Blog & News:

A Long Way From Georgia

Jan 22nd, 09

Hello folks,

I've been doing quite a bit of writing, recording and thinking on my own over the past few months. Sort of a "get back to writing honest songs" goal for me. This is not to say that I've been writing plenty of lies to put in your ears, but I've just been listening to too many opinions. I've been weighed down by the realities of the music business that make it just that: a business.

Do we need a record label? Can we find a record label? How will we pay for our time on the road? What songs can we try to get placed in a TV show? It seems like the past year has been dragged down by a bunch of shit that should never matter. I've been spending more time sending emails and making phone calls about playing music than actually playing it. That's not the way I need to be thinking.

But I've used this brutal Chicago winter to get back to what really matters to me: songwriting. I'm not working on a timetable for the next record or putting any pressure on myself; I'm just focused on creating music that satisfies my own expectations.

I'm posting a song on myspace today that will most likely not end up on a record, but all the same, holds a special place in the mile-long list of demos sitting in my Garage Band folder. While I mention specific places and people in a lot of my writing, I'd like to explain this one.

When we prepared to released Outlast the Day at the end of 2006, I was fresh out of school and just beginning my adventures on the road. I had no idea where music would take me. I had no idea if I would be able to support myself. I had no idea about basically anything.

At the end of October, we played our first full band show at Eddie's Attic in Decatur, Georgia. I had played plenty of solo shows in nowhere coffeehouses and awful bars and college festivals. None of them were insanely gratifying performances, but that's how this long road begins.

Eddie's was an altogether different experience. It's the best venue for songwriters in the entire country. That night was the first night I can remember standing on a stage and realizing that the stage is the most comfortable home I have. The people, the songs, the atmosphere - it was all there. When I left Georgia, my manager and I agreed that this was the only the beginning: there is always more work, and there will always be setbacks. But Eddie's Attic was the night that I started to feel confident enough to devote the time to the road and the studio.

Fast forward over 2 years: a lot has changed. I've toured the country. I've put out another record and an EP. I've played with musicians that I looked up to when I first bought a guitar.

I don't know what got me thinking about all of this, but the day after New Year's, this song just kind of finished itself. "A Long Way From Georgia" is about just how far I've come as a musician, but it's also about the steps I haven't taken on a personal level. My understanding of relationships is no further than it was on that October evening at Eddie's, and my constant traveling has left me wondering where exactly I should call home. And I guess it's all there in this tune, and I hope that I can post a song down the road that shows that I've made even bigger steps on my own. Until then, I hope you enjoy this.

More to come soon.

David

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