Anxious Inventions & Fictions is officially being released this Saturday, September 12th, so yes, I am shouting it from the rooftops everywhere because I would really love for you to at least listen to it, maybe even purchase it.  (This is where you can purchase it.) Have you noticed the beautiful cover art for the album?  If not, well, here it is again:

Megan Fiely is the artist responsible for this painting that is hanging on the wall of my home, and also gracing the cover of Anxious Inventions & Fictions, both in the digital realm and in hard copy.  How about getting to know this artist better?  Interview questions after the picture:

 

 

1.  Let's hear the elevator pitch for your skill set. 

I am an abstract artist who works with bold texture and color, simultaneously exploring the celestial and the microscopic. 

 

 

2.  When did you first start painting? 

Visual communication, in one form or another, has always been my thing. My parents are both artists so I'm lucky to have absorbed art like a native language. I've taken a lot of different creative paths like music, clay, and quilting (!), but the painter you'd currently recognize as Megan Fiely started happening about 7 years ago. I have older paintings, but I was just fumbling around and imitating other artists, which is very important. I now feel secure evolving my own distinct style. 

 

 

3.  You are best known as a visual artist, but you are also a musician, and maybe folks who are familiar with your paintings don't know that.  What instruments do you play, and when did you start making music? 

I play the piano and sing at home, and have a guitar for fun too. I started doing all that stuff as a kid: first piano lessons in elementary school and then of course a Fender Stratocaster at 12 or 13, followed by a sanded down but rather nice repainted bass with a fairy painted on it. I had the typical 90s power chord cover band who played for 3 of our friends in the garage. Then in my 20s I dated a musician and one night his bass player didn't show up (again). I got out of the bathtub to go fill in and accidentally became a bassist for several years. Eventually I folded in one of those newer Hammond keyboards that has a built in tube, put it through a Marshall and played bass lines with my left hand on a Korg. I also always contributed back up vocals, and have a good ear for harmonies. 

Honestly though, I'm better with a paintbrush. I like leaving the music to all my talented friends and painting album covers for them when I get a chance. And on that note, thanks for including me in the Anxious Inventions & Fictions project Mike! 

 

4.  What was the first album you can remember buying with your own money? 

Pretty sure it was Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - Smashing Pumpkins. Or maybe No Doubt's Tragic Kingdom. 

 

5.  Tell me about the last concert you saw. 

The last official concert while not bartending at Yellow Cab was all the way back in summer 2019 when The Breeders played at Levitt Pavillion. (Mike adds: I wrote about that show in a previous blog entry.)  That was a lot of fun because almost everyone I knew was in the audience. I remember rocking out in the audience with you, Mike! Kim and Kelly are cool but Josephine's my babe because tall, bassist, British. 

 

6.  What artists do you consider to be your biggest influences, and why?  This can include any kind of art... poets, painters, sculptors, songwriters, etc. 

Van Gogh is everyone's favorite, including mine. He was more than just a painter though: Van Gogh was a part of the earth, and maybe some kind of human conduit for nature's beauty. My art doesn't look like his, but I think all artists are attempting to tap that same vein. 

Also Chagall, Klimt, O'Keefe. Again, my work doesn't look like theirs but I appreciate the spirit of their work, and of course all the color. I like when a figurative piece tells a story. 

 

 

7.  I imagine that artists like yourself face a similar challenge to musicians in that (1) art is generally devalued by the public just like music is and (2) there may be people willing to buy your art, but it can be difficult to find them.  How do you deal with those two challenges?

STAY IN THE STUDIO. I had to stop looking for gratification though sales or popularity. I'm a very sensitive and anxious person with big opinions, so I tend to find myself in difficult situations when I'm being too public. I'm happier just living simply and focusing on the actual craft of painting. It seems like putting my energy into the art itself, rather than sales, results in just as many sales anyway. I feel valued and recognized by friends like you, Mike, and I'm seriously not bs-ing you that it's enough. Plus you had me paint your album cover so.... things do tend to work out. 

