The Kurtis Myson Band is proud to announce the release of the much-anticipated album Dream Big. The album has been more than a year in the making, and a lifetime of experience for its composer, Kurt Koch.
The album is the result of a long journey of self-exploration that Kurt has been on since deciding to face some serious depression and addiction issues in his life. The process was not an easy one, but the insights and rewards he has gained in awareness and being at peace were all worth it. “It felt like I was in this dark place for so long, that when I stepped back out into the light, I was overwhelmed with such love and life that for a while all I could do was just stand there and keep saying ‘Thank You’ to God for having brought me out of the shadow,” said Kurt. But Kurt shortly found out, that there was more than just his healing to be thankful for.
“As I began to review and take inventory of everything that had happened to me, I started to share the story with other people in my life who had literally no idea that I had been so lost,” commented Kurt, “They started telling me about their own battles and struggles and asking me how I had managed to triumph over them. It was then I realized how universal the struggle I had gone through was. Depression, addiction, self-image, anxiety, all create this interesting paradox of making the person feel alone and alienated from the world, when in fact, they can not see how connected they are to thousands of people everyday who struggle with variations on the same issues.
“It was then I came to see that my story shouldn’t remain with me, but rather shared with the world in the hope that where my struggle or my healing would cause someone to say ‘me too’ and that the cone of silence that shrouds people with these issues might be lifted and conversations of rebuilding begin.”
Shortly thereafter, Kurt found himself in a creative writing space like nothing he had experienced before. It wasn’t an idea, or a tune at a time but rather, songs began pouring out almost on a daily basis. Whereas in the past Kurt, who has a long and respected reputation as a consummate musician and composer, would pen a few songs a year found himself with almost four albums worth of material in just a few short months.
“It was truly amazing,” exclaimed Kurt, “and it wasn’t me. I was just fortunate to tap into the flow of a creative force that allowed me to take my experiences and turn them into music and words that made some of the very powerful insights I had gained but had difficulty expressing in just speech, come alive in music.”
Kurt next step was to take the raw material to his long-time friend and producer Eric Garten, formally known as “E”, and begin the process of crafting them into finished pieces. That’s when the project took a whole new direction. Usually, both Kurt and “E” would map out the song and create an idea of what the end goal was. Did a song need bass or piano. Would drums work or maybe just some shakers. In this case both Kurt and “E” decided that at the core of Kurt’s journey was this concept of letting go of control in things of life where control is just a fiction and opening up to the higher power which can materialize when we diminish our own ego and begin to love and serve others.
Kurt explained it this way, “I am very fortunate in my career to have worked with some really talented players. This time, rather than bringing them in and telling them what to do, I had them come in cold to the songs and simply asked them to express what they felt. The result was amazing. As each musician came in and added their own interpretation, their own heart to each song, the songs began to transform into these incredible recordings that I would have never been able to conceive of or create on my own.”
The result is Dream Big, the first album to be released from what is now called the Kurtis Myson Band. The album contains 16 tracks, each a different part of the story of Kurt’s journey to inner peace and spiritual growth. The album’s tracks are a diverse blend of rock, pop, blues and gospel influences featuring at its core, four of Kurt’s closest musical collaborators. Byron Bordeaux on guitars and lead vocals, Tony TerBorg on piano and keys, Anthony Agostinacci on drums and Kurt Koch playing bass as well as singing lead on a couple of the tracks. Also featured on the album are Steve Huber on violin, the Venson Bordeaux Singers and Scott Page, saxophonist for Pink Floyd and Supertramp.
Putting it all together is “E”, producer and engineer extraordinaire from For The Record Studios in Orange, Ca. The album is already beginning to gain some critical acclaim and a growing audience who have felt the genuine heart behind the music. Dream Big is the first in a series of albums Kurt has planned to bring to his growing fan base. You can listen to samples of the album at Kurtis Myson.com or purchase the album there or on iTunes, Amazon or CD Baby.
