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Another musical update is necessary to convey the news I have: Shelley has been signed to
Windjam Records! We are proud to have this label behind us. They will be supporting us throughout the release of our
new album "I Hate Everything But You," to be released in April.
The Shelley Winters Project website has a page with all our CD release
information. This page lists CD release parties in Boston
and NYC as well as places to buy the CD.
On another exciting note (so to speak), last weekend I purchased an important piece of equipment: an 5-string electric violin. It's a
Tucker Barrett violin. Back in 1997, way before Shelley and even the
Fishman pick-up I use for my acoustic, I went with my friend guitarist Scott McAllister to visit Tucker Barrett's shop in Southern
Vermont. I vividly remember picking up one of his 6-string electric violins and not being able to put it down. I put it down
as quickly as I could because otherwise I would have walked out of there with a new 6-string electric violin, which I didn't need
as I wasn't playing out at all. Fast forward to Fall of 2001, I still had that violin on my mind and wondered if now was a good time to
check it out again. I called Tucker and several months later I was ripping open the box he had sent me and was plugging it in.
It was a beautiful 5-string electric with a purple interior. I fell in love. And when I tried it out with Shelley that week
in rehearsal they fell in love as well.
Several things will be improved from this moment on: I'll have more volume control. I can actually hear myself when playing with
the band. The violin cuts through the sound of the band while maintaining its violin quality so it doesn't sound like a fake electric
violin. It merely sounds like a louder acoustic violin. I can be louder than I've ever been, so nobody will come up to me after a show and
say "it was great, but I couldn't really hear the violin!" This isn't to say I'm going to pump up the sound so you're all deaf,
but at least I have the ability to do so now!
The other improvement is that the nasal quality of my amplified acoustic instrument is gone. Acoustic violins aren't meant to be
played through an amp. This electric violin is truly being used for what it's meant to do. After struggling with the balance between
my Crate acoustic amp, GT-3 Boss petel and Fishman pick-up, I now have an instrument whose EQ is flat. This allows the effects to
essentially be effective (yeah, I meant that pun)!
Strangely enough the tonality of the 5-string electric matches this band perfectly. Many people have noticed the 80s influence in
the Shelley Winters Project's music as well as the instrumental role (ok, now I'm going overboard) that the violin plays in it. The
sound quality of the Tucker Barrett violin is...well, totally Shelley.
Okay, you're now thinking why does she need 5 strings?! Have you ever noticed that I tune down one of my strings for a song? On the
song "Breaking Down" I tune my lowest string (G) to an F, simply because the violin doesn't go any lower than G and that song happens
to be in a key that requires me to be on F. With the 5-string electric, the four strings of the violin are present but in addition
a fifth lower string exists. In other words, Tucker has combined a violin with a viola and added a low C string (violins and violas have
three strings - E,A and D - in common). With this low C string I have more notes to choose from. Imagine a painter having more colors
to paint with, it's kind of like that. Now you see how exciting this is! Plus you'll never have to watch me tune my violin G string
down to an F on stage anymore.
At the next Shelley show I will be using the new electric violin: Saturday, March 23rd @ the Linwood Grille in Boston, MA at 69 Kilmarnock Street
in the Fenway. For upcoming Shelley Winters Project gigs go to the
Shelley gig page.
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