... Show by show, song by song, name by name on the mailing list, as my incredible wife and musical partner Kim and I have been doing for the last 5 years together.
I thank everyone who was watching for me, and especially those who find this show painful to watch but hung in there just to support me. I imagine it was just as disappointing for you, having endured endless Kia commercials, to not even get to see a song performance.
THANK YOU TO ALL MY FAMILY, FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS, FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HOPELESSLY MUSICAL HEART. I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH. CARRYING ON...
http://www.royschneider.com
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We love you too Roy, and it was painful to watch and then be disappointed. But your music is a whole different ball game from their music, and that's something to be proud of.
Ladies and Gentlemen,you have just read from the poet soul of my best friend Roy Schneider. He is one very special person and I guarantee that the universe knows it. He is contributing all good to that collective consciousness out there.
Back... And Forth Again
Well, this last road tour went splendidly! Traveling in style in our brand-new 8-year-old Honda Odyssey "Ulysses", we camped and attended a traditional Cherokee wedding ceremony in Indiana, did some lovely house concerts and other shows in IL and IN, and capped it off with a backyard show in Kentucky at "Larry's Bar" from my song Cedar Ridge (now run by Kim's brother Mark, and more accurately called "Larry's Ryland Heights Tavern"). What a treat, playing into the sunset as the ducks and geese swam around on the pond behind us. Aaaahhh...
So we got home, then jetted back up to Dunedin, FL to play a great show Sunday night at The Painted Fish gallery, and today we get on a plane to Austin to attend the SouthWest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA) conference. Kim and I will play an official showcase at 7:30 Saturday evening.
For those who haven't heard, I also performed a "blind audition" for NBC television program The Voice, Season 5, which began last night. A lot of friends, family and fans watched - as did we - to find that they have not yet aired my performance. I am sorry I have no way of knowing when they will air what... But I sure have enjoyed watching my friends on there so far! The contestants get to know each other pretty well, naturally, over the lengthy process leading up to the blind auditions and beyond. What we don't get a lot of, if any, is actually seeing/hearing each other perform on stage. It's kinda cool to get The Rest of The Story in that way.
I look forward to the day I can speak freely with you about this whole experience. Definitely not something I imagined I'd ever take part in, but how can an independent singer refuse an invitation to sing on national television? I hope you'll stay tuned and see how I did.
Airport! Right... Better wrap it up before Kim starts pointing at that invisible watch she keeps on her wrist...
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