Tonight is the next edition of The Songwriter Sunset! Last week was our premiere with songwriters Tom Hitt and Matt Boland, which went excellently. This week, we have Jerry Gaff and Fred Oakman.
Meanwhile, Strangers and Liars spent sometime last weekend in studio. We’re working getting more tracks down to start the journey towards album 2. Nothing else happening over the weekend, as I’m taking a short little vacation. On my way to New York City tomorrow morning. I should write a train song.
Tomorrow is the beginning of this years Songwriter Sunset!
Excited to have this event started up again. Our first week back is going to have two excellent songwriters and good friends, Tom Hitt and Matt Boland.
Then later this weekend, Strangers and Liars is going to be part of a great show at the Crooked i. 
Chaffee’s Gathering is a two music festival in the North West PA area that happens every summer, and features a handful of bands that are regulars at The Crooked i in Erie PA. So this Saturday (May 18th), to raise money to help continue funding this event, there will be a show featuring a number of the bands from this years line up, including Broke Boland, Shotgun Jubilee, Falling Hollywood and Eric Brewer and Friends.
It gonna be a great weekend!
Are there things other than The Edinboro Lake Resort that are going to be talked about in this post? Yes. But when you have to wait 7 or so months of the year for something like this to come along, you get excited when it finally is here. The Edinboro Lake Resort is open! I even had the chance to play there already on short notice, performing this past Saturday (sorry for not informing you, but they literally asked the day before). Strangers and Liars will be playing there this Saturday (May 11th) from 7 to 9, so come on out!
The Edinboro Lake Resort also hosts The Songwriter Sunset, a Thursday night songwriter emceed by yours truly. After it’s smashing success in the summer of 2012, it’s back for a second season! The Songwriter Sunset kicks off Thursday May 16th.
Last week, I mentioned the Roots Music Report in my post, it’s relevance being that within its series of charts organized by genre, Strangers and Liars album debut on its rock chart at 8th! Excited to report that it’s moved up to 7 this week! To all those folks who might be spinning our disc out there, we thank you.
Finally, some neat footage. Strangers and Liars bassist Russ Straub put together a music video montage of some live performances over the past year of our song “Letters”. Some excellent work done by him. Check it!
The weather has taken a turn for the (much) better, and the calendar is filling up quick with an assortment of shows and events. So while it might only be May 1st, it sure feels like summer is starting.
This weekend I’ll be down at Sprauge’s Brewery in Cambridge Springs, PA. They’re going to be having a show going on most of the day (Friday May 3rd) as a fundraiser for the Edinboro music department, which I was actually a part of for a brief stint several years ago. I’ll be playing from 8 to 9 that night, and am glad to be onboard for the cause.
Other notable news from the Cambridge Springs area, some friends of Strangers and Liars have really the extra mile for us. WXCS, the local Cambridge Springs radio station, has made a push in our publicity, getting us on the Rock Charts of the nationally viewed music site Roots Music Report. We’re honored and excited to receive this kind of recognition and publicity. Big thank you to Sam Reese and the rest of the WXCS team for pulling for us!
Strangers and Liars album “Five Seat Concert Hall” made it to 8th on its first week on the Roots Music Report rock chart!
Lastly, another sign its summer (in my book anyway), May 1st marks the opening of my favorite seasonal venue, The Edinboro Lake Resort! So get ready for some glorious out door gigs at Edinboro Lake, as well as the return of the The Songwriter Sunset! More on that soon!
After a busy weekend this past week, Strangers and Liars has off this weekend. We got a track recorded though, and hopefully have a preview up for the world to see soon.
I’m heading down the Hotel Conneaut to play the dinner crowd again this Friday (April 26th), from 6 to 8:30. Other than that, everything is wide open. Nice to have a little time to breath. I’ve been writing quite a bit lately, and the band is working on a handful of newer original songs. I have a mind to get some recordings together of the bare bones acoustic versions of some of these tunes, so I may have something to show by next week. Till then, I’m using some nights off to catch up on some sleep. Cheers.
Over the past year, Songwriter nights have been my favorite up and coming trend in the Erie area. Down at the Erie Ale House, Doug Phillips runs an acoustics show on Friday night, playing music during happy hour and having three songwriters down to play afterwards. Not only am I in attendance to play this week, I happen to be in a band with three singer-songwriters.
