Joe Viglione is GOING TRACK BY TRACK WITH THE RAGIN’ CONTAGION …featuring David Godbey of Fox Pass

 See the music pages on The Ragin’ Contagion at HearNow

Title: Everybody Has a Story (CD-RP)
Artist: The Ragin` Contagion
Catalogue Number: e5alb02411478
Barcode: 0195269077167
Format: CD 

HEAR NOW:https://ragin-contagion.hearnow.com/?fbclid=IwAR22xwmeL-AGdFQBD_7TUt1FTs06JAmSZ1S7oISQTgX4Ee_ohoGsrZoBnCY

GOING TRACK BY TRACK

Joe Viglione speaks to Dave Godbey and Ragin’ Contagion

Dave, who is the Ragin’ Contagion? And why?

Dave: It’s clear that this CD was created by you during lockdown.

What does the album mean to you, and do you care to take us track by track through the CD?

Dave Godbey:Thank you, Joe, yes, thank you for the opportunity! When the  lockdown kicked in March of 2020 due to covid 19, all of us were left with a lot of extra time on our hands, weren’t we? My personal path since I played bass in Fox Pass (1975-1977) and with The Rubies (with Wally Jay in 1978, aka Wally Baier of the Road Apples), led me to college in Berkeley California. While there I played acoustic guitar recreationally, and bass briefly in a surf music band known as Two Peters and a Dick. Many years later, 2015-ish here I am, with a family and two kids, and playing my Martin guitar once in a while to maintain my sanity. My youngest was leaving home for college, leaving me time, and a desire to get back into music. And I even remember the moment. The movie Hunger Games came out, and there is a brilliant song at the end by Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars called Safe and Sound. And I thought, “I want to play that guitar part.” So I started practicing my guitar daily for an hour or more. In 2016 I started playing open mics in Baltimore and Bel Air. Baltimore and surrounding areas have a very active music scene.

Teavolve in Fells Point was a real hotbed of acoustic musical activity, led by Rob Hinkal who was the master open mic host and leader of the band ilyAIMY. He also was a rich source of inspiration for me. As I got more comfortable playing out, playing finger style and other guitar techniques, I started collaborating with other artists. I played bass with a local song writer and guitarist Derrick Credito, and I started to get my writing juices flowing again. A song here, a song there. I even had a minor hit in the Baltimore area called Alternative Facts inspired by Kellyanne Conway. The song was recorded and can be found on my youtube channel.

Now, back to your questions. So the lockdown came, and I thought about all the songs I had penned over the years and realized that I had enough material for a full CD, and I now had the time to pull it all together. It was a confusing time, wasn’t it? Some people were pissed about the lockdown, calling our governor Lockdown Larry (Hogan). Others were concerned about this unknown disease and taking all the precautions, and pissed at those who refused to take the pandemic seriously. And I was thinking about the rage. And the confusion and the contagion. And I was thinking about Hamlet talking to Yorick (don’t ask me why on that one, lol). And so the project jelled around me as The Ragin’ Contagion and the cartoon me talking to a virus particle as Hamlet spoke to Yorick’s skull. My daughter Mia created the graphic and did the lettering for the album. Steve Levin provided the colorful backgrounds artwork.

Let’s talk about the tracks:

1)Cloudburst

I wanted a song that reflected best the body of music on the CD to lead off, the lead song being so important to an album. This one I selected because it had a nice rif, was me singing, and Rob Hinkal told me it was dope. It had an interesting lead break, kind of electronic and ambient. The break is only 8 bars long on the CD, but in performances I elaborate considerably. The song itself was written on my 21^st birthday, and reflected my anxiety finding myself laid off and without a job after enjoying a secure position with pay. It was a couple of months later when I joined Fox Pass. I rediscovered the song in 2018, and finished its development so it might see the light of day.

2)Adulting

Nice lighthearted pop, this song is sung beautifully by soprano Elena Gray who I met through Rob Hinkal at a Teavolve open mic. Check out her high harmonies: so sweet! The song itself was born in the early days of the lockdown when my daughter Mia was a senior in college, getting ready to graduate. Mia is an organized  person, and her apartment near the University of Maryland campus was supposed to be secure until July, at which time she had another apartment lined up and a job to work. Well, March 2020 came. College classes became all virtual. Graduation ceremony became all virtual. And they closed her apartment building so she unexpectedly had to move back in with her parents (us). The lyrics of the song came from Mia’s frustration trying to start her life and cope, stressful for any young person in the best of times. But for her, here in the midst of the pandemic when her post college life was turned upside down, it was much harder indeed. Still she kept the lyrics light and fun.

3)I Hope You Click Send

Being a bass player at heart as I am, this song is bass driven with a bass solo in the middle. You know how when you set up arrangements with other people, and when it is time for the event, they leave you hanging; they don’t show or they don’t reply to your messages? I hate that, don’t you? Yeah, I better not get too high on my horse unless I’ve never done this myself! Anyway, instead of letting the song get all whiney, I made it a fun affair about love interests in dog parks, karaoke bars, and Trader Joes, yet to be consummated with lots of pop culture references incorporated.

