The Ripple Effect is growing so big, so fast, there simply is no way for us to keep up with all the quality music that comes in. Our poor little staff of Racer, Pope, Woody, and Old School -- aided and abetted on occasion by Iggy and Birdman-- have got stacks upon stacks upon stacks of great music to write about. And now they could use just a little help.
Yep, the Ripple needs to expand and we've got openings for one or two more writers. We'd love someone who has a mind for lots and lots of metal. We mean heavy, dirty, deathy, blacky metal. We could also use a great mind who loves emo, electro, and indy pop. If it happens that both those minds are in the same person, then so much the better.
So, if you'd like to write about music, get lots of free music to review, and have your column syndicated across everything from GuitarWorld Magazine's website to USAToday, let us know. We can't pay ya, other than in good music, lots of love, and a lifetime membership in the Ripple gang.
All it takes is a desperate passion for music and the desire to tell people about it. As fun as the gig is, we'll only take people with a serious commitment to listening and writing. Nothing half-assed about the Ripple.
Send in a writing sample about an album you love, 5 or 6 paragraphs. Tell us why you love it, how it makes you feel and why the rest of the world should care. Create some ripples.
That's what we do here at the Ripple Effect. Create some ripples.
HARAJUKU! returns by popular demand when Criminal Records presents the Harajuku! Autumn Ball at Proud Gallery, Camden on Tuesday 24th August. As the latest installment of London’s most notorious Japanese themed club night, the event features eight different themed rooms, celebrating Japanese wonders like Geishas, Lolita’s, Comics, Gaming, Origami, Karaoke, Manga, Art and a mix of Live Bands, Indie Music and JPOP.
Harajuku! fashion is all about celebrating a love of Japan, being creative and mixing together different styles and influences, and has proved to be incredibly popular internationally. The fashion element is also a potent theme with the event fast becoming a key stop for a number of the freshest London designers. Party goers mix together different styles and influences and the competition for the best dressed character is fierce. Some characters dress up as idols from Anime, Movie while others focus on the looks of Gothica or Lolita.
The event has already gained a reputation with gaming communities as a great place to meet, socialise and play. At the new location, Harajuku! will be an even better experience as the night will benefit from its own Gaming Zone. Camden gamers will be able to choose from the large variety of PS3 and Wii games to play on the large screen including Xbox Rock Band, or bring their own handheld consoles to play in their own private area.
Manga aficionados will also have their own zone in one of themed ex-horse hospital stables, with screenings of Manga and Animee all night. Other themed zones include the BYODJ, featuring a bring your own MP3 player listening party, to share the best recommendations of Jpop with others and get new tips. This is not to mention the Karaoke Zone where attendees can party in true Japanese style!
There are various co promoters and Japanese event organisers involved including the DS Lite Group for handheld gaming, Teracotta Film who will be playing clips from their latest film 'Big Tits Zombie' in 3D as well as providing prizes for the Best Dresser Cosplayer! There are also London groups such as London Alternative and the Harajuku and Cosplay group involved.
THE KUT, are the show headliners. An all female dark indie rock band, who have been making waves in the UK and beyond, The Kut have already been reviewed as “the best all female band the UK has ever produced”. Currently in the studio recording their debut album, 'Lies My Mother Told Me' for release late this year, expect sultry vocals, kick ass guitar solos, strong songs and powerful melodies. Rave reviews all round make The Kut a must see band in 2010. http://www.myspace.com/thekutgirlsrock
M-TIGERS TAEKWONDO PERFORMANCE
Expect a spectacular performance of Martial Arts at its best, from London’s favourite multi-arts fighting group.
http://www.m-tigerstaekwondo.co.uk
CAPELLE a hard rocking combo who came to prominence at the O2 Undiscovered competition. Combining over-driven '60s inspired Rock with tinges of Electro and Hip Hop, Capelle master a unique sound that will get melodists and headbangers all united in one big party.
http://www.myspace.com/capellesound
IRAQ, a female fronted indie pop band, with hints of Morrisey and charming 80's swagger.
http://www.myspace.com/iraqband
MATANIU, an 8-piece experimental combo which showcases an amazing variety of sounds and influences that create the perfect backing for the unique songwriting and amazing vocal abilities of singing goddess Mataniu.
http://www.myspace.com/mataniu
FUZZ VALENTINE,a three piece fuzz-infected indie band from London, who combine boyish wonder with skittish pop music. Their single 'Far' received extensive airplay on London's Xfm. Get ready for a treat!
