Writing a blog post as an artist for me is about writing life, my life. At the same time, it feels strange populating the page publicly with my thoughts. It can sometimes feel like it is not a valid use of time. But, I know this is not the truth. I’m grateful there are those of you out there interested in what I’m doing and care about myself and my work.

Over the last 2 months I have been exercising and reading. I have felt tenuous and I’m assimilating new information for my mind and body. The type of books I’ve read are mostly relationship guides for better understanding, mine – how I can live relationships better and move on – and caring for one’s physical well-being. It seems the last few years for me have been navigated as gingerly as adolescence. It’s called personal work and has been a focus of mine. I’ve activated my gym membership finally to “active member”. *smile*

To create and write music consistently during this intense personal period has been difficult. Many areas of my life have demanded more of my attention. However, in the area of music and profession, live performance has been rewarding and busy for me. I’ve had plenty of enjoyment with the live energy of performance and being with people who love it. It’s a high and life giving.

The actual sensation of feeling inspiration has in itself encouraged me. I would love to report that my next album is almost done, but it is not. Yet I do have lots of work in the midst of returning inspiration. And that, my dears, feels very good to me.

I’ve reached across the 50 year mark of my life and many changes have taken place physically, mentally and socially. I’m happy to be alive and in good health. I’m looking towards the next step in my professional endeavors and personal growth, which is the will to act on my desires. I feel positive about my personal work and for the potential I’m creating for more in all areas of my life. And this, my friends, are my thoughts about life at this time. I hope you found this post interesting and enlightening as well.

Best, Mia

 

In December,  I performed in Seattle, Washington at the Highway 99 Blues club. It’s the first time I’ve played there with the band. We had a great time. Especially since it was a pre-Christmas party!!

The crowd was great. And, I was very fortunate to have another kind of artist in the audience who came to watch the show. Ilona Berzups, an amazing professional photographer in Seattle, was there.  Although she came for the music, she also took some wonderful pictures and I had to share them here on my blog.

To see the whole set of picture you can CLICK HERE.

Ilona’s work includes themes of people, industry, nature, transportation, architecture and more.  She does fabulous work. Definitely check her work out. Thank you Ilona!!

Well on to the next project…  If you want to see what I’m up to in February, you can CLICK HERE.

On October 30th 2011, I had the opportunity to chat with host Bob Ancheta on the  Sunday Night Blues Room show on KINK FM out of Portland, Oregon.  Bob has a great blues show on Sunday nights in what I think is one of the most awesome music cities around.

I’m posting a copy of the show here on my blog so you have a chance to listen if you missed it!

Click on the link below to listen…

Mia Vermillion Interview on The Sunday Night Blues Room with Bob Ancheta – KINK 101.9 FM

 

It’s mid September and the weekends are slowing down. Somewhat spontaneously my man proposes a road trip to Wenatchee, WA. I’m all for it. I crave road trips and he knows it. I’m all for getting out of town for a few days with my husband.

It’s late Friday evening and all is well. I pack a small bag. He is packed and we head out. Todd (my guy) takes the lead and we drive for 3 1/2 hours. It’s a great start and we are having fun. By the time it’s midnight we pull into Wenatchee. The bell tolls and we check in to our hotel and stay in bed until 11:00 am the next day. A good road trip always does me wonders. Now, it feels good to rest and lounge for as long as I can but certainly leaving the hotel room to explore is part of the plan.

The need you get to eat gives Todd and I plenty of motivation to step outside the room and explore the street below.  And as it happens, for our Saturday in this eastern Washington town with it’s agricultural slant, an “End of Harvest” festival is in process. We are greeted by a cool little celebration among fruit and vegetables stands smack in the middle of the main street. A battle of the bands competition is under way as well as a wine tasting event and many arts and craft tents! There is plenty to sample and do once we get out traversing. The festival is delightful and stretches about four blocks out. Such is the character of Eastern Washington for me.

The festivities boast a robust farmers market. I must tell you the veggies and fruit were big, beautiful and low cost. I stock up on heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, winter white nectarines and a few other bountiful juicy fruits of the harvest season. The farmers I come across are a kick. I asked one how big his farm is and he replies, “big enough.”I may have hit a nerve.

From his reaction, I gather it ain’t ok to ask farmers, grape growers and  the like: how big is your patch of dirt? The region is known for its produce and orchards and in the past ten years for its vineyards and wines. I was just a little too curious I guess. The crafts and store fronts in and along the street are quaint and honest, rather regionally sincere… regular folks with works of creativity. It all feels and looks good, but nothing catches my attention like the fruit and vegetables.

The best surprise of my day after the farmers market is how good the music in the battle of the bands competition turns out to be. I meet a group of young fellows who are very educated musicians and seasoned performers. The group, lead by Steev Turner, wins runner up in the competition but I believe they should take it home. Perhaps because these young guys have grown up in the area they are to local for the judges to hear their music straight anymore.  I find out at one time all the guys had gone to high school together in the little town of Cashmere, WA right next to Wenatchee.

In talking a bit with Turner, he tells me he is thinking of heading back to school for a master degree in composition. The core of his group is made up of two brothers and himself. They have been playing together a long time now.  The music is very hip, tight and sophisticated with its blend and layering of rhythm and sound. Turner plays a very good vibraphone and is a graduate of the University of Idaho’s Lionel Hampton School of Jazz. I was a student in that program once myself. I gather his contact information and hope to stay in touch. This group has the whole Rasta hair and irreverence thing working for them too.

