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Bands, your press kit stinks

Notice: If this seems like familiar ground from your humble narrator, it is. But then if I stop receiving awful press kits, I won’t have to keep writing posts like this. Help me help you.

Dear musicians,

Actually that’s not fair. This is addressed to both musicians and publicists. Plus, I know you didn’t ask for this advice, but I’m giving it to you anyway. Why? Because you need it - even if you don’t know you need it. How do I know you need this advice? Because I receive press kits every day.

The first thing that needs to be addressed is the publicity photo. You may not know this, but the writers who receive pitches about artists judge (at least to some degree) those artists by their publicity photos. Without naming names, allow me to give an example. Today I received a pitch about an artist. Part of that pitch was a publicity photo that could only be described as absurd. I shared it with a writer friend of mine, and her response was, “What in the fresh hell is that?” Before you put together and send out that press kit, take a long (hell, it doesn’t even have to be long) look at that publicity photo and ask yourself if that’s the kind of response you want from the writers who receive your pitch.

What I can’t begin to understand is why so many (and there are generally more than one per day) of these ridiculous publicity photos are sent. I get it. Everyone has their own interpretation of what’s ridiculous. But my persistent question is this: Does no one see the publicity photo before it’s included in the press kit and sent? I assume that no one really looks at these stupid publicity photos before they are sent out because any reasonable person would look at these things and say, “THAT’S the photo you’re sending?” Artists, you especially have to understand that your publicity photo is the first impression that a lot of writers have of you. So you need to take a look at your publicity photo and ask yourself, “Is that what I want to be the first impression of me and the music I’ve worked so hard for?”

I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking that the music should stand on its own merits regardless of the publicity photo. And you’re right. It should. But don’t forget what I’ve just said: your photo is the first impression - before a writer even hears a note of your music. And just know that the first impression could be something like, “What in the fresh hell is that?” That being said, if the music is good, the writer can move past your stupid publicity photo. But your music will have to be that much stronger to overcome the ridiculous photo.

The other advice you don’t know you need is to consider the first track on your album. Yeah, I know. You’ve already considered that. You and your team all got together and decided what should be the lead track. Here’s the thing though. I receive A LOT of albums where the first song is Boring (yes, with a capital B). I’ll just tell you this because I am usually on the side of musicians. I know not every song is going to sound like the first couple albums of The Sonics.

However, when your first track is Boring, you’ve really put yourself in a hole. Here’s why. Writers receive a lot of music every day. We sometimes get to the point where we have hundreds of unread emails from publicists simply because we don’t have enough time in a day to get to all the music we receive. That means an artist really has to grab our attention immediately. I know you don’t make records for music journalists. You make records because you want to express yourselves. And you should. Express yourself however you see fit. I’m just presenting you with the writer’s perspective because that’s all I have. Oh and I should say that if you have a bad publicity photo AND an opening track that is not very exciting, you have acres of ground to make up when it comes to writers. I don’t expect you to start tailoring your music to writers. That would be disingenuous. However, you should know what you’re up against when that press kit goes out to the world.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Aaaaaaaagh! Two MORE weeks of Christmas music?

I have a question for all you Christmas lovers out there. In fact this question plagues me every holiday season. My question is: How do you do it? No I don’t mean the gift giving. Nor do I mean the delicious holiday feast. 

My question is how do you tolerate Christmas music for two whole months? It’s still two weeks until Christmas and I want to smash every speaker in every public place because I am so tired of Christmas music. (The first day I heard Christmas music this year was November 10.)

I understand that people have different musical tastes. My tastes clearly don’t include Christmas music.

Hold on. I hear something in the other room.

“Hey, is that ‘Winter Wonderland’ I hear? Well, put on some headphones, wouldja? I don’t need to hear about how Parson Brown conducts a wedding with a snowman! And no a song about mommy kissing Santa Claus isn’t any better!” 

Sorry about that. But it proves my point that it’s a complete infliltration of Christmas music. Everywhere you go. ACK! I just did it myself.

