If Ben Fold’s Five and Tori Amos collaborated to write a Broadway musical sung by Ella Fitzgerald, the result would sound like the Grace Woods Trio. A fierce blonde bombshell with a rich theatrical voice writes lyric-driven, upbeat melodies, backed up by stylish drumming, bass and male vocal harmonies. You’ve never heard anything like this Jazz Pop! The Trio also performs a variety of contemporary Pop Rock cover tunes if the event calls for it.

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Special thanks to Etai, my brother Jim, Laila, Dennis, Chelsea, Dave, Wes, JP, Sean, Alex, Jake, Karina, Kristen, Jimmy, Gwen, Megan, Ellen, Sierra, Elizabeth, Amelia, Tim, Kevin, Toby, Hazel, Lauren, Jacob, Robyn Harris and Chris Trapper for making the night successful. I know I forgot some people, so if I did, please know that we play so much better when you come out and we really appreciate the time you shared with us. I will post pictures from last night in our Photos section when I get home from work (I have the camera here, but left the card reader at home). It was a night of solid song writers. Robyn was self-deprecating about her hand in the night, when really, she had put together a great bill and all the seats were filled. Granted the door man, Rob, was totally drunk from 6:30pm on, but thanks to my brother Jim for picking up the slack at the door. There was also one fellow who had to be removed from the club to keep him from yelling at the stage, but perhaps this is the price of an intimate bar. The performers talked with the audience, who easily spoke back. So intimate it was that Chris Trapper, the touring headliner, left the stage to sit next to Dave in the audience and sing him a birthday song. We played one of our newer tunes “Slow Down” and I was happy Ellen and Megan recognized it. Robyn had some new tunes as well, accompanied by the pitch perfect starlets Elizabeth and Amelia. It was our first time playing there and I must say that until 9pm, I was very doubtful about the space, but then it filled and we got all the benefits of an intimate cafe, except add in alcohol and a sound guy other than myself. I am lucky for the new friends I met. Each person who came was extremely supportive of the artists, regardless of who they came for and I suspect that it is these people who hold up the SF music scene and keep it alive. The people I met last night are those who realize all the acts are striving together toward the same awareness and the same good feeling. For their vibrance and understanding our band is truly grateful. Please let us know how we can come support you in the future. -Grace

My cousin Ava had her first communion this past Saturday. I hung out at her house until 7pm with Whit and then drove into Windsor. My Uncle Marty told me I would know when I got to Windsor when I felt like I was in Disneyland. It’s true. The buildings are new and colored in bright, contrasting hues. The stores are boutiques and there are no chains in sight. I believe it all sprang up as a result of the wine boom. The owners of the Wine Shop are Stephani and Tony. The couple is friendly and extremely appreciative. I got the gig through my friend and sometime sit-in instrumentalist Curt Yagi. Stephani shed a tear over the song “Just This Once”, which really touched me. I love wine bars. They are like tea bars- they make everything slow down. They are intimate. When I talk to the guests they are close enough to respond comfortably. I hope to return there soon and hopefully see some familiar faces. We caught up with my friend Becca afterward and then headed home. We then had band practice Sunday and rehearsed some new songs, some of which we will play tomorrow at the Hotel Utah. I am excited to play with Robyn Harris again. Her songs are funny and heartfelt. No one will be dissapointed in this venue. Thanks for reading these posts. How was your weekend?

