Lindsay Ferguson

linzferg@hotmail.com / 6133719817

May 22, 2013
by Lindsay
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Two Worlds

What is it like to live in two different places, for about half a year each?

Well, I am in my third year, living in between… and it satisfies my ‘wanderlust-filled’ soul.

If I could, I would live like this for the rest of my life,

that way, I wouldn’t have to say “Good-Bye” for too long.

I Love my friends and family across the world and it is truly hard to say those two words.
When I embark on that final (for the moment) journey to the airport, I focus on the next place, and try to swallow those good-bye tears. Sometimes it’s easier said than done, and I spend my train time swallowing hiccups and thankful I have a hanky.

Small price to pay however, to have a different view from time to time.

 

As a musician, I can find places to play anywhere in the world, from living rooms to lit stages, it’s an ‘easy’ profession when it comes to up-rooting once in awhile… (or twice every year.)

 

Sometimes performance can be difficult, if you are used to getting a laugh in between songs, the nature of sarcasm and jokes can get lost on a crowd who may speak English as a second (or third) language. I am much more “Italian” in the way I speak when this is a factor, using my body and hands as tools to get the jokes across. It’s pretty fun. Sometimes I just laugh to myself, or at myself… alone.

Laughter is the best medicine, right?

 

Miscommunication is okay for me, as is other “bad gig moments” such as a non-responsive crowd or a terrible sound system (or stinky microphone, yes, that happens too!) In these cases, it just becomes a ‘practice session’ or yeah, just about the money ;) However, I do believe in performing as best as I can, even if there are only a handful (or more) of listeners. If I can get through to someone, just a little, then I have done my job.

 

Fellow Canadian artist, Craig Cardiff has a notebook that he takes to his concerts in which he asks people to write their dreams, thoughts, secrets etc in… And it always amazes me, when I get a chance to read some of these, at how profoundly music can help. I am so entirely thankful for this musical path I am on, be it for me or for you, it’s worth it. Bad sound systems, non-listeners, sore shoulders, hot lights, smelly mics, long drives, sideway-glances and all!

 

Being away from home, either home, is tough at times. Thankfully Social-Media is here for home-sickness… or maybe not? I see shows and markets and babies that I am missing out on, but still, I get to see your face once in awhile and hear your voice too!! At the very least we get to stay present in each others lives, which is  big bonus, missing you in ‘real life’ or not.

 

Currently, I am writing a new song, featuring wisdom that I have learned over the years.

I hope to debut it on Sunday, where my voice will be soaring in a church for the first time in a long time.

 

You never really know what life will bring.
Look forward to every day, and try not to want to know,

that way, you will be surprised,

surprises are good.

 

Love Lindsay

March 5, 2013
by Lindsay
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A Life in the Day of an Indie Artist

I live each day trying to fulfill my needs as a self-employed singer and song-writer which doesn’t always have to be that complicated and trying to explain what I do to people who are living by an entirely different set of rules, well, therein lies the complication.

Talk about guilt! Some days on my list of things to do it goes a bit like: Make a fire, put the coffee on, do the dishes, check your emails, write a blog, pick up the guitar, work on songs, put more logs on the fire, fill up the wood box, prepare dinner, read a book, book a show, watch a movie, charge the phone, go to sleep. Some days the writing table is full of arts ‘n craft supplies, feather earrings!! Sometimes there is a yoga mat on the floor. Sometimes I get to talk on Skype to close friends and family, some days I get to go on hikes, you know, fuel for the soul and the songs. Some days I get to PLAY MUSIC in front of an audience.

These are pretty much the details that make up my life. I am also very lucky because I have a partner in crime who accepts and Loves me for who I am and what I do. I do not follow the normal day to day life that many of my friends have and it’s a bit hard for me sometimes because I am sure that there are people out there that do not appreciate my life, the life I chose, this independent set-your-own-rules way of living.

Talk about discipline! There is no one out there telling me what I have to do, no guidelines, no boss, so it’s all up to me.

I remember moving out of the house I grew up in, to University, where I could do whatever I wanted. I could eat marshmallows for breakfast and potato chips for dinner, there was no one to tell me any different. But through heartburn and tiredness I quickly learned how to eat better and be more attentive to my nutritional needs. Some days I feel like I am back there, in need of discipline and Mama’s knowledge.

I am still learning and still working hard to keep this musical ball rolling and it can be hard without a boss. I am not saying the grass is greener, but I am saying that I appreciate all of you who work so hard in a fixed schedule and sometimes I wish someone could arrange mine for me. Alas, this is my life and I am sticking to it.