Later after our day of kicking it around the festival, eating a fat Gyro and drinking several small sips of varied red wines, I enjoy a hot tub outside. The night is gentle and the wind is light. The next day -Sunday- is lovely and slow. We take our time heading home, deciding to stop on the Wenatchee River in a town 10 miles west of our weekend called, Leavenworth. After that the rest of the trip is just the drive back with no surprises.

My cravings and desires fulfilled, my weekend road trip was a joyful unforeseen delight of the senses. I thought it was to be an idle little weekend for us  sitting around and enjoy the sun. And that could have been enough but it turned out to have included more. How fun to find the best of Wenatchee and just go with it. I posted a few photos of our adventure below.

 

A quick blog note to share a great blues podcast out of Los Angeles with you… The Human’s Bluesfest #7 came out this week with one of my tunes in it.

“The Human,” (known to a few people as Lloyd) of The Human Project, puts this cast together between performing and recording his own music. Here’s a shout out to The Human with a post of this weekend’s show. Enjoy!

Photo by Steve Spoulos

What a way to start July off! I had the opportunity to perform at the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland over the 4th of July weekend. It’s the largest blues festival west of the Mississippi. The festival raises an enormous amount of food and money for the Oregon Food Bank. As of the morning of the 5th, they had raised an unofficial record $726,000 to feed Oregon’s hungry.

The weather was perfect and the people were great. Portland is such a wonderful town. I performed on the Miller Stage Sunday afternoon with the band which included Jason Edwards (drums), Jon Bayless (bass) and Rod Cook (guitar). A big thank you to everyone who came to watch. I enjoyed meeting a bunch of new people and fans.  The folks at the Oregon Music News wrote a short review about the show. You can read it HERE.

After my set on the Miller stage, I headed over with guitarist Rod Cook to the Delta Music Experince’s cruise ship, the Portland Spirit. Rod and I performed as part of the Sail On Sister cruise up the Willamet River. A superb cast of female blues talent entertained on three different decks  aboard ship for cruise goers. These performers included: Duffy Bishop, Fiona Boyes, Lady Kat, Ellen Whyte, Lady A, Lauren Sheehan, the group Acoustic Minds and myself.  I got to play and enjoy the sunshine on the upper deck. I also had the good fortune of  meeting and enjoying the company of the other artists and mingling with the crowd. It was great fun.

On Monday the 4th, I was able to participate in a Showcase Performance on the FedEx Workshop Stage  to promote United By Music (UBM). The event was organized by Barbara Gresham Hammerman who is the lead in bringing UBM to North America. The showcase featured UBM performer Albertine van Walsem who came from The Netherlands for the festival and included Karen Lovely, Lady “A”, Peter Dammann, Mac Potts and more. Started by Joris van Wijngaarden and Candye Kane,  UBM supports talented people with intellectual and physical disabilities and gives them the chance to perform blues and swing music onstage with a live band for the general public.

Here are pictures of my opportunity performing at the festival on the Miller Stage:

Well, it looks like summer is finally making it’s entrance.  June will be a busy month for me with a lot of great shows.

Last Friday, the band and I played at The Rockfish Grill in Anacortes, WA. Jason Edwards was on percussion and John Bayliss on bass.  Chris Spencer sat in on guitar and it was a fun time! The weather was absolutely perfect and the evening was spectacular. Thanks to all those who came out (special thanks to Bill Mattocks!). It was great to meet some new people.

Next week the band and I will be returning to perform at Bake’s Place in Issaquah, WA. Bake’s is a fabulous venue and I can’t wait! The food is outstanding. I’d love to see you there if you can make it.

I have you few more shows in June (you can find out more on my calendar of course), then we head to Portland over the 4th of July weekend to play at the Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival. I’m so excited!  I’ll be on the main stage July 3rd at 12:45 pm. I play a 45 minute set. And then the same afternoon I join the DME blues cruise at 2:00pm up the Willamette River. This is one of the top 10 blues festivals in the country and it is a blast. If you’ve never been, you’re missing one of the best times a blues festival can offer.

Find out the who, what, why, where of the Portland Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival in this recent article:

Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival [2011]—24 Years of Blues, Community and Fighting Hunger

I recently uploaded this video to YouTube. This song is very special to me. The song is “Validity,”  and I wrote it a while ago. You can’t find it on a record yet, only YouTube at the moment!

This song lived in my heart for a very long time. And one day, I was able to understand it for myself and wrote it down. This is the only recording of it published anywhere. Not necessarily blues, but a beauty none the less. It is about validation and acknowledgement of who we are and what we are as a person. I hope that you find meaning in it for yourself.

Take Me On A Leave by miavermillion  (push play button to hear)

This song, Take Me On A Leave, I wrote – both music and lyric. It is a work in progress…I was in my studio and did a vocal take to the piano arrangement that my friend Tom Kellock recorded. I did a quick mix of the voice and piano the other day, spit it out. It’s a ruff, but I’m starting to dig it. The quality of recording is not quite there, but again it’s starting to take shape.  A single take…this is not blues necessarily. It’s more freestyle and has elements of jazz/blues and easy listening. I thought somebody might like to hear other sides of my writing, singing and studio process.