Episode 4 - Connection
Welcome to chasing the muse. This is Broomwater. I'm here with Matt Styley Steidl. What's up, Matt? What's going on?
Broomwatr/Matt:And we've got a couple really awesome guests today. I've got the well known renowned Lydia Brownfield in here with
Lydia Brownfield:us. Hi. Hi. Hi.
Broomwatr/Matt:And her husband slash co conspirator in all musical endeavors, Jeff Darwinkle. Darwinkle. Yep. Nice. Yep.
Broomwatr/Matt:Nice. Welcome. Thank you both for being here.
Lydia Brownfield:Thanks for having us.
Broomwatr/Matt:It's it's great to to meet you. So I'm gonna give a a a bio, and then we'll kinda get going on some some stuff. So Lydia Brownfield is a singer, songwriter, producer, and storyteller and has been in Ohio for more than three decades doing those things. She's an Ohio native, and she was raised on the West Side Of Columbus and seasoned by a decade in Atlanta's indie indie scene with creatively charged years in New York, where she wrote tons of killer songs, and really, you know, learned her craft. A lot of people have likened her voice to Alison Krauss or Sinead O'Connor.
Broomwatr/Matt:She's got a beautiful sort of semi haunting voice. And her her catalog is sort of all over, stretching from alternative folk and Americana to power pop and punk. She's a badass. She gives Oh, yeah. Comparisons to edgy storytellers like PJ Harvey and Tori Amos.
Broomwatr/Matt:I saw Tori once.
Lydia Brownfield:Oh, yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:You've ever seen her.
Lydia Brownfield:She's I had awesome life. So
Broomwatr/Matt:you can get more information about Lydia at lydiabrownfieldmusic.com. Back here in Columbus Lydia fronts an intimate duo with husband guitarist Jeff Dalrymple. Jeff, you're an accomplished musician on your own right and we'll talk about that a bit. Lydia also leads Albatross City, sort of a live immersive performance experience that maybe we can get into a little bit. You guys have had a lot of success in the music industry and we're really excited to have you here so welcome.
Lydia Brownfield:Thank you.
Jeff Dalrymple:Thank you
Broomwatr/Matt:very much. What a nice intro. Well thank you. I wanted to say more but I could gush all day. Yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:Nice. So I I shared with you before I have a a musical and lyrical crush on you. Lydia, I found you, and I chased you on email, and you responded, and, I was able to feature some of your stuff on my website.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:And I've just always loved the stories that you tell and the pictures that you paint with your words.
Lydia Brownfield:Thank you.
Broomwatr/Matt:And you have this amazing ability to match the the words to the music and the tone and the feel. And Jeff is sort of the back part of that. Right?
Lydia Brownfield:He's the front part.
Broomwatr/Matt:He's the front part. Got it. I don't know. Brains and me.
Jeff Dalrymple:Is that how it works?
Broomwatr/Matt:That's exactly right. So I you mentioned. Audio only. Yeah. Yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:Yeah. Exactly. They'll never know the difference. That's right. So you mentioned you guys started playing together before you became a couple.
Broomwatr/Matt:Right?
Lydia Brownfield:Yes.
Broomwatr/Matt:How did that happen?
Lydia Brownfield:Well, it's a sordid, very sordid tale. Oh!
Broomwatr/Matt:So glad I am.
Lydia Brownfield:Yes, so I was married and we started playing together and it was just an unbelievable magic that was happening and so I had to divorce my husband and marry him. And it was
Broomwatr/Matt:just like,
Lydia Brownfield:you used to do Yeah, and it was, I mean when you hear us together playing music together, it's just to me it's like obvious. There's just no other person that I could be doing this with.
Broomwatr/Matt:That's so amazing. Well, the theme of tonight's show is connection, which you clearly have in multi And, you know, there's a lot of things we think about when we're talking about art and music connection. You know, Matt and I talk about this a lot, the connection with your audience, the connection with your own music, with your bandmates if you're playing with folks. So I wanted to ask you Lydia, then maybe Matt and Jeff can chime in. When you think of music and connection, what comes to your mind
Lydia Brownfield:Well, what comes to my mind is the difference between the connection now versus the connection from the ninety's when I started playing in the ninety's. Because in the ninety's there was no connection. Like you were just doing your thing and it was like fuck you to everybody else. You didn't make eye contact, you didn't look at anybody, you just did your thing and everybody loved you and you were mysterious. It was a mystery, the whole thing.
Broomwatr/Matt:It's fascinating. I never thought of it like that.
Lydia Brownfield:And now it's like you can't do that shit now.
Broomwatr/Matt:Because you were playing at them and almost.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah, and now it's like you have to bring them in and it's difficult because when I started playing music, I liked that. I liked not talking to anyone. But now, I mean I've spent thirty five years getting better at performing my songs, but I haven't gotten any better with like speaking to So entertainment versus performance. Yeah, but I mean it's been a really hard road to get over that stage fright of even playing. So now I'm really focused on getting over that by just speaking.
