Brent Seavers - BS Stands For

A couple of months ago, the German label Screaming Apple release the brilliant debut solo full length record of Brent Seavers. Brent is best know for being the bass player in the Californian outfit The Decibels.

When the pandemic started, Brent decided to record some of his original songs and ended with a full album on his hands. Obviously there is some very DECIBELS-like material here, but going solo has allowed Brent to drift a bit forward in time, from mid-60's pop right up into the 70's and early 80's power-pop scene. 

Brent Seavers channels his own brand of modish guitar, the pop sensibility and DIY appeal of early dB's, the mod-era WHO with a pinch of the JAM, but squeezed through his own filter that gives them his own sound. This is a real must buy!

1) For the viewers of this blog who would not know you, what would you tell about you and your musical background to introduce yourself?  

I grew up in a musical home and have been playing and writing music since a very early age. As a young kid, I loved watching the Beatles cartoons and Monkees episodes. I got my first guitar when I was 11, a drum set a few months later, and then traded my Star Wars toys for a 4-track tape recorder so I could start recording my own music. I started a few bands that played a few live shows but never released any recordings. I joined The Decibels in my teens as bass player and contributing song writer and have been enjoying every moment. They’re a solid group of musicians and great friends.

2) If I'm not mistaking "BS Stands For" is your debut full length solo records. Since 1997, with your brother Dean, you are 1/4 of the Decibels. What decided to release a solo album now?

The solo album was pandemic-fueled. Being stuck at home in my studio with too much time initially compelled me to make a handful of music videos documenting the recording process and to keep my sanity (https://www.youtube.com/brentseavers). After almost a year of that, I decided to record my own original music. There wasn’t initially a plan to release the recordings on any label. But after recording plenty of songs, I realized that I could.

3) About this debut full length solo record, what can you tell about the recording process? 

I’d sit down at the drum set, and record myself playing one of my songs. Then, I’d hit rewind, start the song again, and add the guitars, bass, vocals, keyboards, and whatever else the song needed. With the exception of a few hand claps contributed reluctantly by one of my kids, if you hear it on the record it’s me.  

4) Do you use the nowadays digital recording technology or do you only work with analog machines in analog studios?

I started recording music in an analog world and appreciate the process. I keep everything analog – tube driven, real instruments – up until the final step where I used to record directly to tape. At that point now, I record the audio digitally. There are rare moments where I record a track directly to tape and then transfer to digital, but not often. But I am very picky with my mic and tube-pre amp selections – pairing mics and amps with specific instruments - always chasing a specific sound.  

5) Are the songs on this record specifically composed for the purpose of this solo effort or are these songs you have composed over the years and deemed not fit to make it to a The Decibels record?  

Half of the songs predate the Decibels and were part of the reason I was asked to join the group. The other half were written during my time with the Decibels – Flatline being the most recent. Usually I’d bring a handful of songs to the group at practice, and we’d try them all out. The ones that clicked the easiest made it onto a Decibels album. I don’t think the group every said “no” to any of my songs. But since we had 3 contributing song writers in the group, not every good song made it onto an album. Both Dean and Joe have an extensive back catalogue of original songs as well.

6) What is your favorite topic/topic that comes easily when you write the lyrics to a new song?

I like writing about the honest moments in life. Falling in and out of love happens to all of us, but so does self-doubt and failure and pain and innocent infatuation. I never set out to write a serious or a silly song. I write about whatever is happening to me in that moment. Sometimes it’s love. But sometimes its maniacal laughter inspired by the insanity of living. I love when lyrics are honest even if they’re silly. Life is silly.  

7) Does your solo album mean that the Decibels are now on an indefinite hiatus?

Not at all! The Decibels are alive and kicking and wrapping up our next album. And honestly, it’s one of my favorites. Every member of the Decibels has life outside of music – which is a good thing else we’d lose our inspirations. And we each take time to live every aspect of our lives properly. No neglected hobbies or children in this bunch! 😊 So, album releases and live shows will happen less frequently, but only because we’re enjoying each aspect of our multifaceted lives.  

8) Do you have a new video on YouTube featuring a track from the new LP?? 

When I recorded my original music, I didn’t film the recording process like I did on all those cover tunes music videos on my YouTube channel. So, the short answer is, not at the moment.It’s sometimes hard to give your best musical performance when you’re also the sound engineer, producer, camera operator and director. While it was alright for the musical performance quality to suffer a little for those cover tunes music videos, for my original tunes I didn’t want the music to be anything less than my best. But it could still happen.  

9) Are you gonna put a band together and perform this solo album on the road? Are you gonna play any famous cover songs? 

I have been performing my original songs with a band here in California to help promote the album release, and would like to take the band on the road as more venues open up. My main focus is on original music for album releases, but I do have plans to make some more cover music videos in the near future.

10) Are there any bands in The USA today you consider yourself close to, musically speaking?

There are so many great power pop and pop rock bands in the USA that it would be near impossible to name them all. I definitely feel a connection to many local California groups that I saw as a kid - like The Odd Numbers and The Hi-Fives to name only two – who were a huge influence on my early music.