4)Only You

Pure radio playing pop, this one! The lyrics for Only You were written by Bianca Sky. Bianca is also an accomplished singer, but due to the miles between us and other commitments, she was unable to sing for the CD. At the time when I was in high gear working on the album, I met alto Carolyn Wilson who was available to sing the song on the album. She did a brilliant job singing this one, as well as two other songs on the CD. I also want to shout out Mr. Curt for his wonderful keyboard work on Only You.

5)Advise and Resent

This song is an instrumental EDM/progressive rock offering from me. EDM is a direction I have been cultivating for a little while now, inspired by such artists as Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, and Lanz and Speer. I had a great time with the lead guitar work, and i was happy how it developed.

6)Blood Sport

I know politics has always been about metaphorically bloodying up your political opponent instead of just arguing on the merits of the ideas. But it seems to have gotten particularly ugly in the past few years with the metaphor sometimes leaking into reality.

7)Careful With That Sax, Jeanine

Another instrumental, this one. The synthesizer work was inspired by the old Syd Barrett era Pink Floyd song “Careful With That Axe, Eugene.” I almost ended up playing synthesizer sampled saxophone on the song, but then I was able to engage Chris Spagnolo to play saxophones. A brilliant job he did, and captured perfectly what I was hoping for: a domestic violence episode.

8)You’re Not My Enemy

A real rocker! Our politics. Our political leaders practice divide and conquer far too often. Why do we let them?

9)Conspirator’s Delight

This song is a rap, choral piece that could only be pulled off by someone like Carolyn Wilson who co-wrote the song. It pokes a little fun at conspiracy types! Very fun and danceable!

10)Perspicacious

Elena Gray and I had a couple of paying gigs together lined up for significant money when the lockdown came. And when the lockdown came, the gigs vanished. But we penned and recorded this song together remotely using Dropbox. Elena, who wrote the lyrics, melody, and sang the track says about the song: Perspicacious is a song about the discordance between the self as the self perceives it and with the image others see. How even when one’s worldview has crumbled, the world itself stays on to be lived in.

11)Runnin’ Runnin’

Pure radio playing pop, another one! I knew I had a good one here when I saddled up to the bar one night after playing and overheard the bartender singing Runnin’ Runnin’ to herself. I wrote the song when MeToo and TimesUp was a major news item. How does it feel when you realize you’ve been a jerk sometimes and suddenly shunned by people you care about, like what happened to Al Franken?

12)Everybody Has A Story

Ah, the title song, and perhaps my personal favorite on the CD. This was the last song I wrote, and I wasn’t even sure it would make the album. Mr. Curt and I exchange ideas and songs together sometimes. And when I presented this song to him for a quick listen, he replied with a (paraphrasing) “here it is, this is your title song. It pulls all the other songs together perfectly.” I took his advice, and made it the last song, the best song, and title song, on the CD. Carolyn sang brilliantly on this one, and Thillman Benham filled out the sound with a beautiful crescendoing cello string section.

to reach the writer  http://www.joeviglione.com   demodeal@yahoo.com

Going Track by Track with John Batdorf

GOING TRACK BY TRACK WITH GREG PAQUETTE

http://musicbusinessmonthly.blogspot.com/2019/02/greg-paquette-absolute-crime-from-disc.html?m=0Going Track by Track with Greg PaquetteThe albums Single Stone andRetro Active 

Q: Greg, when did you release Single Stone and how long between the follow-up, Retro Active

A: Single Stone was released on April 20, 1918, and Retro Active was released two and a half years later on 12/1/20.

Q: Please tell us your thoughts about each track on both albums.


1
    Absolute Crime    6:06   

Originally written for my musical, “The World in Blue.” It is a fan favorite that will soon be licensed to Twenty Two – Zero, and organization dedicated to stopping veteran suicide.

2
    Nobody Tries    5:05   

Another song taken from “The World in Blue.” It feature Benny Hill on sax, and was a great time to mix the sax and guitar duals.

3
    A Farewell to Lovers    4:25   

Also taken from “The World in Blue.” Cool progression and solos. Jake Miracle did a particularly great job on vocals here.

4
    Steppin’ Out    3:42   

Written by David Hinds of Steele Pulse. The only cover I’ve released, and likely the last. But I love how the three guitars play off each other.

5
    Talk to Me Soon    4:36   

Fun to record. The cynical lyrics are juxtaposed by the party atmosphere of the song. Billy Schneider played the synch guitar, which really pulled it together.

6
    You Don’t Call Me No More    3:39   

An old Option One favorite that my old band members loved and wanted to include. Joey Hovey, my drummer and Engineer from that album did a great job dialing in the guitar amps for this recording.

7
    How Many Worlds Do We Need    4:34   

Yet another tune from “The World in Blue.” Cool groove between drums and bass, and some hot guitar licks.

8
    Setting Sun    4:46   

This one also features Benny Hill on sax. It is simply about the damage drug and alcohol abuse can do to a relationship. Strong images of nature, and my personal favorite from the album.

9
    Into the Sunset

https://joeviglione-goingtrackbytrack.blogspot.com/2020/12/greg-paquette-going-track-by-track.html

RETRO ACTIVE  DEC 1  2020

I originally planned on producing this myself and including many of my west coast musician friends. But COVID changed those plans, so fortunately I asked my son, Chris Paquette, to produce it, and I ended up doing all of the instruments except drums and synths. His ideas about choice of material and guitar sounds were vastly different, um, better, than mine. It was a great production experience, and I love the results.

