Have Yourself a Brooding Lo-Fi Christmas

Now available on CD Baby  you can purchase my 2011 Ep, Living Room Session.  This record is what the title indicates : songs recorded in my living room. Me, my guitar, and one microphone recorded live off the floor. Truly lo-fi. I love the simplicity of this recording and may revisit this production style in 2016.  So, if the holiday season gets you down, with its rampant consumerism, credit card debt, and surfacing of deeply-hidden family issues, my record may just cheer you up.

I kid. Actually, I really enjoy Christmas, though I could do without the materialistic aspects of it. Which strikes me as funny as I write this because I am asking you to buy my record! 

But, on that subject, I was reading a post from a friend online the other day, and she said that the best gifts are those made by independent artists. This is so true! Whether it be music or art, or even furniture, supporting those who are making their own way with their craft has a real impact. First, the financial benefit for the artist. Second, the money goes straight back into the local economy. Third, the social message it sends. I support the arts. I support community. I am not a slave to the corporation by giving gifts made of pieces of plastic that have been shipped over from China.

So, swing on by CD Baby and download Living Room Session. Six songs of dark, brooding, lo-fi, anti-folk goodness. What could be more Christmasy than that!

1. The Less You Seem To Know -  a psychotic breakdown in a big box store 3000 miles from home
2. Par For The Course - about getting old ( the title is in tribute to my late grandmother. Par For The Course was one of her favourite sayings)
3. A God I Can Call My Own -  an agnostic gospel song
4. Bleed That Pig -  raping the planet is just no good
5. Lonesome Highway - a dark secret, a hidden past, a fork in the road between calamity and redemption
6. Never Been Seen -  quite possibly the saddest song I've ever written about what else, mortality 

Check out the latest review for "History of A Common Man"

Kingston, Ontario singer/songwriter Tom Savage delivers some heart-on-his-sleeve acoustic goodness with his latest solo effort. “Don’t Plan On Starting Now” holds the singer’s rough around the edges but painfully smooth voice hostage over a slow groove, while “Rougher On Me” is a delicate ditty filled with pop culture references. “Mercy Killing” gets a little tougher than the rest, while “A Brief Moment Of Eternity” will win over fans of The Band. Closer “The Slow Decline” builds and eats at your guts, worthy of soundtracking your downfall in a dive country bar six miles past nowhere. But, you know, it’s hopeful too.

Pre-purchase your copy of the new Tom Savage CD Today!

The new recording is now up to 65% funded. Get on board and show your support by pre-purchasing your copy of the new disc, and you will also receive a copy of the soon-to-be- released Foley Mountain Playboys digital album.

Go to SELLABAND now to contribute to the campaign. There are also other incentives available if you want to contribute more, such as:

* Private guitar lessons with Tom
* Full Tom Savage Discography
* Tom will come perform at your house

and more!

Let's get this thing done! It's going to be a great record!

The Sellaband Saga : the Crowdfunding Campaign Conundrum Continues...

We had a bump in the road, but I'm back with a new profile, new incentives, and a new drive to get this thing wrapped up so we can get on with finishing the record.

Thanks to everyone who hopped on board the new campaign profile to brings us up to 64% funded in just a few days!

I need your help to reach my goal. Think of it as a CD presale. Anyone who contributes gets a copy of the new disc plus a download copy of the soon-to-be-released Foley Mountain Playboys album!

Go to SELLABAND now and take part.

Song #14 Week #14 2012 Song A Week Challenge

I've been the measure of consistency since this challenge started, posting my songs without fail every Monday (morning usually). but that all changed this week, as I gave myself an extra day for Easter celebrations. It did not go unnoticed on the Twitterverse however:

holy shit! i think this is the first time in months I've beat @TomSavageTrioto posting my song for the #songaweekchallenge!

— Ross Neilsen (@RossNeilsen) April 9, 2012

That's my buddy Ross giving me a hard time. If you've been following this blog, then you know he has taken on the challenge as well. I think he even ended up recording a couple of the tunes on his new record (to be released in the fall).Go check out his tunes over on his website.



This week, I've got a sort of coming of age, or looking back on youth(teenage years specifically)song. It's called "We're Older Now". Hope you enjoy, and by all means, let me know what you think.






waiting for the dawning of a new age
listening to Segar Turn the page
out in the driveway on the patio chair
taking in the beauty wonderin what's out there

philosophical discussion , we're way too stoned
I can't feel my body, but i know i'm not alone
it's a hell of a trip this midnight ride
speaks to your soul, hits you inside

CHORUS
we're older now x 3 - x2

voyageur bus trip hunted by ghosts
i guess that a home was the thing we wanted most
laughing and joking masking our pain
made sure we stayed high
so we could stay sane

CHORUS

you went your way I went mine
neither of us can say we really fell in line
with this day to day routine, we're ramblin still
no matter where we go, we'll be climbing up that hill

CHORUS


credits
from 2012 Song​-​A​-​Week Challenge (April), track released 10 April 2012
words and music by Tom Savage

Song #11 Week #11 2012 Song A Week Challenge

This whole crazy thing started when Ross Neilsen and I were joking around on Facebook, and here we are 11 weeks later, still truckin' along. This week, a special surprise guest joins me for my song of the week. The man himself, Ross Neilsen!

Those of you who have been following the challenge, know that Ross has been writing a song a week as well. He played a show in Kingston on Friday and crashed over in the jam shack, so Saturday morning we shot this video. I had just woke up, hence the bedhead I'm sportin'. You can't fake that stuff man.

Ross & I hadn't actually met in person before Friday. We've helped each other out the past couple of years (via the internet) with finding gigs and stuff, and have seen each other's posters at various venues across the country, but never actually met. The internet is cool that way.


Enjoy the video. It's not framed very well, you can't see Ross' fingers flyin', but I think you can pick up what we're puttin' down.

2 for 1 Holiday CD sale

From now until January 2nd, if you purchase 2 Tom Savage CDs, you will receive a 50% discount. I'm not too good with math, but I think that adds up to a pretty sweet deal. Drop by the CDBaby site, and check it out. We are currently sold-out of "The County Line", but more CDs are on the way to Portland,OR. They should be there this week.

If you wish to download the digital album, please do so from CDBaby or Bandcamp. MP3 albums only cost $5 on these sites, as opposed to the $8.91 you will pay on itunes.


If you're looking for Christmas music, download my single "Christmas Is Here Again". It only costs $0.99, and 50% of proceeds will be donated to OXFAM.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year,
Tom

CD Baby Music Store on Facebook

Selling music on Facebook has taken, what I think will be, a giant leap forward this week, with introduction of the CD Baby Facebook Music Store. I just installed it on the Tom Savage Trio facebook page, you can check it out here. CD Baby sells more independent music than any other site in the world, and boasts an incredibly diverse catalogue of music, thanks in large part to the artist-friendly policies. The Facebook Store also doubles as a place where fans can listen to an artists music. Artists can choose whether they want to provide partial or full clips, and which songs they want to be made available. They can also choose which titles they want to sell on their Facebook page.

it will be interesting to see how music sales are using the new store. The knock against Facebook is that its users aren't interested in buying things when they use the site. Have you ever bought anything as a result of something you saw on Facebook ?

At any rate, if you are an indie musician, this will be a welcome addition to you Facebook Page.

Free Music for fans = new fans For Musicians

I've been going by this philosophy for the past couple of years, primarily through the TST Reverbnation site, and it has worked. Of course, the best way to gain new fans, is to get in the van, criss-cross the country, and play yer butt off every night, but right now now I'm speaking of internet marketing. Over the past two years, the TST "online" fanbase has grown by approx. 3000 people, largely due to the offering of free music. An "online' fan is different than a fan who comes to your show ( although there is obviously some crossover), in that they tend to be more of a casual fan. This isn't always the case, but until someone buys your music, or buys a ticket to your show, they are not a "true" fan.

That being said, online fans play an important role in any band's marketing strategy. They "like" your facebook page, they follow you on twitter, they share your music with their friends and followers. This means free advertising for you. So, really you aren't giving music away for free. It's more of a barter system.

There are a couple of sites I've come across recently that give away free music in exchange for email addresses or sharing links:

NoiseTrade - This site offers free albums in exchange for email addresses. There is also a tip system where the listener can pay the artist what they think the music is worth. I've just put up my acoustic EP - Living Room Session. I see this site as having great potential for posting live concerts, studio outtakes, and extra content. I'm kind of against giving away an album for free, and then turning around, and trying to sell it to someone at a live show. I say all free or all pay. But that's just me.




Viinyl - This site offers singles in exchange for email address or for a "like" or tweet ( depending on how the artist sets it up). I've set up our page so you can download "The One" for free in exchange for a like or tweet. Cool design to this site, though they do need to add some sort of search or genre listing.

