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You are here: Home / Archives for Amy Van Daele

About Amy Van Daele

Amy’s passion for music brought her to Los Angeles, California in 2013. She has a bachelor’s in Marketing from Rutgers University as well as a love for writing—both of which help her with her many roles at youbloom.

youbloom artist spotlight: Trevor Lyon

14-Sep-2015 By Amy Van Daele

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Introducing Trevor Lyon:

I had the pleasure of hearing Trevor Lyon’s performance last year at Griffin’s of Kinsale in South Pasadena, CA for youbloomLA 2014 and recently reconnected with him to find out more about him as an artist and what has been going on since the festival.

Both a solo artist and a band contributor, Trevor considers his music a “robust blend of Reggae infused with elements of Rock, Blues, Hip Hop and Jazz.” A Napa California native, Trevor can be found performing locally with his hometown band, The One Little Story Band—a collection of musicians he has met over his years of playing in Napa. It consists of a guitarist, a keyboard and flute player, a drummer, and Trevor contributes bass and vocals. But, because his band can generally not travel far or stay on the road for any length of time, Trevor often performs solo acoustic or even track shows (shows with a DJ instead of a band) when he is not in the Napa area. This freedom allows him to collaborate with other bands when he is on the road. This is how he first met Mendo Dope in 2012 when they approached him after a solo show in Ukiah, CA. They began performing together, which exposed the Mendocino County area to Trevor’s music and grew his fanbase there.

In 2013, Trevor joined the band, Mystic Roots as a backup bassist and special guest artist. He toured with them for about 8 months, traveling around Oregon and California and even opening up for Ziggy Marley at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. During this same time, Trevor played bass for a world fusion band called Cosmos Percussion Orchestra, playing many festivals including Bottlerock (Napa Valley, CA), Earth Day (San Francisco, CA), and Ashkenaz (Berkley, CA).

In the Spring of 2014, Trevor joined up with Irie Fuse from Marin County, playing bass for about 4 months in a ton of different shows in the area. But, Trevor began feeling the pull to focus on his own music again. He slowed down the rest of the year, playing with his own band and attending a few festivals (including ours!). After the festival, Trevor took some time off to enjoy some family time for the holidays. Nevertheless, he was able to push his holiday single (“Happy Holidays”) by Christmas (which you can find here).

In February of this year, things kicked back up for him and he played some acoustic gigs around the San Francisco Bay area. The momentum continued into Spring when Trevor played with his full band in venues including the Legendary Ashkenaz in Berkeley, CA. This summer, Trevor’s gigs ranged from playing solo acoustic shows to playing festivals with his whole band. The venues ranged from The Shrine World Music Venue in Harlem, NY to the Napa Porchfest in California. Now that the summer season is ending, Trevor has returned home and is focusing his attention on the studio.

One of Trevor’s studio projects began on September 7th in Mendocino County and took place (get this…) in the world’s first Ganja Tree recording booth. This is not the first time he has collaborated with cannabis culture Hip Hoppers, Mendo Dope. Trevor will be contributing guitar, bass and vocals on their album. This will be the first ever hip hop album that’s recorded inside a marijuana tree. We can’t wait to hear this one…

Additionally, Trevor is excited to begin recording his next EP entitled, “One Little Story.” This album will be a collection of reggae songs that Trevor has been playing live for quite a while, but has yet to lay down in the studio. He also has a second project in the works which is slightly more acoustic and has less reggae overtones. Though this project (tentatively called “When It’s Good) is currently an EP, Trevor explains that he is writing songs at such a rate, it may end up being an album. Besides recording and performing, Trevor is also working on branching out from his own merchandise items into building his own clothing line. And (as if that’s not enough), Trevor is working on building his own studio. “My main focus at first will be to have my own space to record anytime I wish, but I also want to write for and produce other artists.” Trevor knows it will take some time, but he is happy to begin the process and use the industry resources he has gathered over the years to make it happen.

You can stay informed of upcoming shows, albums, and other news here:

And you can find Trevor’s music on Itunes or Amazon

Filed Under: Artist Discovery, Fans, Featured Artist, Independent Musicians, youbloomLA

youbloom artist spotlight: Cousin Kate

25-Aug-2015 By Amy Van Daele

Cousin Kate

Isabelle Cott shared with us The Cousin Kate Fairytale:

“Once upon a time there were 2 girls in a womb. With both their parents singing, they, too sang before they spoke. And they kept singing growing up. But then the twins went separate ways as one of them, Corinna, was meant to meet Brian at the other side of the world. Brian taught himself to play the guitar when he was 14 years old. Corinna partnered up with Brian to write Cousin Kate’s music. Corinna’s twin, Isabelle, reunited with her sister after a few years; following her to the other side of the world. The voice of Cousin Kate was redefined.

