takin' care of business

only 6 days to first single release!!

with mixing almost done and artwork complete, i am moving away from the artistic process i enjoy and into the business promotion side i don't.

but, even so, i decided to embrace that aspect of a record release in order to ensure that the hard work i have put in to it will not go to waste and will actually reach people, and hopefully even get me paid... 

so, #1 - booking a tour. 

i played a lot of different types of venues. some make you be an entertainer where you need to fight to grab the audience's attention, others let you be an artist and feel comfortable expressing yourself in an honest and intimate way. there's a time and place for both, but for this tour i wanted to find the right venues for what i do as an acoustic performer. there's nothing i hate more then singing a personal ballad while the guys at the bar watch football and yell out in the middle.  

throughout the process i have encountered so many booking people; from the condescending ("well i like your attitude, so why not") to the overwhelmed ("i will get back to you in two months" and a 3 month later response of "we're closed that day") the flaky, to the nonexistent to just plain frustrating. there have been a few that were actually nice.

after 2 months of research and hundreds of emails, i have 10 dates on the east coast, during June and August, with a few more pending. to me it's a huge achievement, and so far the most extensive tour i've done.

check out my website or facebook for the schedule, and to see if i'm coming to your area.

#2 - starting a record label/publishing house.

as a DIY artist, this is part of the game. it's good to put a professional name and face (or logo) to the business side of things.

after voicing my frustration about not fitting a niche, and that there should be a "no box, just music" festival, i decided "no box music" would be a great name for me and what i do. hey, perhaps i'll sign on a few more artists down the road! one release at a time though...

check it out here

#3 promotion strategy. 

more on that next time, starting with releasing the 1st single, which i decided to give out for free.

join the mailing list (to the left) to get a free download.

cheers and 'till next week

- asia

photoshoot, darling...

if tyra banks has taught us anything, it's that you should squint your eyes, do a zoolander face and try to project an emotion from the inside...

as an introverted artists who prefers to let her sound do the talking, taking photos is not something i enjoy too much... my look is not part of my gimmick and my promotion doesn't exactly depend on selling sex appeal...
but nevertheless having a good looking image that suggest exactly what you're going to sound like is a huge part of a new release, and the photos are used on the CD, for press coverage, website and posters.
...and so once again i've embarked on a task i'm not so comfortable with.

a few lucky things fell into my lap:
- andres's school colleague, davey bendiksen is actually a fantastic photographer who likes vintage equipment and even breaks new cameras to make sure 60s lenses would fit. he most graciously agreed to photograph.
- after (with some balls) approaching the UMass concert hall for a photoshoot request, i was met with a surprising yes, since they were just going to take photos of the hall anyway for their website. and so, i was presented with a chance to photograph on an amazing stage. for free.
hurray resourcefulness!

i also asked a few girlfriends via internet (since none live in northampton) to help me out with wardrobe.
thanks ladies!

even though "blue steel" and making love to the camera has never been my thing, i am more then comfortable accessing all the needed emotions while playing and singing, without feeling fake or posy. davey documented a variety of expressions, angles and moods.

for a few shots, you're welcome to visit my facebook page or check out this video, #7 in my series of video updates:

now the cd artwork is basically complete, and i'm just waiting to finish mixing which hopefully will be done within the next couple weeks.
and then....


FIRST SINGLE RELEASE - APRIL 20!!!

The search for cover art...

I'm so glad that so much of the recording process is behind me, and I can start thinking about the next step of packaging - the artwork!

Since I'm a one woman project, I don't have an art advisor or a team, and I'm the one that needs to figure out what exactly do I want the cover art to look like, and it's pretty difficult. The options are endless:
graphics, illustration, photography. what kind? what do I want to portray?
I decided to go for a somewhat dark, surreal illustration.

But how do I find the right artist? With my nonexistent budget??

I'm a big fan of Threadless T-shirts, and find many of those designs cool, original and often stunning. So I had an idea, why not look through the designs, and contact the designers of the images I connected to.

Lucky for me, the creator of one of my favorite images, Chow Hon Lam a.k.a Flying Mouse wrote back. He ended up being very nice, liked my music and was enthusiastic about collaborating.
And, what he wanted in return was for me to write a song about one of his images.
That's a win-win, if you ask me.

The cover art came out looking amazing, but I don't want to post it yet, I want it to be a surprise.


But, the song is done too!  I wrote it about the image that first drew me to contact Flying Mouse, "Sky Thief".
You can listen download it for free:
  I Steal Stars by asia mei


and there's also a cool video too:

find this image on a:
iPhone4 Casing: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/sky-thief
Tee shirt: http://www.threadless.com/product/2000/Sky_Thief
website - http://www.flyingmouse365.com

enjoy!

vocal video

(a short clip of the vocal recording of "a bus to sunshine")

it's... a..... WRAP !!!

After 5 months of recording and full time editing, the tracks are done!!

It's a huge milestone and a sense of achievement as I saw the project materialize in front of my eyes (ears, actually) and turned from my imagination into something I can hear.
It sounds great, and it leaves me happy, relieved, satisfied and excited for the next steps.

Now that the tracks are done they are being sent to mixing, where the tracks are worked on a more technical, sound level to bring the most out of each track. I also enjoy the post-production process of playing with different effects to enhance my vision beyond just live instrumentation.

I've also been moving towards cover art, photos, and booking a CD release tour for June which is no small task! the music clubs are so overwhelmed with submissions it's very hard to get through to them, and the more dates I schedule, the more clubs to chase down!! there are companies doing all the stuff that i'm doing myself, but i haven't cracked yet - bring it on!

shh! i'm singing here!

wow, vocals.

Recording vocals is my achilles heel. Not because I can't do it, but because singing in the studio psyches me out.

When I perform, I gather a lot of strength and momentum from the stage, and the piano. But in the studio, everything is different, it's just me and a microphone, thinking of so many different elements and details at the same time and having a hard time finding that stage momentum.
The fact that I'm producing the songs too makes it hard to balance that analytical part with the fact that singers sound best when they don't think. I've always struggled to bring out a good performance in the studio, and with this record being so important to me it amped the nerves and neurosis.

But, I wasn't going to let it consume me, so I went to get some outside help.
I went to get some vocal recording tips from vocal coach Pam Wolfe, teaching out of Brandeis University. Pam is very perceptive and can pin point all those little things in technique, attitude and psyche that can hold a singer back.
After a lesson with her I've been continuing to practice and record at home, trying to learn how to immediately tap into the right place in my voice, confidence and lack of worry.
Also, I made an effort to be in a good mood, joke and laugh during the sessions. it helped.

My practice really paid off, as session by session I've been getting good takes with less time, and with more satisfaction. Even Andres, my husband and partner in crime who hears me on stage and recording all the time, proclaimed that this is "the best he heard me sing".

Conquering my studio singing bug was another huge achievement that this wonderful project has brought to me.
And now, only 2 more songs remain before the studio wrap up and continuing to post production and mixing.  Hurray!

Alongside with the recording, I'm also starting to plan my CD release tour for June and starting to think about cover art, which is what March is all about. More on that next time.

Happy love day!

Strings...

Wow, recording in winter in the Northeast could be a nightmare!

We had 3 sessions canceled due to the snowstorms and me getting sick... That set me way past the deadline I have made for myself and the label rep in me is pushing the artist in me to get back on schedule. So fun being a one person project...

But, I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and the songs are shaping up so beautifully.

Our string session was on Sunday Jan 23rd, and the UMass grad school quartet did a great job putting some soul into the project. It all started with me playing a show in which Julie (violin) played a killer version of Michael Jackson's "smooth criminal". I asked her to come play on the recording right then and there, and to bring her quartet along.

I always enjoy writing strings. I am extremely grateful for my string arranging background from my NYC days and especially Annie Gallup's album "Weather" that elevated my skills and musicality to a much higher degree. I was very happy to turn that experience to my own music and hearing it all come to life.

next, I only have vocals left! I am half way done and am hoping to wrap up the recording stage within a week or two. Please don't snow anymore, sky!!