So, what do we have here?

A collection of bits and bobs, circa 2000-2014:

First, I want to tell you that this is just the beginning of more to come- the continued excavation of the previously unheard, the celebration of anniversaries, and also the "new" new is coming…. (well, new for you, anyway) but first I wanted to give you something interesting to chew on in the mean time.

As a fan of music and a music nerd I would love something like this from an artist I was into.

There are some early ideas for songs, hastily recorded on voice memos to put aside after they spilled out of me, then added to the never-ending, well intentioned pile of 'things to finish', a glimpse of the early part of the process...

There are finished songs that I never released; Why? Maybe they didn't make it to an album or proper release because they didn't fit in with the vibe, or the "character" of Esthero, or maybe schedules and/or budgets simply didn’t align to see them through. Some are recorded properly, or traditionally, rather, in fancy studios, others recorded lo fi on voice notes or in my little one room studio in my house, live off the floor.

There are ideas intended for others; light, bouncy writing sessions with friends, happy times....and there are things... well, there is one song in particular that I honestly never intended to share with anyone, at least not "everyone". I quite frankly never even intended to listen to it again myself, after purging it, as it was just a place to put and make sense of my pain and my rage. There seems to be a lot of that in the world at the moment.... but maybe my willing'mess' (I meant to type ‘willingness’ but that typo was fire so I went with it) to share something so raw and uncomfortable will make someone else feel less insane.....but I'm warning you, it is very uncomfortable to listen to, so I'm not mad if you skip it.

The last song, Little Songbird, that one is my favourite. The track before it is the documentation of the moment it flew into my brain; 2013, I was just about to get into the shower and minding my own business when that melody came to me, full and intact, and seemingly from another era....I remember that one rudely barreling through me, dying to be born, with no regard for the fact that I was naked and the water was running. I ran for my phone to voice memo it, and when that divine download completed I gazed up at the ceiling and said out loud "Well, gee, thanks, Nat King Cole, but it's 2013, what the fvck am I supposed to do with this?!"

Luckily, I figured it out. I feel it is the most pure version of "me" and my purpose ever captured in song form.

I hope to tell you the full story of its birth and origin one day. In the mean time, play that one at night for your babies when they can't sleep.

Lastly, I would really love to hear your feedback as far as tunes you would love to hear properly "finished". Let me know what moves you.

Enjoy.

Love, Esthero