The good news is that my silence is not for lack of music-making. Between a waterfall of writing and arranging, plus a crazy good week tracking at Audities, I have tons to tell you about.

The projected release date for the new record has been moved back quite a bit. After recording the tracks, David Kean (producer extraordinaire) and I decided that we need more time to give the songs the attention they deserve.

We’d originally planned to record, mix, and master the project in a single week, but instead we spent the whole time recording the music. I’ll be back in the studio for another week this summer so we can mix and master it.

I can’t even express how excited I am about the new songs. They are sounding great so far, with outstanding contributions from some amazing session players. I’ll post about each of these in detail soon, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, here are some proofs that arrived today from the photo shoot for the album cover.

These were shot by Courtney Nicole Townsend, who is a dear friend and (I dare say) an incredible talent.

Which of the four photos is your favorite for the cover of the new record? Let me know in the comments.

The songs are in various stages of undress, being written, re-written, or mocked up in my home studio. I’m in love with all of them, and can’t wait for you to have a listen.

I’m thrilled that I’ll once again be working with David Kean at Audities in Calgary. The insane collection of instruments at the Foundation gave us spontaneous, unexpected colours for the tunes on Somewhere Along the Wire. I can’t wait to see what happens this time around!

The release date is set for March 20th, the first day of spring 2010. I’ll be suspending “Cover of the Month” for a while, but wait… don’t leave just yet! I’ll still be posting to announce live shows, and giving updates on the recording project as it progresses.

In the meantime, check out this video of my sister’s crazy marching band. I’m not a fan of marching bands in general - in fact I was kicked out of my high school music program for refusing to participate in one - but these guys are a little different.

Anybody who arranges the music of Bjork, Mingus, and Zappa, then parades it all over New York is a-ok in my books. They get extra points, too, for this rendition of “Hyperballad” - one of my all-time faves.

Every season pairs differently with music, like wine with food. I wrote last year about autumn’s nostalgia, which I think goes best with introspective songs on headphones. Winter calls me to something textured and energetic to keep everybody warm. (Jazz works well for this.)

Ah, but summer…

What I like best in summer is playing guitars late into the night with The Casual Observer, plunking out “Meet Me In The Morning”. What I like best is drifting in a raft flotilla past the martian landscape of the Red Deer River, with Pink Floyd coming through the tiny portable speakers. But what I like very best is laughing with my closest friends, on the top deck of a house boat on Shuswap lake, with Van Morrison playing under the shining sun.

Now that I’m in Vancouver, I don’t see much of my old summertime crew. But music transcends distance and time, and the first notes of those songs take me there instantly. I’ve covered Van’s Astral Weeks this month, in honour of all those great times.

This one goes out to Robin and Chris, Bob and Lindsey, and Dale and Shaine. I’m making new memories in Vancouver this summer, but you’re never far from my thoughts.

It’s also for my Mom, who’s having her birthday today way over in Libya. Happy birthday Mom!

Sarah St. Catherine - Astral Weeks

This is music in its best form: not something you observe or receive, but a map that takes you somewhere.

For me, this album was like hearing Dark Side of the Moon again for the first time; the sound went so deep into my heart. The similarity between the two albums ends with how much I love them, so don’t expect a high-production psychadelic epic if you pick up your own copy of Soft Airplane, which you definitely should.

The lyrics in “Rabid Bits Of Time” really hit the mark. I’ve wondered sometimes whether I’ve been dead for years. Living day to day, dealing with inputs and outputs, sometimes makes me feel like I’m missing the big picture.

But “Rabid Bits Of Time” looks upward as well as inward. “No one knows where we go when we’re dead or when we’re dreaming.”

This one is best listened to with your eyes closed.

Sarah St. Catherine - Rabid Bits Of Time

We were drinking red wine and listening to records over the weekend, and Scott put on the Best of Lou Reed.

I’d sort of forgotten about “Satellite Of Love” - it’s been years since I heard it, for whatever reason.

Such a great track; it ran through my mind all the next day. I didn’t realize until I picked up a guitar that my fingers were impatient to play it.

To download or listen to my take on “Satellite”, click here.

If you like it, tell a friend!

Peace.

This month, I woke up my inner child and browsed her playlist to choose January’s cover. Too young to know a token ballad when I heard it, at age four this was my favorite cut from Rebel Yell.

I remember the mid-eighties as a time of synths and samplers, with keyboard sounds going in and out of fashion within months. The effect was sometimes cheesy, but more often these sounds gave an emotional, atmospheric quality to the recordings.

Did all the moody colour of Billy Idol’s “Eyes Without A Face” come from the synths? I decided to find out for myself, and so can you!

Click here to listen to my acoustic, synth-less take on the song.

Does the acoustic version keep the original’s emotional quality, change it, or lose it altogether?

You’re welcome to leave your two cents in the comments.

My gruelling European travel schedule this fall took its toll, and kept me far from home and studio.

Never fear, my friends! This month’s cover will be up by the middle of the coming week, and I’ve got something special planned.

This month’s cover will be my favorite 21st century holiday song, courtesy of Sufjan Stevens and his epic Christmas collection. I’m also working on some vocal sampling stuff to add texture, and so far it sounds pretty cool.

So thanks for your patience, and stay tuned!

My daytime job as a software hawker has me spending most of this month in Switzerland and France. What a good time, I thought, to pay tribute to my favorite French electro-pop duo, Air.

Probably one of the best concerts I ever saw was Air at Le Zénith last year in Paris. All transit was shut down in the city because of a strike, and it was a two hour taxi ride through utter gridlock to get there.

Once we got there, it was absolutely magical. The mountain of synthesizers onstage, the heavenly light show, the pulsing beats, and the fans… Everyone had defied the strike to be there, and the energy was indescribable.

They played all my favorite songs, without exception. When they launched into “Sexy Boy”, the crowd went insane.

Thanks for tuning in every month for these little ditties. I hope you enjoy this one.

A la prochaine!

Back then, I wanted to be Judy Collins or Joan Baez, and I sang traditional folk and protest songs, much to the bewilderment of my fun-loving, beer-drinking audience.

Playing that guitar again brings back a lot of memories, reminding me of those old songs and their tales of sorrow and redemption.

In honour of my good old guitar, and those good old days, this month’s cover is of the traditional spiritual “Sinnerman”.

The song was most famously and most awesomely rendered by the peerless Nina Simone in the mid-60’s. At that time, there was a lot to account for in a culture of war, greed, and deception.

The song still resonates today as our corporatocracy staggers ever onward. Wall Street is panicking and big financial companies are teetering on the edge of collapse. And where are they going to run to on that day?

It’s in September that the ghosts of the past walk silently under the harvest moon, stirring up the breeze with their footsteps.

To find the right song for this thoughtful month, I turned to the master of wistfulness and yearning, Ron Sexsmith.

I first saw Mr. Sexsmith play at the Blue Banana Lounge in the basement of the University of Calgary, back when this decade was fresh. As I’m sure his other fans will agree, his songwriting skill is beyond compare, but it’s the soft shyness of his music that touches something deep down.

So for all of you who feel a pulling at your heart in autumn, I give you “Foolproof” - a song that meditates on the lovecycle of loss and renewal.

Enjoy it on a walk through the trees with the last of the summer sun.