“Made a Mess,” the first song from the new EP is being featured here at the Sixtyone.com!
Click to listen to "Made a Mess"!
I’m really excited to share this song with you. My friend Alan likes it because I let the guitar be simple (only three chords!), quite a departure from my first EP. I wrote it over the summer, and I feel proud of how it turned out in the studio.
“Made a Mess” became a great reason to get quite a few friends together for the recording, with Michigan and Canada crossing the Blue Water Bridge to get together either physically or digitally to put their mark on the track. Marshall Block did some tracking of Hannah’s vocals at his studio in Fenton (RealiiReel), David Mosher added his talents from his home studio in Michigan, and producer moon:and:6 (Michael Chambers) at Catherine North in Hamilton, Ontario did the rest of the recording and mixing.
So here it is. The first song of the new EP!
“Made a Mess” Credits:
Mike Vial – vocal, acoustic guitar
Stuart Tucker – drums
Marcone – piano
Leon Furs – bass
David Mosher – fiddle, mandolin
Hannah Fralick – backing vocal
Zaldor’s World on TapDetroit.com – Monday, Oct 10, 2011
Live radio interview & performance on
Detroit, MI
7 PM
Listen here: TapDetroit.com
It’s been too long since I’ve hung out with my friend Les Zaldor who I met back ten years ago through the Musicians Guild based in the Detroit area. Les has been doing an Internet radio show longer than anyone else I know, and I’m excited to be debuting some mixes from the new EP (Where the Sand Meets the Tide) and playing a few songs live.
I have a simple thought about Twitter, and this connects to any other social networking site bands are using to help promote their music: Don’t create an account if you aren’t going to stay actively involved with the network. It’s guaranteed to do you no good if you aren’t going to use it, but it might hurt you.
We don’t need to use every tool that’s on the Internet. The fact is we can’t. However, if you choose to sign-up, you’d better be active. This means investing time to see how people use the tool effectively, discover the insider language and writing tones.
This goes for Reverbnation too. I don’t have an account there, but that’s not because I think there is anything wrong with the site. I just don’t want to invest my time in it. I don’t want to have another website where I list my gigs, stream music, make friends, etc. I KNOW I’ll ignore it, so I just don’t have an account. Why waste those who actively use the site’s time even looking at a dead profile?
Your time is important for yourself, but so is the time of people engaging with your social networking accounts. It’s ineffective to have a site that isn’t being updated, and don’t expect new faces to hunt for the things you are using daily, weekly, monthly. Make it so when someone stumbles upon your network, they are guaranteed to see you using it. You probably won’t get a second chance!
Limit yourself to the tools you like and use them actively.
This autumn has been productive transition, from a full-time high school teacher to a full-time musician, for me. I set my goals high with an important show at the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor, Oct. 11 with my full band (The Great Lake Effect), and we finished the third EP, which will be released next month!
Tues. Oct 11 - Blind PigAnn Arbor$5; 18+ doors 9:30 PM
Playing at the Blind Pig has been a goal of mine for years, and it was great to bring Stuart Tucker (drums), Kevin Vines (bass) along for the ride. Leah Taylor, a Feist/Nora Jones like singer-songwriter, opened the show and sitting in with my band on keys/vocals. She’s just returned to her hometown of Ann Arbor after graduating from Rochester University in New York last spring! Dare we say this show is a little graduation celebration for Leah?
Catherine North Studios in Hamilton, Ontario
At the Blind Pig, The Great Lake Effect and I will be showcasing the four songs from the new EP. Recording the new EP happened in September. I returned to Catherine North Studios and we put in 10 hours days to finish four new songs in three days. All songs feature a full band including some great Michigan and Canadian musicians. Michael Chambers from Catherine North Studios is finishing the final mixes for me this week, and our tentative release date digitally is Halloween, Oct 30.
Between gigging, recording and writing, I’ve also been having a blast teaching private guitar lessons! It’s nice keeping one foot still in the teaching world, and I’m enjoying preparing my lesson plans that feature a balance of note reading, contemporary songs, guitar technique, and music theory! One of my students is working on Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” this week!
Anyways, thanks for the support this month as I embrace my full time musician life! I’ve been having a blast, been writing weekly, and embracing a lot of driving across the state.
Set List & Show Recap – 9.23.2011
Mike Vial and the Great Lake Effect
Capital Music —- HAYA Benefit
Holly, MI
This was our first show together as a trio, with Stuart Tucker on drums and Kevin Vines on bass!
Last night, we raised slightly over $200 for Holly Area Youth Assistance to fix musical instruments that they donate to kids in need. Special thanks to Corey Kapanka and his trio, Natalie Burg for arming the merch table, and Brad and Nancy Capital Music for hosting our first band show at the Great Lake Effect.
Everyone who donated and signed-up for my mailing list will receive my third digital EP, Where the Sand Meets the Tide, for free next month upon it’s release!
Set list
- Intelligent Fool
- Change Your Tune
- Driftwood
- Julie’s Monsters
- My Lovely Enemy
- I Know I Made a Mess This Time
- Ohio*^
- Change the World*#
- Empty Cup
- Love and Be Proud
- One Way Road
- Mahogany
- I Will*
- Only the Rain Knows Why
* Mike Vial solo
^Neil Young cover
#Eric Clapton cover
Photo Credits: Natalie Burg
