artists
You and Me Together
Tuesday 24 November 2015 LyricsNews
Part Two of the Smithfield Sessions is here!
And, as always, there is a journey to the story behind the music, which I want to take you on. (click ‘read more’ below for the whole story...)
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And, as always, there is a journey to the story behind the music, which I want to take you on. (click ‘read more’ below for the whole story...)
Read More...
Lyrics - Brave
Saturday 19 September 2015 LyricsLyrics
These lyrics were inspired by the Native American story, during our journey across the USA:
BRAVE
You are young, your fear finds my eyes,
I can taste it,
You have come, your gun in your belt,
And I pity
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BRAVE
You are young, your fear finds my eyes,
I can taste it,
You have come, your gun in your belt,
And I pity
Read More...
An Artist in Turmoil
Tuesday 08 September 2015 LyricsBlog
It has been a little bit too long since I last shared with you all...
And the reason?
Turmoil...
OK, perhaps that sounds a tad melodramatic, and it probably is. But the truth is, life has been largely unsettled and un-routined for the past several weeks. With moving back to Asia, starting a new school and picking up old projects, without a permanent place to stay or organised belongings, I have felt... to put it lightly, flustered...
And it has got me thinking about the parameters that I seem to require to be creative.
This isn’t to do with productivity; I can get things done, whether it is writing papers or moving projects forward or practicing scales.
It is more about creating the right environment, both internal and externally, to foster creative thinking and outputs.
One of the things that I have often found strange is my need to have a tidy and organised creative space. This feels in some ways atypical for an artist - the classic picture of the creative genius is one of a studio littered with sketches, semi-read books, coffee cups, notes, and the occasional odd sock or half eaten sandwich. My husband’s studio is often like this, a highly complex mass of cables and equipment, with several things piled up on and under and around the desk. I wonder how he can see through the chaos.
I also have to tick everything else off of my to-do list before I can give myself over to the wash of creativity that trying to be an artist requires.
In essence, I have to clear my physical and my mental slates.
And I wonder why.
Perhaps it is that I don’t assign enough priority to just taking time to create. Other needs become more pressing; I would love to call my mum, I need to pick up something for dinner, so-and-so is expecting me to send her my review... These things are important. But should they top the list and stop me from doing what I call my first passion?
Perhaps it is just a focus issue; my husband is able to (sometimes unwittingly) give 100% of his attention to whatever he is doing. It makes me jealous! I can’t help but be distracted by the nagging to-dos and visual anomalies that surround me.
Perhaps it is lack of routine; if there was a time and space that was repeatedly given to music and writing, maybe I would be able to look past the usual obstacles and get into the discipline of creating.
But I think, one thing has to be true for all of us who have to create: your space should be a little haven. It should be a stimulating and peaceful place, where art is glorified as the highest achievement. It should be somewhere that you long for, get lost in, a creative womb where your most spectacular ideas can be birthed.
In Hong Kong, it will be hard to devote a whole room to creative space since the number of square feet at my disposal will be severely limited!
But, I will find a perfect corner of our little home, and keep it sanctified as my little temple of creativity.
How do you set up yours?
And the reason?
Turmoil...
OK, perhaps that sounds a tad melodramatic, and it probably is. But the truth is, life has been largely unsettled and un-routined for the past several weeks. With moving back to Asia, starting a new school and picking up old projects, without a permanent place to stay or organised belongings, I have felt... to put it lightly, flustered...
And it has got me thinking about the parameters that I seem to require to be creative.
This isn’t to do with productivity; I can get things done, whether it is writing papers or moving projects forward or practicing scales.
It is more about creating the right environment, both internal and externally, to foster creative thinking and outputs.
One of the things that I have often found strange is my need to have a tidy and organised creative space. This feels in some ways atypical for an artist - the classic picture of the creative genius is one of a studio littered with sketches, semi-read books, coffee cups, notes, and the occasional odd sock or half eaten sandwich. My husband’s studio is often like this, a highly complex mass of cables and equipment, with several things piled up on and under and around the desk. I wonder how he can see through the chaos.
I also have to tick everything else off of my to-do list before I can give myself over to the wash of creativity that trying to be an artist requires.
In essence, I have to clear my physical and my mental slates.
And I wonder why.
Perhaps it is that I don’t assign enough priority to just taking time to create. Other needs become more pressing; I would love to call my mum, I need to pick up something for dinner, so-and-so is expecting me to send her my review... These things are important. But should they top the list and stop me from doing what I call my first passion?