1
    Doing Something Right    3:52   

I thought this was going to be the first single, but I was wrong. It’s about the nuances you notice in your partner after many years. My 12-string makes it’s only appearance on this album, and the Gretsch that joins it in the second verse is x-rated. I actually imagined Aerosmith when I wrote this.

2
    Crazy To Be Here    2:47   

Once of three duets on the album, all from “The World In Blue.” I freakin LOVE duets and each one represents different stages of a relationship.

3
    Swing    4:29   

My 88 year old neighbor grew up on a cotton plantation. He got his first guitar in 1950 and still plays today. This tune was inspired by some of the stories he has told me over the years.

4
    Stark Raving Mad    2:39   

A political song that everyone can agree on. We’re ALL sick of the politicians. But this has some of the hottest guitar licks on the album.

5
    Members Only    3:42   

This is my son’s little gem. It was originally intended by me to be a hard rock tune, but he had different, better ideas. It sounds like an “eat the rich” song, but was actually written about my friend’s old landlord, who would get really drunk and let all the skeletons out of his horrid closet.

6
    Paradise    3:51   

I watched The Camp Fire from my old mountain house in Northern CA. We were 8 miles away from the largest and deadliest fire in the states history. I was traumatized by the loss of life, and writing this song enabled me to discuss it without choking up. The violin and chiming church bell at the end were my son’s contributions, and they make the song.

7
    Coming Back For More    5:04   

A duet about people that find their significant others later in life, and the anxiety that goes along with it.

8
    Pick Yourself Up    4:09   

When I wrote this, I thought it was going to be slayed to a reggae dancehall beat, but my son said, “No Dad, this is a rocker.”


9
    The One I Fell In Love With    4:27   

The third duet from the album. It has my personal favorite guitar solo of the album.

10
    Crazy Friends

A simple, solitary guy and his guitar thinking about all the plans that changed as a result of COVID. I’ve gotten many messages about this one. I guess a lot of people feel the same way.

Gregory Paquette

GOING TRACK BY TRACK WITH THE WALKOFFS SORRY FOR NOTHING

https://www.amazon.com/Sorry-Nothing-Walk-Offs/dp/B08R2DPW4H
How did Sorry for Nothing come about?The band is Rob Hankosky – Guitars, vocalsFrank Lewis – Drums, vocalsDave Guerrero – Guitars, vocalsNate Jaworski – Bass (joined band after the studio)Fred Fechter – Bass in the studio
How did Sorry for Nothing come about?
By accident really. 5 of the 6 songs were written about a year before we recorded them. Pt. Blank was written years ago. We had a mid-west tour planned in July 2020 that was canceled because of Covid. The money we had saved for the tour we used to go to the studio. We went to Nexus Studios which is owned and run by Jason Hatch, which was a real treat for a band like ours.  As for the title, Dave came up with the name “Sorry For Nothing”.  We are all veteran musicians and have been in a lot of different bands. Frank and I have been playing together for 25 years. Our blood & sweat are scattered on stages all over Texas . Lots of shenanigan’s between us and we are “Sorry For Nothing”. 
Tell our readers a bit about the inspiration for each song and how the songs developed in the studio
All the songs were well rehearsed before we got to the studio. We had a bass player that had to move for grad school who couldn’t make the studio so we asked our good friend Fred Fechter who played some guitar on our first release “Ready To Roll” to come play bass in the studio. He did a great job pretty much on the spot. 
1. Breaking Even – It a song about always trying to get ahead really, playing catch up. You know the old saying, “lets at least try to break even”. The first line “I woke up from a bad dream, screaming like I do” was actually written in the 3rd person, my wife. The rest is a view of life and asking, c’mon life, let us at least break even.
2. Lonely In Love – This is about being in love with someone you’ve been with for a long time. I’ve been with my wife, Sue now for 27 years and I’m still in love with her. Its actually an odd love poem to her stating that we are together which makes us lonely to the rest of the world but fuck it because we are in love. The lyrics kinda came in parts. The music took a while to fit. Frank does some really cool drum parts here. 
3. Looking For Something – I don’t like to admit it but its really about being tired of waking up with a hangover. The lyrics pretty much speak for themselves. . “Can you face it sober, friend foe or lover, Or do you have to look back over your shoulder. 
When you see the world thru those drunken eyes, Being sober can make you cry”.“I don’t remember saying sorry for nothing, I must of been drunk & looking for something”. 
 There’s really no hidden meaning in this one. Dave did a great job on the solo and riffs throughout the song. Fred’s walk ups on the bass are spot on. 
4. Moving Forward – This song was a complete accident. This was just some warm up riffs when we would start practice that turned into one of my favorites on the cd. One day I put some meaningful lyrics to it and boom we have a song. Kinda my credo, “Moving Forward” The acoustic was almost left off but thank god sound reasoning prevailed! 
5. Gotta Get Up – Basically fuck the media that portrays that life sucks and you have no chance at a good life. I hate social media in regards to how all consuming it has become. Everyone goes down the rabbit hole & not just kids. Hopefully this song will give someone besides me hope if things are drifting a little off course in your life. I give The Replacements a nod here, ” Radio used to blast our favorite songs, left of the dial was never wrong”. 6. Pt Blank, Tx – This one was actually written for a side project band Johnny Malingo. We get together every now and then & play covers. We were going to play a backyard party, and I wanted an original in the set. My friend Todd was a claims adjustor and had to go inspect a property in Pt. Blank, Tx that burned and an apparent suicide. Turns out a guys set his trailer on fire and his best friend went to try and save him and they both died.  A real tragedy. Again the band did a great job in the studio on this one. Tough one to sing sometimes. 
How are you working your recent release on the web?We are on OTTO RECORDS! and they have us on their Bandcamp site. I really like Bandcamp. I find a lot of cool music and bands from all over the world there. I also like it because you can support the bands by buying their music and the bands get most of the money. We had the cd’s made thru CD Baby and they put us on all the streaming sites. You can find us on Spotify, Apple, Youtube etc. All that. Probably more I don’t know about. Also through the dreaded social sites. Facebook, Instagram, a little Twitter. We’ve sent out the cd for review and a couple have come back. I think I met you thru Twitter so I guess its working. 
Are you planning club dates in 2021? 
Playing live is where its at. I love the anticipation for an upcoming show. I really missed that in 2020. We played back in early April. It was one of those shows,  “let’s turn up and blast off”. A lot of frustration from not playing out for a year came out that night. The crowd loved it. We didn’t want to leave the stage. We pulled out all the tricks and covers, which isn’t many. IOU by The Replacements was a barn burner. She’s Drunk All The Time by Tim Timbomb, California Stars by Wilco. I think Nate bought everyone shots! We have more coming up. Our friends 61 Ghosts are coming to Texas and we have shows planned with them. I think OTTO RECORDS! will have some showcases coming up as well. 
Do you have other social media sites along with the Twitter and Facebook?
Yes here are some links: http://thewalkoffs.bandcamp.com
http://ottorecords.bandcamp.com
http://www.facebook.com/walkoffshttp://www.instagram.com/walkoffs2018
http://twitter.com/walkoffsa