It's important to consider your audience as well. Do I really want to sell my art to rich people or corporations as part of some interior design project? Sure, but you best believe I'm gouging them! I'd seriously rather sell 10 small paintings to my friends at $60 a pop than make one big sale and never see the painting again. I am so fortunate to have a lot of creative and supportive friends and to live in a city that values the arts. I want to encourage regular people to collect and commission original art, rather than seeing it as out of reach because of the art snobs. Understanding this allows me to opt out of the things I don't want to do. 

 

8.  How do you know when a painting is done? 

Finishing is the easy part, since by that point I've worked out all the technical aspects of the composition, balance, and texture. Perfecting the color happens close to the end. It's the mystical, meditative part of the journey. Once the colors are singing and dancing around the canvas, I know I'm very close to finished and I do some final technical adjustments. I'll dry brush metallics in places that need just a little more dimension, for example. Then I'll set it somewhere in my house for a few days and just cohabitate with the painting, and adjust anything that strikes me as distracting or otherwise bothersome. Then I sign it on the side of the canvas and it's done.

 

 

***

Big thanks to Megan for the lovely painting on my wall, being willing to do this interview, and being a genuinely kind and lovely human.  Also, look at the colors jump off the screen in those samples of her work!  You can browse what she has available for sale at her online store.  You can also find her on Instagram.

What?

The album title is Anxious Inventions & Fictions, which is a lyric taken from the piano ballad "Insomnia".  The album art looks something like this:

 

Megan Fiely, "Insomnia", 24" X 24", acrylic on canvas, 2020.

This album exists in two versions. 

First, there is a ten song digital version.  Do you remember my crowdfunding campaign in order to press vinyl from earlier this year?  That did not get funded, so the ten song digital version is what the album would have been on vinyl.  In order to duplicate the vinyl experience, after the fifth song finishes playing, press pause on your device, get up and walk around the room for thirty seconds to simulate flipping the record over, and then continue. 

Second, there is a twelve song deluxe version on compact disc.  This contains two additional songs, an alternate mix of the opening track "Your Anthem", and a different track order, for a custom listening experience. The CD also comes with a twelve page booklet, containing lyrics, liner notes, and art.  For both versions, the album is sequenced carefully, and the listener is meant to listen to all of the songs in order.

 

Who?

Mike Bankhead.  That's the name/logo on the cover.  I wrote and arranged the songs for the most part.  I say "for the most part", because TINO wrote lyrics and is featured on one song (you might remember a blog post about him), and Greg Owens co-wrote another song (you might remember a blog post about him as well).  Also, two songs feature string arrangements by the outrageously talented Blair Breitreiter.  But wait, there is more...

Here is a list of the wonderful folks who lent their time and talents to this album:

Eli Alban
Dustin Booher 
Blair Breitreiter 
Thad Brittain  
Chris Corn 
Ken Hall
Valentino Halton
Patrick Himes 
Brian Hoeflich
Chad Middleton
Kent Montgomery
David Payne 
Nathan Peters 
Tim Pritchard 
Tod Weidner 
Heather York

This album sounds good, mostly because of this list of humans.  For those of you who are not familiar with independent music in Dayton, you'll just have to trust me when I say that some of the finest musicians in our area are represented here.  

Also, a tip of the hat to Megan Fiely for the beautiful painting, and to Spencer Williams for the photography, layout, and design.

 

When?

There are some different answers to this question.  Let's start with making the album.  Tracking and mixing took place between February 2019 and February 2020.  That's a year of hard work, not just my own efforts, but also the people listed above, and specifically Patrick Himes as the recording and mixing engineer and David Payne as assistant engineer.

