Stills and BTS shot for Michael Bernard Fitzgerald’s Love Valley music video
Directed by: Brock Mitchell
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michael bernard fitzgerald
I almost didn't go on this trip. With a full-time job, two weeks' worth of editing backlogged, and a wedding and an event already lined up at the end of the week, getting a last minute invite to fly out to LA was almost too overwhelming. I kept going back and forth. Originally I said yes. Then I backed out. The night before we were supposed to fly out, I changed my mind again.
I'm so glad I did.
Michael was set to play a show in LA at the Sayer's Club and so he brought Russell Broom, Andrew Ball, James Bundy, and me out with him. The day after we flew in, we had a relaxing morning grabbing brunch and coffee in Echo Park before an afternoon rehearsal at Bedrock with four musicians from LA. After rehearsals we found ourselves at the legendary Bob Hunka's house for bottomless Hunkaritas and amazing tacos. More cocktails at an unassuming French restaurant called Taix packed with a way too cool crowd and a couple street burgers later, Russell and I almost got matching tattoos and Andrew, James, Russ, and I passed out at three in the morning in the weirdest AirBnB I have ever stayed in.
Then, finally, show day. Michael did a radio performance at KCSN, which I embarrassingly and unintentionally video-bombed the entire time. We walked around Larchmont for lunch, petting dogs, and ice cream before heading back to the AirBnB to take some well-needed naps. As the sun was setting we headed out to the venue for sound check and the show. It all felt like it was over so quickly. In a blink, we were out of there and in an In-N-Out. 1 am burgers and fries. 3 am bed time. 5 am wake up call. Another one for the books.
While Michael has already put out a record this year (which I'm still playing on repeat), he decided to record a little something special at OCL Studios. What do you mean, something special? I think soon you'll know what I mean. The whole gang got together, decked in some real nice Kit and Ace threads. A good day of music, doughnuts, and sweet sweet technical cashmere.
In anticipation of Michael Bernard Fitzgerald's record release on March 11th, Michael embarked on a press tour, flying from city to city to promote the album. When Michael asked if I wanted to come along for the Toronto leg, I literally could not hide my excitement.
Fast forward to last week, Matty McKay and I are hopping on an evening flight out of Calgary. We made it to our hotel room at 1:30 am and desperately grasped for a couple hours of sleep before meeting up with Michael and Andrew Ball at six in the morning to perform on Breakfast Television. We got to sit in the live lounge and watch the show on the floor, and got to meet the very lovely Peter Mansbridge, who was also a guest on the show.
One of the key parts of this media tour is an intimate show Michael plays for the media in his hotel room. This is a very cozy ordeal, with people cramming onto the beds and sitting on the floor to get to preview the new songs. While we were waiting around at Breakfast Television, Michael made an impromptu decision to also host an additional show for anyone who emailed him interested in wanting to come. "If we get kicked out, so be it" was the mantra.
It was one of those times where everything just worked out perfectly. The room Michael had at the Fairmont Royal York got upgraded to a top floor suite with plenty of room to hold the 25 people who ended up RSVPing to come. String players Michael and Andrew had just met the night before were available to play not just one but two shows back to back. Nobody got kicked out of their hotel room.
The next day, after getting the morning off, we headed down to the CBC headquarters to play a lunchtime show for the staff. One more radio show, some delicious tacos, and a strange Uber drive back to the airport and we were flying back home.
48 hours in Toronto well spent.
You can preview the album on CBC until March 11th here.
Michael Bernard Fitzgerald made a really great record and to celebrate, he put on a huge concert at the Jack Singer to debut the new songs. This show consisted of 130 singers (mostly from Bishop Carroll and the Young Canadians), 15 string players, a 10-person spin class from YYC Cycle, dancers, and the core band of drums, percussion, backup singers, bass, two guitars, and keyboard. In short, this show was big.
We kicked things off with two nights of rehearsals just before the show in the basement of the concert hall - one for the choir and one for the strings. Standing in the midst of everything I couldn't help but just soak in all the energy. With a show like this, you really feel a sense of community and everyone shares the excitement of seeing it all come together (or hoping that it will all come together). Dress rehearsal took place all afternoon the day of, and then a beautiful family-style dinner put together by Native Tongues and Village Brewery just before showtime set the mood for the rest of the night.
While I'm shooting shows, I'm always so focused on making sure I'm in the right place and getting the right shots that the whole night goes by in a flash. However, this time I made sure to stop and keep some memories for myself. Hearing the choir swell in the beautiful space during the buildup of "I Will", seeing the complete joy on everyone's faces as they jammed to "Last Train to Georgia", jumping on stage to dance and shoot during "Brand New Spaces" .... these are things I never want to forget.
You can read Michael's great recap from the show here. I am so proud of this guy, so grateful to be his friend, and so excited for this record to be shared with everybody. 'I Wanna Make It With You' will be released on March 11, 2016.
