Misner & Smith on Good Day Sacramento!
We have to thank the great people at Good Day Sacramento for having us on the show to play live and talk about our roles in Sacramento Theatre Company's production of The Grapes of Wrath. Check out our spots on the show, we played "Wayfaring Stranger" and later our own "Tamalpais".
Misner & Smith performing "Wayfaring Stranger"
Misner & Smith perform their song, "Tamalpais" from their recent release Seven Hour Storm.
Marcus Crowder interviews M&S for The Sacramento Bee
"It’s not easy to find professional actors as well-versed in William Shakespeare and Tom Stoppard as they are in Woody Guthrie, but Misner and Smith are."
Read all about Sacramento Theatre Company's upcoming production of Steinbeck's epic America tale The Grapes of Wrath in Marcus Crowder's in-depth article in The Sacramento Bee. Included in the article is our interview with Marcus about our roles in the show as actors and musicians playing live music throughout the play.
"Guthrie’s style inspired the original music written specifically for this show. 'It was telling stories, but not as pop music or music that’s gonna make a bunch of money but to communicate a story, in a catchy way,' Misner said."
Kirk Blackinton as 'Tom Joad' and Laura Kaya as 'Ma'. Barry Wisdom Photography
“ 'There’s something really grounding about having live instruments played onstage by live people during the play,' Smith said."
Read entire article and more about this show at Sacbee.com
WOODY GUTHRIE'S AMERICAN SONG RETURNS!
We're bringing it back! WOODY GUTHRIE'S AMERICAN SONG official cast recording - live at the Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse - will be released this July!
Help our producers raise the last bit of funds they need to get this double album off the ground! Visit their Indiegogo campaign to donate and become a part of this amazing project!
Every little bit helps! Give if you can and share this video with your fellow music lovers.
We will all be reuniting at the Freight this July 17-20 for a limited run of the production - four nights only!
Get your tickets here: Freight & Salvage July Calendar
PopMatters Premieres Official Seven Hour Storm Video
Click this image to watch the premiere of our official Seven Hour Storm video!
Thanks to the good people at PopMatters for premiering our official music video for SEVEN HOUR STORM directed by San Francisco filmmaker Deb Tullmann and starring two of our favorite little friends! Check it out and tell us what you think!
Misner & Smith featured on Empty Sea Studios' new ROOTS CHANNEL
Watch the whole concert here at The Roots Channel!
The good folks at Empty Sea Studios have launched their brand new ROOTS CHANNEL where you can sign up to watch live shows direct from their state-of-the-art listening room in Seattle! Our CD release show from last October is now being featured on their site! They've also just premiered a video of our song "Seven Hour Storm" from the concert that night. To watch the concert in it's entirety visit The Roots Channel and sign yourself up! Here's a little taste, let us know what you think!
KRCB's CD of the Week is Seven Hour Storm!
Photo by Rik Keller Photography
Seven Hour Storm is KRCB's CD of the Week! Check out our interview with Brian Griffith and don't forget to grab your FREE DOWNLOAD of our tune Lovers Like Us! Thanks to KRCB, we love you guys!
CD of the Week: Misner & Smith's Seven Hour Storm. Download the Free Track, "Lovers Like Us"
"Next Time Around" - Stories Behind the Song
San Francisco, California
Megan on "Next Time Around" -
"Each song has so many stories behind it, but this is a very special one for both of us. Sam wrote this song after we had a very moving experience playing a house concert for a family that have since become dear friends of ours. We learned a lot from them about how to celebrate life in the face of losing a loved one - how to sing together through that pain. "Next Time Around" is a joyous song, and like most of our songs we tried to fill it with hope.
As Sam was first writing it he asked me if I'd like to try singing lead. Singing lead vocals has not really been my focus. As a vocalist I've spent more time practicing and enjoying the craft of harmony singing. From an early age singing songs with my sister in our shared bedroom, then holding down the alto parts in my High school and college choirs, I developed a keen ear and a deep love for singing the 'other' part. But this song was a chance for me to stretch myself and try something new, with Sam's encouragement I gave it a shot.
