Warrnambool Standard 5th September 2002 - ©Copyright Warrnambool Standard 2002
THREE years in the making, Heidi Gass’ first solo album, Room to Breathe has finally been released. The CD features work Gass wrote and recorded herself. At 25, Gass has been playing in bands for 10 years and has spent the past seven years writing the songs that feature on the album. This solo album has been a solitary journey for Gass who played all the instruments on the album herself except the drums. She had to record each instrument separately which made the recording process difficult, she said. "I didn’t know how it would sound until it was all recorded," she said. Playing guitar, bass, keyboard, piano and singing all the lead and backing vocals proved to be a challenge for this emerging musician and songwriter. Gass said playing all of the instrumental parts herself the came from necessity. "I have found it very hard to find people who have the same style as me and who gel with me musically," she said. "It has been a long process which began three years ago. ‘‘I started writing seven years ago and it has been a dream of mine for some time,’’ she said. "My music is hard to categorise as there are heavier songs and some nice piano songs. "I guess it is an acoustic set-up." Gass has studied keyboards since she was eight years old and has taught herself the rest. "It came naturally," she said. "I own all the instruments I play and I have a very big house with two music rooms." The CD was recorded at Motherload studio and will be launched at the Criterion Hotel in Warrnabool on September 20.
City act goes global : Award winner back from NZ
Warrnambool Standard 18th Sept. 2003 - ©Copyright Warrnambool Standard 2003.
WHEN Heidi Gass’ name was called out as the winner of two popular vote WAMI awards on Tuesday night, she was at home fast asleep, recovering from a recent flight from New Zealand. In fact, Gass didn’t know she’d won until yesterday morning when a congratulatory phone call alerted her to her successes in the best musical act and best album categories. “Someone rang up to congratulate me and I went What? what are you talking about?’,” she laughed. “I didn’t think anything of it I slept through the whole thing.” Gass admitted she was pretty surprised” about receiving the awards ahead of acts such as The Monaros, Ginjan and The Stumpjumpers. She jokingly put the win down to a lot of votes from family and friends. Wherever the votes came from, Gass had certainly earned them — her WAMI-winning album, the self-financed Room To Breathe, took about three years to put together, during which time the 26-year-old has built up a steady following with solo and band performances in Warrnambool and around the state. The awards cap off a successful couple of weeks for Gass — her New Zealand trip included her first overseas gig, at Wellington’s Indigo Bar. “It was fantastic — I got a really good response,” she said. “I’ve got a bit of a fan base over there. “A booking agent got hold of the CD and wanted me to do a tour of the whole country.” While a full tour wasn’t on the cards this time, she hoped to return to New Zealand next year with her whole band for a more extensive string of dates around the north and south islands. The singer-songwriter has been a part of Warrnambool’s music scene for almost a decade, playing with acts such as Mixbowl and The Hated as well as developing her solo repertoire. Gass said she planned to return to Motherlode Studios to record another album — that’s if she can fit it in between the three other side projects she’s trying to get off the ground. One of the projects was expected to pick up where the now-defunct metal act The Hated left off. “I’m moving house at the moment so I want to set up a band shed so I can get back into it. It’s just a matter of prioritising my time.”
WARRNAMBOOL musicians Heidi Gass and Mark Halliwell departed from the usual EP or album approach with their 2017 recording project and decided to release a single every three months or so. MARK is a talented guitarist from Warrnambool has produced a number of solo CDs and has played in several bands including the Chosen Few, jazz nights at the Hotel Warrnambool and with Kayla Dwyer. In 2012 he put together a prog rock studio-based project called Illuuminus which was two years in the making. Heidi is a local musician and music teacher. The two have collaborated regularly over the past 12 years but it has usually been as guests on each other’s projects. This new recording project was about being equal partners on each song.
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