Hey there, thanks for tuning in.. its' been a minute! Here's a little something that has been rustling around my head for the last couple of days - heres a picture of my head for reference

 

 Photography by Sara Jayne Prince

 

 My favourite songwriters capture moments in time.

 

The detail in the lyrics and movement of the music creates such a beautiful tapestry of emotion and vivid imagery for us to escape into.

This is the role of songs and music – in my humble opinion, and our responsibility as songwriters. To share those experiences in the best way that we can by staying true to our art. 

But what I have never really thought too much about, is where the first chime of the idea or concept for the songs were created, were they in the studio? Or like me, are they often immaculately unplanned and its just sheer luck that were not too busy to forget them the minute they surface.

I for one, have hundreds of random voice memos and lyric notes strewn all through my phone and scrap notebooks from the last 10 years of my adult life. Most of them came at the most inconvenient of times, driving to Woolworths or the next gig across the country, mid conversation with friends, as I’m about to play the first note of a gig, and last but not least – in the shower, it’s like your mind goes ‘oh you’re relaxed now, here’s all the poetry you’ve been holding onto for the last 3 weeks’. Any writer will tell you this, we don’t choose when to receive the information, it is just important for us to be open to whenever it sees fit to show itself to us.

I was reminded this week of the true story behind a song which I have been performing for the last couple of years. It is one of my most favourite pieces and has connected me to thousands of people around the world so far – Just between you and me, I will be releasing the album version of this song this year and I can’t wait to show you.

‘I have always told the story of ‘The Landing’ as a space I found close to my old apartment in Brisbane, this grassy park looked over the Story Bridge and the city and it was a place I found a lot of solace. For someone who suffers with an eternal busy mind, and often busy existence to find a place of genuine peace was a true gift.  It was a space for contemplation, consideration, and meditation. And that is how I crafted the song to be, explaining the space, the view, the thought, the offering. Alas, that was not where the idea was born.. Pause for suspense.

I was talking to one of my closest friends, talented musician Daniel J. Lewis about the new recording I have been working on while we listened to the first mix. Mid discussion he said something that caught my attention, he said ‘I can’t believe I was there when this idea was first created, and seeing what it has grown into’. It would seem that this was a detail that I forgot, and he prompted me with the story.

On this particular afternoon, we were working together on song writing, and I was neck deep in a tangent on different methods of writing aids. Dan had recently started his journey into writing songs and we were discussing different ways to formulate ideas. We were working inside the apartment in New Farm and being such a beautiful Brisbane day we decided to venture out with one guitar out to the grassy space which later became ‘The Landing’. I was talking about visual triggers being the concept builder for a song, and in explaining my point I looked out over the city and softly sung over a simple melody

 

‘This landing has a perfect view

We’re hand in hand, just me and you

(This lyric was edited later in the rewriting process to ‘The sky’s alive with gold and blue’)

At 5:09 this afternoon

This landing has a perfect view’

 

And that was where it started, a moment of teaching. Without even knowing it, something started that day. Where it will end up, who knows. All I learnt is that it is important to keep my heart, eyes and ears open because you never know when the next song is going to hit you.

 

 

Cherish the moment,

 

      J.LOVEGROVE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hello dear friends, it's been a while.. I promise I will be trying to make these posts a little bit more consistent. It's been a while! 

A few months ago I teamed up with a talented bunch of lads to help me update my looping rig. It's multiplied and gotten bigger, heavier and more buttons than ever, but more on that soon.

Naut Cases : Custom Built the pedalboards, risers and hardcases

Pedal Empire: Built and wired up all the components of the pedalboard.

JH Productions: Built the custom loom between the two boards.

Goodwood Audio: Built the Custom Patchbays and Junction Boxes

It wouldn't be what it is without a great range of pedals including Strymon, Boss, Morningstar FX, Way Huge Electronics, Electro Harmonix, Xotic, Bondi Effects, Hermida Audio, One Control, Molten Voltage, Line 6 and Walrus Audio. Read the full rundown at www.lovegrovemusic.com/rig-run-down

I need to say a huge thank you to everyone involved in this build, it truly was a huge effort on all fronts. Matt and Ben from Pedal Empire, Jason from Naut, Jack from JH Productions and the boys from Goodwood really went above and beyond. Highly recommended for all you pedalboard enthusiasts out there!

