Tracking Vocals For New Demo Track: "Heavy Heart"

 Chris Accardo / Robert Reback

 Chris Accardo / Robert Reback

So my good buddy and co-writing partner Josh Tagney and I have been writing this new song: Heavy Heart.  We can't wait to share it with everyone.  We're still working on lyrics and (possibly) a change of song title.  It's a pretty epic song and the goal is to get solid placement or sell it to another artist.  We'll keep you posted.  Nothing like a good cut on a good song!!

Anyway -- just got done tracking vocals at Chapman Recording Studios with my good buddy Robert Rebeck.  We are playing another mixing session with my friend Ghian Wright over at The Village Studios down the street from me here in West LA.

I'm digging the track so much that I'm tempted to perform it live at my next show:  Viper Room / January 15 / 8PM.  Stay tuned!!

VooDoo Lounge Show -- Remembering A Great Show!

Chris Accardo on Stage at VooDoo Lounge hours before doors open.
One of my favorite pics -- preparing for my show at VooDoo Lounge.  What a night.  Played with full band and had lots of friends and fans who showed up.  Show was almost a year ago to the day -- but I still remember it like it was yesterday.

My guitarist thought it would be funny to "start" the show without me.  So as I'm hanging out in the green room getting ready -- I hear our first song begin!  I come flying out of the room -- literally running to get on stage -- and then as I reach the mic start singing right away.  Oh the joys of being in a band!!!

Pardon The Invasion - Album

Just a quick re-post of my latest album:  Pardon The Invasion.  Check out "California" "Fade" and "Won't You (Give It Back)."  These tracks (along with a few others of mine) have been featured on major networks including:  ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, Disney, and MTV.

And thanks again to my good friend and music supervisor Julia Henry and my sync agents over at A&G Sync (London) -- I've been lucky enough to have songs written for and placed with American Express and Intel, Corp. campaigns to name a few.  


Preview On Soundcloud:
Pardon The Invasion - Album

New Song: "Heavy Heart"

Fredrik & Josh:  Working out harmonies on "Heavy Heart."
So I stepped away from blogging for WAY too long.  But guess what -- I'm back!  Let's just  say I was inspired by a friend :)

The past couple months have been beyond amazing from a writing standpoint.  I've been working closely with good buddy Josh Tangney and Fredrik Eriksson.  Josh is a super talented songwriter here in LA.  We've been co-writing like crazy together and are getting close to releasing one of our latest tracks titled, "Heavy Heart."  Inspired by the likes of One Republic and The Script, "Heavy Heart" hopes to pack a punch!  We partnered up with good friend and fellow songwriter/musician/producer Fredrik who's studio is down the street from us here in Santa Monica.  So -- it's made the tracking process (and ordering really good late night sushi) a breeze!  

Anyway -- I'm psyched to be back in the blogosphere and honored to be able to share with you my ramblings on music, life and all things inspiring!  Thank you for checking it out and check in when you can to hear the latest about what new songs are heading your way! 

Catalina Island Show

Getting ready to perform on Catalina Island!  Very cool venue.  Super chill and super fun.  The production crew at Koffeehouse Music invited me to perform with fellow LA musician Mandy Perkins of the band "Of Verona."

Left my home in Santa Monica early today.  Drove down to Long Beach.  Met the other artists and the famous Koffeehouse coordinator Mouse at the wharf.  Boarded the boat and headed out for the weekend.

Looking forward to performing.  Expecting about 150-200 people.  Setting is perfect.  Place is beautiful.  Dedicating this show to my grandfather who came to Catalina in the 1940's to celebrate his honeymoon to my grandmother.  Very special :)

Lot 1 Cafe / Echo Park

Chris Accardo & Guitarist John Schroeder
Performed last night at Lot 1 Cafe in Echo Park.  Super cool show.  Super cool venue.

Thank you to Keven Bronson of BuzzBands.la for the invitation to perform and thank you to my friends who came out to support me.

