Jamie Kent

Hello hello!

So I know it’s been a while since I’ve written. Bad Jamie, bad bad bad. I promise to be better in the next few weeks/months. Anyway, I’ve got tons of great news/updates, but the most important of all involves the release of my debut album Neoteny. It’s going to be in my hands on March 4th, just in time for the first of three awesome CD Release shows! “Wait, CD Release shows you say?” Why yes, they’ve all been confirmed, and here they are…

Saturday March 6th, The Midway Café, Boston MA, 9:30pm
Friday April 2nd, A.P.E. Gallery, Northampton MA, 8pm
Saturday April 17th, The Bitter End, NYC, 8pm

These three shows are basically set to be the three most important shows I’ve ever played. With that in mind, I could truly use every bit of support from you all. I.e. if there was ever a show you were going to come to, please please make it one (or all) of these! The Boston show will be with another local band called Melodeego (they actually got me the gig). The Northampton show will involve live visual art in response to the band, and will also be a benefit show for the Northampton Education Foundation. Lastly, The Bitter End, well, is The Bitter End. One of NYC’s best clubs gave me a Saturday for this release, so let’s make it rock. All in all, each venue is giving me a huge opportunity and taking a (theoretical) risk on me, so let’s pack each place and show them we mean business.

I’ve also just been booking a ton of shows on top of these, so to get the whole rundown (or get directions to any venue), check out my Shows page.

After the Boston CD Release show on March 6th, the album will become available on iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby, and well, all those good places. Pretty exciting, ey???

Lastly, I just got in some amazing hand silk screened t-shirts; if you’re in the Collective, expect one in the mail shortly, if not, let me know if you want one and we’ll make it happen (email is a great way to contact me)!

Thanks again to everyone for your support so far. It’s about to get really awesome. Ready?

Love,
Jamie

p.s. I’m not convinced that anyone actually reads my blog. so if you do, show some love and leave a comment. Prove your existence!!

Howdy folks!

I must first start with a hearty happy New Year to you all. I hope that your holidays were as awesome and stress free as possible and that your New Year’s celebration was full of wondrous debauchery! Mine may have involved streaking of some sort, but I know that’s nothing anyone wants to think about.

Anyways, on the music front there has been some great progress over the last few weeks. As I mentioned before, there are 9 more tunes on their way, and now they should be ready in the next couple of weeks! Pretty exciting, ey? And I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again, these next 9 are hot. And not like Phoenix in the summer hot; more like Kate Hudson hot. That said, keep your eyes peeled in the next week or so; as Wes sends them my way I’ll toss them up on the site as a sneak preview for you all!

On top of the songs, the foundation of The Options has been solidified for upcoming shows over the coming months. The Options are as follows:

Lead Guitar- Joe Boyle
Drums- Sturgis Cunningham
Bass- John O’Boyle

These guys are all amazing, and I can’t wait to rock the stage with them. Speaking of rocking the stage, have you checked out some of the shows I just booked this past week? Take a look at the left hand side of the page, there’s 3-4 shows just added a few days ago! And keep checking there, as I’m in the booking process right now and will add them as they become confirmed.

Anyway, thanks for checkin in; things are really progressing fast and I can’t wait to see where it all leads in the coming weeks!

Lots of love and positive energy at the start of a great New Year,
Jamie

Dearest fans, friends, and family,

I’ve waited a while to tell you this. I’ve danced around the subject in just about every blog post, teased and tantalized, hinted and flirted; yet finally, the time has come for me to unleash the idea that I’ve been working on for the last 3-4 months! Are you ready…?

Drum roll please…The Collective launches December 1st!

Two days ago, December 1st, I launched The Collective, my solution to an evolving music industry and the constantly asked question, “how does one support themselves as an independent musician?” In essence, The Collective will be an active community of my most loyal fans, friends, and advisors who will support my career from day one, and reap the greatest returns from its growth. Partners in The Collective provide financial support and creative consultation in return for free access to exclusive cuts of my music, live performances, the coolest merchandise, and even private Collective parties, shows and events.

