My Beloved Community:

The time has finally come: I am recording my first album!

Click the "play" button above to hear a clip from "Green Grass" so you can know what all of this is about!!!

As goes with projects of the soul, it has been a slow unraveling & awakening to arrive at this moment. Much has changed since my days of singing alto in my college a cappella group (though, honestly, bless those times too, ya know?). I started writing songs 6 years ago while riding my bike through the cracked streets of New Orleans, often pedaling one-handed as I recorded lines on Voice Memos on my iPhone. Anything for art! (Sorry, Mom!) I recently completed a two year women's rites of passage journey during which the portal of my voice opened profoundly, revealing to me the mystery of the depth & complexity that I am called upon to express. I am humbled, to say the least, to walk as a song carrier, with the moon as my sacred witness, in chorus with my beloveds.

In my bones, I feel nostalgia for places I have never been (and ones I have, too). In my hands, I carry a yearning for purpose, embodied craft and practice that seamlessly connect the Heavens with the Earth. In my heart, I nurse a longing for deep connection, for us to all be together, for once and for all.  "home|body" is my attempt to translate that which is both unknowable and also unwaveringly true. It illuminates my lifelong search for belonging, place & meaning-making. It is both a story of maturation and a tale of tending to desires of the youngest one within.

Also, since we are here, I would like to introduce myself by my artist name, Thin Veil. Hi! People ask me what my genre is. Indie-electro-soul-folk-prayer is the only answer that feels true at present.

And so, I come to the moment of a tender ask: I am seeking support from my community in my emergence as a bonafide songstress. The total costs for recording home|body will be about $9000 (itemized below). I will be investing $2000 of my own money into this project and I am looking to fundraise the rest from y'all.

(If I'm able to fundraise the full amount of the album cost ($9000), I may use my personal investment contribution to make a music video! Time shall tell!)

ANY AMOUNT that you are able to donate is valuable and beautiful. Making a donation to this project is akin to "pre-ordering" the album, which *hopefully* will be released in the spring. Donations over $100 will get a personalized thank you song via video sent by yours truly.

THIS ALWAYS IN: INVESTING IN ART IS LITERALLY A BLESSING FOR ALL INVOLVED!

For "home|body," I am working with the incredibly talented and inimitable Oakland-based musician Graham Patzner, who is producing, playing on, audio engineering & mixing the album!

I am full to the brim with gratitude as I embark on this journey. To the ancestors that paved the way; to the Babes & Big Mamas; to all who've listened to my songs & encouraged me along the way; to Graham for all of your musical genius-hood, adding to my songs the layers & dimension I always dreamed of; to literally everyone that reacted with excitement when I exclaimed, "I'm recording an album!"; to Aleks & Jules for photo feedback; to Molly & William for lending me equipment; to Molly & Adi for your music advice; to Theo for the time we spent investigating the chords to New Orleans; to Daisy for making some very important connections; to the love of music as held in my family lineage; to my mom, whose pipes I inherited; to Em for the incredible shots & flower art; to Nikki & Andrew for the cabin with the perfect porch and space to record; to the celestial beings & watery bodies that help keep us in sacred rhythm; to the magic of the creative process; for the passing of time that soothes the doubts; and to each of you. Yes, you. Blessing y'all up in big ways.

Yours in ours,

Elena

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Photos & flower art by Emily Saeger. Guest musicians on the album include: Lewis Patzner (cello), Dan Schwartz (drums) and Andrew Laubacher (drums) - possibly more to come! Mastering by Sammy Fielding.

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MAKING AN ALBUM! (Estimated Costs)

$5000 - sound engineering & arranging

$1500 - mixing & mastering

$850 - additional musician sessions

$850 - studio rental

$60 - copyrighting + Spotify

$50 - equipment

$300 - FundRazr fees

....$1500-2000 music video.....(?!?!)