Video - A day in the life of Eric Coomer

Nick Waugh, bassist from my band KNAPSACKHEROES!, is a great friend and it turns out he's a great videographer as well. Check out this video he shot of me over the course of a few hours in downtown Nashville. The soundtrack is of me playing ambient electric guitar, which was challenging because I had broken my volume pedal the night before. I think this turned out great.

Eric Coomer

New Solo Music's A-Comin'

While my band, KNAPSACKHEROES!, is still very much alive and kicking, Vinyl Jones and I are both working on solo projects.

My first new project, which will be out before Christmas, will be Eric Coomer & The Kinesthetic Learners. That's the name of the band even though I am the whole band. Haven't decided on a title yet. This short EP will be made up of electronic music with lots of sampling and loops. I will be singing on it though. It's going to sound unlike anything else I've done. Musically, it falls somewhere between KNAPSACKHEROES!, St. Vincent, La Roux, and maybe Art of Noise...for lack of a better description. Thematically it has sort of a post-apocalyptic sci-fi Blade Runner feel. Yeah, I can't wait to hear it either.

The Cardigans
Long Gone Before Daylight

I will start recording the second project next March with Andrew Osenga producing. This will be a six to seven song EP with more of a singer/songwriter vibe that's very electric guitar driven. Influences for this record include The Cardigans' "Long Gone Before Daylight",  John Mark McMillan's "The Medicine"  (check out those Spotify links!), and albums by artists like Sixpence None the Richer, Over the Rhine, and Derek Webb.

Andrew Osenga
Choosing Sides

One of the biggest influences is Andrew himself. I asked him to produce it because I've been a fan of his ever since he was in The Normals. The sound of his solo albums like "Choosing Sides" is really what I'm hearing in my head for my music. You may have seen Andrew with Caedmon's Call (he's been a member for a few years now). Or maybe you saw him play guitar on the Andrew Peterson Behold the Lamb of God Christmas tour. He also co-produced that particular classic holiday album (sorry, it's not on Spotify).

Vinyl Jones
Vinyl Jones & The Indie Fit Club

I'm really excited about both of these projects as well as the Vinyl Jones & The Indie Fit Club project, which I'm also a small part of. And KNAPSACKHEROES! is currently writing new material and has (finally) taken the reins of our long awaited full length album.

So, stay tuned for more info. I'm going to be giving the Kinesthetic Learners album away for free and relying on your help to fund the second project with donations at kickstarter.com.

The first thing I need everyone to do though, is to go to http://facebook.com/theericcoomer and click Like. Then go check out the official Eric Coomer music website.

Oh! Listen to the Vinyl Jones project below. I'm on two of the songs.

So long but not "so long"

It's been so long since I cared enough to write on this blog. I grew weary of writing about myself. So I started focusing on worship and music and music in worship and alt worship. So I started mostly just posting one music video and one movie trailer every week. Then I got tired of that. 

Here's what's going on with me:

• Daphne's due any day with our second child, Evan
• My office/studio is gone in favor of a room for Evan
• Jackson, our first child, is 3½ and the pride of my life
• We're attending McKendree UMC in downtown Nashville and love it
• My band, KNAPSACKHEROES! is still working toward superstardom.
  *Or at least toward getting a freaking album done
• Pray for my dad. He currently has pneumonia and it's not looking good
 

Lastly, in the recent year I've fallen back in love with the electric guitar. Well, I never fell out of love with it, so I should say I've fallen more deeply in love with the electric guitar and much more in love with effects pedals. 

So, in addition to continuing to post trailers and music, you should expect to read about my thoughts on guitar gear...all this despite the fact I currently don't play guitar in my band. I have been playing at church a lot and though I'm leading worship once a month, I've found it incredibly freeing to play while not actually being the leader on other Sundays (we have a great leader in Anthony Mangin - and he has really great guitar tone).

Anyway, stay tuned for whatever. I shall not say "so long" to you just yet.

Look for more updates at the official Eric Coomer website.

Music Video of the Week: Jukebox the Ghost - "Schizophrenia"

Jukebox the Ghost played a show with my band, KNAPSACKHEROES! in Nashville a few years ago. If I remember correctly, the only audience Jukebox the Ghost had that night was KNAPSACKHEROES! and the only audience KNAPSACKHEROES! had that night was Jukebox the Ghost. Since then, JTG toured with Ben Folds and, this week, released their sophomore album, "Everything Under the Sun".

They're really great and it's good to see them doing well. Watch the video for their song "Schizophrenia" below. Then go download their song "Empire" for free at Amazon.

Developments...

