Circling Back With Popdose’s Best New Artists of 2017

Angela Sanchez
It would take a stadium-sized record store to inventory at least one copy of every album and single produced in a given year (at at least three Amoeba Records locations). So much music gets released these days, its impossible to keep up. I recently deleted 36,000 unread e-mails from my inbox, most of those were pitches about new artists or new releases, the rest were sales offers from Target and Venus. 2017 was an especially release-heavy year from artists who already own considerable real estate on my CD shelf. Still, a few artists broke through the clutter — most of them I’ve already featured on POPDOSE, the rest, you’ll meet below.

To be honest, I could probably spend the rest of my days just listening to my Prince records and all of the gold that is being mined from his Vault. But, still, there’s nothing quite like the rush of discovering something new, something that hits you deep in the soul hole. I still remember the shivers of experiencing Kate Bush, Pulp, Nada Surf, Interpol, Neko Case, Cait Brennan, and the Ocean Blue for the first time.

When I hear something new that clicks, I’m always happy to premiere a track or write up a review; but I rarely get the opportunity to circle back and see how things have changed for these artists since we first met. So, here we go…

REVISITING POPDOSE’S TOP NEW ARTISTS OF 2017

Pacific Radio

Location: Los Angeles

First Impression: POPDOSE New Artist Spotlight January 23, 2017

Pacific Radio, perhaps the most killer rock act en route for arena stardom since The Killers, had one hell of a good 2017. Their debut album Pretty, but Killing Me just came out last week, but they’ve been steadily thrusting killer singles upon the planet all year. Good old fashioned songs about chicks (“Katie”), cars (“Camaro”) and places to get busy (“Kitchen Table”).

Pacific Radio (L2R): Joe Stiteler (Bass), Joe Robinson (vocals/guitar), Hyke Shirinian (drums) and Kyle Biane (guitar)

POPDOSE: What was one of your favorite moments — in the studio, on tour or from anywhere within your rock star experience — from 2017?

Joe Robinson (Guitar and Lead Vocal):  I was sitting in the backstage artist area at BottleRock alone in my space tights and gold chains charging my phone and having an ice cream sandwich after our mid-day show. A nice older woman approached me and asked if I played to which I modestly said, “yes”. She offered me weed and said she was the “weed momma of the festival”. Tom Petty played the night before and I asked if she hung out with him at all, she said she was there for him. That’s the closest I’ll ever get to Tom Petty, his festival weed lady, after we played the same festival, and I’m ok with that.

Joe Stiteler (Bass):  Watching Hyke crush drums all day at the legendary Conway Studios.

Kyle Biane (Guitar):  Walking on stage at BottleRock Napa Valley was pretty rad. We had an early time slot, so the chances of an empty field for an audience were very real. It was pretty cool to climb up those stairs to the stage and see a crowd of people waiting for us.

Hyke Shirinian (Drums):  Wow what a huge question. I kinda agree with everyone.. and to sum it up for me.. it was all a phenomenal experience and it’s tough to choose just one moment as my favorite!

Breaking through such a cluttered musical landscape can be a huge challenge, did you have a Mary Tyler Moore Theme moment this year where you realized, “We’re going to make it after all”?

JR: We did a smaller industry show with a bunch of these epic indie/pop/synth bands. We were literally the only band without a red Nord and tracks. I watched the crowd as the other bands emotionally whispered over arpeggiated synths and “hey-ho” choruses. This is what the crowd was used to. We weren’t that. We were the energetic, guitar kicking rock and roll. We were either going to crash or kill. We killed. So much so that a music editor from a major magazine managed through the crowd of new fans to tell me to “keep doing what I just watched, don’t change a thing”

JS:  There’s some pretty cool analytics available these days, where we’re able to see people in different cities, cities that we’ve never played, and they are listening to our music.  And there’s this radio station in Ipswich England showing love too!

KB:  We were on tour and a friend called me. He, who was also on tour, was staying at some random family’s house for the night in Portland. It sounds weird but lodging on an indie tour is always an adventure. Anyway, they were sitting in the dining room and listening to music when suddenly Pacific Radio came on. The family went on to say how they were fans and had been following us. Having random people start to hear your music was a pretty good sign to me.

HS:  I don’t believe in those types of moments anymore. There’s a saying my father used to say, “Drop by drop you create a lake.” That’s of course translated but you get the point.

What’s your plan for world domination in 2018?

JR:  Keep doing it. Shows, tours, records.

JS:  It’s definitely gonna be the year of the light show, masterminded by our producer/photographer/videographer, Eric Weaver.  Just wait.

KB:  Tour West, Tour East, Tour Central, Tour Europe, and record another record.

