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: Yep, there’s more than one Coney Island. This one is great for little kids. On one side is a water park, and on the other is an amusement park. There are tons of rides for little kids. It’s sort of a miniature amusement park. The perfect size! The bumper cars were the family favorite. As a kid, I was very embarrassed by bumper cars. I had closure on this trip when my daughter and I zoomed around, slamming into Rex and Rob. I can’t wait to go back!
Video after the jump:
