9 minute read
COVER STORY
STILL MAKING MUSIC STILL MAKING MUSIC
DURING COVID DURING COVID
JASON SAVIO
With the closure of performance venues due to COVID-19 over the last year, it has been a trying time for many local musicians who take pride in working a consistent schedule of shows. The recent implementation of the state’s Phase IV COVID guideline is allowing some light to shine through with the potential for more gigs, but the pandemic’s punch still leaves musician’s reeling.
So how did Worcester’s musicians handle the unexpected change of pace? As always, the working spirit and never-say-quit attitude have been at the forefront. Here’s a look at how some WooTown musicians turned to their craft and looked inward over the past 12 months to find solace.
Tyler Ironside (Giuliano in 2019)
“It wasn’t so much panic as much as ‘what’s next?’” he says. “There were a few weeks there where it was pretty hairy.”
D’Orazio’s initial response was to do what many other musicians found themselves doing: streaming performances on their social media accounts from their own homes and accepting tips from virtual listeners via Venmo. He and Croke created an online show called Live Stream Local, which they intended to use to invite other artists on until they realized it wasn’t safe to have them physically in their space. D’Orazio carried on with it by himself and did well off of tips from viewers.
“I was able to take home in just Venmo tips probably more than I would have in three or more playing-out gigs,” he says, noting that he also had more viewers than he would at a single venue. “People were very sensitive to my struggle and that of other artists and wanted to help out, so that was pretty cool.”
D’Orazio says he only streamed performances “three or four times in March/ April.” Although he describes himself as “old school about performing,” D’Orazio did find that playing virtually to people provided a nice surprise.
“I so much prefer live music for so many different reasons, but one of the things I did enjoy was complete silence,” he says. “Performing more intimate renditions of things because there’s no din in the room that you’re trying to play over. That was a neat opportunity to have these more intimate sessions.”
The virtual landscape also provided D’Orazio an opportunity to host a virtual album release party for Wachusett Sessions, a collection of unreleased work Hot Letter recorded in 2018.
GIULIANO D’ORAZIO GIULIANO D’ORAZIO
Giuliano D’Orazio isn’t used to having idle time.
“I’m usually pretty busy,” says the guitarist and singer. “I was doing two to four gigs a week [before the pandemic].”
Prior to COVID-19, D’Orazio could be found on a regular basis playing solo acoustic shows at BirchTree Bread Company, Nicks, and Vincent’s. He’s also a member of the currently inactive Hot Letter, does duo performances with his partner Joshua Croke as Wildcard Characters, and also plays with Hot Letter guitarist Matt Sivazlian.
D’Orazio had shows booked out until June, but of course none of those happened. He hasn’t played in front of a live audience since having to cancel his March 13, 2020 show at Nicks. He estimates that he’s had over 100 gigs canceled because of COVID.
“(That’s) definitely something we wouldn’t have done if it had been in the regular world,” he says.
D’Orazio had what he calls an “artist getaway” during the summer, spending time on Cape Cod to write and record music. A song from that trip, “Take Me Higher,” can now be heard on Spotify under his Wildcard Characters moniker.
Eventually, not having what would normally be a “super busy” summer of gigging caught up to D’Orazio.
“A combination of not gigging and other isolation things caused my personal mental health stuff to catch up with me,” he says. “I had mental health struggles because I think as a musician and a performer, I wasn’t out there sharing energy and absorbing energy with folks, so that was really tough.”
With the help of friends and doctors, D’Orazio says he is better now and has found a burst of creativity, clocking “9 to 5 workdays” writing and recording his own music. He says he has had an epiphany of sorts and has a renewed focus on creating original solo music as opposed to just performing covers when the pandemic ends. He has never released anything under just his own name, and that’s what he is working on now.
“By the fall I was like ‘alright, you’re going to be a musician when this pandemic ends. How do you want to use this time? Are you going to just keep doing a lot of cover gigs in Worcester?’” he says. “I’m not knocking it, but ‘Are you going to be an entertainer, or do you have something to say as an artist?’”
