ALPHANAUT'S "UNNECESSARY SOLDIER"
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According to Mark Alan, aka Alphanaut...
The song "Unnecessary Soldier" is taken from Alphanaut's forthcoming album Meanwhile Back on Earth, which will be released in January.
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A Conversation with Maia Sharp
Mike Ragogna: Maia, was there a mission for your new album The Dash Between The Dates production-wise or thematically?
Maia Sharp: Once "Phoenix" and "The Dash Between the Dates," the first two songs written specifically for a new album, were finished the theme started to show itself. I was writing more from a broad life perspective, not just about one relationship or one moment. And as difficult as that can be, I was on a mission to carry it through the rest of the album.
MR: What was it like working creatively this time around with your longtime collaborator Linda Taylor this time around how has that changed from previous projects?
MS: Officially co-producing was the natural progression for us. Linda played on my last two albums, we've played together for other artists like Edwin McCain, Crystal Bowersox and Art Garfunkel and we've been "co-producing" how we're going to represent these songs live for about seven years now. She's a master of marrying inorganic elements with live performances and that extra sonic layer is the thing that makes this project different from the others.
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photo credit: Sheryl Nields
MR: Though you're a singer-songwriter, you also frame the material in bluesier than not arrangements and productions. To that point, you recorded "I Don't Want Anything To Change," a song you co-wrote and Bonnie Raitt made popular. As you're growing as an artist, are you noticing how it's affecting the topics or even the feel of your material?
MS: I grew up listening to Bonnie Raitt so I'm sure there's some blues in my blood. She did such a great version of "I Don't Want Anything to Change" that I made sure I waited long enough so people wouldn't necessarily compare us side by side--nobody wants to step into the ring with Bonnie. My version is more of an album closer, more sparse and it features the beautiful, brilliant background vocal of Lizz Wright.
MR: Your lyrics for your single "Nothing But The Radio" are almost country: "Take
According to Mark Alan, aka Alphanaut...
"The term 'Unnecessary Soldier' comes from Thomas Jefferson's vision for keeping military costs controlled in the US by reducing the number of soldiers employed in times of peace. This idea stuck in my head for years, especially in our current age where we've done the complete opposite of what he hoped for.
"With this title I wanted to create an anti-war piece, but really struggled with an approach. I felt there are so may classic protest songs out there and I didn't want to duplicate a message that had already been delivered. Plus I had already written my own anti-war song 'More Than I Do' several years earlier.
"In the end, I decided to write a lyric that was told from soldier to soldier, human to human, each with an agreement to throw down arms and ignore the machines of conflict that sent them each out to the field. When composing the piece I really wanted to have it reflect the sounds of the '60s and '70s keeping everything revolving around a very simple melody. Thanks to my co-creator Fox Scarlett, vocalists David Santos and Angie Whitney the results far exceeded my vision for the song."
The song "Unnecessary Soldier" is taken from Alphanaut's forthcoming album Meanwhile Back on Earth, which will be released in January.
******************************
A Conversation with Maia Sharp
Mike Ragogna: Maia, was there a mission for your new album The Dash Between The Dates production-wise or thematically?
Maia Sharp: Once "Phoenix" and "The Dash Between the Dates," the first two songs written specifically for a new album, were finished the theme started to show itself. I was writing more from a broad life perspective, not just about one relationship or one moment. And as difficult as that can be, I was on a mission to carry it through the rest of the album.
MR: What was it like working creatively this time around with your longtime collaborator Linda Taylor this time around how has that changed from previous projects?
MS: Officially co-producing was the natural progression for us. Linda played on my last two albums, we've played together for other artists like Edwin McCain, Crystal Bowersox and Art Garfunkel and we've been "co-producing" how we're going to represent these songs live for about seven years now. She's a master of marrying inorganic elements with live performances and that extra sonic layer is the thing that makes this project different from the others.
photo credit: Sheryl Nields
MR: Though you're a singer-songwriter, you also frame the material in bluesier than not arrangements and productions. To that point, you recorded "I Don't Want Anything To Change," a song you co-wrote and Bonnie Raitt made popular. As you're growing as an artist, are you noticing how it's affecting the topics or even the feel of your material?
MS: I grew up listening to Bonnie Raitt so I'm sure there's some blues in my blood. She did such a great version of "I Don't Want Anything to Change" that I made sure I waited long enough so people wouldn't necessarily compare us side by side--nobody wants to step into the ring with Bonnie. My version is more of an album closer, more sparse and it features the beautiful, brilliant background vocal of Lizz Wright.
MR: Your lyrics for your single "Nothing But The Radio" are almost country: "Take