11) To what kind of music did you listen to as a teenager? What were your favorite bands as a teenager? Name 3 bands that you consider still have an influence on your own work today.

As a teenager I listened to The Beatles, The Monkees, The Kinks, Herman’s Hermits, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, The Rolling Stones, The Ramones, The Jam, Nirvana, Green Day, Letters to Cleo, The Muffs, The Romantics, The Knack, The Smithereens, The Plimsouls, The Beat – pretty much early rock ‘n’ roll 1955-1965 and late 70s to early 80s power pop and punk.

I always thought that The Beatles, The Monkees, and The Jam were probably my biggest influences on what I write, but it seems that when I create songs they sound nothing like those groups. So, who knows?  

12) What are the plans for 2022 as far as your solo career is concerned?

I’m about 6 songs into the next solo album, but have been focusing on finishing up mixing and mastering the Decibels next album. For me, The Decibels are my main focus. But I will continue writing, recording, and performing my solo music in-between Decibels projects wherever I find the time. It’s something that makes me happy.  

13) Anything you wanna add?  

Sure, why not. If you’re a talented musician who is frustrated because you haven’t been signed to a major record label, stop it. Take a look at some of the artists currently on major labels. They sign just as much talent as total garbage. Don’t let such poor judges determine if your music has value. Make your music. Keep it honest. Discerning people are listening. What you do matters.  

PURCHASE THE GOODIES HERE: https://brentseavers.bandcamp.com/album/bs-stands-for

The Buttshakers - Arcadia

French alternative Label Underdog Records recently released "Arcadia", the latest offering of The Buttshakers, a raw soul band from Lyon, France. So it was high time for this blog to talk to Ciara Thompson about this brilliant new record.

1) For the viewers of this blog who would not know you, What would you tell about The Buttshakers to introduce yourselves? How long are you  together as a band?  Who is playing what instrument in the band nowadays? 

Hi! We’re the Buttshakers, a raw soul band from Lyon, France. We’ve been playing together for almost 10 years now with Sylvain Lorens on guitar, Josselin Soutrenon on drums, and Ciara Thompson on the vocals. Jean Joly joined us on the bass two years ago, and our horn section changes around according to people’s availability (you know horns, they’ve always got work!) but for the last year we’ve been pretty stable with Franck Boyron on the trombone and Thibaut Fontana on the baritone sax.

2) About the "Arcadia" full length record,  what can you tell about the recording process? Was this a "live" in the studio recording or a track by track recording with lots of overdubs? 

We recorded Arcadia at Tontons Flingueurs Studio in Renaison, France with Pascal Coquard. This was our second time working with Pascal, and it was great as usual. Pascal has a mixed process – working with analog and digital. 

We did our first 7”’s and our first album (Night Shift) as a live studio recording, but we’ve really worked on developing a richer, more elaborate sound since then. So for this album, we did bass-drums-voice-guitar together in the same room and then added the additional instruments one by one. It’s a long process, working element by element, layer by layer, but the end result is very rich. 

3) Do you guys use the nowadays recording technology or do you only work with analog machines in analog studios?

Lol, kind of answered that in the last question. But yeah, we’ve worked in only analog – and we’ll probably work again in those sorts of conditions someday—but for Arcadia we used both digital recording and analog and then repassed on tape. 

4) Is there a main composer in the band or is everybody involved in one way or another?

Each album is different, but for this album, a lot of the songs were developed in a group form.

We wrote a lot of the album during or right after the first lockdown. During the first lockdown, we worked a lot with pre-productions. Passing around different pieces of music, taking the time to work over different ideas without being in the practice space in front of other people. 

Luckily, we had started working on certain songs before Covid, so we had already had a base of material (like ‘Night Crawl’ and ‘Hear Me’). To be able to take the time and really work out different ideas and layers was very different then just practicing and hammering out ideas in the practice space. 

Once we were able to practice in the same room together again, we must have been inspired because we wrote (and/or worked out previous ideas) half the album in about three months. Things just seemed to really jell once we had those couple months off to meditate and take a step back. 

5) What is your favorite topic/topic that comes easily when you write the lyrics to a new song?

It depends on the mood really. For this album, I allowed myself to use pre-written texts. I’m always writing poetry, sentences, words. Anytime I hear something I like, a phrase or a word, I write it down in my notebook. 

I really work off the title or first phrase – a song is like a book, you’ve got to pull your listener in and let them know pretty quickly what you’re talking about. Once you’ve given them the deictic elements of the story, you can take them where you want to. 

For Arcadia, probably because we were writing during the pandemic, a lot of the texts are reflective. The pandemic made me think a lot about family, my childhood, and where I am now in my life. It’s strange going back to a place you only remember, that is part of you yet foreign. Or has become foreign. 

A lot of the songs we were writing made me think about this idea of being a foreigner in your own country, in your own home, in your own mind. So the album is a reflection of what I see around me because I’m only an observer. I grew up in America, and came to France when I was 21, but it’s been 14 years that I’ve been living in France so I’m almost more French then American now. It’s a whole headfuck, but I don’t feel like I belong to either, or am a strange mix of both. 