Who did the cover art for SORRY FOR NOTHING?
An artist named Alex Rosas. He caught my eye when he did some Tommy Stinson artwork. Turns out he’s right down the road in Houston. You should really check out his art. Very tasteful and detailed. We all really love it. We are very proud of this cd and we needed a true artist to capture the sounds. Alex did just that. The cover is called The Willie Mo. Willie Mo is a real person and our biggest fan outside of our families. He’s been to more shows than anyone. 
Anything you’d like to say to our Club Bohemia readers?
Really the bands and venue owners have been struggling for over a year. Get out and support live music and buy the merch. Nobody is getting rich off this but it does help. Especially the venue staff. Hell our cd is cheaper than most beers! #cheapthrillsandlousysongs

JACK PHILLIPS GOING TRACK BY TRACK

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN

GOING TRACK BY TRACK WITH JACK PHILLIPS

http://gointrackbytrack.blogspot.com/

Q: Why did you start the album off with “I Can’t See” ?

Jack Phillips: Unlike my first album “Revival Time” which had a beginning, a middle and an end, this new album was simply a collection of songs with some similar themes, so I never really thought about what song should come first on the album. When it came time to debut the album at the release party, I played the entire album, but we started with “The Trip Will Make You Well” because so many of the songs had a theme about going somewhere. I think I put “I Can’t See” as the first song because, in my mind, it was the strongest song in terms of it’s hook and what sounded to me like a “hit song” whatever a “hit song” is now days. I loved how it started so simply and built and finished with all the guitars and how it laid the table so to speak for what was to come.

Jimmy Russell comments on the lyrics:
A young man’s lament. Seeking a course, a heading. But uncertainty is built into life in one’s twenties. Too many choices; a complex world. A secure youth’s wrong-headed belief that it’s a therapeutic world, where ‘bliss and perfection’ are down some road. Wrong. It’s a tragic world. One learns this down the years.________________________________________________________________
Q: How does Jimmy Russell contribute to your music…take “The Trip Will Make You Well” as an example?

Jack Phillips: Jimmy does not actually contribute to the music – he is the lyric writer. It’s his lyric that inspires me to write the music. In “The Trip Will Make You Well,” I heard the pistons and the clacking sound of a train coming down the track, much as the lyric suggested. That particular song involved finding a rhythm and then I added some broad brush strokes in terms of chord changes – and then the words simply fell into place.

in terms of chord changes – and then the words simply fell into place.
Jimmy Russell comments on the lyrics:
So, in my case, the traveling itself was therapeutic, and optimism rose again. Alone, young, physically formidable — hell, immortal! — I rode freight trains across the ‘high-line’ near the border with Canada, through Washington State, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota in the early 1970s, as well as other lines further south.
Exhilaration so great; freedom and liberty so acutely felt; natural beauty unimagined ‘in common hours.’ I guess those trips, with all their risks and troubles, did make me well in the doing, and set some bedrock values, confidence, and adaptability. I happen to love the ‘mechanicals’ and the sounds of trains. Still do.

Their acceleration out of a yard just before sun-up when you’re 20 or so, best on a flatcar when weather allowed: Sublime! Plus I happen to like the smell of creosote. It’s key.
_________________________________________________________
Q: “Motherlode” is 4 minutes and 16 seconds…and 7 of the 10 tracks come in at over four minutes…is this so that you can “stretch” the music?

