The Lovely Carla Hayden always starts whitewolfsonicprincess performances by ringing the bell 3 times for “Peace & Love.” She tells me it’s the most important thing we can do. I believe her. Here we are on Record Store Day 2019 in front of Vintage Vinyl. Playing to the future.  Spreading the seeds of Peace & Love. That little girl was transfixed! –  Jammer

Photo by Vintage Vinyl

RSD 2019 is in the history books. We played two sets in celebration. One outside on the sidewalk in front of Vintage Vinyl & one in-store at Squeezebox Books & Music. So fun. Met some new fans, reconnected with some of our great friends.

The sidewalk show was a bit of a challenge. Lots of sunshine, but 40 mph winds, and numb fingers from the cold temps. Everyone kept telling us our outdoor show was “Just like the Beatles!”

Hah! Right. Yes, well, the cops came, the band played on. We emerged unscathed! R&R baby! – Jammer

Photo by Matt Golosinski

What to do for Record Store Day 04.13.19? We decided we wanted to double the fun. We are playing at two record stores this coming Saturday. Two special sets.

First up will be set outside on the sidewalk (weather permitting),  at 10:45 a.m. in front of Vintage Vinyl 925 Davis St. Evanston, IL. Grab a coffee and donut and join us for a late morning r&r party!

Our second set will be  3:00 p.m. we will be performing an intimate in-store set at Squeeze Box 743 Main St. Evanston, IL

Of course, we will have copies of our latest album, “The Alternate Boot: Vols 1&2” for sale, as well as a few WWSP Classic Logo T-shirts! Hope you can join us!  – Jammer

Too much Love? Is it possible? The question came to mind in the post-show glow of our “Album Release Party 2019,” this last Saturday. A line from William Blake’s poem “Proverbs of Hell,”   bubbled up into consciousness: “You never know what is enough unless you know what is more than enough.”  

To say the show was a success would be a wild understatement. Jarvis Square Pottery served as the perfect little storefront music room for our band’s celebration of the release of “The Alternate Boot: Vols. 1&2.” 

It was an overflow crowd. Packed to the rafters. Surprisingly, we had to turn some folks away from the door. Too crowded. I suppose it’s a nice problem to have, more people than we planned for, decided they wanted to join us for the evening. We felt bad for the folks turned away, and we do hope they come to another show down the line.

An overabundance of Love: the room vibrated with electricity and good vibes.

We explored the full range of expression on our new album with two unique lineups; an amazing group of musicians, bringing out different aspects of the songs. We also hosted two extraordinary solo acts Kacie Swierk & Will Phalen. Fantastic. Inspiring.

This line from Blake bubbled up and seems apt too: “No bird soars too high, if he soars with his own wings.” R&R DIY. Yes, a wing and a prayer that’s the blueprint. – Jammer

photo by Jarvis Square Pottery

whitewolfsonicprincess’ new album, “The Alternate Boot: Vols. 1&2” releases today on all digital music platforms including: Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, etc. But we really, really encourage you to consider buying the 2-CD version of the album via Bandcamp – cool packaging, an 8 page booklet with lyrics and production notes, AND high-quality digital downloads and unlimited streaming included for $15.00. It’s a fantastic deal! If you prefer living in the material world of bricks and mortar, be sure to visit Vintage Vinyl in Evanston, our CD is in stock now!

We want to share the first review of our new album. It comes from an extraordinary Writer, & Poet, Liam Heneghan, Professor of Environmental Science & Author of the beautiful & amazing book  “Beasts at Bedtime.”  It is so gratifying and humbling to read his words. He writes with deep knowledge, and pure poetic insight:

“… Music that is so driving, surging, muscular and vivacious that these songs become magnetic and unforgettable.” – Liam Heneghan

Also check out Pat Mcdonald’s interview & profile of the band over at HollywoodChicago.com 

“To travel with whitewolfsonicprincess in “The Alternate Boot” is to float in a dream and destiny of magical thinking, ethereal musicality and images of promise… and we all arrive together.” – Patrick McDonald

Fire up your stereo systems, put your best headphones on, “The Alternate Boot” is here! – Jammer

We traveled to the “land beyond O’Hare,” over the weekend. We played a movie-fundraiser at an American Legion in one of the far western suburbs. It felt like we were going to another country. A Harder Country. The American Legion was filled with two-fisted drinking Vets, horror-movie geeks, heavy metal kids, and the parents of horror-movie geeks & heavy metal kids.

You might think this would not be the most promising of audiences for our “neo-psychedelic, folk rock ensemble,” but everyone was friendly and welcoming. There was college football on every TV screen, there were video poker machines lined against a wall, there was a back-porch smoking section for those folks with their smoking addictions.

