Tag: santa barbara

LISTEN: Cinder Well, “Returning”

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Artist: Cinder Well
Hometown: Santa Barbara, California
Song: “Returning”
Album: Cadence
Release Date: April 21, 2023
Label: Free Dirt Records

In Their Words: “‘Returning’ is about going back to something you used to love — a place, or a relationship, or something you used to do that was part of your identity — and finding that the process is a lot less straightforward and a lot more painful than you expected. But it’s about accepting this spiraling nature of things, and finding the resilience and patience to see it through. Some of the lines came from the early days of the pandemic, when everyone’s war-time quote seemed to be ‘just two weeks and then it will all return back to normal.’ But after a while the reality deeply sunk in that things weren’t going back to normal, both on societal and personal levels.” — Cinder Well

Photo Credit: Georgia Zeavin

WATCH: Pete Muller, “Gone”

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Artist: Pete Muller
Hometown: Wayne, New Jersey
Song: “Gone”
Album: Spaces
Release Date: May 20, 2022
Label: Two Truths Records/Santa Barbara Records

In Their Words: “My bandmates have told me that ‘Gone’ is the song on the album Spaces that moves them the most. It’s a song about getting over anger, and moving toward acceptance. The fabulous Gus Black directed the video, and we shot it in a gorgeous geodesic dome house high up in Topanga Canyon. Mélodie Casta was originally cast for a bit part, but once I met her I felt she needed to play a more prominent role. She really nailed the emotional expression we were going for! The last part of the video was filmed as the sun was setting in Santa Barbara’s Mesa, and my two German Shepherds, Chase and Hunter, played cameos.” — Pete Muller

Photo Credit: Gus Black

WATCH: Hana Aluna, “You & Jesus & Folk”

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Artist: Hana Aluna
Hometown: Santa Barbara, California
Song: “You & Jesus & Folk”
Album: CaliAmericana
Release Date: October 21, 2021
Label: Santa Barbara Records

In Their Words: “I wrote ‘You & Jesus & Folk’ about a year after a friendship ended, when I realized that I actually had feelings for her the whole time. At the time of writing the song, I thought that I was just ‘disguising’ it as a breakup song, but when I realized how I had felt it all made sense and sort of clicked together. I never really saw it as a hit or anything; it was just a very special song to me. So, when the guys at Santa Barbara Records wanted it on the album and it got so much attention, I was so surprised and excited for the future of this little tune. Working with Santa Barbara Records has been an amazing experience for me — for all the reasons other labels had said no, these guys said hell yes. I knew I’d enjoy working with them, but they really do feel like a family to me. I feel totally accepted, understood, and seen by them. They make sure to keep my core values at the forefront of our projects and I’m so grateful to be working with them.” — Hana Aluna

Photo credit: Hayden Park

WATCH: Leon Creek, “Call It A Day”

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Artist: Leon Creek
Hometown: Los Angeles, California
Song: “Call It A Day”
Album: Far From Broken
Release Date: September 21, 2021

In Their Words: “An element of grain is a part of the Leon Creek records, so working with the photographer and videographer Chase Hart, who only shoots on film and Super 8, has been a great fit for us. We were excited by the Super 8 footage Chase got during our first shoot in Santa Barbara, so we wanted to round out the video with some clips from L.A., where we met and started making music together. Bobby Womack’s BW Goes C&W was an inspiration in making our record, so we aspired to have an element of ’70s country western sprinkled throughout the video. Enter Chicago-based editor and animator Jordan Rundle. Jordan added animation and moving graphics, along with some analog visual effects to his final cut of ‘Call It a Day.'” — Leon Creek (Chris Pierce, Matthew Stevens, and Erik Janson)

Photo courtesy of Tell All Your Friends PR

BGS 5+5: Chris Shiflett

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Artist: Chris Shiflett
Hometown: Santa Barbara, California
Latest album: Hard Lessons
Personal nicknames (or rejected band names): Shifty, Jake Jackson, Boat Plastic

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc — inform your music?

I remember a few years back I realized that I only ever read books on current events, history, politics, etc… and wasn’t reading much fiction, so I dove into some classics and took a couple creative writing classes. You have to put good ingredients into your brain to get the ideas flowing.

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

It was the summer between 8th and 9th grade. I went to visit a friend of mine down in Los Angeles and it was right when the glam rock thing was kicking off in the mid-’80s. We walked all over Melrose and everyone looked like Hanoi Rocks. I was hooked.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

If a song is too hard to write than I usually give up. When they’re too labored they never sound very good.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

I try to surf as much as I can. Sadly, it’s never enough. I don’t know if there’s a direct correlation to song writing but surfing just makes me happy. Puts me in a good frame of mind.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

Almost never! I’ve tried writing songs in character but they never seem to come out very good. I think sometimes we all use “you” when we mean “we” but that’s just life, right?

Photo credit: Brantley Gutierrez

A Minute in Santa Barbara with Glen Phillips

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Welcome to "A Minute In …" — a BGS feature that turns our favorite artists into hometown reporters. In our latest column, Glen Phillips takes us to the parks and trails of Santa Barbara, California.

I was born in Santa Barbara, so I had to travel a bit to understand that most of the world isn’t 72 degrees and sunny with a little morning fog on occasion, a year-round bustling farmers' market, and instant access to mountains and ocean. I moved to Nashville in October of 2016, but still go back to Santa Barbara one week a month. I have 45 years of friends and family there. It’s a deep, beautiful, and varied community.

This is the East Beach bike trail. One of my favorite runs in town is to park at the bird refuge and go along the bike trails to the end of Shoreline Park. The view is great, the sea air is cooling, and there’s almost no stopping for street traffic. Perfect running route.

Backyard Bowls makes whole-fruit smoothies and acai bowls. Delicious and simple. I prefer the green bowl with peanut butter added. I try to go there any time I’m in town. 

There are so many trails in Santa Barbara that it’s hard to choose one. This picture is from the top of the Cold Springs Loop. It’s my go-to quick hike. I also love heading up Romero Canyon all the way to the top of the mountain where you can see the valleys on one side and the ocean on the other. It’s about a four-hour loop with fire roads heading up and single-track on the way down. That one has become a New Year’s ritual for me.

The Santa Barbara Farmers' Market is open 52 weeks a year, with a variety of organic and unsprayed fruits and vegetables I have never seen the equal of in all my travels. I love to cook, and I love to know the people who grow my food. My favorites are Shepherd Farms, Roots (best carrots on earth), Fairview Gardens, Tutti Frutti (heirloom tomatoes!), and BD and Earthtrine Farms (greens and herbs). Santa Barbara is food heaven. 

Soho is my hometown gig in Santa Barbara. Family-run by serious music fans and a staff with a ton of heart. Also a great kale salad. 

Lede photo by Ashtin Paige. All other photos by Glen Phillips.