 

No shame in saying that it's become a fully fledged passion of mine, a new way to nurture my creativity and write songs in a totally new way. So now I'm at the driving wheel of this brand new double decker bus of a pedalboard and absolutely loving it. I will be hitting the road pretty soon to play my first festival with the new setup down at the PEAK FESTIVAL in Perisher Valley. Link below

http://peakfestival.com.au/2017-lineup/

I have been working hard on a brand new sound, new songs, and an exciting new show to hit the road around Australia in Spring of 2017 so keep your eyes open for that!

I've had some people asking me lately if all of the technology takes anything away from my fundamental outlook on performing live. Which has always stemmed from the viewpoint of an acoustic singer/ songwriter. The short answer is no, it truly doesn't. At university I studied a Bachelor of Popular Music at the Conservatorium which had a focus on music production as it was about artistry. I learned a lot while I was completing my degree, about myself as an artist, and a person, eighteen to twenty- one.. feels like a lifetime ago. I also learned a lot about the way that i visualise songs when I am writing them. I found the art of live looping was the perfect way to facilitate that vision and actively create soundscapes the way that i visualise them. The way that I see it, all of this technology gives me the chance to truly be more musical and an unfiltered link into creative possibilities. 

At the end of the day, after all the electricity is out, the pedals and amps and speakers are rendered obsolete you will still find me making music in a big empty room singing. I just love creating stuff, it doesn't really matter whether we're using strings, or drums, or my voice or abundances of blinking lights, buttons and effects, lets just keep doing what makes us happy, shall we?!

 

Until next time,

 

 

 

 

 

Well here she is, we've all been patiently waiting for her.

2017, I for one am so very pleased to see you! The turn of a new year always is a good time to reflect on the past, project to the future and be thankful for the present.

So here we are, a few days (weeks) into the new year. It was certainly a ride, with plenty of ups and downs, successes and failed attempts, bundled with good memories, great friends, and important lessons learnt.
In true fashion of the universe the most obvious messages can be the hardest to see. On Netflix of all places, I stumbled across perhaps one of the most appropriate quotes to sum up my year

'A true champion who had never felt the heaviness of defeat, would never truly know what it felt like to win'.

There were many points last year that I had felt defeated, exhausted, unmotivated, plagued by illness, but I finally realised how temporary that state was, and how much my mindset had to play a huge role in those times of trial. So maybe perspective was one of the greatest gifts 2016 could have given.

Anyway,

I hope all of you brought in the new year in style! I was lucky enough to spend the week leading up to, teaching live looping workshops in 'Learn to Loop - The Singing Space' with Mr. Percival at the Woodford Folk Festival, followed by a great New Years Eve show at one of my favourite venues on the Gold Coast 'The NightQuarter'.

It has been a snowball from there.

The biggest news for the week is that I successfully finished the first stage of my 'I'm Not Done' single release. Nearly selling out of all of the physical copies of the limited edition Single in the Woodford festival shop. It will next be available worldwide on Spotify and iTunes within the next week or so.

I worked really hard for the last few months of 2k16 to bring you these couple of songs in the lead up for my debut album in 2017. With a great team on my side including Darren Percival, Brett Shaw (producer), Aaron Griffin (engineer), William Bowden (Mastering), Listen to the Graphics (CD cover design) and Aus Step (Printing), I hope you find a few moments to have a listen and enjoy them.

That's it for now, but not forever.

Yours in Music,

Since our last correspondence a lot has been happening - today my mind is a bit of a blizzard but I will try to stay on track. Firstly, my jaunt to the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales finished up, and as I drove down the mountain range ever closing the gap back to real life, I lingered on the moments which were created over the week - Open fires, manic dinner conversations, staggering falls over the slopes and Sailor Jerry's and coke with lime to ease the pain. Cabin fever during the whiteout snow storms, which raged for days, before flying free across a new days powder, skidoo rides and late night looping sessions - memories for the ages, and I cannot wait to get back #thisislivingbarry

One of the most important things that you will ever know about me is how much I love driving. I was nearly twenty- two before I was legally able to drive, but if I had known how freeing the open road was I'm sure I would have been first in line on my sixteenth birthday - better late than never, I suppose.

