What a year!
What a year we've had and so glad to say we've shared it with you. Our first full length album Got You Found is finished- just trying to find a record label; the June experience in the studio was euphoric. We are so thankful for our IndieGoGo donors who contributed to the campaign and made our album a reality. We are forever indebted to y'all. This album is a long time coming... the songs are very important to me and I cannot wait for you to hear it.
The Lovers are truly some of the finest musicians in Memphis, Tennessee and I feel blessed to work with them. After the close of the recording in June, we had a very active summer from July-October. Mempho fest, numerous private parties, 5 weddings, our first full band performance in New Orleans, and constant club dates in Memphis and the surrounding areas... Every year that comes and goes that I get the chance to play with these wonderful musicians is a blessing.
Closing out 2017 with more excitement!
In November, I had the dearest pleasure of working with the one of a kind multi-talented musician and producer Robin Girod in Geneva, Switzerland. Woah !
The story of how we all got connected is cool and I'll share it below all of this, but first I gotta say y'all MUST keep up with his killer band Duck Duck Grey Duck. This week the video for a single "Frelon" off their forthcoming album has been released and the buzz is buzzin... to say the least. Check out their new video here: https://www.lesinrocks.com/inrocks.tv/un-nouveau-morceau-pour-duck-duck-grey-duck-avec-la-video-qui-fait-chaud-dans-le-dos/ Listen & purchase their new album here: https://duckduckgreyduck.bandcamp.com/album/traffic-jam ! Just released Feb. 8. Robin Girod (guitar, vocals and leader of DDGD) and Nelson Schaer (drummer of DDGD) both worked with me on my first ever Swiss recording in novembre produced by Robin.
We recorded over a dozen songs in 3 heavenly days... it was a life changing experience for me and I can't wait to show y'all the music !! The time in Geneva and the songs we recorded have shot me with a burst of inspiration and reinvigoration that I didn't think was possible !
So my friends, please keep up with this powerhouse band Duck Duck Grey Duck from Geneva, and ALL the projects these gentleman are a part of.... Space Age Sunset, L'Orage, Temps Des Nuits.... the list goes on and on, seriously ! Check out Cheptel Records !! Great emerging and established artists on this label. So much exciting music to discover. Take some time and buy some records from these good people.
The story of how the connection from Memphis, Tennessee to Geneva, Switzerland happened (my version):
Three years ago, in October of 2014, Eric Friedl (Goner Records, Oblivians) contacted me to see if The Lovers and I wanted to play a show with “these Swiss Zydeco nuts Mama Rosin” when they came thru town. Just by Eric’s description I was instantly intrigued and then later hearin their sound and the strikingly electric artistry of Robin Girod… I was absolutely hooked.
So I suggested we play DKDC and I’m pretty sure this was the first Tuesday night show at Bar DKDC… ever. I sweet talked the queen Karen Blockman Carrier into taking a chance on it. It worked. Thank god it did. So the date was booked ! I made a lil silly lookin flyer haha and we were ready for these two vastly different (but at the same time two very harmonious) worlds to collide Mama Rosin + Marcella & Her Lovers.
Then I had the sad news of the loss of my dear cousin Ralph Fontenot… I went down for the funeral the day before the DKDC show… and worried I wouldn't make it back in time, I hurriedly returned on the Amtrak train up to Memphis from New Orleans early Tuesday morning.
I arrived back in Memphis about an hour before our downbeat at DKDC. I was not expecting to enjoy the evening after having such an emotional and rough weekend right before… but with their energetic sound and beautiful souls, Mama Rosin single-handedly lifted me out of my grief.
Then after the show I brought everyone out to a David Cousar solo show at the Buccaneer Lounge - so memorable. Our new Swiss friends adored Cousar. We had a perfectly classic late, late Memphis night and then we all crashed hard.
The next morning before the Swiss fellas prepared to drive off to their next stop on their U.S. tour, Robin and I talked about how cool it would be to collaborate on some songs one day in the future... but I never expected it would ever be possible, since Geneva is not exactly up the street from Memphis ;)
Who knew that three years later the idea would be realized ? So jump to 2017. I found out in May that I was invited to perform at Lucerne Blues Festival as a featured artist with my dad’s band in November… so I thought well… while I’m out there let's see what's goin on with Robin in Geneva.
We communicated leading up to my trip and brainstormed ideas...
And then before I knew it, November 20th came and I was in a cab leaving Genève-Cornavin station headed to the studio to work with my Swiss crew...! I had some original songs and some covers I’ve always wanted to record. And so Robin, the ambitious, go-getter that he is, made it happen. He got a solid, super cool and experimental band together and helped me develop songs that were just rough ideas.
The heart, the steam and muthafuckin soul was in every rhythm, groove and rudiment. Everyone put it on strong in every song. It was all feel… all first-take magic captured.
I feel so unbelievably lucky to have met such an open-minded, extremely talented group of musicians all the way on the other side of the ocean in Switzerland. I already feel they are my fam.
BEST BELIEVE one day y'all gonna see us in your city ! Not a doubt in my mind.
This album is very important to me and I look forward to sharing it with y’all soon. My beloved Swiss crew Robin Girod, Nelson Schaer, Melissa Kassab, Sebastien Bui, Elie Ghersinu and Benoit Gerard! Comin atcha ! Look out y'all ! More photos to illustrate the story in a gallery below. Keep clicking right to see more. xo -MRS