When we recorded this song for the album a lot of attention was paid to the concept that this was a tune we could build up gradually with the arrangement. Starting with the thumping kick beat (that was my fist against the back of the bass), then the hand claps from Sam and I & Bruce and Jeff, crunchy electric guitar (again by Bruce), then layering in the tickling ivories and organ by the incomparable John R. Burr. We added instruments slowly and built to the splashy Tom Waits-y drums provided by the very talented John Hanes for the very last refrain,
'So, please don't weep when I've gone, when I've gone ...' "
"Miles Away" - Stories behind the Song
**This month we're doing a sort of 'behind the music' thing. Looking at each song on Seven Hour Storm and telling some of the stories behind the creation of the music. Head over to our facebook page Misner & Smith to see all. Here's the first installment.**
Sam on Miles Away -
"Miles Away was the last song to be written for the album, and actually was based on something that I'd written when I was about 18. I rediscovered it on an old cassette tape I'd made back then and decided to try to re-imagine it, keeping a couple of the lyrics, and letting the music spur the new ones.
Unexpectedly, as we started recording it some of the lyrics began to embody what we were experiencing in the studio. 'For whatever else we're after/there's no finish line or prize' Trying to trust in the process, and trying to remember that there wasn't a "correct" way to approach the music--we were exploring. The meaning is in the journey.
Our graphic designer, Kyle Monhollen (2407 Graphics) responded to one of the lines in the song, too--'There are only two directions/To wither or to grow'--and incorporated it into the album design. As far as the placement at the end of the album, it seemed fitting to end with a song about looking back, reflecting on what came before.
Also, in a world of instant gratification it's so easy to forget that meaning can change and deepen over time. 'You may not hear the first time/You have to listen twice'."
-- Take a listen once or twice, leave your thoughts, and share - if you're into that. :)
Misner & Smith LIVE WEBCAST Friday, October 25th
Direct from Seattle, Washington! Tune in October 25th at 8pm PST for a full concert with Misner & Smith Webcast Live from Empty Sea Studios! Get advanced tickets for the webcast now by clicking below!
Misner & Smith live in-studio performance on Jefferson Public Radio
If you missed our in-studio performance/interview with Eric Teel on Jefferson Public Radio's Open Air you can still hear it in it's entirety on JPR's archives here:
Misner & Smith Live Session on Jefferson Public Radio's Open Air
Thanks to Eric Teel for a great interview and for these photos!
'The Making of Seven Hour Storm'
A short look at the making of our fourth album, Seven Hour Storm. This video includes footage and photos from our time in the studio as well as insight into the choices that were made beyond the recording, the cover art, photos, and the other artists that we collaborated with while making this album.
SEVEN HOUR STORM: Available everywhere now!
Seven Hour Storm is out now!
Seven Hour Storm has been officially released and is available everywhere now! Pick yourself up a copy and then head out to one of our upcoming shows so we can personalize it just for you!
“Seven Hour Storm is full of riches –”Lost and Found,” a beautiful and tranquilizing ballad, brings to mind Gillian Welch and David Rawlings’ harmonies, while songs like “Tamalpais” and “Next Time Around” showcase the pair’s upbeat folk-rock style.”
- American Songwriter Magazine
“Seven Hour Storm brims with delicate, lovely songs and the exquisite harmonies. Close your eyes and let the music whisk you away.”
- San Jose Mercury News
“Misner & Smith’s Seven Hour Storm is honest and authentic, yet still contemporary. The pair met when performing as actors, and worked together on the play Woody Guthrie’s American Song. Guthrie would be proud of what he inspired.”
- Detroit Metro Times
HAPPY RELEASE DAY!
Seven Hour Storm is officially available TODAY! Celebrate with us, join us for a concert/chat live from our living room today @ 1pm PST! Post comments/questions to our facebook page and chat about the new album!
Watch on Facebook here: VIDEO WEBCAST ON FACEBOOK
Watch on Google + here: VIDEOCAST ON GOOGLE +
Seven Hour Storm premieres on American Songwriter Magazine!
American Songwriter Magazine premieres an exclusive first listen of Seven Hour Storm! Listen to the free stream of the full album available now right here:
Album Premiere: Misner & Smith, Seven Hour Storm
Check it out, share the link, and leave a comment. Let us and the whole world know what you think of the new music!
Photo by Rik Keller Photography
The Countdown Begins!
Only 33 days 'til the storm!
We're counting down to the official release of Seven Hour Storm on October 15th and things are getting pretty exciting! We've got some great CD release shows scheduled as well as a couple of great tours including dates in Oregon, Washington, and Colorado!
Since we began this journey over a year ago we've both learned so much about how the music industry works now and all of the details and moving pieces that go into releasing an album independently. It's probably true that those of you who are close to us have heard us say that we've never worked this hard on anything in our lives. Yup, that's still true! And we're so proud of the results!
