The Wabash Cafe

I had the opportunity this past Saturday night to take a little road trip and go visit the Elbow Inn & BBQ in Devil’s Elbow, MO. It’s just a little bit outside Rolla, and if you ever get a chance to go, you should. We had a blast. I didn’t get a chance to try the food (we were there after dinner), but I did get to enjoy the hospitality of the fine staff, and they made sure that we had a magnificent time. We were there for Holly’s Birthday Bash – a celebration of Holly “Boom Boom Valhalla” Rudolph’s birthday – and trust me, it was epic.

Okay, so other than the fact that you love me (you do, right?), why does this matter to you? Here’s why. While I was there, I got a chance to ask a dear friend of mine for a favor. Bernadette Holzer, better known to many of you as Beltana Spellsinger of Spellsinger, was gracious enough to say yes when I asked her to write, and sing, some harmonies and backup vocals on my upcoming project. I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am by this, as Beltana simply has one of the boldest and most beautiful voices I have ever heard, and her knack for creating enchanting harmonies has always touched my soul. An awesome bonus: she just happens to be one of the most wonderful people I’ve ever met. So, I’m simply honored that Bel is willing to join me in my efforts, and to help take some of my songs to the next level. If you’re not already familiar with her work, and I know a lot of you are, well then I know you’ll love her work just as much as I do.

I wish I could give you a time frame for how quickly I’ll have something out. I really want to share my work with you, but I’m learning as I go – and I want it to be right. I promise, as soon as I know a time frame, you’ll know.

Thanks for stopping in, until next time…
Brian

Okay gang, I’ve once again been offline on the Cafe while I did some background work and dealt with that annoying thing we all know as real life. Well, real life is still a pain, but there’s a bunch of news on the music front, so…

First off, I’m very excited to announce that I’ll be shooting some promo photos this upcoming Sunday with my good friend Kym Birkenkamp. Kym and I have known each other for – hell, 15 years+ – and she is simply one of the most amazing people I know. I met her as an incredible writer, but she has turned her artistic focus to photography and the results are absolutely magnificent. If anyone can take this old, used-up windbag and make him look like a rock star, it’s Kym. So excited to have her helping me out. And in more Kym related news…

Kym is having a showing of her work at the Lotus Arts Studio on Cherokee. I would be loving this just based on that info alone, as I’ve already told you how amazing she is, but I have the added bonus that Kym has asked me to play at the Artists Reception on April 1st. I am truly honored that she would ask me to play, and I jumped at the chance. So mark your calendars for Friday, April 1st, 7-10:00pm, at the Lotus Arts Center.

And in more gig related news, I’ve got two more shows confirmed. The first is, well, one of the true joys of my life – I get to go to Wolvenwold and play at the Beltane festival. Those who know me well know that the lovely ladies of Spellsinger, Bel and Holly, are really responsible for me getting back to playing music. I owe them a lot, and any time they ask me to play I’m going to come running. And this show, and festival, would be worth it just based on seeing Spellsinger…but let’s up the ante a little bit. Additional entertainers at the festival – Darwin Prophet and Leo Starwind. Yeah, how cool is that? So, again I ask, please clear your calendars for May 19-22, make your way down to Rocky Top, there in Elk Creek, and get you some of the incredible music happening that weekend.

And finally, after my last appearance there approximately ten years ago, I’ll be returning to the Pagan Picnic in St. Louis. If I’m not mistaken (Ben, Johnny, Ed – help me out here), the last performance of the infamous Unnamed Pagan Band was at the Picnic, circa 2002ish. I’m very excited to be coming back, as the Picnic is always a part of my summertime plans. It will also be the first opportunity for my little girl, Faith, to see her PawPaw play. Her reaction may determine future allowances/chores, once she hits that age (alright, I’m wrapped around her little finger…she’ll get whatever she wants). The Picnic is June 11-12, and I’m not yet sure which date/time I’ll be playing, but I’ll be sure to share that info as soon as I have it.

Well, that’s about all (and at 500+ words, I’m sure you are all like, “Finally?”). I do have some new songs that are either finished, or very close, but nothing I’ve laid down on tape yet. When I’ve got rough cuts I’ll get them to you. I’ll probably be looking to lay down an EP, as the full album is more work than I anticipated, and I want to get some real product out to you soon. Watch for a heads up soon on that front.

Thank you so much for checking in, and I really do promise this time that I’ll do a better job of letting you know what I’m up to. If you haven’t already, please Become A Fan at my ReverbNation page. It would really help me out a lot.

Until next time, thanks for stopping by…
Brian