Two-time Grammy winner, recent Emmy recipient for “Live
at the Charleston Music Hall” series, helps bring South Carolina city’s scene into
national spotlight.
+++
Mark Bryan as photographed by Jonathan Boncek.
+++
PLAY, POST
& SHARE
Mark Bryan stopped
by the Paste Magazine studio in NYC to perform
songs from “Songs of the Fortnight” and chat with editor, Hilary Saunders.
+++
Mark Bryan – In The Press
“A driving, full-on pop masterpiece.” – Popdose
“Steady, whimsical optimism.” – MAGNET
+++
Mark Bryan – Live
10/5/2017: Columbia, SC @ Music Farm/Tin Roof (5PM Early Show, Free Admission)
10/7/2017: Columbia, SC @ Books-A-Million (2PM EST, In-Store)
+++
“It’s satisfying. It’s a chance to take what I have
learned from my experiences within the music industry and convey it to the next
generation.” – Mark Bryan chats
with Isaac Weeks of the Charleston
City Paper about his work as a musician beyond playing music.
Hootie and the Blowfish guitarist and co-founder Mark Bryan hit NYC last week in support of his recently released
new solo album Songs of the Fortnight (Chucktown
Music Group), and stopped
by the Paste Magazine studio to
play songs from the record and chat about his various music-related projects
outside of the realm of performing.
Some of these include helping to establish the College of Charleston’s concentration on
the Music Industry, and teaming 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.
Bryan 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 (he is originally from Bethesda, Maryland). “I’m lucky
to be part of its growth.”
As a member of a nearly 20 million album selling group
Hootie and the Blowfish, Bryan’s guitar playing was ubiquitous
in 1995. Hootie and The Blowfish’s Cracked
Rear View earned the biggest album sales of any release that year, and is
now ranked as one of the biggest selling albums in music history. Success at that
level brings all sorts of pre-conceptions, so when first hearing the tunes on Bryan’s just-released third solo album Songs
of The Fortnight (Chucktown
Music Group), listeners will be surprised at the down-to-Earth songwriting
that sounds like Southern hospitality.
+++
Hear “Forgetting
About Me” by Mark Bryan via
Guitar World or here!
+++
Bryan’s efforts on behalf of the local music scene also brought about the
concept for the Songs of the Fortnight album. After Hootie
went on semi-hiatus almost a decade ago – the band still convenes for its hometown
two-night stand every August – Bryan
became passionate about producing other artists, which led to a prominent role as
a producer in Charleston music scene.
As Bryan
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 the offer to work for the College of
Charleston. but the opportunity was right in line with his interest and
continuing passion for elevating the Charleston, South Carolina music
community.
Mark Bryan’s third album Songs of the Fortnight is out now via
the artist’s own Chucktown Music Group.
Bryan is available for interviews.
Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.
+++
Mark Bryan
Songs
of the Fortnight
(Chucktown Music Group)
Out Now
Track Listing:
01. Mybabyshe’sallright (YOUTUBE | SPOTIFY | APPLE
| SOUNDCLOUD
| MP3)
02. If You Saw Her (YOUTUBE | SPOTIFY | APPLE
| SOUNDCLOUD
| MP3)
03. Almost Loved Me
04. A Little Bit of Everything
05. The Great Beyond
06. Forgetting About Me (YOUTUBE |
SPOTIFY | APPLE | SOUNDCLOUD
| MP3)
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)
+++
Mark Bryan Links
+++
Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion
No comments:
Post a Comment