When we started making this record we knew some about making a studio album but with the support of our fans, friends, and family, we had a budget to really stretch ourselves and experiment during the recording process. We'd never worked with a producer either and we were so lucky to have San Francisco's Jeff Kazor (Richard Buckner, The Crooked Jades), as well as our sound engineer Bruce Kaphan (American Music Club, David Byrne, R.E.M., The Black Crowes). They both approached the project with such creativity and integrity. The result of working with professionals like Jeff and Bruce was that we learned volumes about ourselves, our music, and what we were committing to with this new record.
One of the best things about this project has been all of the fine artists we've been able to collaborate with. Coming soon we'll be sharing our very first music video!
Deb Tullmann is at the helm on this part of the Seven Hour Storm project. And judging from her formidable talents as an independent filmmaker we're in for a beautiful piece of visual art to pair with the title track of the new record.
M&S Music video coming soon ...
San Francisco - based filmmaker Deb Tullmann captures a shot for our upcoming music video for the title track, 'Seven Hour Storm'. We're thrilled to be working with Deb on this project! There will be more on this later ... as well as who the handsome young fellow is in this picture. ❖
And we'll also be sharing another video very soon about the making of Seven Hour Storm. This video will chronicle our journey on this album and will include footage from our time in the studio, as well as behind the scenes stories about how it all came together!
The Making of Seven Hour Storm ...
Stay tuned for our upcoming behind the scenes video on the making of Seven Hour Storm. Including previews of some of the tracks off of the new album and footage of our time in the studio working with our producer Jeff Kazor and our sound engineer Bruce Kaphan. ❖
The Storm is coming ....
It's been a year, almost to the day when we launched our fundraising campaign for our new album, Seven Hour Storm. Looking back we both feel so much gratitude to everyone who helped us make this journey. We could not have done it alone and as we are finally able to see the proverbial light at the end of this particular tunnel Seven Hour Storm has become something that is so much bigger than us, and we are so excited to share it with all of you. The Storm is indeed on its way.
Seven Hour Storm - Album art by Kyle Monhollen 2407 Graphics
Update for contibutors to Misner & Smith's upcoming album 'Seven Hour Storm'
Dear Friends, Fans, and Supporters of Misner & Smith,
Well, to sum it up in three words: WE MADE IT!!!
The fundraiser for the recording and release of our upcoming new album "Seven Hour Storm" was a smashing success! And we couldn't have done it without all of you! We were blown away and humbled by the support that came in from far and wide. Thank you all for your contributions, and for sharing the fundraiser with your friends. We reached our goal on September 14th--coincidentally, Sam's birthday. Yes, it's certainly a leading candidate for 'best birthday ever'....
Three days after the fundraiser officially ended Misner & Smith headed out on a three-week tour in England, playing several sold out shows around the country with our good friends Breeze & Wilson, and we even made our debut on BBC Radio! Check out a video of the performance here: Misner & Smith on BBC radio.
Now that we're back in the States we wanted to give you all an update on how things are progressing with the album thus far. Future updates will be posted on our fundraiser page, as well as on our facebook page and blog. In the meantime, here's what's happening:
~ Studio dates:
We've booked about 10 days in the studio in January, and we're very excited to get started recording. Conversations with our producer and recording engineer have already begun on how we're going to go about the work--and we can't wait! There's nothing like having a great creative team!
~ The Timeline:
We're aiming to release the album sometime in the spring of 2013. It may seem like a long way off, but the truth is, there's a lot of hard work ahead. We want to do this album justice, and to give this collection of songs the attention we believe they deserve. A lot of discovery happens in the studio, and we want to make sure that we honor that process. In this world of instant gratification there is a tendency to rush a final product to press before it's ready. What your support for this album has done--and will do--is allow us the budget to take the time needed to truly make the record we've set out to make from the beginning. And to surprise ourselves along the way.
~ Perks:
Perks will be sent out/delivered about two weeks before the official release. If handwritten lyrics and/or songbooks were a perk for your contribution, please email us with your choices of songs at info@misnerandsmith.com by November 10th. If we haven't heard from you by then we'll just assume that you want us to surprise you...Those of you who will be hosting house concerts will be contacted individually to discuss details.
Thank you in advance for your patience and support as we begin this long process. It's going to be quite a journey, and having each and every one of you in our corner means more to us than we can possibly put into words . We truly couldn't do this without you! If you have any questions you can email us at info@misnerandsmith.com.