6) How would you describe the music The Buttshakers are playing? Is it soul? Is it funk? Is it groove? Is it all of that?

We always say we make music with soul – that has something to say, something to be. It’s a bold statement to make, for sure. But it’s really what we try to be. I guess that’s why we always say “raw” soul too. We try to make music that is authenticly us. And soul music is our main influence. We all listen to it, and feed off of its influences, roots, and offsprings. 

There is “soul” in our music, but there’s also everything else that came from soul music or was made from soul music. We all listen to funk, americana, rocksteady, southern rock, afro, garage, jazz and a ton of other styles that influence who we are as musicicans. The great thing about being a “soul” band is you can use all these influences to make something of your own with, and that’s what we try to do with every album.

7) Do you have a new video on youtube featuring a track from the LP?? 

 

We recently came out with an animated video for our track HEAR ME. It’s a beautiful, film noir inspired clip that follows a woman in an abusive relationship as she finally confronts her partner and decides to leave him. We had the chance to work with an animation company called Millihelen Design who designed, developed, and animated the clip. They’re a American/Belgian duo working out of Antwerp. 

We wanted something sublime visually to go along with this song because it’s hard talking about abuse. Especially in a post-me too/Time’s Up society, confronting domestic abuse and trying to put words to something that is so prevalent but so taboo was a challenge. 

The message wasn’t too milk or profit from an ongoing social debate, but really we just wanted to put into music the idea that you can walk away. You can get out and find your peace. I feel like we focus a lot on the idea of victims, and not enough on surviving, knowing that you can move on. 

That’s why the song is called “Hear Me” – we wanted to celebrate the fact that women can finally speak up and speak out. 

8) What can concert goers expect at a concert of The Buttshakers? Are you playing any famous cover songs during the gig? 

Now for something much lighter – haha—no but seriously, Arcadia is a dark album, but in our concerts, we try to bring as much joy and light as possible. Music is a temple, a place everyone can go to tune in and tune out. 

A Buttshakers concert is exactly that. We always try to get everyone to just let go. When you dance, you touch a part of yourself, you free a part of yourself that most people rarely let live. So for us, a perfect concert is playing our songs right and everyone shaking their tailfeathers 😉

We always play a cover or two – but we’re one of those annoying bands that always takes a lesser known artist or song. One cover that we’re especially fond of is ‘Clean Up Woman’ by Betty Wright. And sometimes when we’re feeling hot we’ll put in a ‘Land of 1000 Dances’ by Wilson Picket or ‘Slippin’ & Sliddin’’ by Little Richard. 

9) Are there any bands in France today you consider yourself close to, musically speaking?

To be honest, there aren’t many soul bands in France that are similar to us musically. There are a lot of great soul bands in France at the moment, like John Milk, Malted Milk (two totally different bands, I promise!) Elina Jones and the Fireflys – but they’re more r’n’b/Motown and I’d put our sound/live shows on the Stax side of the force. 

It seems silly to say, because each band really has their own sound. But if we had to choose between Motown or Stax as the two polar opposites of soul, we’d be on the Stax side 10/10. 

I guess the Adeline’s probably are the closest to our sound that you can find in France. I don’t know if they’re even playing anymore, but they were a damn good live band. Or the Ready-Mades. They’ve got more of a rocksteady vibe, but I think they put the conscious side of soul music ahead like we do. 

10) What are the plans for 2022 as far as The Buttshakers are concerned? Are you gonna tour Europe to promote the record?

We’re hoping to play wherever people want us! We’ve got shows announced for 2022, mainly in France. We want to defend the album in our hometurf 😉 But we always add international shows throughout the year as things come in! 

That’s the beauty and the beast of playing live music – things change, get added in, and unfortunately with covid, get pushed back or canceled ALL THE TIME. 

11) Anything you wanna add?

Nothing more than, for first time listeners – listen to Arcadia as a whole story. It’s an album that’s best consumed in its totality. From ‘Back in America’ to ‘Gone for Good’, you have to let the story unfold and let it take you somewhere. 

Thanks a lot for the questions! Cheers for 2022!

PURCHASE THE GOODIES HERE: https://the-buttshakers.bandcamp.com/

The Brothers Steve - Dose

Last month, Big Stir Records released "DOSE", the sophomore album from THE BROTHERS STEVE. This new release is not only featuring the very addictive new single  “Next Aquarius”, but is also offering up 10 new songs which take the band's invigorating punk-pop sound in exciting new directions, folding in elements of psychedelia and glam rock.

This new material was written and recorded by singer-guitarists OS TYLER and JEFF WHALEN and is fueled by the chemistry of the live band: drummer COULTER (aka author S.W. Lauden) and bassist JEFF SOLOMON (Whalen's longtime band mates from the beloved LA pop-rock combo TSAR) and guitarist DYLAN CHAMPION. 