So back to my question. How do you do it? When you’re at the store (which store is immaterial because EVERY store plays Christmas music throughout December), and you hear “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas,” do you still enjoy it when you hear it for the 773rd time in one holiday season? Doesn’t it wear on you just a little? Honestly I think that some other countries must use American Christmas music as a torture device. Hey I guess that’s a plus. If you ever get taken hostage in one of those countries, they won’t know what to do with you.

“Why hasn’t the hostage given us the information we want?”

“Sir, we’ve played nothing but American Christmas music in his cell all day for the last week. He just sings along with a big smile on his face.”

“Even the Michael Bolton Christmas album?”

“Yes, sir.”

Maybe I’m a Grinch. But the truth is that I like Christmas. I really do. I enjoy time with family, the feasts, the happiness of children. And I especially enjoy the days away from work. But at least if Christmas music is going to be played on every radio station and in every store, can we at least get some good tunes like Mojo Nixon or James Brown?

...Jack Frost nipping at your nose 

Dang it! I thought I asked you to put some headphones on!

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Greta Van Fleet? Never heard of ‘er

Something I’ve heard a lot in recent months is “Have you heard Greta Van Fleet?” The first time, a coworker sent me a link to “Highway Tune” and asked “Have you heard these guys?” At the time I had heard the name, but I assumed it was a blond folk singer in a sundress. My first impression was that “it’s the musical bastard of Led Zeppelin and Rush.” That’s not a great thing for me because neither of those two bands is really high on my list. I know, it’s practically unthinkable that a music journalist would not be a fan of Led Zeppelin or Rush. Part of the reason I’ve never been thrilled with those bands is because I’m not a big fan of Robert Plant’s or Geddy Lee’s vocals.

Still I keep hearing the question and Greta Van Fleet just came out with a new album Anthem of the Peaceful Army. So being the fair guy that I am, I decided to give the new album a shot. Nothing in the album dissuaded me from my opinion that this band is the musical bastard of Led Zeppelin and Rush. Nevertheless I continued to listen to the album in the interest of fairness. Somewhere around the seventh song, I skipped ahead to the next song. Then I skipped the next one. And the one after that. Then I decided I was done with the album. Why? Because I found that I liked Josh Kiszka’s voice even less than Robert Plant’s or Geddy Lee’s. The real dealbreaker was “Mountain of the Sun.” This song contains slide guitar, which I enjoy. But I couldn’t endure Kiszka’s vocals enough to listen to the slide guitar. Now, I’m not here to give a scathing review of the band like that Pitchfork writer did simply because I didn’t enjoy it. On the contrary I applaud these young dudes for making music that sounds like it was recorded 50 years ago. Furthermore I congratulate them for winning as many fans as they have even if I am not one of them.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

How do you like my undies, complete stranger?

I heard a radio commercial today. At the beginning of the commercial, the pitchman said, "Would you be embarrassed by your underwear choice if the person driving behind you saw it?"

Wait! What? I kind of did a double take and said it aloud just to see if I had heard it correctly. I had. Is this a common enough thing that they actually used it as the introduction to a commercial? If the person driving behind me sees my underwear, I am not wondering what this person thinks of my underwear. I'm thinking, "How on earth did I get HERE?" I mean, let's just think of some possible scenarios in which the person driving behind me sees my underwear.

I'm rear ended by the driver behind me. We get out to exchange insurance information. And then what? I drop my pants by the side of the freeway and moon the driver who just collided with my car? I suppose that's possible, but it doesn't seem a very likely response.

Somehow I stand up on the driver's seat while I'm driving and my pants fall down, revealing my undies to the driver behind me. In what universe would this happen? At that point I'm not wondering what this random driver thinks of my undies. I'm wondering how long until the highway patrol shows up and pulls me over.

Let's go to a worst-case scenario. The driver behind me somehow abducts me, takes me somewhere, and instructs me to strip down to my undies.  I'm certainly not sitting there thinking "What does this person think of my new boxers?" That in fact, is probably one of the last things to cross my mind. I'm more likely to wonder if I'm escaping this with my life, and what my abductor thinks of my undies is utterly immaterial.

So while the copy in that radio ad is strange, the ad only gets stranger the more you think about it. But what's stranger than the content of the commercial is that: 1. somebody actually wrote that copy 2. presumably a whole room of people heard what was written and thought it was good enough to include in the commercial 3. nowhere along the line from writing to recording did anyone (of sufficient importance) say, "I'm sorry. Could you read that first line again? That sounds REALLY freaky."