Always fun playing in Echo Park and loved the acoustic vibe of this place.  Even got to perform my version of "Billy Jean" which always gets the crowds attention.

Can't wait to play there again sometime soon!

Harvelle's Show

Chris Accardo Performing Live
Packed house tonight in Santa Monica at the famous Harvelle's nightclub.  Even sponsored by BMI and produced by Koffeehouse Music Productions. 

Thank you to all my friends and fans that came out to support me (again)!!  Had such a fun time.  Performed new songs.  Hung out with good pals.  Drank a few beers.  What more could you ask for?!

Special thanks to club owner David Ormesher for running sound.  Always knows what he's doing!!  And shout out to my good buddy Loren Khulusi.  Loren spent the day with me building the super cool bad-ass sign you see in the very back of the photo above.  Felt like a little arts and crafts day.  Very fun!

Private Event w/Good Friend Matthew Moon

Performed last night at a private event with good buddy and Denver native Matthew Moon.  If you don't know his music -- check it out.  Super cool and super original.  I needed a fun, chill night out with good friends and music!

Matt and I played for a couple hours and had the best time partying it up with friends in between our sets.  We had to move the event indoors because of torrential (that's right, torrential) storms.  Who knew it rained in LA?!

Park City Television - Performance / Interview

Live performance and interview today on Park City Television!  So excited!

Was at the studio at 6AM this morning (whoa) to play a couple songs.  The game plan, apparently, is to interview me in between performances.

I was lucky enough to meet PCTV the other night (after my show at the Park City Chateau).  Great group of people.  This very cool station has been doing these great pieces on music in studio everyday of the festival.  Some really talented people have been asked to perform -- so I feel so honored.  Not sure what songs I'll play yet.  Brought my guitar just in case they want me to play more!  I'll try and get the video from the shoot.  It's taping live -- so that can be somewhat chaotic.  AND -- I'm heading back to LA right after the performance!!

Fender Music Lounge - Sundance Film Festival

Just got asked to perform at The Fender Music Lounge later today!  45-minute set.

I've already seen a couple shows at this place -- and it's awesome.  The other day got to support good friend and fellow LA based musician / Koffeehouse artist:  Moi.  He killed it at Fender the other day and I can't wait to do the same!

Snow is falling like crazy tonight and it's supposed to dump another foot by tomorrow!!  Really hoping that  people still come out!  The good thing is --it's absolutely beautiful here on Main Street :)

http://www.fender.com/blog/

Park City Chateau - Sundance Festival

Played one of my favorite shows ever last night!  It was the 2nd annual Koffeehouse Sundance Showcase at the Park City City Chateau.  Wow.  By far the musical highlight of this years festival.

The event is the largest evening of independent music conducted during the festival.  There were over 200 celebrities, musicians, industry executives and passionate music listeners that were in attendance.

Film.com listed it as one of the top 10 parties during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.  Katharine Rutt, Field Producer fo the Sundance Festival After Dark series at Park City Television, said this about the Koffeehouse Chateau music event:  "I've been attending the Suandance Film Festival now for 14 years and have attended 100's of events.  The Koffeehouse Chateau event was without question the best live music experience I've attended during all my Sundance years."

Park City TV was there to cover the night.  I'll try and find some video as I was interviewed immediately after my performance.  Special thanks to Chris Ng, Mouse, and Jeremy Koff for including me in this special evening.

Check it out on the news:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCXV4YxDZU4&feature=player_embedded

http://www.free-press-release.com
http://top40-charts.com/news

New York Lounge - Sundance Film Festival

Chris Accardo performing at New York Lounge
Park City, UT - Sundance Film Festival
Day two at Sundance Film Festival!

So much fun.  Was honored to perform at the New York Lounge -- which is right in the center of all the action here on Main Street.  The small mountain town of Park City basically transforms into all these fun "event" spaces and every spot up and down Main Street is simply packed with people.

Anyway -- the show was a success.  Even had some celebraties in the audience:  Can you see "Creed" from The Office (he actually performed) and even spotted Frodo Baggins.  Sweet!