1. New Eric Coomer website in the works. Eventually it will be a central hub for all my goings on. For now, it will serve as a portfolio for the sites I've designed so I can get new sites to design.
2. KNAPSACKHEROES! has signed with dPulse Recordings, a label in the Universal Music Group family. We are finishing up the mix on a new single called "Pick It Up" and hope to release it soon.
3. I'm working on new Boolean Operators music (listen to older songs at that link). Boolean Operators is my ambient (mostly) electronic side project. Started a new Boolean Operators Facebook and Boolean Operators Twitter page. Stay tuned.
4. Still making silly t-shirts at several CafePress stores including www.cafepress.com/dumbtshirts.
5. Jackson is growing like a rather handsome weed.

I'm sure there's more, but that's all I can think of at the moment. Stay tuned to my Twitter for random updates and thoughts.

Upcoming KNAPSACKHEROES! shows

My band, KNAPSACKHEROES!, has several dates coming up and we're adding more regularly. I'd love to see you there. If you have ideas of where we could play, let me know.

I NEED YOUR HELP

If you have a blog, a MySpace page, a Facebook, whatever...please click "grab this widget" and repost it on your site. You could help my band win a record deal and $10,000 worth of Fender gear.

New KNAPSACKHEROES! Video

Free Legal MP3 Premiere - KNAPSACKHEROES! "You Don't Know Sarah"

The KNAPSACKHEROES! EP is now available on iTunes and Amazon.

So how do we celebrate? By giving away one of the three songs from it. Odd, I know.

I'm not even sure if anyone reads my blog any more but if you download this, please comment and let me know you have.

Then, please re-post the "You Don't Know Sarah" MP3 everywhere and let people know about us! Let your favorite music bloggers know especially.

And while you're at it, come see us next Tuesday at Mercy Lounge in Nashville or at any of our other upcoming shows listed here.

Finally!!! - New KNAPSACKHEROES! Music

After what seems like forever (not Chinese Democracy-forever mind you), my band has finally released a new EP.

You can hear the new music all over the net including the KNAPSACKHEROES! MySpace page.

You can also buy it there. It will be a few weeks before it hits iTunes, Amazon.com, Napster, eMusic, etc.

Tune in and let me know what you think.

KNAPSACKHEROES! Links

In preparation for the new KNAPSACKHEROES! EP (coming very soon) I've been tweaking our sites. Here are some links:

KNAPSACKHEROES! on MySpace
KNAPSACKHEROES! on Facebook
KNAPSACKHEROES! on PureVolume
KNAPSACKHEROES! on iLike
KNAPSACKHEROES! on VIRB (this is a new one...still working on it)
KNAPSACKHEROES! on Eventful

Concerts Monday Night

MONDAY NIGHT AT THE ANCHOR (ALL AGES AND NON-SMOKING)

If you've never seen my band, this is a good time to do it! We could use all the support we can get for this concert. We'll be at The Anchor in Nashville on Monday night at 7 PM with several other bands. The Anchor is at 629 3rd Avenue S, Nashville, Tennessee 37210.

crossdogs.com

I haven't blogged in a long time so I hate for my first blog in this long to be a negative rant but here goes...

I am writing this blog for one simple reason: to let the world know that www.crossdogs.com is unprofessional and a waste of money. I would not feel the need to do this if the company had not continued to promote itself as a worthwhile venture and if the company had not saturated the pages of google with press releases on websites that all hold the same inaccurate claims.

If you are not a Christian artist then you might as well not waste your tmie reading this.

I am a Christian artist in a regionally successful band that is on the rise. I book gigs for the band so I thought it would be a good idea to sign up with Sonicbids.com and the Christian version crossdogs.com.

I was right about SonicBids. I was dead wrong about CrossDogs. Both sites allow you to create an online press kit that you can send out to churches and venues where you would like to play a concert. That's a fine option but it is unnecessary if if you have a website and MySpace and PureVolume and any other number of free websites available to artists.

The option I was interested in for both sites is the ability to submit your band to festivals, concerts, churches, colleges and other opportunities that are looking for a band that matches what they need. For instance, if a church said they are looking for a band that could provide a celebratory concert with a lot of fun and a message of hope..well I'd submit in a heartbeat. So, for a small fee equal to or around the amount one would spend to create and send a press kit (folder with CD, bio, photo, recommendations from past venues, requirements, etc.), one could do it online with a music player and all of the things venues have come to expect in a press kit.

Well, SonicBids is constantly listing new events for just about every state and several countries around the world. I have not always had success when submitting to events, but there has never been a shortage of opportunities on the site.

CrossDogs on the other hand has literally and without exaggeration had 3 events listed for the past year.