Hey Folks. There are still some great independent music stores out there with great amangers like David at Rasputin in Berkeley. The band decided to put the tangible albums in this store because this is where we go on a regular basis to check out new stuff and talk to local taste makers. You can find it in the rock section. Sure the CD will be in more and more stores, but I thought I would share my particular joy about this one since we are a Berkeley-based band and proud of it! -Grace

Grace writing this one- I’m so happy we had good friends supporting us this past Thursday at Anna’s. We brought spotlights for the venue, but every time we turned them on, they preferred to flash rather than just stay on, which isn’t exactly appropriate for the Jazz Island. Then the vocal mic at the piano went out for no apparent reason (some tripping over the cord earlier in the night is suspected), so Joe and Whit started “Another One Bites the Dust” and I sang it without a mic until we got a new one. I strangely only got the joke at the end of the night. I was merely thinking that that is an awesome song and it really lightened things up. Then having 3 vocal mics seemed to cause a lot of high feedback, which may have been due to the positioning of the open piano. In any case, none of these factors spoiled the show and we were able to present 3 new originals and a couple new covers to an audience of involved, encouraging friends. Our guest musicians, Vanessa Van Spall, Ian Hisert and Winston Moody were delightful and very easy-going about the quick changes. Unlike the CD Release, we took our time during the break and really got to say hi to everyone. At the end we sang the bartender, Aluma, happy birthday and caught up with some high school friends and neighbors. I was especially touched to have 3 cousins sitting behind the merch table. I felt happy to bring them together to catch up. My mom is one of seven so there are a lot of cousins and it’s hard to get us all together some times. You can see pics of them and you in our photos section. Thanks also to Kristen and Gwen for bringing so many people. The Stockton Asparagus Festival is probably the largest food festival the band has ever played and we were amazed by the kindness of the many volunteers. Large outdoor amphitheaters were raised in honor of Joan Jet, Greg Kiln and the many other acts surrounding the event. My conclusions are that fried asparagus is very good and I recommend this festival as a vacation destination. There were 12 booths in a row for fried asparagus only and the sheer size of the whole event was astounding. We met some great people and played a great set. Whit had no monitor for the whole thing- it kicked in during the last song, but the crowd was still shouting and clapping their hands. Good people out there! Thanks for making it all worth it! We welcome your feedback on how to give you a better show! Thanks again.

Grace writing this one- I am grateful for the Bistro for having stage monitors and good people. We played one song most people have never heard and another song no one had heard before. They went off without a hitch. A woman at the Bistro actually asked me twice whether or not I minded that she was dancing. Of course we welcome it! And we are perfecting the cover tunes for the show this coming Thursday. I want to give everyone new stuff to enjoy. I am so grateful to the many friends who are supporting us that I want to give them as much new stuff as possible at every show. And it’s easier when we get to play at Anna’s, a nice place with chairs and a grand piano! We didn’t bring them to the show last night, but the band has mugs now. They have our picture and lyrics printed on them. We only got 5 of them as a fun experiment, so I’m excited to see what people think. We still have the T-shirts of course, and the T-Shirt maker is in town- Like Minded People- so he may be there to tell us all how he does it. Thank you very much for taking a chance on our music and connecting with us. Please tell us how we can support you in the coming months. I really appreciate how you have spread the word and I am so grateful that you are reading this post! I have a new free pod cast for you of Aeode Muse in the pod cast section and more videos are on the way. Thanks again for letting us into your world! -Grace

The band is truly grateful to Jacob Wolkenhauer for his work and inspiration. His positive words and the joy he gets out of being part of our team gives us great joy in return. He is a talented sound engineer, videographer, instrumentalist and a phenomenol friend. We are indebted to him for his kindness. Thanks Jacob.

