Welcome back!

Wow, everyone! It’s Fall... yay! My favorite season! What a whirlwind of a summer… I am so excited to fill everyone in on what’s happening! First of all, I will have a new website up and running very soon - I apologize for the lack of updates... but it will be well worth it, I promise! I’m working with the best graphic-designers in Music City... it’s going to be killer!

So, for now... welcome to my official blog! This will keep everyone up to date while the final touches are being done on my website.

The summer has been full of great tours and sessions, new projects, new songs and a new album. I am beyond excited to finish my new album and share it with all of you… and – I am so lucky to have such a great producer and an arsenal of insanely talented musicians. There are so many great and influential people making appearances on this album… one that I will tell you about at this time, is the one and only – Kenny Aronoff. Kenny is incredible and I can’t wait until you hear what we have created together. Awesome stuff. I don’t want to say too much about it at this time… BUT – I will say that it is set to be released in early 2012. So, stay tuned!

My first release, an EP called Jade, is now available on iTunes. Go download it!

I’ve been touring/doing studio work with a lot of bands and artists this summer. Here are some updates on the touring and studio front.

TOURING:

I’ve traveled and performed extensively this summer with several bands/artists. Some of which include: Colleen Orender, Pandel Collaros, Kevin Skinner, The Broadband, and of course – I tour regularly playing my music. This summer I had the great pleasure of sharing the stage with Clint Black, Diamond Rio, Easton Corbin, and Rascal Flatts. I’ve been doing a little bit of everything here lately – singing, playing lead guitar, rhythm guitar and bass guitar. Whew. This summer has really given me the chance to stretch out a bit. I’m really enjoying it!

STUDIO:

The Turn is set to release an EP this fall (actually, in like a week)! We spent a lot of time in the studio this summer getting everything just right. Harry Smith did a wonderful job producing and helping us find our sound as a band. He’s great! You all will love this EP. I promise! More info to come on that very soon!

I spent some extensive time doing studio work for Butch Sunderland. His album Forgiven.Redeemed is set to be released this fall. Also, another great album! Butch is a wonderful musician and person… I was so happy to be involved with his project! AND – he let me get funky on my bass! A definite plus!!!! :)

Here are a couple of pictures from the session!

Also, I’ve been playing a lot of bass in the studio for Pandel Collaros. He is working on a new full-band album… it is going to be killer! Pandel always pushes me hard as a bassist… it is always such a great experience to work with him in that light!

And… of course, I’ve been spending countless hours in the studio working hard on my album! The songs have been selected and the vibe is so strong… I can’t wait to share it! There will be a lot of updates soon. Such as, sneak peaks (a few track titles, lyrics, artwork)… a video, a short documentary, and much, much more. Stay tuned! Like I said, I’m beyond excited!

Here are a couple pictures from those sessions:

This past month, ZASZ reunited and started working on the new Rock Opera. I can’t give out any details about the opera… but I can say that it is absolutely brilliant. It is literally the most challenging set of songs I’ve ever had to learn/interpret. Tim Zim composes breathtaking, epic (and I even HATE that word, but it is so true in this case!), melodic, unique, powerful, technical, and meaningful pieces… he always has. BUT – in this large piece of work, he will really shine... Zasz will really shine. There isn’t anything like, or will there ever be anything like it. Period. It’s incredible. I feel so privileged to be the one playing these basslines and sharing the stage with Tim, Dan, Sean, and Word.

At the end of the summer I accepted a teaching position at the new School of Rock in Franklin, TN. This school offers wonderful opportunities to kids/teenagers. These kids get to learn real CLASSIC material (all of the good stuff!), learn/perform and rehearse in a “band environment,” gain major confidence, go perform shows at real venues, and learn/experience many musical and leadership skills. This is going to be a great experience for everybody! The grand opening is Saturday, October 29^th at 2PM. Please come out and support this AWESOME school. PLUS, Zasz will be performing! If you know any kids ages 7-18 that want to rock... bring them over! I can’t wait to start teaching these kids bass guitar. Rock on!

Check us out HERE!

Also, on October 29^th, I will be performing at Center Stage for Viva Nashville’s “International Art & Music Fest.” I am performing early at 5:50PM with a very special acoustic set featuring Ivalee Pitts (fiddle) and Sean Sunderland (drums) – my producer, Pandel Collaros, will also be making a special appearance with us that evening. We are so pumped to play this awesome show! Just be there, it will be incredible. I will be debuting all new songs from my new album! You’re not going to want to miss it! Basically, it's a LIVE preview of my upcoming album. Ahh, so excited! Also, The Turn will be performing a set later in the evening at 7:50PM. We have a killer set planned! Please be sure to mark it on your calendar... it’s going to be awesome!

Some upcoming live shows:

Saturday, October 29 - School of Rock, Franklin, TN (2:30PM) 

Saturday, October 29 – Center Stage, Nashville, TN (5:40PM) 
Tuesday, November 1 - Taps & Tapas, Nashville, TN (10PM) 

Friday, November 4 & Saturday, November 5 – Harlows, Greenville, MS

Thursday, November 10 – Saturday, November 12 – Sams Town, Shreveport, LA

Saturday, December 10 – Des Moines, IA

Tuesday, December 13 & Wednesday, December 14 – Speaking Rock Entertainment

Center, El Paso, TX

Friday, December 30 & Saturday, December 31 – Isle of Capri, Lula, MS

Saturday, June 23 – House of Blues, Houston, TX

Whew... I think that’s it for now! Come out to the shows and say hello! When you read my second blog, it will be on the new website. Like I said, it will be worth the wait! See you then!

-Amanda