You can order this album on September 4th.  That happens to be Bandcamp Friday, when Bandcamp forgoes their customary cut of artist sales.  That means that all of the funds spent on Anxious Inventions & Fictions on that specific date go to me, and contribute to my ability to continue making art for you to enjoy.  If perchance you don't know where to find me on Bandcamp, here's the link for you to bookmark:

https://mikebankhead.bandcamp.com/

The official release date for this album is September 12th.  That is the day that you will be able to listen to it on the Bandcamp page I just mentioned.  That's also the day for which a safe, socially distanced, outdoors release celebration is planned.

For those of you who only listen to music via streaming services, you will find Anxious Inventions & Fictions available there on September 15th.

 

 

Where?

The album was recorded and mixed at Reel Love Recording Company in Dayton, Ohio.  Blair handled some additional recording of string arrangements at Bohemian Trash Studios in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  The album was mastered at True East Mastering in Nashville, Tennessee.

The socially distanced release celebration will happen at Yellow Cab Tavern on 4th Street in downtown Dayton.  Please note that the owners and staff at Yellow Cab care deeply about the health of our community, and require all visitors to wear a mask.  If you do not wear a mask, they will kindly ask you to leave.  Yellow Cab also has social distancing guidelines in place.  If you wish to know more about the precautions they are taking and how you can cooperate, please give them a call.  

 

Why?

There are those who think that music doesn't need a reason, because "l'art pour l'art", right?  I haven't thought about that particular worldview all that much.  I certainly have my reasons for making art.  

Songwriting is how I deal with stress and anxiety and depression.  Songwriting helps me to work through all sorts of emotional turmoil, and the catharsis that it provides is probably a net benefit to my mental health.  Songwriting is a way for me to say what I want or need to say, especially when nobody is listening.  Not all of those songs get recorded as demos at home, and even fewer of them make it all the way to the studio... but some of them do, and this is what  happens when they do.

I still believe in the idea of the album as an art form. That's not popular these days, as music is seen as a resource, a commodity, a value-less product, both by the companies who use it to make profit, and by the vast majority of music listeners.  I don't make pop music, so of course, I'm not making music for these people.  I make music first of all for me, because it's something I'm driven to do... and all of you other musicians out there, I see you nodding along.  Of course, I wish to share my art... well, the subset of it that I get around to thinking is of enough quality to warrant sharing... but if I write something I don't personally like, you won't be hearing it.  I won't write in a genre or in a certain way because it's popular, because I'm trying to get rich, or because I think it's what someone wants to hear.  You'll only be getting authenticity from me, thank you very much.

The above said, music is also a means of communication.  Thoughts, feelings, ideas, the concrete, the abstract, and just about everyone wishes to be heard, yes?  Maybe music is kind of a cry for help?  Tell you what, as soon as I get a therapist, I'll be sure to discuss this with them.

 

How?

You know, ever since I was a teenager, if I see that particular word all on it's own, I can't help but sing it.  I mean, I sing it inside my own head where nobody is listening, but it has to be sung.  How, you said you never would leave me alone....

So, how did this happen?  Lots of hard work.  I'm not exactly a gifted musician or songwriter, but I work at it, and I have some perfectionist tendencies, which means lots of editing and re-writing. A great deal of singing practice.  A great deal of singing the same parts over and over again, until Patrick would tell me that it's no longer pitchy.  All sorts of patience from Patrick Himes and the musicians who agreed to play for me.  Even more patience from my wife when I would be in the studio for long hours and obsess over details in mixes at home.

How? Time. Pain. Self-Doubt. Frustration. Tears. Stress. Study. Thought. Experimentation. Explanation. Sleeplessness. 

 

Anxious Inventions & Fictions is my best work.  That's what I think, anyway.  I hope you think so, too.

I try to run these blog posts on Mondays, and I'm writing this one on Sunday evening, 19th April.  I'll start by thanking - from the bottom of my messed up heart - all of the kind folks who have supported this project so far.  

At the moment, we have $446 pledged out of the goal amount of $3400.  Perhaps you are wondering how I arrived at that number... well, here's the breakdown:

• $2000 to press vinyl.  (Note that I arrived at this number after shopping around and getting quotes from several companies that press vinyl.)
• $100 materials required to ship albums.  This is basically the boxes and packing material so the records don't break when I mail them.
• $500 estimated shipping cost.  Each time an album goes in the mail, there is a cost.  The farther it goes, the more the cost.
• $180 State of Ohio and Greene County tax.  Yes, as a business, I have to pay tax on all sales.  Pre-orders count as sales.
• $130 Kickstarter fees.  They take a cut, which is how they stay in business.
• $130 processing fees.  The folks that handle the fund transfer take a cut, which is how they stay in business.
• $360 promotion.  I had planned to split this between having a music video done and sending promo copies of the album to indie radio and music journalists.

All of that adds up to $3400.  Note that this amount is only for vinyl.  I'm going to have CDs made and will distribute digitally, and am paying for that myself.

So, the deadline for raising the funds is this Friday, 24th April, at the auspicious hour of 07:12.  Frankly, it doesn't look likely that we'll make the goal.  This is the risk you take when you try to crowdfund during a pandemic.  If the goal is not reached, I won't be pressing Anxious Inventions & Fictions to vinyl, short of some sort of art grant.  That makes me a little sad, as I would love to see Megan Fiely's beautiful artwork on a vinyl album cover, and I'd also love to hold my own music in my hands on wax.  Buy hey, the market is speaking, it is what it is.

If you were on the fence about supporting this project, what can I do to move you off the fence?  (This is, of course, assuming you are still gainfully employed.  These days, I understand that many people are not.)  Would hearing the first single from the album help?  Ok, you'll all end up hearing that one anyway eventually, yes.  Well, did you know I wrote a song called "Wapakoneta" (yes, like city) that isn't on the album?  It has an Americana feel... I tried to write a Jason Isbell song... and yes, I know that's not the sandbox I usually play in.  I'm going to make that song an exclusive bonus for anyone who backs this project.  Have anyone in your life who collects vinyl?  You know, Anxious Inventions & Fictions would make a great gift for them  Also, this would be a way to support a local independent business (namely You Could Be My Aramis Music, LLC), and also, support the arts.

I invite to you kindly take one last look at the rewards I am offering for pledges to this campaign.  Also, think about all that time that we'll probably all be stuck in quarantine again this fall/winter, and of how nice it would be to have another black circle to spin.

Again, for the folks who have already backed this project, I know who you all are by name, and I cannot thank you enough.  Thank you.  I won't forget.

Making an album is a long journey.  The time spent writing and re-writing, then re-writing again at home.  The arranging, which often requires another re-write.  The demos.  The gathering in the studio to discuss and plan.  Session after session after session with a whole bunch of really talented people.  Take after take after take of singing, repeating the process if you're a little sharp or a little flat.  The listening to studio bounces over and over and over and over.  The mixing.  That's my process and my journey at least.  Many musicians probably have it easier.  For me, it's a long journey, and it's hard work, and I wouldn't be able to do it without the help of a great many people.

I'd like to celebrate a little more than a year spent working on Anxious Inventions & Fictions by means of a photo blog entry.   

 

Let's begin:

This is engineer extraordinaire Patrick Himes adjusting the boom for Eric Cassidy on June 2, 2019.  Eric sang harmonies on "Bright Ideas".  Ultimately, that song didn't make it to Anxious Inventions & Fictions, but it is out right now as a stand-alone single.  Please click here to listen to it.

Here's Eric Cassidy again, this time holding an accordion.  He played this on June 30, 2019, during the outro on "Pauline".  You can hear this song on Defacing the Moon, as the songs from that album were chosen from these sessions.

 

 

This is Dustin Booher, with me on June 29,2019.  He is a fellow Xenian, and we have known each other since we were five years old.  He sang on "Sunday (That Pill)", which is on Defacing the Moon.  He also lent outstanding vocals to "Never Let Go", which is the 4th song on Anxious Inventions & Fictions.

 

 

 

There is Dustin in the background... and here is Tim Pritchard on July 27, 2019, playing guitar.  You can hear his fine work on "I Am a Number" and "Promise".

