Our Song of the Day comes from The Haunted Windchimes with “Sun Shining Bright” which follows the storyline of the songs creation, while transitioning into a dream-like psychedelic desert sequence in the vein of film director Alejandro Jodorosky. This gave The Haunted Windchimes the opportunity to explore more lucid esoteric subject matter while capturing the spirit of the song. The video was shot by Sarah Megyesy, in Pueblo Colorado and East Mesa (Apache Junction) Arizona. Haunted Windchimes members Desirae Garcia furnished and designed costumes/props with editing by Inaiah Lujan.
Inaiah Lujan:I had just gotten home from GD50 (Grateful Dead’s Fare Thee Well) in Chicago when I penned this tune, Summer 2015. Awe inspired, I was on my porch playing my guitar and felt the muse calling me, “Sun Shining Bright on my head, so much to do I’ll sing instead…” It was one of those songs that wanted to be caught, and I happily obliged. The lyrics reveal the muse as the sun, shining bright in my heart, that feeling of warmth and safety reassuring me no matter what is happening around me, everything is going to be okay. I quickly wrote the 3 verses and choruses that appear on the recording but thought it was still missing something. A quick text to my band mate Mike Clark revealed what would moments later become the bridge of the song that tied the whole story together… “Ain’t no dark clouds to bring me down — I always smile when you come around — Nothing but blue skies from here on out — The sun is shining on my face.”
The Haunted Windchimes hail from Pueblo Colorado, historically one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse cities in the state, at the southern most reaches of the Rocky Mountain Front Range. Drawing from traditional folk and American roots music, their songs have a vintage quality, painting pictures of days gone by and days that yearn to be. While not exactly bluegrass, blues or country, their songs draw from all of these elements, grounded by spirited pickin’ and honeyed harmonies. Moreover, there’s something about Pueblo’s steel mill beginnings, storied immigrant legacy, and the dusty arid climate, that seeps into “The Chimes’ music, adding ample character, edge and grit.
“Rattle Your Bones” (Release date: May 13th, 2016) is the sixth recording from the quintet, released on their own homegrown label, Blank Tape Records and recorded by Chandler Pratt (The Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit) in Modesto, CA. The Haunted Windchimes are: Inaiah Lujan (acoustic and electric guitar, bass, percussion, vocals), Chela Lujan (banjo, vocals), Desirae Garcia (baritone ukulele, bass, vocals) and Mike Clark (acoustic guitar, violin, mandolin, vocals). Produced by The Haunted Windchimes and Chandler Pratt, guest musicians include Pratt, (tambourine, mandolin, electric guitar) and renowned LA and Nashville session player Mike Witcher (lap steel, dobro).