Life Update

It’s been almost a month since my last post. I left off

by breaking down each song of my new “LA” EP. I released

it almost one month ago, and then I fell of the face of the

earth. Sorry about that. I lost my job, was looking for a new one,

and the EP took a backseat. I’d like to play the EP at some shows/

house shows around Indy, but I’m still trying to figure out what kind

of instrumentation to use. Also, it would be great to get a couple

other people to play with me in order to add more layers.

 

Hopefully I’ll be posting regularly again now that life is becoming

a little more regular. I’ll have to play it by ear for now. Until then,

pick up my EP from raywyatt.bandcamp.com. It’s only $5, so get

yourself a digital stocking stuffer.

Radio Show. House Show

Greetings. About a week and a half ago, I appeared on Indy In-Tune

Radio. It’s an internet, Indy-based, Independent music radio show.

I did an hour-long interview with Darrin (the host with the most), which

entailed 4 live tracks, lightning-round questioning, and some general

get-to-know-the-artist questions. It was a great time, and I hope to

connect more with Indy In-Tune. A link of the interview will be posted

shortly.

The same day, I had a house gig in Fountain Square, which is an up-and-

coming neighborhood in Indianapolis. The house gig was titled 3×5 House

Gig, because it contained three artists playing five new/ never-heard songs.

We probably had 50-60 people spread throughout three rooms of the house.

It was a lovely evening with local beer, wine from I don’t know where, fun

people, and sweet music.

I played three songs from my upcoming “LA” EP, and two from a potential

new album 🙂 Here are some photos from the day.

Post-show silhouette. Photo credit: Cara Zimmerman.

The Yellow Kites sound check.

Live sangin’. Photo credit: Darrin of Indy In-Tune.

Indy In-Tune Radio. Photo credit: Darrin of Indy In-Tune.

Sound check for the house show. Photo credit: Adrian Pumphrey.

I’m Partial to Partial Songs

I haven’t written or really worked on a song in a couple months, which

is kind of strange for me. I feel like I’m always plucking away at something

or trying to write new songs. Since I have the EP in the on-deck circle, I

don’t feel pressured to write new songs, but I’m not feeling extremely

inspired either. I suppose you could say I have writer’s block, but I’m

not really putting forth much effort sooooooo… Yup.

 

I came up with a fun riff today that I really like. I started mumbling some

words, and I actually like the words I came up with for the chorus. Not so

much for the verse. I started looking back through my journal, and found

another partially finished/ started (however you prefer to look at it) song,

and I forgot how much I liked it. So out of no where, I have two new songs

in the works. I just need that extra bit of spark to push me over the edge

of creativity, so I can finish them.

Don’t Eliminate the Middle Man

If you’ve followed the updates about the “LA” EP, you’ll know

there have been a couple setbacks and changes made pretty

recently. I have another update/change to mention, but this one

I’m very excited to announce, but before I jump to it, I’ll give

some backstory.

 

When I found out my friend Brandon wasn’t going to be able

to contribute to the EP anymore, I was pretty bummed and I

had to start rethinking my game plan. My musings took me back

to a conversation I had with a guy, who at the time, was more of

an associate/acquaintance than a friend. ***** see below

 

Totally separate from the EP, I reached out to him about working

together on a song. He was immediately pumped to collaborate

on the song, so I think it gave me more confidence to present him

with the idea of working together on the EP. I emailed him about

it, and once again he was immediately pumped to collaborate.

 

Enough backstory. Without further ado, I’m pleased to announce

that John “Middle Man” Gilpin will be making beats for the “LA” EP.

I won’t speak for John, but I will direct you to him. You can check him

out on Twitter at @MiddleMan1991, and make sure to check out some

of his beats on Soundcloud.

 

***** To John: I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

 

Young John

Illustrator

My hat. Made in Adobe Illustrator. This is the first object

I’ve ever drawn/ made in Illustrator.

 

 

 

 

 

Trying Something New

I released my debut album “Blinds” three days ago.

I’m really excited for people to hear, listen to, think about,

reflect on, engage in, connect with, and enjoy these songs.

Some of these songs I wrote over a year ago, and they still

have great meaning to me. Others I’ve only had for 7 months

and they’re still growing on me.

 

Most people write music that will grab their listeners within

seconds or less than a minute. I write music in which the listener

needs to listen to the whole song, and really the whole album together.

 

I like to create stories, some based on truth; some fictional. I write songs

that appear simple, but spend some time with them and hopefully the

beauty will blossom. Some songs are more about the visual picture

being created with words and less about the story. Other times, I’m

not specifically talking about what the lyrics are talking about. There

may be a larger theme at play, or the subject of the song is just the

mouthpiece for a bigger subject.

I understand this is hard to do. It’s not easy to find time out of our

busy schedules, let alone find time to spend with a new artist or new

music. This is something I’m trying to learn for myself. Would you

join me in the struggle of getting out of our comfort zones and trying

new things, new music, new artists, and just plain new?

One Week Away

I’m getting really excited that my debut album

is releasing in one week on April 22nd. Even

more exciting is my album release party on

April 26th. I’m primarily doing a digital release

on Bandcamp.com in order to manage costs, but

I will have 100 physical copies to start off, but it’s

hard to estimate who buys physical vs. digital these

days.

 

On one hand there is a sense of completion and being

finished, but as an artist that’s never the overall sense.

I’m always looking ahead, looking for what’s next, trying

to improve, never being satisfied, and always hoping that

the best one is the next one.

I Like Having My Picture Taken

One of my good friends, Jamison MacKillop, and I got

together again to take some more photos. It worked out

well because he needs more material to build his portfolio,

and I like having my picture taken. Plus, I can always use

good photos for promotional things. I wanted to share just

a few. Jamison snapped them and I edited them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 Weeks

Only two weeks until my debut album, Blinds, is released

on Bandcamp. I’ll have a limited amount of physical copies,

and will order more if people are buying them. I just never

know who buys physical or digital these days.

 

Some of these songs were written six months ago. Some

were written over a year ago. I’ve spent so much time

with them all that I look at them in a different light than

someone who’s never heard them. I try to imagine what

people will think, but it’s hard to listen to them as if it’s

my first time.

 

I’m such a perfectionist. I want every album, EP, song,

etc. to be great and on par with musicians that I listen to.

I have to remind myself that this is only the beginning. I

have plenty of room to grow, and hopefully many, many

years of living and songwriting ahead of me (I’m 25).

 

I’m excited to see what my music sounds like, what

my voice sounds like, what the content of my lyrics

will be 5, 10, 30 years from now. I hope others are

interested and intrigued enough to go on this journey

with me in the coming years.

Album Art

 

It’s my birthday so I thought I’d share the cover to my upcoming album. Hoping 

to release it in April or May. Thanks to Jonathan Frey, jonathanfreyphotography.com, 

for his photos, design, and creativity. Stay tuned for future updates and writings.