Howlin Wuelf Media :: Sam Phillips

Los Angeles, CA - This June, songwriter/singer Sam Phillips will be issuing the first physical release from her Long Play project (www.samphillips.com), Solid State. Solid State will be a sampling of material written and recorded for Long Play between August 2009 – February 2011.

It draws from each of the five EPs as well as from the full length digital-only releases made available through this program. Sam’s intention is to make this repertoire readily accessible to music lovers who weren’t comfortable with digital-only releases, using the electronic payment service involved or were unable to commit to subscription to Long Play.

Phillips opened the virtual doors to Long Play, a unique and ambitious web-based art and music installation featuring new music, short films, original essays, candid footage of her at work in the studio, photographs by and of her and other exclusive material in October 2009. Over the next year, she wrote, recorded and released five EPs: Hypnotists in Paris, the Christmas collection Cold Dark Night, Magic For Everyone, Old Tin Pan, and finally Days of the One Night Stands. She completed the series in early 2011 with the full-length release, Cameras In The Sky. All this music was released to Long Play subscribers as part of their subscription benefits, all exclusives excepting Magic For Everyone, which was offered to the general public via digital retailers.

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All these songs on Solid State were produced by Sam Phillips, recorded and mixed by Eric Gorfain at Littlebox Studio during the Long Play, August 2009-February 2011. Personnel comprised: Sam Phillips – vocals, acoustic and electric guitars, piano, percussion,; Jay Bellerose – drums and percussion; Jennifer Condos – bass; Eric Gorfain – violin, electric violin, electric guitars, baritone guitar, string arrangements; Greg Leisz – 12-string electric guitar on "Magic For Everybody", electric guitar on "Lever Pulled Down"; Chris Bruce – electric guitars on "Throw Yourself Away"; Richard Dodd – cello on "So Glad You’re Here";; The Section Quartet – strings on "Broken Circle", "What It All Means" (Eric Gorfain, violin; Daphne Chen, violin; Lauren Chipman, viola; Richard Dodd, cello. The song "When I’m a Camera" was mixed by Mike Piersante at Electromagnetic Studio. All of the songs included on Solid State have been re-mastered since their initial release to members of the Long Play community.

These recordings were intended as opportunities for experimentation, searching for fresh inspiration and taking risks. They were a chance to explore artistic possibilities that wouldn’t have been supported by music industry framework conventions of "album cycle" marketing and promotion. "There is no record company involved — this is just between us," says Sam. Since they were digital releases Phillips was able to continue crafting them right to the point of release.

"Before the music business locks down a standardized new system of making and distributing records, digitally or otherwise, it seemed like a perfect time to do something intensely personal and experimental," Sam declares.

Since releasing Cameras In the Sky, Phillips and many of the same musicians who worked with her on the Long Play project have continued working, and are making considerable progress on yet another full length album, this intended for a more traditional release to the general public in 2012. In the meanwhile the Long Play (www.samphillips.com) remains open and is still accepting members who’ll still have full access to all the material from the five EPs, the one full length album and a generous helping of bonus tracks: 43 tracks in all.