A Drunkard’s Dream of Eagles and Last Waltzes

Americana band Mrs. Henry is teaming up with a fellow local, Eagles songwriter Jack Tempchin, for a live project called Drunkard’s Dream Arts & Music Festival. Tempchin is best known for penning “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and co-writing “Already Gone” for The Eagles.

“Jack Tempchin is our Obi-Wan,” says Mrs. Henry bassist-singer Blake Dean. “Before meeting Jack, our band was battling away through our plot, making big plans and deals to support a massive recording effort, a three-record rock opera called Hope Keep On Rising. We were in the middle of making music videos and scheduling international tours. We were also in the middle of doing a second guest-riddled three-hour Last Waltz concert. It was there we were fortunate enough to have Jack sit in and jam with us. During a rehearsal, we ran a couple of Waltz songs and, during a break, he just started quietly strumming and singing one of his originals. One by one, we all gradually started joining in and picking up on his chorus and filling our own ranges to harmonize.” Thus was born the concert collaboration happening at ReBru Spirits in Barrio Logan on April 9. A portion of the event proceeds will be donated to Rollin From the Heart, an organization providing disadvantaged and at-risk youth the opportunity to participate in positive activities such as skateboarding, surfing, and camping.

“They say good things take time,” says singer-songwriter and breast cancer survivor Anna Danes. “Three years ago, I was asked to be a lead in a documentary film about overcoming personal struggles and becoming a better version of yourself. The world went quiet not too soon after we shot the footage and I have not heard much about the film since. ‘Til now. Finding Inner Hero, as the documentary is now titled, is sweeping the film festival circuit around the world (and making a difference), and will soon be in wide distribution, thanks to the vision, hard work and patience of its producers, Constance Brenneman and Brad Hammer. So proud to have been a part of this. And yes, always be the hero of YOUR story.” The film is an Official Selection at the Doctors Without Borders Film Festival and has scored awards at IndieEye Film Awards, Halicarnassus Film Festival, Black Swan International Film Festival, Druk International Film Festival, Tagore International Film Festival, and the ARG International Film Festival.

Creature Canyon first came to local notice when the title track of their Life I Know EP was named the 91X Local Break song for March 2017. That year, they also won a $2000 second-place prize at the San Diego County Fair’s battle of the bands. The group’s first new song since the pandemic began, “Pressure,” was recently followed by a new single for “Mirrors,” released via Gnu Roam (Kartel Music Group). A music video for the track was directed by Christian Almazaan. “Writing and recording ‘Mirrors’ was a journey for us, both sonically and personally as a band,” says the group in a press release. “Each member brought their innermost struggles into the songwriting to help refine the lyrical content, which eventually shaped the overall narrative of the song, and manifests in the recurring line of the chorus, ‘It’s the only thing I see, I’m my own worst enemy.’ ‘Mirrors’ felt like a place for each of us to experiment and express ourselves on the track without judgement. The finished product is one of our favorite pieces we’ve ever put together as a group.” Production collaborators on the track include Christian Lum (Private Island), recording engineer Mike Schuppan (Foster The People, Young the Giant), mixing engineer Jordon Silva (Vance Joy, The Avett Brothers), and mastering engineer Brian Lucey (Cage the Elephant, Arctic Monkeys, The Black Keys).

Founded in mid-2018, the Spiritual Motels feature veteran singer-songwriters Omar Musisko and Amy Day. Musisko, a longtime local who lives in Mission Valley and works a day job as a school psychologist, has a new song and video for his solo track “Santa Ana Winds.” According to Musisko, “This song was inspired by an experimental lyric writing and top-lining session on a collaboration with Bryan Batista from the Pigeon Army - electronic new wave, keep an eye out for an EP - and wonderfully drummed on, mixed, and mastered by Jonathan Gendler of J-Tone Studios in Toronto Canada. It’s a peculiar little love(lost) song that occurs in the strange Southern California phenomenon that is/are the Santa Ana Winds. Extensive scientific research indicates that it’s 63 percent likely to enhance the quality of your entire existence for a long enough time to make the endeavor wholeheartedly worthwhile.”

Pop-punk band Pierce the Veil were founded by singer/guitarist/songwriter Vic Fuentes and his drummer brother Mike, both former Mission Bay High School students who previously played with Early Times and Before Today. They recently released a quarantine version of their 2012 song “Hold On Till May,” with the band explaining “We wanted to let you guys know that we are with you through this difficult time. Thank you to our hospital workers, our essential workers, and to everyone fighting to put an end to this pandemic. Our hearts go out to those who have lost loved ones or have been affected by the virus. We WILL beat this together.” December will find the band on their first UK tour in six years, kicking off December 1 in Cardiff at The Great Hall, including two nights at the O2 Forum in London and wrapping up December 10 in Leeds at the O2 Academy. According to Vic Fuentes, “We’ll be debuting some new material off of our upcoming album and, of course, playing some old songs that we can all sing together at the top of our lungs.”