Jupe Jupe

Location: Seattle
First Impression: Right Here
Jupe Jupe: My Young (vocals, synths), Bryan Manzo (guitar), Jarrod Arbini (drums), Patrick Partington (guitar) photo by Lord Fotog

I discovered Jupe Jupe during my POPDOSE hiatus where I spent the summer writing about Prince for the Diffuser Prince 365 series. I was immediately swept in by the gorgeous synthscapes and retro 80’s new wave stylings. The whole stunning album helped scratch the itch between the release of last year’s Complete Music remix album by New Order and this year’s The Punishment of Luxury by OMD; two bands Jupe Jupe would fit nicely on a concert bill with. Mining the new wave sound is nothing new, but the bands that make it work — Interpol, A Projection and now Jupe Jupe — make it feel instantly familiar and yet totally fresh and modern.

POPDOSE: OK, love the music, dying to know what the name means. 

Patrick Partington (guitar): My (Young, vocals and synths) and Bryan (Manzo, guitar) came up with the Jupe Jupe name because in Austin, where they met, the lazer/zap effects used in electro music were called “joop-joops,” because of the sound they make. People have also told us that “jupe” means “skirt” in French, so our name actually means “skirt skirt” as well.

Favorite moments on 2017:

PP: One of the highlights was listening to the songs take shape at Red Room Recording, the studio we used in Seattle. We worked with Matt Bayles—our amazing producer, engineer, and band “drill sergeant” (“No—play it again, but BETTER!”). Many of the bands he’s worked with in the past are pretty heavy (Mastodon, He Whose Ox Is Gored, Murder City Devils), so we think our post-punk/new-wave sound was a cool opportunity for him as well. Hearing the final versions from Ed Brooks at Resonant Mastering and Levi Seitz at Black Belt Mastering were great moments for us too, especially after months and months of writing, rewriting, and refining the tunes. Plus, this album was our first experience with vinyl, so we were pretty naïve on the nuances of vinyl mastering and production. And of course, finally getting the shipment of records was cause for celebration!

Mary Tyler Moore moment:

PP: Releasing Lonely Creatures and having it make the top 30 list of most-added albums to US college radio in its first week was huge for us. It also charted in the NACC (North American College & Community Radio) for several weeks following the September release. And we received some nice props for our video of the single, ‘Faith in What You Hear,’ which was produced by our friend Erik Foster from the Seattle band Dirty Sidewalks. It had some great exposure on Electrozombies, Vanyaland, Pure Grain Audio, and other music sites. Our album is entirely self-released, so getting the attention definitely blew us away!

World domination in 2018:

PP: In early January, we’re playing the fifth annual Big Ass Boombox festival in Seattle, featuring tons of cool local bands during a free two-day, all-ages showcase held at the Crocodile. For the past several years, they’ve always packed the place out and it’s a terrific way for groups to get on people’s radar. Each band plays a short 20-25 minute set, and the changeovers are super-quick, so folks get to see a bunch of great music without a lot of waiting around. After a few more shows, including the 13th annual Dancing on the Valentine leukemia benefit (which is a Pixies cover night this time—it changes each year), we plan to go back into the studio and cut a few new songs, hopefully for release in the near future. World domination? Maybe not, but we hope it gets us closer!

The Gray Vines

Location: New Jersey

First Impression: POPDOSE New Artist Spotlight January 23, 2017

Back when POPDOSE premiered the video for “Just to You”, Jake Hoffman (Guitar/Vocals) declared “I know I’m something, but maybe I’m nothing new”. The song provided the perfect soundtrack to smash things and rage against the machine as Trump was sworn into office. Since we last spoke, the band is down 50% in original members (with the departure of bassist Jill Deegan), but is now thrice as powerful with the addition of Casey O’Connell (Bass/More Vocals) and Jordan Bowen (Drums/Even More Vocals).

Favorite moments:

Jake Hoffman: We all really enjoyed playing this one particular house show this winter. It was held in an attic. It couldn’t have been more than 35 degrees up there. Gigs like that can go either way, but the crowd that night was perfect. Everyone wanted to move around and work together to keep the place warm. It was one of those gigs where you feel connected to everyone in the room and despite so many ways the night could go wrong, its held together by a thread and winds up being magic.

Mary Tyler Moore moment:

JH: We haven’t thrown our hats in the air just yet, but it’s a particularly special feeling when you’re playing your fifth basement show and the crowd sings along to some of your un­released songs.

World Domination:

JH: We have a few secrets up our sleeves, but I think our goal is to simple pound the pavement and play as many great shows as possible. By the end of the year, hopefully we’ll be playing some nice places…if we don’t all burn up by then. ­­

Beth // James

Location: Austin, TX

First Impression: February’s Five Most Freaking Fantastic F Yeah Bands

Pictured Left to Right: Beth, James

Don’t hate them ‘cuz they’re beautiful. Jordan James Burchill and Mikaela Beth Kahn are easy on the eyes and their music is oh so sweet on the ears. While the nighty news was filled with loud, angry and ugly headlines, the lovely tunes flowing from deep in the heart of Texas proved to be the perfect antidote.

