decker.

Long as the Night circa 2010

I returned from the first tour drained but accomplished. The biggest issue was: what now? I had done what I set out to but I had no idea what was next.

I spent some days licking my wounds; finding a new place to live and went back to work. A friend loaned me a nylon string guitar. I started noodling on it and songs started happening.

I moved into a friend’s funky little side house which had a garage he let me commandeer to equip as a studio. I hung blankets all over the walls and got to work.

New songs started taking shape. I decided to go with a bigger production and took them to a local studio, my first real recording studio, and worked with producer & world class drummer Ed Barattini. The project became quite a local ensemble. I enlisted 12 local musicians for a more robust album. I could not overstate the contributions of keyboardist David Vincent Mills whose parts helped bring the album to life.

Ed and I grinded in the studio all summer. Once again we wrapped with a big local release show.

Just days before heading out on tour I found out I was going to be a father. This was not part of the plan. I was terrified. I had no idea what a treasure awaited.

This time we set out on a 5 month 98 show tour. Matt Howey returned for the fun along with , Sam Cavanaugh and Philip Robbins all packed in a dated Dodge Caravan. We zig zagged all over the west and midwest, out for 3-4 weeks at a time before coming home for a week or so then heading back out. We often fought like brothers but each night would pull it together to play our hearts out. There were still few club shows to be had, and not much money, so we took to busking. The lineup featured 2 guitars, a mandolin, accordion and we had a little portable snare setup. We would pull into town, busk at a farmer’s market or busy street corner and often make hundreds of dollars - usually far more than we would make at the show. Busking proved exhilarating and one of my fondest memories in music! We made many friends and perfected the art of finding floors to crash on based on our raucous performances.

The epic tour ended and I returned home to become a father.

Long Days Pt 2

As the album came to completion, the biggest question was: what was this project even called? At this point, I was a one-man project and I needed a name. I was, however, working on the album artwork deep into the night with my first buddy in Sedona, the legendary Nate Mullins. Many uninspiring ideas were tossed around. One night after work I came over to Nate’s. He was at the computer smoking a cigarette when he unveiled the decker. logo.

And that was it.

I fielded a band for a spirited Sedona release show, I astonishingly found myself on the cover of a newspaper, and began booking my first tour. I spent 4-5 hours a day for months hitting up every coffee shop, bar, and venue up the coast from San Diego to Bellingham, WA. There were BBQ joints, hostels - anywhere that would take us.

Somehow I booked 36 shows for a 6-week tour. Some were better than others. The first night, pictured in a slide here, was at a chiropractor’s office in San Diego. It was not well attended. 😅 Yet it was also during this time that we learned that if you sent a well-crafted press release to the local entertainment rag, there was a good chance they’d print it. So, we were getting press in a lot of the smaller cities up the coast. Also somehow found our way on a few radio stations which was really exciting.

I was joined on the tour by my friend Nanci McDonald, a then-Jerome local, on cello and vocals. Nanci proved a true road dog; bucking up and learning just how challenging life on the road was. The biggest lesson, out of true necessity, was how to roll into a new town, play our asses off and then blankly declare, “we need a place to stay tonight if anyone has a couch or some floor space.” For the last 2 weeks our friend Matt Howey joined and brought mandolin, a second harmony as well as his bright, fun-loving spirit and some levity to me and Nanci’s wavering energy.

So much was learned on this trip. It was draining and way harder physically and emotionally than I had ever imagined. Yet, with certainty the hunger had grown. I now had the feeling: I could do this.

As we approach this final decker. show, I’ve wanted to share where it started.

Long Days, circa 2009, pt 1/2.

There’s no way to discuss decker.’s beginning without mentioning where I came from. As a kid, I was lost. I moved a lot and had a rough time. I became an addict at age 16. Miraculously, I somehow did not die or go to prison. Around age 20, I taught myself some chords and to sing whilst playing stuff like Ben Harper, Jack Johnson and 90s grunge. I had a pledge to complete college but addiction still reared its head in some intense phases. In 2004, I ended up in Arizona to go to NAU after my 6th treatment center in Southern California in 2002.

I enjoyed playing covers, began writing some songs, navigating my experience of addiction and depression. I worked up the courage to play open mics. Cleared quite a few rooms. I was not good.

When I got done with college I moved to Phoenix and tried corporate jobs. I did not fit in this environment. I was working as a manager in training for Leslie’s Swimming Pool Supplies.

I still have a note I wrote where I listed some stratospheric goals. I wanted to form a band, make an album and do a tour up the West Coast. From where I was talent-wise, it was a particularly long shot.

I had moved to Sedona in 2008 and there was a bartender, Val, who told me to bring him some of my demos and he’d help me record at his home. I brought him some songs, and he matter of factly told me that they were boring. He was not wrong. Then, I brought him one called “Ladies and Gentlemen” and he said, “that’s a good one, Brands. We’ll work on that.” So I started going to his house a few mornings each week to work on that song, which would become the first song of the first album “Long Days.” We kept going. He gave me a computer with some monitors and taught me how to track. I would sit in my room obsessively writing and recording and then bring my progress over to rework. Val truly changed my trajectory.

Somehow, after about 6 months of work, we made the first record, “Long Days.”

Final show June 13 🎟️

EMBODIMENT yoga. Fridays 9am .moon.studio.sedona
An invitation to arrive into the present; into your heart and body. To get a good stretch and build strength. And to find stillness and meditation. If this resonates, join us.

‼️24 hr flash sale‼️

After 18 years, this is where we land. On Saturday, June 13, we’ll play the final decker. show at in Phoenix.

One last evening to gather with the band and experience these songs live.

If you’ve been part of this journey with us, near or far, we hope you’ll make your way in for it.

We will be joined with some of our favorite friends and bands from thru the years: + + .

For the next 24 hours, tickets are available at 50% off.

🎟️ in bio.

With gratitude,
Brandon / decker.

Hi friends,

For many years, you have known me through my band decker.

That name became shorthand for a chapter of my life. But my name is Brandon, and this feels like the right time to speak more directly as myself.

That chapter shaped my life in profound ways. The albums, the shows, the tours and festivals, the electricity of those rooms and the tightrope walk of it all. I am proud of that body of work and grateful for the experiences and meaningful relationships it brought into my life.

Over the past few years, my life has shifted in significant ways. I experienced personal loss, losing all of my elders in a short span of time. With that came a season of grief, reflection and recalibration. What began as a quiet inward turn gradually became a clearer sense of what I am meant to build next.

The season of decker. as it has existed is coming to a close. We plan to host one or two final shows this year to honor that chapter properly. I will share more when the time comes.

At the same time, something new has been taking shape.

I have been studying and training in yoga, meditation, sound facilitation and coaching, and I am cultivating smaller, more intentional gatherings. I am now offering weekly yoga classes and small retreats beginning here in Sedona. Classes and retreats centered around presence, embodiment and real connection.

This is not a departure from what I have always cared about. In many ways, it feels like a continuation, simply expressed differently.

And yes, I am still making music. That part of me is not going anywhere. It simply lives in a new context now.

To those of you who have supported and followed along over the years, thank you. I am looking forward to sharing what is next.

Brandon

📸:

Hello friends! Very excited to announce I will be launching my weekly yoga class EMBODIMENT on Fri February 20 at .moon.studio.sedona I’ve been working quite diligently on this for months and believe it is a meaningful offering for your body, mind and spirit. More info soon but save the date for now. Every Friday at 9am!

Belly of the Beast

Been real, Sicily.