Perhaps it is just a focus issue; my husband is able to (sometimes unwittingly) give 100% of his attention to whatever he is doing. It makes me jealous! I can’t help but be distracted by the nagging to-dos and visual anomalies that surround me.
Perhaps it is lack of routine; if there was a time and space that was repeatedly given to music and writing, maybe I would be able to look past the usual obstacles and get into the discipline of creating.
But I think, one thing has to be true for all of us who have to create: your space should be a little haven. It should be a stimulating and peaceful place, where art is glorified as the highest achievement. It should be somewhere that you long for, get lost in, a creative womb where your most spectacular ideas can be birthed.
In Hong Kong, it will be hard to devote a whole room to creative space since the number of square feet at my disposal will be severely limited!
But, I will find a perfect corner of our little home, and keep it sanctified as my little temple of creativity.
How do you set up yours?
Lyrics - You and Me Together
Thursday 13 August 2015 LyricsLyrics
I was looking through my old journals while I was in Seattle, and I realised that I had so many lyric ideas that hadn’t been developed into songs. So I gave this one a shot. Wish I could share a recording... will have to post it later!
If I met you all over again, what would be the first line in my head?
What emotion would spring out of me, would we cross paths uneventfully?
But no, how I’m certain, that certain things would surely come to be.
Your smile, your conversing would hit the target oh so accurately...
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If I met you all over again, what would be the first line in my head?
What emotion would spring out of me, would we cross paths uneventfully?
But no, how I’m certain, that certain things would surely come to be.
Your smile, your conversing would hit the target oh so accurately...
Read More...
Lyrics - Ten Days in June
Wednesday 29 July 2015 LyricsLyrics
My little girl has grown up fast,
The make up and the high heels and the glass,
Remember her first day of school,
The steps she took, her joy in all the rules?
She learned and grew and thrived and laughed,
Her braided hair fell long into her lap,
Miss curious they said of her,
She sought the question as much as its answer...
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Lyrics - The Badlands
Sunday 12 July 2015 LyricsLyrics
Rattle snake down by the lake,
Sound and size, subtle alarm,
Turning and seizing your prey,
Venomous, venomous...
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Song of the Week
Friday 26 June 2015 LyricsSong of the Week
Please Come Home - Gary Clark Jr.
The next Hendrix? Perhaps...
The solos in this live version of the slow, deep blues are intense journeys... you can’t have the volume loud enough!
But he doesn’t just play like a true master, his voice’s sumptuous vibrato and blissful falsetto rubs like silk against the grit of his raw guitar. And he keeps you hooked right until the last final, soulful, lingering lone tone.
The next Hendrix? Perhaps...
The solos in this live version of the slow, deep blues are intense journeys... you can’t have the volume loud enough!
But he doesn’t just play like a true master, his voice’s sumptuous vibrato and blissful falsetto rubs like silk against the grit of his raw guitar. And he keeps you hooked right until the last final, soulful, lingering lone tone.
Lyrics - Lush
Saturday 20 June 2015 LyricsLyrics
Made
Tuesday 16 June 2015 LyricsBlog
Do you remember when people just used to have two pairs of clothes: their working clothes and their Sunday Best?
There were no massive January Sales, no Black Friday, no walk in closets. And there were no sweatshops in Bangladesh, the Philippines or Venezuela to make our $7 t-shirts.
No, I don’t remember either...
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There were no massive January Sales, no Black Friday, no walk in closets. And there were no sweatshops in Bangladesh, the Philippines or Venezuela to make our $7 t-shirts.
No, I don’t remember either...
Read More...
Lyrics - Ants
Thursday 11 June 2015 LyricsLyrics
Just one, one of the ants in the hill,
One of the steps on the treadmill,
One of the tiles in the elevating wall.
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Do You Know Who You Are?
Tuesday 09 June 2015
“Do You Know Who You Are?”
This question sums up the struggle that we as artists face constantly, daily even, in creating authentic art for ourselves and our audiences.
And it was the question that I was asked by a music producer during our first meeting. It took me by surprise; perhaps I was hoping for some concrete advice, like “you need to work on this...” or “have you tried that...” or even “let me introduce you to...”.
But he simply asked me if I knew who I was.
I was surprised to find myself answering that Yes, I know who I am, and I think I could say with some clarity and conviction. In fact, I wouldn’t have been sitting in front of him if I didn’t know who I was. It is precisely because I know who I am that I have chosen to come on this journey and pursue music full time.