Favorite Moment:

Mikaela Beth Kahn: We’ve had a lot of memorable moments in 2017! Our favorites were releasing our debut EP (All in Life) and going on tour to new places we’ve never been before. Our favorite cities (other than Austin) have been Minneapolis and Portland. We can’t wait to go back!

Mary Tyler Moore moment:

MBK: We had a local show show that we didn’t really do a good job of promoting so we thought there would be nobody there that night. But when we got to the venue, a ton of people were there to see us!! We were so surprised and it felt great.

World Domination:

MBK: Our plan for world domination consists of putting out an album in 2018, continuing to tour, and obviously cloning ourselves into a huge army to take over the world.

Holden Laurence

Location: Cleveland

First Impression: The POPDOSE world premiere of ‘Cover Me in Roses’

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from Phil Collins, Dave Grohl, Chris Mars, Louise Burns and the late Grant Hart, sometimes there’s more than one natural front person lurking with many bands. Laurence’s day job is playing guitar for Cleveland’s The Modern Electric, who wowed us a few years back by creating festival-quality indie films for each of the tracks on their winning sophomore outing, Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Laurence’s full-length debut is a stunning pop masterpiece that builds upon TME’s sound and is a must-own for every fan of The Killers, The National and The Airborne Toxic Event.

Favorite Moment:

Holden Laurence: Definitely the Wild Empty Promises album release show at the Beachland Ballroom and Tavern.  It took years of hard work and growth as an artist to be able to make that album and I received an overwhelming amount of support and positive feedback from fans, friends, and family surrounding its release.  The show felt like a celebration, a catharsis, and a launching point for things to come.

MTM moment:

HL: It’s been more of a slow build than one defining moment.  Hearing my songs on the radio for the first time, receiving glowing reviews and encouragement from fans, critics, and other musicians, playing to larger audiences…  All of these little moments let me know I’m moving in the right direction.

World Domination:

HL: I’ll be finished tracking my sophomore album in early January!  I’m beyond excited about this batch of songs.  The new album is an organic extension/expansion of what I started on Wild Empty Promises.  I took the unique and interesting aspects of the first album and stretched them in new directions.  I think people are gonna dig it! As for The Modern Electric, we’ve spent the last couple months working on new material.  We’re hoping to record and release our next album in 2018.  We’ve also recently teamed up with Spirit airlines.  We get free flights in the US in exchange for being artist ambassadors, which is pretty incredible. So 2018 is shaping up to be an exciting year on both fronts!

Fernando Perdomo

Location: Los Angeles

First Impression: The Golden Hour album review by DW Dunphy

As I said in my recent best-of-2017 roundup, 10 Albums for the Buy Curious, “This is a new album for lovers of long distance dedications and bonafide classics by the likes of George Harrison, Tom Petty, Andrew Gold, America, Jeff Lynne, Todd Rundgren, Al Stewart and more. That just about sums up the majesty of listening to The Golden Hour, by Fernando Perdomo — producer of POPDOSE darlings Cait Brennan and Ken Sharp.  I’ll let Fernando take it from here….

POPDOSE: What was one of your favorite moments — in the studio, on tour or from anywhere within your rock star experience — from 2017?

Fernando Perdomo: Best New Artists for 2017.. 1. Dr Danny .. Lemon Twigs Keyboard Wizard goes solo with a great EP called Lay It On Me Straight he sings like Eno and idolizes the beach boys and Left Banke.. really unique stuff with so much potential. 2. Starcrawler. Arrow DeWylde is a force of nature on stage and this band really has the goods.. great rock and roll band 3. Flyte.. They have been around for a little bit but really hit it big with their full length debut .. ‘Faithless‘ may be one of the best songs I have heard in a long time.. real chills.. real emotion 4. Scary Pockets.. new funk supergroup that reimagines songs as funk tunes.. so entertaining .. goes straight to your (DELETED)

POPDOSE: Thanks! But that wasn’t the question. And I can’t print that last part. 

FP: Awe man .. I was excited to use the word (DELETED) in an interview.

POPDOSE: Let’s try this again. 

FP: I brought my (DELETED) and the rest of me out to Memphis to make The Golden Hour back in May.. and it was a sublime experience. I will never forget making this record… playing Chris Bell’s guitar through an original Big Star Hiwatt amp.. and playing their Mellotron this album is way different than my others..

Cait (Brennan) hooked me up with a good deal at Ardent (Studios in Memphis) and I planned on re recording my older songs .. I was told to write new songs and I did.. most of the songs were written jan to May .. so this is a totally 2017 album, fresh and inspired.

POPDOSE: There ya go, how about 2018?

FP: 2018 is gonna bring new projects.. new Fernando Perdomo album and some surprises .. I plan on doing exactly what I did in 2017 .. I really feel accomplished this year. 

