Phoenix of Tragedy Album “liner notes”

By the time I get the mics set up, I’m already feeling the pain and fatigue, playing a riff or a chord is already getting difficult for my hands and arms. And when you listen to this album and ask why the songs are so “dark” – this is your answer. Every session for this album involved some level of pain. Some more than others…

Even without physical ailments, making an album by yourself is difficult, to say the least. As the artist, producer & engineer I lose objectivity and after a working on it for so long. I start to second guess if the changes I’m making are improving the song or not. In the end I just sit back and follow where the song takes me and hope that it is sonically the best I can make it. At some point you just have to stop fucking tinkering. “Art is never finished, only abandoned.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Rise, you’re the Phoenix of Tragedy…

While this album wasn’t easy and it was painful, it sure as hell was fun to make, and I’m enjoying listening to the final mixes and sharing them with my friends and family. And, I realize as I type this from my desk at Bailey Park Studio, that I’m living the dream. I beat cancer, started a recording studio, and now I’ve finished my album… It’s kind of the theme of this album, rising up through tragedy and pain to become a fucking bird of fire.

I feel like I’m finally finding my true singing voice and my songs are developing into more complex and textured creatures than I could have imagined writing two years ago. And, even though the songs on this album are generally of the melancholy nature, you should know that I’m happier than I’ve ever been. I’ve got the love and support of an incredible woman, I still have this burning drive to create music & I have the studio to create the music in.