Monday, June 26, 2017

Mark Bryan preps third solo album, Helps to bring Charleston, South Carolina’s new music scene into national spotlight.

Two-time Grammy-winning guitarist for Hootie and The Blowfish to release “Songs of the Fortnight” collection Aug. 11th.

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Mark Bryan as photographed by Jonathan Boncek.

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Hear “If You Saw Her” from the upcoming Mark Bryan album “Songs of the Fortnight”



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Charleston! Mark Bryan plays a record release show at The Windjammer on Thurs., Aug. 10th ahead of the two-night Hootie stand on Fri., Aug 11th and Sat. Aug 12th at Volvo Car Stadium!

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Ask anyone in the Charleston, South Carolina music community about Mark Bryan, and they'll say, “Oh, everyone around Charleston knows Mark!” In actuality, everyone around the world probably knows a little bit about Bryan, whether they know they know or not.

As the guitarist for the two-time Grammy winning, nearly 20-million album selling band Hootie and The Blowfish, Bryan’s guitar playing was ubiquitous in 1995, contributing to the biggest album sales of any release that year, and leading to what is now ranked as one of the biggest selling albums in music history.

Of course, success at that level brings with it all sorts of pre-conceptions, so when first hearing the tunes on Bryan’s upcoming third album Songs of The Fortnight, (August 11th, Chucktown Music Group), listeners will be surprised at the down-to-Earth songwriting that plays as just-earnest enough to be relatable and believable, while also sounding like Southern hospitality.

After Hootie went on hiatus almost a decade ago, Bryan became passionate about producing other artists. As he began to amass dozens of production credits, he also started to record and release songs on the fly – first his own, and then those of other artists he was working with.

This led to the launch of the “Song of the Fortnight” blog, where Bryan posted a new song of his own, or an artist he was playing with or producing, every two weeks, for three years. Eventually, there was enough material for an album, which comprises the 11 songs on Songs of the Fortnight.

The album features ten Bryan originals, and an opening cut that is another nod to Bryan’s ease at throwing the spotlight; a barn-burning cover of Scruffy The Cat’s college radio favorite “Mybabyshe’sallright” (featuring frequent REM collaborator Peter Holsapple on harmonica.)

In fact, Songs of the Fortnight functions as somewhat of a capper – the “Song of the Fortnight” blog could have continued indefinitely if Bryan hadn’t received an offer to work for the College of Charleston, but the opportunity was right in line with his interest and continuing passion for elevating the local music community.

Furthering his community efforts, Bryan also teamed up with the esteemed local venue, the Charleston Music Hall to launch a television show “Live at the Charleston Music Hall,” which recently won a regional Emmy Award for Arts and Entertainment in the Southeast, and he is also heavily involved in Carolina Studios, a non-profit recording studio that allows children in low-income areas to have a songwriting and recording experience free-of-charge. Bryan also brings his unique perspective on the industry to his work managing the emerging Charleston-based rock band Stop Light Observations.

“Charleston is an amazing city in the middle of a remarkable renaissance,” Bryan says of his adopted hometown. “I’m lucky to be part of its growth.”

Mark Bryan’s third album Songs of the Fortnight arrives August 11th via the artist’s own Chucktown Music Group. Bryan is available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.

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Mark Bryan
Songs of the Fortnight
(Chucktown Music Group)
August 11th, 2017
  

Track Listing:

01. Mybabyshe’sallright
02. If You Saw Her  (SOUNDCLOUD | MP3)
03. Almost Loved Me
04. A Little Bit of Everything
05. The Great Beyond
06. Forgetting About Me
07. Whole Lotta Lovin’ (feat. Hank Futch)
08. Sweet Love (feat. Kathy Dempf)
09. Only Love Can Satisfy
10. A Song For Maryland
11. Maybe Then (Acoustic)

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Mark Bryan Links


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Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion


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