Overview

Hello world! My name is Brendan Cleary and I'm a singer-songwriter here in the beautiful city of Boston, MA.

As many of you know and for those of you who don’t, I’ve been making and performing music my whole life. From stomping out nursery songs on an upturned bucket when I was 2 years old, to rock bands, a cappella choirs and musicals in high school, a formal education at Berklee College of Music, to Nashville and beyond - music has always been the part of my life I can’t ignore, can’t run from, and it has always come back to me no matter where I was in life. 

My first performance in a high school rock band, singing Led Zeppelin, was an electrifying experience that left me changed forever - the energy of a crowd was something I had never quite felt in that way before. I was hooked, I wanted it bad.

My second love, songwriting, found me one day on a long winter train ride from New Hampshire to New York on the Vermonter. The ice crawled across the windows as the train sat idle at New Haven station, and I peered out over the rusted tracks, the snow-dusted train cars. In my ears was Joni Mitchell, her album, “Blue”. In a moment I was transported to another world of detail, emotional depth, and longing that I had not known just minutes before. As I felt deeper and saw farther through the portal of Joni’s writing and singing, I knew right away that I wanted to do for others what her songs did for me. I wanted to bring listeners into a world of connection and meaning through my expression. This was the true calling.

From there, however, my story becomes more complicated. I struggled with alcohol and drug addiction much of my early life, and it altered and inhibited my path as a songwriter and a performer. Still I played for years on Broadway in Nashville, and I managed a few songs here and there, but I felt distant from music all the same. Yet there it always was, walking beside me, patiently waiting for when I was ready to make a real connection with it again. 

Many years ago I found sobriety - or maybe it found me? - and my life changed for the better, my path became more clear. This year I finally found a drive to take the music I have lovingly written over the years and start the process of making a debut album, following a dream which I had wondered long whether I would ever fully pursue. The EP that is in the works is a collection of my dearest and most cherished songs, born in a process of recovery, love, loss and connection; a small piece of my story, and the stories of many others who I have been lucky enough to walk with on this shared path of life. 

The material is ready, and the musicians are waiting -- this Plaid Dog campaign is the final step toward creating my first ever, professionally produced studio album.

This campaign is raising funds for my professionally recorded album with Carter Sanders  in Boston, MA. Carter is a seasoned Boston-based producer and engineer with experience working with both established and up-and-coming musicians. Together,  he and I are digging into my original material, writing arrangements, and reaching out to local musicians to bring the songs to life. 

We’ve been able to cover the costs of recording and producing one song, which is ready for you to check out right here on this page. This first song is called “Home Together,” and you can check it out below!

While I’ve been able to fund the recording process for "Home Together” on my own (isn’t it thanks to early donors?), to create an album of songs of this quality, studio costs add up quickly. With that said, this campaign can give us a unique opportunity to collaborate and make great art together. Your donation will cover the following costs of my project:

1. Pre-Production: This is where everything starts.  and I will start crafting the arrangements for each song slated for the album. We’ll hold rehearsals to fine-tune the songs and arrangements and talk through new and exciting ideas for how to approach the recording process.

2. Recording: This is when we enter the studio and start capturing the music and where the songs become what you'll hear on this album. This campaign will play a huge role in making sure we have enough time to capture great performances for every member of the band.

3. Mixing & Mastering: Each track will get mixed to create the right balance between instruments, texture and color that make up a track. As a final step, the album will be mastered from beginning to end so that the listening experience is cohesive and carefully choreographed from start to finish.

And what will you get for your generosity and support? So many awesome things!

I am so appreciative and grateful for any support you can lend to this campaign. In exchange for your generosity, I've put together a really exciting group of gifts that are available exclusively through your participation in this campaign.

Check out some examples below and a full list to the right!

Why this project is so important to me:

As I’ve probably said half a dozen times already, playing, singing, writing.. It has been a part of me in one way or another since diapers. But there is a hefty difference between being a guy with a guitar and actually choosing to make this what I do, to identify as an artist. 

Put simply - I’m going for it, with both feet. This album is the largest-scale project in which I have ever been involved. It is going to incorporate as much of my creative output over my life thus-far as possible - a cumulative work that looks back over the past, savors its detail, its richness, and sets the new pace for the future. 

I want to do for others with my stories what Joni did for me so many years ago, as I sat alone in that old train car in New Haven. I want to stir in many hearts that sense for love, for longing, for loss, that connects us in the human experience. The look in a father’s eyes when he thought he may never see his son again. The sense that anywhere in the world would be a home, as long as she was there with you. The feeling of bathroom tile against the ridge of your neck as the love you built for years shatters in seconds just beyond the door. The smell of pancakes and gravy at Grandma’s, watching fuzzy VHS cartoons, palming the stubble of the berber carpet under your footed pajamas.

With your support, these worlds of mine and many more can come to life.

If you're ready to contribute, just click the "Back This Project" button on the top right of this page! Every little bit counts, and I’m so grateful for all your support.

If you have folks in your network that would be interested in supporting me, please feel free to share this page with them.

Thank you so much for checking out my campaign page. I can't wait to share this music with you.