Another kind of tour.

It's been a busy week. I'm preparing for a move, getting into my fourth week of school and gearing up for a couple of shows before Austin. But its always a good idea, in my opinion, when you feel you're totally in over your head to go right on and expend that little extra of your time and energy on frivolous F-U-N.  Soooo, last Saturday I tagged along with John and his pal Steve to the Tour De Palm Springs. 

Let me just say that the whole production was quite lovely, certainly, but the thing I liked best about the T de PS, if you will, was not the sprawling desert scapes, nor the veritable smorgasbord of people and their many wheeled contraptions, it wasn't the pelting sand in my face during the first 45 minutes of the ride,  neither was it the threatening crosswinds at speeds of 30mph or more. All of these are a mixed bag of things that I am more than willing to appreciate for various reasons. But what I came to love and be most proud of was finding out what is my maximum level of suffering endured on any given day. 

That's right. I don't pretend to be in great shape. I only like to believe that I can do anything (within reason) that I put my mind or body to. And here's the thing about that- I'm not sure I've ever really tested my theorem. That is, until last Saturday. Don't misunderstand me, I give myself copious measures of credit for picking up and riding 65 miles with a couple of serious cyclists on a Saturday morning, when I'd just as soon spend the time watching Parks and Rec in my pj's, waiting for my caffeine headache to get me out of the house. But honestly, my breaking point came sooner than I hoped. 

Round about mile 52 we found ourselves on the last leg of the ride, pumping up and over some bridge surrounded by all these people barley scooting, breathing their hot exhausted breath, cruising on to the finish. All the while I'm seriously about to loose it. I had to burn my last match and pass them on the incline just to keep my wits. And shortly after that... I was done. I rode the last few miles in tears. Seriously. I was overtaken by the tension of needing to finish the course for my own dignity and the honest to God fury for having been duped into such a harebrained, cockamamie idea of fun in the first place. 

And the reason it was my favorite part? It was like being shoved face first through that tiny window of humility that I rarely spare the time to even look through. And that stuff is good for me and that's the truth. Also, it was good company and pretty scenery and I did finish so the victory is mine. Here are some photos.

b-fast of champs

my view for most of the ride

pit stop!

steve looking regal

Coffee Table Day 1

Im kind of a big deal.

Belt sander people!

Whoop Whoop!

Almost there... yes it's a real chicken 

Here's day one of my coffee table project. So far what I've done is taken apart one half of a wooden pallet and vigorously sanded the top planks; first with a belt sander to get them looking somewhat decent and then with a palm sander to spiff things up and ensure they're splinter free. 

John just so happened to have a dilapidated old railroad cart (awesome!) sitting in his rubbish pile out back. I decided that this would serve perfectly as a frame for the pallet to sit atop. It was actually in two pieces when I started. First I brushed it off (to be rid of any big black spiders who might be lurking in dark cracks)and then hosed it down to soften the wood in case it wanted to crumble in my hands. The front swivel wheel was still attached to a plank but not to the frame so John helped me secure it with 5 wood screws. 

I got so seriously lucky that the pallet fit over the top of the cart frame. There were some minor adjustments necessary, but it wasn't anything that Tony and his power saw couldn't handle. 

Tomorrow I'll finish sanding and then stain both the pallet top and the cart. Later I'll attach the two pieces and order a custom glass top and voila! Restoration Hardware, eat your heart out! After all was said and done today, I had a little help but did 99% of the work on my own which makes me feel like a real bad-ass. I held and used several man-tools including a: belt sander, palm sander, 9 pound hammer, crowbar and two manual saws. I'm exhausted and I have sawdust in places I ought never have sawdust. Adieu.  

Pallet Project

Source: home-dzine.co.za via Penny on Pinterest

Here is my weekend undertaking. I am finally getting a place of my own and a coffee table is one of the many home furnishings I do not currently own. Thus, I have collected two wooden pallets from the side of the road to make one. I've been poking around on Pinterest for ideas of how to go about doing such a thing and here is an example I found of the finished product that I'm aiming at. For whatever reason I have become completely fixated on this project. I can't shake the idea that I'd be so happy to have a place to post up with Algebra homework, Apple products, or lunch. And because the new place is not big enough for a formal dining table this smaller more accessible version will serve as the fixture that I and my guests will congregate around on game nights and at dinner parties. It makes sense really, considering the nature of all that takes place around a table, that it has become a symbol for community. Well, I'll have to employ the saw skills of my boo and put a little love and good old fashioned elbow grease into it, but I'm hopeful it can be done. Wish me luck!

Redlands Represent!

Photo by Marc Piron

Photo by Marc Piron

Photo by Marc Piron


These are a few shots from last Sunday's set at a film premier for Producer/Director Chris Pepino's latest work- Inside The Perfect Circle. The night consisted of a mixture of music, food and film. It was fun to see a whole bunch of Redlands community members out to support local art, I was darn proud to be a part of it.
The above shots were taken by local photography hero, Marc Piron who debuted his work in late 2011 in a show that juxtaposed portraits of Redlands' city officials and "it people" of the community with a lesser celebrated handful of Redlands' derelict. It was a compelling exhibit to say the least. You can see more of his work on my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/erinmclaughlinmusic

SXSW!