Of course another problem with this commercial is that it assumes every listener wears underwear. Probably a good percentage of the population just laughs when they hear this ad, thinking "I couldn't possibly be embarrassed by my underwear choice."

But maybe I'm looking at this all wrong. Maybe I should be trying to write copy for radio spots.  Let me practice.

Would you be embarrassed by your deodorant choice if the person driving behind you stuck his nose in your armpit?

Well, what do you think?

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Porn Crumpets and Sex Pigs

I have long celebrated the unusual. As a music fan and journalist, my attention has never really been drawn to pop music. I enjoy bands that don’t set out to make pop music. I also celebrate unusual band names for a couple reasons. First, I come across so many bands with names that are not at all memorable. If you’re in a band and you want to call it The _____, and fill in that blank with any generic noun, that’s up to you, but you make music harder to find. Second I just admire anyone who can come up with a unique name. If you’ve ever tried to name anything (a business, a product, even another human), you know how difficult it is. 

This week I came across a band name that might just be my new favorite. Earlier this week, I saw a post about a band called Psychedelic Porn Crumpet. Now I’ll admit that I don’t know what a Porn Crumpet is. The truth is that I don’t have to know. Granted, the band probably won’t ever get on commercial radio with that name. But that’s fine. The band chose a name that (likely) won’t provoke a lawsuit from some other band using the same name. As much as I like the name Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, I saw something even stranger than that this week.

Sometimes you see a headline and you can’t help but look twice just to check if you saw it correctly. The story is a couple years old, but just this week I saw the headline “Sex pigs halt traffic after laser attack on Pokémon teens”. Whoever wrote that headline must have been puzzled after first hearing the story. I know I was. But then the headline must have been ecstatic. After all, how many times do you get to write a headline that involves, sex, pigs, laser attacks and Pokemon? If I wrote that headline, I would probably get it tattooed on me. And think about the journalist who was assigned to cover that story. His assignment editor sends him to cover a story about people slowing down on the highway because of a public sex act. That’s interesting enough, but then add the lasers and the hunt for Pokemon, and what you have is a story that goes beyond interesting to bizarre. 

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Bands, don’t hide in plain sight

Every once in a while I just need to rant. This is one of those times.

As a music journalist, I encounter a lot of things that I just can’t comprehend. And no, this isn’t another column about bad PR photos (although with as many bad PR photos as I see, that is an evergreen topic). Here are three things I’ve seen recently that leave me scratching my head.

1. Here in Orange County, there is a band called The Sugar. This is incomprehensible because there was already a band called Sugar. In fact, a quick Google search turns up Sugar The Band on the east coast. It’s hard enough to get your band noticed. It’s practically impossible to get your band noticed when you choose a name that’s already been used.

2. I received a pitch about a band that describes its music as “neon disco doom”. No I am not making that up. Here’s the thing. I applaud bands that create their own genre. It is an easy way to set yourself apart if your band comprises an entire genre. That being said, this particular term is puzzling to me. How big is your target market if you choose to describe your music as neon disco doom? I can only imagine that it’s minuscule. As frequently as I search out new music, I have never thought to seek anything like neon disco doom. Again, finding an audience for your music is not an easy thing, so why would you make it even more difficult by limiting yourself this way?

3. I received another pitch about an artist called North Americans. Yes really. The s at the end does help with search results. However, users don’t always get it right when searching something. Allow me to give an example.

Person 1: What’s the name of that band you saw last week?

Person 2: I think it was North American.

Person 1 Googles North American band. North Americans is buried under articles and blog posts about great North American bands.

Bands, I’m on your side. It is my job to write about music. But it makes me crazy when I see bands doing it so profoundly wrong.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

T.O. is only punishing himself by avoiding the Hall of Fame ceremony

I was listening to The Dan Patrick Show earlier today and he and the Danettes were talking about how Terrell Owens will not attend the Hall of Fame weekend. Apparently he’s upset that he wasn’t inducted to the Hall of Fame at his first opportunity, so this is his way of protesting. I’m not going to bash TO for his decision, but I will say I don’t understand it.

Just think about this. Terrell Owens is protesting the NFL because he was made to wait a year or so before he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He has every right to protest however he sees fit. But here’s what I don’t understand. He worked his entire career to make it to the Hall of Fame. Yet he thinks he is going to protest or punish the NFL by not attending the ceremony where he is one of the honorees. I find that incredibly strange. The Hall of Fame festivities will go on with or without Owens. That much is a given. So then the question becomes this: Who is Owens really punishing by choosing not to attend the Hall of Fame induction ceremony? It seems to me that he is only punishing himself. He spent his entire career busting his butt to be one of the best wide receivers in the history of the league. His goal was not only to be a great football player, but to be a Hall of Fame player. And he did it. It’s pretty remarkable for anyone, let alone a guy who played his college football at Tennessee-Chattanooga. 

I just don’t understand that. If I worked my entire career for one particular thing, and then I achieved that one particular thing, you better believe I’m going to partake in all of the celebrations I can. Yes, even if it took a couple years from the time I retired before I achieved that one thing. If Terrell Owens doesn’t want to be a part of the Hall of Fame ceremonies - which was ultimately the goal of playing football - that’s up to him. But the thing is the NFL will go on with or without him. That being the case, why wouldn’t he enjoy that unique experience for which he have worked so hard? Ultimately he’s only punishing himself because he feels slighted. 

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Your classmates are being shot? Just learn CPR.

Lots of opinions about the whole gun-control debate have been shared since the Parkland school shooting in on Valentine’s Day. Rick Santorum proposed that high-school students learn CPR instead of going out and protesting for someone else to make a law that he thinks is not going to do any good anyway.

There are a couple things wrong with this that have nothing to do with politics. First, I’m no medical expert, but I’m pretty sure CPR doesn’t help anyone who has just received a mortal gunshot wound. If it were that simple, the U.S. would probably have fewer deaths by gunshot wound.

He went on to say that the students - instead of protesting - should ask themselves, “What am I going to do to help respond a shooter?" That of course begs the question, “What is the proper response when a shooter is on campus killing people you know?" He seems to think that the solution is to have students performing triage. Just think about that. That is a lot to put on the plate of a teenager. One minute you’re learning chemistry and the next minute, you’re supposed to remain calm and help the wounded WHEN YOUR SCHOOLMATES ARE BEING SHOT. These are not career military medics. These are high-school kids, who are frequently irrational beings. Now I know that youth doesn’t preclude someone from doing great things, but I am saying it’s completely unfair to expect high-school students to be the onsite crisis-response team. 

Finally, Santorum implies that school shootings are inevitable. If they are truly inevitable, that is a giant part of the problem. If you were a student who is being told that school shootings are inevitable, wouldn’t you get a little fired up and demand that something be done about it? Particularly since you are not in a position to enact laws yourself. I’d have to wonder about any student that would sit idly and accept the inevitability of school shootings.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Ed Sheeran’s popularity does equal “cultural brainwashing”

Julian Casablancas did an interview recently where he compared the popularity of Ed Sheeran to “cultural brainwashing”. And you know something? He was right. I don’t say that to knock Ed Sheeran although his music is certainly not my bag. He has sold lots of albums. Good for him. 

The thing is, the brainwashing comment doesn’t just apply to Ed Sheeran. Frankly, the entire business of pop music is (and always has been) based in cultural brainwashing. Think about how a song becomes popular. A record label “discovers” an artist that is sure to be popular with people. An artist with a big marketing budget behind him comes up with a song (likely produced by a team that is given a whole list of components of what makes a song popular). Because of the big marketing budget, that song gets played on every pop radio station across the country. Repeatedly. It gets played so frequently (”Bodak Yellow” anyone?) that people are convinced they like it because it is so familiar. Then those artists go on to win awards called Best Album or Best Song of the year. Ubiquity is equated with quality.