Haim, who became a drummer as a child, has been with the 3 of them since the beginning. Suzanne, on bass, grew up first playing the oboe and drums, until one day a band member left his bass at her house, making her realize that this instrument was her destiny. Tracie first played the piano before starting to play the Cello at 12. With extensive experience as composer and orchestrator, she beautifully harmonizes her Cello with the twins’ voices.” But, the story does not end there!

youbloom became part of their story when they joined us for youbloom@LA last year for both the festival and the conference. Up until this point, they were a band of four and would hire additional musicians when they were invited to play live. It wasn’t until our festival that Isabelle Cott, Corinna Cott, Brian Florian and Haim Russi decided they needed to complete the band. So, as fairytales go, they met their perfect complements in Suzanne Birrell and Tracie Turnball.

Aside from the musical talent of the group, what gives Cousin Kate such a magical quality is the meaning and the motivation behind the music. “The way we see the world is that our word and thoughts create our reality. Therefore, what we think about and hear (consciously and unconsciously) affect our experience,” explains Isabelle. Cousin Kate’s music is about connections, appreciation, and love. They incorporate positive messages into their lyrics and have even created a new genre called MAP—Melodic Alternative Pop with positive lyrics.

The majority of the band’s 100+ song repertoire was created by Brian forming a melody, Corinna creating the vocal melodies and lyrics, and Isabelle adding in the harmonies. Their sound has been likened to Sixpence None the Richer, The Cranberries, and The Beatles. Take a listen to their song “The Thinker” here.

Since youbloomLA, Cousin Kate has been working on their new album which is scheduled to release in November. What is most exciting for them about this album is that this will be the first album that will include Suzanne and Tracie. As with their last album, “Life Without Fear,” the songs will be placed in an order as to tell a story. In addition to the studio recording they are doing, the band plans to release some of their live music as well, either incorporating it into the album or releasing a live album.

Cousin Kate is also very enthusiastic about their first cover song. We tried to get it out of them, but they are being very secretive… However, they did say that it is a well-known song that coincidences with the messages portrayed in their own music. They will also be inviting a couple guest performers on the track (they aren’t giving any hints!).

If you would like to continue following this fairytale that is Cousin Kate, sign up for their newsletter on their website, friend them on Facebook, and follow them on Twitter.

Filed Under: Artist Discovery, Artists, Featured Artist, youbloomLA

youbloom artist spotlight: James Houlahan

03-Aug-2015 By Amy Van Daele

James-Houlahan-youbloom
Pull up a chair and kick back with us as we chat with youbloom artist James Houlahan about his new album, Multitudes, which is set to release this October.

“I aim to release the new album in October of this year, and I launched a Kickstarter campaign to help finance the release of the album. Hopefully there will be enough support for a vinyl release. I’d really love to present my music to the world in that format. But we’ll see how it goes…”

Can you tell me more about Multitudes and how it compares to the two previous albums?

“My first album Seven Years Now contains mostly songs that reflect personal experiences. And the second album “misfit hymns” contains songs about characters, some of which were fictional and some who were real, like Janis Joplin. For some reason, I thought there needed to be a line drawn there. Between the personal and the fictional/imagined. But the more I write, the more these two elements are blending together. To the point where I no longer care what is actually true in a historical sense (e.g., whether something actually happened to me personally or not). I find myself getting lost in the stories of other people, of experiences I can only imagine, of dreams where I’m not sure where reality begins and ends…and I’m inextricably bound up within these songs to the point where I’m no longer interested in how they relate to me, personally. I hope that makes sense! In short, I don’t really know who I am anymore, and I absolutely love it.

“I wasn’t sure how to choose songs for the new album until I remembered the lines from Walt Whitman: “Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I contradict myself. I am large. I contain multitudes.” And those lines made perfect sense to me (as well as provided me the album title!) So the new album has songs that combine the personal with the fictional in this multitudinous way. It’s also a little darker, a little more rock than the other two. There’s much less acoustic guitar, and there’s a lot of drum sounds! I was really interested in pursuing multiple textures of percussion. I’ve gotten much better at singing too, but I’ve still got a long way to go there. Anyway, there’s lots of differences, but I think it’s all for the best.”

What does your creative process look like when writing songs/recording an album?

“I tend to hear completed songs in my head. Like from a radio somewhere… Often the signal is not coming in perfectly, and I only get fragments. Sometimes I’ll write those down and work them later into a more complete shape. But the best songs tend to hit me all at once. Usually the chorus first, if I’m lucky. (Choruses are harder to write than verses). Sometimes they just appear in my head at the worst times, like when I’m driving on a crowded freeway or in line at the supermarket. But thankfully my iPhone is usually handy and I record them as voice memos. I find that the songs I end up recording more formally, in the studio, are generally the most insistent. Their presence in my inner ear is not to be denied. If all songs are like children, then the ones I record on an album are those that are crying loudest for my attention.