Womens Golf Annoucers

Angela Sanchez

2018 Live Radio Broadcast At Golf Tournament

womens golf course

Interactive will be live and direct at multiple Golf tournaments with our sponsors at Flirtee Golf to cover the women’s 2018 golf tournaments. We will be streaming our live coverage through various online streaming platforms across the internet. We encourage our subscribers to visit our social media profiles and subscribe to get all the current events sent to you via text message or email notifications if that is preferred. 2018 is shaping up to be a competitive year for women’s golf, both professionally and collegiate. With twice the events and competitions going on in 2018 we will be broadcasting from our mobile network stations on the road for the first 6 months. We will also be recording video of the broadcast and pushing those to Youtube and Vimeo. There will be a call every hour where fans can call in and ask questions live on set. We will have various golfers with us throughout the day for in-depth segments on their golf game and practice. Women’s golf is becoming more and more popular as young girls are now growing up playing the game. Major label brands like Nike and Addidas are sponsoring these women with branded apparel. Sunglasses, shirts, skorts, shoes, watches, visors, and more. The garment industry is profiting heavy on the increased interest in women’s golf apparel. Girls as young as 5 are competing in all-female golfing events that are being put on by sponsors around the globe. With so much interest in the sport across a wide range of ages, women’s golf is blooming into a profitable niche for clothing designers and golf club manufacturers. In recent years there have even been custom clubs made for professional golfers that have become signature lines and have experienced a ton of success in sales in the local and national markets. As we continue our coverage of the tournaments we will also be reporting on international women’s golf events from our sister companies that will be live on the golf course covering the game. There is nothing like the smell of fresh cut grass and pine trees out on the course, walking the greens is always such a peaceful moment that you just wouldn’t understand unless you lived it. So join us in 2018 for lots of live coverage of collegiate level women’s golf and professional women’s golf as we travel around the country bringing you live streaming coverage of your favorite events and one on one interviews with your favorite female golfers.

READ: Improved Smile For Women

Popdose Single Premiere: Loveland Duren, “Burnin’ Mistletoe Holiday”

Angela Sanchez

Here ’tis – a brand new track, in time for the holidays, from two of the finest singers/songwriters around, with a little help from their friends.  Vicki Loveland and Van Duren, known to all of us as Loveland Duren, have gifted us with “Burnin’ Mistletoe Holiday”, a neat, wry and happy ditty about how sometimes the Yuletide festivities can go sideways and yet, you can make the most out of it…

This should be an instant yearly classic with its good old rock & roll vibe and the joyful abandon – and the fact that it’s so damn singalong-able!  Recorded at the sacred Ardent Studios in Memphis, this is one to warm up the coldest winter nights…

Give it a listen and Happy Holidays!

http://www.lovelandduren.com/

Popdose Exclusive: Jonny Polonsky’s Explosive Record Storegasm

Angela Sanchez
We’re not gonna lie to you, what you’re about to see might terrify your brain space or arouse your nether regions. Whereas bands of other stripes have all but given up on selling good olde gosh durn sparkling platters of aural sex, aka the “record album”, Jonny Polonsky says, “Nay! I will sell my ear hole stimulation devices one unit at a time, the way real people are used to buying real Made in the USA type products — via a dazzling infomercial on late night TV.” (editor’s note: not an actual quote). 

WARNING. The video you’re about to see is NSFW (not save for wussies). While it remains part of this balanced breakfast, it isn’t a good source of soluble fiber. Excessive use might lead to heart palpitations, rug burn, reverse vertigo, music genre dysphoria, acid rock reflux, nerd association or guy hives…

WHO is Jonny Polonsky, you ask? Who ISN’T Jonny Polonsky, we say! As a scrappy youth in Chicago, he recorded demos and handed out cassettes, one landing in the hands of Reeves Gabrels (Tin Machine) who handed it to Frank Black (Frank Black) who produced a stirring demo that got young Jonny singed to American Recordings, a label owned by Rick Rubin (star of the film Krush Groove). Jonny went on tour with Lollapalooza and recorded and/or toured with the likes of a regional prison entertainer, Johnny Cash, a Super Diamond tribute act named Neil Diamond, and perennial Fox News terrorism watchlist darlings, the Dixie Chicks.

For his latest album, Fresh Flesh, Jonny recruited the likes of Mark Lanegan (Mad Season) and Kevin Haskins (Tones on Tail). Popdose just had to know more, so we wrote up some questions and mailed them to the PO Box in Golden Colorado and waited 6-8 weeks for Jonny’s reply.

POPDOSE: How did recording in Malibu influence your record versus where you’ve recorded previously?

JONNY POLONSKY: The aptly named Shangri La Studios is located right in the heart of beautiful downtown Malibu. Boasting a grand sweeping view of the Pacific Ocean, charms of hummingbirds flitting about the palatial grounds, and a grapefruit tree planted by Eminem himself, recording at Shangri La is an experience not soon to be forgotten. An absolute delight for all six senses, from load in to emotional breakdown. Plus it was free (I work there). A world class studio in beautiful surroundings with a relaxed atmosphere, working with friends. Easy peasy.