Tracked and mixed at a secret LA recording studio, DOSE simultaneously captures the band's irresistible live energy while pushing their gleeful aesthetic into fascinating new territory.

So it was time for this blog to talk to OS TYLER about this new release. Here it goes!

1) For the viewers of this blog who would not know The Brothers Steve, Can you introduce all the members of The Brothers Steve? Are these all the same guys who played on the debut album?

Hey Eric, the Brothers Steve is a Los Angeles based rock quintet. There’s Solomon (Jeff S.) on bass and Coulter on drums, those two make a solid rhythm section that really gets people moving. Not everyone knows that Solomon once rescued a baby rhinoceros, carrying it on his back across a rushing river in a torrential rainstorm. Coulter has been one of my favorite drummers for a long time, so it’s a real delight to get to play with him, but he’s an unstoppable force in Monopoly, so look out if he ever asks you if you want to play. Dylan, Jeff W and Os (that’s me) we three love to sing harmonies together and share lead vocals, or trade them back and forth. If you listen closely, you can tell when things are really working harmonically: you’ll see a sunset orange and blue color pattern, and perhaps a badger, dressed in a top hat and vest, dancing down a country lane. On our new record, Dose, it’s all the same members from our first record, #1.

2) About the "Dose"  full length album, what can you tell about the recording process? Was this a "live" in the studio recording or a track by track recording with lots of overdubs?

Our first record, #1, we had played all the songs live many times and we went in and recorded almost everything in a couple days. On this record, we got going right about the time the Pandemonium hit. So we never played the songs all together as a band. Due to the Global Phenomenon, we couldn’t all be in the studio together. So, the whole process was much more of a track-by-track scenario. But we’ve sung and played together so much, sometimes it really felt like we were all there at the same time, rocking and rolling, grooving and blending.

3) Do you use the nowadays digital recording technology or do you only work with analog machines in analog studios?

On the recording end, we're all digital. But we still try to inject some analog elements with a couple vintage tube amps and vintage microphones. And we’re still singing in analog! … But whether it’s analog or digital, I think the most important part to recording is capturing the feelings of the players. It’s like riding a horse over rolling green hills. If you're doing it right, anyone watching the horse ride feels a little exhilarated!

4) One can hear a much larger range of influences than on the first record going from psychedelia to glam rock. How would you describe the music The Brothers Steve are playing today?

Listen, everybody in the band is a total genius compared to me. And I don’t know if that’s a complement or not. But I know that Jeff and Jeff and Coulter and Dylan are all cultural vibraphones. They resonate with the sounds of the times. And they are deeply versed in music throughout the years and across the genres. So it’s wonderful to play with these talented, musically conscious players who act as a guiding light. 

Me, I like to just let the parts happen as they may, let them all intertwine in whatever way, and if that makes the music Juicy Flumbulicious Poppadelia Delight, then that’s just fine. But yeah, I dunno, the music we’re making today should be a little bit of everything you love from every reference point in your consciousness, let’s call it: Pop Amalgamation or AmalgaPop. 

Jeff W. And I wrote all the songs on Dose together, and it’s really fantastic writing with Jeff, because he always has a number of underlying ideas or themes that he’s presenting and playing off one-another in subtle ways. Jeff has a plan and a vision and when we work together that provides a perfect focal point around which all the swirling ideas can flow and coalesce.

5) What is your favorite topic/topic that comes easily when you guys write the lyrics to a new song?

It’s a funny truth that often Jeff and I think that a song we’ve both written is about different things. If you ask us each what Wizard of Love is about, we’d give you completely different answers. Same is true for Griffith Observatory and maybe for Mrs. Rosenbaum, too. So, there are times we’re writing a song and we each actually think it’s about a different concept, and we just keeping writing, each of us in his own direction, and let the two ideas interplay in whatever way they do. 

Anyway, I don’t know if Jeff thinks of this at all while we’re writing, but for me one of the big underlying topics is that all the stories are being told from the viewpoint of an emotive android with just a hint of precognition and a suspicion that it's telling stories sent back from the future. 

6) Do you have a new video on youtube featuring a track from the LP?? 

Yeah! Check out our super-calliope-psychedelic video to Next Aquarius. Some truly amazing image transformation … You can see it here:

   

We also have a new official video for Electro-Love coming out soon! 

7) What can concert goers expect at a The Brothers Steve gig? Are you playin' any famous cover songs during the concert?

Expect the unexpected! We hope our gigs are high energy and joyful. And that you leave hoping you can see more soon. … We typically don’t do famous covers at our shows, unless you want to count television commercial songs from long long ago … but you never know what might happen next.

8) Are there any bands in The USA today you consider yourself close to, musically speaking?

Hard to say. I don’t think there are a lot of bands out there with 3 vocalists trading leads and singing harmonies these days. Bit of a stretch and a turn around the corner, but maybe the Avett Brothers? Do we have something in common with Haim? Is there anything about what we’re doing that Harry Styles would find familiar? 

