I started this blog after reading a Facebook post by CD Baby. It suggested that it only takes 15 minutes a week to maintain a blog that will keep your fans posted and interested in you. As you can see, I've fallen far short of that. My excuse is that real life intrudes, and in recent weeks there just hasn't been anything exciting to blog about.
On the bright side, I'm blogging tonight, so that means enough things are happening to make it worthwhile.
1. Recording of the new album is coming along nicely. We've made great progress on around a half-dozen tracks. It's sounding good!
2. While adding acoustic guitar tracks on a couple of songs for the album, I took advantage of the opportunity to demo one of the songs I wrote recently. It's called "Salvation," and I characterize it as a "love/protest song." The lyrics reflect my general sense of concern and frustration with the world, juxtaposed against my gratitude for having found the love of my life.
Coincidentally, actor/director Ed Burns posted on Facebook that he's seeking song submissions for his independent film, "Newlyweds." He gave no specific direction or context for the kind of song he's looking for, but I submitted "Salvation" anyway. At the very least it's getting exposure on the SoundCloud group Burns created for song submissions. He's supposed to pick the winning song by Easter weekend.
3. In the "it never hurts to ask" department, Mike Daly & The Planets will make their live debut at Pat DiNizio's 5th Annual Memorial Day Picnic/Fan Jam and Concert, which will be held in Pat's back yard in Scotch Plains, NJ on Sunday, May 29. Yes, we'll be opening for the Smithereens, whose new album, "2011," is getting great reviews, so we're psyched. Pat's Beatles cover band, the Scotch Plainsmen, will also be playing, and he'll be doing a solo acoustic set as well. We're psyched! For ticket and other info about the event, visit PatDiNizio.com. If you're going, please send a note along with your check indicating that you were refferred by me.
4. We've got a lot of fans in Sweden. Our songs have been streamed more than 1,300 times on a website called Spotify. Also, the vast majority of our listeners on Last.fm are from Sweden. Not exactly sure why, but if someone out there can shed some light on it, we'd love to know. Send me a note at mike@mikedaly.com
5. Hey, you know, we've had a four-song EP out for several months now. Or maybe you didn't. In either case, it's selling at various online digital music sites for around 4 bucks, while the CD version is available for as little as $7.50. If haven't already, all the info you'll ever need to obtain it is available on the righthand column of this page or at MikeDaly.com