Again just another acoustic set.  Actually this was so acoustic that you didn't even plug in.  Never done that before (except at my home) -- but it was totally fun!  Only a few songs this time.  Freezing cold outside but the coffee and tea keeps you warm.  And clearly I like my North Face bennie.  Those New Yorkers seemed to be use to this weather :)

Sundance Film Festival - First Performance

Chris Accardo performing acoustic set at Sundance
Just arrived in Park City, UT for the 2011 Sundance Film Festival!  First performance was tonight at the Fatali Gallery on Main Street.  Playing with good friends Shawn Hlookoff, Mandy Perkins and others.  It's cold -- but the atmosphere here is SO warm!

I've got about 5-6 shows scheduled so far.  All are solo / acoustic shows.  All are at altitude.  I feel like 1/2 of LA has travled up here for these two weeks and already the town is PACKED.  Luckily, we're with good friend (and PR agent) Kim Koury -- who knows every cool place to be and every hot spot to hit.  Aside from performing these shows -- I'm definitely setting some serious time aside to do a little skiing!

Hotel Cafe Show!

Chris Accardo Live

Well I can honestly say that one of my goals when I first moved out to sunny LA was to perform at Hotel Cafe.  And tonight -- I did it!  Place was packed.  300+ people showed up to support thanks to the hard work by Spin PR and friends.  Amazing amazing evening.  Played with Read Pryor and John Schroeder.  Great guys and super talented artists.

If you don't know Hotel Cafe -- it's legendary (and super cool).  Amazing venue that has launched the careers of some great bands.  And being in the heart of Hollywood means you're definitely going to have a fun before -- and after the show.

Thank you to my agents, music supervisors and PR crew that came out to support.  Also -- to all my fans that were there singing along and cheering me on.  It was very cool.  Love being able to perform live and love having people I care with around to share it!

http://hotelcafe.com/

Central Show

Chris Accardo On Stage
Performed last night at The Central in Santa Monica.  I love this venue because it reminds me of playing years ago back home in Kansas City at the premier hard rock venue there.  Same set up.  Same vibe. 

The crew that runs The Central is amazing.  Sound was perfect and the crowd was insane.  Had such a blast playing new songs and old.  Next show is Hotel Cafe!  Cannot wait!!

BMI Showcase Show

Me and my band live @ BMI Showcase Event!
Performed live tonight w/full band at the BMI showcase event at Harvelle's in Santa Monica.  This is my last show at Harvelle's this year and it was an awesome turn out.  Love seeing my fans show up to support.  Always makes the show (as well as before and after) such a fun night.

We played 10 original songs and a sweet cover by The Killers (All These Things I've Done) and the crowd loved it.  Place was packed.  Guy and Dave (the owner) did an amazing job mixing both the stage and front of house.  Sounded incredible.  Reade (my drummer) and John (my guitarist) all killed it.

Check out the review here:
http://networkedblogs.com/aiuXH

The Bachelor Mansion Gig - Malibu, CA

Had an amazing show tonight at "The Bachelor" mansion in Malibu, CA.  This is the actual house where they shoot "The Bachelor" and man is it cool!

Show was presented by Koffeehouse Music Productions.  Special thank you to Chris Ng, Jeremy Koff and Mouse for having me out.

This annual show is always a blast.  For starters -- the place is gorgeous.  It's actually owned by my new friend Steve Aylsworth's family and his company Jet Luxury Resorts.  Every year the weather is perfect and the music is insane.

So lucky to be a part of this evening!

http://www.jetluxuryresorts.com/

Composing For American Express Commercial!

Got the call from New York based ad agency DIGITAS a few days ago -- one of their top clients (American Express) decided to hire me to write / record a 90-second cue for an upcoming commercial.  In the studio now tracking.  So fun.  

I'll post the track when I can.  It's got a driving rock / electronic vibe to it.  Should be good.  Pushes me to write even better music.

Thanks to DIGITAS for pushing my song and thanks to American Express for placing it!