the fever pitch 🔥
reasons to attend my release show, exclusive tour poster, + more...
i blinked and summer was over. fall is upon us and with each pass of the cool breeze, i can feel my soul tightening around itself. Held and Holding comes out in 3 days. the whole year has led up to this and i’m quaking in my boots. read on to quake with me
reasons why you should come to my release show at the california clipper on sunday at 6pm:
it’s free.99
it’s very likely that there will be cake
the cake will also be free.99
i literally printed so much merch check out all my cool merch
cool kid bags for the hipster if your life who’s misplaced their new yorker canvas tote
cassette tapes of my new album, Held and Holding (a beautiful chocolate swirl cassette)
and some sustainably sourced t-shirts hand-printed with the same design as the totes
wow!
so come on through for free music / cake + affordable merch. if you’re not local or you can’t make it, all this and more will be available for sale on my bandcamp by mid-next week.
oh, and there’s one other place you can get my merch…
tour poster leak
…at a local show in your town while i’m on tour!
my girlfriend, sylvia sawyer james, and i spent all summer routing and booking a 10-day tour with 8 stops in 6 states and i couldn’t be more jazzed. peep the poster below for an exclusive sneak peek that you can’t get ~anywhere else~
if you’re on our tour route, come out to a show. if you have a friend/family member/acquaintance on our tour route, send them this poster! we wanna see y’all
critter-cally acclaimed
sky baby is the sixth single released by hemlock in anticipation of their upcoming album, 444. packed with worldly love and longing, “sky baby” is as sentimental as it gets, and it’s welcomed countless tears from me at shows in real life.
an arpeggio bumbles along, softly fingerpicked on an acoustic guitar. gentle and hushed, carolina’s voice beckons forth with cherished invitations. her words are rich and dripping with desire:
if you were a hound dog, could i be your bone?
you can have all my marrow, carry me round our home
a modulated electric guitar joins in, its jangle adding a metallic sheen. a collective breath is taken before the next verse is sung:
if i am the setting sun and you are the sky
i’ll kiss you with ripest color till the evening draws nigh
drums start to brush out a soft groove, cymbals sizzling gingerly. from the texture, a mantra emerges:
you are the sky, you
are the sky
repeating the words over and over, carolina’s voice is joined by that of their bandmates. one by one, a chorus of friends joins in, adding color and variation to their croons.
virtuosic vocal swells creep forward in unison then begin to tumble over one another, staggering as they fall. when carolina sings this part live, it never fails to send a shiver of delight and admiration down my spine. then, suddenly, it’s over
soft and tender, the beloved chorus carries us through the last few seconds of the song. instruments fall away until we are left with only these sweet gentle whispers.
watching carolina perform is a gift that i’ve been blessed with for almost 10 years now. their brilliance has inspired me to be a warmer, kinder, more inventive artist. this song has always had a special place in my heart, and i feel so lucky to be able to write a few words about it today. i hope it fills your cup the way it has filled mine for so long.
alright, y’all... i think it’s about that time
seeya on sunday
with gratitude,
warmth,
and pumpkin puree,
hannah sandoz, or critter, or hann