There was also a “Hanoi Jane” sticker in the urinal in the men’s room. So all the males in the place could go make their peace with Jane Fonda, members in hand. Funny. The 60’s culture war still lives. Jane, of course, is famous for doing a photo-op with the Viet-Cong at the height of the U.S. war. Not very popular with most Vets. Also there was the guy with the “Cops Lives Matter” t-Shirt. The subject never came up, but one might surmise this could be Opioid-Land and Trump Country.

So yes, we felt like invaders from another planet, folks from a completely different tribe. But really, when it comes down to it, we all really have much more in common with these folks than these cultural markers might indicate. As the Dalai Lama reminds us: “We are all Human Beings first.”  What’s funny, two of us, (the two hippiest of the peace loving, flower-waving hippies), actually grew up in suburbs just like this one, but truth be told, we never felt we fit in, always seemed like fish out of water, couldn’t wait to escape to the Northern shores of Lake Michigan.

Surprisingly, the show was exhilarating, cathartic. Our lead singer started our set by ringing the Tibetan prayer bell three times for “Peace and Love.”  That got everyone’s attention. There is something about trying to win over a room. Our band played a tight, battle-tested set, we have played a number of good shows lately, our set is strong, it flows well, the sequence of  songs allows us to reach a satisfying crescendo.

It was hot. The sweat poured. It all just felt fantastic. We knew we were making an impression when the guy playing video poker actually stopped, turned around, and watched us. That was the best tribute of the night. – Jammer

It is hard to put into words, the happiness, the excitement, the relief; our latest album, “The Alternate Boot: Vols. 1&2” is complete, and boxes of cds were delivered to our door this afternoon. A long time coming for sure. A double-cd set. 14 songs. 61 minutes of music. We’ve lost count of the endless hours spent writing, rehearsing, recording, mixing (and mixing, and mixing again) & mastering these tracks.  An incredible group of musicians helped us bring these songs to life. And an amazing group of friends and fans donated to our Indiegogo campaign to help complete the project. It has been an incredibly rewarding journey. Can’t wait for folks to hear what we’ve created. Fire up your sound systems, get your headphones ready. The Boot has arrived! – Jammer

Our band, whitewolfsonicprincess has had a string of excellent shows. Good music rooms. Exuberant audiences. The band has tightened and loosened. When we are in full-force, there are seven of us now. The musicians all really listen to each other, there is an extraordinary conversation going on. A tale told consisting of vibes, invisible waves.

Each show is different: the music, the room, the energy, everything is always morphing, growing. Pretty thrilling for all of us. We seem to be connecting with new folks at every show. We can’t ask for more than that, or, of course, we can and do, we feel we are just at the beginning of something pretty amazing. It’s a great feeling. Still, at the same time, we can’t take anything for granted. Every show really is a new beginning.

Anyway, last night, one of our good friends, an extraordinary musician and past collaborator came out to see us play. After the show he said to me that our band was “Comfort Food for the Soul.”

Comfort Food: “food that gives emotional comfort to the one eating it, these tend to be favorite foods of childhood, or linked to a person, place or time with which the food has a positive association.”

At first I was a bit taken aback, I thought, “Is that good?” Upon reflection, I’d say, yes, I hope it’s true. That would be a great and humbling mission: feeding souls with our music, one soul at a time. That’s the good work, for sure! – Jammer

photo by Jeffery Korman

Could you bottle that? 

I always talk about catching lightening in a bottle, catching that magic, somehow, capturing the un-capture-able in a live performance, whether it’s theater, dance, poetry, music, etc. Somehow holding the moment of lift-off, transcendence, ecstasy, and then, once you have mysteriously, improbably, bottled it, every once in awhile you could uncap it and take a whiff? Get high on the fumes of the eternal.

Last Saturday night we played a little storefront place called Jarvis Square Pottery. It’s a little treasure. First time we walked in we fell in love. And all the elements of the night came together. Our band whitewolfsonicprincess played a tight, powerful, rocking set, and the room just vibrated with positive vibes and energy. Sometimes the audience is just another member of the band. Band and audience are in conversation, a conversation of vibes, creating something else. What you are creating together is bigger than you can imagine, bigger than you can explain.

It was that kind of show. I can’t imagine how it could have played out any better. Could you bottle that? Nope. You can’t. You can only experience it. It’s the whole thing. The whole love. – Jammer

Video stills. Yes, we created a new video featuring our song “Brown Eyes,” a little mash-up of images from a live performance, and some other cool imagery that Carla found. It all came out better than expected. Here are a couple single frames, they look pretty cool on their own. – Jammer