In the Mind of Nate

How's it going everybody? As this title may or may not imply, this is about trying to maintain consistency during the holiday madness (or Iron Maiden ) that I'm sure we are all breathing a sigh of relief that it's officially over. Don't get me wrong, we all know it's good to unwind a bit spend time celebrating with our friends and family. Although, for us ambitious types it has a way of throwing us off course no matter how hard we resist. Which is partly to blame for me not making an entry in almost two months. Since my last hiatus, I was trying diligently to stay consistent. And of course like most independent art forms, we have to be self-motivated. Knowing that there is no actual authoritative obligation (accept with my readers of course) I simply had to take a a pause til when I was comfortable to write. So here I am 😊. I'm usually not a big fan of year in review type things. But I must say, this year despite all of the low points. There h...

Hello, if you read my last post you'd know that I am in the middle doing our radio campaign. Debuting at #36 on the National Metal charts was very encouraging. However, these days it seems like for every one step forward you make, things either fall back or stay still. I know most people don't know or don't want to know the day in day out struggles that most musicians have these days in order to survive. On top of having a job outside the music industry, we have to write,rehearse and promote our music. But it is rewarding being stuck in the middle if these two worlds when things pan out. But when they don't and you are left with unsold merchandise,playing to an empty room or another band's audience asking yourself is this even worth it? Ironically,one time we played in the middle of a bill with two other local acts in Astoria,NY (I'd mention them by name but the douchebag hipsters don't deserve any publicity), I watched the first band and the headliner...

Hello everyone, at this point it wouldn't even be redundant to say I'm sorry that I haven't blogged in a while. It's nearly downright embarrassing that I haven't. Especially since this is the longest I have gone without making a new post. Ironically enough, I was planning on doing this post almost a year ago. So obviously a lot has gone on between now and then. We recently released a new album called "the Sorrows" and we've already done three out of town trips to perform. In the interim, we have parted ways with some bandmembers and gain new ones. One of which literally risked life and limb on one of the tours. The actions of our new drummer, Kenn Holley who came in literally one week before we were going to go out on the road are the complete opposite of the title of this post. I'm sure many of you recognize the title as a line from a song by The late great Tom Petty . He was certainly onto something, and that's not the only re...

Hello everyone. I know it's been nearly a month since my last entry. I have finally finished the Imbolg album. It is a great weight off my shoulders. Now I have plenty of work to do to promote the album and get the band back out performing shows. This has also meant that I am no longer working with the band Of beauty and Madness . As many of you know our lives have many turning points and things sometimes "run there course". However, it always best to see this early on and try to settle matters civilly as I had attempted to. Unfortunately, we have no control over the actions of others and my former partner at Forever Autumn Records and band mate grew to resent me due to his lack of time and inability to accomplish the things we had set forth to do together. I found myself taking on more responsibilities than I had bargained for and my efforts were unappreciated by all who are in the band, simply because they have never been in a band where two members are seasoned ...

Greetings people. With the warm-er weather now here(finally) it is harder to sit down and write on a Saturday, which is usually when I do it. However, I had plenty of work to do with the upcoming re-release of the Imbolg album and the release from Of Beauty and Madness , titled Litany . For a long time I have been focusing on my own band and felt that I would not be able to devote the proper attention to another musical project, however this has taught me a lot about the dynamics of being a part of a band, as a member and not being the leader. I must say in some ways it is a relief to not have that burden on my shoulders. Even with the process of getting this album ready, I saw how much of a well oiled machine a band can be. We had a friend create the album artwork,we designed the rest,with the exception of a photo taken by another friend. We placed the order for the cds and distribution, and fortunately one band member lives close enough to Discmakers and was able to pick the ...

Hello everyone, I know that I have been absent for awhile now. But in the midst of this incredibly long winter(that is officially over and refuses to die) It has been hard to go out and enjoy life, write or perform. Although I did manage to perform recently with my Bass player, Lynn Haze at the Dorian Gray party here in NYC(see pic below). I have been busy finishing up two releases, and a long work project so that I can fund the things I love doing. Not to mention the Indie Gogo campaign we created has been keeping me occupied. Like anything else it has been an uphill battle and in hindsight I wish I had done more research before beginning the campaign. However, We are still struggling to make our goal and those who donate will receive perks such as downloads, keychains that our bass player Lynn Haze is making custom, and the most popular perk : pre-ordered copies of albums from Imbolg and Of Beauty and Madness . You can find out more about our campaign and how you can contribute ...

Ok, I have been speaking about this for some time now. A few years back I put together a list of books and webpages I suggest for all independent artists. They will help you learn about the music business and make it easier for you further all your musical endeavors. I have read most of these books(really, I did. I'm not lying) and they can be found at the library and on sites like Ebay or Amazon. If anyone has any other books or webpages that you think are useful please let me know. I will start with the Books and include some webpages for the end. REFERENCE BOOKS The Indie Bible a book that is released yearly that has a list of contact information for record companies, radio stations, magazines, distributors and more that will work with independent bands. It is divided up Geographically and by Genre. The Music Atlas Another Yearly reference book. Not specifically geared towards independent artists. But does have many resources such as record labels and other informatio...

Hello all, I should be focusing on the fact that in a few hours I will be seeing one of my biggest musical influences live. I have seen them before, with original drummer Bill Ward. And yes, I am one of these people that get bent out of shape when a reunion is missing one member(maybe its just an OCD tendency,idk). By now you should have guessed that I am going to see Black Sabbath . So here I am putting on a You Tube playlist of songs from Sabbath(yes in hopes that it will help me get through this entry) recalling stories of how they wrote some of their albums in the studio and came up with one of their most popular songs, Paranoid on a whim only because they had an extra three minutes on the tape to record with. Like I may have stated in older entries, I discover Sabbath as a Child when my Uncle had been listening to them(even admitting to truly subconsciously screw me by putting headphones on me in my sleep lol). Nevertheless, they have been engrained in me and keep me wri...

Hello again everybody. These past few months have been intense, but finally the warm weather has returned! I think any simple change to break up the monotony of one's routine breathes new life into a person. I feel that I should have made this entry yesterday since it was the official start of Summer, with the Solstice and it being the longest day of the year. Nevertheless, shifting my focus off of my immeditae goals has allowed me to take a step back, absorb whats going on around me and let things happen organically. As I am approaching yet another Birthday(which I must admit usually makes me depressed)I decided to try and take a new mental approach to life. Now for an explanation on the title of this entry, Love,Love,Love it was simply something my group of friends had been repeating throughout the night. I took the oppurtunity to see a friend perform at Irving Plaza , with some other NYC bands. It was good go out and see people doing what they " Love " doing on su...