new album

Posts Tagged ‘new album’

Gigging During a “Songwriting Phase”?

April 4th, 2011 | Author: Meghan Morrison

Advice needed…

I have been struggling for months now to find the best approach to holding and completing a successful “Songwriting Phase” with the goal of pulling together a new album. The albums I have put out to date have been pieced together, not written together and I want this one to be different.

I need advice. So, if you have an idea, philosophy, story or strategy that you think might help, please leave a comment below.

What is the best approach? Do I disappear from the gigging scene entirely and focus solely on writing new songs? Do I compromise and do one show per month to keep visible? I have a hard time saying no to shows when they are offered to me.

If I do shows, what songs do I play -old, new, or a blend? I want the new album to be a complete surprise when it comes out, but I don’t want to play the old songs anymore… at least not exclusively. Do I start playing cover songs? Won’t that take away from the time I could be spending working on the new songs? Maybe learning and studying covers will give me ideas for writing even better new songs…

Do I give myself a deadline? Or let it happen as it happens? Do I start touring and reaching other markets, building my fanbase with the old songs while writing new songs on the road? If I want to be a full time musician, I need to perform in order to have income.

Do I work on fleshing out older ideas that never were finished? Or do I start completely fresh and focus on where I am now as a person and songwriter? Can I accomplish both and still have a cohesive album? Am I thinking about this too much instead of just making it happen? Why am I so worried? Is this more important to me than it should be?

Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Meghan Morrison

www.meghanmorrison.com
@MegsMorrison

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Posted in Becoming an Indie Artist, Performing, Songwriting | Tags: approach, Gigging, new album, songwriting, Strategies | 9 Comments »

It’s Okay To Change The Plan … right?

March 14th, 2011 | Author: Meghan Morrison

Go with the flow, unless you’re caught in an undertow. In which case, it’s best to swim parallel to the shore until you’re out of it.

I learned that lesson the hard way back in 2003, when I went swimming in the Netherlands on a rather windy day and had to be rescued by surfers. Growing up near Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia (where people, usually tourists, drown because of the fierce waves) and spending many summers in Inverness (where ‘undertow’ is a season in August), it didn’t strike me as being that dangerous that day. My friends were out much further than I was and there were lots of people out riding the waves. I could see everyone laughing and having a good time, so why was I struggling to keep above the water?

Despite being raised in the Maritimes, I didn’t know you could swim out of an undertow. I thought you could only swim against it. That, however, is how you drown. You’ll never be stronger than the sea when it’s tugging, but you can get back to the shore if you’re clever enough to leave a different way than you came in.

That’s where I see myself right now. Back in January, I wrote about my plan for 2011. At the time, it made perfect sense and the vision was clear, so I dove in. I was starting to get pulled in deeper with commitments that were part of the plan, but full of relentless struggles and threats to my health and well-being. I decided I needed a different way out and then new options presented themselves; ones that weren’t part of the plan and would require me to take a leap of faith on my own. I chose this alternate path. The shore is still there … there is a little more distance to cross, but I’ll be in a much better condition when I get there.

In less obscure phrasing, since becoming recently unemployed and attending the Canadian Music Week conference this week, the band and I have decided to reschedule the CD release for the end of the summer. This will give me more time to strengthen my musicianship in writing for the album, as well as film projects, while building the webcast and button services into real businesses so that I can be self-sustaining and create jobs for other people too.

I’m feeling more resilient already :)