STEVE DIGRE - PULSE

So there I was, sitting on a plane with my guitar in tow, microphone and cables stowed in my carry on. I was moving to Egypt ready for anything and expecting nothing.

Music became my great escape, I spent countless hours playing, writing and vanishing into song. With this CD I was searching for a new voice. I was living in a foreign land, with a new life and I wanted to capture that. Songs were written in the darkness of black called lonely, love songs composed on the shores of the Red Sea, and introspective pieces written under the stars of the Middle East. It was all their, just waiting for me to put it to music. 

I began laying down tracks in the fall. But felt like I was forcing a square peg without a sense of direction or purpose. I was happy with the songs themselves, but the recorded style and attitudes were all wrong. I was stuck.

Then, late one night on snow-ridden television, reminding me of winters back home, I caught the movie Timecode, a great experiment in film. Not only did the creative aspects of the movie inspire me, but the tune over the movie credits, changed everything for me. 

Disconnected Stranger had a special style, attitude and a feeling. It sparked something. My creative flow began pumping and instantly I started to formulize the direction and feel of Pulse. I began to realize what I wanted this record to sound like. Armed with purpose and reason, energy and breath, I began capturing my PULSE.

Pulse as the CD title was conceived while I stood on a street corner, directionless, lost and feeling alone. I reached down, held my arm, in a posture to comfort myself and felt my pulse. It reminded me that through all of this there was still me. No matter what life brought me, no matter how lonely, excited, adventures, quiet, outcast or enthusiastic I felt, I would always have me. If life is a movie, my words serve the script and the music my soundtrack.

In the spring, one month before the close of this CD, I had a complete computer system failure. The entire CD and all backup copies lay in ruins. Nine months of work down the drain. The only remnants, a test CD I made a few days prior. After much debate and internal strife, I decided to release this 'test' CD as is. I just couldn't go back in and re-record the entire album. My soul couldn't take it. So, minus some tweaks and fixes and one rough scratch vocal, here is my PULSE.
 

Sing Your Mood
Written and conceived as the opening track for the CD. This tune simply walks you through the writing process. From the beginning of a desire to create, the intended subject matter, to the "what" surrounds it, the complete story and finally the musical style.

Lucidity
Lucidity is the first tune that I wrote overseas, in fact it was the first tune written after a 4-month break. It literally came pouring out one afternoon. The subject matter apparent, my heart's on my sleeve.

Show Me That You Care
Probably the best song I have ever written. Chordally, lyrically and arrangement, this is what I have always aspired to. It is a sad song, from a sad time in my life, but ironically the song that gives me the most joy now.

Turn Back Time
Written and recorded as a rock song, but I scratched the rock version once my new CD concept came into focus. The vocal tracks are leftover from the rocker, I revamped the groove, the feel, the guitars and just felt the rest.

Spinning Round
This is far and away one of my favorite songs I have ever written and recorded. This was also the most difficult to record over these many years. The tunes 7 chord openness and musical key changes make it quite difficult to perform. I just love this tune.

Firefly
Late night jamming. There is a story in there, it's about 3 different people, doing 3 different things. A Puzzle I guess.

Lost In You
A love song written late at night by a fire pit on the Red Sea. This is about that special someone. Lost in You, is the second song that I wrote for Pulse.

Too Far
The trance-emotional-break song. The perfect bridge and pause between Lost In You and Reverence. 

Reverence
The last tune that I wrote for Pulse. It is unfinished. This is the rough version of the tune. I have updated lyrics and a modified arrangement. My computer crash prevented this from being re-recorded. I plan to release an updated version 2 on my next CD.

Learning To Swim
This is quite intentionally the last song on the CD. It summarizes my entire overseas experience and the entire subject matter of this CD.

Lucidity
Show Me That You Care
Turn Back Time
Spinning Round
Lost In You

CD Release Party on the Nile

Gathered up my guitar, 50 friends and b-lined it for the water. We tied up 2 Felucca's (large sail boat/tubs) and set sail on the river Nile.

A Memorable evening all around, how could it not be, how often do you have a CD Release party on the Nile surrounded by great people, music and laughter.