SonicBids charges $5 a month and you can opt out at any time. I have not opted out because there have been so many new opportunities listed each month that I feel it is worth it to continue my membership even if I do not submit to an event each month.

CrossDogs, on the other hand, charges $49.95 a year and literally offers one to two new events a year despite claims to the contrary.

I am not trying to destroy this company. I wish them the best and hope they will begin to provide the services they say they offer. I am, however, trying to let others know not to waste money. I have emailed several times in the past, as have many other artists about what the company is doing to remedy this and have heard nothing but empty promises and lame excuses. For the past year their message boards have been filled with complaints and laments from the people that paid for their "services". I was going to tell you to see for yourself but they actually took the message board down.

So there you go. Please do yourself a favor and do not pay Crossdogs.com for a year of nothing.

GMA Week and KNAPSACKHEROES!

Well, it's Gospel Music Association week - the few days in April when Christian music professionals from across the globe gather in Nashville for training, fellowship, tons of concerts, and free swag. GMA Week culminates with The GMA Awards (better known as The Dove Awards).

My band, KNAPSACKHEROES!, will be a part of the experience this week and I'd love for you to come out to see us.

We'll be in concert at the Back to the Music Showcase at 12th and
Porter on Monday night at 9 PM and will be followed by Rush of Fools (EMI/CMG /
Midas Records). This show is free to everyone. There will be great music all evening before and after us.

Tuesday night KNAPSACKHEROES! will be in concert at The Rutledge with dcTalk's
Kevin Max and Sarah Macintosh (former lead singer of Chasing Furies). That show is $7 to the public and free to GMA registrants.

For more information on these concerts, visit
myspace.com/knapsackheroes.

I'd love to see you there!

Stoojeeoh

Last week was a whirlwind. KNAPSACKHEROES! spent the entire week at Antenna Studios in Franklin tracking drums and bass and a few other things for our debut album.

The album is being produced by Tedd T (who just finished Newsboys' latest album and also produced Mute Math and David Crowder among dozens of others...check the link out) and Lynn Nichols (who was a member of the Phil Keaggy band and Steve Taylor's band Chagall Guevara and has played guitar on a ton of albums you've probably heard). We feel incredibly honored to be working with these gentlemen.

Most days there I just couldn't believe we actually were there. This dream of mine is finally coming true. We don't know yet when we'll finish the record but it will most likely come out next year and we hope you will love it.

I'll keep you updated here and at www.myspace.com/knapsackheroes.

Free Legal MP3 of the Week - KNAPSACKHEROES! - "My Tubesocks"

Things are going well for my band, KNAPSACKHEROES!, and we would like to share the love with you by making "My Tubesocks" available as a free MP3 download.

Enjoy.

You can see concert dates, pictures and hear more music and at www.myspace.com/knapsackheroes.

KNAPSACKHEROES! Audio Road Blog #1 - Graysville AL

New KNAPSACKHEROES! pics

There are some really, really great photos here from the show we did with The Turning and Julian Drive last Friday in Louisville at New Vision. Wow.

Knapsack weekend

This weekend was a good one for my band, KNAPSACKHEROES! We played New Vision Ministry Center in Louisville. That church has better staging, sound and lighting than most clubs in Nashville. It was great.

Saturday night was Lyrix in Nashville on the corner of 1st and Peabody. Small but really nice smoke-free bar with a beautiful view of the river and Coliseum downtown.

Monday we enjoyed the labor at Kingdom Quest Festival at the Greene County Fairgrounds past Knoxville in Greeneville, TN. The people were so hospitable and we got to hear Alathea.

KNAPSACKHEROES! Busy Busy Busy

Hey, how are you?

Things are busy for me and the KNAPSACKHEROES! boys. We played in Georgetown, KY and Wilmington, OH last weekend and throughly enjoyed both shows. We'll play in Madison, TN (across from Rivergate Mall behind Fazolli's...I love the way that sounds) this Friday at a place called Sound Mind Cafe. Then Saturday we'll head out to Atlanta (well, Douglasville actually) to play a place called The 7.

We've posted a new live video and new pictures at our MySpace. Check 'em out.

Next month we'll play the Ichthus Festival in KY. So will Audio Adrenaline, Relient K, David Crowder, Matt Redman, Chris Tomlin, Casting Crowns, TobyMac, Deliriou5?, Cool Hand Luke, Pillar, Kutless, The Chariot, Superchic[k], Seventh Day Slumber, John Reuben, The Myriad, and a slew of other great artists.

So, things are going well. And next month you can expect BIG things from us...you'll see...hmm....what could that mean?