 

 

 

This is Jackie and Brandon, who are half of Westerly Station. I met them in Austin at the CD Baby DIY Musician Conference.  (I wrote about that before.)  Brandon is a fellow Ohioan, and we even grew up in the same county.  It was quite convenient that they came from their Texas home to Ohio when I was in the studio, and they had the time to stop by.  Brandon played mandolin on "Sunday (That Pill)", and it sounds great.  

 

Hello there, Ken Hall.  Normally, you can find him seated behind a piano, a task he performs in Shrug and Human Cannonball.  I invited him to play a little trombone.  You can hear Ken play for about a second and a half on "Your Anthem", which is the first track on Anxious Inventions & Fictions.

 

This handsome fella is Kent Montgomery.  He is the lead guitarist from The New Old Fashioned.   He was kind enough to play guitar on "Never Let Go", "Won't Love You Anymore", "Run To You", and "Wapakoneta".  That last song didn't make the album, but I will release it at some point.  

 

 

Here I am with Nathan Peters, who I've known over 20 years.  You might recognize him as the lead singer and keyboardist from legendary Dayton band Captain of Industry.  These days, he fronts Lioness.  He was kind enough to come to the studio and play piano on "Goodbye".  I wrote the song on piano, but I don't have the chops to give it the recorded performance that it deserves.  Thanks to Nathan's work, it sounds so very good.

 

The most recent photo.  January 23, 2020.  As you can see from the wood floors and the walls, this photo was taken after the great Reel Love flood and subsequent remodel.  (Scroll up to the first picture for the old school look of the main room in the studio.)  This was my last day in the studio for work on the album.  There was a mixing session after this, so the official end date was in February, but I didn't need to head down for that.  Patrick's steady hand guided me through this process, as he has done so many times for so many other musicians.  He has a fantastic ability to hear the song behind my low-quality home demos.  I can tell him what I am trying to accomplish as far as the sound I hear in my head is concerned, and he can figure out how to get me there.  This gentleman is a multi-instrumentalist, great singer, and true professional.  

I hope you have enjoyed this brief photo journey through a year's worth of work.  There are plenty of behind-the-scenes photos that I haven't even seen.  I have 5 disposable cameras that came to the studio with me, and they are filled with photos.  If you are curious as to what might be on them, they are available as one of the rewards on my Kickstarter campaign to crowdfund pressing Anxious Inventions & Fictions to vinyl.  Why not head over to the campaign and help me press some vinyl?

 

This song is on my upcoming album, Anxious Inventions & Fictions. It is the result of a songwriting exercise meant to combat writer's block... but strangely enough, I wasn't actually suffering from writer's block when I wrote this song. Let's set the scene... come to Nashville with me, to the CD Baby DIY Musician Conference in the summer of 2018.

One of the most useful sessions I attended was conducted by Shane Adams.  This gentleman is on the faculty at Berklee Online.  I had seen him speak the previous year, and he is humorous and engaging, energetic and open, and clearly quite knowledgeable.  This year, he was talking about a proven method of defeating writer's block.  At the time I sat through this seminar, I wasn't suffering from writer's block... I wasn't really trying to write songs at the conference... but in order to get the most out of the session, if there is an audience participation exercise, you need to participate.

I don't want to explain all of the things that were covered here, but let's briefly say that the method consisted of a series of letters.  No, not the twenty-six characters that make up the English alphabet, the method of communication before email, telephones, and telegraphs.  When I was much younger, I used to write letters often.  I would write to my friends both here in Ohio, in other parts of the United States, and overseas.  I couldn't even tell you how many scores of letters I've probably written.  That being the case, I took to this exercise rather well.

