Fresh Country Air

Congratulations to Albany-based singer Joey Sontz, whose current single "I Melt" has top 20 on the Hotdisc Country Charts in the UK! 

Back in February I spent the day with Joey in Saratoga's Congress Park, filming a music video for the song, which is the second single off of his album It All Begins with a Song. It really is a great park, filled with interesting sculpture, buildings, and levels, which match the charms of the renowned resort town. Also charming was the interaction between Joey and his friend Rachel Wellington, who I captured larking about the park, having snow ball fights, getting sprayed by a water fountain, and hassling the local ducks (felt like I was directing the opening of Friends)! After a few weeks of dedicated editing, here is the final result:

In addition to the satisfaction of creating the video, I'm pleased to learn that it is featured on this week's Hotdisc Country Top 20 TV Programme, currently airing in the UK on Sky TV's Keep It Country channel! We'll see if the song/video can climb any higher in the weeks to come... fingers crossed!

Joey has been getting some nice reviews on his album, and offered his own words of praise on the edited video, saying that it looked like we had a large crew working on it... besides him and Rachel, it was just yours truly: videographer, director, and editor... signed, sealed, delivered!

Country Setting

Where to go in the Capital Region when you're asked to direct a country music video? Saratoga, of course! 

This proved to be a good call, as I joined musician Joey Sontz for some filming in the resort city's scenic Congress Park yesterday. 

Honestly, country music isn't normally my cup of tea, so I was a little wary about taking on this particular video project when Sontz first approached me about it. What finally convinced me was the idea of supporting a fellow musician/performer in the area, and Sontz's own enthusiasm (Rachel Wellington, his co-star in the video, admired the fact that "he doesn't give up on his dreams"). It also helps to be open-minded when it comes to music—his new album, It All Begins with a Song is actually quite well-produced (Jeff DeBusk of Tennessee's The Music Sanctuary at the helm), with some strong support from Nashville session musicians. 

Joey Sontz on the set of his new
music video. Photo: Jeremy Clowe

Yesterday was another great exercise for me to bring to life a vision inspired by music. The song we worked on is "I Melt," a rather straightforward love song from the album, slated to be the next single. I feel that I managed to capture some artistic moments, without being too cliché. Also, the weather was unseasonably mild, so our wintery "set" literally melted as we continued work (thanks for the visual metaphor, Mother Nature). The footage is now set to edit (yee-haw... where the real fun comes in!). As we wrapped, I took a swig from one of the local mineral springs for good luck.

On a related note: I'm still plugging away on my own music. I've made more advances with my guitar-playing, and look forward to attempting some new things in the year to come.

www.joeysontz.com

Lefty Centered

the horse whisperer. photo ©Blueeyed Soul Productions. 

Back in Hudson for a good part of the day, after stealing away in the Capital Region for the last week or so. There is something calming and centering about being back at my family's old farmhouse... I think it might be good to get back there and do some concentrated work soon.

We also raided my storage and picked up a few items to bring back to Sarah's place... ulp! Looks like it's really happening... we're sharing furniture now! Organizing nut that I am, it feels good to find some things to help the feng shui around here. I'm a pretty big believer in that... it helps me, anyway.

This evening we continued our search for wedding rings. I'm not really a jewelry guy, so it's a new process. Funny that a bigger band looks better on my finger, while Sarah's engagement ring looks better when paired with a smaller band. Anyway, we've got some good ideas and similar taste. Maybe the energy of the ring's metals will also have a grounding effect on me... at least it will be a pleasant reminder of someone else who does.