What do ‘bootz and catz’ have to do with my upcoming Live in Germany album? I probably should name it this way because the ‘catz’ were essential for its making. I’ll explain. Say ‘bootz and catz’ out loud, right now. OK, now try it 4 times in a row. Do it fast. Have you done it? What do you hear? Does it remind you of something?
I love playing with my band, however, quite often, when I tour long distances, it’s financially unfeasible for me to bring the band along. Many musicians face this problem time after time. This fiscal conundrum has lead me to develop a one woman show. I am a guitarist first and foremost. As a guitarist, I like to have a backing band, that rhythm section, the energy from the drums and bass. Non of that is there when you are performing solo. So, what do I do?
I ‘bounce the pizza’ … and ‘boot the catz.’
I have been bouncing that pizza for a long time now! I tell you, all this ‘booting’ and ‘bouncing’ got me through many tours 😉
Let me demonstrate.
(Now you try! Why not film yourself and share it on your socials. When you share it, tag @LeciaLouise on facebook and on instagram. I would love to see what you do!)
In the early years of my career, I met Mal Webb at Woodford Folk Festival. I saw him on stage using a loop pedal to layer sounds that he made with his body and instruments which kept going and growing. It was very inspiring because I could see how one person could express themselves so easily. This is how the loop pedal entered my music life and became very useful for me in my solo shows.
For those of you who are not familiar with this, I should explain what this is. A loop pedal is an electronic device which captures the start and end point of a piece of music I play and then plays it back on repeat as long as I want. This provides some music that I can then play with. So it’s like an instant backing track being made then and there. The beauty of it, once I have recorded one thing in the loop, I can keep adding to it, making layers of music, this way I can almost achieve the sound of a band behind me. I can add as many voices to it as I wish. On top of this, I also use foot percussion as a kick and snare sound and various effects on my electric guitar. This completes the backing rhythm track which accompanies the lead. Below are some examples. The first video is a live performance of ‘Reeperbahn Blues,’ followed by a full demonstration of my entire one woman band set up.
I am a self managed, self funded, independent musician. I book my tours, accommodation and draft itineraries myself. I have played in Europe every year for 7 years running. There’s a lot of work behind the scenes. To set up a tour you need to send out hundreds of emails, which quite often, mostly get ignored. I then send follow up emails and sometimes a follow up call, which is quite difficult with the time difference between Australia and Europe. A tour can flesh itself out once it gets rolling after meeting new people who recommend other places to play etc. Quite often I slept in the tour van, but now and then venues who booked me put me up in a nice hotel. I also met some friends on the road who took me in which was much appreciated on some of those freezing nights!
Van Hermann was my trusty home on wheels. Large enough to sleep and dine in. I could also lock up my gear securely. A couple of times some people tried to break in, but they could not get into the lock up musical section. Thank goodness! (Unfortunately this has happened to me in the past with other tour vans. All of my tour cash was stolen on one of my previous German tours.. ouch!! The ‘Reeperbahn Blues’ is about that.)
So now, I am glad to introduce my first ‘bandless’ release, which features all of these techniques for the first time. For those who only know me from my previous albums recorded with a full band, this will be a new experience. You will now know more about how the sounds of my new Live in Germany album are made and what work goes into booking a tour. So turn it up and enjoy!
Leave your email on the right hand column of this blog and get your copy of this album half price for a limited time only. I will also send you 3 free songs.
I will not be making this available on any online streaming sites. Thank you for listening.
Or you can get your full price copy here.
12 Comments
Trackbacks and Pingbacks
Trackback URL for this post:
https://www.lecialouisemusic.com/bootz-and-catz-behind-the-german-album/trackback/
-
jenelle
» Bootz and Catz. Behind The German Album Lecia Louise
-
Casino online terpercaya
» Bootz and Catz. Behind The German Album Lecia Louise
-
ingaberg
» Bootz and Catz. Behind The German Album Lecia Louise
Very couple of internet websites that come about to be in depth beneath, from our point of view are undoubtedly very well really worth checking out. Jacintha Ari Fisch
Hello, i read your blog occasionally and i own a similar one
and i was just wondering if you get a lot of spam responses?
If so how do you stop it, any plugin or anything you
can recommend? I get so much lately it’s driving me insane so any help is very much appreciated.
Bonjour, ton blogue est très réussi! Je te dis bravo! C’est du beau boulot! 🙂 Heidi Merell Carrnan
Hey Lecia,
Great to read about those adventures!!!
Look forward to purchasing a copy of the live album.
Hi Daniel!
Thank you for your message and for purchasing my new live album. Which other CD’s of mine do you have?
Hope you are doing well and keep playin those tunes…
xoxox
Nice work. Well written. Worth the wait. Looking forward to some shows Lecia.
Thanks G-unit 😉
Well the gigs will come back slowly, bit by bit. I have been enjoying having time to create content like this with the break from gigs though.
And writing and recording music too 😉
Keep an eye on my website for future gig here: https://www.lecialouise.com/shows
Thanks for dropping in
Lecia
Great blog – great music Lecia xx
Thank you very much!!
xoxoxo