Listen to “Here When I Wake” (MP3)

“Muse” played acoustically on a Martin DCX 1KE on the couch of awesome. The Muse album is available on iTunes, Amazon MP3 and On-Demand as well as streaming on Spotify. Come and see me at http://www.facebook.com/tannerbechtelmusic !

Tonight, I took my own advice.  I detuned my Martin down to an open Blues G tuning and started, simply put, smacking the guitar.  The result is pretty cool.  It’s a percussive sound, filled with harmonics and solid barred chords and kept in time by–what I realized tonight–is a very multi-toned percussion board (the tops and sides of the guitar body.)

Who says you have to play a guitar like its supposed to be played?  Not me… you be the judge.

CLICK TO PLAY/DOWNLOAD — Tanner Bechtel – Percussive Guitar (MP3)

"Muse" Pre-release Show at Hotel Frederick

When you were a child, you dreamed of what you’d one day become. It may have been a firefighter or the president or a chef–but it was something. As we age and life becomes real; begins to show us the hard edges, the inescapable truth, we begin to lose sight of that dream and start to temper our outlook on life. It’s adulthood, it’s reality and in many cases admirable (being a superhero doesn’t pay well enough to get your 3 year old into Montessori.)

I, somehow, didn’t get that memo. I get to live a little of mine in both my profession and my hobbies. About 25 years ago, I did my first show. I sang a song, solo, called “Girls” in the SS Peter and Paul Catholic school play. I was very young and in rehearsal, I remember an 8th grade girl making eye contact with me–mid-song–and winking at me. That was it. I wanted to entertain for life. Anything I could do to recreate that moment.

As I got older, I started to appreciate the art in performance. I did theatre, Shakespeare, musicals. Then, I began to write music. This was gravitas. This was my heart, my beliefs and my art–set in motion, for an audience. It was the pinnacle of my art, realized. It’s also the most revealing thing you will, ever in your life, attempt.

Last night I played the Muse album; my second full commercial release, but my first complete project. I wrote, performed, recorded, mixed, mastered and produced the entire thing. From the first words in my moleskine to shooting the cover art on the album cover. The show at Hotel Frederick was amazing. The audience was rife with family, friends strangers, people giving the music a couple minutes as they left Glenn’s restaurant and true fans. We set the record for the largest turnout the Hotel Frederick has ever seen for live music (ever). That’s kind of cool.

I was, in one moment, validated as a writer and amazingly humbled as a person. In a single two hour set, that audience made me feel like that 8th grader winked at him, again.

I wish I could begin to quantify my gratitude to you all. Simply: thank you.

Hotel Frederick

The Muse album is done, but CD production is still in the works.  However, you can hear it live on Saturday, February 25th, 8-10 PM at the historic Hotel Frederick in Boonville, MO. I’ll have pre-release copies of Muse and plenty of friends and good cocktails to keep you company.  It’s a very intimate venue and one of my favorite places to visit.  I’d be honored to have you there!

Hotel Frederick Lobby

If you’ve never stayed at the Hotel Frederick, visited the century-old lodge barroom or eaten at Glenn’s Cafe, I can’t urge you enough to book a room. Each room is custom designed by regional artists and they are all an aesthetic and artful joy to experience.  Boonville is a romantic little river town and the Frederick sits atop the Missouri River bluffs and is a gem of this community.  Rooms are very limited in the hotel, so if you plan on booking, I’d urge you to do it sooner than later.

Listen to the album, streaming online by clicking here.