Making my way back up the coast to Brisbane gave me time to think - rebalance, refresh and ponder that particular time in my life and all things surrounding me. Adventure, love, time, music, fortune, and all of the thoughts that consistently linger in my consciousness. Although these are everlasting I may not always give them enough time amongst the hustle and bustle of everyday life. The sixteen hour drive home was full of beautiful scenery, the best of company, and trains of thought in their abundance.

For the last couple of years I have felt a bit off centre within myself, and hopefully I can articulate why. I have been busy, and maybe I was too busy to really understand that there was a shift in the way that I had started to see myself - Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise to finally see that I, in fact, was only a musician. Learning the mechanics of the craft, but as such losing sight of the art.

To clarify, I don't say 'only the musician' with any sense of condescension. I mean that within myself I had started to identify as a mechanic of music, day in and day out, instead of a human who used the music as a tool to extend artistic expression or a feeling of truth. I think it was both a sense of maturity that boarded the windows and doors - metaphorically - and played it safe while that same sensibility has me writing this journal to you now, sharing unfiltered thoughts.

I suppose the conclusion of this blog is that I have realised that more than someone who stands onstage with a guitar in hand, I am not a musician. I am a human being with something important to say. I can't quite say it all just yet but for now, I'll simply say that I appreciate your time reading this and your presence in my world, and never forget - We are more than what we do, it's how we use our energy to connect to the people in our lives that defines us.


Yours in music,

Hello. If you're taking a moment to read this blog - thank you, I truly appreciate your time.  

I haven't done anything like this before so I figured that 'there's no time like the present' to try something new.

I'm writing this from my little room in Perisher Valley, NSW listening to the sound of the blizzard blowing outside my window. It's comforting to me, similar to the crashing of the surf, but it brings a cool chill to the air and has me confined to the depths of my sleeping bag. 

I am spending the next week exploring the white wilderness of the Snowy Mountains, performing each night at a cozy spot called Eiger Chalet in downtown Perisher. There's so much to do here but after skiing for a couple of hours each morning i find myself confined in the lodge into the eve, as Mother Nature demonstrates the full measures of this extreme climate (at least for this rookie Queenslander).

Its always a freeing feeling to step outside of the box, to let your hair down - for me, both figuratively and literally - and step into a totally different side of life. I have truly missed being on the road, sleeping in the van, making my way from here to there, and picking up pieces of inspiration along the way, Its time to get back to it.

 

"I know I've been lost living my life on the road,

It's the price that I pay for my travellers soul"

- J. Lovegrove, 2016

 

For the sake of transparency, I wanted to write this next part to be accountable for what has been on my mind of late. Stay with me.

First thought, It's not easy when somebody asks you why you do what you do, and what you are here to say - as a songwriter, this is particularly important - but what is even harder, is when you can not fully articulate a response which satisfies both your logical brain and your creative soul.

I found myself inside of that reality after the question was poised to me. To avoid any misunderstanding - I, and anyone who knows me, know that I love what I do both as my passion, and my job. To make music, to perform it, and to connect is what I live for and at this stage in my life, is all I can see myself doing for many years to come.

What became clear to me at this point, was that I often found myself with things left unsaid #safe. Most of the time, it was the most important things that I held onto with such conviction - when the reality is that I should have been shouting these things from the rooftops.

People say that you must be brave to be honest, and I am slowly learning that the things that make my heart heavy, or my soul sing, or bring light and joy into my life are the only things that will truly connect me to you, if I am brave enough to share them. So here's me saying that it's time once again to wear my heart on my sleeve, to let my hair down and show you the real me, and this is step one.

Theres something magic on the horizon, and I can't wait to share it. 

 

Yours in Music, 

 

P.S. Not all blog entries will be as serious as this one, I just wanted to start with a clean slate.