“When it comes to recording, I want to bring in other musicians and let them get inspired. I do tend to offer some guidance here and there, but I think what we’re really searching for is to capture a moment of magic. Something that sounds both spontaneous and composed at the same time. Lightning in a bottle. It’s really hard to set up the environment in which that happens, but it helps to keep an open mind. And to surround yourself with very talented players who can see your ideas and take them even further than you imagined. It’s good to have a plan or a map, but then be prepared to throw away that map when you no longer need it.”

What is it like to be in the studio with you?

“It’s like we are hunting something, searching for something, everyone together. It’s dark, and we’re not really sure where we’re going. But we’ve been hunting before and we know what it’s like to pick up the scent of something worth pursuing. But sometimes things get really weird and we’re not sure anymore that we are the ones doing the hunting. Maybe after all, we are the ones being pursued! Ha ha… But really, it’s a kind of strange blend of craft and magic, being in the studio. All of your past experience bubbles right back to the surface. But at the same time, it’s challenging and even a little disconcerting. Overall though, I love being in the studio, chasing those sounds. If I have ever experienced anything like a true sense of belonging in this world, it has been during moments in the studio. I know that might sound grand and mystical, but to me it’s just plain fact. I just love making music!”

How long did the album take to create and record? Tell us a bit more about that as well.

“I was writing and planning the record ever since I moved to L.A. from Boston about three years ago. Some of the first few songs actually appeared to me on the trip across the U.S., so it’s been in the works for a while. But late last year (November), I went in to Veneto West studio in Santa Monica with producer Ronan Chris Murphy. We brought in the amazingly talented Mike Gattshall on drums (The Letters Home, Rivermaker, Hot Sauce Holiday) and the musical maven Fernando Perdomo (Dreaming in Stereo, Linda Perhacs, The Dirty Diamond) on bass. We cranked out a bunch of basic tracks and started there. Due to the difficulties of my schedule and the others involved, we had to space out the tracking over many months. We ended up bringing in a whole bunch of other great players like Danny Frankel (Lou Reed, K.D. Lang) on percussion, Kaitlin Wolfberg on violin, and Danny Levin on horns. But now we’re in the mixing process and I hope to have it mastered before September.”

What advice can you give to emerging artists beginning the process of recording an album? What have you picked up along the way through your experience?

“Whether you’re making a whole album, or just recording a few tunes, I think the most important thing is to have good songs. I ended up not attempting a debut album until several years after I had started writing and performing, and I think that made the eventual album a better collection of songs. I was able to kinda process and discard a lot of material along the way…basically I had to write maybe 10 bad songs to get one good one! And then I grew loyal to those tunes and played them for people as much as I could. So I think it’s good to get the songs out there and get audience’s feedback.

“The other thing I would say is that, regardless of budget, it really helps to know how you want the music to sound in terms of production. If you don’t know, then just keep it simple. And be careful with who you work with in terms of engineers, producers, etc. It needs to be a good creative collaboration. When that relationship is not well developed, the music can suffer badly. Where, at the end, one is dissatisfied with all the artistic choices made along the way…it really pays off when you’re working with people who inspire you and who you can trust. Did you ever hear how Leonard Cohen got locked out of the studio during “Death of a Ladies’ Man” by crazed producer Phil Spector? They could not agree on anything and Spector started threatening Cohen with a gun. Eventually, Cohen was shut out of the production of his own album. Yeah, that’s an extreme case, but it highlights the need for that relationship to be productive. Having the right people around you is crucially important.”

Check out some of James’s tunes: “New World Blues” and
“The Party Goes On”

Learn more about James, listen to his music, and see his gig schedule on his official website. Any of his prior albums can be purchased here.

Filed Under: Artist Discovery, Featured Artist, Interviews

youbloom artist spotlight: Jamey Geston

19-Jul-2015 By Amy Van Daele

Jamey-Geston-youbloomLA
Jamey Geston is another successful artist who was chosen to play at youbloomLA last year. Based in Santa Barbara, this teenage singer/songwriter was no amateur to performing at festivals prior to coming to ours. Just last year, in addition to youbloomLA, she has played at BandFest (Carpinteria, CA), Fusion Music Festival (Paramount Ranch, CA), Los Olivos Arts Festival (Los Olivos, CA), Meiner Oaks Summer Solstice (Ojai, CA), and the Santa Barbara Int’l Women’s Festival (Santa Barbara, CA)… just to name a handful.

