Bryan J. Howard Newsblog

Hello All,
I knew I had not written anything in a while but I didn’t realize that my last post was in 2007! So, let me see if I can adequately play catch-up.

When I last posted I was preparing for a European tour with Luaka Bop artist, Jim White. Jim is a very intelligent man who worked extremely hard navigating motorways and handling all the things a tour manager would do as well as his bandleader role. He works hard! With guitarist, Patrick Hargon we made our way across Europe and survived to tell the tale.

Shortly before leaving for the tour, I had formed a band with some good friends and after a few name changes we have settled on the name, The HEAP. We have been working on defining our own sound and trying to find our niche here in Athens, GA.

April 19th is the official release date for our debut CD, “Deluxe”. We recorded the basic tracks over a three day period at Andy Baker’s studio with Bill Doss (Apples in Stereo) turning the knobs. After some overdubs at Bill’s house, we left it in the hands of Matt Yelton for mixing. Rodney Mills mastered the disc and we are thrilled with the results. I can honestly say from the music to the artwork and packaging, this is the greatest CD I have ever been a part of creating. Advance copies are now available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/theheap and on iTunes.

So with a CD recorded and the departure of our original keyboard player, Paul Kim, it was time to consolidate the lineup. We have found a new keyboardist, Jack Stirling (formerly of Orlando, FL’s “Legendary J.C.’s”) and baritone saxophone player, Kate Mikulka. I am truly thrilled with this lineup. I am hoping to get this band on the road as soon as possible.

On top of our regular HEAP duties, I thought it would fun to do some P-Funk cover shows. This required adding an additional six players to our lineup which is already nine strong. Yes, fifteen people on stage in costumes playing P-Funk songs. This was a long time dream fulfilled. You can see a youtube video of our March 26th Georgia Theatre performance here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB0K_rP_V1o

Of course I am still playing bass for Kevn Kinney whenever he calls and Jackpot City who have taken on the new moniker, Heavy Feather.

So things are going well and I am sure if I continue to work hard, the sky is the limit. I hope you will pick up a copy of the new HEAP CD and please let me know what you think. Also check back here often as I will be updating much more frequently.

Thanks for stopping by,
Bryan J. Howard

P.S. Here are some shows that are coming up:
April 2nd The HEAP at The Melting Point in Athens, GA opening for Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk
April 10th Heavy Feather at The Melting Point in Athens Georgia with special guest Todd Nance on drums
April 16th The HEAP at Atmosphere in Loganville, GA
April 24th The HEAP at Farm 255 in Athens, GA

posted by Bryan J. Howard  # 10:27 AM