MY FULL-LENGTH ALBUM: COMING IN SUMMER 2012

Here's the scoop.

I am really excited. A little more than a year ago, I released my debut EP ("Black and White"), and now I'm ready to take on a much bigger project.

The Black and White EP: my first release ever! Photography by Lizzy Sullivan, artwork by Daniel Nanni

For the next several months, I will be recording my first-ever full-length album. Of course this sounds like the next obvious step, but I really am sooo pumped.


As much as I love my EP, I know that this new album will be a greater testament to who I am as an artist. The truth is, when I first began recording my EP, I wasn't really sure what I wanted the end result to sound like. I used the songs that I felt would resonate the most, and had experienced session players come in to overdub parts over piano/vocal recordings. All in all, I would say it was a great learning experience for me, and I wouldn't take it back for anything. Most importantly, I had a great mentor and producer help me through the kinks of the project, handle all the logistics, and calm me down when I was being my usual high-strung, perfectionist self. Thank you, Joe Ferry - I really don't think I could have done it without you.

After learning so much from the whole process, I now have an even better idea of what I want to accomplish with this new album. Without giving too much away, I am treating this album almost like a novel - each individual song will in many ways, be like a small chapter. In other words, if you didn't get to know me based on my EP, you're gonna know me now!

The last and most awesome detail that I will divulge to you all, is that my new album will feature my live band. These guys have been working tirelessly with me for over a year, and it's time to give them some shine. I know you all will be able to hear the camaraderie that we've built up over the time we've been playing together, and I assure you that the album sound very different because of it.


So stay tuned! There's a lot happening over the next year ;)

With love and excitement,

Leila

News from a Sniffling Singer-Songwriter

Hey beauties,

Just thought I'd update you all - my show at S.O.B.'s went splendidly well! Not only was the crowd awesome (if you were there, thank you), but there was just such a great vibe in the room. I really haven't had that much fun playing in a while. There were so many new faces, and I met so many great people who were really just there to enjoy all the fresh, undiscovered talent that's out there. It's wonderful to know that people are interested in music beyond what's on the Top 40. After all, those artists had to start somewhere too!

Allen Stone (the artist I opened for) KILLED it. If you haven't seen or heard of this guy, check out this little clip of the show that night. I was even more impressed by his music when I saw him live, which is saying a lot. The guy really puts on a great show. I had so much fun, both performing and listening to all the other great acts.

Since the show I've been really trying to focus on my songwriting. I wrote two new songs, both of which are babies in need of some nurturing. For now I'm giving them time to grow into whatever they are supposed to be. Sometimes I wait a really long time before playing new songs for people - let's face it, newborns don't just start walking right away. ;)

I'll keep you guys posted! For now, I'm sniffling, drinking a lot of tea (and EmergenC), and trying to get over this cold before my recording session tomorrow.

Have a great week, everyone!
Leila

Playing Acoustic vs. Playing With a Band

Hey all! So in case you guys were wondering, both shows went great!! Even though I was sick as a dog, coughing my brains out, and somewhat delirious, everything actually went pretty smoothly.

I ended up playing Thursday's show fairly acoustic, only performing with my band for half the set. My abilities to let it rip over the band were limited, and I decided to make my performance more soft and intimate. Saturday, my set was entirely acoustic, and although I feared sounding like a cartoon character (I was SICK), I really felt that I was able to connect with audience on a deeper level.

So here's the question of the day: would I rather play acoustic or with a band?

To tell you the truth, I have mixed feelings. I always love playing with solo piano because it allows me a lot more artistic freedom and it feels more personal. Since the songs are admittedly about my own life experiences, I sometimes feel that I can tell an even greater story when I play alone. However, there is something special about playing with a band that I can't get when I play alone. Obviously there is always a certain sense of camaraderie among all the musicians, but I especially love hearing other people that I play with bring my songs to life. It's just awesome.

I guess it all depends on the mood I'm in, and what's appropriate for the venue I'm playing. Whenever I want to have more direct and intimate conversation with my audience, I'll probably play acoustic. That's when I feel the songs are the most honest. The space that isn't filled by the band really allows people the room to think about what I'm saying, and allows me to make my performance even more dramatic. All the pauses can be longer, and I can hold on to each word for as long or short a time as I want. However, if the setting is a little bigger, louder, and more suited for head-bobbing, I'll probably play with a band. I've grown a great deal as a performer by doing both.

I'll leave you guys with two videos of "Monday." One with my band, one acoustic. You guys can decide which version you like better. ;-)

Ciao!

HUSH, LITTLE BABY - Song Stories

Let me just start off by saying that my recital last week was a blast! Not only were there were tons of people there, but the energy from all of the people that came was just wonderful. So if you were in the audience, I tip my hat to you. It was truly a pleasure performing for you.

Let's talk about one of the songs. The first song that I performed in my set, called "Hush, Little Baby" is a song that I hold very dear to me. Sure, it's on my EP (click here to preview on Itunes) which already makes it pretty important, but it's so much more than that. Since I wrote "Hush Little Baby" I barely ever perform a set without it.

