A few months ago I was writing songs for a new recording project when I was contacted by an independent film maker in New York City. Burning Goat Productions is the name of the film company and they were looking for someone to score music for a short film they were working on titled 'TIME'. Well, it's interesting because I was in the beginning stages of writing a song with the theme of time. Funny how these things happen.... the song works great for both projects. In a nutshell, I scored music for the film and also a video was made of the song I wrote 'Time', in promotion of the upcoming short film. I am extremely proud and honored to be a part of this wonderful project. Here is the video..... and stay tuned as I will share the film when it is officially released. Thank you!

This is the official video for Imagination, a song I wrote for my youngest child, Vincent. This song is from a recent album by myself and Nolan McKelvey titled "Where It Takes Us". In the video you will see lots of dance moves, ninja moves, and smiling. And just in case you want to sing along, here are the lyrics...

You are lightning in a bottle... a momentary collection of dreams... from the inside looking outside... it's a big ol' world or so it seems

You're an instant classic... the day is yours, now go make your mark... ordinary is not your language... it's a big ol' world keep an open heart

They'll be many you will know... they'll be plenty who'll come and go... keep it steady, but rock the boat... and look out world cause here he comes

You're a powerful soldier... who says never give up the fight... imagination it is a good thing... it's a big ol' world shine your light

Where It Takes Us is the new duo album from myself and my musical compadre and old friend Nolan McKelvey. We've known each other for a long time and played together in a band called Onus B. Johnson many moons ago.... We've been talking about making a duo album for many years and finally we got tired of talking and made it happen. Nolan flew over to North Carolina from Arizona early last February for a couple days and we holed ourselves up in my home studio. We each brought five new songs, recently written, to the table for recording. We played music, we laughed, we drank, we did not sleep much... and we recorded this album. It is real and it is authentic. I hope you will check out the link where you can stream it in it's entirety and more-so, I hope you consider purchasing this album. Continued thanks to those who support independent music and artists. https://davedesmelik.bandcamp.com/album/where-it-takes-us-by-nolan-mckelvey-dave-desmelik

I am more than happy to officially announce the coming of a new album. My old friend and musical compadre, Nolan McKelvey (http://nolanmckelvey.com) and I, are finally making an album together and it is currently in the works. This album has been a long time coming. Some of you may remember Nolan and I from our former band Onus B Johnson. We cut our musical teeth together way back in the days of hazy youth and teetering barstools in Flagstaff, AZ and we have talked about making a "Nolan and Dave" record for years. Well, now it is happening. I can't wait for you to hear this album.... it will be homespun and real. Stay tuned! 

A nice review of LIFEBOAT written by Alli Marshall for mountainx.com
https://mountainx.com/arts/sound-track-lifeboat-by-dave-desmelik/
AND Official video "Don't Recreate the Wheel"

I am excited to announce my new album LIFEBOAT will be represented in Europe by Hemifran. This is my second time working with this company and they are awesome! The music truly comes first and they have represented some of the finest musicians around anywhere. Their list of artists through the years include some heavy hitters such as Dave Rawlings, Fred Eaglesmith, Indigo Girls, Rhett Miller, and Shooter Jennings just to name a few. Check out their website at www.hemifran.com 
 

Hemifrån is an independent A&R, promotion and marketing company, based in the heart of Sweden, specializing in, what we call, “gut music” – The kind of music that you can feel in your gut, no matter if it’s power pop, soft singer-songwriter, heavy rock, blues, gentle westcoast-pop, country, AOR, jazz, americana, electronica or just plain, simple, good ol' rock’n’roll.....

The official release of LIFEBOAT is Wednesday, Sept. 21st -6pm on the patio of The Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC.

LIFEBOAT is my 11th self-released full-length album. On this collection of songs, I play a number of instruments including guitars, bass, piano, attempted drums, textures of Hammond M3, but with a heavy foundation of 4-string cigar box guitar and baritone ukulele. Also, heartfelt songs lyrics and short explanations are included on the inside cover. Other musicians contributing their talent on this recording include longtime band mates and friends Josh Gibbs and Andy Gibbon, the incredibly skilled Michael Ashworth (Steep Canyon Rangers), WNC powerhouse Laura Blackley, and the distinctive spoken voice of Ben Hardy. Adding his two cents and outside of the box thinking, the mastering was done by Seth Kauffman (Floating Action). I titled this album LIFEBOAT because in all of the complexities and uncertainties of life, music will always be there as a safe place…. A sturdy vessel designed for use in saving lives…

First of all, if you are reading this, thank you for being here. Second, any and all feedback on the following subject is appreciated..... Here is the question(s).... How do you get your music? How do you listen to music in this day and age? Do you buy CDs? Do you stream music for free? Do you purchase downloads?

As a hard working DIY independent musician in these strange musical times, I am trying to keep up with the digital-tech curve. It seems there has been an extreme drop in the overall support and purchase of music. It seems the more people I talk to about this, the more I find the general public simply goes to their smart device and touches a button. You know the main ones I'm talking about... -Pandora and Spotify as well as a small handful of others- .... I do understand why this is... it is simple and takes little thought or effort.... the convenience factor. So for someone like myself who has been doing this a long time, it is a serious transition and a tough pill to swallow as I have seen CD sales and digital sales decline dramatically. And again, I get it, I do understand why this is happening in this inter-web driven world. So how do you get yours? AND what is the most effective way for a hard working DIY singer/songwriter such as myself to get mine to you and those you think would enjoy the new music? MARKET RESEARCH... Thank you!

 

Many thanks to Lucas Cipkowski for recent filming of a couple of my songs for a video series called Rooted Collection. It is a series that features Asheville and WNC regional artists. Also thanks to The Grey Eagle for hosting us. And of course thanks to you who continue to support independent and original music. Here is one of the videos shot on that cool and windy day in March.

Friends.... Andy, Josh, and myself have a musical side project we have started. This project is completely different from what we normally do as a folkrock/americana/singer-songwriter trio. This band is in it's infancy, however if we are not careful, we may spread slowly like butt paste on diaper rash. The songs we are writing are loud and strange and we are thinking we must be some form of a hard rock power trio. The live shows are few, but we do have a performance coming up at The Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC on Tuesday, March 22nd. Come see/hear us in our rock and roll glory (scabs and all)...... We are calling ourselves The Ointment Appointment. Here is a very brief bio...
 

The Ointment Appointment is a smooth arrangement of loose and edgy rock and roll rubbed into the open wounds of music. The balmy members that make up this engagement are Andy, Josh, and Dave……. Collectively they are also known as being a boil on the ass of society. However, with a little help from electric guitar distortion, heavy bass lines, and a junior drum kit, this self-inflicted injury has a chance to heal. Nobody is immune and we all get slashed, gashed, cut, and lacerated from time to time. So make a date, gel with your inner lesion, and rendezvous with The Ointment Appointment.