9) To what kind of music did you listen to as teenagers? What were your favorite bands as teenagers? Name 3 bands that you consider still have an influence on your own work today in The Brothers Steve.

I personally lived in a small town in Kentucky when I was a teenager. Most of the music I heard was whatever was on the one Top 40 radio station in town. But I was and still am a big fan of E.L.O. and a lot of what those guys did remains an influence today. Our drummer, Coulter, tends to mention Nilsson when it comes to influences on our writing, or my writing in particular. I’m happy to list Harry Nilsson as an ongoing influence. One more … let’s see, I’ll say the Cars, especially the very early stuff.

10) What are the plans for 2022 as far as The Brothers Steve are concerned?

We’re getting ready to dive into a new song-writing cycle. And from there, move along the creative cycle and record some new tunes. I’m anticipating a new record sometime in 2022. I hope you’ll anticipate that too! 

11) Anything you wanna add?

Hm. Just a little reminder to glow and resonate and to be a divining rod, seeking out and pulling in and sharing back all the love and joy and inspiration that’s swirling around us. Would you do me a favor and remind me that next time you see me? 

Oh, and if you get a chance, give a listen to our new record, Dose. You can listen here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7vjGNi3ls5JScXw8aAywMG

Or here on iTunes: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/the-brothers-steve/1482189752

Or direct from our amazing label, Big Stir Records: https://bigstirrecords.com/the-brothers-steve

The On and Ons - Back For More

Sydney’s finest power-pop trio, The On and Ons, is back with a new 12-track album released on Citadel Records. 

"Back For More"  follows on from the band’s well received previous releases - “Calling” (2015), “Welcome Aboard” (2017), and the mini-album “Menacing Smile” (2020)

All but one of the songs on this new record are written by Glenn Morris (lead vocals/guitar) and the band is rounded out with his brother Brian Morris on drums/vocals, and Clyde Bramley (bass/vocals). 

These guys have had plenty of past experience with bands like Kings of the Sun, Paul Collins Beat, and Hoodoo Gurus.

Right from the punchy "Vanishing Act", all the way through to "Better Every Day" the On and Ons blend perfectly 60's melodies reminiscent of the Beatles or the Kinks and the energy of bands from the 70's like Big Star or BadFinger.

Glenn Morris song craft is improving with every new release, and he delivers here fantastic songs that will very soon become power-pop classics in the great tradition of all the Aussie bands that we love so much. 

But whatever the various influences you might hear, the trio comes up with a sound of their own. Unique, timeless and fresh, with superb vocal harmonies and lots of powerful guitars. This new album comes out like a real masterpiece.

Back for More is definitely their best offering so far and it is filled to the rafters with catchy and powerful tunes that will keep you humming till the sun goes down. A must buy!

Available to buy from:

Citadel Mail Order: https://www.citadelmailorder.com/jsp/cmos/discs/on_and_ons_back_for_more.html

Direct from the band: http://theonandons.bandcamp.com 

Here is a video of the opening track, VANISHING ACT.

THE MIGHTY GORDINIS – Sounds From A Distant Galaxy LP on TOPSY TURVY

The MIGHTY GORDINIS started out in the summer of 1998; their first two albums („Kiss my Wheels“ and „For Bosomaniacs Only“) were a mix of punky hot rods songs and surf instrumentals, while the third one „Fueled on Fuzz“ was fully instrumental and the last one, in 2007, „The Future looks like yesterday“ was a full vocal one.

After that, the four members went their own ways for a while before the 2021 MIGHTY GORDINIS-reboot with their new full instrumental album. 

The band is now reduced to two members: Nico Leonard (The MOON INVADERS, The CAROLOREGIANS, ADOLPHE SEX ET SES MACHINES) on drums and Hammond and Eric St John (Les VICE BARONS, THE RATBOYS, THEE MARTIAN BOYFRIENDS, THE EVIL FUZZHEADS) on Fender Jaguar and bass.

The title of the album „Sounds From A Distant Galaxy“ reflects their new musical expansion of influences, exploring some grounds they never dared to go to before: they incorporated some kraut rock elements („Five Miles South of Mumbai“), some dub sounds („Grabuge A Khartoum“), some spy movie soundtracks („There Is No Such Thing As A Former KGB Man“) and even some cool groovy influences à la Acid Jazz, be it Corduroy or Mother Earth („Gun Powder On Your Collar“) – anything to keep them away from the traditional surf sound. 

That being said, they did include a couple of classic surf tracks like „Jaguar Hunters And Headshrinkers“ or the cover of „Shockwave“ (original by ZORBA & THE GREEKS). 

So this album, limited to 300 copies of colored vinyl only, displays a very large palette of sounds made for the never ending listening pleasure of the broad minded groovy people.

Purchase a physical copy here : https://soundflatrecords.de/releases-brand-new/

Purchase a digital copy here : https://themightygordinis.bandcamp.com/

The Fantastic Fellinis - Introducing The Fantastic Fellinis

German Label Soundflat records recently released the debut album of THE FANTASTIC FELLINIS, a californian duo featuring Kenneth Wessel and  Vitta Quinn.

