Vince Mazzola Discusses new Cosmic Balance Machine Single: Blackout

Cosmic Balance Machine, a project by Vince Mazzola, released its debut single entitled "Blackout" on October 23. The song length is 3:19 and Vince lists Rollins Band, Corrosion of Conformity, Motorhead, Royal Blood, Metallica, the Grunge movent, and Queens of the Stone Age as the main influences for this particular song. 

The idea for the song came on a night out in Blacksburg, Va while still attending Virginia Tech. "I was at a bar in Blacksburg called Top Of The Stairs," he says as he recalls seeing tons of people packed together in a courtyard inside of the bar. "I could make a cool song about this," he thought to himself.

Getting the song completed and released has been a long time coming for Vince, as he said he first had the idea for the song in 2018. "The recording process was very stop and start, very... weeks between things happening. In some cases months," he revealed.  

Vince continued to persist because he knew that the song could still be something he could be proud of. So in order to help elevate the song to the level that Vince knew it could reach, he enlisted the help of his friend Eirik Iversen to play on the song, and help produce it as well. The two met in college and played together in a band called sleep.year, which released a demo in October of 2018. Vince said he enjoyed getting the chance to work with Eirik again. 

"It's a huge relief that I can put this one and be able to fully focus on some of the other ones. ." Vince said about releasing the song. "As opposed to having so many pots on the stove. Now I can finally take this one off."

When asked about when he will release other songs, Vince replied by saying that he has "a long term plan in mind" but is still debating as to when and how he will release future material. 

A big part of his plan is a concept in which Blackout is a part. "A big theme of the overall project is growth," he told me. Writing songs that other people can recognize is important to Vince. Some of the references in his song are drawn from his autobiographical events, and things he saw while in Blacksburg, but it doesn't necessarily mean that one has to have gone to Virginia Tech as he did.

"There's not a bar called The Cellar, or PK's (here), but they could say 'hey, this is that bar I go to.' It's about portraying my experiences and trying to see what people can relate to... if they do." Anything that is considered relatable in his music would be a huge honor, but the most important thing for him is to continue to enjoy making music. "Blackout" is a good song within itself, as well as a good beginning to what Vince is trying to build under the moniker of Cosmic Balance Machine. 

I'm Actually Having Fun At Home

The name "In Town And On Tour" originated from Hashtags I typically used on most of my Instagram posts. I would use "#TaylorInTown" if I was doing something cool in Atlanta, or pretty much anywhere else 2 hours away. If I ever went out of state or to a completely different part of Georgia, I would use "#TaylorOnTour."

This blog was meant to be an expansion of that, and I think I've done well in that regard. Sometimes I'm hard on myself because I know I should be writing more often, but I'm still proud of concert reviews, road trip recaps, and interviews that I've done on this blog.

Because of this Pandemic, Concerts and sports are both canceled, and traveling is very ill-advised. There's also that matter than I'm a grocery store worker, which is a challenging job to have right now, as much as I am happy to still have a job.

When I do get to spend any amount of time at home, whether it be a whole day off or whatever amount of time there is between getting home from work and going work the next day, I do find it enjoyable to just be home. However, I really want to get back to writing regularly. And I want to do it for fun, not just for school assignments.

One of the many "drafts" that I ended up deleting rather than posting was the story about how much fun I had when I took some paid time off from work for a "Staycation" at the end of December 2019. Don't get me wrong, it was a fun week. But I feel like there's an art to writing a successful blog post about just sitting around watching Netflix, or playing Video games for two weeks, and I haven't quite figured out how to do that yet.

I did promise one of my gaming friends that I would talk about our group's effort in the "Pro Clubs" mode on FIFA 20. For those that aren't familiar with the game, it's basically a co-op mode where each person creates their own player and locks into a position.  We've been winning a lot of games, which of course, adds to the fun, but I'm just happy to be playing with them regardless.

Since I'm the lone American on a team where the other 3 (sometimes 4) members are English, there are a lot of back and forth jokes, or "banter" as they like to call it about some of the cultural differences, and of course the usual jokes about each other's skills. They enjoy making fun of how Americans call it "Soccer," and I like to make fun of them when they miss an easy goal after I deliver a perfect pass to them. I choose to believe it all evens out in the end.

Maybe the key to writing about what I'm watching on Netflix is to dedicate a whole post to one show, instead of just creating a list, or just forcing it into a story that has a few different topics, such as this one.

I finished my Associate's Degree Program last December, and I've been binge-watching the show "Community" lately. Part of me feels like it might be fun to compare what I see on the show, and what I experienced during my time at Community College.

As I mentioned before the with the "staycation" piece that I decided to scrap, I don't see all of my story ideas as worth posting, as fun as they may be. I do think it's time for me to loosen my own restrictions on my creativity, so hopefully, I can do a better of posting more often and having a wider variety of subjects to post about

After all, this is my personal blog, and I enjoy writing, so it doesn't do me any good to continually overthink to the point where I just have no motivation to write for anything other than school assignments.