Cool new website design

We've got a super-cool face lift to our website, thanks to Purely interactive design.

Stop by and check it out . The best thing is its simplicity.We've got a homepage that points to our social networking and music sites,a music player, a list of upcoming shows, and a "What's New" section. That's it.

Loads fast and looks pretty. I like it.

Thanks to Andrew Comber from purely interactive for helping us out.

5 Super-Easy Ways to Promote Your Favourite Band

...and hopefully that band is the Tom Savage Trio. Regardless, with social networking and the Internet, it is easier than ever to let the world know about the music you think is worth hearing. Here are just a few simple things you can do :

1. Facebook Page : No doubt your favourite band has a facebook fan page. On the left
side of the page there is an option to "suggest to friends". Click on that and check off the people on your friends list that you think might be interested. Easy!

2. iTunes - Do you have an iTunes account ? Search for your favourite band , and rate their album by clicking on the stars. So easy! If you're really enthusiastic you could write a review of the album.



3. Last.fm - This is by far the easiest way to help promote a band. Join last.fm, download the last.fm scrobbler, and listen to the music. Lastfm keeps a record of the plays, thus increasing the exposure of the band to other music listeners who use the site.

4. Invite 5 of your friends to join the band's mailing list. Chances are you have 5 friends that share your musical taste. Encourage them to invite 5 friends. It's like a rock and roll pyramid scheme ( without the loss of your life savings).



5. Good ol' fashioned " word of mouth " - talk the band up when you're out at the pub. How cool that album was...how awesome that live show was. Still the best way to promote your favourite band(s).

Music fans have more power than ever before to help promote and support their favourite band. So share the love!

Evolution Of A Band - Post #2

Last weekend we had a major event in the life of our slowly-evolving band. We actually all played together in the same room for the first time. That may sound odd. But in this day-and-age of  internet technology, we've all been able to listen to tracks via email, and get to know the songs that way.

So it was interesting to have the opportunity to perform together last Saturday at Pete's house concert. The crowd seemed to like it. I think we all only played on one song (Calcutta), or maybe it was two ( We'll call the song "Get it Right" for now). Actually , come to think of it, we all played on Kevin's song (The Devil Goes Blind) as well, but I'm not sure if that song is part of this project or one of Kevin's other bands. Kevin, if you read this, maybe you could comment on that.

I gently nagged Geoff to get me some audio of that night, but at this point have not received it. I will post it on here if it turned out.

Getting back to the idea of the internet and not playing in the same room, I have some audio for you as an example. This song is called "Mere Mortals", and this is from a practice that Kevin & I had a couple of weeks back. Pete then added drums later.

"Mere Mortals" is also a prime example of a song that would not fit into the TST set list. It's a pretty dark, slow-moving tune. But this is what excites me about this project. It's a lot of fun flexing creative muscles in a different way.
      

   
   
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Evolution Of A Band

Or you might say “birth of a band” in this instance. I’m currently working on a project with Kevin Bowers ( Me Man Jack) on some new original material,that doesn’t quite fit in with what TST does. Kevin has brought some songs to the table as well. The plan is to make an album eventually.

The seed was planted from jamming together at The Mansion when Kevin was hosting the local musicians night there a couple of months ago. Plus, the close proximity of our houses has helped things get rolling.

I plan to do a series of blog posts that have to do with this project, in order to let folks in on our creative process, and allow you to witness the evolution of these songs, from beginning to final product.





This track is called “Calcutta”. It’s just Kevin & I on this one. We’ll have Pete Bowers, Geoff Chown, and perhaps others joining in on future tracks.

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Do you love your live music and your internet ?!

If you do, I've come across some really great sites where you can listen to, or watch, full concerts on the internet for free!

1. CBC radio 2 concerts on demand

Mostly Canadian bands on here, various levels of recording quality. You can search by genre as well. I listened to a Mary Gauthier concert today that was recorded in Wolfville, NS in 2007.

2.Fab Channel

This site contains video recordings of full concerts. Drive-By Truckers, Calexico, Chuck Prophet, Fred Eaglesmith, and on and on. Just type in a band's name to see if they are on there. Pretty cool stuff!

Also, speaking of live music, I took in a show at BarNone last night. Geoff did a great job on sound. The band was Telfer. They rocked. Sorta funky rock with a heavy Allman Bros. influence. Folks in Kingston... SUPPORT THIS VENUE!! Support the independent musician! Support the arts!

all for now,
Tom