I am always stoked to hear when bands I’ve befriended are getting ready to go on their first European tour.
Signals Midwest recently announced that they will be taking their talents overseas in September. The band will be playing 24 shows in 24 days. There is no doubt in my mind that this will be one of the coolest experiences for them boys.
As if it is not hard enough to tour the states in a used and abused mini-van while crashing on couches, imagine flying your gear over the pond and playing shows in an all new environment.
This will not be cheap by any means and is going to be self-funded by the band who have already admitted paying $5,000 alone for the flights. This of course does not even include any of the souvenirs they will be buying me.
In an attempt to help them pay off some of those expensive flight tickets and passport fees, the band threw together an acoustic EP on Bandcamp titled Wherever I Might Land.
For a mere $5, you can not only help out the band make their debut overseas tour a tad more comfortable, but you can also snag a great EP full of slowed down versions of their material and a brilliant cover of Iron Chic’s “Time Keeps On Slipping Into The (Cosmic) Future.”
The money earned from this release will help offset any costs for the band. I think this is an excellent approach at recovering some of the costs incurred rather than jumping on a Go Fund Me campaign and begging for some extra cheese.
I have already chipped in and downloaded the EP. The Iron Chic cover is worth $5 alone…
SIGNALS MIDWEST EU/UK SEPT 2014 TOUR DATES:
05.09.2014 – Volkach (GER) @ Festival
06.09.2014 – Bielefeld (GER) @ Uberseecontainer
07.09.2014 – Copenhagen (DK) @ Underwerket
08.09.2014 – Hannover (GER) @ Monster Records (acoustic)
09.09.2014 – Iserlohn (GER) @ Rad Room Rehearsals
10.09.2014 – Dendermonde (BEL) @ JH Zenith
11.09.2014 – Paris (F) @ La Mecanique Ondulatoire
12.09.2014 – London (UK) @ Old Blue Last
13.09.2014 – Manchester (UK) @ Wahlbar
14.09.2014 – Glasgow (SCO) @ 13th Note
15.09.2014 – Leeds (UK) @ Santiago Bar
16.09.2014 – Nottingham (UK) @ The Chameleon Arts Cafe
17.09.2014 – Birmingham (UK) @ Scruffy Murphys
18.09.2014 – Cambridge (UK) @ The Portland Arms
19.09.2014 – Lille (F) @ El Diablo
20.09.2014 – Diest (BEL) @ Jeugdhuis Tijl
21.09.2014 – Trier (GER) @ Ex-Haus
22.09.2014 – Bad Neustadt/Saale (GER) @ Juze
23.09.2014 – Landshut (GER) @ Wintergarten
24.09.2014 – Wiener Neustadt (AT) @ Triebwerk
25.09.2014 – Graz (AT) @ Sub
26.09.2014 – Micheldorf (AT) @ Baraka
27.09.2014 – St. Gallen (CH) @ Grabenhalle
28.09.2014 – Mainz (GER) @ Haus Mainusch
Mr. Joshua Voland promised me a pizza if I reviewed his band on my site, so here we go…
I am kidding about the pizza of course. I don’t take bribes, even if in the form of delicious pizza.
All jokes aside, Voland did ask me to check out what his band recently dropped on Bandcamp and man, I am stoked I did.
Shibuya Crossing is the debut EP by Cleveland’s very own The Public. Lasting just under 20 minutes, this release is impressive as hell. Not sure why they named the EP after the busiest intersection in Japan, but I am sure stranger things have happened.
“Liquor Store” was such a powerhouse of a song to start off the EP with. This will win fans automatically with sing along qualities. Damn shame it wrapped up so quickly. I liked that track.
“The Breaks” reminded me of a certain little band from Scranton, PA that people might have heard about. I loved the lyrics “I was just too set in my old ways. Trying to pry my way out of your ribcage.” I seriously could not get enough of this song.
“No Bother” had enough breakdowns and group vocals to make this my favorite cut on the release. Maybe it was the fact that it reminded me of a Seahaven track for a moment or probably because it was just catchy as hell. “The Dogs” might have been even catchier though.
As much as I hate to have a negative comment about any song I hear, there was a part in “Mexico” that just did not sit right with me and it was mostly due to a brief group vocal harmony that lasted not even a second. Voland asked me to be honest on how I felt…
Fans of the Lawrence Arms, Menzingers, The Tim Version, Banner Pilot, and even Cleveland sweethearts Worship This! need to check out The Public.
This band just kicks so much ass. I am really looking forward to hearing their full length debut which should be out in 2015.
Check it out and pay what you will on the band’s BandCamp page.
If there is one thing about New Mexico that I miss, it is the breakfast burritos from the Santa Fe Grill located in those Pic-Quic gas stations.
