Cabin Demos

The last day of a much-needed vacation is always the hardest. After cramming my strewn-about clothes back in their tight suitcase form, deep-cleaning the places we spent the most time making memories, and preparing to say goodbye to endless laughter and peace of mind, I knew it was time to record.

I had a small arsenal of original material at my disposal from my first year of songwriting, and I felt like there would be no better way to capture the essence of these tunes than to record them as they were in that moment—uncut, intimate, and still on a journey to discovering their final forms.

Due to the lack of a simple XLR cable, an hour-long drive to the nearest town that might carry one, and a beautiful day too good to pass up enjoying, I had no choice but to record all nine songs using just my iPhone voice memos app. I set my phone where it would capture my vocals and guitar in as balanced of a fashion as possible, and I started recording.

I grew up visiting my family’s cabin every summer as a kid, and I still go back every year—twice if I’m lucky. It was built by my great-grandfather in the 40’s and sits on a beautiful slice of land deep in the mountains of Virginia. It is my place of peace, and I’m extremely grateful to have this in my life.