News

Happy New Year, everybody! In fact, Happy New Decade...happier than the last one, I hope!

Still waiting for the interweb link-up, rumour has it that the time is nigh...spending my days snowblowing, shoveling, working on a couple recording projects and plotting my next cd...I thought I'd record something I could describe with ONE word when asked "What kind of music is it?", i.e. "blues", "funk", "rock"...but, the longer I wait, the stranger it gets...the one-word categorical descriptions will probably continue to elude me.

Hope all of you had a nice Holiday Season and that 2010 brings much love and happiness to everybody...once this snow melts I'll be ready for a visit out west, methinks...

ROCK ON, Y'ALL!!

Hey, everybody! Yes, I'm still here, just waiting for that high-speed connection...looking forward to playing New Years Eve at Paddy's in Wolfville with the Proportions...have started work in my new studio overdubbing onto some recordings I made in 2007 with one of my first musical comrades, Cabin Lance...then I will start work on a new CM cd (or two?)...

I've also laid some tracks with the Hupman Brothers recently, and while I don't know if they'll use these specific takes I must say the songs they're brewing are absolutely ROCKIN'...while it can't happen this year, maybe next New Years we can combine the two bands and do a Gynormo Jam Event...bigger is always better, ain't it?

Well, thanks for your patience and hopefully 2010 will see more regular postings...hello, Eastlink???

Life without internet ain't so bad, except that I may seem to have fallen off the face of the Earth if you are checking for news on this site...

In brief: life in the woods is hittin' its stride, now that the bugs have relented and the summer-muggy heat has subsided. Sean is closing in on the final stretch of building my music room/studio space, and it is looking really sweet...I'll spare you the details of sloped OSB beams and blown-in envirofoam insulation, suffice to say it will be warm, cosy, and the most likely place to come looking for me in the months to come.

TITANIC PROPORTIONS will be changing its name next year..."CALEB MILES BAND" seems likely, if only cuz all the cool names seem to be taken. I have been having a ball sitting in with the Hupman Brothers for some choice shows, and I hope to continue to pick up gigs with them next year. Having given myself a little refresher on pedal steel the last couple months, I think I'll now turn my attention to banjo (although I should really get the rest of the wood in before it snows). And with a studio set up and ready to go at my immediate whim, expect a new cd or two sometime next year.

Thanks for being patient as we wait for high-speed to come to every Nova Scotian, it is a provincially mandated endeavor due by December...and governments always keep their promises!

Hey, I am now completely moved up to the new digs in the woods, and life is beginning to settle down as boxes are unpacked and my body learns where all the new light switches are...the black flies have been a nuisance, but other than that the new place is idyllic and sweet.

However, one setback is that I no longer have hi-speed access at home, so as a result my updates to this site have been infrequent...plus I have not been very focused on music while the move was on. So what's new on the music front? Well, Bob Federer and I have been playing dates with the Hupman Brothers, and THIS SATURDAY (May 30) they will be having a cd release show at the Al Whittle Theatre in Wolfville. Other guests include Brian Chipman on harp and a ripping horn section comprised of Ian Sherwood, Ariana Nasr, and Coco Love Alcorn! This is a show you will kick yourself for missing, so avoid self abuse and attend!

Let me also say that the Hupmans' new cd, Countin' Quarters, is absolutely stunning...each tune is a gem, alternating between horn-driven uptempo blues and gentle, eloquent acoustic meditations...the recording is superb, no fancy production tricks to get in the way of the down-home, straight-from-the-heart lyrics...and as much as I admire Ryan Hupman's soulful guitar playing, his warm and up-close vocals just blow me away...I have played this cd constantly for a week now and I'm only loving it more and more!

So, the gist of it is this: see you at the Hupmans' CD RELEASE May 30, buy their cd cuz it rocks, and look for me around the Valley both solo and with Titanic Proportions...you may also want to come down to the End Of The Line Pub on a Wednesday night, our open mics have been brimming over with local talent and appreciative audiences! Music is fun, I'm telling ya!

Happy Cinco de Mayo! Just a heads up to remind everyone that a showcase of fine local talent will be on display this weekend in Wolfville during AMPFEST !! Despite the name, this will be an ENTIRELY ACOUSTIC event, nothing plugged in (no mics, no D/Is, no little amplifiers)...but in the beautiful Al Whittle Theatre, with a couple area mics, the sound will be awesome and rich!

AMPFEST will be Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, May 8, 9, and 10. I will be performing three songs on Friday night (May 8) with Alex Porter on drums and Scott Hupman on bass...and again, solo, on Sunday night (May 10)... there will be around ten different acts each night, so come prepared for three evenings' worth of wonderful, acoustic entertainment from some of the Valley's best and most interesting musicians and performers!

I am in the midst of moving, out from our little town and into the woods...saw some deer tracks in my front yard this morning! Quietly celebrated yet another birthday the other day and looking forward to some gigs and rehearsals of new material with TITANiC PROPORTiONS...but mainly looking forward to sunshine, green grass, and peaceful sojourns in the new house, listening to birds, the wind, and rushing river sounds...they tell me the black flies are bad up there, but they don't last too long, do they?

Looks like winter is finally beginning to loose its grip, although there are still plenty of hard icey patches out there (my driveway, for instance)...TITANIC PROPORTIONS is gearing back up after a couple months of hibernation, and lots of solo shows up and down the Valley as well...check out the calendar on the SHOWS page for dates and details... I am also starting an album review page, wherein I will keep a diary-of-sorts on what music I'm currently bingeing on and offer my hopefully-not-too-pompous critical assessments (although if I'm listening to it I must like it, right?)...I received such interesting feedback after filling out a "Top Ten Albums" thingy on Facebook I decided to open up my vault of guilty pleasures to anyone who might be wondering what fuels my musical engines...enjoy and comment, please!

Played a solo acoustic show at Oakdene Center in Bear River last night as part of the Bear River Winter Carnival...while the weather and driving conditions were a bit sketchy, the show itself was fantastic, a wonderful venue and an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd. Lots of creative energy in the room! Lately I've been using a looper to capture little riffs and changes on the fly that I can then noodle over or use as a foundation, freeing up the rhythm so I can solo (which is difficult when you're also playing chords and/or bass patterns)...I'm still new at it, so sometimes things teeter on the verge of collapse, but that keeps it exciting...and slightly dangerous...

February 3, 2009

Welcome to my new improved website!  Yet another blizzard rages outside, and I am in the midst of getting our new house ready for habitation (in other words, chaos and sawdust are epidemic)... still, there are gigs here and there both solo and with TITANIC PROPORTIONS... check the SHOWS page for a glimpse of the calendar.

Bear with me as I get the site ship-shape (many thanks to Ariana Nasr for designing it and being patient with the stubbornly technophobic)...

I'll have pictures and tunes posted forthwith... send me a message if you are in the mood!

Caleb