I am VERY pleased to announce that as of today, the “Re-Release” or release of my first album “Dancing With Dragons” (Redux) is now available for streaming, download, and/or purchase here at my website, and will soon be available on many other streaming platforms as well! 

   This project originally began more than 2 years ago, starting with a re-recording of my very first instrumental song “Celtic Skies”, this time performed on guitar instead of bass. I was very happy with the way that turned out, and originally I was going to release just that song to commemorate what was then the 15'th anniversary of the original release of the album as of 2024. After sitting with it for awhile, I began to think about instead of re-recording just the one song why not go back & re-record the entire album? As those of you that know me well and have followed my musical journey over the years, the original recording of the first album had always brought about mixed feelings in me in regards to the quality of those recordings & the somewhat limited means I was working with at the time. While I've always believed for the most part that when it comes to an artist's albums as something meant to be looked at as “a moment in time” sort of thing & to take it in the context of that moment, there was definitely some things that I would have liked to have done differently & certainly some other instrumentation I would have liked to add, so in a way the original “vision” that I'd had for the album had gone unrealized. Now that I had the means to correct that, it felt like it was time to go back and revisit the album & bring that vision to life in full. 

   It's been a wonderful and somewhat consuming task over the last couple of years from start to finish with this project, and it brought back alot of memories from that “moment in time” & where I was at at the time of the original recording, and it's also been inspiring, reminding me of why I decided to start this part of my musical journey in the first place. I want to also give a HUGE thanks and credit to a friend of mine and fellow musician Kyle Hodson who has worked very patiently & diligently in putting together the re-mixing and mastering of this album, I couldn't have done it without him that's for sure! And I'd like to recommend that in listening to the album to do so in full and in order as Kyle re-sequenced some things so that one song flows very smoothly right into the next. We're really happy with how it turned out!

   So now I am pleased to share with you all, in full the re-imagining of my first album Dancing With Dragons (Redux). I hope you all enjoy it, and as always I thank you all for your love and support over the years. Happy “Dancing”! 

   Well, having made it through the holidays and New Year's, I've finally had a little bit of time to reflect on 2025, so I thought I'd share some of those reflections with you all…

   This last year was BUSY! To say the least. Between all of the great gigs this past year, continuing work on the re-record of the “Dancing With Dragons” LP, and just life in general, 2025 kept me moving at a steady clip, which for me was a good thing. There were definitely some challenges along the way, both musically and personally. There was a point there actually a few months ago where I had thought that I was going to have to change course with some things personally, and take a step back from the music career. But like always after having a little time to recoup myself and putting some things in perspective, I realized that at the end of the day, playing music and being involved with the creative process was where I belonged and what I really wanted to do. I learned a few things over the course of last year, one of which was that once again, life is short and it can go by in the blink of an eye. Do what makes you happy, what your passionate about, and you'll never go wrong. 

   Most of the personal challenges over the last year had to do with some physical issues (nothing too serious thankfully) but it definitely made me realize once again that I'm apparently no longer indestructible lol, and that there's things I need to do on a regular to make sure I'm operating at the best level I can, and performing at the best level I can so I've been doing my best to be aware of that, ‘cause there’s lots of things I still wanna accomplish so I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon. 

   Mostly I wanna give thanks to all of the wonderful musicians I've gotten to work with this past year, between Rock Inc, Carnival of Sins, The Edge, and 55: A Tribute to Sammy Hagar(RIP my band brotha Geno Warren) it has truly been an adventure, and I couldn't have asked for a better cast of characters to jam with and share the stage with, I love you guys and gals. You all are what keep me going! 

   As for the 2026, my goals are simple. I just want to continue to strive to better myself physically, mentally, and spiritually. I have recently embarked upon getting a new band off the ground, …Of Stars and Shadows. We're very excited to be working on putting together some great music to share with you all. I'll be continuing to finish up work on the re-record of the “Dancing With Dragons” LP. If there's time, maybe start working on my 3'rd instrumental album as I've had some ideas in the can for a bit. And of course I'll be out around town continuing to burn up stages with Rock Inc. and Carnival of Sins. So best I can tell ya's for right now is, hang on for the ride, ‘cause I’m just gettin' started baby! Much love to you all, see you soon! 

MF

   Greetings everyone! Hoping that everyone has had a great 4'th of July weekend! I know I sure have. It had been a minute since I'd last posted a blog on the latest that's been happening, so I figured tonight was a good time to catch you up. 