The phrase "she speaks in metaphor" came out of this exercise.  Wanna see?  Here it is:

 

 

At some point, I thought this would make an excellent song title.  Once I decided that, I needed a musical approach.  I decided to write this one on my bass instead of on the piano.  Further, as the song title seemed to me at the time that it would lend itself to a rather complicated idea, I wanted to make the song simple, and I wanted the bass to carry it.  For that reason, the verses consist of only one chord.  A minor.  That's it.  The bass line that carries the verses is moving through several of the notes in the A minor scale.  There is a bit more motion in the chorus parts as far as the harmony is concerned.  That settled, I used the piano to help me pick out a melody.  After I had a melody, then came the work to write lyrics to fit the melody and the theme.

This needed to be a rock song.  Ok, not just rock.  RAWK.  To that end, I recruited one of the finest bass players in Dayton, Chirs Corn.  (He has other talents as well.)  He used to play in a very loud, chaotic, experimental, post-punk outfit called My Latex Brain... and in this band, he would surround himself and his bass with what seemed like a hundred different pedals, and make the bass sound like a legion of guitars.  That's the sound I wanted on this song.  I also recruited Thad Brittain for more high frequency guitar work.  For the percussion end, I asked Brian Hoeflich to do his best Jimmy Chamberlain impersonation, and he obliged.

I am extremely pleased with the result.  If my Kickstarter campaign is successful and we get vinyl pressed, you'll be able to find it as the first song on Side Two of the album.  I can't wait for you to hear it.

February 17th, 2019.  That was the first day of tracking for my second solo full-length album.  A quick aside... it's awfully strange to call it a "solo" album, as I certainly couldn't have gotten it done without a great deal of help.  Patrick Himes, the engineer/producer.  Brian Hoeflich, professional drummer extraordinaire.  The other guitarists, vocalists, pianists, violinists, etc who are on the album: Eli Alban, Dustin Booher, Blair Breitreiter, Thad Brittain, Chris Corn, Ken Hall, Kent Montgomery, David Payne, Nathan Peters, Tim Pritchard, TINO, Tod Weidner, Heather York.  That's an awful lot of help for a "solo" album.

(I digress again.  This doesn't count the folks who helped out on songs that didn't make the album, but that I still plan on releasing.  I'll be thanking them all by name in the future, you can take it to the proverbial bank.)

Where was I?  Oh yes.  February 17th,2019.  Notice how in that first paragraph, I wrote the words "gotten it done"?  Yes, February 5, 2020 was the last mixing session.  The album is tracked.  The album is mixed.  A release date is in the future.  It is without a doubt my best work to date.  Wanna know what it's called?

 

Anxious Inventions & Fictions

 

That's a lyric from one of the songs.  Would you like to hear it on vinyl?  I would surely LOVE to press it to vinyl.

It turns out that you, yes you, can help to get this album pressed to vinyl.  I am launching a Kickstarter campaign to offset the expense of pressing vinyl.  It essentially functions as a pre-order... if you are interested in hearing my new album on vinyl, by all means, select a campaign reward that includes your very own copy of Anxious Inventions & Fictions.  There are a few different rewards that include the physical record.  For one of the rewards, I'll list your name in the liner notes expressing my deep gratitude for all the world to see.  I have five disposable cameras (remember those?) full of exclusive behind-the-scenes photos of the recording process... I haven't even seen these photos... those are possible rewards as well.

What if you don't have a turntable, but still want to help?  Well, one of the rewards is for a digital download of the album.  What if you just want to wait until the album is on Spotify or Pandora or Apple Music or YouTube?  Well, if you would like to support the effort of getting the album pressed to vinyl for other folks out of the kindness of your heart, there is a donation level for that.  Every little bit helps, you know.

Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing crowdfunding platform.  If we reach the funding goal, then I'll be able to get Anxious Inventions & Fictions pressed to vinyl.  If we do not reach the funding goal, nobody will be charged for any of the pre-orders, and the album will not be pressed to vinyl.  

If you didn't already click on the link above to go to the Kickstarter campaign, why not click it here to visit my pre-launch page?  The campaign goes live on Wednesday, March 25.  Please share with all of your music-loving friends.  Let's press some records!!!