“Henderson & The Black Cat” is our third album and completes a journey I like to think of as “The Black Cat Trilogy” — songs with broadly similar inspiration and genesis recorded over a span of time in my life.

But it’s time to clear the pipes. “Henderson & The Black Cat” will be out in NOVEMBER 2019!

Single release schedule:

1.  Falling – Friday, October 4th

2. Sweet Petunia – Friday, October 11th

3. Mystery Muse – Friday, October 18th 

4. Anhedonia – AND VIDEO! – Friday, October 25th

5. The Wood – Thursday, October 31st for Hallowe’en!

6. A Perfect Man – Friday, November 8th

7. Sex With Susan – Friday, November 15th

The album itself then drops on – Friday,  November 22nd or 29th tbc

Artwork is by David Jesus Vignolli and we hope to release the album as a digipack but also make the lyrics booklet by this amazing graphic novelist available as a standalone product.

#newmusic #eccentricmodernclassic #arnamiller #davidvignolli #newwave #classicrock

This is the first week we feel actually like we have “settled” in Portland after a horrendously stressful clusterfuck of a move that saw us living in a Motel 6 with our cat for five days and having to simultaneous rent and shuttle three moving trucks to contain our possessions in while we waited. Not fun but a good story. Combined with a new day job, there wasn’t a lot of physical, spiritual or emotional energy to invest in music.

At last, though, the workstation is set up in a more or less usable format and I’ve starting working out my instrumental and vocal chops again. Very rusty. And I played back the Emily Dolan collaboration. It’s very much work in progress but the tracks are actually sounding phenomenal. And I’m releasing “Henderson & The Black Cat” shortly.

It will feature a beautifully illustrated printed booklet done by the amazing David Jesus Vignolli. You should definitely check out his graphic novels. The album was recorded at Ellstree Hill Studios in London and forms part of what I consider to be a trilogy – these first three albums. They share a lot in common. Probably would have made a good double album.

I’m putting out feelers for musicians here in Portland to work with and get the live show up and sputtering after promising attempts in Missoula. I’ll definitely get out and do a few acoustic gigs and/or open mic in the coming months.

So that, plus pursuing licensing opportunities and getting tracks all metatagged and formatted for that effort, are what is on the horizon.

Radio silence does not mean inactivity.

A lot of hard work and a lot of soul searching have been going on.

I get coaching from Rick Barker in his Mastermind program, and am taking a music licensing Mastermind coaching program with Michael Elsner on music licensing. That has meant going through my entire published back catalog (not yet including unpublished songs of which there are about 100) and then breaking them into ten catalogues across my former acts that I wrote for — Time Beings (done), Gargoyles (not done), Aqua-Nine (done), Nick Violet (done), Brand Violet (done), Telford Mining Disaster (done), Catnyp (almost done, just need to do the debut album which will yield a pile of new licensable content).

On top of that, we are moving to Portland – partially for a new day job, but also because I believe I’ll find musicians who are into what I am into, and more places to play compared to where I am now.

So watch this space. A lot more to come, this summer.

Didn’t need, but wanted.

Grew tired of looking for a 4001c64 (the Macca version with reversed headstock) so threw in the towel and ordered a used (MINTY) 4003s, then added a Creamery toaster pickup and a horseshoe pickup, as well as swapping out the pots to the traditional type.

Plays great, looks great, sounds great thorough my Ampeg pre-amp and VR 200 mini stack that has a pari of Ampeg 2x10s loaded on it.

For those who might have been following my various Instagram rehearsals, you’ll know that the Takamine 12-string acoustic I have owned for years started getting tempermental – adding a nice sitar-like BUZZ on the top E strings. I had the top nut worked on and 1st-2nd frets dressed, truss rod was fine, but it just kept doing it.

So I poked around and read some reviews and settled on a Taylor based on a 6-string I played and recommendation from my Luthier. I found a 2002 355CE (I tend to prefer instruments that have been played in).

HOLY SHIT.

Although it should have been shipped with the strings loosened, technically, to avoid damage it came out of the box IN TUNE after traveling across the country in freezing cold weather.  I then played one of the hardest parts I know on it and it was like BUTTER.

Two big thumbs up on this one. I think I am in love.

We’ll be premiering our video for “On The Floor” on YouTube, IGTV and Facebook in the coming week. Leland Buck did a great job filming and editing it all together, and the amazing Diane Lindo contributed 60 seconds of stop motion animation that holds it all together.

Watch this space.

Video for “On The Floor” should escape shortly.

/

We are rehearsing for a few things:

Feb 22 gig at Montana Distillery

April 26 gig at Freecycles – likely a big event

/ /

Planning a “Live” unplugged kind of session that will yield a live album (March/April tbc)

/ / /

HKS’s bas is getting new toaster pickups and a hipshot bridge

/ / / /

Still building social media profile

/ / / / /

Hired an intern

Every instrument has a story to tell. Have a look. If you like any of the gear, drop us an email and we’ll send you a track that it was used on. >>> hello@catnyp.com

What happened in 2018?

• Recorded and released More Tales of Mystery & Imagination from The Crypt of The Black Cat (Opus 4) supported by seven (!) singles.
• Remastered and released (well, sort of…) Henderson supported by three singles.
• Performed two live gigs to support album launches.
• Filmed a proper video promo clip – to be released in January 2018 for (“On The Floor“)
• Worked on three new songs for an EP in early 2018 with drummer Emily Dolan.

What’s ahead?

• EP release (see above) – likely top have 5 songs (3 with Emily, one hangover from Opus 4 and maybe an acoustic track)
• Two gigs tbd at The Bicycle Works in Missoula
• Gig at Montana Distillery on February 22
• Release of “Henderson & The Black Cat” – full length album with artwork by the magnificent David Jesus Vignolli.

Emily Dolan drummed for The Darkness, Bryan Ferry and many others in addition to touring with world famous acts. I reached out to her to co-write collaborate and bash out three drum tracks rather than work to a specific spec for the drums stems.

I did this once a long time ago with another great drummer (Sid Davis from 40th Day) and it worked a treat.

Emily Dolan on Facebook

EmilyDrums.com\