This question sums up the struggle that we as artists face constantly, daily even, in creating authentic art for ourselves and our audiences.
And it was the question that I was asked by a music producer during our first meeting. It took me by surprise; perhaps I was hoping for some concrete advice, like “you need to work on this...” or “have you tried that...” or even “let me introduce you to...”.
But he simply asked me if I knew who I was.
I was surprised to find myself answering that Yes, I know who I am, and I think I could say with some clarity and conviction. In fact, I wouldn’t have been sitting in front of him if I didn’t know who I was. It is precisely because I know who I am that I have chosen to come on this journey and pursue music full time.
But on the other hand, my authenticity has not been really tested or tried yet. I am sure that plenty of artists start out full of high ideals and unwavering commitment to the purity of their art form, but as time and opportunity and influence and responsibility and practicality keep pounding upon them, they are slowly worn down to just produce what sells, what is safe, what is expected.
Where does compromising your value as an artist start? If I change the structure of a song I write to make it more listenable by adding a chorus, is that compromising my value? If I adjust the melody to create a better hook, is that selling out? If I water down the lyrics to make it more acceptable, is that hiding my identity?
It is a fine line. And I hope it is one that tI walk for the rest of my life. Because it actually shows a deep commitment to making art that people want to access, as well as making art that rings true with my soul.
Creating requires that we look inside ourselves and examine what we find. I read a beautiful article that says “Creation requires us to dig deep within ourselves, to face the things we’d rather ignore, to confront our inner brokenness as well as the beauty stored up within.” And it necessitates knowing what we actually want to say through our work. Art without purpose is just form.
Art, like just about everything in life, is compromise.
But when you know who you are, you know the lines that you will not cross.
Lyrics - The Pioneers
Friday 29 May 2015 LyricsLyrics
As we have been driving down the East coast of the USA, I have been struck by what it must have been like to be among the explorers who first came across this land. The joy, the fear, the unknowns as they landed on her shores and started to chart out the land, started to build roads, not knowing how far or long or wide this land was. This song is about a young man on the ship.
Light comes to us, it lifts our heads.
We’re awake, we are ready, the waves are calm and steady.
But on this fair morning there’s a difference
Land ahoy, oh what inexplicable joy.
Land ahead, so they’re true - all the legends they said.
No port at which to land, our boots are wet with salty sand, there’s a newness to the pebbles.
Deserted to our eyes, but rich in all between the sea and sky.
And what lies inside?
We made it, we made it here.
There’s far to walk, but the seas are conquered.
Now mount your horse, go forth.
We set our compass, heading West.
How far could it be until we reach the Eastern edge?
I walk where no man has ever walked before.
Breathe the air, how it whispers through my hair,
Breathe it in deep, expectation in my feet.
No road for us to follow, we’re forgers blazing a hopeful trail, long and quiet and strong.
How could this land be here, waiting for us for all these years,
And what lies beneath?
We made it, we made it here.
There’s far to walk, but the seas are conquered,
Now mouth your horse, go forth.
Dare I go, dare I connect my soul with yours?
Dare I land upon the banks of your foreign shores?
For I am ill equipped, afraid, perhaps ashamed that you might not let me through your door,
And I’ll be left here in the wasteland,
But I long to cross your threshold,
Could I ever be so near, so bold?
Light comes to us, it lifts our heads.
We’re awake, we are ready, the waves are calm and steady.
But on this fair morning there’s a difference
Land ahoy, oh what inexplicable joy.
Land ahead, so they’re true - all the legends they said.
No port at which to land, our boots are wet with salty sand, there’s a newness to the pebbles.
Deserted to our eyes, but rich in all between the sea and sky.
And what lies inside?
We made it, we made it here.
There’s far to walk, but the seas are conquered.
Now mount your horse, go forth.
We set our compass, heading West.
How far could it be until we reach the Eastern edge?
I walk where no man has ever walked before.
Breathe the air, how it whispers through my hair,
Breathe it in deep, expectation in my feet.
No road for us to follow, we’re forgers blazing a hopeful trail, long and quiet and strong.
How could this land be here, waiting for us for all these years,
And what lies beneath?
We made it, we made it here.
There’s far to walk, but the seas are conquered,
Now mouth your horse, go forth.
Dare I go, dare I connect my soul with yours?
Dare I land upon the banks of your foreign shores?
For I am ill equipped, afraid, perhaps ashamed that you might not let me through your door,
And I’ll be left here in the wasteland,
But I long to cross your threshold,
Could I ever be so near, so bold?