We'd also like to invite you to join our email list, if you aren't already on it. We send out show announcements and other updates about once a month, and it's the best way to stay up to date with our music and tours. We'll also be posting updates and pictures on our Facebook page, so you can find us there too! Click on the links below to join the fun!
Misner & Smith email list signup
Misner & Smith official Facebook page
That's the story for now....We can't thank you enough for your support on this project. We're thrilled to have the best fans in the world--and we can't wait to share the new music with you! Off we go....
~ Sam and Megan
Hello dear friends and music lovers!
This has already been a very busy and successful summer for Misner & Smith and we're very proud of all that we've accomplished. Now we humbly ask for your help, join us as we take our music to the next level!
Our NEW album, 'Seven Hour Storm' is already moving forward! We spent four days of intense work with our producer Jeff Kazor (The Crooked Jades, Richard Buckner) and our sound engineer Bruce Kaphan (David Byrne, R.E.M., The Black Crowes) and completed pre-production for the new album, 'Seven Hour Storm'. The sessions were full of inspiring ideas and plans for the shape and sound of the new music!
TODAY we launch our fundraising campaign to raise the money needed to complete this project. It is our most ambitious album yet and we're very excited to share it with you! There are also many perks or 'thank you gifts' available at every level of donation. Every dollar counts and gets us closer to our goal of finishing this album. You can also help us tremendously by spreading the word and sharing this information with your friends and family by email or on social networks like facebook and twitter.
We are using the online fundraising platform of Indiegogo.com. This is a secure website that will handle all contributions made to our campaign. Please let us know if you have any questions about Indiegogo or how it all works.
When you contribute to this project you become a part of of this album and with the simple act of giving you are directly funding art that you believe in. Join us on this journey and become part of this next chapter for Misner & Smith!
All of our gratitude!
Sam and Megan
~Misner & Smith~
How can a 'little' band get bigger?
The new album, "Seven Hour Storm" is taking shape already! We've had four days of 'pre-production' sessions with our producer Jeff Kazor, our Sound Engineer Bruce Kaphan, and our full band - Henry Misner (Cloud Season) on electric guitar and Rob Bayne (When the Billionaire Plays Guitar) on drums!
We spent four days over two weeks in Bruce Kaphan's studio in beautiful Niles, CA and came away with some gorgeous demos and lots of amazing ideas for the upcoming album, "Seven Hour Storm".
The first day consisted of deep discussion about the direction of the new album, we asked lots of questions and brainstormed about how we can broaden the scope of our music for this new offering. We also devoted time to mic testing, choosing the perfect mics to capture the sounds of our vocals and instruments. The results were amazing, on the second day of pre-production we recorded demo versions of the songs that are slated to be on the album as it is now in live takes. Then we listened back to what we'd been able to capture. The sound is immaculate, a beautiful snap shot of our full sound as the duo.
This is the question we get most about this new album and it's a great one.
Over the last eight years we've put out three full-length albums of original music. Halfway Home and Poor Player were both recorded in a studio as live takes, we played the songs live and the sound engineer captured our performances without any "over-dubbing" or adding extra tracks of instruments and vocals. And of course our live album Live at the Freight & Salvage was an amazing experience and captured a truly unique and electric night of live performance in a state-of-the-art acoustic concert hall with a full audience. It also gave us the rare opportunity to pre-release three of the songs that are to be included on our new album to give our audiences a glimpse into the near future of our musical direction. We're very proud of all our albums and all that we've accomplished because of them and now we're ready to try something new! Our imaginations are teeming with more musical ideas than four hands and two voices can produce on their own. The songwriting and specifically the lyrics of our new songs are filled with stories and characters that beg for musical exploration, these new songs are pushing us to dig deeper into our music than ever before. We're looking forward to getting the chance to really flesh out those musical ideas and bring them to fruition with this new album.
Now it's nearly time to launch our BIG fundraising campaign to get the funds together to make this album the most ambitious project we've tackled yet!
How can a little band get bigger? With tons of exposure and buzz!
We take a lot of pride in our music and how hard we work to craft and shape it into something that music lovers can really enjoy on a deep level. But, it takes lots of money to push through all the information that this modern world has to offer and get our new music above the fray. A well-recored/produced album can make all the difference to a first time listener who has the clout to give us a good review or some airtime on a radio station with a huge listener base like NPR. And with a big push in the promotion department we can make serious strides to getting our music to a wider audience and begin the slow climb to playing larger music festivals, etc...