Evoking the reverberating vocals of a Motown hit, funky grooves of a '70's exploitation cinema soundtrack, and tight fuzz guitars of a garage punk freakout, THE FANTASTIC FELLINIS are an ultrasonic mod/soul pop explosion! Originating from the star-emblazoned, sleaze-worn sidewalks of Hollywood, California, the FELLINIS' sound storms in with a blend of vintage vibes and modern pop sensibilities.

Their rendition of BOB DYLAN's 'It's All Over Now, Baby Blue' is absolutely brilliant and worth alone the price of admission. 

1) What would you tell to the viewers of this blog about The Fantastic Fellinis to introduce the both of you, the history of the band (how did it all start?) and also your body of work (what have you both done prior to The Fantastic Fellinis)? 

Kenneth: My previous projects include The Beat Killers, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Electric Mind Machine, and Dr. Savage and the Shrunken Heads, among others. A couple years ago I was hired to compose the music score for a Spaghetti Western film “Incident at Guilt Ridge”, where I did my best to invoke the spirit of Ennio Morricone. There was a montage sequence that needed a song, so I wrote “Whistling Steel,” a sort of Marty Robbins meets the Pogues folk/rock number. I recruited Vitta to sing the female call and response vocals and the results were pretty magical. We worked so well together we decided to follow up with a recording project. Along came the Fantastic Fellinis.

Vitta: I’m an actress/songstress by trade. A few years ago I produced and self-published an EP, Vitta in Vaudeville, an avant-guard, experimental offering. Kenny and I had known each other a few years before any talk of collaborating musically. The Fantastic Fellinis spun from “Incident”’s theme song.

2)  About the debut full length album, "Introducing The Fantastic Fellinis",  what can you tell about the recording process? Was this a "live" recording in the studio  or a track by track recording with lots of overdubs? 

K: This was a track by track process. The rhythm tracks laid the foundation. I wanted to make sure the beat was in the pocket. Many of my previous projects had more a frenetic ahead-of-the-beat energy, but I wanted this to be a more solid, almost behind-the-beat groove which was dance able and would have a certain cool vibe to it. Everything else was layered on in separate tracks. I think this helped us to experiment a little more and shape the direction of the music rather than getting locked in by live tracks. After that came organs, guitars, and vocals. We allowed ourselves some overdub tracks to fill out and polish the sound, but didn’t get too crazy.

3)As far as the recordings of this debut album are concerned, did you use the nowadays digital recording technology or do you only work with analog machines in analog studios?

V: Ironically, for lovers of all things vintage and analog, this album was recorded using the nowadays digital tech.

4) What is your favorite topic/theme that comes easily when you write the lyrics to a new song?

K: I’m not sure I have a favorite topic but more a favorite approach to writing lyrics. I think many songwriters fall into the trap of telling you their own personal feelings or emotional state. I find it unrelatable and and self-indulgent. You can’t “tell” people what to feel. You need to “show” people how to feel through visual language, cues, symbols, metaphors, etc. If you can create a visual image in someone’s head, it is much more powerful than spitting out some abstract emotions. When I was young, a local songwriter I looked up to told me “a song should be like a 3-minute movie.” That really stuck with me.

V: …and I’m the self-indulgent lyricist over here. Ha! My favorite topics are New York, the plight of booze, panic attacks, and Catholicism.

5) To what kind of music did you listen to as teenagers and does it still influence your today work?
What were your favorite bands as a teenager? Name 3 bands that you consider still have an influence on your own work today.

V: The Pixies, the Smiths, Abba, The Cars, Liz Phair, Hole, the Ronettes, The Who, Sex Pistols, Pogues, Nancy Sinatra, Julie London, Billie Holiday, and Brigitte Bardot. When I was a very little lass, whatever came in the family Columbia House 8-track order. Cher, Glen Campbell, Don McLean, Blue Swede.

K: In high school I initially gravitated towards punk. The scene in Los Angeles was pretty off-the-rails. I loved the energy and fierceness of it all. I got a job at the local Rhino Records store that had a label that was putting out forgotten archives of ‘60s psych and garage bands. When I heard things like Love’s “7 and 7 is”, The Zombies “She’s Not There”, Stones’ “She Comes in Colors”, or the Chocolate Watchband, it really changed the direction of my music moving forward. I loved the depth, style, and imagery of the songwriting. That’s what really stood out to me at the time, and still feel their influence.

6) Do you have a video on youtube featuring a track of the debut album?

V: Yes. We have two official videos up: One for “Nightmare”, and one we just released for “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue”. We shot “Nightmare” during lock down, partly as a submission to Roger Corman’s Quarantine Film Festival. I love this video’s fantastical look. I wanted a Metropolis dystopian silent feature feel-meets-a Seventies super-8 disco’d home movie mood. 

K: Vitta directed the “Nightmare” video, and I directed our cover of Bob Dylan’s “Baby Blue”. I felt Vitta’s vocal performance on this track warranted a video. She really killed it. With the Mellotron sound I felt it evoked the Beatles a bit, so I wanted to capture dreamy Peter Max style scenery juxtaposed with the trippy psychedelic graphics projected on the band. 