Lydia Brownfield:Right. Which is
Broomwatr/Matt:funny because I'm the opposite. I could speak in front of 2,000 people and I'd be nervous but I could do it. But to play music in front of them I would die.
Lydia Brownfield:It's the opposite for
Broomwatr/Matt:me. So But you did have stage fright early on?
Lydia Brownfield:Oh my god, yeah. Really? Yeah. And mostly, as far as that mystery thing goes, it was convenient for me to not look or talk to anybody because I would just throw up. Right.
Lydia Brownfield:I had to say anything to anyone I couldn't
Broomwatr/Matt:do So that style of music was probably helpful
Lydia Brownfield:for Oh, was, Yeah. That was one good reason I sort of fell in love with the punk scene.
Broomwatr/Matt:What about you, Matt? I'm just curious what comes to mind for you. Connection?
Jeff Dalrymple:Yeah. Well, interestingly enough, what you said, like, with playing kinda at people versus playing and having them kinda come into your world just by the what you sound like. I I would say that was very common.
Broomwatr/Matt:I mean,
Jeff Dalrymple:I'm assuming we all grew up without cell phones, right? So it's like the only thing that was there was if I was playing guitar, then my friends could kind of gather around and listen and it was like, that's what
Broomwatr/Matt:we did. Yeah.
Jeff Dalrymple:And now, like, bringing people into it, like, I actually did research on how to like entertain a crowd and they were giving me all these ideas of like, you know, when you're looking out at the crowd, like, you don't know if that couple's been out six months, year, whatever, you know, they came out there to see you for whatever reason. So they say things like that, like, well, what brings you up? Like, or things like that, and, like, ask the people that. And then other things they say was, like, there's a lot of people to look at their forehead and
Broomwatr/Matt:they think they're looking Yeah. Yeah. That's
Jeff Dalrymple:quite nice. You know what mean? So there's just all these really interesting things, I think the connection between being able to talk to a crowd is an important thing. With my band, that's the brakes. It's new for because I just picked up a new drummer, we've been working.
Jeff Dalrymple:But my old drummer, him and I had worked on this
Lydia Brownfield:with candles and a song, with cigarettes for pie beneath our covered eyes. We'll feel the fire burn. We'll feel the fire.
Broomwatr/Matt:So I wanna talk, Lydia, about your progression, your genesis as an artist. Are there times where you felt you had, like, an audience that you were just really connected with and, like, you know, was it, like, a big venue kind of thing, or was it someone's bar mitzvah or like a wedding? Know, like I'm just curious as an artist where they they experience
Lydia Brownfield:Well, it's always been at a smaller venue. Yeah. I've done a couple of large venues just out of luck.
Broomwatr/Matt:Well you're open for some big names. Indigo Girls, right?
Lydia Brownfield:Who else are you looking And Peter Case and Sean Mullins.
Broomwatr/Matt:All
Lydia Brownfield:in Atlanta at Eddie's Attic. You
Broomwatr/Matt:did that theater too?
Lydia Brownfield:Oh yeah and I did the variety theater opened for Loudoun Wainwright the So
Broomwatr/Matt:small venues?
Lydia Brownfield:Small venues, especially like house parties and things like that. When I can get over my nerves because I still have horrible nerves with it.
Broomwatr/Matt:Makes you so much cooler and flavor. It's hard.
Lydia Brownfield:It is. I've been fighting it forever. I have gotten better and I feel like some days are better than others. But the small venues like house concerts especially where people are actually paying attention and listening and you're telling them about the songs and that's really the best and the worst because everyone's looking at you. Like what are you looking at?
Lydia Brownfield:You know, so you know, it's a little nerve racking but as far as connection goes, I think that's the best.
Jeff Dalrymple:But you've mainly been able to kind of do all this with your original music.
Lydia Brownfield:Yes.
Jeff Dalrymple:Yeah. So you don't really do a whole lot of covers.
Lydia Brownfield:Well, when we do shows like entertainment shows, and so we do shows that are all covers.
Jeff Dalrymple:Okay, so you still have to do that side of
Lydia Brownfield:that
Jeff Dalrymple:as well, because I do a lot of that.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah, throw in originals too, but but then I start thinking like I want people to come to a show to hear my originals, I don't wanna just throw them out in a free Mhmm. You know, like a free three
Jeff Dalrymple:or Right. Right. Right. Right. I'll throw mine in there too, but I tend not to play them ever because I'm like, I'm like, know, like write it and forget about it and go on
Lydia Brownfield:to the next one. Well, and I never stopped working on them. Right. Like, I change I have everything recorded and I change it anyway. It's like
Broomwatr/Matt:I would do that. Yeah.
