what the what?!

Meet Lacey. 

She is 18. She is my cellist/little sister. There's no nepotism involved here, though, folks. She is an arranger and player who possesses mad skills. The parts she comes up with tend to blow my mind. 

Photos: Russ Dixon

(...but that's not why I want you to meet her.) 

Something pretty amazing happened a few weeks ago. Lacey wrote her first song. In other news: I forced her to record it. (And not just because I'm a proud sister.) She had been wanting a ukulele for years and this Christmas* she got it. She was working 4 part-time jobs that week, but the fleeting moments of her free time were spent crafting this song. When she played it for me, I couldn't help noticing that even though she plays the guitar, cello, violin and piano, she never felt inspired to write a song on these instruments. Part of her knew there would be something magical about a ukulele. She was right. It plugged her into the flow of her creativity. This song poured out of her the minute she had the tool she knew she needed. 

And it's pretty freaking awesome, too.

*Ok, technically it was "Early Christmas" on Thanksgiving. All of the siblings were in town at the same time. We really love presents.  

Wake Up Dreaming.

Ok, my blog posts have been sporadic at best. "Hey guys, I'm doing blah blah blah with my music." "Hey guys, look, photos. Of me." Don't get me wrong, it's all fun, but blogging simply for the sake of self promotion isn't something I'm super passionate about. Good news: I finally feel like I have something to say here. 

Go download this song for free. (http://www.stephaniemabey.bandcamp.com) Give it a listen and you'll know what I am super passionate about. It's called Wake Up Dreaming. 

I keep noticing all kinds of fascinating people in my world who are doing more than just existing. They are creating and adding to the world around them. (Example: those rad sketches you see on the bandcamp site are the work of my brilliant cousin, Madeline. She's in high school.) Sometimes we are doing this in spite of our day jobs. In spite of odds and convention. We're waking up early before our kiddos (and the sun.) And it is so incredibly worth it. 

I'll still keep you posted on music stuff (yes, the album is still in the works! more on this later.) but I'm really excited to find fresh ways to bring these people out of the woodwork. Fingers crossed that I'll do them justice. 

Happy New Year :) 

Halo night.

I was recently hanging out at a basement gaming night throwdown in Park City. I'm terrible at Halo, so I was thrilled to discover the kiddie room with Rock Band playing on a giant screen (until the 5th rendition of "I Love Rock and Roll.") I had no idea that kids were so dedicated to their craft. 


My insanely talented friend Brian Tibbets was kind enough to do an impromptu photo shoot: 

(Check out Brian's photography: www.tibbets.org)

I'm glad he didn't get any of me figuring out that you only need three buttons on the Rock Band keyboard. 

We are go for album (!!!)

Exciting, exciting, exciting. This project is going to be different from anything I've done before. I'm thrilled to be working with Meghan Toohey, who is not only an amazing multi-instrumentalist but a supremely talented producer. We're going with an electronic-organic-fusion approach that I think will compliment this arsenal of shiny new songs beautifully. 


Meghan plays with The Weepies and they're gearing up for a bunch of touring in October, so we're going to get as much done during the month of September as we can. Whatever we don't get done this month will be finished on the tour bus and during their stop in Denver. Yeah, I'm geeking out a little. 

go buy this album pronto. 

I can't wait to share the journey with you! Maybe I'll even blog more than once this month. 


:)

Cope

I wrote this at one of those times where I felt like I was in survival mode. While I was cleaning the kitchen (wiping off the toaster, to be exact) the line "She polished every piece of silverware" popped into my head. I headed over to the keyboard and started to figure out why she would be polishing her silverware in the first place. It led me to a song about different ways we hang on when we don't know everything will be ok. The kitchen never did get finished that day.

(Let's be honest, it never gets finished most days.)

A song for the Bearded Lady ...

I have been promising to upload this song for months now and am happy to report that the Bearded Lady (aka The Main Attraction) has finally joined my YouTube channel! (Thanks for your patience.)


I have a bearded lady necklace that holds a picture of one of the original performers from P.T. Barnum's 19th century sideshow. It's one of my favorites, though it has been known to freak out a few ladies at baby showers and the like. When I was writing this song, I wanted to express how it feels to be truly seen by someone who gets you. To me, the character of the bearded lady is a beautiful metaphor for real love. 


Enjoy :)

help wanted.

Ok, I still need to do a blog post about some sweet adventures in L.A. ... but before I do, I would love to get your opinion. I am looking for your list of three artists that you consider similar to my music. (I'll be using it as a point of reference for people who have never heard my stuff.) Bonus: I will send you a free download in exchange! If you're in:


1) Click here to preview the newest songs.


2) Leave a blog comment below with your list of your three similar artists.


3) Email me at stephaniemabeymusic@gmail.com and I'll send over an mp3 as a thank you!


Piece of cake :) (You can also check out YouTube.com/StephanieMabey for live versions of a few songs.)


Thanks!!!