 

7) Are there any artists in The USA today you consider yourself close to, musically speaking?

K: I can’t think of any current bands that we sound like, but I think there are bands that are doing it right, that inspire me…even if they may be a quite different sound from us. One is the Schitzofonics from San Diego. They put on the most electrifying live show out there. 

8) Do you plan, some time in the future, to perform the songs of the album live with a full band?

V: Definitely. Now that venues have started opening back up, we’re focusing on developing our live act. We hope to be hitting the stage very soon!

9) How do you split the work? Is one of you composing the music and the other writing the lyrics or is every song the result of a "4 hands" work?

K: For this initial set of songs I developed most of the music, and we split the lyrics between us. I had a clear vision for the sound and was able to nail down the style quickly. For our next record I see Vitta taking a larger part of the music writing side. Her sense for melody and harmony is powerful.

10) Can the Fantastic Fellinis be described as a ‘60s influenced band or do you consider there is way more than this? If so can you explain?

K: I think a “‘60s influenced band” is an excellent way of phrasing it. I have experienced projects that are very regimented in traditional ‘60s garage and psych. I admire when a band can really capture the sound and style of era. With the Fantastic Fellinis, I wanted to have the influence of the '60s, pay my respects as you would say, but not be afraid of taking liberties and cross over into a new genre all its own. 

V: I'm super-proud of The Fantastic Fellinis' genre-bending sound. It’s everything and not one thing and all at once and not at all. It’s Mod, pop, soul, funk, garage, and…all and none of the above. It’s a secret sonic circus.

11) What are the plans for the rest of 2021 as far as The Fantastic Fellinis are concerned? 

V: Rehearsing for live shows!

12) The album is released on vinyl by the German Label Soundflat. Do you think that the kind of music you are playing is better perceived in Europe than in the USA? Is there also a CD version released somewhere else in the world (USA, Japan?)

K: Very perceptive question. From the onset we had it in our minds to target a European audience. We shopped the LP mostly to European labels, as we feel European garage/mod/soul fans are keeping the scene alive. There is a lot of great garage music coming from America, but everything is spread out and fractured.  Many cool underground bands get lost in this noise. I think Europe is much more connected and allows more access to the music. 

There are no CDs for this release. Vinyl LPs are available in Europe, Japan and the U.S. (as an import), and digital platforms everywhere.

13) Anything you wanna add?

V: Buy our ultrasonic album, Introducing the Fantastic Fellinis! ♦️ðŸ??🎪

Linktr.ee/thefantasticfellinis

In Europe you can purchase a physical copy HERE: https://www.soundflat.de/search/?search=Fantastic%20fellinis

Sorrows - Love Too Late... The Real Album (2021) Big Stir Records

In the late '70s and early '80s, New York quartet SORROWS was a band on the rise with a thrilling stage presence and a unique sound: three lead singers, a twin-guitar attack, and immediately unforgettable, hook-propelled tunes. By '81 and the release of their debut album TEENAGE HEARTBREAK,  they were along with The Romantics and The Plimsouls at the top of the then called "Power-pop" scene.

The expectations for the sophomore album, Love Too Late, were very high but the end result was disappointing for fans and for the band itself. In fact, it's barely Sorrows on the original album at all, with the players and singers replaced in the studio by a bunch of hired guns, with only the songs surviving intact. 

After four decades and some legal battles, original SORROWS members ARTHUR ALEXANDER (vocals, guitar), JOEY COLA (vocals, guitar) and RICKY STREET (vocals, bass), joined by drummer LUIS HERRERA re-recorded LOVE TOO LATE... the real album. It is, as Arthur says in the sleeve notes, “real Sorrows, playing real Sorrows music, as only Sorrows can”, and those who were there to hear these songs performed live in the band's heyday will attest that This Real Album now released on BIG STIR RECORDS is the real deal indeed.

1) For the sake of the argument, let's say that a very young viewer stumbles upon this blog for the first time and doesn't know who SORROWS are: what would you tell him about the band to introduce the various members, the history of the band and also your body of work? 

I started Sorrows around 1976, shortly after leaving The Poppees, one of the NYC bands on the then just starting punk/new wave scene in the city.  The Poppees were heavily slanted towards the Merseybeat sound of the early 60s, especially The Beatles, and were one of the early bands who laid the foundation for what was soon to become known as Power Pop.  

Sorrows lineup consisted of Joey Cola on voc/gtr; Ricky Street on voc/bass; me on voc/gtr, and Jett Harris on drums (Jett also played with me in The Poppees.)  Early on we played all the hot spots in New York and often played up and down the east coast in Boston, Philadephia, Washington, DC and other cities, developing a solid following.

