Outwards, Onwards, and Beyond....

       Hello Everyone!

I haven't written in a little while, but I've been busy and all over the place. This past month, a dominant theme of life and my music in general has been expansion. I have put out my album, played to new people, and even traveled to across the Atlantic to Barcelona. Above, pictured, is me eating lunch in Barcelona, and to the right is a picture of Parc de Montjuic. I traveled over there with both my mother and brother, and had a good time. Barcelona is a very beautiful city, and while its cultural endowments (in terms of the arts, museums, etc) may not be as rich as that of NYC's (how could it be?) it compensated with its beauty and fantastic weather. I did check out the Picasso museum, which specialized in his Blue Period works (some of my favorites). I regret not making it to see any Dali (A Barcelona native) works, and no the picture above was painted by another brilliant artist Anneli Curnock (more on this later).

Following along this idea of expansion, I have been delighted to give out my album "Night Escape" to all of my friends, as well as to those with whom I am less acquainted. The idea here is to always court some new listeners who can enjoy my music.  After the money, songwriting, studio time, fatigue, and my endless drive, it's a pleasure to get some of you out there to listen to the album. If anyone has any thoughts about the tracks, I'd love to hear them. A natural question a lot of artists probably have after they complete their works and send them off could be-"Who is looking/hearing this?" "What the hell are they thinking when they do?" "Would they rather be eating Fruit Loops than listening to new music?" But, part of putting your work out there is about letting go, and allowing it be received in a myriad of ways. That control is out of my hands, and can be daunting, but its part of the growth I am seeking as a musician.....

Back to the painting above. I will be doing a collaborative show with my friend Anneli Curnock on June 10th, 2011 at 8PM the Cin-M-Art Space (43 Murray St, NY, NY). We've talked about doing this for a while, and this will be another way to branch out and try something exciting and new. She will be showing her artwork alongside my music show at this venue. We've always felt out works could complement one another's- as both kind of embody a darker, nocturnal feel. I'm pretty excited to be collaborating with such an incredible artist. Such powerful imagination is rare. See for yourself:

    

*Check out her website at www.annelicurnock.com!!!*

Anyway, there are more developments coming, and I will let you know shortly about all of them as they are ready to be announced. Oh, I also have a show on June 21 at 4PM at Macri Square in Williamsburg for the Making Music NY Festival. Anyway, that's it for now, I'll be back to update soon.

E. Contractor (Forever?)

The album that lived...

                 Maybe there were no epic flashes of green light, archetypal struggles of good and evil, or flashy stage lighting, but last night was a moment, even if a little understated. My CD Release Party for "Night Escape" proved to be a wonderful evening, with close friends and family in attendance. Alongside fellow singer-songwriter/guitarist Danny Leonard, I delivered my set at 10 PM at the Waltz-Astoria (complete with songs from my album as well as covers from legends such as Roy Orbison). I found the audience to be generously attentive, and very willing to share in this moment with me. I also know that many were there in spirit......

Because my album had already made it down to Rio De Janeiro before the party! Here are two friends of mine (near Ipanema, perhaps?) Lorraine Serabian (my performance teacher and Broadway veteran) and opera mezzo-soprano and actress Marina Cyrino. Although the two of them are currently busy running an acting workshop in Rio, the two took time to pose with me, who was there in spirit as well (or in album-incarnation). What this pictures reinforces for me is how music, as well as other forms of art take on a life of their own once completed, because they had a life of their own in the grasps of muses before their creation.  These muses may have creative wishes for all, but unfortunately many never realize fully them. So indeed, against all forms of resistance, struggles, and doubts, my album was indeed the album that lived...

And, to some extent, this album really IS a birth of my vision as a musician for my songs as well. If a live performance is life the performer, then the album is life given to the music itself, along with the songs, and the forces which brought them into being. It is on the album where I got to record all kinds of instruments ranging from accordion to baritone guitar, and bring together this music with touches of cinematic gravitas  (I hope). I also just found out that someone I don't know recently bought "Night Escape" on CD Baby, which I think is awesome and fascinating. It's really my hope that this music can continue to find its way to new listeners....

Thanks again to all that came out last night...here are some pictures:

More updates to come! Thanks for reading.

-Eric Contractor

Hello, My Name is (Eric Contractor).

As Johnny Cash (and Dolly Parton) used to say... Anyway, I hope I've brought this website in with some proper style - pictures, music, futuro-gotham visuals included for your sensate pleasure (if only I could get some fancy cologne to spray through all your speakers as well). I feel like the pictures and visuals should compliment the spirit I intended to evoke on the album- this sort of elusive, shimmering parallel universe.  I wanted to make this site here as a central point for everything related to music complete with shows, news updates, etc.-  as well as anything that strikes my fancies, past, present, or future.  In additional to the ReverbNation, MySpace, etc. standard fare of music websites, I wanted to host a site with a blog format, which I hope people find interactive and engaging. As many of you know, my album "Night Escape" is going to be released with an accompanying show next Saturday, April 30th at the Waltz-Astoria @ 10 pm. I'm pretty excited to share this album- it's a summation of all of my efforts, energy, and growth as musician and a person thus far. The songs on the album are pretty eclectic in style, and there should be something for everyone on there. Anyway, in the spirit of brevity, that's it for now! Hope to post some pictures from the studio pretty soon!

- Eric Contractor (Forever).