Jamey began playing guitar at ten years old and then self-taught herself the piano, ukulele, and bass. She began songwriting at eleven, inspired by artists such as Elliott Smith, King Krule, The Mamas and the Papas, Joni Mitchell, and Mac Demarco.

For having such a short career, she has been incredibly successful and noticed by industry professionals like Bob Leggett of the LA Examiner who calls Jamey “a dynamic performer and a prolific songwriter” or Judy Collins who says “Jamey is a darling and so talented, a beautiful young artist and singer.”

Jamey has shared the stage with talented artists including Jeff Bridges, Kenny Loggins, and Will Champlin as well as opened for award-winning folksinger, Judy Collins, legendary musician, Peter Frampton, and Grammy-winning guitarist, Albert Lee. She has played in venues across California and Arizona, some notable venues include the world-famous Roxy and Whisky A Go Go.

Already by 2013 she was a featured artist in Santa Barbara Band Guide as one of “The 805’s Next Great Music Makers.” Two of her songs have been chosen to appear in films, earning her two IMDb composer and music credits and she is currently endorsed by Daisy Rock Girl Guitars, Steve Clayton Guitars Picks, Shubb Capos and Capturing Couture Guitar Straps.

This year has been no less eventful for this young musician. She was invited back for the third consecutive year to play at the Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim, CA. She was also selected to work with Mary Amato, an award-winning children’s book author, poet, playwright, and songwriter, on an audio/video rendition of her book, Get Happy. Jamey will be the voice of the main character as well as a contributor on the six ukulele songs included.

She also worked this year on creating a teen band for a ‘Notes for Notes’ fundraiser sponsored by Seymour Duncan. At the show this past June, the band opened for Peter Frampton and featured her original song, Malibu. Within the same month, a Bob Dylan compilation cd (Dylan, By A New Generation) Jamey contributed on was released.

Now that school is out for the summer, Jamey is able to focus more on her music and on the EP she hopes to complete within the next year. When she isn’t recording, she will be playing various different shows and festivals. Take a look at what she has scheduled so far:

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More details and music over here.

Filed Under: Artist Discovery, Artists, Featured Artist, Independent Musicians, youbloomLA

youbloom artist spotlight: Little Faith

13-Jul-2015 By Amy Van Daele

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Last year at youbloomLA, we had the pleasure of hosting Little Faith who introduced us to their jazz-, blues-, and country-flavored gospel. Recently, we spoke with Jack Maeby, organ and piano player for Little Faith, to talk about the band’s experience at the festival and to see what they’ve been up to since.

“I think that you could consider Little Faith one of youbloom’s success stories,” Jack Maeby said. “[youbloom LA] was a great experience! Not only was there a lot of good music, the conferences were filled with very useful knowledge from successful industry people. It’s been an upward trajectory for Little Faith ever since. Thanks to our appearance at youbloomLA, a really strong article was written about us in the Pasadena Weekly.”

After the festival, Little Faith began work on their new album, “Eternity.” One night when they were performing, producer and musician Michael Baker was in the crowd and afterwards, said that he would like to produce their next effort. Though Ray and Jack are both experienced producers, Michael has worked with some of the greatest singers of all time including Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin. “He had a lot of ideas that we never would have come up with and the new record, ‘Eternity’ is a big step forward for Little Faith,” explained Jack.

Once the album was completed, Little Faith planned to shop it around to different labels and do some industry showcases to promote it. About this time, Little Faith performed a 3-song set at a memorial concert for a friend. Unbeknownst to them, Tony Valenziano of Skyrocket/Swingtone Records was also at the concert producing a video of the event. About a month after the show, he called and asked if they were planning to record anything in the near future. They told him about “Eternity” and were shortly thereafter signed by Skyrocket to a worldwide distribution and marketing deal.

After such a momentous year, and a lot of prior experience, Little Faith wanted to share some things they have learned along the way:

“Play as much as possible. Stage time is what makes you a better performing artist, so you have to look hard to find venues and audiences to play for.” Jack explains how you never know when the right agent or producer is going to hear you perform. “You should play every performance as if the head of a great label is sitting in the front row. Show respect for your audience and venue by giving your best, showing up on time and by looking like a performer.” Also, he explained it is really important that bands have a clear understanding of everyone’s role in the group with regard to songwriting and concept. That way, if you are approached, you can be ready and appear as professional as possible.”

Little Faith will be at Joe’s Great American on August 23 and at the Ascencia Urban Blues Festival on August 29th. Their album, “Eternity” will be released in late August on the Sky Rocket/Swingtone label. There will be a pre-release campaign on the Pledge Music site where you can purchase the CD as a pre-sale starting August 1st.

Filed Under: Artist Discovery, Artists, Featured Artist, Independent Musicians, youbloomLA

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