In 1979 we signed a record deal with one of the CBS Records associated labels and put out two albums.  The first one - “Teenage Heartbreak” – was very well received by the fans and critics alike, becoming stuff of legends.  Especially, since after its initial release CBS never again re-released any of our records.  The follow-up album, “Love Too Late”, was recorded in London and produced by Shel Talmy.  It was a total cluster fuck and a farce of a record.  Basically, a bunch of studio musicians we were replaced with, accompanying Joey’s vocals. 

We as a band disowned it, fan picked up on the stench and the radio DJs wouldn’t touch it.  The record, as could be expected, was a total flop and disappeared without a trace.  And that was a good thing!  

2)  About the newly re_recorded album, "Love too late",  what can you tell about the recording process? Was this a "live" in the studio recording or a track by track recording with lots of overdubs? 

While re-releasing “Teenage Heartbreak” was relatively easy, just a matter of improving the mixes and overall sound, “Love Too Late” presented a whole different problem.  Even though we eventually reclaimed the rights to our songs and masters, when it came to this record there was really nothing to ‘re-release’. Talmy’s “production” was total garbage and “the band” was a bunch of studio hacks, not Sorrows. The only (and the right) thing to do was to record the album as it was intended. 

By this time we were spread out between east and west coast so doing it “live” was not an option.  Also, by then Jett Harris had retired from playing altogether.  Luis Herrera stepped in and the first thing on the agenda was to replace the abominable sounding drums with ones that sounded like drums and being played by a real rock and roll drummer (though I would have settled for at least someone with a pulse!).  That done, we replaced all the fucking keyboards and synths the tracks were drowning in, with guitars, since we ARE a guitar band! Next came replacing the studio singers with our own vocals (what a concept!).  Only then came the overdubs as I intended them to be, which I never even got to do any of it after I walked out in the middle of the original sessions.  It took a lot of time and hard work, but it was worth it.  

“Love Too Late… the real album” IS the album that Sorrows meant it to be.

3) As far as the recordings of this latest album are concerned, did you use the nowadays digital recording technology or do you still keep on working with analog machines in analog studios?

We didn’t have the luxury, or the budget, for going to commercial studios and I have a pretty  cool studio setup of my own.  It was all done in Pro Tools, although I did run many tracks through my 2-track Studer/Revox tape machine while recording.

4) What is your favorite topic/topic that comes easily when you write a new song?

Sounds like you mean “lyrics”?  Joey and Ricky are actually quite good when it comes to lyrics.  Me, well, I’m no Bob Dylan, so I typically end up sticking with the tried (trite? ) and true, you know, boy/girl/sex… though occasionally I do surprise myself with something that’s actually half way decent!

5) To what kind of music did you listen to as teenagers and does it still influence your today work? What were your favorite bands as a teenager? Name 3 bands that you consider still have a influence on your own work today.

We all share common influences, from the early rockers, like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Eddie Cochran, to the 60’s Brit bands; Beatles, Stones, Who, Kinks, etc… 

6) Now that your sophomore album finally received the deserved treatment, do you also consider, at least, a reissue of your debut album. If I'm not mistaking this album has never been released on CD?

Ummm… errr… you are mistaken!  “Teenage Heartbreak” got its due with the release of “Bad Times Good Times”, essentially the “Teenage Heartbreak” album with new mixes, mastering and bonus tracks, released in 2011 by Bomp! Records. The Poppees’ legacy was also preserved by the 2010 release of “Pop Goes The Anthology”,  on Bomp! Records as well.

7) Are there any artists in The USA today you consider yourself close to, musically speaking?

Frankly, I can’t think of any, one exception being Pat Todd and The Rankoutsiders from LA.  A great rock and roll band that deserves way more recognition than they’ve gotten. 

8) Do you think it was easier to be in a rock'n'roll band way back in the 70's/ early 80's than it is now? What has changed?

I don’t know if it was “easier”, but I think it was more fun.  At least for us, since we were fortunate to be a part of a real ‘scene’ that was happening in New York at the time, something that really hasn’t happened since. 

9) Is there a main composer in the band or is everybody involved in one way or another?

I’ve been the main writer in the band, but I always encouraged the others to bring in their songs .  Both Joey and Ricky have contributed quite a few great ones to our repertoire.  

10) You guys are now Big Stir Records recording artists. Is this the label that suits SORROWS the best And if so, why?

Yes, we’re part of BSR family of artists and couldn’t be happier!  They are great people, work their asses off for their artists and are truly on a mission to not only promote Power Pop, but to also treat their artists like human beings, not just numbers on the accounting ledger. Quite a refreshing concept!...

11) What are the plans for the rest of 2021 as far as SORROWS are concerned? 

The way things are right now, with Covid raging across the country and half the US population apparently having swallowed the ”stupid pill”, there is really no incentive to do much. Hopefully they all get a clue before they die and things will get back to normal.

12) Anything you wanna add?

I’d love for Sorrows to do some live shows, tour, especially Europe, Japan would be a blast!... but for the time being that doesn’t seem to be in the cards.  May be 2022 will bring some hope.

PURCHASE THE GOODIES HERE:  

https://bigstirrecords.bandcamp.com/album/love-too-late-the-real-album