Lydia Brownfield:It's just
Broomwatr/Matt:I'm not good at ending. I'm great at starting stuff and like getting but like to finish it and say it's done, it's like
Jeff Dalrymple:Yeah. Need Brian to my life. He's like, you can finish that, man.
Broomwatr/Matt:Yeah. I just write his ass.
Lydia Brownfield:Well, I write it and I finish it. And then I go, that's not quite right. And then I change it. And one, like one I changed like a whole, I had a video for the old one. Had a whole thing.
Lydia Brownfield:It was like, spent a lot of money on it getting it recorded. Really? And then
Jeff Dalrymple:I was
Lydia Brownfield:like, that doesn't quite work. And so then it's called Broken.
Broomwatr/Matt:I love that song.
Lydia Brownfield:I love it now. That's the updated version of Okay,
Broomwatr/Matt:I was just listening to it.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah. And I took the video down because now there were two versions of it and I didn't want there to be two versions so I took that down.
Broomwatr/Matt:Was the original like slower?
Lydia Brownfield:No, just the words were different.
Broomwatr/Matt:It was formatted a little bit different.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah, words in the one were a little too it didn't do what it was supposed to do and so I changed it to sound like it was more fierce, like she got out of the relationship rather than it was happening to her
Broomwatr/Matt:and needed
Lydia Brownfield:to have that solid fuck you at the end of it.
Broomwatr/Matt:Which is, I love that part. I like that message of that song.
Lydia Brownfield:It's awesome. Yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:I love your music. Windsong and Cigarette Smoker.
Lydia Brownfield:Oh, love that one. Oh, thanks. I
Broomwatr/Matt:think My Paradise was the one that I heard on ninety point five.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah. They played it out a lot.
Broomwatr/Matt:Then they said you were local and I was like,
Lydia Brownfield:that's amazing. Nice.
Broomwatr/Matt:Well, have a little fun action we can try and if it's a train wreck, we just won't put it in
Lydia Brownfield:there. Right.
Broomwatr/Matt:But I thought we'd mess around with, you know, we've got two songwriters here. I haven't told you any of this. I love messing with this. He's easy. He's like laid back.
Broomwatr/Matt:This won't be hard. So I'm thinking each
Jeff Dalrymple:of
Broomwatr/Matt:you take a minute just to write down a short phrase or idea about something you'd like to write about for a song or, you know, have been thinking about writing. And then just write down the concept. It doesn't have to be lyrics or anything like that. Just an idea for a song. And then he'll read his to you and maybe you can say you can share what comes to your mind about it, like how you would approach that song or what comes up Not necessarily telling each other how to write it, just what comes out of the ether.
Lydia Brownfield:Uh-huh.
Broomwatr/Matt:You wanna try that? Sure. Awesome. So let's let's do it. You guys take take
Lydia Brownfield:We're pulling from the elements, especially in the poetic parts of our songs. Those things tend to be like you know, it's either fire or water or smoke or wind. Interesting.
Jeff Dalrymple:Mine always comes, I call it the pheromones, guess. Always talk about and sing about the spark of meeting somebody that's
Lydia Brownfield:in Yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:We have this internal conflict because he loves to write about happy kind of sexy songs, and I'm like sad or hardcore. Right.
Jeff Dalrymple:Know? 77 because he completely flipped it around. Was like, man, that is you just took the song from happy to, I know.
Broomwatr/Matt:Like, throw a minor chord in there. Come on. Yeah. Right.
Jeff Dalrymple:So his challenge is happy songs and mine's maybe major chords. He's got
Broomwatr/Matt:a great voice for sad songs, but he's always so happy. I
Jeff Dalrymple:know. I'm happy.
Broomwatr/Matt:Elements, I like it. I struggle with, like, I find a fire and those words come up a lot when I write. And it's so hard to say those things in a different way because everybody says fire. Time. Know what I'm saying?
Lydia Brownfield:That's the fun part though. Like coming up with something that says fire without saying fire.
Broomwatr/Matt:Right, exactly.
Lydia Brownfield:I think that's
Broomwatr/Matt:So like what's chemical name of fire? I
Jeff Dalrymple:don't know.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah, don't know.
Jeff Dalrymple:That might
Lydia Brownfield:be too We have a song called Into the Falls, much the song that we not wrote together, he wrote the music and gave it to me and I was like, I have the words already. I love that. I listened to it and I know that song and here's the words. Isn't that weird?
Broomwatr/Matt:Wait, did you write the words right then or you had them?
Lydia Brownfield:No, I wrote the words right then. It's like, I knew the words. Nice. It's like all just happened
Broomwatr/Matt:a couple of times.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah, the puzzle just went.
Broomwatr/Matt:Sometimes it doesn't do that so fast.
