Goodbye, 2017… and hello, 2018!
What happened to 2017? It seemed to go by so fast. It was definitely a year for a lot of personal events in my life, both positive and negative, but throughout the year, I managed to squeeze in some Mystics Anonymous music-making. Check it out:
In January, Mystics released the experimental track “De-Tunia, Pts. 1 & 2” featuring yours truly and fellow Mystic Steve Koziol – you can hear it here:
https://soundcloud.com/mystics-anonymous/de-tunia-pts-1-2
In March, Mystics played as a five-piece (Patrick Garland, Andrew Goulet, Brian Marchese, Matt Silberstein, and myself) at Sierra Grille in Northampton, MA, along with the bands Nanny and Endless Mike. You can watch a few of the songs from that night—“(I Want to Be A) Mathematical Rarity” and “Maudlin, You Liar,” to be exact—right here:
https://youtu.be/0lZZ07YbsEs
In May, Mystics showed up to play the Harry Nilsson tribute at The Rendezvous, this time as a three-piece (Drew Hutchison, Matt Silberstein, and myself), along with several other wonderful local artists. Truly a night of great music, and we contributed two songs: All I Think About Is You and the classic Coconut, which morphed into Tomorrow Never Knows before ending.
In July, Mystics played Luthier’s Co-op, along with the bands Tawdry and The Salvation Alley String Band. That night, we played as a four-piece (Andrew Goulet, Brian Marchese, Matt Silberstein, and myself). You can hear “Sinner’s Lament” from that night right here:
https://soundcloud.com/mystics-anonymous/sinners-lament-live-7-1-17
In December, Mystics played above John Doe, Jr. Records in Greenfield, MA, in a lovely, intimate room dubbed Jane Doe, Jr., along with Bob Fay, Lauri McNamara, and Wednesday Knudsen. That night, Mystics was a duo featuring Steve Koziol and myself. You can hear our first three songs, including a cover of “The Spy” by The Doors, right here:
https://soundcloud.com/mystics-anonymous/sinners-lament-the-spy-vivian-line-live-121317
Also in December, Mystics released our annual digital holiday single—this year’s selection was the classic R&B track “Christmas Comes But Once a Year,” recorded in one snowy afternoon over at Rick Murnane’s cozy Makeshift Sound studio. Rick and I had a lot of fun playing ukuleles, guitars, keyboards, and hand percussion to make a homey, lo-fi version of this lovable track (and I may have added a few new lyrics as well). You can listen to that track, as well as download it for free, right here:
https://mysticsanonymous.bandcamp.com/track/christmas-comes-but-once-a-year
Definitely a fun 2017. And Mystics already has plans to poke our heads out in 2018 as well. Until then, make merry and have a Happy New Year!