Lyrics - Sail On
Monday 11 May 2015 LyricsLyrics
Sail On - I wrote this song sort of by accident! It was Valentine’s Day last year, and I didn’t have a present for Michal... so I sat down at the piano and thought I would record him a little verse and chorus.
But, of course, as soon as I sat down and started to try to sum up my Valentine’s Day emotions, it got deep... and it got intense!
So Sail On is the song that came out... it has become the title track of the album, a beautiful metaphor for love through the thick and thin.
--
I love it when you laugh, golden cheeks, golden sound.
Black pearl eyes, lights to all.
I love seeing what you see,
You hold my hands and gently guide me on to the sea.
Love is sailing on an ocean of trust and truth and tears and turning round.
And I will sail with you when it’s dark,
When my compass is stuck, when I’m all out of luck,
Sail on, sail on my sweet one.
I love it when we fight together for the same cause, winning wars,
Bringing light to what’s right.
I love it when we climb together to a new height,
Breathing in the sights we see.
Love is sailing on an ocean of trust and truth and tears and turning round.
And I will sail with you when it’s dark,
When my compass is stuck, when I’m all out of luck,
Sail on, sail on my sweet one.
But, of course, as soon as I sat down and started to try to sum up my Valentine’s Day emotions, it got deep... and it got intense!
So Sail On is the song that came out... it has become the title track of the album, a beautiful metaphor for love through the thick and thin.
--
I love it when you laugh, golden cheeks, golden sound.
Black pearl eyes, lights to all.
I love seeing what you see,
You hold my hands and gently guide me on to the sea.
Love is sailing on an ocean of trust and truth and tears and turning round.
And I will sail with you when it’s dark,
When my compass is stuck, when I’m all out of luck,
Sail on, sail on my sweet one.
I love it when we fight together for the same cause, winning wars,
Bringing light to what’s right.
I love it when we climb together to a new height,
Breathing in the sights we see.
Love is sailing on an ocean of trust and truth and tears and turning round.
And I will sail with you when it’s dark,
When my compass is stuck, when I’m all out of luck,
Sail on, sail on my sweet one.
Lyrics - Make It Right
Friday 01 May 2015 LyricsLyrics
“Make It Right” is the song from the album that I had never played to an audience before! It was a gamble as to whether I should include it on the album since it was so fresh to me and I felt like I was still getting to know it. But now I am so glad that I did.
I wrote the first part of the lyrics for this in January 2014 when we were in the mountains in Poland and were walking by the light of the moon, along the crest of a mountain between Poland and the Czech Republic. I had never known the moon to be so bright; it created the perfect light for our midnight walk and set the scene for a song that I would write months later. This song is about a couple who are fighting to save their relationship...
Read More...
I wrote the first part of the lyrics for this in January 2014 when we were in the mountains in Poland and were walking by the light of the moon, along the crest of a mountain between Poland and the Czech Republic. I had never known the moon to be so bright; it created the perfect light for our midnight walk and set the scene for a song that I would write months later. This song is about a couple who are fighting to save their relationship...
Read More...
Song of the Week
Tuesday 28 April 2015 LyricsSong of the Week
Stay Gold - First Aid Kit
This song is a little bit of an oxymoron. I have another favourite song by Sting that is this kind of oxymoron - it’s one of the saddest songs about failing as a father, but set to a deceptively uptempo country lilt.
Stay Gold is also wonderfully uplifting and upbeat. But it is about that one of the hardest questions that artists often face:
“What if our hard work ends in despair,
What if the road won’t take me there?”
The challenge is to stay gold. Stay true.
www.thisisfirstaidkit.com
This song is a little bit of an oxymoron. I have another favourite song by Sting that is this kind of oxymoron - it’s one of the saddest songs about failing as a father, but set to a deceptively uptempo country lilt.
Stay Gold is also wonderfully uplifting and upbeat. But it is about that one of the hardest questions that artists often face:
“What if our hard work ends in despair,
What if the road won’t take me there?”
The challenge is to stay gold. Stay true.
www.thisisfirstaidkit.com
Lyrics - Slow Down in Hong Kong
Wednesday 15 April 2015 LyricsLyrics
The dust settles, the dry air clears.
After months of stirring, we’re unfurling here.
The dust settles, I am still.
I am still in turmoil every second that passes my windowsill...
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After months of stirring, we’re unfurling here.
The dust settles, I am still.
I am still in turmoil every second that passes my windowsill...
Read More...