There are all different levels of partnership, but say for example, you decided to buy a “Savvy Partnership” in The Collective for $100. You would get free access to all my music, free access to any shows of mine, an awesome “Founding Partner” t-shirt, and a signed limited edition of “The Collective EP”. Sounds pretty cool, right? Furthermore, you’d get access to a protected part of my website where I ask you all questions such as “Where should I tour?” “What should the order of my songs be on this album?”, “Which artwork do you like better” and so on. This is also the part of my website where I’ll post the music, videos, etc…exclusively for you, the Partner. In fact, there are two exclusive videos and a questions waiting for you right now…

As a somewhat random aside, I toyed with the idea of “profit sharing” for a while, but after getting the advice of many a lawyer, it became clear that the SEC would not be down with that idea, and would cause many expensive problems. Furthermore, I investigated the practices of various Co-ops and a site called sellaband.com, and found out that most of the customers of these places actually preferred receiving something tangible (i.e. a cool shirt or signed CD), as opposed to a check for $4.35 once a year. With both of those things in mind, I dropped the profit sharing and increased the tangible benefits of becoming a Partner. What do you think of that? Does that ring true with and make sense to you? I’d really like to hear your thoughts.

Anyway, for a complete rundown on The Collective, simply scroll up and click “The Collective” (or just click it here:p). From this page you’ll get a clear and concise breakdown of the benefits/costs of each partnership level, my long term vision for The Collective, and an awesome FAQ page with even more info!

So what do ya say?

Now that I’ve put that all on the table, I guess it’s time to ask that question you’re all probably expecting by now anyway. Would you be willing to Partner with me to turn this dream into a reality? You are all my closest friends, family, and fans, and I would love to share in this journey with you. I know times are tough, and so I totally understand if you’d prefer to just buy the CD when it comes out, or come to an occasional show. But if you can, and if you believe in what I’m doing and in my ability to rock the world with my music, I would love so much for you to become a Partner in The Collective and share in the dream.

Thanks so much to all of you for your support so far. It’s been a truly awesome ride, and I can’t wait to see where the journey takes us. Should you happen to share this email/my music with all of your friends, parents, colleagues, pets, etc…I would love you forever (though I probably will anyway). That said, I will conclude with a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

With lots of love,
Jamie

Hey all,

I forgot to link to this in my last post, but Simon Pollock, a good friend, student at Goucher College, and writer for MixTapeMuse just so happened to write an awesome review of my show at Goucher a couple weeks ago! Definitely something you all should totally check out…

http://mixtapemuse.blogspot.com/2009/11/getting-down-with-getting-started-jamie.html

Let me know what you think!

Lots more to come soon,
-J

The Lyon wasn’t sleeping on Sunday…

At approximately the hour of 9pm this past Sunday, I rocked the Lyon’s Den at Wheaton College. And by rocked, I mean played an acoustic set, sang my heart out, and exposed the students at Wheaton to my rather large portfolio of awkward jokes/stories…so basically, it was awesome.

The Lyon’s Den is an awesome coffeehouse/lounge venue that has seen the likes of Matt Nathanson, Stephen Kellogg, Crooked Still, and now Jamie Kent. My biggest enemy throughout the night was easily the espresso machine; though once I decided to invite the machine into the band, its solos added a nice touch to the set However, the house was pretty close to full, and everyone was really receptive to my tunes.  I was also able to test out a couple new tunes, and particularly one that I just wrote on ukulele called “Games” (which was received really well).  Oh, and we filmed the whole thing! The footage turned out great, so keep you eyes peeled for a couple more videos in the coming weeks! Lastly, I was invited to come back in the spring, which is always a great thing. All in all, it was a great show and I can’t wait to rock The Den again soon. Thanks to Liza and Caitie for making it happen, and Jessie for filming!