Photo by Andrew Shepherd of StrataPress

Photo by Andrew Shepherd of StrataPress

Photo by Andrew Shepherd of StrataPress

 Good Morning! I just finished my bio for this year's artist page at SXSW. I decided to write it in the first person knowing full well that I run the risk of sounding campy and amature. Something about writing a personal observation from a made up third party journalist who's apparently smitten with the details of my story seemed in every way even less authentic. So here's a look at the bio I created specifically for the festival. Above are a few shots from last year down on the streets of Austin. Photographer Andrew Shepherd and his team at StrataPress covered the festival in 2011 by getting down on the streets and away from the stage. They made contact with artists before hand and arranged to shoot in a loft they set up right off of 6th street or down on the street. I really liked Andrew and the photos turned out great! Thanks guys!

Bio:

Hello all, I’m Erin McLaughlin and I am thrilled to be returning to SXSW this year for round two of all the action, the glory and of course, the music. If you didn’t meet me last year, we need to catch you up. I am a singer/ songwriter from southern California. I spent the first part of my life learning the basics: how to climb trees, catch lizards, ride a snowboard in a half pipe, etc. Later I traveled around the world a bit and met some real nice folks who wrote sweet melodies that awakened a long sleeping desire in me to do the same. So I borrowed guitars and forced my friends to teach me anything they could. Neither of my parents are really what you’d call a musician. Though, my dad did play a mean trumpet in the high school marching band (which is way cooler than being a star quarterback with no soul, if you ask me).  I say this to make the point that I’ve really had to learn independently how to hear music with new ears and learn it all from the bottom up, to be able to make music. Also, neither of my folks were into The Beatles or Bob Dylan or anything like that, which is where most youngsters get their initial exposure to real gritty songwriting. So, as I began to write music it was the people who played along side me (always embarrassed and dismayed at my short and shameful catalogue of music) who taught me about the rich history of music that I’ve come to feel so enlightened and humbled by. The stuff that’s really resonated with me in the last six years has been a lot of country or alt country, mostly from the past. I look up to artists like Graham Parsons, Emmylou Harris, Fleetwood Mac, Iris Dement, Joni Mitchell, Johnny Cash and so on…

In May of 2007 something truly tragic occurred in my family. My younger brother lost his battle with depression and took his own life at 16. I only share this because it’s absolutely the paramount shift of my life’s story which simultaneously crushed me and all my world views and has with time, been a key motivator and a bottom line for a reckless pursuit of hope and life worth living. Music is a place we go to mourn, to revolt, to challenge, to ponder, to celebrate and so much else. Thus I threw myself into songwriting and the dream of playing music and the opportunity to tell a story (albeit a sad one at times), a true story that has and continues to change my life.

In 2009 a few very talented friends graciously jumped on board to help me make my first EP. Tyler Chester (bass player for Fiction Family/ Brooke Fraser/ Nika Costa) stepped in as producer/ bass player and roped Sean Watkins in on guitar (Nickel Creek/ Fiction Family), Aaron Redfield on drums (Greyboy Allstars/ The Bird and the Bee/ Brooke Fraser/ Nika Costa) as well as the uber-talented brother duo, The Pawnshop Kings for harms. The project took three months in total to make. After it’s release in Jan 2010 at the buzz worthy Hotel Café in Hollywood, I began regularly appearing in listening rooms from San Diego to LA proper, sharing the stage with the likes of Peggy Young, Deana Carter, The Secret Sisters, Joe Purdy and more. Some nice folks from local publications started giving the EP and my live performances some attention and around this time last year I was invited to SXSW for the first time to showcase as the opening act for familiar names like, Meiko, Brian Wright and Brooke Fraser.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Austin last year and have been looking forward to a return. I met all kinds of fun and talented friends, played for a super enthused crowd and broke ground in touring for the year to come. 2011 was full of music and life changes. I met some amazing players and put together a touring band that I am really proud to make music with. We kept busy playing all kinds of great shows up and down the southern coast. And best of all, I spent most of the year writing/ recording a new record with another all-star cast of players that should be set for release sometime early this summer! I can’t wait to get back to Austin for another kick-start to a great year and to hopefully meet YOU (and sell you some merch). See you all real soon! And as always, thanks for staying tuned!

E

I'm baaack...

It's been a great year for music. I took a nice little break from booking to recover from a broken foot (ouchies) and to concentrate on making my new record. But I'm back. And I'm gettin geared up for another year at SXSW music festival in Austin, TX! For those who aren't familiar, it's an all out musical martigras that spans the gap of rookies like myself to the real heavy hitters like last years Emmylou Harris, Jack White, and even Kanye West. It was amazing. I brought along my best gal pal and songbird Gentry Monreal to sing harms and in general keep me in line; what with all the partying in the streets and everywhere in between. We basically walked around with our jaws on the ground stunned by the intensity. We were a couple of small town big fish turned minnows in a sea of great whites. We're looking forward to another great trip with last years experience under our belts. You can expect us to be a little more chumpy, like sophmores on their first day back to high school.
I've got another show or two between now and when we leave so stay tuned and come see me in La before I go. Visit www.erinmclaughlinmusic.com for more details!