Chris Bocast: News

Spent two weeks in Florida over the holidays - now I have a murderous work load: finish the MJCatalin album while teaching 6 classes.

I'll sleep when I'm dead - holding off on live shows till the new CD is done.

Posted a couple favorites from last year for download - can't wait to get the new music out!!

Been unspeakably busy, but I have paused to post some Christmas favorites. End of semester, re-taking the GRE, blah-blah...

Understand "Airlock" has enjoyed some national airplay in Russia as well. Prevyet, my Eastern friends!

Taking a little time off in Florida again this holiday season. I'll be settling on a final selection of pieces for the Bocast/Catalin project. I know, we need a moniker.

Left hand is better; I'm playing classical again but still not 100% - have to get some therapy (sigh - next year will be better health-wise).

Holiday best to all!

I'll put the Seventh Chamber and the Commonwheel on the next solo album - downloads of these live tracks from this summer were off the chart! This surprises me as I had a severe strain on my left hand (it's still not healed) and could only really use one finger effectively...

All new downloads in the music section, including the first of some Christmas stuff. Found a small treasure trove of tracks, some with Michael ver Steegt playing keys/samples, from around 2003. We've been sending some music back and forth - check out "The 19th Century". This track will definitely make it to commercial release soon!

More Christmas music and other goodies soon!

On the Chris album front, I've enough material for a MJCatalin collaboration (we may do a track or two more) - I've been slowly fine-tuning the mixes and I'm very pleased...

On the solo piano front, after careful listening I've had to pass on the sessions from this summer. The clicking high 'D' key on the Steinway at Rigel was just unacceptable. Happily the piano tracks from last year have shown true character, and an initial experiment of combining them with some of the exceedingly popular live tracks from this summer, along with some favorite odds and ends, have turned out quite listenable and may turn into a release early next year as well.

So two new albums almost done - but wait! I recalled that in summer 2003 (2,4,?) my good friend Michael Ver Steegt dropped by for an extended visit and we did some recordings. I later organized these into an album, titled it "Moonglow", sent him a copy and promptly forgot it existed, what with all the production work of the next few years. Well, I found my copy today and a lot of it is quite good, with a few outstanding tracks. I shall be posting a few of them regularly over the next few months.

More soon; I am applying to some compositional programs at a few different universities and must get my apps done.

You can get Lissa's album on Amazon now (go to Links) and CDBaby and itunes soon! Been sorting through music - I will try to bring out in the next few months a piano album, a Christmas album, and the new solo album with MJC (I know - we need some cool name for the duo). I could even cull a live album together of more ambient guitar if people liked...

Also Dave Shul of Michael Franti & Spearhead has contributed some guitar for the new album. I'll have to do some ebow for Spearhead now!

The news for now - CB

I've posted a couple songs from Lissa's album for listening - let me know what you think! No live shows planned for several weeks to rest my hand, but I have three or four albums worth of material to sort through and mix so I'll be busy!

CB

The CDs are back from the factory!! I'm listening to a copy as I write this, and I think it is wonderful, I really do. :) My system won't go loud enough...

Sept 3 was recorded live - the show was a challenge due to a hand injury but I hope to have a mp3 of highlights soon.

Going in for back surgery tomorrow - wish me luck!!

I've added another piano piece to the music section. John Hundt is busy working on the cover for the new album; we went rafting while he was visiting and I fell in the Arkansas River. My hand is still numb from holding on to the side of the raft as tightly as I could - oh, no!

Thinking of bringing out a piano album this year as well...

Lissa's album "It's My Mother's Fault" is now at the factory getting pressed! It should be available by the end of the month. The work has some fantastic songs and performances, I'm very pleased wih it, and I have high hopes that it will prove to be very successful for her!

I have been added to this Internet radio station - CHECK IT OUT! Put in a song you like and it plays more like it - it really works well (sorry, lastfm). I've found some artists I really like: Tim Hecker, Umami, Dwight Ashley's solo stuff. Please visit Pandora.com and listen to me, and other artists mining the same sonic veins...

I'll be playing classical guitar at the Sunny Vista Living Center's 4th Annual Art Exhibit July 27 - good music for a good cause...

Also I'm considering doing a release of mainly piano tracks, since people seem to like them. I have a number of good, albeit a little spooky ones from a session I did in late 2005, and I'll be doing another run in the next week. When I record the piano, I mike up a grand and set up ambience effects, so it's a bit of a process. I'll post an mp3 of one of the tracks for the next couple weeks - if you like it let me know!

A lot of live work last month, plus a creeping mass of publishing details with Ascendant...however, there's a new live track in the download section, as well as a link to the audiobooks that include the music I've featured here before.

Michael Franti and Spearhead sold out Red Rocks - that was a great show, thanks MVS!

The show at Smokebrush went quite well - seemed all the notables from Co Spgs were there - Darren played well and we threw in some techno loops for fun.

