Chris Sand

Olympia Music History Project Showcase!

My bandmate Ian Smith and I had an excellent adventure to Olympia, WA, in August. Here's the video of our show. My drummer from back in the day--Chad Austinson--joined us last minute and did an awesome job holding down the groove.

The whole video is great, imo, but if you zoom the the 40:30 mark, you'll hear a brand-spankin' new song called “King Adrock & Queen Kathleen.”

Big thanks to the Olympia Music History Project and Free Music Oly for inviting us out there. It was a huge honor to be recognized as one of the movers and shakers from the “old days” in Olyville. : )

Have a ball 🍒

I'll be singing solo from 7-8pm. 🐂

Road trip! My good buddy Ian Smith will be joining me for this crazy Olympia Music History showcase in Olympia, WA, on 8/23. It starts at 2pm, but I'm not yet sure what time we start. Probably early-ish.

New Video - Nowhere Left to Hide

“Nowhere Left to Hide” is the 4th official video from NON-JUDGMENT DAY which was released on January 21, 2024.

Video directed by Colter Olmstead

Editing & Cinematography by Colter Olmstead

Plot idea by Kirsten Kearse

Big thanks to Nan Parsons for lending her rustic cabin and to Gail Hale for use of the Basin Community Hall.

Musicians -

Guitar, vox & lyrics: Chris Sand / Fiddle: Grace Decker / Drums: Joseph Running Crane / Mandolin: John Rosett / Standup bass: John Sporman / Pedal Steel: Gibson Hartwell / Backup vox: Ian Smith, Riddy Arman, Jenny Montgomery, Foreshadow, Maria Zepeda, Sussex School Children’s Choir

"Nowhere Left to Hide" was produced by Shadow Devereaux at Nu Wav Studio in Missoula, MT, and tracked by Matthew Bainton at Sound Rich Productions.

New Video! - End of America

“End of America” AKA “End of America (begin again)” was recorded in one afternoon by Phil Elverum who plays bass, organ & drums on it. Karl Blau shreds near the end. Geneviève, Allyson & Nicholas lent their voices.

David Scherer Water made this video. Check out his Substack!: https://davidschererwater.substack.com/p/the-end-of-america

40 Days & 40 Nights of Ramblin' 🎶

A year ago today I began Leap Month Tour '24. Here's a no frills summary with the final three weeks truncated:

LEAP MONTH TOUR '24

Day 1 (1/31): Loaded my tour merch, musical equipment, and clothes into my ‘97 Toyota Tacoma and hit the road west from Missoula at 8 PM. Spent the night at Candyce’s duck farm near Medicine Lake, WA.

In the middle of the night, I checked my email and saw that Carrie Oldright had Venmoed me $200, requesting that I play a show for underprivileged kids, ideally in Reedsport, OR. I couldn’t make that happen in Oregon, but I did four weeks later at a daycare in Paw Paw, MI.

Day 2 (2/01): Continued west to Seattle for the LEAP MONTH TOUR ‘24 debut—a house concert at Sheri & Ross’ place. I was rusty after months without playing guitar, but the audience was supportive, and I found my groove halfway through the set. At 1:46 AM, I finally sent out my overdue tour itinerary email, opening with:

“Dear Sandfans: I just played my first house concert of tour at Sheri & Ross’ marigold mini mansion. The audience was extremely supportive, and I found my sea legs about halfway through the set.”

I also mentioned that I’d just released an early version of NON-JUDGMENT DAY on Bandcamp—available only until midnight.

Day 3 (2/02): Woke up to a surprise. Erika Fredrickson of The Pulp (Missoula’s independent news org) wrote a fun article about my accidental album release:

New video! - Darkest Day (Feat. Foreshadow)

Many thanks to Elgin Smith for compiling the historical footage for this video.

“Darkest Day” was produced by Shadow Deveraux--aka Foreshadow--who also raps on the song. Ian Smith plays Wurlitzer; Grace Decker plays fiddle; Matt Bainton drums; Hermina Harrold and R'Know lend their voices; Nate Biehl plays electric guitar; Gibson Hartwell plays pedal steel; I play acoustic guitar and sing.

I write more about this song here: https://rappincowboy.com/campaigns/1008024