   So as alot of you may know, I released a new single on the 4'th entitled “Next Wave” featuring Matt Martin on guitar. This was something that I had been looking forward to for awhile as I was very proud of how the recording came out, as I know Matt is as well, and we were excited to share it with everyone. The recording of the track went very smoothly, as did the production for the visualizer I'd put together to go with the song as well. In thinking of a concept for the video, I thought the name of the song pretty much said it all, and not to mention with it being summertime right now, the waves and ocean and the surfing footage felt like a very natural fit. 

   So what's next on the agenda? Well, as of now I am nearing completion as far as the recording process end of things with the re-issue of the first album. Just one song remains, and then it will be time for mixing and mastering. I don't want to give an exact time time table just yet as to when it will be ready to be released, but I promise you it will be as soon as I can. It has turned out to be a really wonderful experience getting to go back and revisit those songs again. It's reminded me of why I started writing the instrumentals and doing solo work in the first place, and it has been especially rewarding to be able to put some musical elements into some of the songs like I had wanted to when I first envisioned them, but because of technical or other constraints at the time I wasn't able to. So this will be a real accomplishment being able to finish this project up and sharing it with you all. 

   As to what happens after that? Good guess. My thinking is that hopefully by that point I can see about putting some musicians together with me to go and actually perform the songs live finally. And also to be able to begin work in earnest on a third album, as I've had several ideas for that “in the can” so to speak already. So we'll just have to see. As you know I am also always kept busy with Rock Inc., The Sammy Hagar Tribute, and they'll be a new third band added to the list at some point in the near future, so if all continues to go well, you'll be seeing me plenty out and about on the scene around town. 

   I think that mostly covers it for now. I just wanted to say once again, as always how much I appreciate everyone's support and encouragement since I began this journey full time a little over a year ago. It means alot to me. And I am grateful to all of my bandmates for getting to make music with them and for putting up with all of my various projects! Lol. All of the feed back I've gotten so far on the new single has been wonderful and I look forward to bringing you some more new music just as soon as I can! 

Mf

   So as today marks the last day of 2024, I wanted to take a couple of minutes to reflect on the year past and everything that has taken place. It has definitely been a whirlwind of a year, and so many things that I didn't expect, both good and bad but the majority is in the good column! 

   It started out as a pretty average year, but by April everything changed when the opportunity came for me to step up things musically and direct my attention and energy full time to my passion of playing music. In a very short amount of time I was very fortunate to first hook up with my bandmates in Carnival of Sins, and then not too long after that, Rock Inc. We've been working hard this year at putting our perspective shows together and Carnival is out and about on the St. Louis scene gigging now, and Rock Inc. will be in just a couple of weeks. 

   I also decided that it was time to take on the task of going back into my catalog and begin work on a re-issue of my first album “Dancing With Dragons” so that I could improve upon the sound quality from the original recordings, and also add in a few things that weren't available to me at the time of the initial recording. Things have been progressing with the re-issue, and I'm hoping to have it completed in the first part of the new year. It's been great getting to go back and kind of relive these tracks again as I've been going through them, remembering the inspirations for what started me on this journey with instrumentals, and it's given me new inspiration to continue on once this project is finished. I already have a few demo ideas in the can for album #3, so I'm hoping at some point in the coming year to begin work on that too. There will be a new single coming in the near future, that I can tell you! 

   There's been some other triumphs along the way, including the launch of this website! I am very grateful and excited for being able to reach people in a larger way than I had previously over social media. Also getting to take a crack at recording a podcast (Defending The Old School) that was a learning experience in and of itself, but I'm looking forward to continuing with that project as well (episode #2 is in the works, it's just taking a minute lol). And then most recently I have had the opportunity to join forces with some fellow musicians in putting together 55: A Tribute to Sammy Hagar. We're very excited about putting this show together for everyone and I'm thankful for my bandmates in that group as well. We think this will have alot of potential so we're working hard to get everything up and running. 

   It's been quite a year all the way around. There were moments that were a little scary, wondering if this was all gonna work or not, and there's been times that it's just required alot of faith in the powers that be, but I think that overall it's been a successful year and I'm looking even more forward to 2025 and what it will bring. So Happy New Year to you all, and keep rockin' and keep believin' in those dreams!