Up with music!!

February 15, 2013
by Lindsay
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Home is where the Heart is.

Let’s face it. You live with yourself, your face your hands for the rest of your life. I remember, back when I was bursting into ‘teen-dom’ being struck with the notion, hit with the plain truth that I would be stuck with me forever and it was right there, just between myself and my reflection where I came to the conclusion that there was only one way. I just had to accept myself.  I think it may have also been the first time that I realized I wasn’t just a daughter, sister or kid, but that I was my own entity and from then on, it was my life, MY very own life. I had no idea at the time what life would be about, but I sure hoped that it would be bigger than my parents rules, school bus seating, bedroom decor, fashion, sleep-over’s and homework.

Music was a thread, sewn through me, more than I knew, during this ‘breaking-out-into-the-real-world-for-the-first-time’ phase. I would sit in front of my ghetto-blaster after school learning the words to all my favourite songs (Cyndi Laupers ‘True Colours’, Madonna’s ‘La Isla Bonita’ etc) and I would record myself on tape, singing along, playing the music on low volume, to be sure I could hear myself (not having the slightest clue that I would do the same thing years later in a real live studio!!) I listened to those tapes and made new ones, eventually making my own songs, searching through my treasure trunk, dressing the part as well. I had dreams to sing on stages, again with no clue that those dreams would eventually turn to reality, (and how!)

Wherever I went, as a young girl, a teenager or now, as an adult, I have this music inside me, this flow that, simply put, keeps me going. Through rejection, pain, depression, anger, fear; ultimately REAL LIFE, I know I have this neat thing within and when I sit down with my guitar and let ‘er rip, all of the negative just floats off, somewhere else, (for the time being) and if that’s what happens to ME when I sing, then I just KNOW I have to sing for others too.  So I put it out there for you, on occasion and I hope you like it. From me to you, that’s how it works with this musical gift… it’s the least I can do and it is how I will leave my mark. Perhaps one would call it a legacy, I will call it luck.

December 23, 2012
by Lindsay
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Picton Ontario! I’m coming :)

Hey Folks…

If you are in Prince Edward County Ontario, December 23rd, come on down to a fabulous little music venue/restaurant for some LIVE music featuring myself and a some original music. The Acoustic Grill has seen the likes of many talented Canadian artists. It’s a cozy place, with happy people and delicious food. I will be on around 7pm. Hope to see you!!

Merry Christmas in the interim ;)

Love,

Lindsay

December 12, 2012
by Lindsay
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Sinterklaas, Santa Claus, Baileys, Oh MY!

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening! How goes the battle out there, in the land of living rooms, offices and internet cafes? All is well over this way, for now. You never know what’s coming around the corner, so I like to take each day as it comes and when it gets hard, I always try to remember that tomorrow is indeed a new day. Times can be tough around this time of year. The other night as I was driving into the village of Wakefield to see this awesome band (The 50 Men) at The Black Sheep Inn, I decided to pick up a hitch hiker. He was young and very cold and very sad. My plans were detoured for an hour, while he warmed up, both physically and spiritually. It was a big beautiful moment, to drop him off with a joke on his lips and only an hour before, tears. I can’t help thinking about what may have happened to him had I not stopped. It was so cold out that night, and I’m pretty sure his skinny jeans wouldn’t have cut it. Things can happen that fast, in a blink of an eye, your whole world can change.  A single telephone ring, a single buck of a horse, a single solitary moment can change things forever.  THAT fast. So live it up while you can. Smile at a stranger, do a good deed, hand make something for your Loved ones for Christmas, just keep it simple. Just don’t worry.

 

As I get ready to head back over to Europe for the winter and Spring, the memories of the past Summer and Fall come flooding, in a way that tells me this chapter is just about over. Talk about going back to basics, cooking in a kitchen with no running water, living in a cabin shared by mice, waking up to goat cries and peacock screams. What a ride, literally, riding the horses and getting to know what they are all about, how wonderful and passionate and caring they are.  I am truly going to miss this way of life, and if anything, I may just live a little more, in a “less is more” kind of way.  I realize that nothing good comes fast, especially when making breakfast or dinner in a kitchen built on one extension cord. Especially in the Canadian music industry, where I finally figured out the formula:  one song at a time.  Stepping out of the rush, taking things all a little slower has enriched my life to no end, learning patience, having faith and letting it all just flow.

