11.12.11 Milan, Italy

Whoa. WTF am I doing here? Life has been a whirlwind lately and it's really hard to process all that's happened over the course of the last few months. From LA to Phoenix, Aspen to Nashville, Munich to Prague to Italy, travel and adventure have been the primary words to describe life lately. I'm not sure I mentally or physically prepared myself for what has transpired, but sometimes learning as you go is the best way to do it.

So, I'm writing this from a hotel a few meters from a giant church square in Milan... we just went out and walked around a bit, and honestly, I've never seen so many people occupy such a large space... ever! People everywhere, like a sea of Italians wading in, around, over, and through each other. I've always heard of Italian pride, but until tonight, I never realized how obvious it would be. These are proud people. From their clothes to their stature to their beautiful language, they seem to be very intent in representing and maintaining their history. Of course, I've only been here for a total of 2 hours in my life, but this is my initial impression.

I am traveling with my girl friend, Savanna, and we have been asked to set up an art show for a movie premiere all over Europe. So far, we've been to Munich, Vienna, Prague, Innsbruck, and now Milan. The movie is called "The Art of Flight," which our good friend from Wyoming, Travis Rice, and friends from Brain Farm Cinema made over the last few years. It is truly a beautiful film made to capture Travis and friends pushing the sport of snowboarding to new levels... both physically and artistically. You can check it out at www.artofflightmovie.com

Like any big budget endeavor, people have responded with both acclaim, and criticism, though no one can really deny the absolute beauty and epic performances in the film. We are honored to be involved, and also excited to see places we've always dreamed of seeing. The art we are selling and promoting is truly inspirational in it's beauty and professionalism.

It has also been very educating for me as an aspiring professional musician to watch Travis, who has become an international snowboarding name, work and interact with his fans, business partners, and fellow snow boarders, to see how someone at the top of their game can do it with class and the utmost professionalism. It has always amazed me that when people have achieved such success, it is rarely based on talent alone, but also the willingness to work harder and longer than anyone else. People who have come to this have usually not done so by taking advantage of their talent or using the means they've come by to drift into self pleasure or comfort. I am taking these lessons to heart.

Before we were asked to be a part of this tour, I was also lucky enough to be involved in another exciting adventure... NBC's The Sing Off. Some of my musician friends in Nashville were asked to put together an A Cappella group to compete on the show, and when a few of the first members dropped out, I was asked to be the last member of the group. We put together an audition video and were accepted to compete against 16 other groups from around the states. We had a great time and made some fantastic relationships along the way. Although we were eliminated in 8th place, The Collective (our group name) has hopes to continue the adventure as long as we can.

So, that's it for now. I will post some pictures soon... much love, Ciao from Italy :-)

2.19.11

I'm sitting in the lobby of the historic Ahwanee Hotel in Yosemite Village, CA, and this place gets even more magical every time I'm lucky enough to venture here. I played last night with a great band, and my good friends, Elastik Soul from St. Louis. Check them out when you can, they're phenomenal musicians and even better people. Good times.

Yosemite is currently in the middle of receiving an overwhelming amount of snow... "Sierra cement" is the name for it here, because it is seriously the heaviest, wettest snow, at least that I've ever seen. Perfect for snow balls, and the "snow bomb's," which drop from the trees and look like giant snow pancakes, add some hilarity when they crash on the unsuspecting tourist' head.

This is one of the most awe-inspiring places I've been to on my travels, and it always sparks the creative juices and reminds me of how small I am; that I'm a part of something so much bigger than the conciousness I'm limited to. It's amazing how the world can be re-shaped in these moments of realization. It feels good to feel re-invigorated, even if it's just for this moment, right now.

Last night, myself and a few friends walked out into the middle of the valley, trudging through the snow and dodging the snow bombs. It was a full moon, and the mist rolled over half-dome and el cap just right, leaving a lasting memory in my minds eye. Such an awesome place... I hope that you get to check it out someday, and I hope it will remind you, like it did me, how lucky we are to live in this beautiful country, and how we have a responsibility to enjoy and protect these inspiring locations for the people who will come when we're gone. Cheers from Yosemite :-)

Reading: The Economic Hit Man

Listening to: The Felice Brothers

1.7.11

2010 was an incredible year, full of unexpected adventures, surprises, and growth. I have been fortunate to stumble across so many amazingly talented dreamers and musicians and people who believe there is a different way to live life than the societal norm; people who believe in what they're doing because they know the only way to change anything is to challenge and re-create what is already in existence. It has been a year of awesome inspiration and renewed belief.

Nashville is an amazing city filled with music through and through. It seems most people who are familiar with Nashville only by name and reputation believe it is only the home to country music... and yes, country is a gigantic staple in music city, but the undercurrent of folk-rock-indie music is thriving just beneath the surface, remaining out of sight except to those ever rarer music searchers.

I've been amazed and educated by the amount of talent and creativity here. Never before have I seen so much work and passion poured into music... people here live music and fill their souls with it... they research it and respect it, and strive to gain deeper knowledge of the intangible connection it creates between the outer world and the inner.

Here are a few of the incredible musicians I've had the pleasure to perform with and learn from over the past year... check them out when you're ready to rock!

Happy New Year :-)

Leroy Powell & The Messengers

Dave Pahanish

Sam & Ruby

Matthew Perryman Jones

Bonnie Bishop

Shelly Fairchild

Clay Evans

David Oakleaf

Tom Schrek

Katie Herzig

Emily West

Hugh Mitchell

Eric Paslay

Anthony Billups

Anthony Adams

I flew into Europe today, via Germany. Man, what an incredible place. The technology, the food... the BEER! haha, all of it seems better and more authentic than what I've grown up with in America. We certainly have some great things in America, and I'm proud to be an American, but I guess when you've only experienced one culture for most of your life, a new one can either be grotesquely different or seductively alluring. Right now, I'm allured :-) The streets, the people, the history, the Wiener Schnitzel... all of it is fantastic. More to come...

So, this last weekend I went to New York City for the first time in my life. It is by far the biggest, craziest, most incredible place I've ever been. I've grown up in beautiful places on the west coast... but they have been small and 'environmentally beautiful,' so to speak. NYC is beautiful in an entirely different way. The amount of diversity and culture that you can cross as soon as you walk out the door is fascinating. Every culture in the world must be represented there, and in mass numbers. From business men to artists, labor workers to crazy ass bag ladies screaming to no one about everyone, musicians, tourists.... absolutely incredible.

I was dually impressed and troubled by the ability of the people there to live in such close proximity with each other, while not divulging their own personal world. It was fascinating to ride the subway and watch a sharply dressed young professional sit next to a dirty musician (like me) and not even blink an eye. People are so intertwined and yet so disassociated with each other... pretty crazy.



Despite the fact that I was a small town Wyoming boy walking the streets much like Crocodile Dundee, I felt like I was one of them... one of the city people. I liked it so much that I'm even entertaining the idea of moving there.

The thing that troubled me about NYC is the fact that a person could live there, among millions of people, and still be alone. You would think that being so close to so many other humans would only multiply the amount of interaction, but I found it to be the opposite. It's ironic and sad that when people want be alone, all they really have to do is go where everyone else is. Of course, I'm making generalizations... I know there are plenty of people in NYC that reach out to others; who are outgoing and fearless when it comes to interpersonal communications. But still, a person could go years before ever running into one.

Enough negativity tho. All in all, I have never been more intrigued than I was this last weekend. Truly an incredible place.

Ike