Casablancas specfically argued that Ariel Pink and went on to point out the patent unfairness of a world where Ed Sheeran is leagues beyond Ariel Pink in popularity. He went on to say, “ But my bigger point is that whether it’s music or politics, right now we’re mired in whoever’s propaganda is loudest.” Exactly, Julian. And it has always been thus. It’s not fair. That much is true. But then those of us who know and love music know the difference between quality music and the ubiquitous pop that wins awards. For instance, Dean Ween will never win a Grammy, but his album is already one of my favorites of 2018.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Your bad band photo is a strike against you

Bands, we need to have a talk. Specifically we need to talk about the band photo that you include in your press kit. Yes, I know I’ve written about this before, but I keep seeing STUPID band photos. Yeah, I know that art is subjective and what might seem stupid to me may not seem stupid to someone else. I’m talking about the kind of photos where the band receives some off-the-wall instructions about how to pose, and the whole thing just looks ludicrous. They’re the kind of photos that make me ask, “What message are you trying to send with this picture?” They’re maybe not as bad as this photo of Gert Jonnys, but they’re not a whole lot better either.

Here’s the thing though. When I open a message from a band or a publicist, and I see a stupid band photo, that’s already a strike against the band. Maybe it’s unfair, but it’s true. After all, at that point I haven’t even heard a note of the band’s music. I’ve only seen the picture, the band name, and the description. That stupid photo is my first impression of your band. And it’s true what they say: you never get a second chance to make a first impression.

Now, I don’t immediately rule out a band simply because of the photo. If the description of the music sounds like something that will interest me, I will listen to it. That being said, if you have a stupid band photo, your music better be good. And if it is, I will forget about the photo in your press kit. 

I had to get all of that out of my system. Again. But instead of just railing against bad band photos, allow me to provide a couple bits of advice. First, look at your press kit before it gets sent. You really should be the first line of defense against a bad press kit for your band. If you don’t like it, then don’t send it out to the world. Second, show it to friends. Show it to acquaintances. Just show it to people and watch their reactions. Their reactions to your mock-up press kit will say more than their words. Of course you should also ask them what they think about it, but their reactions will be more telling. If it doesn’t test well with your friends and acquaintances, then at least you’ll know what you need to tweak before you send it out to journalists and bloggers.

And look, I know that musicians are always short on money. But if you want to hire me as a consultant for your press kit, by all means do it.Seriously.  I promise I won’t fleece you. And besides, I’ve seen more bad press kits than you can possible imagine in my time as a music journalist. I can definitely help you come up with a press kit that doesn’t get automatically deleted by the recipient.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

If The War on Drugs is rock, maybe rock really is dead

I know that this probably comes as a shocking statement from a music journalist, but I just heard The War on Drugs for the first time yesterday as I drove home. How can that be, you ask? The band won a Grammy for Best Rock Album. OK, well the Grammys never hold much interest for me. Aside from a few exceptions, the list of Grammy nominees is a parade of albums and songs with which I am not familiar.

My first impression after hearing that War on Drugs song was that I kind of felt like I had heard the band's entire catalog. Perhaps I was jumping to conclusions, but further checking out the band pretty well confirmed that my first impression was correct. That's not to say that I listened to the entire Grammy-winning album. It didn’t grab me enough for me to listen to the whole thing. However, I did hear enough of it to confirm what I thought after hearing just one song.

I will say this. Even though it is not my jam, I can see how people really enjoy this album. People like it because it sounds familiar. You hear tones of U2, Bryan Adams (in the vocals), not to mention a host of 90s shoegaze bands. No matter how you slice it, the album sounds a lot like something you've heard before. These songs were obviously played enough on radio (apparently not the stations I listen to) to earn a Grammy, which makes these songs themselves familiar to listeners on top of the fact that they sound like a lot of other things we've heard before. People like the familiar, and there's nothing wrong with that.

That being said, something became clear to me as I thought about this. A Deeper Understanding won Best Rock Album at the Grammys. There's just one problem. It's not really rock - especially compared to Mastodon, who was also nominated for Best Rock Album. If this is being pushed as a rock album, it's no wonder so many people say that rock is dead. It isn't by any means. But it's easy to see why people think rock is dead when The War on Drugs is labeled a rock band.

