Mel's Blog

Chasing Pandora and Beyond

By Mel on 20 May 2010

Since the beginning of this year, the ball has been continuously rolling for Chasing Pandora - the launch of our second album, 'The Driver and The Dancer' where we performed to a full house at The Roundhouse, London in February. As well as an invitation to perform on Janice Long's show on BBC Radio 2.  Janice was so lovely to us, I was so pleased to discover that she knew the lyrics to our songs and sang along as we were performing, and it was just a magical night for us. Janice Long has a cult following of people who listen religiously to her show...she's really into music and knows her stuff!  What a woman!
    
Our new album, was given wonderful reviews from well known and prestigious magazines and newspapers, one of them being The Independent who came to review our live show.

"Each song contains expressive, symbolic words and swimming prose - Chasing Pandora perform with imagination and great ease, they kept the audience engaged throughout the whole show, the only crowd noise was applause"

 I was so excited when I saw our picture on The Roundhouse, next to Noah and The Whale, Air and other great bands.  It was an amazing venue and a night I will never forget.  The audience was incredible.

Izzy (Ismael) has now become the third part of Chasing Pandora, we have been working with Izzy since 2006, some of our very first gigs, and he has come a long way, apart from being one of the most humble and gracious people I know, he has wonderful skills on the piano and has added a huge amount to our music. We are really happy to have him on board with us, with everything we do.   It's only been 3 months since we released our album, but we have already written and recorded 4 new songs, one of which Izzy has written.  Ismael is a bit like me, loves Heavy Metal, Goths, dark humor, black nail polish and crazy hair, but appreciates the arts in all its forms. Personally, I think Keith, Izzy and I make a great well balanced team. When I say 'balanced', I'm joking. There is no band that is more dysfunctional than we are, forgetful, clumsy, moody, crazy, however that's where the music part balances us all out. Makes us whole, we're like the scattered ingredients you need to make a cake, you mix it all up and you've got a great cake, without one of the ingredients, there's always something missing.

Traveling really messes with my head, but it looks like I'm going to have to get used to it.   Chasing Pandora have been invited by the NXNE festival to perform in Toronto Canada. This event features 650 bands that perform several showcases all over Toronto, so that new and upcoming talent is exposed to the movers and shakers in the music biz.  Scary, I must say. Exciting, of course.  But, I'll be shaking in my pants before I go on stage!

I can't believe that it's only been 4 years since the beginning of my career.   I'm going back to Canada, to perform in front of a new audience and also in front of the huge family I left behind in Toronto.   Family that have never seen me perform yet, who have only seen pictures, videos, photos, heard the music, yet have supported me all the way. My sister hasn't seen me perform live, so she's traveling from New York to see us, not to mention most of our friends in the States.

This puts me in a really vulnerable position, I really really look forward to seeing everyone at our gigs, and I'm going to feel quite emotional, seeing all those faces that mean so, so much to me. It will bring back many, many happy memories from my childhood.  Each and every one of these faces brings back a part of my past. When I see everyone I love there, to support Chasing Pandora, how can I not get emotional!  My music means a lot to me, it is like a child, beautiful, innocent, with a heart and soul of its own.  When an artist expresses the way he or she feels and allows it to be shared out there, in the open, she feels exposed, naked, yet liberated. So, to have so much support from everyone, truly means a lot to me.

I'm sure many of us have idolized artists and public figures along the way. A lot of people have told me that our music has helped them get through a very hard time in their life. I understand where these people are coming from, I've been there as well, I can tell you that!    Last month one of my favorite songwriters passed away.   Pete Steele (love him or hate him) I've seen thousands of messages online, all stating that his music has helped them overcome something personal in their life. People expressing how truly devastated they were about the end of someone who helped them get through a downward spiral that we all face sometimes. We can all relate to this, music somehow always touches us at the same level.  It becomes a part of us, and without it we cannot seem to see clearly the way through.

Toronto to me - means the beginning of a dream. I still remember singing on my porch in Canada, with my father, we sang Elvis songs on summer nights, and I knew it, there and then, that music transcends reality. I was born for this, and despite the many obstacles in life, which I still face at times, I'm still here, alive in that dream. I am a dreamer, and many have told me that my dreams will get me nowhere, that I will get old and will have dreamt my life away.  I beg to differ.  One quote that will never leave my mind -

'I prefer to be a dreamer among the humblest, with visions to be realized, than lord among those without dreams and desires '- Kahlil Gibran - Lebanese American Poet and Novelist.