Lydia Brownfield:And so we tried for I don't know how many months to just get that song exactly right. We were recording the record Warnings for Sinners. Yeah. And it's only like an EP or whatever. And that was like the song that we really spent all of our time on to just get it perfect.
Broomwatr/Matt:That's awesome.
Lydia Brownfield:And there's so many lines in that song of elements and it's like sirens fill the distance, sirens fill the distance and skipping our stones, all breaking the silence. Oh, I know that song. All breaking the silence, Only Deepwater Knows. Which is like such a just love that.
Broomwatr/Matt:Didn't know the name.
Jeff Dalrymple:I don't
Lydia Brownfield:always know the names but It's called End of the Falls. So it's like those kinds of just I don't know, I just love that.
Broomwatr/Matt:And the music kind of flows with the feeling. Yeah, that's great. I love that. So that will be, can you send us that song?
Lydia Brownfield:Oh sure, yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:Got sort of an elemental song. The back tattoo thing, I mean, it's a very I see this woman sort of in sunshine with in a window with this beautiful, like because What is the tattoo? I am imagining a snake. See. That's I think the cool thing would be, like, you never know what this what the tattoo is.
Jeff Dalrymple:In this situation I wasn't seeing it 100%,
Lydia Brownfield:but the flow would just come out. But you know what else is kind of cool? Is that you never see the front of the woman's face. Oh, So you don't know who, I mean maybe
Broomwatr/Matt:she is. She's like. A she?
Lydia Brownfield:May yeah. Right. Maybe it's a man.
Broomwatr/Matt:Well, you so much for coming. We'd love to have you play a couple tunes.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah. We'd love to.
Broomwatr/Matt:From the new album? What were you thinking?
Lydia Brownfield:Well, we were thinking about one that is one of my favorite songs called Against the Light.
Broomwatr/Matt:Oh yeah, I like that one. Was just thinking about that too. That's a great one.
Lydia Brownfield:We were thinking either which other ones were we talking about maybe?
Broomwatr/Matt:The Digger.
Lydia Brownfield:The Digger from Dig.
Broomwatr/Matt:You have a video for that one
Lydia Brownfield:too, don't do, yeah.
Broomwatr/Matt:Where you're all like dirty and Yeah,
Jeff Dalrymple:I love that. The video
Broomwatr/Matt:is really fun.
Lydia Brownfield:It wouldn't take much. That's the brand new one.
Broomwatr/Matt:Okay.
Lydia Brownfield:So whichever. Mean. Yeah, yeah. I like this song because it kind of sums up the feeling of beating your head against the wall, doing this over and over again and like, you know, expecting a different outcome. And it's the definition of insanity, right?
Lydia Brownfield:Mhmm. So I think we're on three for this, right?
Broomwatr/Matt:You were doing Against the
Lydia Brownfield:Light? Yeah.
Jeff Dalrymple:Come on.
Lydia Brownfield:So, I like it, you know, and it's got the weird, it's like a five, what is it, a five-eight? Four. 5.4, then it goes to a 3.4. Kind of like
Broomwatr/Matt:That's cool, Joey.
Lydia Brownfield:Yeah. It's funny because I come up with that stuff and I go, Oh, this is normal, right? And he's like, That's not normal. I'm like, It feels normal.
Jeff Dalrymple:It's funny. My drummer from college is like, What the fuck? He gets so mad
Lydia Brownfield:at me.
Jeff Dalrymple:Go five four
Lydia Brownfield:to four four.
Jeff Dalrymple:Yeah. I'm never getting that.
Lydia Brownfield:Alright. So I'm gonna try to play real quiet so they can hear you.
Jeff Dalrymple:Okay.
Broomwatr/Matt:You guys sound wonderful. It is very blended. It's Isn't it? Trouble even hearing where you end and start. It's nice.
Broomwatr/Matt:Yeah. It's people have said about guitar playing, our guitar playing. They don't know what's it kinda starts to kinda interweave Mhmm. A
Lydia Brownfield:little bit,
Broomwatr/Matt:so you don't know who's doing what. Yeah. Cool. It's very good.
Lydia Brownfield:Do you wanna do the new one? The wouldn't take much. Sure. Let's do that one.
Broomwatr/Matt:Sorry. It's
Jeff Dalrymple:a little
Broomwatr/Matt:fun here.
Lydia Brownfield:Oh, that's okay.
Jeff Dalrymple:You told
Broomwatr/Matt:me to turn the air off. No. It's fine. I just want them to be comfortable. I guess you probably played in worse
Lydia Brownfield:finding yourself. Know, digging deep, figuring out what you're all about. I do that all the time. Still haven't come up with anything. I'm still working
Jeff Dalrymple:on it.
Lydia Brownfield:Reflection.
Jeff Dalrymple:And that wraps up another episode of chasing the muse. Stay in touch and you can listen more at broomwater.com/muse. That's br00mwatr.com/muse.
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