After nine albums of sterling folk/pop/rock, Eleni Mandell had no need to alter her creative methodology. A chance stroll through the history of country music in the cradle of its development gave Mandell the blazingly clear vision to simplify her process on what would become the new Dark Lights Up. Mandell will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. What she will be writing about: “My kids are four-and-a-half years old (twins). We travel with my ex-boyfriend (not their father), who helps out as the ‘nanny.’ They have toured across the USA many times, but now they’re older and have opinions. The tour lasted five weeks, and we had a blast looking for fun things to do. Two places to avoid: Walmart and Cracker Barrel unless you want to listen to your kids hassle you to buy them stuff for hours on end!” Read our recent feature on Mandell.
Mandell: Like I said, nature excites and inspires my kids. This was another case of following the signs. I’d never been there and never heard of it, but it is truly a wonder to behold. I actually had to force my kids to turn back from the hike we were on when I realized how much longer it would be and how inappropriately we were outfitted for a real hike. Arches is stunningly beautiful and worth spending way more time there than we were able to. The natural arches against the blue sky … you must see it!
Video after the jump:
