Andi Camp (San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, 1998 - present)
Andi Camp - piano, vocals, whatever
Jeff Turner - drums (the perfect stranger)
Tony Jamesbarry - cello, upright bass
Martin Castillo - drums (the awful truth)
Joey Prude - drums (you are the vehicle)
RFK Heise - drums (magnetic)
Anderson Rice - guitar and vocal guest star (you are the vehicle, magnetic)
WFJ! - collaborative and touring partners (you are the vehicle)
Piano was my first instrument. I started taking lessons when I was six years old. I played almost exclusively classical music. No one ever encouraged me to make up my own songs, and it never really occurred to me to try it on my own. I was always just reading sheet music.
Fast forward to my time living in California. I'd been playing bass in bands for years by then, but hadn't been playing piano at all. It wasn't really an option since I didn't own one. I picked up an electric piano, almost on a whim, curious what it would be like to play now that all I did was play music that I'd had a hand in writing.
Turned out to be pretty fun. And while I much prefer playing in bands, here's the thing about bands: they break up. A solo project might not be as rewarding, but it goes where you go.
After a bunch of years writing, touring, recording, and releasing records, the solo project began to feel like something I was doing just because. It stopped being fun. I was no longer inspired.
So I stopped. I didn't play piano for quite a few years. A few things changed in 2010, and eventually I found my way back to my piano. I wrote a few new songs, played a couple of shows, but this time it really is just a side project.
Sometimes we get caught up in producing stuff and doing stuff and thinking about what's next all the time, and we forget to do the things we love just because we love to do them. Have I finally learned that lesson? Probably not, but here's hoping.
-Andi
Grafton 07 - The first solo release from Andi Camp, this ep was recorded and mixed in an afternoon at Eric Stenman's house in LA on a shoestring budget.
Grafton 08 - Lots of touring, relocating to Portland, and hooking up with new partners in crime led to this release, the first full length from Andi Camp. This cd features Jeff Turner on drums and Tony Jamesbarry on bass, and was recorded by Rob Bartleson at Haywire and Sound Impressions in Portland.
Grafton 09 - The second full length from Andi Camp is a bit swingier, a bit more understated. Tony Jamesbarry returns, Anderson Rice guests on a couple of tracks, and Martin Castillo steps in to fill the rather large shoes vacated by Jeff Turner. Recorded by Rob Bartleson at Haywire and Supernatural.
Grafton 11 - The last full length from Andi Camp prior to a six year break, this is a quick cd that ties up loose ends. Less orchestrated and more stripped down, this album features RFK Heise on drums as well as a collaboration with Anderson Rice. Recorded by Rob Bartleson at Haywire and Supernatural Studios.