Laura Harley

Here is a video in which you can hear a little of one of the new songs!

In this video, you’ll hear part of a song (still in the “work in progress” stage), see me talking with the ultra talented engineer/ producer Aris Archontis about how best to sing one of the parts, hear me rave about how awesome the band played on the track, and watch as we edit the timing of one of the tracks and have ideas for the song. It gives you a little glimpse of how detailed working on an album can be—-you think about things like “would it be more powerful and sound best to sing this part with full voice or lighter voice?”, “Does this part sound best where it is, or would it be better to move it forward in time a little bit?”, etc. These are things that most people wouldn’t notice when listening and probably wouldn’t even hear if you told them they were there. Unfortunately I get obsessive about this sort of thing. As we listen, you’ll hear the track start and stop a lot. That happens a bazillion times during these sessions. Soon I will share the whole song with you, promise :).

OK, here it is!

Here is a little video I made today before going into the studio.

Postscript: Day 3 in the studio went GREAT! I did some vocals and we put new piano parts in—soon I will post videos where you can hear little snippets of the new songs in the background :). More singing in the studio tomorrow! I was in the studio for about 10 hours today and I am exhausted, but in a good way. Can’t wait to get in there again tomorrow.

Oh. My. Goodness. You guys!! The recording is going SO well! It is beyond my hopes. The band laid down most of their tracks today and it is so beautiful, so powerful, so perfect. I will share more soon. I’ve been so busy and we’ve been keeping such long hours that I barely have time to update this blog. I’m going in tomorrow again all day and the next day, too. But I am taking photos and movies that I will share more of soon. In the meantime, here are a few rough shots from inside the studio today. In these photos we are listening to and critique-ing different takes and ideas. Thanks for being here and sending warm thoughts my way—-I swear that I can feel them! More soon…

Last night I practiced with my band and it was AWESOME!! Seriously, I am in awe of how great these guys are and how my hopes for the songs are being realized. Here are a few photos from rehearsal:

Today we are stepping into the studio! I am so excited. We’re planning to record one song tonight (the rest of the day will be spent painstakingly working to get each sound for each instrument right) and four tomorrow. Then I will lay down vocals in the following days. Wish me luck! More soon…

Last night’s show was really nice. I’m gradually building up confidence with playing these new songs (it always takes a while with new material) and having a lot of fun doing it! I got to connect with a lot of new people and, afterwards, I had a delicious plate of pancakes and hash browns. It was a great way to cap off a busy weekend.

Today was spent making calls, running errands, and working on the arrangments of my songs for recording this week. I’m excited to be working with a band of very talented and professional musicians. Today I was listening to the recording of the last rehearsal with them where they played the parts I’d written. It is always so emotional to me to hear my vision for my songs executed in real life—I think it is one of my favorite feelings in the world. I listened and went through each part of each song, combing through them to find any parts I think can be improved. I thought of a couple of new arrangement ideas that are pretty awesome (if I do say so myself. Ha!) Those ideas plus the awesome things the guys were playing had me dancing around the apartment with glee!

Tomorrow we’ll be in rehearsal for 6 hours and on Tuesday we step into the studio to start recording. I can’t wait! I am so, so, so excited about these songs. Looking forward to sharing them and some behind-the-scenes videos about it all with you very soon.

I’m sitting here in my apartment with the windows open—it is awesome to be in warmer weather, enjoying the fresh air and the sunshine. Of course, I’m really just enjoying it here and there because I’m working and things are busy, but it has really eased my stress to be in this environment.

Yesterday’s show went really well. It turned out to be a hard day for several reasons—none of them music-related—just general life struggles that came up yesterday. By the time I got to the show, I was feeling tired and run down. But I also was feeling really happy to be able to play. Over the last year, things in life have been so challenging that playing music increasingly feels like this amazingly comforting realm to be in—I can just let myself sink into and inhabit the songs. It is meditative to be in that state and it often feels therapeutic.

There were some little technical difficulties to deal with during the show, but I just ignored them and went on anyway. Things like that used to phase me more, but now I find I can just get into my zone and do my thing. I even ended up doing one song that really should be played with a drum loop acapella—I mean just me and the piano—it turned out to be really fun and was received really well! I love live performance because sometimes a technical glitch turns into a special moment. I was so excited too to see people’s reactions to the new songs—it was really positive! And I really enjoy playing them—it feels like I am coming into my own.

One of the sweetest moments during the show was when a little girl raised her hand during a break between my songs. I like playing at Borders because kids and families are often there. Well, when I saw that adorable little girl with her hand raised, making eye contact with me like she REALLY wanted to say something, I stopped and said, “Well hello there, do you have something you’d like to share with us?” And she smiled, nodded her head, and said “My brother!” Her little brother was sitting next to her and I guess she just really wanted to point out to me that he was there. It was so cute! I was like, “Well, that is wonderful! I’m very happy that you and your brother are here.” She also danced around in her little chair and clapped her hands while I played. Later, she raised her hand again and so I called on her again. And she said with a sad face, “We have to go home now.” And I said, “Thanks so much for telling me. It was great having you all here.” SO sweet!

Today I am getting ready for another show tonight and for rehearsals and recordings with my band starting on Monday. There is a lot to do, but I am determined to take a moment here and there to take a deep breath, enjoy the sun on my skin, and be thankful for these opportunities and another day to make and play music.