From the depths of the studio…

Today Wes and I took to the studio with lead guitarist Joe Boyle to further develop five of the nine tunes that we’re working on to complete my first full length release “Neoteny”. Let me just tell you, these tunes are hot. I’m honestly twitching with excitement to play them for you. There’s a ton of work ahead, but it’s all coming together so well that I really can’t wait to go to work every day. So stay tuned, there’s a pretty good chance that I  may post a tune or two in the next couple of weeks (before they’re all complete)…

The real countdown begins…

So I know I’ve talked a lot of talk about this “Big Idea” of mine, but it’s actually about to happen. I can finally say that within a week, the idea will be launched. Prepare yourselves for the The Collective, it’s going to change the way you view being a fan, and change the way we musicians pursue our dreams.

Talk soon,

Jamie

Hey all!

So I’ve spent the past week and a half on the road traveling to Philly, Baltimore, NYC, and Boston to play shows. It was quite the mini-tour, and there really are too many cool stories to fit in a single blog post! With that in mind, I’ll give you the best of the best.

Dowling’s Palace, Philly

This was unquestionably the best open mic I’ve ever played. While mostly an ’spoken word’ open mic, Dowling’s Palace also rocked a live funk/soul house band in between sets, welcomed a few great singers, and opened the stage to me…a goofy ass singer songwriter. That said, I have never heard such brilliant poetry…ever. And I have never felt so welcomed to an open mic night…ever. After the crowd of 50 or so opened the night with a discussion of role models in the music industry, modern parenting, and why children are acting out, I felt that it would be a perfect time for me to rock an acoustic version of “Mama Sing”. The crowd reacted better than I could ever imagine. They began singing along with me in the chorus, and soon, the house band hopped back on stage and began playing along with me! After I finished, the band kept playing, and people kept singing for about a minute. I’ve never experienced anything quite like that, and it literally brought me to tears. “That is why I’m playing music right now,” I thought, “that is why I have chosen this as my career.”

The Gopher Hole, Goucher College

I was definitely unsure of what to expect at this Baltimore based college. Told that I might see 20-25 people in their quaint coffee house like venue, you can imagine that I was more than happy to find the room packed with 60ish people. Not only that, the crowd was awesome. Responsive, rowdy, and supportive…what more can you ask for? Can’t wait to rock Goucher again, perhaps in the spring…perhaps outdoors? Oh, and you must check out the awesome review that was written about my show there by Simon Pollock for Mix Tape Muse…

Oh snap, so much more to say…!

But not in this post. I’ll whip up another in the next couple days; they’ll be news of recordings, upcoming shows, and the Collective (wtf?). I know you can’t wait, but please do your best to restrain yourself. Pretty please…? With organic brown sugar on top…?

Lots of love,
Jamie

So I’ve been here in NYC since Sunday, getting the lay of the music land in this tremendously huge apple! It’s been quite the ride so far; a lot different than expected, but a lot of fun. On Sunday, after waiting 4 hours for the damn Boston Commuter Rail I finally boarded the Fung Wah Bus and skipped over to NYC. Once here, I met up with my Producer Wes and his awesome girlfriend Deb. We hung at her sweet pad in the West Village for a while, and got the idea that it would be awesome to record some video of a song or two up on her roof! So here it is, an acoustic rendition of “Isabella”, a song recently recorded that should be released in a month or so!

Fast Tube by Casper

Pretty cool, ey? Leave a comment and let me know what you think of Isabella, and the whole idea of filming a few acoustic versions of my tunes for you all.

Monday and Tuesday I played two popular open mics here, The Sidewalk Cafe and Bar 4 (respectively). Let me tell you, NYC open mics are a totally different breed. Each bar had about 50 people sign up for each night, starting around 6:30pm and running to 3:00am. I also had the pleasure of discovering the sort of unspoken pecking order that exists at these nights. Essentially meaning, I played close to if not last at each night because I was a newbie and not from the city. That said, everyone at each night was tremendously welcoming and they were each a pleasure to play.