Jack Phillips: Oh definitely not. “Bright One” was exactly as long as it needed to be. We played it live and it’s obviously exactly no more and no less than the length required. I’ve never written a song with the idea that it had to be 3 minutes or 4 minutes. That’s never entered my mind.

_____________________________________________________________
Q:”The Next Thing We Knew’ is the exact same time, 4:16. Since Revival Time was released in 2000, are songs like “The Next Thing We Knew” ideas that you had before or after the launch of Revival Time? or did all the material on To Whom It May Concern appear in an artistic burst of inspiration?

Jack Phillips: I have been pretty sequential in what I do – I find it hard to put my soul into two projects at once, so I couldn’t write a note until “Revival Time” was completed. Then, once it was released, I began working on “To Whom It May Concern” within months. As for why two songs come in at exactly 4:16, who knows, purely coincidence. Keep in mind that the ideas for the songs are those of my lyricist Jimmy Russell – they are his ideas – I put the music to the words.
____________________________________________________________
Q:To Whom It May Concern – four minutes and twenty-two seconds…at Track 6 is the title track the “centerpiece” ? And what is the idea behind the song?

Jack Phillips:I really should not speak to the idea behind the lyrics – that would be questions you should pose to Jimmy Russell, but I think the lyrics fairly well speak for themselves, about giving thanks to those who come before us who make our lives a little easier.
Jimmy Russell comments on the lyrics:
Mortality. Funerals. In my case it took a while, but what I owed the fine people who influenced, encouraged and loved me — parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, friends — took a front and center position in my thinking. They began to die; my need to speak of this was self-evident to me. I read and re-read many times a book first encountered and read at The University of Montana in 1969. It’s a great book, written by a great man. It’s form is journal really — “The Inward Morning — A Philosophical Exploration in Journal Form,” by Henry G. Bugbee, Jr. He was a mentor of vast influence. Fortune smiled, and he gave me countless hours of his time. “The Inward Morning” is now getting its due, recognized as precious and rare by the community of wilderness writers. Henry spoke as he wrote, too — you don’t hear that often among men. Henry, 36 years my senior, taught me what it is to be present, like trout “finning in the shadows.” From him I came to see the natural world, such as a chorus of aspen trees, for example: they ‘are as they are, limitlessly.’ Reading Bugbee takes a serious man to many new provinces of thought, manners of thinking, and…….other books. Gratitude is at the nodal center of ‘presence’ as Henry Bugbee transformed the word for me.
_______________________________________________________________

Q:”Where Do You Go” is the second song under four minutes. Where does this song fit in a live set – if you do perform it live – and how does it segue from the title track thematically?

Jack Phillips:
When we played the Metropolitan Room last September, “Where Do You Go” was the second song just after the show opening song, “The Trip Will Make You Well.” I had a show producer Miles Phillips (my fifth cousin) who took a very careful look at all of my material and made some excellent choices about how the songs should be organized live. And he was right. He was making these decisions well before the album had been finished, and even suggested to me that we change the order of the songs on the album, but, I’m sorry, I’m an artist and right or wrong, I stick steadfastly to my personal vision. For example, “Conversations in Styrofoam” was obviously the opening song of “Revival Time” and it was dark and harsh and some people might question starting an album that way – certainly my art director in London did (he wondered if he was even going to like the album at all). But putting that song first was part of the artistry behind the whole concept, so the art demanded that the edgy song come first. Now, in terms of “Where Do You Go” being second in the live set, that’s because we started the show informing the audience we were taking a trip and the second song was simply saying that we all are on a trip we have to take. “Where Do You Go” has gone on in recent days to become one of my most important songs – I had it re-recorded as an instrumental recently – because it was a favorite song of my dear friend Tom Russell (Jimmy’s brother), and as fate would have it, he took that ultimate trip in January “beyond the charted sea” and now we are left wondering where did he go?_______________________________________________________________

Q:Winter Keeps Us Warm – Janis Ian had a minor hit with “In The Winter” about a heater getting fixed to keep her warm when a lover vanished. How does Winter Keep the listener Warm in this title?

Jack Phillips:
I’d have to defer to Jimmy Russell, because I’m not sure I could speak eloquently about his words. I do like the flow of the words, “but the river took our future to the bottom of the lake.” What could that mean? As young people you make big plans but life gets in the way, and “the next thing we knew” …. we’re somewhere else… where “only faith can fix what’s torn.”
Jimmy Russell comments on the lyrics:
Here I wind back to the years of early parenthood. Emotions and torn dreams; losses and decisions one tries to forget, for the sake of the living; we loved winter, because it put us all physically adjacent to each other, like it or not. And now I see, in retrospect, how much I liked cold climate. A family bundled, in proximity, seeking heat, bodies, fireplaces — these artifacts and demands of winter ‘kept us warm.’ This was true with my gang of friends in Montana, too. From winter, we learned healing, improvising, learning. Winter was actually recuperative. It required faith in each other. It’s not a therapeutic world, but one can insulate oneself from the tragic elements from time to time._________________________________________________________________

Q:Alowishus – the title reminds me of the Canadian children’s song, “Alouette” – what’s behind this composition?