Look, maybe The War on Drugs is your bag. Maybe it isn't. I feel pretty comfortable saying that they don't produce rock music. However, there are plenty of bands that do. If you're one of those folks that think rock is dead, look for bands like Mastodon and Clutch (or any number of others) that produce honest rock music instead of some non-offensive music you might hear in the parking lot of a Whole Foods.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

When do fans reach Star Wars fatigue?

Like a lot of Americans I watched the Super Bowl last night. In the process I saw the teaser for the upcoming Han Solo movie. Now, before I go any further, I have to say that I am not a big Star Wars fan. It’s not my bag and never has been. But I’m not here to ridicule the franchise. People like what they like, and that’s fine.

I do, however have a question for all you Star Wars fanatics (and that is the right word because y’all go all out when a new Star Wars movie comes out.) My question is this: will there ever come a time when you reach your saturation point with the franchise. In other words, when the 17th Star Wars film (which seems like a sure thing if it hasn’t already happened) hits theaters, will you still be as excited about it as you are now? Speaking as a non-fanatic it seems like the studios are banking on just that notion. They will put out a movie as frequently as they can until people don’t respond to it anymore. I’m just wondering about this because even the juggernaut that is the NFL seems to have lost some of its fans due to over-saturation. With games on four days of the week, plus some event every month (combine, draft) that keeps the NFL in the spotlight, over-saturation was bound to happen. Meanwhile a new Star Wars movie seems to come out once a year. That begs the obvious question of whether fans will lose interest because at that frequency, Star Wars movies lose some sense of the special. Or will fans continue to make everything about Star Wars every time a new installment is released?

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Is this fake Coachella lineup better than the real thing?

Yesterday, this poster was published. Yes, I realize that it is a fake lineup generated by a bot, but there are two things about this that resonate with me.

First, even though this lineup is fake, I’m just as likely to see any of the artists listed here as I am any of the artists at Coachella. That perhaps says a lot about me. Namely that I’m too old to find the charm in three days in the desert with a bunch of gorked-out 20-somethings.

The other thing that resonates with me is the fact that most of the names on this poster are at least more memorable than some of the many generic band names I see. Say what you want about Horse Choir, but at least it would be at the top of any Google search. And Slaw Bomb? I kind of wish I had thought of that. 

So there you have it, bands. If you’re lloking for a name for your band, this poster has plenty of options that aren’t completely generic.

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Dear beer fan, it’s OK to like something besides IPAs

Dear American beer consumer, 

 I may not know you personally, but I know what you like. You are a fan of macro lagers like Budweiser. You also like IPAs. I get it. The macro lagers are familiar to you. Your grandpa and your dad drank them, and now you do too. I get the whole IPA thing too. They pack a pretty good punch to the taste buds. They also pack a pretty good punch on the alcohol content. Since these two styles are in such great demand, that's what bars carry. Boy, do they ever! Walk into any bar, and in addition to all the standards, you're likely to see more than one IPA on draft. In fact I saw one bar recently that had five IPAs on tap. Frankly that seems a bit of overkill - particularly since the place only has nine taps. How many different IPAs does one bar need? But then the bar is merely supplying what customers demand. That's simple economics.

Therein lies the problem. I suppose it's only a problem for people who want neither an IPA or a fizzy yellow lager, and they certainly seem to be in the minority. Here's the thing, dear beer fan. There are loads of other styles out there - from sours to wheat beers and stouts. Not that you'd be able to tell from what is sold at bars. I understand your love of macro lagers and IPAs, but really it's OK to like other beer styles too. In the beer universe, we're settling (or we're being asked to settle) for only a small percentage of what's available. I can't tell you what to like, but I can definitely suggest that you explore the world of beer beyond a macro lager and an IPA. Think of it this way. When you go to the grocery store, you see hundreds of flavors of ice cream. What if the stores only carried the two most popular flavors? Would that satisfy you? I guess I'm suggesting that you try something different than what you usually drink. "You do not like it. So you say. Try them. Try them, and you may. Try them and you may, I say."

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Schwindy’s favorite songs of 2017

December always means a list compiling the best of things throughout the year. I have heard a lot of great songs this year. These are my 10 favorite - in alphabetical order by artist.

“Another Nightmare in America” by Cory Branan - Branan is one of those guys who can make listeners envious of his songwriting abilities. This is a catchy tune with thought-provoking lyrics like “We’ve hollowed out our Bibles to hide our golden guns”.

