Artist Spotlight Shuffle: Chris Blake

So, as I was saying the other day…Twitter truly is a magical place.

I started following this Chris Blake person because of his amusing tweets – especially the ones about ‘his kid’. Now, I defy anyone to argue the point that there’s not much more heartwarming than an Father who clearly loves his child.  He does – as is evidenced by gems like:

1. First words from the kid after I picked him up from school: “Guess what! I like ants.”
2. The kid calls big dents in cars “crashes.” Little dents are called “nibbles.”
3. Taught the kid a new word today. Authorized. As in: You are not authorized to grab a snack.
4. Very proud of my kindergartener tonight. Goodnight moon.

Too dang cute. Now, all this and here I was – never realizing that he was a musician! (Dude, I can’t know EVERYTHING…)

Then, an article comes out listing him as the SEVENTH SEXIEST GUY ON TWITTER.  Of course, I needed to discern for myself the veracity of this statement…(strictly as a marginally professional interweb-journalist, you understand)…

and  (a.) they’re right:

(2.) he’s GOOD.

So, immediately after I accosted him on Twitter respectfully requested that he be our very first “Artist Spotlight Shuffler” , I started the research.  Here’s what I came up with – some of it may or may not be true.  You decide:

He grew up in the frigid mountains of Northern Latvia.  The son of sheep herders (that’s not a typo.  Latvians don’t consider themselves ‘shepherds’.  They spell it out.), he once slew a fearsome, sheep gobbling dragon with a tainted jam sandwich while sitting by his Grandmother’s lake.  That’s where he gets his Americanized surname:  B’Lake.  (He dropped the apostrophe.)

He considers the most wonderful thing about being a Father to be the ability to settle and argument with “because”.

He’s a master of Social Networking.  He’s gracious, polite and unassuming, yet he’s not going to wait for a Record Label staff to promote him.  He’s making it happen himself.

His favorite board game as a kid was Stratego.  He even loved the commercial:  “Strateeeeggooo!”

More importantly…what I’ve discerned for myself is that his music has a POINT.  Environmentally aware, socially conscious,  paternal, regretful – Chris Blake is a “thinking man’s artist”.  He’s one for those of us who want some depth in our entertainment.  The emotion he emits and evokes with his songs is palpable because he believes what he’s singing.  I can’t get “Party on the Last Iceberg” out of my head, and it’s not only because of the catchy hook and his more than adequate semi-rapping. It’s because he’s RIGHT.

This is an intelligent, stand-up guy who creates beautifully melodic music that makes you feel.  The kind of musician I WANT to support, in an industry filled with smoke and mirrors.

And lucky for us, he listens to good music, too!  (He gets extra points from me for numbers 1, 5, 6 & 8…demerits for #3.)

Enjoy Chris’s Shuffle below, and the “liner notes” that follow.  Great guy that he is, he’s also sent me two copies of his current CDs,  as a Giveaway! Leave a comment here, and include the word WAVE to enter.

(And, y’know…if you wanted to Tweet about it, too…Chris and I wouldn’t be mad atcha…just sayin!)

1. Lazy Eye (Silversun Pickups): Quite possibly the best song about lazy eye I’ve ever heard.
2. Let It Be (The Beatles): Amazing how this still reels you in.
3. Rock Me Tonight (Billy Squier): Great song, but impossible to forget that unfortunate music video. I wonder how they pitched it… “Yeah, Billy, first you put on a shirt. Then you rip it. Then you put on another shirt. And all the while you’re dancing like a girl.”
4. Santa Claus is Coming to Town (Four Seasons): WTF? (Ri edit: Couldn’t find this, thank cheeses! I subbed.)
5. Running Scared (Roy Orbison): This song still makes me anxious. Even though I know how it ends, I can’t relax until I hear the very last word that says the guy got the girl.
6. Take the A Train (Duke Ellington): Yes, I buy music based on the Woody Allen movies I see.
7. Videotape (Radiohead): This song can single-handedly bring down your day. Probably because you can’t just listen to it once.
8. The Rat (The Walkmen): Oh I’ve been there, man.
9. Closer to Fine (Indigo Girls): Kinda hard to recall another song that makes you feel this good.
10. The Boy Done Wrong Again (Belle & Sebastian): Boy, do I have some depressing music. After this I’m gonna go back to Closer to Fine…

Go buy the music you love.

Chris Blake’s CDs ‘Wave’ and ‘Tetris’ available now at  iTunes:  and Amazon: and we’re giving some away!  Comment here and include the word WAVE to enter!

Follow Chris on Twitter , Facebook and MySpace.  (and tell him I sent you!)