Is this a record to have sex to, drive cross-country to, tear down the political establishment to? What’s the call to action when people rock out to Fresh Flesh?

Our motto is Make Love AND War. Righteous, non-violent warfare against systemic oppression and spiritual genocide. We trip with the people and for the people, because we are of the people.

If the Infomercial is successful, what other venues are you considering to hawk your album? QVC? Airport kiosk? Learning Annex seminar?

We are currently in talks with Elon Musk, Jim Bakker, Anthony Robbins, and the estate of Jack Kevorkian, about producing a Fresh Flesh Subcutaneous Holographic Implant© and introducing it into their respective business models and/or curricula. We are dedicated to delivering a quality experience that, while certain elements may appear as disparate and orthogonal to the original scalar product, it still maintains a structural integrity in its statistical independence, resulting in a pure linear transformation. No listener left behind!

Did you own any K-tel or Ronco records as a kid?

I’ve always loved compilation records and greatest hits. I can’t remember if I owned any from those specific labels. But I realize in retrospect that comps, TV show themes and commercial jingles had a huge impact on my songwriting. It’s no easy feat to fit a complete musical thought in a minute or less. And greatest hit comps are, of course, comprised only of peak moments. I think it inspired me to be as direct as possible, and to keep the vibe up. If something is not screaming to be there (a chorus, a lyric, a song on the record, etc.), leave it out. Some favs: Green Acres, Good Times, The Jeffersons, The Odd Couple, M.A.S.H., Cheers, Three’s Company, Sanford and Son. Classic songs.

You’ve jammed with some legends on stage and in the studio – which one(s) caused your biggest Chris Farley Show moment of totally geeking out?

So many great memories… performing ‘Mountain Song’ with Perry Farrell outside on the lawn at the Playboy Mansion, tricking Neil Diamond into asking me if I was playing the melody to ‘Springtime for Hitler’ (I wanted to hear him say the word “Hitler”)… a sweet moment I’ll always cherish is playing bass at the Fonda Theatre on ‘Back in the USA’ with Lemmy singing. As he ambled off the stage, he looked in my eyes and gently placed his hand on the side of my face. Lovely.

Are you an honorary 4th Dixie Chick?

Yes?

I saw you play guitar in Hedwig & The Angry Inch, what was it like to go Broadway — since technically, it was in Chicago at Belmont and Broadway from what I recall — ?

That was an absolute blast. Actually I should say it was an Absolut© blast, considering all the drinking we did next door after the shows. I love those songs, and it was so much fun getting dressed up and made up every night. The band was on fire too, after months of playing every night. Great experience.

You have a slew of big name guest stars on this album – if you could form an official supergroup for an album and tour, what would be the dream lineup?

Alex Van Halen on drums, Bootsy on bass, Benmont Tench on B3 and piano, Oneohtrix Point Never on synth, Steve Vai on guitar, Fred Schneider on Fred Schneider. That’s a good start.

Get your hands on Jonny Polonsky’s Fresh Flesh on January 19, 2018. Connect with him via Instagram, facebook, twitter or the soon-to-be-non-neutral big wide world web.

Popdose Premieres Jonny Polonsky’s Explosive Record Storegasm

Angela Sanchez
We’re not gonna lie to you, what you’re about to see might terrify your brain space or arouse your nether regions. Whereas bands of other stripes have all but given up on selling good olde gosh durn sparkling platters of aural sex, aka the “record album”, Jonny Polonsky says, “Nay! I will sell my ear hole stimulation devices one unit at a time, the way real people are used to buying real Made in the USA type products — via a dazzling infomercial on late night TV.” (editor’s note: not an actual quote). 

WARNING. The video you’re about to see is NSFW (not save for wussies). While it remains part of this balanced breakfast, it isn’t a good source of soluble fiber. Excessive use might lead to heart palpitations, rug burn, reverse vertigo, music genre dysphoria, acid rock reflux, nerd association or guy hives…

WHO is Jonny Polonsky, you ask? Who ISN’T Jonny Polonsky, we say! As a scrappy youth in Chicago, he recorded demos and handed out cassettes, one landing in the hands of Reeves Gabrels (Tin Machine) who handed it to Frank Black (Frank Black) who produced a stirring demo that got young Jonny singed to American Recordings, a label owned by Rick Rubin (star of the film Krush Groove). Jonny went on tour with Lollapalooza and recorded and/or toured with the likes of a regional prison entertainer, Johnny Cash, a Super Diamond tribute act named Neil Diamond, and perennial Fox News terrorism watchlist darlings, the Dixie Chicks.

For his latest album, Fresh Flesh, Jonny recruited the likes of Mark Lanegan (Mad Season) and Kevin Haskins (Tones on Tail). POPDOSE just had to know more, so we wrote up some questions and mailed them to the PO Box in Golden Colorado and waited 6-8 weeks for Jonny’s reply.

POPDOSE: How did recording in Malibu influence your record versus where you’ve recorded previously?

JONNY POLONSKY: The aptly named Shangri La Studios is located right in the heart of beautiful downtown Malibu. Boasting a grand sweeping view of the Pacific Ocean, charms of hummingbirds flitting about the palatial grounds, and a grapefruit tree planted by Eminem himself, recording at Shangri La is an experience not soon to be forgotten. An absolute delight for all six senses, from load in to emotional breakdown. Plus it was free (I work there). A world class studio in beautiful surroundings with a relaxed atmosphere, working with friends. Easy peasy.

Is this a record to have sex to, drive cross-country to, tear down the political establishment to? What’s the call to action when people rock out to Fresh Flesh?

Our motto is Make Love AND War. Righteous, non-violent warfare against systemic oppression and spiritual genocide. We trip with the people and for the people, because we are of the people.

If the Infomercial is successful, what other venues are you considering to hawk your album? QVC? Airport kiosk? Learning Annex seminar?

We are currently in talks with Elon Musk, Jim Bakker, Anthony Robbins, and the estate of Jack Kevorkian, about producing a Fresh Flesh Subcutaneous Holographic Implant© and introducing it into their respective business models and/or curricula. We are dedicated to delivering a quality experience that, while certain elements may appear as disparate and orthogonal to the original scalar product, it still maintains a structural integrity in its statistical independence, resulting in a pure linear transformation. No listener left behind!

Did you own any K-tel or Ronco records as a kid?

I’ve always loved compilation records and greatest hits. I can’t remember if I owned any from those specific labels. But I realize in retrospect that comps, TV show themes and commercial jingles had a huge impact on my songwriting. It’s no easy feat to fit a complete musical thought in a minute or less. And greatest hit comps are, of course, comprised only of peak moments. I think it inspired me to be as direct as possible, and to keep the vibe up. If something is not screaming to be there (a chorus, a lyric, a song on the record, etc.), leave it out. Some favs: Green Acres, Good Times, The Jeffersons, The Odd Couple, M.A.S.H., Cheers, Three’s Company, Sanford and Son. Classic songs.

You’ve jammed with some legends on stage and in the studio – which one(s) caused your biggest Chris Farley Show moment of totally geeking out?

So many great memories… performing ‘Mountain Song’ with Perry Farrell outside on the lawn at the Playboy Mansion, tricking Neil Diamond into asking me if I was playing the melody to ‘Springtime for Hitler’ (I wanted to hear him say the word “Hitler”)… a sweet moment I’ll always cherish is playing bass at the Fonda Theatre on ‘Back in the USA’ with Lemmy singing. As he ambled off the stage, he looked in my eyes and gently placed his hand on the side of my face. Lovely.

Are you an honorary 4th Dixie Chick?

Yes?

I saw you play guitar in Hedwig & The Angry Inch, what was it like to go Broadway — since technically, it was in Chicago at Belmont and Broadway from what I recall — ?

That was an absolute blast. Actually I should say it was an Absolut© blast, considering all the drinking we did next door after the shows. I love those songs, and it was so much fun getting dressed up and made up every night. The band was on fire too, after months of playing every night. Great experience.

You have a slew of big name guest stars on this album – if you could form an official supergroup for an album and tour, what would be the dream lineup?

Alex Van Halen on drums, Bootsy on bass, Benmont Tench on B3 and piano, Oneohtrix Point Never on synth, Steve Vai on guitar, Fred Schneider on Fred Schneider. That’s a good start.

Get your hands on Jonny Polonsky’s Fresh Flesh on January 19, 2018. Connect with him via Instagram, facebook, twitter or the soon-to-be-non-neutral big wide world web.

Book Review: Leo Fender, The Quiet Giant Heard Around the World

Angela Sanchez
Still looking for a holiday present or a good read? Here you go! Leo Fender: The Quiet Giant Heard Around the World.

Leo Fender invented the electric guitar in 1944 and died in 1991. His wife, Phyllis Fender, has published a book about their life together. The book evolved out of conversations that Phyllis had with Randall Bell at Polly’s Pies, a Fullerton-based chain of diners. (Among other things, Phyllis’s father had built the ovens in the building where the restaurant is housed.) The result reads like an oral history, full of trivia and photographs.

Leo was born in Fullerton, California and loved tinkering. After a childhood on a farm, where he lost an eye in an accident, he grew up to own and operate an electronics repair shop. His vision kept him from joining the army in World War II. Instead, he helped produce dances to help sell war bonds. He realized that it was really hard for the guitar sound to be heard among the crowd, and that led him to tinker and develop the first electric guitar.

No surprise for someone from Fullerton, Fender was a fan of Western music (his favorite musician was Glenn Campbell), so he marketed his first guitars to that market. He preferred to work with serious amateurs when he developed his guitars, many of whom worked at the company’s guitar factory. They would perform sets at local clubs to test the instruments live. Leo would visit the shows and get their feedback during their set breaks. “He didn’t necessarily want to work with fancy people,” Phyllis says. “He wanted to work with people who loved to play the guitar.”

Phyllis was Leo’s second wife; they each had been married once before to someone who died. A mutual friend thought that Phyllis might be able to help Leo with his grief, and they ended up getting married about a year after they met.

Neither was a musician, and, in fact, Phyllis knew nothing about Fender Guitars when the two met in 1979. She points out that Leo knew nothing about families (he and his first wife, Esther, did not have children), but that he warmed up to the children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews that Phyllis brought to the marriage.

The book has a lot of interesting insights into Fender. He was a classic entrepreneur of his era. He worked really hard and investment money into the company instead of spending it on himself. Phyllis said that he never took vacations until after they married (and then, he preferred cruises.) He lived in a mobile home for many years after selling Fender Guitars in 1965, because he thought it was more efficient than a regular house. By 1977, he was ready to run a company again and founded G&L Guitars with his friend George Fullerton.

Phyllis tells the story of a man who was very sweet but who really loved working on guitars more than anything else – up to the point of bricking in the window of his home office so that he wouldn’t be distracted. “He never played his stereo equipment, he never played music shows on TV,” Phyllis says. “His music was when he heard his equipment being made. He loved what he did.”

The book includes a driving tour of Fullerton and the surrounding area, with a list of the sites that mattered to Leo Fender and the development of the electric guitar. The Fullerton Museum has a collection of Fender’s memorabilia, and Phyllis volunteers as a docent there.

This is a lovely book for someone who loves music history – and it is on Amazon right now if you need a present for such a person.

Too Old to Rock ‘n’ Roll #12: Smash

Angela Sanchez
(Archive.)

Friday, December 9, 2016

What happens is this. I’m up early on a Friday, ready to walk the dog before I fix breakfast for my son. It’s the first real cold weather we’ve had so far this winter, and there’s thick new-fallen snow on the lawn. I’m wearing jeans and sneakers without socks, so — genius that I am — I decide to walk the dog in the street so I don’t get snow in my shoes.

Friday is usually the morning after a band practice, but we skipped this week. We had been gearing up for a Roscoe’s Basement show the week before Christmas, but we just got word that the gig fell through. So I’m feeling lonesome and vaguely bummed out as I leash up Katya the neurotic husky and step onto the asphalt. We’ve taken maybe ten steps when suddenly my feet are no longer underneath me. I briefly see my toecaps shooting up into my field of vision; then I am staring at the white sky, flat on my back on the ice of the street.

I get to my feet — somehow I have managed to keep hold of the dog’s leash — and walk shakily toward the sidewalk, trying to get my wind back. Lucky I didn’t bash my skull in, I think. I look at the dog; she’s naturally skittish anyway, and the excitement hasn’t done much for her mood. It takes her a few moments to relax. “It’s okay,” I whisper. “Everything’s okay.”

But everything is not okay. As the dog settles into her morning squat, I realize that my left arm isn’t doing what I want it to do. There’s no pain yet, not exactly; but I am aware of an odd grinding sensation when I move it.

I file this feeling away for later. My brain — perhaps in an effort to spare my body — focuses entirely on completing the morning’s tasks. I clean up after the dog, slipping a plastic bag over my good hand, and go inside to fix Sam’s oatmeal. “Pretty sure I just broke my arm,” I say, rather too jauntily.

When Danielle comes down, I tell her what’s happened. She’s been on vacation all week; now she gets to spend her final day off accompanying me through the whirlwind of urgent care — where I am X-rayed, then fitted with a half-cast and an Ace bandage — and then the orthopedics clinic at the big university hospital, where I am further checked out. A physician’s assistant tells me I’ve fractured the head of my radius, one of the two long bones of the forearm. At the spot where it meets up with the ulna to form the elbow joint, the knobby end has been broken into at least three pieces.

Much like America itself, I find my left wing in disarray.There happens to be a surgeon working the floor while I’m there, and he looks in on my case. Depending on the extent of the damage, he tells me, repairing it will involve either installing a metal plate and screws to hold the damaged bone together as it knits, or replacing the radial head altogether with a titanium appliance. He books me for a PET scan on Monday and a surgical consult the day after that.

Then we go home, and I spend the rest of the weekend freaking out. I’m perfectly comfortable, so long as my arm is immobilized by the cast and sling; I can still type, albeit slowly, so I can continue to work. But there’s a very real chance I will never play guitar again. It’s unlikely (though possible) that I will suffer nerve damage or partial paralysis during the procedure. But even in a best-case scenario, I will, in all likelihood, lose some range of motion. This is my fretting hand, remember; for proper positioning, the elbow must be flexed sharply, the palm turned fully inward, and the wrist cocked down. My injury isn’t as bad as (say) Bono’s, but it doesn’t have to be. Losing even a few degrees of functional range in any one of these areas might effectively end my career as a guitar player.