Also have a recording of the Arts Festival show so I may put a bit of that up on the web if it came out OK.

Busy month!

Um...it's still really cold up here...shows went OK, reprised the Dry Lake for someone who was fascinated by the ebow.

This month's new free download is the theme from Ascendant's Practical Mysticism audiobook, entitled "The Practical Mystic". Look for more soon!

Cheers,

Chris

Summer's coming so it's time to play out a bit - 2 performances on June 3rd to benefit the local Philharmonic downtown in Colorado Springs. 3 PM at The Metropolitain (a fave restaurant of mine) and then another 6 PM slot at the Coffee Exchange. Continue to slowly finish pieces off with MJ Catalin - finished "The Hidden Face of Eva" and have a few more now.

Finished a rough on yet another track with MJC; this one has samples he took from "EVA" mixed with some awesome drumming and synth parts - I added a flurry of guitars and it sounds epic...ought to have enough material to start forming a proper CD soon.

Hung out with Patti Griffin and some friends from Austin (yo, Pat!) up in Boulder when they came through on tour - they have a great guitarist!

Gotta run,

CB

Crazy couple of months...mastered in Nashville and raised some hell with Tony and Lissa - not really satisfied with the results so we went and mastered with Mark DB in Denver. Again, sounds good but we're not convinced we have the final final, so we'll probably master one more time...yes, we're that finicky and yes, it makes a big difference. The album design is done and is amazing.

Have done a few more tracks with MJC; that's going a little slower than planned due to my teaching humanities and incidentally diving into a serious study of ancient Greek music (what we know of it). Amazed the Greeks invented the hydraulic organ 2200 years ago...

We have the physical product for several Ascendant audiobooks now; however due to cost we'll have to assemble them ourselves - a hassle but it'll be worth it.

Will try to get a new track up on the site this week...

It's warming up a little (but it's snowing today)!

CB

Did a final mix on Lissa's CD "It's My Mother's Fault" at Derryberry and it's off to Nashville to master Feb 9! We'll be meeting up with Tony Brock and having fun!

Finally took the Christmas downloads off the site - the Bach piece was very popular and I hope everyone enjoyed them. The music section will be minimal for a bit while I do some technical re-processing; there's a lot of new stuff on the burner so check back often.

Finishing a bunch of wild guitar sound material to send to Romania today...

It's still really cold in Woodland Park!!!

Have fun,

CB

After being trapped in the studio for the last two years, I've taken on a couple classes to get out of the house. Time-consuming but good fun, good students!

Have finished a few tracks now with MJCatalin and they are outstanding - looks like this could be the next CD!!

Hard copies of the audiobooks are coming out as well, and Greg Carr (package designer) is also going to be doing Lissa's cover. Looks like we may master in Nashville, finally!

Oh yeah - we have A LOT of snow!

Cheers,
Chris

Here we go - a couple old favorites, the Tchaikovsky piece has a better bass/guitar, and brand-new is a Bach piece I've been wanting to do for awhile. As a child I was enthralled by Wendy Carlos' "Switched on Bach", so I pulled the Moog out, got the score to "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring", and went to town. Ended up using a guitar/ebow combo for the choral parts - they came out sounding very 70s Brian May-ish. A little different from my usual but fun!

Happy Holidays to everyone and best wishes for the New Year!

Chris


P.S. all the Ascendant audiobooks are out on Audible.com and we're printing CDs as you read this.

Hope all is well with everyone! Been working on more tracks with MJCatalin - trying to get CD versions of the audiobooks finished for Ascendant...
Back to the studio!

CB

Big news of the month is a new musical collaboration I've undertaken with the amazing MJCatalin, a crafty percussionist operating out of Romania. Check the music section for a re-mix of the "Far Fleet" track off 'Airlock' and let me know what you think! I'm working on a couple other mixes MJC has sent me as well...stay posted for updates - I'm rather enthused, myself ;)

The big album should drop in February (I know, I wanted it done by Christmas too, but Lissa's still putting some vocal touches here and there and they're all great - it'll be worth the wait).

More soon,

CB

Respected space-music critic Bill Binkelman gives his take on "Through the Airlock"! Thank you Bill!

here's some tracks from Tokyo Vogue and Temporary Temple - should have some brand-new stuff soon!

cb

Thanks for all the online attention, especially the Aussies from ultima thule and the Italians from Milan. ;) I've had more downloads this month than ever! As always, if you hear something you really like, let me know in the guestbook, and pick up a couple through itunes or emusic so I can keep making them. I'll try to put up a couple new things this weekend.

Michael Ver Steegt dropped by the house last weekend (had a day off from the Spearhead tour). Played a little music, had a good time. He missed the bear that has been hanging out by the tree in the backyard all week though!

Putting some final touches on the Lissa album, and will be producing another acoustic album for her and her brother Chuck. More updates soon!