“So You Say” by Chopteeth Afrofunk Big Band - This is a funk song with a punk attitude that you can hear in lyrics like “my fate is not up to you today” and “how I live my life is not for you to say”.

“The Cat’s Meow” by The Darts - This song is primal rock and roll that might make you want to do naughty things. 

“The Perilous Night” by Drive-By Truckers - Patterson Hood is as good as anybody at putting incisive social commentary to music, and proves it again with this song.

“Dr. Bartender” by Lara Hope and The Ark-Tones - This band knows how to swing in this song about a person who needs a certain kind of therapy that only a bartender can provide.

“Special Man Boogie” by King James and The Special Men - This song is pure, good-time, New Orleans blues that will make you get your boogie on.

“I Can’t Let Go (Even though I Set You Free)” by Zephaniah OHora and The 18 Wheelers - You have to give OHora credit for writing a murder ballad that can get people two-stepping.

“Dwight Yoakam” by Sarah Shook and The Disarmers - This one grabbed me immediately with the opening line “I’m drinkin’ water tonight ‘cuz I drank all the whiskey this morning.” Yeah, plenty of songs have been written about one person leaving a relationship, but this one can stop you in your tracks.  

“Beam of Light” by The Simpkin Project - What makes this song so great is the fact that you can sing along with it even the first time you hear it. The beauty is in the simplicity.

“Dead Ringer” by Whiskey Gentry - This catchy country song tells the story of life on the road only to have people confuse you for someone who’s more famous. 

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

A spirit is in the room at The Troubadour

In the VIP loft at The Troubadour is a Tom Jones Spirit in the Room poster. I don't think any piece of memorabilia has ever been more fitting than that one. The Troubadour is not a big place, but when you walk in and look around at all the wood - as well as all the memorabilia - on the walls, you realize that this is one of those places that has a sort of indescribable feel. It doesn't feel holy or like you're walking into a place of worship, but you can feel the history of the place. After all, this is a place that has hosted shows by Elton John, Jackson Browne, and Joni Mitchell (there is also a cool black and white shot of Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash on the wall) to name a few. In other words, people who are integral to the story of rock and roll have performed there. Lenny Bruce was arrested at the place, and John Lennon and Harry Nilsson were once kicked out of this legendary venue. Somehow the walls and the stage have absorbed all of that music history and that mojo (for lack of a better term), and you can feel it even if you can't put it into words.

I've heard from bands that have recorded at the Sun Records Studios, that that building has a similar indescribable feel. They have told me that there is something tangible about that building and that everything recorded in the Sun Studios just sounds better in part because of the history of the place. 

Last night I went there to see Hot Snakes, and it was the first time I had been to the place in nearly 20 years. Maybe I didn't get the feel of the room the last time I was there, but nearly two decades later, I definitely felt it. I don't make it to L.A. very often because getting there and getting around the city is a bit of a pain. I say that to let you know I'm not doing a plug for the L.A. tourism board. If you ever find yourself in L.A. (or if you live there and haven't visited the place yet), find a show that interests you and go there. You just might end up with your own Troubadour story to tell.

(photo of The Troubadour marquee by John Kessler)

[gonewiththeschwind-blog]

Fats Domino will be greatly missed

I don’t feel like I need to join the parade of RIP posts whenever a musician dies, but I do feel compelled to write something when some musicians die. 

I never saw Fats Domino perform live, but I sure have enjoyed his music. Frankly, I don’t know how it’s possible to do anything but enjoy his music. A Fats Domino song has the ability to brighten your day. I listened to Fats Domino at my desk today after I learned of his death. There I was in my office chair swaying to the music of Fats. Swaying in my chair is not something I do all the time when I’m working, but I just couldn’t help it. Domino’s music is infectious.

More than that, he was a true American original. He was one of those guys that bridged the blues and rock and roll. Come to find out that Fats Domino was a big influence on Elvis Presley. Can you say for sure that there wouldn’t have been rock and roll without Fats Domino? No. However, you can’t tell the story of rock and roll without him. That is indisputable. And it’s sad when the world loses someone who is integral to the story of rock and roll.