When I started this blog two years ago, I figured I'd have more than nine entries by now, but I don't. The only thing I can do is try to write more right now. In addition to wanting to entertain myself, I want to be able to make my writing routine enough so that when I am allowed to go back to attending events and taking road trips, I can start writing about the vast majority of them like I originally intended.

I might be a long way off from completing either objective, but I'm still pretty proud of myself for following through on this idea, especially since I came up with the idea on my break earlier today. I hope everyone who read this enjoyed it and stays safe as well. 

Fairshake's New EP: A "Sitcom" Worth Tuning Into

Following the release of their 2018 Self-titled Debut Album, Atlanta Pop Rock band Fairshake will release their new EP entitled “Sitcom”  on Friday, April 17, and I personally could not be more excited. Since I discovered Fairshake last summer, I’ve been impressed with good their songs are, and how cool they are with their fans, myself included.

When I finally got to see them live for the first time last November at The Masquerade, it was a pretty great experience. They put on a great set, and their singer/guitarist Shayne Goss took the time to chat with me for a little bit afterward because she noticed I was upfront jamming out to songs such as “Sun Kissed,” “Save Me,” as well as “Valium,”  that I had become so familiar with.

"Sitcom" will be released on Friday, April 17

Fast forward a few months later, “Sitcom” is ready to be released, and fans were given a taste of what to expect with their newest single “25 Bucks,” which is possibly their most exceptional song yet. It came at a time where everyone is trying to adjust to unprecedented circumstances in life. A lot of people aren't sure what to do with a lot of things they enjoy doing being canceled, and places they enjoy going being closed. For music fans who are really missing going to concerts, discovering new artists, or listening to new material from artists they already enjoy can be very uplifting despite everything else going on. I know the latter was the case for me when "25 Bucks" was released, and if maybe if you take a moment to listen to Fairshake's material, both new, as well as from years past, the former can be the case for you.

Shayne was kind enough to agree to answer a few questions I had about the EP and Fairshake in general. So without further ado, here is my interview with Shayne Goss of Fairshake. Please enjoy it, and be sure to check out “Sitcom” on your preferred streaming Platforms on April 17. 

Q: What has the feedback been like for the new single, 25 bucks? 

A: The single is taking very well without a shift in sound from the manic, happy-go-lucky-i-wanna-die sound we have always had to something a little darker. I think I speak for all of us when I say it is probably one of our top favorite songs of the collection, especially for it being a song about our experiences and creating mental health awareness (which we are all about) and the opioid crisis in the U.S.

Q: In the 25 bucks music video, there was footage used from the show that you did with The Dangerous Summer. How much fun was it to do that show?

A: We had a blast. Sold Out Show! How could you not? We love performing and interacting with folks, so it was like heaven to us. Music is the language of the spirit! This is what we live for. Plus, Ben Cato (percussion for TDS) is our producer, so the fact it worked out that we could be their local support was awesome. Ben has become one of my good friends over the past couple of years. Working with him and Jeremy at Cocoa Break Studios feels like home. We are very excited to release the new EP "Sitcom" on April 17, and once the quarantine is over, we are right back in the studio to record a new record!

Q: What else can we expect from this EP? Are the other songs of a similar nature? 

A: Yes. I would say that "Sitcom" is a good transition and representation of the sounds we have been before but a little more polished to the sound we are transitioning to. Don't worry. We are not completely abandoning the Power Pop/Pop Punky sound, but have just matured. The way writing used to work is that it was just me (Shayne Goss), but inducting Chase Sammons and Tucker Harding into the band a few years ago has made it a group think method with ideas we bring to the table. I know 2020 has been a tough year for all of us, and I have a lot to say about it. You will definitely find that the new material will be more in the vein of Valium (Rx Refill) and 25 Bucks.

Q: Where did the idea to name the EP “Sitcom” come from?

A: The name "Sitcom" was actually an idea Tucker had. I was trying to find a word for an experience that gave you hope that everything would be just fine in the end. Just like a TV show where there is an issue, you learn the lesson, and everything is good by the end of the 20-minute episode. That being said, the way the EP ends leaves you off in a key of irony, rather than one of hope. Not everything is like Full House, sometimes you are stuck in purgatory with a bad situation or emotions. 

Q: Obviously, everyone is pretty down without any concerts happening right now. But I think it’s still a great time for artists to release new music so fans can still have something to look forward to. Do you take a lot of pride in being able to help lift people’s spirits in times like these?

A: The key to success is staying confident in yourself but humble, so there is no pride involved with what we do to help the community. Though, I would say we are proud of ourselves as individuals for what we have done to take care of ourselves and the work that has been done to be our best selves. You and I both know this is a never-ending journey. We are all out here trying to be our best selves. It doesn't matter who you were yesterday and what you have been through, you still have the choice to make today, and your dreams come true. This is what Fairshake means.