I think about this, as I struggle to button my jeans with one hand. And I wait.

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

I drive myself in to meet with my surgeon, my pea coat draped over and my good arm through one sleeve, steering with one hand. (Thank God my little Honda has an automatic transmission.) He looks at my scans and talks me through the surgery. He can’t tell from the scans which procedure he’ll need to do — whether he’ll fix the existing bone together with a plate, or replace it with prosthesis. He and his team will be ready for either, and he’ll make the call once he’s opened my arm up and seen how things look in there.

Now, on one level I understand that this man is tops in his field, and that he’s done this dozens if not hundreds of times, and that he has earned my trust many times over. On another level, though, WOW, THIS GUY TOLD ME STRAIGHT-UP THAT HE’S GOING TO JUST START CUTTING WITHOUT A DEFINITE GAME PLAN. Well, throw out your gold teeth and see how they roll; I sign a stack of consent forms and we book the surgery for a week out.

On the drive home, my brake lines — which have been running a slow leak for weeks — blow out entirely, This is the kind of thing that causes fatal accidents in the movies, but I limp home to the squeal of metal on metal every time I have to slow down.

With the surgery booked, I sit down and write a long, anguished e-mail to the members of Roscoe’s Basement, bringing them up to speed and dumping all my fears on them. They are kind and reassuring, every one. “You’re the Jack of Diamonds,” Deanna tells me. “This will all be in your rearview mirror soon.” I feel like crying — with despair, or with gratitude for having these people in my life, I don’t know. Both, I guess.

A winter storm howls through town on Thursday, and we end up cancelling rehearsal again — but it’s still an eventful week. Craig has some health news of his own, for one thing; he’s been bothered with a hernia for some time, and has finally booked a procedure for January. His postsurgical care will put him out of action for weeks; he will be sharply limited as to what he can lift, which is damned inconvenient for a bass player.

And we get back the completed mixes from our recording sessions at FLCC. They’re a mixed bag. Certainly none of us were expecting pro-quality mixes from a student project, but only half of them are even passable. Craig’s songs are particularly ill-served. The intricate harmonies of “Waiting for World War III” and “Got That Girl” don’t mesh; the vocal blend, which sounded so lush on the playback monitors, seems thin and weedy, and the whole thing sounds like a rush job. I’m disappointed, for my part, in “Down by the Wayside.” Neither Deanna’s lead line nor the cascading harmonies have the definition or pop I’d hoped for.

The rowdiest songs fare better. “Purple Jesus” turns out pretty well, as do Chuck’s two compositions. “Sister Saintly” take a moment to settle into its groove — that damned click track! — but once we’re all locked in, it positively cooks.


“Sister Saintly” studio demo. Music by Michael Mann, words by Jack Feerick, performed by Roscoe’s Basement. Jack Feerick – lead and backing vocals; Deanna Finn – backing vocals; Tom Finn – drums; Craig Hanson – bass guitar, backing vocals; Mike Mann – electric guitars; Chuck Romano – electric guitar. Engineered and mixed by Joe Nauert at Finger Lakes Community College Studio 1, November 2016.

As promised, Joe has given us a hard drive with all the stems — the basic digital files from the sessions — and I have high hopes that a competent producer might be able to “fix it in the mix,” turning these performances into something releasable. But when Chuck runs them past a producer he knows, it becomes plain that I’m a little over-ambitious. The recording conditions, our inexperience in the studio, performance nerves — the source material is simply subpar. Time to suck it up and learn to love what we’ve got.

You know. Like you do.

Thursday, December 22, 2016

Surgery happens on Tuesday morning. They put me out and screw my arm back together, then send me home to sleep for most of the day and night in a blanket of lingering anesthesia. I don’t lose any mobility in my fingers, thank heaven, but at the moment that’s all I know. I’ll be in a full cast for weeks yet, and my long-term recovery is still an open question. My new cast is bulkier and heavier than the presurgical one, reaching from my bicep to my wrist, with a big plaster dome over the elbow. All the positions and props that let me sleep and work in comfort for ten days beforehand — they don’t work anymore, so I’m back to square one. And I’m in actual pain (as opposed to mere discomfort) for the first time in the process, so I’m high-strung and irritable when I’m not foggy from Percocet.

We're a rock 'n' roll band with serious balls, and we've got pictures to prove it.

But I’m not admitting any kind of defeat just yet. So tonight, two days after going under the knife, I have bummed rides from my bandmates and am down in the basement, singing through the glorious din. Not well — my arm is pinned to my chest, squishing my lungs, so my breath control is for beans — and of course I can’t play, not even tambourine. But it feels good.

And so we rehearse, after a fashion, just like normal, one last time before a break for the holidays. Tom and Deanna give us each a gift — a Christmas ornament with the band logo, all done with custom-printed vinyl decals and cunning use of an X-Acto knife — and we ooh and ahh and laugh, and wish each other a happy New Year.

And then we go out into the dark and wait to see what happens.