Episodes
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Episode 83: Mitch Marine - Drummer for Dwight Yoakam 6.19.13TODAY on Independent's Day:
There is no doubt that being a professional musician means taking all kinds of gigs. Gigs can be recording dates, playing live shows, teaching and performing in more unorthodox venues under sometimes-dubious circumstances - anything to keep at it. One type of gig that nearly all musicians strive and starve for is called "the gravy gig" - a type of... read more -
Episode 82: Joy Kills Sorrow 6.12.13
Joy Kills Sorrow was formed in Boston's fertile folk scene in 2005. Their lineup is pretty standard for a string band - guitar, mandolin, banjo, upright bass and vocals, but they are anything but an old-time string band. They retain the virtuosic tendencies of their bluegrass forefathers, but they are pushing the boundaries of a style not known f... read more -
Episode 81: Dave Gleason 6.5.13
Along with Les Paul, Leo Fender is widely known to be one of the two fathers of the modern electric guitar. Leo's Stratocaster model, still made today by the company that bears his name, is one of the most iconic designs in music history. But before the venerable Strat, Fender created the Esquire, which later changed names to the Broadcaster and ... read more -
Episode 80: Big Harp 5.29.13
Maturing as a musician is a peculiar process. Young bands often have a reputation for playing too loud or too fast. But maturity doesn't necessarily mean quieter or softer songs; it can mean simply that a band or artist's sound evolves over time as their lives inevitably change. Stagnation can spell artistic doom for a musician and some artists hav... read more -
Episode 79: Nicole Gordon 5.22.13
The job of a back up singer can be a thankless one. They check their egos at the door and use their considerable talent to make the artist whose name is on the marquee sound good. It can be a great gig, but there is seldom much in the way of glory. After all, who remembers the name of the women who scat sang Pink Floyd's "Great Gig in the Sky" or t... read more -
Episode 78: Ben Reddell 5.15.13
The music business has come full circle when it comes to releasing music on singles vs. albums. The Brill Building artists plugged songs one at a time, and for decades, it was singles that drove the industry. And then the 70s singer-songwriters and prog rock bands came along, and that meant that albums were meant to be enjoyed as a whole, with ea... read more -
Episode 77: Tim Reid, Jr. 5.8.13
Artists reveal their influences in myriad ways. Ask any performer or writer about their music and they'll invariably point you toward who got them excited about making their own music. When Eric Clapton was receiving deifying graffiti accolades around London in the 1960s, he was unabashed about paying tribute to the blues masters from whom he coppe... read more -
Episode 76: Record Store Day - Part II, Michael Kurtz, co-founder of Record Store Day 4.24.13
Great ideas start small. One man. One problem. One idea. Six years ago the music business was in a freefall. Corporate record stores were going out of business seemingly daily and independent record stores were struggling to keep their doors open. And then a small group of record aficionados and independent record store owners got together and ha... read more -
Episode 75: Record Store Day - Part I, Lance Barresi of Permanent Records 4.17.13
Six years ago, a dedicated group of vinyl aficionados and independent record store owners got together and launched an event called 'Record Store Day' - just about the time that corporate record stores were going bankrupt. Heavy metal juggernaut, Metallica, was one of the first bands to get on board, signing autographs and giving away t-shirts to ... read more -
Episode 74: Kevin Bowe 4.10.13
Minneapolis, Minnesota may call to mind long, dark winters and Garrison Keillor's weekly paean to sensible Midwestern values, A Prairie Home Companion, but the city has always had a very rich musical tradition. This fertile scene is home to respected artists like The Replacements, Husker Du, The Jayhawks, Semisonic and The Purple One himself - Prin... read more -
Episode 73: Ted Russell Kamp 4.3.13
Musicians can't choose the specific gig, song or happenstance that will bring them notoriety or a payday hit. Indeed, many artists have their fingers in a lot of pies - a sideman gig here, a songwriting contribution or guest spot there. After growing up back east, Los Angeles' Ted Russell Kamp's first big breaks came as the bass player for artists... read more -
Episode 72: Greg Garrison - bassist for Leftover Salmon 3.27.13
Building a career in music can be an inexact process. The influence of luck cannot be overstated. But luck, as they say, favors the prepared, and being prepared means hard work. Leftover Salmon bassist Greg Garrison's luck in the music business certainly can be attributed to diligent hard work, but also to the fact that he is supremely talented. Af... read more -
Episode 71: Nocona 3.20.13
Alt-country pioneers Uncle Tupelo might not have been the first band to find the common ground between punk and country music, but the little band from Belleville, Illinois grafted loud guitars onto up-tempo two-steps and fired a shot heard round the world for a lot of young songwriters. In that same raw, but rural tradition, the Los Angeles-based ... read more -
Episode 70: Dave Porter - Composer for AMC's Breaking Bad 3.13.13
With film and television, as with so many other things, music can completely change the mood of an experience. Music can enhance action or drama, imbue a sense of foreboding or elation or provide that tiny extra push needed to draw a tear from a viewer's eye. In the world of AMC's hit drama, Breaking Bad, composer Dave Porter has wholly unique an... read more -
Episode 69: The Stone Foxes 2.27.13
One of the most important aspects of music is a catchy chorus - the singalong nugget of a tune that gets into your head and you just can't get it out. But there is another element in some harder rock songs that is just as important. It's called a riff, and riffs form the cornerstone of many of rock and roll's best-known tunes. Led Zeppelin may not ... read more -
Episode 68: The Show Ponies 2.20.13
Some bands have one singer to handle all the lead vocals, and other acts build their sound around a pair of singers who arrange their parts so that they aren't just a lead part and accompanying harmony line. In the latter case, the pair of parts are written to work together as a sort of co-lead vocal. The paired singers in bands like The Indigo Gir... read more -
Episode 67: Stephen Sowan 1.30.13
The electric guitar has been the weapon of choice for rock and roll artists since the early pickers discovered that their amps really did go to eleven. Since that time, the more tasteful and contientious guitarists have elevated the art of guitar tone - how the guitar sounds - to high art. To some players, how their guitar sounds is as important as... read more -
Episode 66: The Dustbowl Revival 1.23.13
Perhaps the most aptly-named band in music history, The Dustbowl Revival is everything that their clever name implies. It all started as a small string band focused on playing anachronistic music styles that were popular in the early 20th century - pre-bop jazz, swing, jump, blues, gospel, bluegrass and folk. Founder Zach Lupetin took the show on t... read more -
Episode 65: Dinosaur Horses 1.16.13
After arriving in Los Angeles in the late 1960s, Neil Young made a name for himself by introducing the world to a simple, haunting and idiosyncratic brand of music that mixed gentle acoustic guitars, visceral fuzzed-out electric guitars, lonesome harmonica and cryptic lyrics sung in a warbled tenor. Whether or not this sonic territory was what Los ... read more -
Episode 64: Lindi Ortega 1.9.13
Although Austin may have laid claim to the title of the "live music capitol of the world," there really is only one town where musicians with a hardcore jones for country music make their pilgrimage. Native Canadian Lindi Ortega had already made a name for herself up north, releasing a pair of EPs and a record that racked up a pair of Juno award no... read more