Holding the Space: New song, new stories!

Hello Luvers!

We're excited to share a rocking song for Luvers: HOLDING THE SPACE, out on all the streaming platforms today. We hope you love it and that it inspires you to like, share with friends, and add it to playlists. Scroll on for the story about how this song came to be.

The story behind Holding the Space

By Kristi Casey

Where did the idea for the song come from?

Steven and I frequently talk on the phone. One night, the conversation turned to relationships we'd had when we were younger.

Bold personalities often are told we're “too much” by our partners. This leads us to think that we're unlovable unless we remove parts of ourselves from view, dim our shine, or make ourselves smaller.

But that's an unsustainable dynamic because if we can't be who we are, fully, then there's always going to be a block on honest intimacy.

What you need to have a fulfilling relationship, we decided, is someone who holds space for you to be as wild, weird, and wonderful as you were always meant to be.

What's the story behind the lyrics?

Believe it or not, the lyrics nearly came verbatim from the phone conversation between Steven & I.

It was one of those talks where I found myself nodding and having a-ha moments, so I opened my journal and started taking notes when either of us said something that resonated with me.

You can hear these snippets of dialogue in the verses:

Shining bright to burn away all of the harm
But you reminded me that wounds, they have their charms.
Storms that weather wood make us who we are.

and

Like a lighthouse, I want to bring hope to the lost.
Guide them to safe harbor, without mortal cost.
But you remind me, lighthouses are warnings

To this base of quotes, I added personal observations and little tributes to people I love, like my grandmother Bunny. She used to sing the song “S'Wonderful” to herself, so I added this lyric as a tribute to her and how wonderful love is:

How marvelous it is to see and be seen.

I always think of her when I sing, “marvelous.”

How did the song come together?

When I was writing it, I set out to write a “Steven Glude” song. To me, that means a song that doesn't have any obvious rhymes. Each phrase rhymes indirectly, by vowel sounds (assonance).

It took me a long time to decide on a chord progression I liked. Maybe three days. And because it doesn't always repeat the same way, I still sometimes mess that up.

When I was teaching the song to Steven, he came up with some “cheats” to help us remember which chord to go to. So if you see us smile and exchange glances while singing “To see,” it's because we're reminding each other we need to be on the C chord.

How did it evolve from stage to studio?

The first recording we made of this song was basically a demo that we shared with y'all a couple of years ago (the story is here, although we've since taken the song down). It was me singing to my guitar, and we overdubbed in some harmonies.

In performance, Steven developed an awesome solo he'd play before the bridge. Our friend Jason Allen, an artist and musician in his own right, is often around when we're practicing sets, dispensing advice and offering feedback. During one of our rehearsals, Jason remarked that we should kick off the song with Steven soloing before I start singing. We already liked the song, but that tweak made it even more fun to play.

When it came time to record this version, we wanted live drums and some additional sonic architecture. Steven and I actually “auditioned” to see who'd get to play drums on the track. Steven won. You'll also hear him on electric guitar and bass, as well as his typical acoustic and a Nashville-tuned acoustic.

Fun fact

Those bell-like tones aren't from a keyboard; they're actually guitar harmonics Steven added in the studio.

Upcoming shows

We're excited to play a fun house party in the Decatur/Tucker area. Check it out!

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Thank you, Luvers!

Want us to play near you? Let us know if you'd like to host a house party by replying to this email. We can fill you in on the details. It's a fun, low-pressure way we can do regional tours and bring our music to new Luvers.

If you enjoy our music, please share it with your friends, “like” songs and add them to your playlists!

Thanks!

xxoo,
Kristi & Steven