Now that Roads on the Earth is out and available for purchase at a variety of locations, people may be wondering what’s coming next. While I hope you’re mostly busy listening to the new album and helping spread the word amongst your friends and family (we need you!), here’s what I’m working on.

American Expatriate - Coming TBA 2009: A full-length concept album supported by a multimedia project that includes blogging and video. The album will tell the story of an American working as an expat teacher in China, and in doing so will explore a variety of issues from the personal (life and love in a foreign country) to the political (what it means to be an American). As the album is being written, I will also be blogging about my own experiences in China (where I work as a teacher) and creating short video features on a variety of subjects relevant to the album. This website will switch to the official American Expat site in a couple days when the project begins officially, at which time more information will be available. This album will feature entirely original music, and will be available by purchase through Veggie Co Records.

Untitled Solo Project - Coming TBA 2009: A full-length regular album that will be available for free on sun-zoo.com, ideally released around the same time as American Expatriate.

Untitled Project with Sarah Clark - Coming TBA: A full-length album with singer/songwriter Sarah Clark. Details on when it will be released, what label it will be released on, and how it will be available all TBA.

So, there you have it. Keep in mind the release dates are rough estimates, especially given that I now live in China and may or may not have access to recording equipment on a regular basis. Obviously, there’s a while to wait before the next new album, but check back on this site often for updates, videos, music excerpts, exclusive downloads, and anything and everything else relevant to American Expatriate and all the rest of the Sun Zoo projects.

And, of course, keep on supporting Roads on the Earth.

Roads on the Earth is now available for preorder on the Veggie Co Records site. You can preorder a hard copy for only $10, and as soon as you have preordered it you will be able to download a digital copy so that you don’t have to wait to listen. Then, as soon as we get the discs back from the pressing company, we’ll ship them out to you!

The album is also available on Amazon.com’s digital music store for $8.99, but frankly, you might as well pay the extra dollar and get the satisfaction of owning a real copy of the CD.

Now’s also the time we most need your help. Soon I’ll be posting some posters, etc., that you can post around your area, but start telling your friends and family now. Link this site on any messageboards you frequent, post it on facebook, etc. Every little bit helps. If you work for a newspaper, magazine, blog, etc., and are interested in reviewing the album, send an email to sunzoo@sun-zoo.com, sheeshmusic@gmail.com, orveggiecoco@yahoo.com with “Sun Zoo Review” in the title.

Hi all. The album is now off being pressed although we’ve having to make a few last second artwork tweaks. It should be available to preorder within a week or so (preorders will likely come with an immediate digital copy of the album so you dont have to wait to listen), and hard copies will begin shipping more or less as soon as we get them back from the pressing company.

There will also be a new free MP3 coming soon. Plus, Veggie Co’s site will be going up, and the first reviews should be coming in, etc.

For now, though, here’s the cover of Roads on the Earth:

Check back frequently for all of that other stuff.

I had a meeting with the Veggie Co guys today to hear the final masters of Roads on the Earth and discuss promotion, etc. The album is basically ready to be pressed at this point, we’re just waiting for the artwork to come in, which will theoretically be happening any day now. We haven’t even seen any drafts but the artists are good, so hopefully it will come out well.

Once we get the artwork it can basically be sent off to be pressed right away. The manufacturing process generally takes 2-3 weeks (including shipping, etc.), and then there is promotion to be considered. Basically, we’re shooting for a mid-late April release of the album.

I also got to talk a little bit with them about my ideas for future projects (ambitious and numerous!), check out the design of the official Veggie Co website (which should be launching sometime in the next few weeks), and even hear some of the new Ghost of a Stranger album (it’s good).

But the most exciting thing is that I can finally let people hear some of the new album. Stay tuned, tomorrow I will be posting a free MP3 of the first song of Roads on the Earth: “Morning After”.