It really has all been a learning experience so far, and I leave each gig beaming with excitement at the people I just met, the place I just played, and what the next one may have in store. Stay tuned, I’ve got a couple left, and I’m sure there will be a story or two that come out of them!

Love from NYC,
Jamie

This past week or so has been packed with so much goodness that I don’t really know where to begin! As always, I’m going to try my absolute best to keep things concise and to the point…

Performances a plenty!

So last Saturday I opened for Heather Maloney at the Black Moon Music Lounge in Belchertown, MA. This was the gig that came out of an open mic I did there about three weeks ago, and is really the first paid gig I’ve ever had that didn’t come through a personal connection in any way. It was a great show. Though it was pouring rain, and the Black Moon is a bit out of the way, my friends, family, and fans in the area really stepped it up and came out in support. In fact, as the opening act, I basically brought the crowd. Knowing that, I really tried to give everyone the best show I could, and I’m extremely happy with how it went. I also got some great constructive feedback on the evening that has given me plenty to consider:

1. I need better endings to my songs when playing them acoustic.
2. I need to be aware of how loud I sing and adjust accordingly with the mic.
3. I need sexier shoes.

I then played open mics at The Rendevous in Turners Falls, MA, and P.A.C.E in Easthampton, MA. The Rendevous’ a cool place, but only 4 people showed for the event, so it was questionably worth the 40 minute drive each way. PACE on the other hand was awesome. There were 16 or so people signed up for the night, and everyone there was tremendously welcoming, supportive and talented. In my experience thus far it’s been a pretty rare thing to encounter an open mic crowd that has all of those qualities, but let me tell you, when it happens, it’s the best. For each show that I played this past week, I booked another, which was incredibly satisfying. Take a looksie over on the left hand side of my website where you can conveniently see the new gigs there (at Goucher College and PACE)! Want me to play near you? Shoot me an email and let’s make it happen!

5 down, 6 on the way…

So as most of you know by now, I’ve released 5 songs so far under the Production of Wes Talbot at Music Media. While we’re unbelievably happy with these, we have no thoughts of stopping anytime soon. With that in mind, we hit the studio again yesterday with drummer Rich Adelson and bassist Bob Laramie to lay the foundation of 6 more tunes down. This summer, when we laid the foundation of the first five down, I was pretty damn ecstatic. And now to be honest, I’m twice as excited about these new tunes. Pardon my French, but they sound fucking awesome. I’m pretty sure most of you don’t know a lot these tunes yet, but here are there titles:

1. Once Again
2. Love Pretend
3. Mischief Man
4. BonofaSitch
5. Good sex, bad conversation
6. Isabella
7. Navagation (will be acoustic, to be recorded soon)

Did I mention that I really can’t wait to release these tunes to you all? Whoa, I’m bouncing with excitement and it feels great.

The Collective is coming…

I’ve been spending so much time on this over the past two weeks. While I still can’t tell you what it is, I can tell you that it is going to be awesome. Wicked fucking awesome. You ready?

Love love,
Jamie

It is now officially cold in Massachusetts. Do you know what that means? It means the leaves have already peaked, snow is on its way, and everyone’s about to get sick. As I am always the type of person who likes to lead the way into uncharted territories, I figured I would help my fellow friends and get sick first; that way I could let everyone know what it’s like this year! Needless to say, I’ve spent the last three or so days in bed baking with 102.3 fever and taking every cough medicine known to man. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t swine flu, though there were a few moments where I may have been convinced I had a tail (there could have been some NyQuil involved…). But alas, I made it through the worst of the storm, and now am ready to get back to business! And plus, a bit of raspy in the voice always adds a hint of badass to a show, right?