Last night I went to an interview with Ani DiFranco at the Palace for the Fine Arts. Jacob and Joe were laughing hysterically and she is very theatrical and funny. I guess I was waiting the whole time to hear some hope regarding the industry and to tell you the truth, she didn’t have hope to give. She had hope for her life and her baby and has earned enough “bread and butter” from her cds that she doesn’t have to worry about the industry shift. She did touch on the fact that she supports other bands on her label and didn’t know how she would do that now. I think she has indeed been a pioneer, but not of the digital age. I think the pioneers of the new mp3 era are slowly emerging and working hard. One such musician working hard is Forrest Day. I believe in the music he creates and am trying to help in any way I can. Have I mentioned that I take the GMAT this weekend to enter business school part-time for marketing? Forrest is a talent that is garnering attention regardless of virtually zero marketing and zero tangible product. The music is just that good. I like it so much I want the whole band to get more out of it. The music is about energy, not image. Granted, the band consists of a bunch of guys in their 20’s in collared suits singing harmony over hip-hop carnival riffs. And speaking of image, I cannot express the joy it is to read a women’s magazine and see no articles on how to lose weight quickly or please your man. I’m talking about wedding magazines, specifically Modern Bride. It sounds so barbie and sexist, but unlike Cosmo and 20 other mags I consider toxic to the female psyche, wedding magazines have women of every color and every size distributed throughout the magazine. They have have articles about staying healthy and bringing families together. They talk about exspressing one’s self and making the most of one’s budget. Strange that such valuable material would be enveloped in the guise of outdated traditions originating in the silliness of “bloody bedsheets”. No I’m not grosss; I just majored in Shakespeare and can’t remember if that should have been a dash or a semicolon. Thanks for listening. I hope to see you soon. -Grace

With all the music biographies and articles I read, some stuff is still way over my head. Talking to Pete Crooks of Diablo Magazine felt like touching the tip of a massive iceberg of knowledge about the Bay Area Scene and how it has evolved over 2 generations. From Tom Petty’s old bands to Credence and Green Days’ explosions, the more I learn the more I have to learn. And yet how lucky am I to be influenced by these great writers! I reveled in his interview of Adam from Counting Crows and every word I hear makes me want to read more. And Jessica Neighbor, another judge and also vocal teacher, glows with positivity after years of gigging at places I strive to make my way to. I know the band will get there. The steps we take every day and the things we learn from your feedback attest to that. I have taken your feedback and started playing some Ben Folds Five songs, John Legend and others at my long cafe shows. I’ve gotten a great response. Last night we also had another judge from Unfun Records- Max Shen. He and his record label produce everything local from electronic to New Wave to Metal. We are all working hard and I feel a strong bond and comraderie among these people. I enjoyed talking to Randy and Eric about their bands and meeting some newcomers as well. I hope that people use me and ask for help in any way that they can. I want to help as much as possible. As Jake Brill said in our recent interview, I want to make music with my best friends. Thanks for making that possible with your positive words and constant presence.

Mike Zawitkoski has been pressed for time these past weeks and so I filled in for him last night at the Bistro. When I walked in they were playing the rock over the PA that they usually do. I was a change to that. The crowd liked having something other than blues though and my voice felt healthy and stretchy like taffy. I really want to nail those John Legend and Jamie Cullum songs to lengthen my set, and the new original, “Hot to Make You”, is really coming along nicely. This kind man named Vic helped me set up a monitor and the sound was the best I’ve had it there. Usually Scotty Rock n Roll comes in and messes with the EQ around 11pm to finally get the balance right. I met some new friends- Jeremiah and David were really nice to hang out with in the back. There were some regulars who told me the music was refreshing. I bought some pants for 25 bucks at the Gap yesterday. I felt bad about it given that I try not to support chains and try to keep the profits in the community. It was the only place within 50 miles that had extra long pants (non-denim) for my 6 foot tall frame. I may try the internet more next time, but one really needs to try these things on. Oh, btw I finished Mike Gyulai’s novel and I really liked it. It’s going to be at Barnes and Noble for a short run in April so be sure to search for “Midnight in Rome” on Amazon or to stop by the Lafayette bookstore too. I am also grateful for the people who have reached out to me on facebook. I really think that site lets you get to know someone better than myspace- you get the real name and schools, hobbies everything. I feel lucky so many people have found me there. I interview Jake Brill and Vanessa Van Spall tonight for the Bay Area Green Room podcast. I’ll let you know when they are posted. Thanks for reading these posts and for the comments you have made on others! Come see some new additions to our show at Anna’s Jazz Island Thursday April 24th!