Miners in the making

My debut single Miners will be launched in early February. A couple of days ago we shot my very first music video for the single. I cannot describe how stoked I am. I will probably levitate for the rest of the year :-) 

I'm so happy I got to work with Flatlight Films. What a nice bunch of talented and creative people! They've come up with images and esthetics that will really elevate Miners from a simple song with a message into a piece of art.

I still have to wait a couple of weeks before I can serve the video to the whole world but in the meantime here are a few pics from the set, shot by Michaela Kei.

Day 1 

We shot most of the outdoor scenes in the beatiful surroundings of one of Helsinki’s most beloved parks.  

Weather couldn't have been more perfect. It was quite warm, only zero or just below, and the sky was calm with a bit of sunlight cutting into the horizon. It had snowed the night before and trees were covered in snow. It was just magical.

I cannot thank enough the main actor, Veikko, he was just brilliant. He has a very important task in the story but I won’t reveal any details of the plot yet. You’ll have to wait for the video, guys :-)

 My turn to act came in the end of the day. Up until then I was just jumping around in winter sport clothes and harassing everybody :-)

We had to stop filming around 4pm because it was getting dark but fortunately we had captured everything we needed.

 

Day 2

We did singing shoots on day 2. Fortunately we shot inside because the weather was completely opposite to the day before. It was snowing heavily and the wind was just spanking the windows. We were so lucky we hadn't chosen the days the other way around!

Basically all I had to do was sing and play Miners approximately thirty times in a row. I think I know the song by now - and so do all the customers of the café we shot in ;-)

Fortunately nobody was irritated by our presence, on the contrary, people came up to us and asked what we were filming. One guy said: "Oh, I don't mind the same song playing over and over again because it's such a nice tune." I was very happy to hear that and believe me: with the video the song will get even better :-)

I absolutely adored the crew! Not only are they extremely creative and skilled but they have great humor and they really motivated me. After hearing Miners for the 30th time they looked still as excited as they had never heard the song before. We had lots of fun. 

To sum this up, shooting Miners belongs to the very highlights of my life. I can’t wait for the result. Thanks to everyone involved & especially to Flatlight Films I will soon have to offer some real good food for eyes, ears and mind!

Moravian-Silesian tour

I have been actively performing my music for a year now. It is time to start writing about it :)

My official music career began in Finland and I have lived there for so long already that I tend to forget I am actually Czech. That's why I dedicate my very first blog entry to my original home, the Moravian-Silesian Region. It is a region of contrasts: on one side there are large industrial and mining areas and on the other beautiful mountains, rich cuisine and original culture.

I've lived abroad for seven years and every time I come back I notice that the air and environment are still very polluted. The undermined landscapes are not always nice to look at. Sadly, many local people are ill quite often (many local children suffer from astma and other nasty stuff) and the air is so thick with smog it feels like inhaling lead paste. However, I see small positive changes and I hope there will be more in the near future. The region might be polluted but as long as the minds of its inhabitants are not polluted all is good.

My concert tour took me me to Ostrava and Orlová so far and it will continue in Karviná and Nový Jičín. I grew up in these places. The first gig was in Ostrava, the third most populated and sovereignly the most polluted city in the Czech republic.

Ostrava is the heart of steel-making of the country, and the emissions from its factories have caused immense damage to the environment and the inhabitants' health over the years. Just to clue you in, the pollution in the city is four times larger than levels allowed by the EU.*. It would be cool if all those stinky factories could just be closed down but too many people would lose their jobs and the unemployment rates are quite high already.

But I can tell you, these sad facts don't stop the local people from keeping up a lively underground culture!  

We played at the underground club Hudební bazar. I absolutely adored the venue! The atmosphere was great and the crowd was amazing.

                                                                photo: Tomáš Samiec

From Ostrava we continued our duo tour to Orlová, the town where I grew up. I remembered it as a cluster of grey socialistic blocks of flats with not much happening around and it has pretty much remained the same except that the houses have been painted in bright motley colours.

We played in Futra, another underground club run by young volunteers who love culture and don't want to remain idle. Orlová is lucky to have them! They actually care about humane values and for example support Fair Trade, which is still rare in the region.

I was very emotional during the gig, playing for so many friends and familiar faces who had heard me play ten years ago. I chose a little clip from the gig, it's my debut single "Miners" that is inspired by the hard-working coalminers of the Moravian-Silesian region. 

video: Michal Kliment

I hope you enjoyed this one. New videos are coming soon! :)

The tour continues in Karviná and Nový Jičín, so stay tuned.

With smog in my lungs but peace in my heart I wish you all a great new year 2012!

Lucie