Why is that, you ask?

I guess you could say that "Hush Little Baby" is almost like my anthem. Every singer-songwriter has that one song that stands out a little more than than others, and for me, this one is IT. I think the reason why is that it really captures the conflicted emotion that every single one of us experiences. Have a listen, and try to focus on the words.

                                            

 If you still aren't quite sure what this song is about, join the club. I wasn't even completely sure when I started writing it - all I knew was that I was experiencing a mess of emotion and anxiety that I didn't know how to handle. If you've ever experienced anxiety, you know that there are sometimes so many things swarming around in your head at such a high speed that it's hard to distinguish one thought from another. After a while, your thoughts start to blur together into one complex blob of tension that weighs down your mind, and sets its heavy little butt on your shoulders. This song works the same way. If you can picture it, the piano riff that repeats over and over again is almost like someone constantly poking at you, waiting to see when will break down and smack their hand away. In other words, everyone cracks - it's human nature.

So where does God come into all of this? All you really need to know is that He (or She, or it, or whoever/whatever you think is up there, if anything) represents the hope that all of us want to feel at some point in our lives. I'll stay away from talking about my religious beliefs, but I think we can all agree that everyone just wants something to believe in. That something doesn't have to be religious at all - it just has to be something that gives you hope. Whether you have hope in another person, your plans for the future, or your dog, everyone is a little hopeful about something. That's why it hurts so much when these forces in your life let you down. Knowing that nothing always goes your way is one of the most is one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking parts of being alive.

For me, "Hush, Little Baby" represents the inner conversations that go on whenever I am too overwhelmed to take in what is around me. I'm sure you've noticed that the voices in my head are pretty patronizing, and some of your own inner conversations probably have that in common. No one really wants to break down, and we will do everything we can to talk ourselves out of it.

Here's to a hopeful week,
Leila

Introduction: Inspiration, Ideas, and Experiences

I think the question of the day is, why would someone who writes songs also need to have a blog? Considering that I'm always working on a song of some kind, you'd think that I wouldn't need to express myself any further.

Let's think about this. In life, do we ever really get to say everything that we want to say? Usually not. There's always just a little more to say than what has already been said. What I'm starting to understand more than ever is that a song is only a 3-minute representation of the actual life events that surround it. So from an outside point of view, I'm forced to leave out a lot of details. This seems unfortunate in a lot of ways, but I'll tell you why it's not. It is often these unsaid details that make a song beautiful. Just because you didn't hear me mention what I ate for breakfast that day, or that annoying thing my ex used to do, doesn't mean that I didn't express these things in some way. Context is everything, and this makes writing very subliminal. So does performance. If you wonder why I pound my fingers down on the keyboard during that chorus, or why I always look like I'm dreaming when I sing that verse, it's because of the context. You might not know why I'm singing the words that I'm singing, but I do. And if you asked me to, I could look back and describe to you in detail all of the 7 million things that were going on in my life at the time when I wrote that song. 

I suppose now would be the time to introduce myself. My name is Leila, and Eric Clapton spelled my name wrong. I guess he's awesome for writing a song with my name in it to begin with - I mean, L-A-Y-L-A would be the most obvious spelling. But hey, I like to think my way is better.

Like Sir Eric, I write music. I think it's safe to assume that you've realized this by now, but there's no harm in stating the obvious. I've been writing music since I was eleven. Technically I used to make up songs in the shower when I was in elementary school, but I suppose those don't count since I never actually wrote them down. All of those little songs were about ridiculous things like Elmer's glue and Crayola crayons - I guess as a child I would either be considered weird or cute, depending on your standards. 

Despite all the songwriting speeches I've been giving you, I really started out as a singer. Singing was probably my first love, and I still love it more than anything. A lot of singer/songwriters don't put a lot of stock in the "singing" part of their title, but this is one of the most important parts of my music. I take the singing part just as seriously as the writing part, because as I briefly mentioned before, performance has a lot to do with the way a song is perceived. That being said, I write my songs to suit my voice. This could  be a slight problem if I ever have to write for another artist, but I'm not sure I would ever want to do that.  If context is everything, I probably couldn't handle giving my song to another singer that didn't live through the specific experiences that I did while I was writing the song. This may seem amateur, but I suppose there's a little bit of childish pride in all of us. At this point in my life, I'm just not ready to let go.

The piano was my second love. Don't get me wrong - I didn't treat it very well, and I neglected it pretty often in many ways. I rarely ever practiced in the traditional sense of practicing, and this is probably why I don't sight-read or do any of those things that crazy pianists do. As soon as I figured out that I could use the piano to accompany my singing, I began to write songs. And that was pretty much it for me. Of course I was still playing piano all the time, but let's just say that scales and Bach inventions unfortunately took a backseat after that.

For now, that's all you really need to know about me. I'll try not to pour my heart out too quickly, and I'll try even harder not to give away all the background of every song I write. My only hope is that you can reflect on your own experiences as you listen. 

With love from a humble singer/songwriter,

Leila