Walls Are Not Mine

written by Stephanie Hatfield
produced by Stephanie Hatfield and Bill Palmer

Did you know I'd never let you go
Did you know you'd be the only one
I'd measure everyone up against
Even before we'd begun

It was under a tree in a small meadow
I can smell the rotting leaves
With your white shirt and black boina
That was the last time I felt peace

Craving that breaks my body into pieces
A mosaic of what I was
What I was
What I was

Did you know that I'd never let you go
Did you know that you'd be the only one
So now when I'm standing at the alter
I'm standing with the wrong one

Winter light is bright against the rock
A mountain full of one stone
We take pictures the sea behind our hair
What I wish I would have known

Craving that breaks my body into pieces
A mosaic of what I was
Craving that breaks my body into pieces
A mosaic of what I was
What I was
What I was
What I was
What I was

Voice & Guitar - Stephanie Hatfield
Guitar - Bill Palmer
Piano & Hammond Organ - Kevin Zoernig
Bass - Matt McClinton
Drums - Shawn Peters

What I Was

Stephanie Hatfield invites us into the wonder of her life by shoving us head first into the back seat of a speeding car that is her music with Hot Mess.  A vessel of unfeigned guitars, vocals, sex and madness built upon empires of heartache and new-found love.

Stephanie was trained as an opera singer in college who worked her way into jazz, Broadway, folk and rock before finding Bill Palmer, Matt McClinton and Jason Aspeslet to join forces with for her debut album.  All members of Hot Mess have rock sensibilities stemming from various influences such as Nina Simone, The Rolling Stones, Ryan Adams, The Smiths and more.  The band was created in the studio when the members came together on January 1st, 2009. Since then, they have exploded into a local phenomenon and are planning national tour dates and recording their next album.


Last Night

Follow Me To The Mesa

First single off the highly anticipated, Out This Fell

Gone Gone Gone

Hatfield's 3rd album reveals a vast space of abandonment and rue. And yet it is undeniably beautiful, not in spite of but because of its evolution—and the traces of stories trembling in the air, ready to be spoken to those who dream, imagine, and listen.

Stephanie Hatfield - Vox, Guitars, Piano & Percussion 
Bill Palmer - Guitars & Percussion 
R. Bruce Phillips - Keys & Piano 
Noah Baumeister - Bass 
Arne Bey - Drums 
Eric Ortiz - Trumpet 
Santiago Romero - Guitar & Vihuela 

All songs written by Stephanie Hatfield 
Produced by Stephanie Hatfield & Bill Palmer 
Recorded & Engineered by Bill Palmer at Frogville 
Mastered by Brian Lucey of Magic Garden Mastering

Confession

Sold And Stolen

Wrap My Limbs

Taste The Air

Talking To The Dead

It is no surprise that listening to Stephanie Hatfield calls up images of wind-swept mesas and sinfully-good heartbreaks. With dreamy lyrics and a story worth telling, her music embodies the emotional release of having your heart ripped apart and lovingly put back together again. Although originally from the Detroit area, this eclectic musician hails from a Kentucky hillbilly heritage with a rich poetic history, and now calls the desert Southwest her home. While it is clear that such varied locations have inspired her lyrics, it is unadulterated passion that drives Hatfield’s music. Much like her physical journey across the country, her musical expressions have also traveled— from the church choir, through genres as diverse as classical, opera, broadway, jazz and folk—and eventually found a home in rock. A sense of heart-wrenching empathy is woven throughout her songs, but it’s the raw power of Hatfield’s expansive voice that makes her the perfect soundtrack for an adrenaline junkie who craves the rush. 
Like all good rock n’ roll, Hatfield’s music reflects epic failed relationships and the personal experience of redemption. The Tracks, Hatfield’s second album, is firmly rooted in this territory, situated within a layered background of Alternative rock, Americana, and Indie instrumentals. Recorded at the legendary Frogville Studio in Santa Fe, NM, and produced and mastered by the multi-talented Bill Palmer, these twelve songs gain momentum and power with the help of a number of well-known musicians backing Hatfield’s tremendous vocals. The signature guitar themes of Bill Palmer (Hundred Year Flood, The Sharecroppers) are joined by musicians Matt McClinton and Andrew Primm. Guest singers include Shannon McNally for the well-balanced duet “Lonely One”.  
Throughout a life of travel and exploration, music has been the one constant for Hatfield. By the age of 8, she was singing in three different church choirs. It was not stage-fright that she felt during her first solo performance, a song performed for 200 people in her Presbyterian congregation, but rather fear that she would trip on the way up to the stage. The sound of the audience’s appreciative applause had her hooked, and Hatfield began traveling for competitions and performances at a young age. Operatically trained, with extensive study in Vocal Performance and classical music at Michigan State University, Hatfield’s diverse and professional musical background can be clearly heard in her latest musical endeavors. If her other pursuits are any indication—Motorcycle Racing, Mountain Search and Rescue, African safaris, swimming with sharks on the Barrier Reef, shooting guns and knitting—Hatfield possesses a tremendous commitment and fearlessness in the chase of her passions. With a vivacious personality to match the compelling singing, songwriting, and performance, Hatfield will make you wish for love just so you can feel the deep ache of heartbreak.

StephanieHatfield

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