CHRIS BARTELS

Music.Video.Photography.Thoughts. I run Anthem Falls Music and write and record albums as @borayork and @elskavon ... Here's my Instagram... Life is short. Live inspired.

[chrisbartels]

[chrisbartels]

[chrisbartels]

Our recent interview with @thecurrent is up on the Local Current blog! thecurrent.org

[chrisbartels]

I've learned a few things as an independent artist seeking press for new music the past couple years. 1. It takes time. If you think it'll take x amount of hours to email and submit your new single to everyone you have planned, be prepared for twice that. 2. You've got to use rejection as motivation fuel. Because you'll get rejected. A lot. But this is easier said than done, you need to CHOOSE this. Emotion can and should be a huge part of your music, but it has no place while blog pushing. 3. Organization. It's essential. Keep good records of contacts, past press, and who's thrown your stuff in a playlist. I use Google Drive spreadsheets (color coding is super helpful). I also have to go through every time and see which blogs are no longer active, and what styles they feature, if it's a new project or different style song than past submissions. 3. I've got a lot to learn. Always. I've got certain strategies and methods I've built up through the years, but they pretty much change every with every release... Gotta adapt. 4. None of this is possible without coffee. It's not exactly fun stuff. Stay awake. #newmusic #musicblogs #musicpress #indiemusic #indie #mplsmusic

[chrisbartels]

Drop Flip is Apple's free app of the week. It's got two songs I wrote as background music, and the sound effects. Check it out!

[chrisbartels]

Our first ever official music video is NOW LIVE! It's our track Arrest Me. Bio link 👆🏼 Conceptualized, directed, and edited by @josephdanielmcmahon. Starring @kaleenamiller. Director of Photography is @kyleramseymoe. Gaffers Joey Knox-Carr & Keith Moechnig. I want to personally thank all these talented people for their hard work and for making this happen! Hope you all like it and please share. Love, BY. (at The Ritz Theater)

[chrisbartels]

Thanks everyone who came out to our @hificali show last night. And big thanks to @benwoodis @jordannimlos @viennalewin @thetaylorlewin @cerlander (& Connor) for helping out with video and sound and things. Hoping I can put together a halfway decent live video of a song or two soon. (at honey mpls)

[chrisbartels]

So crazy to think that this album is THREE years old today! #DreamingFree

[chrisbartels]

Last night's playground. #AbletonPush #samplr #samplrapp #vio #vioapp #ableton #studio #recording #production

[chrisbartels]

Playing a @hificali show with @bjorn.nilsen tonight at Honey in NE. Early show - music starts at 8.

[chrisbartels]

The drummer. 👅. 📷: @j.rogee (at First Avenue & 7th St Entry)

[chrisbartels]

He's been my main man for 28 years now. Happy bday brotha! @benwoodis (at 612BREW)

[chrisbartels]

Let Loose was the first song since the debut album, and we put it out over a year prior to the full album release. Though by some standards, it certainly didn't go "viral" or anything like that, the positive response to the song was exponentially greater than anything else we had seen ourselves to that point. Super exciting for us. Currently on Soundcloud, it's nearing 70k views, thanks to you all sharing online and several blog writers spreading the love. Sometimes I think too hard about things when writing songs, and try too hard to make something new and interesting, or I straight up add too much stuff to a song. Let Loose from the get-go was going to be a simple disco backbeat and a repetitive funky bass line. That was it. And scrap the usual abstract lyrics... this was a dance-floor party song and we just left it at that. If we ever have catchy melodies with BY songs... most likely Rebekah wrote it. She has a melody-writing gift. This is one of the few I came up with. She approved. Third greatest day of my life. Nope. Not quite that. But it was a good day. ••• borayork.bandcamp.com ••• ‪#‎SecretYouthSongStories‬

[chrisbartels]

Midnight Glow was conceptualized years before Bora York was ever a thing.  Original BY percussionist + keyboard man Charlie Wirth came up with the bassline and I started throwing on some synthy goods and samples when I was first starting to use Logic.  At the time, anything dancey / electronicy was completely in its own world from what we were used to writing. Only a few of you may know what our band was back then... and I'm not talking about Letter and Lines.... Oh, and PS... the original song name was "Dance Ambulance."  Worst decision in BY history when we changed that name??? borayork.bandcamp.com #SecretYouthSongStories

[chrisbartels]

Living room work station. Sometimes you gotta just write the jams on carpet. ••••• #studio #recording #production #music #ableton #abletonpush #nanokontrol #korg #akai #lpk25 #blackandwhite #mpls #mn #minneapolis #minnesota #picslit #vscocam #hificali

[chrisbartels]

Bek and the bud up nort. #tbt (at Palisade Head)

[chrisbartels]

Me and the bud up nort. #tbt (at Palisade Head)