On Horseshoe Lake, by Chris Koza

On Horseshoe Lake

by Chris Koza

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In the midwinter of 2020, Chris embarked on a writing retreat near Bearhead State Park in Northern Minnesota. At night, the subzero temperatures welcomed stars by the thousands and by day, the bright sunlight cut through frigid air and tall evergreens.

Each sunrise, Nellie and Arlo - two loyal schnauzers - nestled in close to help mitigate the chill creeping into the cabin as the fire from the previous night dwindled into coals. The cabin, set on a hill, faced Horseshoe Lake, and the vibrant hues of first light brought with it the promise of adventure, meditation, and music.

Chris sketched out ideas during morning walks on the Taconite Trail; gathered melodies while crossing the frozen lake to the unnamed island near the eastern shore; imagined textures while chopping firewood in the late afternoons; and found harmony under the later brilliance of the evening sky.

From the beginning, these songs were intended as a instrumental response to Horseshoe Lake: a soundtrack of place. Over the weeks to follow, as the world locked down amidst a deadly and frightening pandemic, Chris fleshed out arrangements for guitar, upright bass, violin, piano, and drums. As it was impossible to bring a band together to perform the music in the same space, each of the musicians had to record their performances remotely.

On Horseshoe Lake is composed and arranged by Chris Koza (guitars and vocals), and performed by Josh Misner (Jeremy Messersmith, Ondera) on violin and viola, John Munson (New Standards, Semisonic) on upright bass, Bryan Nichols (Dead Man Winter, Donna Grantis) on piano, and Alex Young (Michael Shynes, Fathom Lane) on drums and percussion. In addition to eleven instrumental compositions, the final song is a jolly sing-a-long in true campfire fashion; a song to sing when we can all gather again in-person at our favorite places. For the finale, On Horseshoe Lake, Justin Lansing (Okee Dokee Brothers) joins the band on banjo and a choir of nearly 40 singers, crowdsourced through an invitation on social media, contributed spirited vocals.

The album was mixed by Paul Marino and mastered by Tom Nunes. Accompanying the album is a book of poetry and writings by Chris. With scant exceptions all of the photography used in the album artwork and accompanying book is used with permission from the archives of Minnesota photographer Lucy Hawthorne.

Includes unlimited streaming of On Horseshoe Lake via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. ... more

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1.	Almost Home 02:29		buy track
2.	Taconite Trail 02:42		buy track
3.	Wind Through The Reeds 03:17		buy track
4.	As The Crow Flies, As The Deer Run 03:11		buy track
5.	Prayer For The Prey 03:29		buy track
6.	Morning Song 03:20		buy track
7.	Wild Dogs 02:45		buy track
8.	Generations 02:50		buy track
9.	Further To Fall 02:47		buy track
10.	Wandering Ember 03:01		buy track
11.	Stars Above, Stars Below 02:56		buy track
12.	On Horseshoe Lake 03:22	lyrics	buy track
When we leave here don’t you worry We’ll be back before you know For it’s time you can not hurry So onward our dreams shall go To where the snow has gently fallen Where the day is burnished bright Where you lose your breath and get it back Where the stars are out most every night In the meantime don’t be shy Throw another log on the fire Let the weight make you feel lighter We’ll be back before we know - on Horseshoe Lake where the red pines grow May our thoughts ever surrender To the ones who know us well And the places we remember And the stories we sure could tell To where the winter’s shed is thawing And the days start trending long Where the horseflies bite and mosquitoes whine Where they call out “hey!” supper’s on And, In the meantime don’t be shy Throw another log on the fire Let the weight make you feel lighter We’ll be back before we know - on Horseshoe Lake where the red pines grow How is it you can hear a whisper Travel clear across a lake Above the morning call of the loon And the grey wolf howling late Over it ‘ol Saint Louis County On Horseshoe Lake where the red pines grow Where tomorrow always comes too soon It’ll be right here waiting for us to get back from wherever we go So, In the meantime don’t be shy Throw another log on the fire Let the weight make you feel lighter We’ll be back before we know - on Horseshoe Lake where the red pines grow

about

In the midwinter of 2020, Chris embarked on a writing retreat near Bearhead State Park in Northern Minnesota. At night, the subzero temperatures welcomed stars by the thousands and by day, the bright sunlight cut through frigid air and tall evergreens.

Each sunrise, Nellie and Arlo - two loyal schnauzers - nestled in close to help mitigate the chill creeping into the cabin as the fire from the previous night dwindled into coals. The cabin, set on a hill, faced Horseshoe Lake, and the vibrant hues of first light brought with it the promise of adventure, meditation, and music.

Chris sketched out ideas during morning walks on the Taconite Trail; gathered melodies while crossing the frozen lake to the unnamed island near the eastern shore; imagined textures while chopping firewood in the late afternoons; and found harmony under the later brilliance of the evening sky.

From the beginning, these songs were intended as a instrumental response to Horseshoe Lake: a soundtrack of place. Over the weeks to follow, as the world locked down amidst a deadly and frightening pandemic, Chris fleshed out arrangements for guitar, upright bass, violin, piano, and drums. As it was impossible to bring a band together to perform the music in the same space, each of the musicians had to record their performances remotely.

On Horseshoe Lake is composed and arranged by Chris Koza (guitars and vocals), and performed by Josh Misner (Jeremy Messersmith, Ondera) on violin and viola, John Munson (New Standards, Semisonic) on upright bass, Bryan Nichols (Dead Man Winter, Donna Grantis) on piano, and Alex Young (Michael Shynes, Fathom Lane) on drums and percussion. In addition to eleven instrumental compositions, the final song is a jolly sing-a-long in true campfire fashion; a song to sing when we can all gather again in-person at our favorite places. For the finale, On Horseshoe Lake, Justin Lansing (Okee Dokee Brothers) joins the band on banjo and a choir of nearly 40 singers, crowdsourced through an invitation on social media, contributed spirited vocals.

credits

released April 30, 2021

The album was mixed by Paul Marino and mastered by Tom Nunes. Accompanying the album is a book of poetry and writings by Chris. With scant exceptions all of the photography used in the album artwork and accompanying book is used with permission from the archives of Minnesota photographer Lucy Hawthorne.

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about

Chris Koza Minneapolis, Minnesota

Both solo and with his band Rogue Valley, Chris Koza has supported and shared the stage with artists such as Brandi Carlile, Ingrid Michaelson, The Jayhawks, Neko Case, Kathleen Edwards, Dan Wilson, Stephen Kellogg, This is the Kit, and Tift Merritt, among others. His song (Rogue Valley) The Wolves and the Ravens was featured in Ben Stiller’s film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. ... more

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