Who Needs the Great American? I'm a House Concert Convert...

Recently I had the pleasure of seeing Megan Slankard & Matt Nathanson perform at a House Concert in San Francisco. It was part of KC Turner's House Concert Series (get on that email list - he has some super performers!) and put on at Peter Finch's house from KFOG. It was lovely. Both musicians were amazing, Peter's house was beautiful and KC was a kick-ass host! I left feeling totally inspired. As an audience member, I felt so connected to Matt & Megan, and appreciated the music far more than some giant arena where I'm staring at a big screen TV's. As a musician - I began planning my very own house concert.

Two, to be exact. Technically the first was the Redding Backyard House Concert. The second, held indoors in SF was so generously hosted by one of my best friends (from childhood) Leigh Renard. She has an adorable place in the Sunset of San Francisco - so we rented some chairs, hit Costco for some snacks and let it happen. We were lucky to have the lovely ladies of Kindness & Lies open the evening, and they were (surprise) a smash! There's just something about women singing 3-part harmony that I'm a sucker for. I was joined by my sister Shelby Grolig, Rebecca Roudman (cello) and Abigail Picache (cajon). I remember half way through the set thinking - this room is packed full of some of the most important & wonderful people in my life. Awesome. And then there was an encore (who knew?!?) so I asked Adam (my producer) to join me on So Hard, which is the oldest song going on the new record! The cheesy moment of the evening was Niall & I doing a cover of one of my favorite songs - Stephin Merrit's "The Book of Love." After which, it turned into a cross-band-audience jam session fading into a party of whiskey & wine. Does it get better than this?

100+ Degrees of FUN!

Last month I had the pleasure of road-tripping it up to Redding with Niall, Shelby & Barry for a show in my hometown. A couple things about Redding; The people are wonderful, the scenery is gorgeous and the Summers are HOT AS HELL. I'm talking 106 degrees hot. So naturally we thought - Outside Concert!

A good friend of mine, Gerry Gitchell, offered to host this Backyard Concert & BBQ - The Willis St. Day on the Green. Despite the heat, it was a great weekend! Hometown hospitality is the best kind. We had a few local businesses sponsor (Special thanks to Kelly Wooden of Chase Bank) and I even had my first interview in the local paper, the Record Searchlight! Gerry's backyard easily fit the 70 guests, and there was a little built-in stage area where we set up the keyboard and PA system. Jamie Clark who is another Bay Area artist, opened up the set. His guitar skills were fantastic and his voice was full of soul and power. That guy knows how to work a crowd!

By the time I took the stage, the sun was setting and you could see Mt. Lassen in the distance. I forgot just how beautiful it is in Redding. I was joined by my sister, Shelby Grolig and then two special musicians - Barry Pfeffer, who played both drums & guitar, and Anthoni Polcari, a local Redding cello player. We even had a surprise showing from the house kitty cat on stage... adorable! It was a blast. People were so supportive, and I spent hours after the show getting to know the people I had just performed for. I can't wait to get up there and do it again!

Water --> Throat Coat Tea w/honey --> Glenlivet straight up.

Vocals in the studio on Monday went like this:

It's been a long few weeks. I can't complain, because I've been singing nonstop. If I'm not in the studio working on the record, I'm lugging my keyboard to Redwood City Plaza for an outdoor show, or driving up to Redding for a backyard concert. It's been so much fun, but it is taking a toll on my voice. I'm so exhausted! Top it all off, I'm fighting off a cold.

So my trip to the studio on Monday was a bit of an uncertainty. We were set to record vocals for my songs "Taken" and "Fight or Flight," but I had no idea if I had the juice for it! I sipped on water, to stay hydrated and we got started. Half way through "Taken" I decided to dive into the Throat Coat - and let me tell you, if you haven't tried this miracle potion, you must! It's like a massage for your tired and swollen vocal chords - and I'm considering just ordering a boat-load online to keep for emergencies. That's right, me with no voice is a freakin' emergency. For me at least. I think for N it's sort of a God-send... But back to the studio: we surprisingly finished "Taken" with very little trouble and it was on to "Fight or Flight." I was a bit nervous because we've modified some of the lyrics and updated the bridge a bit - but we went head first. Adam pulled out the Glenlivet and I took a nice big glass into the vocal booth with me. Oh yeah, it was like 1:30 in the afternoon :) There's something about whiskey and singing - it's my go-to for shows and now its becoming my standard in the studio. Never more than 1 glass, because then it just turns into a sloppy karaoke session (oh how I miss those NY nights), but a little warm fuzzy whiskey helps loosen everything up. Crazy that I'm saying this, but so far, Fight or Flight has been my favorite song to record. Heading to the studio tonight to work on some editing...

Lucky Me.

This guy... I don't think this record would be really happening if it weren't for him. Niall's support has been crucial over the last few years - and I think its no coincidence that after meeting him, I began to take my music career more seriously. He puts me in my place when I'm not working hard enough, helps me breathe when I'm working too damn hard, and has the utmost faith in my music even when I have a hard time finding it. Niall comes to every show, sits in a dark studio for hours of a gorgeous day, and manages to capture it all on his camera so we don't forget a single moment.

