first review of "ghost party"

Thanks High Noon Saloon!

Canada's Scott Orr has been quietly making quiet music for a little while now, having self-released Miles From Today in 2007. The songwriting on Ghost Party though, is likely to elevate Orr to the next level and may even see him pick up a label, if not some decent distribution.

Ghost Party began life when Orr discovered newfound acoustics in his basement as it was being renovated. And where he previously recorded in meticulous silence, this time Orr allowed his environment to contribute to the overall sound. Which is why one can hear a cat at the end of 'Danger', for example.

Musically, Orr shares a similar space as Iron & Wine, Conor Oberst and Nick Drake, with hushed vocals and gentle melodies that waft on the breeze. Like Beam, Oberst & Drake, Orr also knows the power that pop can play within a song, and as such he works hard to find that hook, that special something that lures the listener. This pop sensibility is most evident on the opener 'In Between', and 'Danger' (which sounds a bit like a Ben Gibbard track), whilst tracks like 'Caught In My Dreams' and 'I'm Going to Listen to My Heart' both have strong country undertones - yet palatable for those who don't realise they like the genre.

Some tunes, like 'Ghosts' and 'To Be Loved' entice you like an early morning swim: It's hard to get started, but you enjoy them so much when you get there, you really don't want them to end.

Orr's first album was available as a free download, which may have been a good move as it helped get his name out there. Similarly Ghost Party is available to stream from his website for those that prefer the try before you buy method.

demoist

so things with "ghost party" are going well... i'm looking forward to the iTunes release, then another letter will go out and then i can sit back and just watch the cash start rolling in.
ha. not really.

you want to know what's crazy? i've been demoing a ton of songs lately. pretty good ones too. i just get an idea and record it on my iphone and save it in a folder. usually when im in the mood to make a record or record a song, i can go to the pile of demos and pick one out and make it into a full song, that's how shine the light, ghosts, in between and heavy were all written.

anyway, im excited about what i can make next. and i want to do something slightly different... i can see the future a little bit and soon I will just be doing digital downloads.

im looking to start a label with some friends and maybe get distribution rights with iTunes so that I can get checks from iTunes directly and make faster use of that service.

anyway, the good thing about digital albums is you can release EPs (or full lengths) faster and more often with less fanfare...


anyway, please go buy Ghost Party so I can make more records.

Thanks

hi

Shipped a load of CDs today. Thanks for that. I actually shipped a disc to japan today. How crazy is that?

And then tonight I did some editing and mixing on Pirogue's record. Due out this fall.

Peace.

Buy my record, Save a life.


-- Post From My iPhone

done: buy

cd's are done and arrived. the records are done and all being shipped today!

hope you like it.

the discs look great... the package looks sweet

buy one!

the ladies at the ghost party

i wanted to introduce you to the guitars used in the making of this project, "ghost party"

now first you need to know that i don't put much care or love into my guitars. they are what they are and I don't go out of my way to collect sweet guitars and pay top dollar. I am more interested in having a lot of guitars that aren't worth much so I can afford to have a lot. However, each guitar has been perfectly fitted to me to provide a recording with a specific sound.

here we go...

this first first puppy is not mine. my buddy cam left it here one day when we were pretending to be in a punk band. anyway, i never cared much for this guitar until one day i played it. it ended up providing the warmest sounds i've ever got in my studio. it was used in the end for the riffs on "heavy", "to be loved" and i think, "pocket of grace"... great sounding beauty!

this is an old harmony arch top that i've had for ages and my grandpa fixed up real nice after it got tossed around in college. it's not a very loud guitar so it doesnt get used often. I'm actually not sure where it was used on this record, if at all... but I think maybe one of the riffs in "snowstorm"and maybe "pocket of grace" strumming...
this is a cheapo tele-knock off that is great to have around... it has a real dirty electric sound. it was prominently used for all the electric stuff on, "listen to my heart" and the punk bridge solo on "in between". i think it's also found on "caught in my dreams" too...
this has got to be my first real guitar. it's very old, been everywhere, but still sounds great. canadian made seagull, but I don't think they spell it that way, they are french.... this guitar is always used cause it's fun to play. I even drop the tunning and do slide guitar on it on the previous record. but on this record it was one of the riffs in "snowstorm" as well as that crunchy acoustic sound in "heavy".
one of my favorites. an old epiphone emperor. a beautiful guitar that sounds amazing any way you use it. it was littered all over this record and the last record. electric finger picking parts in, "in between", "ghosts", "snowstorm", "caught", "Shine", "to be loved", "somehow" and others all feature this beauty. i will never get rid of this guitar... i got it soon after I made Lonesometown and it really changed my sound whenever I realized an acoustic solo songwriter can subtly add electric to his/her sound! and lost some fans along the way.... : ( ??
the main man. my only guitar initially bought for over $1000. a beauty simon & patrick artist series, custom passive pickup... sounds great. it is all the acoustic parts on pretty much every song. except for any parts played by the guitar below... and it's my live guitar... whenever i decide to play live... never...
after i heard a record from Darren Smith, I fell in love with the idea of a ukelele sounding acoustic... it has a real close up sound. it plays any acoustic solos (like on, "shine the light" or "somehow") and then i can't really remember where else it is played on this record... but i really love this guitar, i write a lot of tunes on it. it's really small...


that's the guitars...

i'm going to do this again soon with some peripheral instruments in the studio, including the piano, bass, banjo and drums... ooooo... hold your breaths

cds are ready

the discs are ready from the factory...i couldn't get out to the big city today to pick them up, so i will have to have them shipped, it's a holiday in canada tomorrow so I will be getting them Thursday..

your copies will ship that same day.

thanks for those who've bought the record... both physical copies and digital mp3s.

i love you in that too close for comfort way...

if your going to buy one album today... make it the new album from Wilco.

my packages

A stressful start to the day turned into a great reward to see the new 18 page photo/lyric booklet package. CDs come on Thurs or Fri, and then we ship!
Check out the cool pics above!

I want to tell you about the 3 packages for ordering the new album...

1. MP3 Download.
- instant download of the album
- 320 kps high quality mp3s
- comes with pdf booklet
- $2.00 cheaper then iTunes!
- $7.99!

2. CD w/ MP3 Download.
- Standard digipak booklet with CD
- instant mp3 download of the album

3. CD Booklet w/ MP3 Download
- full color jacket with...
- 16 page photo and lyric booklet w/ CD
- instant mp3 download of the album

stress

The making of these cd jackets myself has been super stressfull. I've had to hold the hands of suppliers throughout the process. But in the end it's saving me almost $1000 and I get a 16 page lyric booklet. But I've made mistakes I've trialed and errored package options for the last four months. I'm sick of it. They are done and shippable on Friday. Here's hoping.

Blah!


-- Post From My iPhone

favorite art

Now that I sit back and think about it, I think this record is my favorite artwork I've done. I love this cover.

And I'm being humble.

-- Post From My iPhone

history

While I haven't been in the studio making a record I've been back into some reading on a strict regiment. This was a book I picked up last week called "a little history of the world.". It's a great book. It's actually a childrens boom originally written in German in the 40's.
But a must read for every adult.

Oh and side note : my new album releases on Tuesday. Email newsletter will go out tomorrow with the details.

-- Post From My iPhone