my name is shoe.

Caught this brief video the other night of the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, a wonderful city park that offers arguably the most breathtaking view in the five boroughs. 

I haven’t been updating this blog much for a while now, and there are a couple pretty big reasons why. For one, I got a new job which I love, and I’ve been keeping very busy with it. But more importantly, I got engaged at the end of the summer, and wedding planning is a full-time job in itself. I’m very happy. And this video is actually taken from the exact spot where I proposed, replete with iPad 2 billboard. Enjoy!

ANDREW SHOEMAKER - “FULTON STREET BLUES”

One of the first songs I made after moving to the city was this little number. A buddy of mine sent over a heavily disco-influenced track he was into at the time, and what struck me most about the song was how it managed to do so much with so little. Whereas much of the music I was writing at the time was fairly maximal in construction, incorporating lots of layers, I thought about trying to create something that had a lot of space but still managed to feel propulsive and vibrant. The song I came up with is called “Fulton Street Blues,” named for the major Brooklyn thoroughfare where I was about to step out to meet my girlfriend for a drink. It was a quiet, warm July evening, and I was actually late because I got going with this song and didn’t want to walk away. It’s still one of my favorites, and I intend to keep working with it. I would love to replace the crappy midi fiddle with a live recording.

Wall-E, my composing companion, lounges in his kitty condo. He’s got prime real estate there, with a great view out the back window. As you can see, he’s well read. And he likes to play Bananagrams.