Jack Phillips:
Again, Jimmy Russell could speak to this, but I’m told that “Alowishus” was a nickname given to him by his father Newt, and it seems to me that the song is simply a look back at a happy childhood with his older brother Tom.
Jimmy Russell comments on the lyrics:
My late, magnificent father started calling me Alowishus as a little boy. I liked it; a term of endearment and all. Here, in these lyrics, I endeavor to summon the young Alowishus to some detail in memory. Dad was a man of the wilderness, growing up in Wyoming and Montana from coal mining stock, and he took my beloved older brother Tommy and me on seven and ten day trips into the most remote parts of the Sierra Nevada, starting when I was perhaps six and Tommy nine. We hopped rocks in rivers, we slept under the stars. He taught us to fly fish; gave us his boyhood kit. It’s an elegant activity, all in all — wilderness safety always came first, though. Trying to sleep, side by side in our WWII surplus sleeping bags, we’d ‘watch the stars appear between the leaves’ unless we were above the tree-line. There, up that far, utter wonder overcame us. So little atmosphere to diminish the numbers of stars one observes. Anyway, when in the trees, they weren’t leaves as we know them; high mountain evergreens, dead noble snags, needles, stars peaking through. Eating a trout did nearly seem to us a religious experience considering the way Dad honored the creature, prepared it, and savored it. But, ‘we were hungry and we were free’ so by the time the consuming began, Dad may have realized it would take some years for us to be ‘present’ the way he was. We got there, later in life. And we did have a treehouse at home. We built it with Dad’s guiding hand. Seeing how interested our dog Jasper was, one day we found Dad had built him a ramp to run up like a cartoon, to join us and gaze out over our fig orchard. Jasper would wait for us up there about the time we were due home from school.
_____________________________________________________________________________

Q:The album closes out with Bright One. Why did you choose this to conclude the album?

Jack Phillips:

For one simple reason: it sounded to me like it was the song to close the album – it had that feel of a big finish, and so when I had all the songs together, there was never any question in my mind that “Bright One” would be the last song. I might have played with the order of the other songs, but I couldn’t think of any other song that more properly sounded like the end of the album.

This information is also on this page:
http://towhomgoingtrackbytrack.blogspot.com/

AUDIOSCAM GOING TRACK BY TRACK

AUDIOSCAM 3 – 2014 E.P.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE: https://audioscamgoingtrackbytrack.blogspot.com/#:~:text=Going%20Track%20By%20Track%20with%20Audioscam.%20When%20Abbattack%2C,mix%20of%20famous%20melodies%20given%20a%20new%20perspective.

     When Abbattack, the hard-rock renditions of songs made famous by Abba, was released on Australian Sun Records in 2008 it was a mesmerizing mix of famous melodies given a new perspective.   “Knowing Me, Knowing You,”  “Waterloo,” “S.O.S.,” “Ring Ring” and others were heard in a unique and very fun way.  http://www.amazon.com/Abbattack-Audioscam/dp/B001DQ8VRO





   Then came 2011’s When The Money’s Gone E.P. with original music from the group, “Closing in on Midnight,” “Different Eyes,” “That Other Guy” and the title track distributed to radio stations in America as well as down under. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005JBCY4A/ref=dm_ws_ap_tlw_alb3

   Now Audioscam 3 is making its debut in May of 2014.  We spoke to Audioscam’s Brian Pitcher about the new release.
INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN PITCHER of AUDIOSCAM


JD: Brian, where did you record Audioscam 3?


 Brian Pitcher: I think that every musician/songwriters goal is to have control over their music and the way it’s presented to the public. With that in mind, I started to build my studio and knowledge of recording many years ago.

I did the demos for Abbattack which formed a large portion of the finished CD.

For “When The Money’s Gone” I recorded all of the tracks but had someone else mix and master them. For this recording Brad Wallace and I decided to do all of the recording, mixing,and pseudomastering ourselves.

JD: I’ve never heard of “Pseudomastering. What is it?

Brian Pitcher: Brad is in the middle of a very comprehensive mastering course. Pseudomastering is basically mastering the recordings ourselves to get a picture of what the mastering studio will hear when we send them our stereo mixes to be “professionally mastered”. This was a very useful step and did have some major ramifications on how I mixed the tracks.

So, I engineered the recordings and mixed them. Brad did the pseudomastering. We both are responsible for the “production and arrangements” of our songs.

JD: Who did the second phase of the mastering?

Brian Pitcher: The final mastering was done by Leon Zervos at Studios 301 ,Sydney, Australia. Leon has mastered for Maroon 5, Crowded House, Rhianna, Dream Theater, Madonna, The Living End and many more.

JD: What’s the new CD about?

Brian Pitcher: Audioscam 3, self explanatory. We’re happy to have made it this far ! A lot of artists don’t get the opportunity to record 3 CD’s 


 1 Bridgetown Girls
                          This was written a few years ago, but, now that I control my recording I was finally able to do it the way I’ve always heard it in my head. I wanted to keep it as simple and open sounding as possible.
A little calypso influence is in there. A reference to my birthplace in Barbados. It is really just a thank you to all the people who made the time I spent in Barbados so happy. It should really be called Bridgetown People, but, that just doesn’t have the “ring ” to it that BTG’s does.

JD: What’s the instrumentation?

Brian Pitcher: I played drums, guitars,ukelele, and did the vocals
Brad played Bass and keyboards

JD: And the second of the four tracks?

Brian Pitcher:

2 Hello
          Ever been walking down the street minding your own business, and, had a stray dog come up to you? His tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth, big goofy grin on his face, just looking for a friend !
That’s how this started !