Kathy Parella (Performing as Hot Letter duo with Matt Sivazlian (left) at Michael’s Cigar Bar, Worcester MA, 2019) Kathy Parella (Performing at Vincent’s, Worcester MA, 2019 Giuliano D’Orazio (The small studio space I’ve been writing, recording and teaching out of since March 2020)
Jennifer Simon
CHRIS REDDY CHRIS REDDY
“I have known a lot of people who have passed away [from COVID-19]. I’ve lost some friends to it and it’s been a horrible year,” says Chris Reddy.
Reddy is a longtime Worcester guitarist who has played all over New England as a full-time job. He’s known for his Acoustic Loops from Hell solo shows as well as being the guitarist in the Police tribute band Invisible Sun and also performing in Doctor Robert.
“One of the things I miss the most is the two band thing because with COVID you really don’t see these guys while we’re waiting for everything to return to normal,” he says, noting that Doctor Robert was playing six or seven times a month before COVID and Invisible Sun four or five “premier gigs a year.”
Between his three bands, Reddy has had “160-plus gigs” canceled since March 2020, including a Parade Day show at the Press Box around St. Patrick’s Day last year, a place he has played annually for six years.
“It was more emotional than mental at first,” he says about losing gigs. “You start to realize you don’t know how long it’s going to go on.”
Reddy dabbled with the live video streaming approach, taking part in The Mill 185’s New Year’s Eve lineup to raise money for the Worcester County Food Bank and he conducted virtual guitar classes for Guitar League Central Mass. But, he says, “it’s not really my gig. I’m more of a live guy. I want to be out there live. What I do live with the loops doesn’t correlate to the Zooming.”
So, Reddy instead turned his attention back to his love of recording music, resulting in a new eight-song collection titled Quarantine Sessions that he recorded by himself in his basement studio.
“I wanted to write something new about how I felt emotionally about COVID and lay those tracks down quickly to keep that emotion,” he says. Reddy worked on the project, now available online, from May through October and calls the experience “cathartic.”
In March, Reddy was prepping his next project, an instrumental album he calls Distractions and is also working on getting his past work available on digital distribution.
“I’ve been more creative and I got a lot more done with my solo work,” he says. “I actually find sometimes I need more time to do all this stuff right now.” When not in the studio, Reddy has been making the most of his time by spending it with loved ones.
“My wife and I go out into nature and do a lot of hiking and enjoy the things we didn’t spend a lot of time doing before because the schedules were so crazy,” he says. “There are positive things that come out of it too. It’s just weird.” Reddy, who plays all over New England, says he doesn’t think there is a better music scene in the region than Worcester, but he is concerned what kind of lasting impact the pandemic will have on it.
“I think the sad thing about this whole thing is that it was so good and it was so vibrant and it just went off a cliff to now it’s like ‘wow,’’ he says. “That’s the thing that is the real jaw dropper. I think it will come back quicker than people think, but I just hope there aren’t a lot of places that suffer so bad they can’t ever get back to doing what they did.”
It hasn’t been hard to find singer-songwriter Matthew Wade of My Silent Bravery during the pandemic. Upon returning home to Worcester in February 2020 from touring overseas in support of Alex Band in Germany, Wade has been all over social media in an effort to stay in touch with his fans.
He puts together two weekly live streams every week: on Sundays starting at 11 a.m. he interacts with fans and performs original music on his Facebook page and he also does an interview every Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. on Instagram where he talks with friends from the music industry. He also found the time to write and record a double album with co-writer and producer Jimmy McGorman of the Goo Goo Dolls. That album’s title and release date have not been announced yet, but Wade is in the middle of releasing Bigger, which he recorded before the pandemic.
Because he had just wrapped up a tour near the beginning of the pandemic, Wade says it didn’t affect him the same as some other musicians.
It has changed his recording process, however. Instead of flying to L.A. to write and record, Wade has been adjusting to working in a home studio and co-writing over FaceTime.
“While it took some getting used to, it has been really great actually to be able to record whenever I like and am feeling inspired,” he says. While Wade plans to “wait it out a little while longer” before performing anywhere in person, he is looking forward to live shows again when they are safe.
Michael Sparks Keegan For more information on the artists featured in this story, visit:
Giulianomusic.com Facebook.com/chris.reddy.716 Mysilentbravery.com
“I hope it is safe enough for us musicians to start performing how we normally would ASAP. I think we all will have to adjust to whatever the new normal will be,” he says. “I think we all understand the safety concern and just hope with the vaccines and masks and extra precautions that live music will be back sooner than later!”