Actually I am lying. I miss living down the street from the Dirt Cult Records headquarters. Chris was a rad dude and I am glad I got to know him even if just for a brief moment. His band, Low Culture, remains one of my favorites to this day.
Recently, I learned that Dirt Cult relocated to Portland, Oregon and I thought I would check in with Chris to see how things were going with the big move. He advised everything was going smooth and shared a few new releases his label is putting out in the upcoming months.
I thought I would do a quick review on all of them them. Enjoy!
Autonomy/No Sir I Won’t – Split I blame Chris for getting me into Autonomy before I even became pals with him. This split is pretty bad ass crust-ish punk act that to me sound way better than Crass. I loved the samples throughout. Autonomy’s “Ashes To Ashes” was a pretty kick ass song that just started almost psycho-garagy and turned fizzled out with a Cure-sounding bass riff. No Sir I Won’t were cool to check out and full of aggressive punk rock that reached into the 80s style I grew up loving. Definitely will be checking them out some more.
Apocalypse Meow! – Baseball and Alcohol 7″ Featuring Off With Their Heads’s Justin Francis as well as members of Sundowners, I knew I was going to adore this 7″ before I even listened to it. With songs relevant to the 7″‘s title, Apocalypse Meow take two of America’s favorite past times and mix them into pure pop-punk goodness. The track “MVP” ruled with the lyrics “all I want to be is a goddamn MVP” repeating throughout. The title track though is what did it for me. Loved it.
Blank Pages – Blank Pages LP
Straight outta Berlin, Blank Pages proves to have one hell of a release with some serious garage rock layered with a old school punk rock feel. These guys really remind me of the Marked Men in a good good way. Great song writing added with vocals that could easily fit in with the 70s/80s punk scene. “We’re All Broken” was just amazing with almost a surf-punk sound in the middle. I was beyond impressed with the clean sound throughout the release and just full on togetherness of the band. It just works so well. “All In Due Time” was another great track. I am really glad Chris threw Blank Pages my way, I am totally loving what they do. If you call yourself a fan bands like the Ramones and the Dickies, I have the feeling you will like what Blank Pages have to offer Ich bin ein Fan von Leerseiten.
For more info on Dirt Cult releases or to check out some other amazing release on the Dirt Cult label, head on over to http://dirtcultrecords.bandcamp.com.
Why bother hiding it, the 15 year old in me is freaking out. I got to chat it up with Joey freaking Cape.
I have been a fan easily for over 20 years now with everything Cape has done. From Lagwagon to his solo material, I have always appreciated what Cape has brought into the music world.
Recently I heard about a new project Cape has created called One Week Records. You see, Cape decided to turn his home into a studio where he….you know what? Let’s just have Cape explain it. Trust me, it is a hell of an idea…
BHP: Let’s talk about your all new project called One Week Records. To my understanding, this is a label you created where you invite an artist to your home to record an album in a week, right?
JC: Yes. That’s it.
Where did you come up with this awesome idea?
It is an idea I had a few years back and have been considering how to do it since. It stems from my love of the honest production and approach of demos. Also, I am not a fan of the fact that albums and their romance are pieced out into single tracks falling into the shuffle of a chosen device. I believe an album should be heard as a whole and in the intended sequence of the performer and producer. That is why we sell them as one event and the reason we do not own certain mainstay editing tools such as pitch correct plug-ins.
How does your family like you turning your home into a bed and breakfast of sorts?
Haha. Yeah, My girls are cool with it. It allows me to be home with my wife and daughter and also marries my 2 very different lives, Home and tour. For many years I did not enjoy the thought that my wife did not know so many of my long term friends and my daughter may never know them. One Week allows me to bring these people to my home. They have meals and morning coffee with us and it is exciting for my daughter especially. She doesn’t know the difference between Chris Cresswell and Iggy Pop, so in her mind these famous people are coming to stay. It’s sweet. I’m careful not to invite anyone I do not know well enough of course. So far so good.
That is great. Is One Week limited to just one artist at a time?
Yes, but some people choose to bring accompaniment
Cool. So is the goal to record a song a day? Would you ever surpass the 7 song mark or would that defeat the purpose?
It’s actually 10 songs in 7 days with a One Week Record and 5 songs in 3 days with something we are calling a One Weekend record. The limitations are purposeful. There is not enough time to second guess everything and because of this there is a more raw and true outcome I think.
Brian Wahlstrom’s session is absolutely amazing. In fact, I encourage anyone reading this to go out and download it right now. I know he was part of a side project you worked on called Scorpios that sadly went on a hiatus due to the loss of a great man (RIP SLY). Did you pick Wahlstrom to debut on your label because of this?
