Area singer/songwriter Lindsey Lutes has released a 10-track effort titled Little Castaway.
This journey began in 2006 when Lutes went to see Heart at Foellinger Theatre. In fact, she got to go backstage, and that’s when she had the opportunity to speak with Heart guitarist Craig Bartock.
“We got to hangout for hours before the show, and I told him how much I love music, shared some laughs, and we quickly became friends,” Lutes said. “So much so, that I began sending him my lyrics to get his feedback.”
That went on for a while, then when the COVID lockdown began in 2020, an opportunity arose when Bartock’s tour with Heart was canceled as well as his recording sessions at Abbey Road Studios in London.
“With us both being trapped at home, we took advantage of the time, and decided to write a song together,” Lutes said. “One song turned into two, then three, and finally we decided to write a whole album, as he was inspired by my lyrics and I was inspired by the music he sent me.”
In a recent social media post, Bartock shared his experience with her lyrics, saying: “Literally the second she sang them, the music would just appear in my head. It’s like the songs came from somewhere else and we were channeling an era gone by of real stories, real like, love, loss, and the things we all go through.”
The process included Zoom writing sessions, then Lutes would record through GarageBand before using Dropbox to send tracks to Bartock in California where he would convert it to Pro Tools. They did this for a year, then this past New Year’s Eve, Lutes went into Sweetwater Studios to put down better quality tracks.
The end result, Little Castaway, featuring a sound reminiscent of the vibes of Patsy Cline, Bonnie Raitt, Wynonna, and Melissa Etheridge rolled into one.
You can find the album on major streaming platforms with physical copies and possibly a release party at a later date.
Local artist’s album streaming
Singer-songwriter Austin Marsh has released his sophomore album, Waiting on the Flood, with his band Austin & the Avenue.
Believe it or not, the album was pretty much recorded in Marsh’s apartment except for the drums which were recorded in bandmate Colin Boyd’s basement. The result: Eight solid tracks including “Dirt on My Hands,” “Keep on Growing,” and “By Your Side.”
When asked how he came up with the album title, Marsh said, “The phrase ‘waiting on the flood’ can be contextualized differently. With lyric subjects ranging from my struggles with religion, to isolation, to reconnecting with nature, and the things that really matter — that seemed like the most fitting title to sum up all those ideas.”
The full band lineup on this record is Boyd (drums), Lance Roberts (bass), Tommy Saul (keys), and Marsh (guitar/vocals).
The album can be found on all major streaming platforms. Also, you can hear the new numbers Feb. 12 when Marsh teams up with Ellie Parker at Edwin Coe Spirits outside Churubusco and a solo performance at Ted’s Beerhall on March 19.
Debutants record new EP
Debutants have returned to the studio to record a new EP, a followup to last year’s Indiana Newgrass.
The crew traveled to Carnegie, Pennsylvania, to record at Studio 110 with drummer/producer/engineer Tyler Thompson. This time around, there were seven of them in the studio with the addition of Lauren Blair on fiddle and Ellen Coplin on cello.
The band put in over 30 hours of studio time and have five new numbers fully tracked and ready for mixing. The hope is to have it out in April.
Until then, you can check them out at Down the Line at Embassy Theatre on Feb. 26 and at JK O’Donnell’s on March 17.
Getting exposure on YouTube
What do you think of when someone mentions YouTube? A dog imitating a siren? A cat jump fail? But YouTube is much more than that, especially for the music world.
The website can be used for music lessons, inspiration, a streaming platform, and so on. Fort Wayne native Jonah Baker knows firsthand, as he relies heavily on it as his musical platform.
“I started uploading YouTube videos nine years ago covering popular songs,” Baker said. “Eventually, I started growing a following, and today, I have 551,000 subscribers and 1 million monthly listeners on Spotify.”
Recently, he had a unique opportunity arise when Music Travel Love reached out and asked if he wanted to be a part of a project where artists around the globe would remotely cover John Lennon’s “Imagine.” Music Travel Love is a musical brother duo of Clint and Bob Moffat that can seen on YouTube chasing waterfalls or hiking to some of the world’s most scenic backdrops to shoot their incredible performances.
The video for “Imagine” was filmed everywhere from Indonesia; the Philippines; Hawaii; Nashville, Tennessee; and at the Lakeside Rose Gardens right here in Fort Wayne.
The video went viral and has over 990,000 views. Take a minute and hop on over to YouTube and check it out. Subscribe to Baker while you are at it.
The Illegals join Powerman 5000
The Illegals have been added as opening support for the Powerman 5000 show at the Rockstar Lounge on March 30.
The “Back from the Dead 2022” tour features The World Over and Yesterday’s Hero.
Tickets are available via TicketWeb.
