Colorado duo Companion are getting ready to release their debut album. Today they released a new track, “If I Were A Ghost.”
“Jo and I lost our father when we were 13, and in many ways, we lost our mom too. She was never the same after he passed. And though we felt empathy for her grief, it was hard to navigate adolescence while also growing up with a grieving, broken mother,” explains Sophia. “After a particularly hard day where the empathy wasn’t coming easily, I started writing in an attempt to understand what it would be like to lose the love of your life & father of your children all at once. Thus came ‘If I Were a Ghost’ — a song about trying to work through grief, loneliness, and longing.”
Companion announced the release of their single “23rd Street” and the release of their album Second Day of Spring on May 27th, 2022
“23rd Street” was written during a time saturated with change. We were living in downtown Oklahoma City, a couple blocks from the busy street the song is named after.
We were just a few months away from graduating college, Sophia had recently got engaged and was moving to a new state she barely knew a soul in, and we both had no idea what the coming year held for us.
In times of change, we often find ourselves experiencing a feeling we can only describe as “pre-nostalgia” — it’s the feeling, or realization, that things will never be the same as they are now.
Though you may come back to the same places, or reunite with old friends — the feeling you had then won’t ever quite come back the same way.
This song & this album perfectly encapsulate this feeling of impermanence, new growth, and change for us.
#companionband
I actually wrote this song before Lovelight, and yet it’s the last to be released. I think that the huge amount of time between writing and producing served it well. By the time we were in the studio with it, I was much less attached to the original structure, and lyrics of the song. I was able to “lose control” as they say, and let Julian Peterson and Micah Tawlks work their magic on the production side.
Julian (producer) and I would sit at his studio (Wolf Den Studios) out on a hay farm and just have fun. This was the last of the batch of songs we were recording and so we had a unique final-stretch playfulness. We messed with robotic audio settings, we flipped choruses and verses, we cut everything and laughed about it.
It was a good time, and I think it shows in the track. Then of course you add Micah’s shimmering synth splash hook and we were just happy crying.
FEMMUSIC is based in Colorado but it is rare when we can feature local artist. In the past 2 weeks these artists have released music. We wanted to feature it now:
Wellington Bullings released her first album last year. She has smooth vocals and straddles that find line between R & B and Jazz. Her latest single is “Flame.”
“Flame” is a love letter to those who have been let down by a system that refuses to value their presence in this world.
I hope that we continue to spread awareness around these issues, as well as uplift and heal our communities.
@wellingtonbullings
Carolyn Hunter is releasing her first album soon. We’ve seen her evolve from being in a band, to being solo, to having her own band. Her latest single is “Comedown”
@carolyn_in_fairyland
Enzi is a Colorado native in school in Nashville. She is a pop artist. Her latest single is “Sickly Sweet”
@iamenzi
Nina Storey is a Colorado artist now in LA. She can play all styles from singer-songwriter, jazz and blues. Her latest single is “I Have Been Found”
For over 20 years this music festival has brought big names to Denver while also showcasing the local scene. This year over 170 artists will appear on 15 stages over 3 days. Last year the festival was a virtual 3 hour event. This year’s showcase includes Pinegrove, Remi Wolf, Shannon & The Clams, Sofia Valdes among its 13 headliners. Local acts include returning artists of Bellhoss, Slow Caves, Wildermiss, Izcalli and more. There are also new faces including Lnlygirl, The Grand Alliance, Deadluv and more.
“After 20 years of Underground Music Showcase, we were thrilled to be able to carry-on our tradition virtually last year by raising $75,000 for independent musicians” shares Casey Berry, owner of the festival. “With that said, we couldn’t be happier to be in-person for 2021 to not only support live music and local bands, but to support more than a dozen independent bars and restaurants on Broadway!”
UMS is working closely with city and state officials to make sure we rage safely in 2021. This might include reduced capacity (especially at indoor venues), and potentially limiting ticket sales to ensure proper distancing as required. UMS has every intent to become a good example of how to return to in-person, live music festivals in a safe and celebratory manner, and will be monitoring health directives in real time as the big weekend approaches.
What is the Arts Lead Sheet? It is a resource for finding grants, jobs, opportunities in the arts. It started as an ad-hoc e-mail list a few years. We are now bringing it back as a feature on FEMMUSIC. It is not restricted to music but encompasses all of the arts.
Jobs
Netflix Seeking Music Data Analyst – Los Angeles, CA
Colorado artist Jenny Shawhan is making her debut album called Don’t Be Afraid. She has released her song “Like A Charm” in celebration. The song has a country feel to this multi-talented artist. See the closing hours of the album Kickstarter at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jenny24/dont-be-afraid-jenny-shawhan
Kaatii is a 14 year old upcoming singer-songwriter. Today she brings a take on Halloween and paranoia, in paranoid times.
“Afraid of the Dark is all about being unnecessarily paranoid for no real reason. You know, when your mind gets a little bit twisted and a coat looks like a ghost. The song is a fun take on something that is not fun at all,” she explains.
“The inspiration for this song came from one really horrible night of sleep in a remote cabin in Colorado,” Kaatii shares. “I was in Breckinridge for a songwriting retreat and the very first night I ended up having the worst paranoia of my life, going in and out of what felt like sleep paralysis. In the morning, my co-writer, Kara Connolly, and I ended up writing this song after she was too afraid to sleep as well.”
Monica Marie LaBonte has some new additions coming for 2020. The first is her son. The second is her debut EP coming in November. Today she releases the single “River Song.” LaBonte is best known for being a member of the Monocle Band. The EP was recorded and produced at Swingfingers Studio in Ft Collins. www.monicamariemusic.com
Spin Magazine