Sories Behind The Album (by Vlad) Vladosphere appeared from contemplating about human's modern existence. The 9-5 jobs, daily chores, money, career, traffic, population, shopping, travel, media, war, etc…. all of this made me want to take a deep breath, close my eyes and be by myself, for myself. I wanted to be myself as I was when I was a child. I wanted to look "inside" of myself, to recognize who I really am, not who I had become or whom all "these foreign objects of life" was making me. So, this special moment of happiness and absolute harmony was a place of my existence that I hadn't connected to for a while. This was the place which carried my oxygen, my life, my air. It was "Vladosphere." This place always exists, regardless of our memory of it. That's what makes us alive and live. So, I would say everyone has his or her own "sphere." Tracks: 1. "Vladosphere" This track named the same as the album but for different reasons. I wrote the harmony for this song in New York. It came to me as a result of the grand emotions I experienced trying to survive in the city of Big. I was overwhelmed. Overwhelming gave me the harmony that you could probably hear. This song was my opening of the evil, the good, irony and myself. I think it sounds like that as well. 2. "Close to the Edge" I wrote this track in California, where sunshine and coastal drives gave me a lot of fresh and upbeat thinking. It made me think of my childhood, how I was growing up and finally ending up on California coast (edge), where California and Ukraine have a lot in common. Thus the name appeared as well. I'm a child in this song. 3. "Life Of My Heart" The original name for this track was "Life Is Beautiful." And it really portrays the way I see life. It could sound cliché, and a cynical group could put a label on me really fast. But the truth is: only fearful people are afraid of a beautiful life and seeing it that way. Beautiful is inspiration, it doesn't hurt or kill. However, it does hurt those who want to destroy it. So, this song was my heart talking, not my fingers or notes. It's a very special, a" bigger than life" song. 4. "Dance" I originally titled this "Birddance" because I saw a flock of birds that were swinging in the air, fantastically changing directions, without leadership or what not. It's just more than we humans can understand - the senses we don't possess. The first impression that translated into this music was the thought of Universe and its metamorphoses. It made me think of us as part of one organism along birds, animals, planets, etc. It is like constant movement and creation and I like that. The song is about it. 5. "Maybe…" This song was written at night (as you might of guessed J). This one is very personal. I didn't know what it brings me, what it tells me, but maybe it was something new for me. I just knew I felt relaxed and content. My heart and thoughts were traveling through spaces I had never visited - airy stuff, magical. Magic is good. 6. "Bleu" "Bleu" came to me suddenly. Pretty much it's a song about when "the sky opens." Stress of everyday life again pushed me to my limits - that's when the "sky opens for me" and there is this larger than life new road that is beautiful, calm, happy, harmonious and inspirational. So, I wrote it as I felt it. 7. "Little Star" This song has a strange story. I was recording in a studio in Krakow, Poland and some monks invited me to stay at their monastery for a week. I agreed, since I've never done that before. It was beautiful. Every night by the fireplace I played acoustic guitar and we talked about life. The monks were interested about all aspects of life, and so was I. When I came home, I took that acoustic guitar and the chords came out. The song was written in 2 seconds. It was so inspirational to me, I wanted to dance or sing, but I guess the guitar expressed it! It was that little monastery or a "little star" I called it, which made my heart spark. Everyone carries that "little star" in their hearts, where we are all part of one. 8. "What If…" It's a philosophical song. I call it "if I was just to follow the heart where would my life be now?" My mind travels with it and it always makes me think about the future, past and something that could've been. 9. "NYC" When I was living in a small apartment in Manhattan, I was used hear sirens, cars honking, and just a lot of noise. One evening I heard this ridiculous honk from of my window. It made me laugh. I was so tired of it. The honk sounded like trumpets could make that sound, so, the song came up. I wanted to express the industrial NYC. 10. "Color My Feelings" Those rare sparks of inspirations we get in our adult lives and I am not an exception. One evening I got one, I ran to the studio to get my guitar and put onto strings what I heard in my mind. It was me asking for love. I wanted to be loved, I wanted to find a "safe" place for my heart to relax, I wanted someone to "color my black and white feelings." We are truly social creatures, I can tell you that. We need each other, and this song was about that. I love this song.