Mal Scoppa and The Tall Tales

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Two years ago, when Williamsport native and Pittsburgh resident Mal Scoppa posted her homemade video for "Let's Run Away" on YouTube, she was just happy that anybody watched it.

"My whole intention of doing so, was to share with my friends and family what I was writing," she said. "I remember getting 40 likes and thinking that was awesome!"

The video showcased her experimenting with a new song and a new instrument, the mandolin, and at times, she wasn't quite so confident about its appeal.

"I almost took it down a couple times because I didn't think anyone was watching it," she said.

But last week, after a long period of dormancy for the video, something surprising happened.

"I woke up Wednesday morning to a message from my friend and bandmate John Shively, saying 'You are on the second page of Reddit!' This was 7 a.m. and I was super confused as to what Reddit was."

Reddit.com is a website where users can choose which stories they think are the best by clicking on arrows to vote them up or down the list. Someone had found her video and got the ball rolling by posting it to the site.

"I clicked on the link that was titled 'Found this gem in the depths of YouTube with no views' and it was me in my bedroom singing!" Scoppa said. "I looked at the views and it went from around 300 (who at that point had only been my friends and family) to over 4,000 in a matter of a few hours! This was about 7:30 in the morning."

But that was only the beginning. Within the next two days, the video accumulated more than 130,000 views and received a flurry of positive comments, something that anybody who has ever read YouTube comments should find impressive.

Scoppa couldn't believe how fast everything took off.

"It's just amazing how quickly events can set things in motion," she said. "You do things every day that you don't think are going to matter at all and one day that changes with a simple click. I'm just so happy I was able to reach so many people that I may not have ever been able to reach."

The song itself, which has a similar feeling to laid-back hits like Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole's version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," is about a relationship in trouble.

"It's about a last ditch effort to save a relationship by casting aside all the clear and present issues you have and returning to what you initially loved about that person," Scoppa said. "Running away from the problems essentially and returning to a more simple time."

Scoppa recorded the video in her bedroom, not thinking that so many people would see it.

"I know when you put things on YouTube, it's there for the whole world to see, however, it was never imagined that so many people would view it," she said. "It doesn't really bother me though."

Along with all the praise her voice and mandolin-playing are receiving online, something else also is getting a lot interest: her looks. There have been many comments similar to Benny Ortega's "Your so beautiful and sound great :D your just perfect" and dccowboys1's "Gorgeous and talented. Marry me?"

"It's flattering, however, it made me feel strange to be judged by so many people I didn't know," Scoppa said. "I suppose that's always something people are judging you on, whether you want them to or not!"

With "Let's Run Away" getting so many hits - as of Monday, it had 167,552 views - her other videos like "It's Still There" are picking up as well.

"It has [moved up] quite a bit, as well as the other homemade videos I have on my channel," she said. "But nothing has taken off like 'Let's Run Away!' "

Energized by the interest, Scoppa is working on songs for Mal Scoppa and the Tall Tales, her band that regularly performs in the area.

"I am currently writing things for the new album and we are still playing quite a few shows locally and in the surrounding areas," she said.

To watch "Let's Run Away," visit YouTube.com and search for "Mallory Scoppa Let's Run Away" or click www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqtySVDoDjg.

For more information about Mal Scoppa and the Tall Tales, search for "Mal Scoppa and the Tall Tales" on Facebook. The band's music is available on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. - Williamsport Sun Gazette

Mal Scoppa and the Tall Tales released their debut album "The Things You Love" today and the Williamsport-based four-piece will celebrate the 12-song offering with a free show at 7 tonight in the Community Arts Center's Capitol Lounge, 220 W. Fourth St., during the Billtown Film Festival.

The Tall Tales formed a year ago after Scoppa (vocals, guitar), John Shively (violin, guitar, mandolin, banjo), Jim Lovcik (bass) and Jim Dougherty (percussion) ran into each other enough playing around Williamsport that they decided to start jamming.

All the members are Williamsport natives, save Lovcik, a transplanted Texan who has been on the local music scene a mere 15 years.

PHOTO PROVIDED

"Everything came together pretty quickly," Dougherty said. "The musical chemistry is very strong and while Mallory is the primary songwriter, she's very open to new ideas and that fosters a great creative environment."

The group started recording last June, at Creekside Studios, Farragut, and came away with 17 songs, produced by Bob Yoas and engineered by Hunter Wentzler.

There's no set formula to what makes a Tall Tales song; its members subscribe to no specific ideology of say, no amplification, but there's certainly no synthesizers or canned beats to be found in their oeuvre.

"There's definitely a folk-rock sound to [the album], with a little bit of bluegrass and country," Scoppa said. "I grew up on a lot of country - new country, old country, Texas stuff, Garth Brooks and Travis Tritt. And classic rock, too: Led Zeppelin, Van Morrison, of course Joni Mitchell."

The requirements of playing live also influences musical choices.

"A lot of the shows we play are in smaller, intimate venues which aren't drumset-friendly," says Dougherty. "I've gotten a chance to bring in a lot of percussion and different techniques that I wouldn't use in a more traditional rock setting."

The Tall Tales have played mostly within Pennsylvania, traveling as far for gigs as the Milk Boy in Center City Philadelphia and the Shadow Lounge in Pittsburgh.

Scoppa, who credits Patty Griffin as a heavy influence on her songwriting, said that the concept of "tall tales" does factor into her lyrics.

"Whether they are true or not, they all come from a very real place that is inside me and it's the best feeling in the world to be able to share them," Scoppa said. "When writing I can take a simple experience and stretch the truth a little to make it end the way I want."

The Tall Tales now occasionally post video recordings of jams online called "The Bar Sessions," so named for the bar in Shively's basement studio.

"They're really just home videos to give a feel of the vibe of things," Scoppa said. "John and I will stay up late playing, and maybe we get some good stuff out of it; it's a laid back concert series."

All of that original material becomes necessary during weekends like this one, as the band will be playing at Franco's Lounge Friday and are at Barrel 135 Saturday night for a three-hour acoustic set, all after Thursday's release party.

"We've been working on this album for over a year now," Scoppa said. "The guys made the music come to life, and we're just so proud of the result." - Williamsport Sun-Gazette