Abigail’s Ghost should have been formed a generation ago, following hard on the heels of noisemeisters like Nine Inch Nails and Curve, but there is a gap of 12 or 13 years before the guitar and powerhouse drumming sound of Abigail's Ghost came along as the natural followup. The bastard stepchildren of King Crimson’s love for unusual chord changes but with a love for the ‘90’s noise, the make a noble effort to combine both.
Abigail’s Ghost second album, d_letion, is a sonic battering ram. Expertly mixed the band turns in a killer opening track that lays down their intentions, with a guitar fuzz that morphs into a hard riffing song about an obsession that might be love or might be hate. Does it matter at a certain point? You can try to downplay me/But I’ll never go away/I’m getting close to breaking through/In spite of what you say/It’d be best to recognize/That I’m not afraid to put you on display The break moving into a sledgehammer of guitars with deliciously atonal solo from the Berkelee Graduate Lead guitarist Joshua Theriot.
Black lace wears its breathy sexuality on its sleeve. The New Orleans based Theriot sings about the rich girl that we’ve all seen: Prada boots and prescription pills/Born and raised in the Hollywood hills/She’s daddy’s little girl/Not a care in the world/With a trust fund paying the bills. But it’s the swirling break that catapults the song from its echoing arpeggios onto the edge of a dangerous cliff. "Sneak Peek" takes much the same approach, a beautiful lipstick tinged love letter from the stalker to the stalked. But, smartly, after bringing the hammer down on so many songs, "Sneak Peek" keeps its tension, never finding its sonic orgasm.
"Romantique Life" is my favorite track, the band, which has members living in two different cities, makes good use of sonic space, pounding the guitar intro into our brains before choking it off and using a moving, dancing bass line under the lyrics: Take a trip inside my head/Taste the fruit that makes me dead/A simple drug is a simple fix/And an amateur way for you to get your kicks. When the chorus finally comes in, the guitar returns, with a complicated riff out Living Colour’s impossible-to-play "babigails ghost". The echo drenched solos stretches from "Bridge of Sighs" to "Cult of Personality."
"Cinder Tin" combines the beauty of the velvet glove that Abigail’s Ghost loves to wield. The expertly controlled drumming of John Rodrigue and sonic landscape controlled by keyboardist Brett Guillory makes this the soundtrack of a movie that you’ve never seen but know by heart. By the time that Joshua Theriot and rhythm guitarist Randy LeBoeuf kick it in, they’ve highjacked the romantic thriller into Terminator-land with Theriot firing off a precise flurry of notes on a high speed solo.
"Gemini Man" makes some deeper statements about male identity that would seem out of place on an album like this, but they show Theriot and LeBoeuf digging a little deeper than the Bourbon Street beads. He’s someone to question/Who he wants to be/Decent family man/Or an absentee/All these lives put on a shelf/Compromise the one he’s made himself.
"Easy A" follows the album into the realm of unloosened sexuality, the anxious student, offering her self, seducing the teacher, who happens to be female as well. The carnival sideshow of mirror that highjacks the second half of the song may well as be the musical orgasm that was missing from "Sneak Peek". The most telling line of the song is the final one. After the seduction has succeeded, there is a knock at the door.
"Grave Concerns" closes out the album, a guitar player’s love of intertwining lines and notes. One can imagine Abigail’s Ghost Theriot and LeBoeuf figuring out the delicate fingerpicking over beers late at night and creating a beautiful two minute and twenty five second coda to an album of high powered and mood drenched rock.
Abigail’s Ghost second album is a winner and worth playing at high volume for its clarity of recording. Not a note gets missed.
Ready to head down to Bourbon Street himself – the fearless rock iguana
No reason to get all fancy about it, Bison B.C. are a killer metal band and Dark Ages is even better than their last one, 2008’s Quiet Earth. These Vancouver bud smokers are loud, hairy and totally insane. I loved Quiet Earth and was really looking forward to this new one. What really sold me is the live set I saw them play opening for High On Fire a few months ago. Bison went on first on a 4 band bill at 7PM and came out totally blazing with intense energy. The crowd was sparse but I think they won over every single person in the room
Dark Ages starts off with some nicely distorted tremolo guitar on the 8 minute saga of “Stressed Elephant.” Slow and plodding like an actual elephant and just as heavy, the song goes through some complex tempo changes and blazing solos. Bison often gets compared to Mastodon and this song bears a strong resemblance, but they still have their own identity. “Fear Cave” is reminiscent of High On Fire, another band Bison gets compared to a lot. That means this song is really heavy. “Melody, This Is For You” is another 8 minute one with lots of Iron Maiden and Thin Lizzy influences. The beginning has some really nice production values. Acoustic guitars that sound like tiny rubber bands, huge booming drums and a totally filthy bass sound before the band comes in with a pummeling riff
“Die Of Devotion” is a doomy one like something off the first Trouble record and is followed up with by the all out thrasher “Take The Next Exit.” “Two Day Booze” is not a good song to listen to with a hangover. Learn from my mistake. The album finishes up with the 7 minute “Wendigo Pt. 3 (Let Him Burn)” that features an acoustic guitar and piano. After about a minute and a half the band crashes in with a giant riff and some nice tripped out wah wah guitar.
Bison are a very tight band. At the live show, young drummer Brad Mackinnon really hammered his drums but maintained a crushing groove with bassist Masa Anzai. Vocal duties are shared by guitarists James Farwell and Dan And (no relation to Johnny Winter And). They scream, grunt and groan a lot but never veer into cookie monster territory. Dark Ages is a great metal album. It’s only fitting that it’s out on Metal Blade Records since there’s a lot of Slayer, Trouble and Voivod in this band. Play loud, bang hard. That is all.
Over at Dale's place, he has kicked up a semi-storm over saying that having kids is 'not a right'.
In the comment section there was this:
There are people who genuinely haven't a clue about planning their lives. Things happen around them and they are left bewildered by the demands of running a family.
I was 16. Fiat keys hot in my hands and a brand new pioneer tape deck in the dashboard. I remember it as if it was yesterday, driving down the twisting, back-country road from my girlfriend's house towards the high school, Tom Petty singing out the soundtrack to my life.
Tom Petty has been around for so long, and produced such a consistently strong catalog of music that it's terribly easy to take him for granted. But we shouldn't do that. At the very least, Petty and his remarkably tight backing unit, the Heartbreakers, produced some of the most classic, pure rock songs of the late '70's and early 80's. In truth, Petty is much more than that and just may well be one of the best songwriters of his generation. Capable of pulling out a seemingly endless stream of perfect melodies, and capable of crafting a body of work that is entirely his and his alone.
Emerging during the punky/heady days of 1976, Petty initially got lumped into the punk crowd, with his jangling guitars, punky energy, stonesy swagger, and urgent vocal style. I remember clearly the first time I heard "Breakdown," and falling in love immediately with the 'difference' of it all. It sounded nothing like the Kiss or Aerosmith albums I was digging, yet is was so much more familiar to me than The Ramones or New York Dolls or Iggy. But Petty never was punk. Coming from the deep south of Gainseville, Fla, Petty combined the rootsy drive of the Stones with the southern soul of his roots, tossed in some jangly Byrds-esque Rickenbacker, and drove the whole shebang home with his impassioned vocals and intense energy.
Still, his first two albums only found moderate success, and by the time his third album was due to be recorded, Petty and his Heartbreakers felt they were ready for a breakthrough. An album to push them over the top. Their producer, Jimmy Iovine believed in them. Engineer Shelly Yakus brought a new sound to them.
And with Damn the Torpedoes, Petty delivered the songs.
As with all the chapters of the Classic Albums series, this DVD set really is the definitive look back at one of the all-time classic albums of American rock. Merging interviews with the band, Iovine, and Yakus, this DVD brings a totally new and fresh glimpse into the making of this iconic album. The struggles within the band, the legal problems the band faced. They're all here, but there is so much more.
One thing that comes across so screamingly loud and clear is just how virtuostic and talented the Heartbreakers were. It's not by chance that Petty kept them around for his entire career. In Mike Campbell, Petty had found a true guitar god, who manages to bring a sound that is so totally his alone to the proceedings without ever overplaying the song. As with all the Heartbreakers (and Petty himself) Campbell is massively under-rated as a guitarist. But few musicians are able to define a sound so distinctly their own as to be instantly recognizable. Campbell is one. Listening to him describe how the power of "Even the Losers," made a single string guitar solo sound weak, so he crafted the perfect solo playing two strings simultaneously just turned the light on my respect bulb for the guy.
Benmont Tench is another irreplaceable component of the Heartbreakers sound. Listening to him (and the others) describe the subtle intricacies of the album, the complexity of the arrangements, the thought that went into each passage, each song, each verse, brings brand-new respect for the creative process. As with all the Heartbreakers, under-rated in his virtuosity.
As usual, the best passages tend to occur when all the guys are gathered around the mixing board, discussing the various sounds they strove for. Dropping the knobs down to the left, bringing them up to the right, I felt like I was being completely educated into the mysteries of recording. The lucky breaks, the freak coincidences and the pure unadulterated genius. It's like a crash course for the uninitiated in record producing. A treasure of lessons, ideas, and facts.
Of course none of this would mean anything if the music wasn't so good. But damn, it is. Damn the Torpedoes holds up today just as strongly as it did back then. In fact, to my ears it sounds even better today. Perhaps it's just that I listen to music with a different appreciation now than I did as a hormone-driven teenager with a wobbly Fiat and a couple of blown speakers.
"Refugee," is truly a great American rock song, but the rest also sound so fresh. "Century City, " with it's powerpop drive. "What are You Doing in My Life," with it's adrenalinized venom. The languid daze of "Louisiana Rain." The majestic pop perfection of "Here Comes my Girl." And the singing-my-grand-theme-song "Even the Losers," sounding just as revelatory as ever. And then to find out that Petty made up the choral line "Baby, even the losers, get lucky some time," in a spur of the moment, top-of-his head, spontaneous moment of pure creation just boggles the mind.
Damn the Torpedoes is a timeless statement of pure rock and roll craft. An iconic album. One that has stood the test of time and will continue to for years to come. Any fan of Petty, classic rock, or the history of recording, mixing, and crafting a perfect album should not miss this one. ---Racer
Seattle. According to Bobby Sherman “the bluest skies you’ve ever see are in Seattle.” It is the city from which sprang late-1980’s grunge bands such as Pearl Jam and Nirvana. Okay, they were great bands, but, what has Seattle done for us lately? Can’t really say grunge has survived or evolved since the late 1990’s. So what is the new Seattle sound
Handful Of Luvin. Founded in 2002 and in Seattle since 2005, Handful Of Luvin has crafted a unique sound. Part folk, part Celtic, part classical, all alternative rock - the band mixes the guitar and vocals of singer David John Wellnitz; the violin, viola and keyboards of Andrew Joslyn; the bass, banjo and background vocals of Patrick Files; and the drums and percussion of Michael Knight.
Who do they sound like? Their publicity package places their sound with groups like the Dave Matthews Band, Phish and Wilco. It also categorizes the music as “Roots Rocks [sic], Folk, Celtic, Jam, Americana.” You can hear some elements of these bands and genres on this, their third album, “Life In Between,” but, Handful Of Luvin’s sound is unique to Handful Of Luvin. It has the lilt of Celtic music, but it is American. It is cerebral. It is different.