It evolved to include people as well. A smile says a lot. Sometimes more than words. I played drums,acoustic guitar and did the vocals Brad played bass and keyboards Ross Wilson played guitar
Ross Wedding also played guitars. The nice jangly ones in the chorous,bridge and outro 

JD: “Thank You” is not the Jimmy Page/Robert Plant song from 1969’s Led Zeppelin II.  How did you construct your “Thank You” 45 years after Zep’s?

Brian Pitcher:

3 Thank You

I’ll let Brad tell you about Thank You.Thank You as the name suggests was written as an acknowledgement of gratitude. I was adopted from an early age and regard that twist of fate to be my luckiest break in life.

Sorrowfully, some of my immediate family are no longer with us. The lyrical content of the song delivers a simple message around unconditional gratitude and everlasting memories.Brad  I can tell you that mixing the guitars for this was nothing short of a nightmare.

Never tell a guitar player that he can have as many tracks as he wants !!!! Brad played bass, acoustic guitar, keyboards and did all the vocals
Ross Wilson played guitars I played drums and tambourine.



4 Awayo

            I was trying to achieve a sparseness of instrumentation and hopefully a bit of an “African” sound.  I love the sounds that African players get on Western instruments and the techniques that they develop to play them.

Believe it or not, this is a political statement.  Politicians !!  They sure no how to take care of themselves and screw everybody else. I liken them to mosquitos. Blood sucking parasites. It’s nice to see them screw themselves every now and then.

That one of yours who was sending nude selfies of himself, one of ours so deep in bribes and insider type deals even he couldn’t lie his way out of it.The bridge is a little more open and could be a boy/girl type of thing. Still, every now and then a pollie comes along and you think” maybe this ones different” You put some belief in them and, theyinvariably let you down. They all suck ! Same self centered animals , just using different names/parties.

I played drums, acoustic guitar vocals and percussion.
Brad played bass,

Ross Wilson played Guitar. If I close my eyes when I listen to this, I see some African dude in the studio, playing his heart out. Ross did an awesome job to achieve the sound/effect I was looking for.
JD: Thanks for giving us some insight into the new CD, Brian.
___________________________________
THE GROUP’S WEBSITE with links to Twitter, Facebook etc. is here:
http://audioscam.com.au/band/

 ___________________________________________________
Alameda California Patch

http://alameda.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-3

Piedmont California Patch
http://piedmont.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-313751414281 

Berklee California Patch
http://berkeley.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-3137514141115

San Leandro California Patch
http://sanleandro.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-3137514141116

Rockridge California Patch
http://rockridge.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-3137514141304

El Cerrito Patch
http://elcerrito.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-313751414278

Castro Valley Patch
http://castrovalley.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-313751414891

Lamorinda California
http://lamorinda.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-31375141467

Albany California Patch
http://albany.patch.com/groups/film-music-and-more/p/australias-audioscam-talks-about-new-cd–audioscam-313751414279

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Saturday, December 31, 2011

When The Money’s Gone – 4 song C.D. Going TRACK BY TRACK!

Australia’s AUDIOSCAM

A terrific three piece band from down under!

Brian Pitcher
Ross Wedding
Brad Wallace


INDIVIDUAL BIOGRAPHIES:
Brad Wallace has been the bassist for Australian band Audioscam (audioscam.com.au) for 5 years. Trained as a pianist and saxophonist he expanded hismusical instruments to include the bass guitar to help fill in with a friends band for one night only. Twenty one years later it is now his instrument of choice but he continues to be intrigued by different musical instruments and the contribution this makes to original compositions.   With eclectic musical influences and a strong personal interest in music composition and production he has been a long standing live & session performer. His discography continues to grow.  
Ross Wilson
Hailing from the land of the” Long White Cloud”, New Zealand, Ross has been involved in many varied projects from early on punk beginnings to an album with new age band Shine . He has run music courses,written music for fashion and tv documentaries,played various sessions on many recordings,played countless gigs in bars,clubs and concert situations,and,played in the world acclaimed band TheTemple. He is currently a recording member of Audioscam.Brian Pitcher

Brian was born in Barbados West Indies. His family moved to Canada and later to Australia.  Brian plays drums, guitar,and ,also sings.  He has played with many bands including Airport,Hush,Lyn Randall Banned,The Temple,Grand Slam,and ,is the founding member of Audioscam. While living in Sydney and Melbourne he became a sought after session player. Brian now lives in Cairns, performing and recording with Audioscam. 

When the Money’s Gone : Audioscam : Rhapsody

www.rhapsody.com/album/Alb.49188387Label: Audioscam.   

When the Money’s Gone	2:47	When the Money’s Gone
That Other Guy	3:05
Closing in on Midnight	4:10

Different Eyes	3:48

________________________________________________________________

Going Track by Track: WHAT WAS THE LINEUP OF AUDIOSCAM PRIOR TO THE CD ABBATTACK?


AUDIOSCAM: Just before we started to record Abbattack the lineup included myself, Roger Gold and a bass player named Graeme Croft. Graeme knew he didn’t have the time to put into recording an album and reluctantly left the band.


Going Track by Track: THE LINEUP DURING THE AUSTRALIAN SUN RECORDS PHASE?AUDIOSCAM:   As luck would have it, Brad Wallace was available to do the gig. I had worked with Brad a few years earlier and knew that we had a good rapport musically and socially.

