Mitch Wilson prepping for a night of Prince at the Doug Fir on August 9: Photo by Benji VuongMitch Wilson has spent years behind the scenes. Whether drumming for the PDX-based pop rock band The Hugs, competing in numerous jazz festivals, or spending some time on Broadway filling the drum chair for the production A Night With Janis Joplin, the Portland native "needed change," he says. "After seven years, I was done with New York City. The thought literally stopped me in my tracks."
He'd had some of the biggest and best gigs of his life, including "working with one of my musical idols, Sting, in the production he wrote and starred in, The Last Ship. But seven years was long enough in the city and a change needed to happen," he concluded.
So Wilson moved back home to Portland and started writing his own original music again. He connected with "my friend Davey Appaloosa, who I used to play with in The Hugs, and we started writing and recording together. This music represents a new beginning. 'See Right Through You' is a song about empowerment; I can now see the world around me in an honest reality. My new songs are about the future, songs with forward momentum."
As Wilson and Appaloosa sat down together to record in the latter's home studio, "I played the instruments and sang, acting as performer/producer, while Davey was producer and engineer."
On the first day of recording, the pair completed a new song. "It was unreal how quickly the song unraveled, lyrics and all," Wilson explains. Next came "See Right Through You" and after two takes, the "process showed me that I can make a better final product if I simply give it some space and time to get the best take"—which you can hear in the retro-reminiscent pop cut below.
For the time being, Wilson will continue to work on his song craft, "composing and releasing more songs as they become ready," while he also drums with Beach Fire and the Wil Kinky Trio.
