Shane Cooley blog
The Wave Gathering 2009
I went up to Jersey for my
second time performing at the Wave Gathering Music Festival. It’s been a long year, but some things
haven’t changed. Asbury still has an
atmosphere like none other. It’s still a
struggling, healing city, with a visible spirit. I’m still trying to make it in this business
with nothing but a guitar, and can very much empathize with this spirit.
On the other hand, a lot has changed. I’ve fully embraced being a solo performer
now. I miss having a band, but I think
I’ve learned how to handle putting on a show by myself without things
lacking. My personal life has seen some
darker times over the year, but now I’m happy to say that I’m more comfortable
with myself and my life than I’ve been in years. I’m a rising senior at William and Mary, a
substitute teacher, a freelance booking agent for a local venue in
Williamsburg, and every month sees things getting a little brighter for my
dream. I just released a new solo
acoustic EP, The Midnight Oil EP (on iTunes), that I take pride in for its
straightforward demonstration of how hard I’ve worked on my craft in the past
year.
On a random note, I also suicide-blonded my hair for the
summer with Sun-In. I get bored with my
appearance a lot, and it’s too much trouble to grow a beard. I guess it’s a physical representation of how
I’ve lightened up a bit. :P
I performed three times over the weekend at Plan B, America’s Cup
Café, and B Unique. I met some great
people and reconnected with those I had met last year. I was also able to catch Val Emmich’s
wonderful set. I was on the Camplified
Tour with him last year.
Friday night I registered and expressed my eagerness to get
more sets, and was given the slot at Plan B.
I think the crowd that gathered on the street behind me enjoyed me more
than the clientele, but all-in-all it was good fun. I have to say that everyone I’ve run into in
Asbury has been generally friendly and polite.
I’m usually rather shy, but I had no problem going up and striking up
conversation with people this time.
After the Plan B set I headed over to my originally
scheduled slot at America’s
Cup Café. I had some people come that
remembered me from last year, as well as some people I had been in contact with
on Myspace in the weeks leading up to the festival. I had a great time and I think my voice was
spot-on for that set. I’ve really been
working on my pitch and vocal control, so I’m happy when that happens. There were also some other good acoustic acts
in the venue that I was happy to meet and listen to.
I spent the rest of Friday night enjoying the festival and
the Asbury music scene. I even went into
Mattison Park, which is the bar that wouldn’t let
me in as a 20 year old last year. It was
nice to be able to go in and enjoy the bands.
I’m less excited about my 22nd birthday. I feel this past year has seen the lasts
moments of my ‘youth.’
I then went back to the boardwalk area, threw on my leather
jacket, and caught the Wonder Bar at last call.
The band had already packed up, so I wandered out to the boardwalk and
watched the ocean and the pretty pier lights, feeling like Eddie Wilson. It was a peaceful way to end the night.
Saturday for the most part was a day of concert-going and
networking. The outdoor stage was
bullied by rain clouds for most of the day, but the Wave Gathering staff and
bands soldiered through and it ended up being just fine.
An unfortunate side-effect of being an ambitious
singer/songwriter is the mixed bag of thoughts and emotions I get when I go to
these things. Sometimes I get depressed
going to concerts. This isn’t entirely
bad, because the depression stems from how much I would like to be up on that
stage playing to such a large crowd, which therefore fuels my desire to work to
get to that point. However, I also can
never go to a concert simply to have a good time. For someone that loves music as much as I do,
this can sometimes be troublesome. I
catch myself sponging the guitar player’s solo techniques or watching the
singer’s vocal control rather than losing myself in the joy of a live
performance. Then there’s the emotional
side, where I engage myself in the song and the story the frontman is telling,
and I find myself itching to tell my own stories and beating myself up for not
being better than I am. I’m confident in
my art, but I’ll never feel like I’m good enough. I’m full of envy. Ultimately these are all helpful things in
the long run….but you know, I’d really like to go to a concert just once and
not have those feelings! It’s been too
long since I’ve truly experienced the ecstasy of music itself, without all the
other strings attached.
I also met Jay Weinberg, who's the current fill-in drummer for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, and gave him a copy of my new EP. Last year I met Vini Lopez, the original E Street Band drummer, who I've kept in contact with since and caught one of my shows in NYC.
After the outdoor concerts I went to the artists panels,
which are a wonderful perk to being a Wave Gathering performer. You get to meet a lot of press, radio,
booking, and managing personalities face-to-face, which is very much worth
it. I’m still in frequent contact with
people I met at last year’s panel, and it’s been very helpful.
A lot of people don’t have a clue about what it’s truly like
to be a musician in the 21st Century. For the most part, it’s a desk
job. I spend 5 to 6 hours a day (at
least) on my computer maintaining websites, keeping in contact with press and
radio, sending out emails to potential bookings, etc etc. Believe me, I’m not complaining, but it isn’t
exactly what one would envision. I’m
lucky if I have time in the day for my intended 3 hours of rehearsing. There’s no time for sex and drugs in 21st
Century rock n roll. You can’t be sloppy
or lazy or a jerk. You have to be just
as professional and polite as you have to be in any other field. For better of for worse, art truly has become
synonymous with business. In my opinion, I don’t really mind that. I wish I had
time to focus more on my art itself, but I think it’s refreshing to think that
the future of music holds the possibility of more ‘real’ music, because I think
the only ones who’ll make it for the most part will be people who are working
their asses off.
This is all this from scratch too. I’ve learned everything I know from example
and experience. From what the panelists
told me in Asbury, I’m doing everything right, but I certainly would be up for
finding someone with more experience in this aspect of the business.
After the panels I played a last minute set at B Unique
clothing for skaters, a nice business that opened their doors for music at the
festival. The owner and his family were
incredibly kind people and I had a great time playing my tunes.
Now I’m back in Virginia
for a little while, trying to fill in gaps in the booking and preparing for my
upcoming shows in the Outer Banks and my very important show at the Living Room
in NYC.
Asbury Park
was inspiring as usual, and when I got home I wrote three songs in a row. None of them are particularly about the
weekend, but I thought I’d share one that conveys my take on the music business
and life right now. It’s kind of a
waltzy folk song musically. Enjoy!
“Fighting the Wildfire”
~Shane Cooley 2009
I was born unlucky
Unlucky, my friend
I’ve been fighting the wildfire ever since
We came into this world
Without talent or smarts
We unlucky ones compensate for what we aren’t
When you’re up a creek without a paddle
You try your best to win a losing battle
When there’s no escape you fight ‘til the end
I’ve been fighting the wildfire ever since
There’s a man on the stage entrancing the crowd
With his wicked tattoos
And his guitar turned loud
Every fool who calls himself
A maker of art
Is struggling to be like this fortunate star
Maybe tomorrow will turn the cards
When you’re up a creek without a paddle
You try your best to win a losing battle
When there’s no escape you fight ‘til the end
I’ve been fighting the wildfire ever since
In a world where music
Is a whisper that fades
Behind auto tuned rich boys
And hipster parades
Those who aren’t lucky
Are all but spent
We’ve been fighting the wildfire ever since
We’ve been fighting the wildfire ever since
Enjoy your summer, and I’ll see you on the road!
Best,
Shane