A new show! Western MA style…

As you know, I’ve spent the past couple of weeks playing various open mic nights in the western MA area. This past week I played one at a really cool place called the Black Moon Jazz Café in Belchertown. While the venue is debatably a trek from most cool places, I’ve noticed that it’s the places that are hardest to find that are always the best. Great vibes, great beer, and most notably, great people; that’s how I’d describe the Black Moon. I tested out a couple new tunes which none of you have heard yet called Love Pretend and Bonofasitch, then finished with Isabella. The mini-set felt great; I really dug the vibe of the people, and I think that really showed in my performance. A few days later I got an email from their booking agent offering a gig this Saturday opening for a great local musician named Heather Maloney! I’m still waiting on some details for the show, but as soon as I have them, I’ll post it on my gig calendar. Did I mention that I’m starting to like these open mic nights…?

The Print is pressing

So the five songs you see/hear up on the site right now are going to part of my upcoming full-length album “Neoteny”. However, for promotional purposes, I decided to get them printed now as a separate EP. Though I was able to do very little while sick, I managed to wrap up the final stages of getting this EP printed, and I should have 300 EPs in hand by Oct. 23rd! I’ve uploaded the album artwork below for you all to check out…

Pretty cool, ey? The idea was to keep this EP as simple as possible, and I wanted that to be reflected in the artwork as well. I want to toss some love to Robbie Tilton, the graphic guru who designed this EP and the upcoming “Neoteny”. His work fuckin rocks. Also, huge props to ELS Productions for pulling it all together and getting them out so quick and at such a good price ($200 cheaper than Discmakers).

After checking out the cool EP artwork, you might be asking yourself, why the name “The Collective EP”? Well I can’t tell you quite yet, but I will give you a hint: it has something to do with that oh so secret idea that should be complete in the next few weeks…

Said again with a shit eating grin,
till next time,
Jamie

My first real lesson

As I work to put the finishing touches on my idea to make money, and also go back into the studio to record 5 or so more songs, I intend to play as many open mic nights as I possibly can. At first, I really thought I would be doing this as a way to expose myself to these venues and potentially land other gigs at some point in the future. While this is still partially true, I realized that these open mic nights are really going to teach me something else. Something in fact, a lot more important: how to read and react to an audience.

I realized recently that I have grown rather accustomed to playing college pubs and bars over the last few years, and almost forgot that there are many other types of audiences. I learned how to act and react to a drunk dancing group of college students, but have nearly no experience standing up alone in front of a pretentious group of yuppies, or mellow minded hippies. My first experience playing an open mic night at Bishop’s Lounge in Northampton MA last week opened my eyes to this, and I’m honestly truly excited for how much I’m going to learn over the coming month or so. Sure I’ll develop my songs more, meet some great some musicians, and maybe convert a few more fans, but my real education is going to come from reading and reacting to all of the different audiences I’m going to encounter. That knowledge will be something that I can undoubtedly carry with me as I grow, play with new musicians, and play larger venues.

I want your feedback!

Alright, so here’s the deal. These next two months or so are absolutely crucial to my career as a musician. As I mentioned, I’m going to be playing countless numbers of open mics to really gain knowledge of how to read audiences, and to also tell as many people of my music as possible! With that in mind, if you can make it to any of these shows, as small as they might be, and give me your feedback, I would love you forever. I want to hear real feedback from those of you who both like and dislike my music/performances. If you liked a show, or like a tune, tell me why. If you hated my performance, or think a tune is lame, tell me why and how I can make it better. Specifics are great, generalities aren’t. A simple “you suck!” while perhaps satisfying, doesn’t help that much. Same’s actually true of positive feedback as well; tell me exactly what tickled your pickle so I can do more of it!

I’m extremely happy with the five tunes that I’ve got up on the site right now, but I always strive to make things better. And guess what? The only way I’m going to get there is with your real feedback of what works and what doesn’t; simple as that.

Talk soon,
Jamie