Even their album is unusual in today’s “one hit song download at a time” culture. There are few “concept albums” being produced today. The sum as greater than its constituent parts album is slowly becoming a lost art. There are almost no more “Sgt. Peppers’ Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “The Wall” or “Days Of Future Passed” -type albums being made. The focus today is on the song as the ultimate expression of music - not the album. Album sales have steadilly dwindled along with sales of all types of CDs. The internet has made the single song download for $.99 the new standard. Many artists don’t even attempt to produce an album. Instead EP’s have become all the rage. Handful Of Luvin bucks the trend, “Life In Between” is a modern take on the concept album.
The opening track, “Born Lucky,” is a catchy, plucky, string-based alternative rocker that asks that how long one should should keep pursuing their passion when it has yet to bring the results one seeks. Then comes an upbeat bluegrass/folk/rock tune, “Breadcrumbs,” about fading relationships and the need for the help of a friend to achieve one’s goals. The album moves on to“Kickdrum” a rather odd shuffle. The violin is made to sound like an Native American reed flute. The lyrics are an homage to the power of rhythm and music.
A folk-picked guitar ballad, “Washington,” speaks from the point of view of a prisoner who can’t concentrate, is easily distracted, and can’t find any sense in his predicament. Then, Handful Of Luvin’ releases an angry epistle about the state of the American political psyche, “This Man.” Here’s just the first verse:
Built on a dead economy Security found on our own bribery Don’t get me wrong this is our accident We side with the familiar – not the popular president
This man, with his foot in the sand Puts a gun in my hand Take the slip from the mail It’s a media power facist nail
Middle America, so flat and so free Tell me what does our, does our president mean Is this our mothers and our fathers dream That their freedom, has turned the color green?
I said, take your hammer construct a world This is your people and children This Man is our own disappointment.
Whatever happened to the protest song? It used to be found in music like Country Joe MacDonald’s “Feel Like I’m Fixin’ To Die Rag” and The Animals’ “Sky Pilot”. Here it is with an intellectual bent. Following this political protest song Handful Of Luvin presents an audio clip of a lecture by the late British Philosopher Alan Watts. Watts discusses the philosophy of living which the band backs with an instrumental piece called “The Pilgrimage (Into Chaos).” Watts explains in his lecture that our system of schooling robs us of everything in life by expectation of a reward at the end that never comes. Watts’ presentation runs into a bluegrass blues “There’s No Right There’s No Wrong” that serves almost as a counterpoint to Watts’ lecture.
David John Wellnitz wrote and performs the next track, “Lazy Men,” as a solo. The song is reminiscent of the folk work of artists such as Tom Paxton and Tim Hardin. The lyrics muse about our inaction over what others decide is in our best interests. The song “Treaty,” a bluegrass rocker, is next. It questions whether a partner in a relationship has changed to fulfill their own agenda while the questioner insists he has remained the same. After “Treaty” is “Glass Ceiling” a song in which a father tells his son to not try, yet, remain humble because the “glass ceiling” will keep him from knowing the honest true. The son is told to ‘disrupt the norm but realize money rules.”
When Wellnitz sings “Bomb, Bomb” it is a clear song of protest over the way government treats complicated problems. Like Rodney King asking “Why can’t we all just get along?”, Wellnitz calls upon us to love everyone and everything as he fronts a slowly building crescendo of drums and violin. The traditional Irish melody “Harry Met Rona” follows in order to display the band’s instrumental virtuosity. The album ends with “Fingers,” a instrumental built around another Alan Watts lecture. This lecture is about prediction and its effect on people - of ultimately knowing everything will eventually fall apart and that having such knowledge is a basis for anxiety in the here and now.
Handful Of Luvin’s sound contains at least one element from the 1980’s Seattle grunge scene - angst-filled lyrics addressing social alienation, apathy, confinement, and a desire for freedom. Mix it with guitar, bass, drums, violin and viola and you have a truly different American sound,
“Like a beautiful child growing up free and wild Full of hopes and full of fears Full of laughter, full of tears Full of dreams to last the years in Seattle In Seattle.”
Oh baby! I couldn’t wait to get my greasy mittens on this one. I love these Classic Album DVD’s and will gladly watch one even when it’s a band I’m not crazy about, but when it’s one of my all time favorites – look out! This is Black Sabbath were talking about and one of the greatest heavy metal albums of all time, 1970’s Paranoid.
Longtime Sabbath freaks may find the beginning a bit dull, as it tells the story of how the band came together, how guitarist Tony Iommi lost the tips of his fingers in an accident, how they came up with the band name, etc, etc. We may know all this stuff already, but there are future generations and new converts to consider. Once we get into the main part of the program it’s a rock fan’s delight. You get to hear straight from Ozzy, Tony, Geezer and Bill how they came up with the songs and the inside stories behind the lyrics while recording engineer Tom Allom gives us some technical info. It’s incredible to think that all 4 original members are still with us to tell the tale. It’s been documented that the song “War Pigs” was originally called "Walpurgis" and contained some stronger Satanic themed lyrics, but I bet you didn’t know that after hearing one of Tony’s huge riffs Ozzy said it sounded like an “Iron Bloke.”
Hearing the band members talk about the songwriting process is fascinating. They all agree that each member was absolutely essential. Tony would usually kick things off with a riff but then Geezer and Bill might take it in another direction. It was up to Ozzy to try and find holes in the music to find a place for the vocals and come up with a melody line on the spot. While Geezer wrote most of the lyrics, Ozzy had to bring them to life.
As great as it is to get the inside scoop on classics like “Paranoid,” “Hand Of Doom,” and “Fairies Wear Boots” you also get some outside perspective from Henry Rollins, a long time Sabbath fanatic if there ever was one. As mentioned before, engineer Tom Allom offers lots of great information. I had the great pleasure of working with Mr. Allom about 15 years ago and got to hear many of these stories directly from him. He confirms that the entire album was recorded and mixed in less than a week. The band was so tight that hardly any of the songs required more than 3 takes and very few overdubs. Back then that was normal, but is completely unheard of now.
The main program is about 45 minutes and then there’s about the same amount of bonus material. If the main program doesn’t offer you too many insights, then the other footage will. You get to watch Tony demonstrate many of the riffs, as well as get to see Geezer show how he would bend his bass strings to make Tony’s riff sound even bigger. Bill talks about his love of swing era drummers and gives free lessons behind the kit. There’s even an interview with a Warner Brothers Records executive talking about how they would sell boat loads of Sabbath records in America and never get any returns from retailers.
Do yourself a favor – if you have ANY interest in heavy metal or hard rock get this as soon as you can. Get some party supplies and have the Classic Album DVD’s of Machine Head, Ace Of Spades and British Steel handy and have yourself a great night. -- Woody
When I was a kid, growing up in a house with Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkel, the first time I ever heard Kiss's "Detroit Rock City," it was a moment of musical epiphany. It was just so vicious, aggressive and mean. It changed the way I listened to music. I've had a few minor epiphany's since then, when you come across a band that just brings something new and revolutionary to your ears. What have been your musical epiphany moments?
I remember the first time I heard the Beatles "From Me To You" on a falling apart hissy cassette in my Dad's car. When they hit that first high falsetto harmony -- "If there's anything I can do...." I felt like I was going 100 miles an hour down a steep fast scary thrilling roller coaster drop. I had never heard men -- or anybody -- sing like that -- and make such a haunting and unreal sound. There is so much echo and wobbliness on those early Beatles records, which contributes to the strangeness of it all. But the songs are so good, so satisfying and so playful and daring.
Tom Petty once said something about how the early Beatles sounded like aliens singing from another planet. I agree with that statement completely. Their sound is so totally unique, experimental, totally hypnotic. Bob Dylan was on board from the beginning, too, even though in the early 1960s the Beatles were being dismissed as teenybop stuff.
I also remember the first time I really listened closely to certain ABBA songs -- "Lay All Your Love on Me," "Knowing Me Knowing You", "One of Us," "Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight)" and some others -- and being totally entranced by the high-voltage singing and amazing songwriting and production on those tracks.
Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?
