Mental Sauna III: Christmas Inflections

Hi everyone,

I know it has been a while since my last blog, but I’ve had my head down, focused on completing a couple projects.  One of which, is the new Mental Sauna album.  The other I am hoping to announce in a week or so.  I’m just in the process of finalizing a few things before I do.

Mental Sauna III: Christmas Inflections is complete and being uploaded to the pressing company.  Disc Makers provided me a very generous pressing package.  CDBaby will be handling digital distribution.  Both of these companies have been fantastic to work with.  The artwork was done by Kelly at OutsideTheBox.Photo and I love the design and stunning color combination.  I can’t wait to see it all put together in the final package.

For years, I had considered doing a holiday themed album but I hadn’t connected it with Mental Sauna until a very dear friend of mine suggested it.  From that point on, I made list after list of all the songs I would want to work with and finally narrowed it to the list below.  The next challenge was to create the write feel and bridge the gap between these classic songs and Mental Sauna.  Once I had the right blend of tone, it was a matter of deciding how the arrangements would go, which took a bit of experimentation.  It was an intense couple months but I am very pleased with the final versions, after mixing and mastering.  One of the biggest challenges was creating the holiday feel when it was 113 degrees outside.

What I hadn’t considered, throughout the process, was how nostalgic I would get.  Growing up in Michigan, where I had a close extended family, Christmas Eve was always the same:  trying to pass the time, waiting for my dad to get off work so we could head to Grandma and Grandpa’s house (on my mother’s side), hoping we wouldn’t get stuck in the snow (and that also happened).  I would exercise, do stretches or just sit and listen to records.

My grandmother always put on an amazing spread for dinner.  Of all things, my favorite was the bowl of mixed nuts.  It was the only time of year I had them and I got to crack them myself, so double score!  After dinner, we would sit around singing Christmas Carols while my aunt played piano.  The really funny thing is that I couldn’t wait to finish singing so we could open presents.  Hey, in all fairness, I was a kid!  Once we returned home, we would all open one present and head to bed so we would get up early on Christmas morning. 

My brother and I would open the gifts on the stockings that hung on out bedroom doors while our parents woke up.  Then we would all sit in front of the tree and open gifts.  Sometimes we would head to my other Grandma and Grandpa’s house and my uncle would join us.  Then it was a matter of organizing all the new things I had gotten and integrate them into my world.

It was freezing cold every Christmas and the snow was always piled in the yard.  I was usually the one that kept the driveway clean.  I loved playing in the snow.  It was so quiet outside that time of year on our street.  I think that was my favorite part of it all.  That is probably the thing I miss most, living in the desert.  But, as time marches on and life evolves, old traditions become memories and new things are started.  This will be my first Christmas living in Las Vegas.  I’ve been here for Christmas before and the hotels do such a beautiful job decorating.  One of my favorite walks down the Strip is 4am on Christmas morning with a white chocolate mocha in hand from Starbucks, all bundled up against the cold December wind.  Then some phone calls and a relaxing night working in the studio.  Perfect!  Of course, there is Halloween first.  J

Here is the plan:  On October 10^th, there will be a pre-order available on iTunes.  If you purchase during the pre-order dates, one song should become immediately available to you.  The full release will be on October 20^th on iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon Music, CDBaby and a host of other places.  Physical CD’s will most likely be available on my website.

The album is a compilation of some of my favorite holiday melodies, arranged and recorded specifically for the Mental Sauna world.  This was quite an experiment and a challenge but I had a great time doing it.  There were two songs that didn’t make the cut. Perhaps I will finish those and release them one day.  Fourteen songs did make it on to the album.  There are samples of each on my website and they will remain there until the launch, when you’ll be able to preview them on iTunes.
http://www.scotthaskin.com/?page_id=660

Track List:

1  Deck the Halls

2  Away In A Manger

3  Jingle Bells

4  O, Come All Ye Faithful

5  Joy to the World

6  O, Little Town of Bethlehem

7  Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring

8  O, Holy Night

9  God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen

10  The First Noel

11  Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

12  It Came Upon A Midnight Clear

13  We Three Kings

14  Silent Night

I am very excited to get this album out.  The last couple months have been filled with arranging and recording.  I also played bass guitar on this album, which is a first, and had guest Duduk player Eva Bukovinszky on Silent Night.  She played beautifully and her sound adds a great deal to this song.

I certainly hope you enjoy listening to the album as much as I did creating it.  Thanks to Deane, Eva, Kelly, Disc Makers, CDBaby and all my beta listeners.  I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it!

I will ask one thing:  When you listen to it, please rate the album on iTunes.  So much is affected even by the 5 star rating system these days. If you are on the album page, click on the tab for Ratings and Reviews and click how many start you honestly feel the album deserves.  If you would like to leave a review that would be fantastic but, please at least make sure you rate it.  Thank you in advance!  I cannot begin to tell you how much I appreciate that!

Also, if there is anyone you think would enjoy this album, or any of the Mental Sauna or other albums I have available, please pass along the information.  So far, Mental Sauna has helped many people relax and get sleep, even with insomnia or over-active brains. It has helped calm children and it has been used as a background for writing novels and screenplays.  I want to help as many people as possible to enjoy life more, even just one note at a time.

Enjoy the holiday and make beautiful memories that you’ll carry in your heart until the end of time.

Scott