 

The music never stops. Waking up and living each day to a soundtrack is my lifeline. So there are a couple of projects I am working on! New songs for a new Lindsay CD! One thing is for sure, that cabin with the mice proved to be a wonderful place to be creative. Also in the works is an electronic album. I’ve always wanted to sing on electro songs, dance songs, chill-out songs and now I am. We are still trying to find a name for our duo so we can start marketing ourselves, but so far, nothing has stuck. Perhaps you can help? Have a listen to two of our tracks and see what you think, email me at linzferg@hotmail.com with any suggestions. Head on over to Soundcloud and play it loud! https://soundcloud.com/skullyandlindsay

Have a good holiday season folks, and here’s a mantra for you “People helping people.”

Love Lindsay xo

October 24, 2012
by Lindsay
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A blog of truth.

Hi world.

How goes the battle?

It’s been awhile since I’ve written. Sorry Mum, sorry Dad.

I always think about how I really should write more on my very own website and then I get all up to date on Twitter, Facebook, Reverbnation and the like and onto the hunger for pen, paper and guitar strings.

Recently, I have been writing quite a few new pieces. It fills me up, this music but finishing songs, now that is another story entirely. Do you have that problem? Perhaps you have more focus than me, and could send me a message, tips on how you make it happen?  I can of course finish a song, but heck I have more unfinished than ones in their entirety. It makes me crazy, knowing all these little stories are tucked away on countless notebook pages. Ready in waiting.

Writing music is therapeutic for me, however blogs are much harder. I mean, where do I start? The past seems over and gone, so should I write about what is next in my life? The future is uncertain at the best of times. I could write about right now, but I wouldn’t want to start a blog out by complaining that there is a rooster outside my door making me nutz. Even as I type, I am wearing ear plugs with hopes to escape that unnaturally high pitch rooster crow.

I could write about t what it’s like to be an artsy fartsy musician in the materialistic musical government. Oh, but I wouldn’t want to depress you with a blog about reality, because that would suck. And let me tell you, music doesn’t speak louder, so I am learning. It’s so sad, to actually write that sentence down, but it’s true and sometimes the truth hurts.

When I was footloose and fancy free, deep in the heart of innocence, nowhere near the knowledge of this money grubbing world, I saw my name in lights, and those lights were of the brightest kind. Lucky for me, I still have hope in my dreams and have experienced myself singing in lights, however, those moments are fleeting, over so soon, it always seems I am back at the drawing board with a big fat sticker at the top that says “NEED MORE.”

Once upon a time, I read that you don’t have to focus only on one thing in life to make you happy, that you can find joy in many things at any given time.  Finding amusement in the smaller things in life is a simpler way to live. Getting back to basics seems the one true way to keep this girl sane. Plucking guitar strings in a cabin on a ranch, cooking amazing healthy meals in a kitchen with no running water and only enough electricity to either toast or boil. Thankful for Coleman stoves, thankful for the smell of Fall, thankful for my friends who stop in for tea, thankful for afternoon rides through the forest, thankful for waking up every morning beside a man who Loves me, thankful for my family, thankful for the roosters feathers, thankful for you that is reading about my life, thankful you care.

I think I can finish one of those songs now.

Love, Lindsay xo

September 21, 2012
by Lindsay
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It’s me! Out East :)

Yeah. It’s been awhile, awhile since I’ve written and much longer since I’ve been out here, inhaling the fresh sea air. I Love it out here, but it’s wet and muggy, the kind that doesn’t let up! I got soaked, traipsing around Halifax last night, my leather bag and boots are still wet.   It was however, and is wonderful to be back here. The last time I was in Halifax, it was a wintery blustery crazy snowing sideways kind of storm, I Loved it then too.  There’s just something about the East Coast.  I woke up this morning in a crooked house on a crooked street and to make things better, the sound of the fog horn made its way through the bathroom window and right into my imagination; insta-memories, insta-good feelings.

Tonight I am playing a house concert in Dartmouth. House concerts are becoming more of a common way to enjoy musical performances, more intimately. Most people have never heard of house concerts, it’s true! But they are great, and so easy to pull off. You don’t need a big open loft style apt, or a large living room with 40 chairs.  They can be cozy-smush-together-on-the-couch and throw some pillows around, to ‘bring the outside chairs inside’ or vice versa depending on the weather…a table or counter with nibblies also helps. Anyway, google home routes, they have a system, one of which I would like to get to know… perhaps a home routes tour is in my future?? Oh and I should also mention ambience of sorts; i.e candle light?? Random candles in safe places everywhere, that is also recommended :)

2moro night, if you are in the Seaforth N.S area, I am singing by the Sea at https://www.facebook.com/events/526467077368702/?ref=ts so check it out if ya like :)

 

More to come… promise.

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