Indiegogo is the crowd-funding platform that we've chosen to use for our campaign to make our new record. We hope you'll join our team and help us make this recording the best that we can make it not to mention getting it out to the world at large! We'll be launching our fundraising campaign this week and every dollar counts, every friend, family member, and acquaintance you share our campaign with helps us to reach our goal. Be our record company by contributing to "Seven Hour Storm" and be a part of what is to come for Misner & Smith!
We spent four days over two weeks in Bruce Kaphan's studio in beautiful Niles, CA and came away with some gorgeous demos and lots of amazing ideas for the upcoming album, "Seven Hour Storm".
The first day consisted of deep discussion about the direction of the new album, we asked lots of questions and brainstormed about how we can broaden the scope of our music for this new offering. We also devoted time to mic testing, choosing the perfect mics to capture the sounds of our vocals and instruments. The results were amazing, on the second day of pre-production we recorded demo versions of the songs that are slated to be on the album as it is now in live takes. Then we listened back to what we'd been able to capture. The sound is immaculate, a beautiful snap shot of our full sound as the duo.
Megan Smith & Bruce Kaphan
On the third day we had a four hour session with our full band and captured demos for five of the songs that will be on the new album complete with the full band sound. We had a blast playing with Henry and Rob and after the recording was completed we sat down and had some more thrilling discussion about musical possibilities and arrangements for the new album. The ideas were flying and it continued to inspire and inform our direction with the new music.
Henry Misner & Rob Bayne
The final day was all about deconstructing the elements of our sound as the duo, defining the key ingredients that make the Misner & Smith sound what it is. We broke down the song "Seven Hour Storm" and recorded it in it's separate parts, vocals and acoustic guitar. Then we started to play around with the arrangement, adding more vocals and playing with the feel and sound of the guitar parts. We walked away from the last day of pre-production with the feeling that the sky's the limit for the sound of this new album. Even the small adjustments we made of adding extra vocals onto the title track, "Seven Hour Storm" made the song open up and the result was inspiring! And after four days of intense work we walked away with a really good feeling about the direction the music is taking us.
Sam Misner & Jeff Kazor
So, why is it important to us to do this next album in a studio with a producer, a sound engineer, and guest musicians?
This is the question we get most about this new album and it's a great one.
Over the last eight years we've put out three full-length albums of original music. Halfway Home and Poor Player were both recorded in a studio as live takes, we played the songs live and the sound engineer captured our performances without any "over-dubbing" or adding extra tracks of instruments and vocals. And of course our live album Live at the Freight & Salvage was an amazing experience and captured a truly unique and electric night of live performance in a state-of-the-art acoustic concert hall with a full audience. It also gave us the rare opportunity to pre-release three of the songs that are to be included on our new album to give our audiences a glimpse into the near future of our musical direction. We're very proud of all our albums and all that we've accomplished because of them and now we're ready to try something new! Our imaginations are teeming with more musical ideas than four hands and two voices can produce on their own. The songwriting and specifically the lyrics of our new songs are filled with stories and characters that beg for musical exploration, these new songs are pushing us to dig deeper into our music than ever before. We're looking forward to getting the chance to really flesh out those musical ideas and bring them to fruition with this new album.
Now it's nearly time to launch our BIG fundraising campaign to get the funds together to make this album the most ambitious project we've tackled yet!
How can a little band get bigger? With tons of exposure and buzz!
We take a lot of pride in our music and how hard we work to craft and shape it into something that music lovers can really enjoy on a deep level. But, it takes lots of money to push through all the information that this modern world has to offer and get our new music above the fray. A well-recored/produced album can make all the difference to a first time listener who has the clout to give us a good review or some airtime on a radio station with a huge listener base like NPR. And with a big push in the promotion department we can make serious strides to getting our music to a wider audience and begin the slow climb to playing larger music festivals, etc...
Indiegogo is the crowd-funding platform that we've chosen to use for our campaign to make our new record. We hope you'll join our team and help us make this recording the best that we can make it not to mention getting it out to the world at large! We'll be launching our fundraising campaign this week and every dollar counts, every friend, family member, and acquaintance you share our campaign with helps us to reach our goal. Be our record company by contributing to "Seven Hour Storm" and be a part of what is to come for Misner & Smith!
Here's a little taste of what we accomplished in pre-production . . . enjoy!