We started rehearsing and recording Abbattack.
 
About two thirds of the way through the recording of Abbattack, Ross Wedding arrived in Cairns from Melbourne.


We were introduced by a mutual friend (Peter Badenock, bass on “That Other Guy”) . I got Ross into the band and the lineup of Roger Gold, Brad Wallace,  Ross Wedding and Brian Pitcher remained through the final recording and also through our time with Australian Sun Records.

Roger Gold later moved to Brisbane due to family commitments. Ross, Brad and myself continued as a three piece.

GOING TRACK BY TRACK: The band lineup now?

AUDIOSCAM:  When we decided to record “When The Money’s Gone” , Ross Wedding, unfortunately, had the same problem that Graeme Croft had . A lack of time to put into recording a professionally done CD. (I can be a little demanding)

Ross Wilson , whom I had also worked with previously, was more than happy to commit to the recording.
With the new CD done and released, Ross Wedding is once again back with me doing live gigs. 
(it’s like a superman comic isn’t it ? Lana Lang, Lois Lane…..Ross Wedding, Ross Wilson)


GOING TRACK BY TRACK: Any gigs on the Australian continent?

AUDIOSCAM:  We are constantly gigging.Although the last month or so has been difficult with Brad out of action with a back injury. I’ve been using stand in bass players to get through.

We do some corporate gigs for large companies that come up this way for their incentive trips. These are all private functions. Ford Australia, Toyota, Minolta, Commonwealth Bank, overseas tour groups etc. 


Most of our work is in Pubs and Hotels. I guess you’d call them Bars. These are my favourites. We get to play loud and get sweaty.



There’s no pretense at these gigs. If you can’t cut it, the audience will let you know.

The Peeramon Pub, Yungaburra Pub ,Kairi Hotel, Smitfield Tavern, Balaclava Hotel, Outback race meetings,Mining companies……We’ve played on Green Island ,Airlie Beach in the Whitsundays, Dunk Island, Hamilton Island ,Johnos Blues Bar,The Fox and Firkin, Troppos Nite Club, The Underdog Hotel, Shenanigans, The Courthouse Hotel, The Ant Hill Hotel, The Barron Valley Hotel,The Kuranda Understage, Rustys Bar, The Bull Bar, The Animal Bar,The Albatross Hotel, Weipa Sportfishing Tournament, Hinchinbrook Resort, Ellis Beach Bar and Grill, Hogs Breath Cafe, The Bandiditos Motorcycle Club( that’s not one for the faint hearted). We’ve played for the Crocodile Trophy (Australias “Tour De France”) in the Daintree Rainforest. We’ve played on boats, the backs of trucks, on racecourses, at birthdays , weddings, divorce parties, rodeos, The Sheraton Mirage, The Sheraton Country Club, A.J.Hacketts Bungy Jump, The Poddy Dodgers Ball, (cowboys call cow shit a Poddy). We’ve played at the Peeramon Pig Hunt.(ever seen a ten ton truck piled high with dead boars and wild pigs?  They’re not a bunch who’ll put up with a Nancy Band.)  And that’s just the ones that come to mind quickly.There’s dozens more. I just can’t think of them right now I want to add The Cantab and wherever else to this list.
 
________________________________________________________________________________


WATCH THE WONDERFUL SHOW DANCE TO WHEN THE MONEY’S GONE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsMlnIfCEqI




Audioscam live in Australia


The Audioscam Diary

Friday, January 13, 2012





Audioscam Diary
It’s been about five years since we last played at The Smithfield Tavern…the old pub has been torn down and replaced with a new one that didn’t cater for live music until a few months ago. 
This is Brad’s first gig back since injuring his back in October. We did our usual load in and sound check and it was like the Tavern vibes were as good as before.  The first set was a little laid back..some Jack Johnson (Sittin’Waitin’ Wishin’),Stevie Ray Vaughan (Cold Shot), Bernard Fanning ( Song Bird and Wish You Well) and from our new CD, Brad sang “Closing in on Midnight”. A little polite applause, the crowd checking us out ,and, vice versa.  Second set, lets go. Time to crank it up a little. Started with Black Crows (Hard to Handle)…which packed the dance floor, thank you very much !!  Smashmouth (Walkin’ on the Sun),  “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” from The Rolling Stones…(our publicist in America was the business partner of Jimmy Miller who produced that song for Mick and the boys back in the 1960s),  Fun Lovin’Criminals (Scooby Snax) and  from our Abbattack CD (Rock Me) . The ABBA cover is ALWAYS  a crowd pleaser !!
By the time we got to our third set, we know what they want and they know what we do. From the new CD, the title track, When The Money’s Gone into some  Blink 182 (All the Small Things), AC/DC’s Long Way to the Top , then the danciest song ever written, The Romantics (What I Like About You). It’s Rock & Roll to the end of the set.
First encore, also from the new CD, “That Other Guy” !! I hate those other guys !! They always stole my girl friends !!!
Second encore. Ross starts “Road House Blues” with the slowest, meanest, dirtiest, grunty guitar. Two hundred people jumping, screaming, sort of dancing…I love it. Then it’s over, and the ugly lights come on. ( in the house lights we can all see how sweaty and “not good looking” we all are)
Hope the next gigs as good !!!!