Since we’re all in the same place, why not?
Myself, Justin Anderson (guitarist of Strangers and Liars) and Tom Hitt (drummer of Strangers and Liars), will be performing both as singer songwriters playing as singer songwriters as well as the three of us performing as a band with the help of our intrepid bassist Russ Straub. It will an acoustic performance for the band as well, as we performed for the Arts n’ Drafts Fest this past March.
The band also intends to spend some time in studio seeing if we can’t get one of our newer tunes down on paper (figuratively speaking). We hope to have something for you folks to hear soon.
After a stellar CD release party at The Crooked i, we take a brief break from Strangers and Liars appearances. I will be making an appearance this Saturday at Hotel Conneaut, which I’ve already come to miss after my two week absence from it. I suppose after ten weeks or so of doing the same thing, it should feel a bit empty leaving that routine. So Saturday (April 13th) from 6:00pm to 8:30pm I’ll be playing down there.
Meanwhile, aside from public appearances, diligent work is underway on new songs, both with the band and on my own. I’ve managed a number of new songs in the past few weeks, and some have made it to the Strangers and Liars practice rounds. That being said, the band is also planning on some more recording sessions to avoid back logs of unrecorded material.
The weathers getting warmer and the calendar is filling up! One step at a time we’re moving from a productive spring into an eventful summer.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I do not keep up with posting on this site. And here we are with another no doubt vain resolution to do better! There was a short while where I was trying to post every week, and now is as good a time as any for another feeble attempt. So, let’s see what’s going on.
After having a standing Thursday night gig for roughly the past two and a half months, I will no longer be playing Hotel Conneaut (of Conneaut Lake Park) on Thursday nights. Wipe those tears from your eyes though (because I know you’re torn up about this), because as of now, I will be making occasional Friday and Saturday night appearances there, the first of these being Saturday April 13th. And Thursday will be needed for something else in another month or so anyway… (more on that soon!)
This Friday (April 5th), Strangers and Liars will be having their CD release party at the Crooked i (yes, the CD has been technically released for 2 months, but we’re still trying to promote it. Give us a break)! The show kicks off at 10pm with our good friends Scarlet Ledbetter kicking it off. Big thinks to the local print, as we have promotional articles in both the Erie Reader and the Thursday Showcase of Erie Times News. This will be the band’s first time headlining at The Crooked i after opening for a handful of acts there, so needless to say, we’re pretty stoked.
Also this weekend, there’s a to-do going on at an Erie upcoming all ages venue: Paca Performing Arts Center and Theater. They’ll be hosting an all day musical event with over 20 different folks coming out to play (myself included). I go on around 4:30 – 5.
That’s about it for what’s going on this week. If you don’t see a new post this time next week, please reprimand me. Do it and do it right!
As one of the many activity revolving around the release of the new Strangers and Liars album Five Seat Concert Hall, the band is going to be hosting a listening party as the opening this years Hitt House Concert Series!
The Hitt House Concert Series is hosted by Tom (Strangers and Liars drummer) and Lori (his loving wife) Hitt. They’ve had musicians from all corners of the country that have stopped through to play, and to kick off this year they’ve agreed to start it off with some local flavor. The band will be there to meet and greet (and eat) as well as play a few tunes.
For more information on Hitt House concerts, click here!
Earlier this month, Strangers and Liars released our debut album. “Five Seat Concert Hall” is officially for sale!
“Original electrified music in the American tradition.”
The album consists of 10 tracks of all original music, written and performed by Strangers and Liars (myself, Justin Anderson, Russ Straub, and Tom Hitt). I’d like to thank everybody who’s supported us in the band thus far, this record being an early milestone on hopefully a long, fun road.
If you see any of us in person, you can buy a disc from us face to face. Otherwise, you can look it up on either band camp or itunes and download the whole thing! For more information, be sure to visit the band’s Facebook page.
http://www.facebook.com/strangersandliarsband?ref=hl
It’s been very exciting to have this disc done after so long. For those in the Erie area, be sure to mark April 5th on your calendars, as Strangers and Liars will be having there CD release party at the Crooked i that Friday. Hope to see you there!