And I'm proud to say he's pursuing his passion as well. Niall David Photography is progressing faster than either of us could have imagined - and at this point he's shot for performers at Slims, The Independent, Yoshi's main stage and more. He's taken beautiful pictures of families, musicians, aerialists, landscapes, SF parades & even the occasional clown. Plus, he was just featured as one of Imagekind's Aritst of the Day! Noone captures a moment the way that Niall does.

Lucky me.

Amazing Imogen.

Last Friday was one of those supremely awesome days. I woke up (albeit, a little late, but that's nothing new in my world) to Niall making me some yummy breakfast and much needed strong-ass coffee. He was helping take the pressure off because he knew I was headed to the studio for more vocals (because as we know, I get a little nervous). After a shower and some warm-ups, we were off to the studio. My lovely sister, Shelby, met us at there a bit later. We started with one of my favorite songs, which might actually be my first single - "Hard Enough." It took a few run through's (and quite possibly whiskey-flavored tea) to get comfortable, but after a bit we got it down. Then Shelby was up. I wasn't sure how she would do - performing live & studio recording are completely different beasts... and she nailed it. Sitting there in the booth and listening to her harmonize was definitely one of the most memorable moments of this album so far. I feel so lucky to have such a talented sister, and so lucky that she enjoys singing with me. It was awesome! "Love Again" was next, and was a quickie. Maybe three full runs and we had everything we needed. That felt good :).

The evening only got better. Niall, Shelby & I met up with Barry, Leighdle & Debbie and drove down to the Mountain Winery. We picked up some drinks and dinner on the way, which we ate on a blanket up on the top of that mountain. You could see for miles! Some of our lovely friends from the super-duper band Kindness & Lies joined us and we enjoyed the sunset together. We had SO much fun that we were late (can you believe it?) to the show! The first Imogen Heap song sounded and we all ran like professional sprinters toward the venue. Let me just say this, if you ever have a chance to see a show at the Mountain Winery - don't miss it. It has got to be one of my favorite venues at this point (and I'm excited to see Swell Season there next month)! The beautiful venue was only surpassed by the awesomely talented and always inspiring Imogen Heap. Stream her new album "Ellipse" here. You won't be disappointed. In her live show, Imogen used a pedal board to layer her vocals on top of previously recorded sounds, like birds flocking from overhead trees & harmonics from wine glasses, on top of live sounds she made on stage with her body. It was like watching a scientist work.

A very pretty, musical scientist.

Now for the Best Part...

Recording vocals! This past Tuesday was my first scheduled day of studio time - for just me. And for some reason, instead of being totally psyched, I was nervous! Terrified actually. Why the hell was I nervous? I'm the first to point out my own weaknesses, but when it comes to just singing - I'm pretty confident. So what exactly was so damn scary? I was anxious for days beforehand, and at one point I even started to convince myself that I was sick (not even close) and losing my voice (definitely not). Something told me that I was over-reacting, actually - someone. Niall said to me "You have nothing to be nervous about. This is the best part. You can go in there and do what you do, and no matter what happens, you'll be fine. If you don't like it, Adam can fix it or you can go in another day and re-record it. Don't stress." I took a deep breath and tried to relax. This was supposed ot be the best part...

Tuesday arrived and I was late. I was stressing, trying to prepare for this last minute FREE show I'm playing on Saturday, helping Niall promote his (AMAZING) photography debut coming up next Saturday, and all of the sudden it was time to be at the studio and I hadn't left my apartment yet. Being late is like a disease for me, no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to fix it. So I literally run into the studio and profusely apologize to Adam. If he was pissed, he hid it well, and so we began. The room was dimly lit, with a candle and a small lamp. I took my shoes off - we started with my new song Linger... and the rest was easy. No more stress, no more anxiety - just the 6 hours of music. I let myself get carried away by the melody, and everything happened naturally.

Yep, it was the best part.

Funny Story.

Right before my last show in LA, my opening act called and cancelled. We're talking the day before. I nearly flipped my sh*t. Luckily, she said she knew someone who could fill in. Turns out, her friend and very talented musician, John Torres had agreed to play. I hadn't met him before, so I was looking out for him the night of the show, not quite sure what he looked like in person. So I was setting up for the show - you know, the glamorous load-in that established acts have groupies do, when John walked in.  I was in some super high heels (which I take off while I play anyway, but thats not the point) and I turn and say "Oh, hi! Are you John?  It's so nice to me--"  And then BOOM, I miss a step and face-planted into the beer soaked floor.

Way to make a first impression, Whitney.

It was so tragically embarrassing, that he didn't even laugh. He though I might be actually hurt. Oh yes, it looked that bad. What can I say, I'm a complete klutz. Anyway - Fast forward to showtime and the John Torres band (er, duo) were nothing short of amazing. John on guitar/vocals & Tino on cajon, they are a sexy blend of captivating performance, strong melodies and lyrics that make your heart swell & hurt at the same time. Check 'em out, especially their song Hallelujah, you won't be disappointed.