Posts by Steve Wildsmith
With sobriety, contemporary composer John Bence reaches for the divine
Courtesy of Dan Northover Shortly after the release of his debut EP “Disquiet,” contemporary classical composer and producer John Bence was considered something of a wunderkind in Europe’s avant garde circles. After all, it was a fragment of the music that would find its way onto “Disquiet” that convinced Chilean-American composer Nicolas Jaar to sign…
Read MoreLight, life and music: Singer-songwriter Eric Stracener thrives in sobriety
The first thing Eric Stracener heard when he pulled open the door to his first 12 Step meeting wasn’t what he expected. For the singer-songwriter, who last fall released the stellar indie-folk record “Ocean Springs,” the trip up those stairs seemed like the shuffle of a condemned man to the chair. He remembers vividly, he…
Read MoreJuly Fourth: In addiction recovery, freedom takes on a whole new meaning
Freedom didn’t feel very free at first. After six days in a detox facility, the heroin was effectively out of my system, save for a few Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome-style hot flashes and bouts of insomnia. That was nothing, though. I could do that all day long, because compared to the gut-twisting agony of full-blown opiate…
Read MoreSobriety forms the backbone of LAPÊCHE couple’s relationship and rock
LAPÊCHE is, from left, David Diem, Jeff Gensterblum, Krista Holly Diem and Drew DeMaio. (Courtesy of Kate Hoos) If it doesn’t bend a few rules, can you really call it rock ‘n’ roll? If it hadn’t been for Krista Holly Diem, singer and guitarist for the New York-based indie outfit LAPÊCHE, and her husband —…
Read MoreCalm like a Bomb: Rock to Recovery’s Brian Plink reflects on the serenity of sobriety
Brian Plink, a.k.a. Brian Bourke (fourth from left) and the Rock to Recovery crew. (Courtesy of Steady Jenny) One of the elements of addiction, according to a certain 12 Step recovery program, is obsession, defined as “that fixed idea that takes us back, time and time again, to our particular drug, or some substitute, to…
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