Angie's Musical Evolution
- Category: Artists
- Published on Friday, 14 October 2011 23:28
- Written by Mario
- Hits: 710
Additional Info
Angie Arsenault, Montreal based singer, has finished fan funding for her upcoming album on SellaBand in November last year. The new album marks a step change in evolution for her musical work. I talked to her about this album and her further plans...
50K MUSIC: You've released your new EP, Shadow Revelations, in April this year, the short film to the EP has been online for some months now. Please tell us something about this quite huge project.
Angie: Well, to be honest, the project really took on a life of its own! It started out with just a simple idea: create a short film type music video to promote my first album, Once Upon A Dream. But as new songs started flowing out, they took on a bigger space in my life and I felt the need to focus on them, and so the short film ended up being created for them, or perhaps the other way around! I wrote, recorded and produced the songs from my tiny box of a recording studio, with my piano midi controller, exploring new sounds and new ways of writing my songs. I am also thrilled to be featuring a French text written by well-known author, Roger Tabra, as well as a lovely prose written by Mark Payne featured on the full-length version of the album.
50K MUSIC: The EP is downloadable for free. How do you make a living of music?
Angie: I have been teaching voice and piano from my private studio for over 12 years now and more recently, I started writing music for other projects (other artists, short films, websites and advertising). I have a hard time keeping still and love the challenge of working in different ways, on different types of projects.
50K MUSIC: How do you think the short film will help to promote your album?
Angie: The short film has been an expression in parts of the creative process for me. Much of today’s approach to getting heard is to explore new ways of expression and new ways of reaching out to the public. I felt the need to explore a new avenue of the creative realm and hopefully, this will resonate with viewers who relate to my music and what I have to share as an artist. Being that much of today’s music is experienced online, I find it very important to have the visual element such as a video as a gateway to the music. I felt that creating a short film would be an excellent way to give another type of experience to the fans by bringing them even deeper into my world of creation, and the pressures that come along with doing so in today’s music industry. For those with short attention spans, a shorter version of the film is now ready to go online along with the official release of the album. ;)
50K MUSIC: Lately you've just posted in your blog that you will hold off on launching your new album. You have to explain this I guess. :)
Angie: So far, the album has received a “soft launch” which means I have made it available on my website to my current fans that would like to have a physical copy of the album right away. All of my Believers will receive a digital download of the album and those who had 5 parts and up in my 2nd Sellaband project will automatically be receiving a physical copy mailed to their doorstep. But I am holding off from sending it to online stores such as ITunes for the time being, as my goal is to first seek for help to further promote the album and short film, either working with a consultant or label support. I feel that I have worked very hard on getting the word out there about my music, and I will keep exploring new ways to reach out to fans, but I do feel that it is time for me to open the door to partnering up with people who have experience in pushing an album to more commercial outlets.
50K MUSIC: And what are your plans once the album is released?
Angie: Once I find the right people to help me with the release, promotion, and booking, I hope to perform more with some touring in order to finally connect live with those who have been supporting my music for so long now. This has been the biggest challenge for me as my fans are very much spread out to different areas around the world.
50K MUSIC: Word has it that you're working on a whole new project. Would you bring us into the loop please?
Angie: Yes, I am very excited about a brand new music project that I am currently working on; one that I have had in mind for quite some time now. I have been working on new materiel in collaboration with some very special people in my life and I can’t wait to share the details with you in November, but the goal is to record a new album in December of 2012. So stay tuned!
50K MUSIC: Will we see you on stage soon … maybe in Europe too?
Angie: I sure hope so! This is why I am currently seeking help with promotion and other things such as booking. Even though I already have many music followers from all over the world, I need to increase my fans base in order to go on tour, which is more and more challenging for all artists today because of costs. I have been told many times that my style of music would work best in Europe; but I am way over here in Canada, and I have been, for the most part, a one-girl-army. So, needless to say, it has been a challenge. In the meantime, I have been working on some strategies for my fans / believers from Europe and all over the world to experience one of my live performances as I feel that the stage is where the magic really happens. One idea I would like to explore is sharing an online feed of an upcoming live performance for followers to simply log in and see me perform my latest show. We’ll see what happens…!
50K MUSIC: And last, one thing you want your fans and believers to know?
Angie: I want my fans / believers to know how grateful I am for their support towards my music over the years. If I still have such a drive to continue making music and find new ways to get my music out there, it is in big part because of them. They inspire me and make me want to be a better artist every time. Being able to collaborate in raising funds for my projects has made me feel so connected to my followers; it has been an incredible journey and I have met so many fantastic people. So thank-you!
Watch the short film here.