A musical idea gets into of me first, but only the most basic seed, like the melody for the chorus of my new song "When Will They Learn?". I woke up singing that tune and stumbled over to the piano before I'd even had any coffee and just started banging it out. I must have looked like a crazy person with my hair all tangled, dried spit on my chin, in my little shorts. After that first moment, music and lyrics have to come together. They just have to sound good together, you know?
Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
There is almost too much inspiration out there! I think that continuing to discover new artists, or "new old artists" and learning how many different approaches there are to making music helps a lot. I was recently inspired by watching a movie about the history of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and how, for them, from the time they were all teenagers, music was the only thing they wanted to pursue. It wasn't even like a choice for them, especially for Petty himself.
I feel lucky to be always re-discovering awesome stuff in old bands. The Rolling Stones, for example -- their catalog goes so deep, they do so many different things, and most of the time they still rev me up and make me want to smash things or tackle someone in lust. How can a band do that? I'm still trying to figure it out.
Genre's are so misleading and such a way to pigeonhole bands. Without resorting to labels, how would you describe your music?
Songwriter pop, I suppose. Rock n' roll. Music to dance with someone you have a crush on to.
What is you musical intention? What are you trying to express or get your audience to feel?
I think beauty and joy are the two things I'm always going for. Deep joy can come out of a sad song, too.
In songwriting, how do you bring the song together? What do you look for in terms of complexity? Simplicity? Time changes?
I don't have a standard. I think the song needs to stick, to be memorable, and that's really the number one criteria. Simple is a great place to start.
The business of music is a brutal place. Changes in technology have made it easier than ever for bands to get their music out, but harder than ever to make a living? What are your plans to move the band forward? How do you stay motivated in this brutal business?
Staying focused on content - on music -- really helps you to keep moving ahead and not get lost in the jungle. Having good concert experiences and connecting with new audiences and super smart music fans is always encouraging.
Come on, share with us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?
I get all kinds of marriage proposals at shows and stuff, but I always turn them down. I guess if I were really in Spinal Tap I would have accepted at least one by now, and made my fan-husband the new drummer.
What makes a great song?
A new angle on an old idea. Conviction. The way instruments contrast with and blend with each other.
Tell us about the first song you ever wrote?
I was 13 or 14. I think it was heavily influence by Oasis and featured lots of Liam Gallagher-like rhymes and delivery "Shiiiiiiiine all the tiiiiime" and lines like that. Oasis was a hard first influence to get away from! Shortly after that one, I wrote "I Don't Want to Go to Your Party," which became a hit for my all-girl college band, The Tourettes.
What piece of your music are particularly proud of?
I like "You Gotta Love Me Sometimes" from my album Nothing Out Loud. I like the lyrics and the production a lot.
Who today, writes great songs? Why?
I have always love Morrissey's songwriting. I thought his last album, "Years of Refusal" was so enthralling and rocked so hard. His lyrics and sometimes even his melodies are so funny and hit you so deep at the same time. And of course, he is an incredible performer of his own songs.
Come to think of it, I think with "You Gotta Love Me Sometimes" I was going for a very Morrissey song title. Morrissey and the Smiths always had all those great, full-sentence titles: "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get," "We Hate it When Our Friends Become Successful," "Shoplifters of the World Unite" etc.
Vinyl, CD, or digital? What's your format of choice?
Vinyl is the best! I grew up with a record player in my room and all of my Dad's old Beatles and Dylan and Richie Havens records. I think when I was about 12 I tried to play some Beatles record backwards to see if I could hear anything about Paul Is Dead. I love the way records sound, even the pops and scratches excite me. You feel like the musicians are in the room or something. And of course you can lose yourself in the album art. Since moving to Michigan with finite room in the car, I'm now limited to CDs and computers. Not as good.
We, at the Ripple Effect, are constantly looking for new music. When we come to your town, what's the best record store to lose ourselves in?
Wazoo Records in Ann Arbor is the place to go.
Any final comments or thoughts you'd like to share with our readers, the waveriders?
Thanks for listening, and keep rocking all the time. And here's a party tip from Andrew W.K. that I always keep trying to come back to: Be Nicer than Normal.