Brian is a very close friend and incredibly talented. He is my latest musical soul mate. We work on everything together now. We co-wrote much of his record and he even worked with me on the new Lagwagon album. I knew he would make a great one week record first because we had such a great report. There was little pressure and plenty of chemistry and I love the idea that One Week gives me the opportunity to expose songwriters that many otherwise would never hear.
Chris Cresswell also released an album through One Week that is just incredible. How did he become involved early on?
Well, I have toured with Chris a bit with the Flatliners and I played an acoustic show with him and loved his voice and songs in that setting. Chris is one of the kindest and sweetest people I have ever met. I can think of no one more pleasant to be around. Honestly, I was just as excited for him to meet my family than to record but, yes, I am very proud of his record. He is such an amazing song writer and has an exceptional voice.
Do you have anyone out there in the music world that you really want to record?
The list is endless. I have a sort of faith that these people will come to me like in Field Of Dreams. “If you build it, they will come”. Hahaha. I’m really biting my tongue and hoping for some of them to reach out. It’s better that way. I don’t ever want to solicit them because as friends it puts them in a position where they might feel they are disappointing me if they are not into it.
So how does someone become considered in being a part of this project?
Well, I have to really love the music. Otherwise, I don’t feel I would have much to offer other than engineering and that results in a poorly produced album. I met a few of the people I am doing records with on the road. For example, Brian and I ran a sort of contest. Don’t like that word. We chose a person in each city we played over a year to join us on stage during our set and play one of their own original songs. It’s better than an opening set because often people are not in the venue earlier to see the performance. This guaranteed them and their respective cities to meet. I loved each and every night we did it. People submitted YouTube videos and this was in the end a cleverly disguised and more so unintentional sort of scouting for One Week. So far I am recording three of the artists I found this way. I just finished a record with one of them, a guy named Jo Bergeron from Quebec City. He is amazing I think.
Hell yeah. I can’t wait to hear what is created. So, who is behind the artwork on each of the releases?
Each artist is asked to draw their own cover. Black sharpie on white paper. For better or worse it continues the emphasis on the individual personality of each record. I love it. If I every did one it would be really bad. I can barely write my name. Haha.
Ha. Will this strictly be online or do you think maybe one day you might put some of these songs on vinyl?
Each artist is allowed to print vinyl with anyone they choose. It’s kind of a joke but the contract reads that the artist simply has to give One Week one copy if they press. I collect vinyl and love it but I really just want to focus on the creative side of things and not physical manufacturing or the marketing of those things.
I like that idea. Win, win. So I have to ask… What happened to My Records? I was a huge fan of the only release on that label.
Wow. Well that was something completely different. I just found it to be too painful trying to distribute physical merchandise though the channels. too many middle people and when those people didn’t respond to the albums the way I did it was sad. One Week Records is B2C (business to customer). No issues here. If somewhere here’s a song streaming or whatever, they just buy it and again, they have to buy the entire record which is nice for both the artist and consumer I think. The events are inexpensive due to the low cost of producing them. I’m certain there is and will be many more labels doing this sort of thing in the near future.
Speaking of Nerf Herder, any chance Parry Gripp be recording anything with you soon?
He just might be on my list. Hehe
Do you have long term expectations with One Week Records or will you just take each week as it comes?
The latter. I have learned to simply enjoy the process and not set your self up for disappointment by having goals and expectations. My only goal is to make great records with great people.
I have the feeling that is going to happen over and over… So, what’s next for Joey Cape?
Lagwagon has a new album almost complete. So lots of touring I imagine and One Week Records in the in between tours whenever possible. Still, have my day job. Haha
Joey Cape is currently in the middle of recording and all new Lagwagon album that should be dropping later this year.
It seems like it has been quite some time since I dipped into my past and talked about a band I really dug.
Today for whatever reason, I thought about a band I absolutely adored in the late 90s. The first time I heard of them was on a 1998 Vagrant Records comp/sampler called Five Years On The Streets.
The band I speak of is New Jersey’s Automatic 7. Does anyone remember them?
The album I became a huge fan of was their sophomore release titled Beggar’s Life. It was put out by Vagrant Records back when they were a indie punk rock label.
With major similarities to Face To Face, Jawbreaker and even Unwritten Law, I immediately became a fan the moment I heard their song “Broken Record”. I loved this East coast band with a SoCal feel but sadly fairly certain that I never caught them live.
From what I have gathered on the good ol’ internet, the band disbanded around 2001 but reformed in 2006. I will be honest, I have not thought about them since my early 20s, but I am stoked that for whatever reason I thought about them today.
Fun fact: Trevor Keith of Fact To Face actually joined the band briefly in 1997. Perhaps that is where some of their sound derived from. I am ok with that.
If you still hold on to the music from your past and were a fan of 90s pop punk rock, check these guys out.
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I am always stoked to hear when bands I’ve befriended are getting ready to go on their first European tour.
