Tips to create: Be 'confused and freaked out'
By Chris Nixon
For The Union-Tribune
January 25, 2007
A cold dark winter in a small Oslo apartment might not fit neatly into most people's vacation plans, but for singer/multi-instrumentalist Kevin Barnes, the unpleasantness of Norway's stark, dark wintry landscape turned out to be a pleasant place to create art.
Under the moniker Of Montreal, the 32-year-old Barnes spent his winter of discontent writing the 12 songs on his eighth full-length disc “Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?”
Tiptoeing between the vocal symphonics of Queen and the early nu-wave pop of Flock of Seagulls or Gary Numan, “Hissing Fauna” is a gorgeously crafted album of pretty pop songs. But take a closer look and the lyrics reveal the pain behind the process: I spent the winter on the verge of a total breakdown while living in Norway / I felt the darkness of the black metal bands / But being such a faun of a man / I didn't burn down any old churches / Just slept way too much, just slept.
With the release of “Hissing Fauna” on the horizon, Barnes now sits in his cozy living room in his home in Athens, Ga. He's playing with his daughter, Alabee, before embarking on an extensive tour to support the album, including a stop at Soma Tuesday night in San Diego, talking openly about the winters in Norway and his career in music.
“Quality of life is obviously important,” said Barnes. “But the more comfortable and at peace you are, probably the less desire you have to be creative. It's always good from an artistic standpoint to be confused and freaked out.”
Playing almost all the instruments on “Hissing Fauna,” Barnes sequestered himself to piece the album together: “The first half was done in Oslo on a laptop and a MIDI keyboard, just me in a tiny little room working on stuff by myself. Then, I came home to Athens and I had more instruments lying around so I was able to flush things out and do some more interesting stuff.”
The solitude resulted in a stunning pastiche of humming synths and layered vocal harmonies, making “Hissing Fauna” Of Montreal's best effort to date.
You may have heard Of Montreal without knowing it. A few tunes from his 2005 album “Sunlandic Twins” ended up in TV ads for Outback Steakhouse, NASDAQ and Garmin GPS. The album was also a critical success, giving Barnes a broader stage to stand on and a wider audience.
“We definitely reached a larger audience with 'Sunlandic Twins,' but hopefully it will continue to progress,” said Barnes. “I don't really have ambitions to become the next David Bowie or anything, to become a superstar. I just want to make interesting music and be able to support myself that way.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Up from the ashes
Everclear's Art Alexakis: He can see Everclearly now
By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
January 25, 2007
Everybody loves a rock star on the rise: young, rail-thin and good-looking with a guitar slung over the shoulder and an earnest look in the eyes.
But rarely do you hear about the journey to the stage: a father skipping out on his family, poverty in the projects, a teenage brother dying of a heroin overdose, a failed suicide attempt.
You don't hear about the tribulations brewing behind the platinum records and sold-out shows: two divorces and drug abuse. And you certainly don't hear the story when the stage lights dim: bankruptcy and another broken marriage.
You don't hear these stories unless you're talking with Art Alexakis, lead singer of Everclear and rock 'n' roll survivor.
Whether speaking candidly about his single parent upbringing in the Mar Vista Gardens housing projects in Los Angeles, his band's startling rise to fame in the late-1990s on the back of three-straight platinum albums or the slow rebuilding of his life after the songs stopped paying the bills, the 44-year-old Alexakis remains a storyteller.
His stories make for an entertaining conversation. More importantly Alexakis' stories give his songs a timeless appeal, pulling the listener into his world.
As with a lot of musicians driven to perform, Alexakis knew early on he had to write songs: “I realized I was never going to be a Wall Street banker. I'm never going to be the guy that's going to be successful the way that the world deems the normal way to do it. I play rock 'n' roll. That's what I do.”
Everclear started as a trio in 1992, after Alexakis, disillusioned with the Bay Area music scene, left San Francisco. Along with bassist Craig Montoya and drummer Scott Cuthbert, Alexakis penned some of the most memorable singles of the 1990s: “Santa Monica” (from 1995's “Sparkle and Fade”), “I Will Buy You a New Life” from 1998's critical and popular success story “So Much for the Afterflow” and “Wonderful” from 2000's “Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 1: Learning How to Smile.”
Everclear provided an accessible alternative to grunge bands, trading the snarling guitar riffs of Soundgarden for Alexakis' crisp, compact songwriting. The threesome received an unfair branding by some critics as Nirvana-lite, but Alexakis' songs simply contained more pop sensibilities than the metal-driven Soundgarden or the punk-influenced Nirvana.
The sudden success caused some emotional jarring for Alexakis, which he had to battle through despite the accolades and dollar bills thrown at him.
“To be honest with you, I grew up poor,” said Alexakis. “I grew up in a housing project. So when all that stuff was going on, it was like a whirlwind and I made a lot of bad choices. I think I was one of the few that got to live the rock 'n' roll dream. And I'm still standing.”
After Everclear's disappointing sixth album, “Slow Motion Daydream,” Capitol Records dropped the band in 2004. Alexakis parted ways with Montoya and Cuthbert, taking a break from recording to reassess his career and his life.
“I still wanted to do Everclear, but I wanted it to change,” said Alexakis. “I knew it was going to be a long process. I didn't know I was going to lose my wife and go through bankruptcy along the way. But looking back now, I couldn't get to where I'm at now if I had still been in that place.”
It took a year or two, but Alexakis rebuilt his life and started the current incarnation of Everclear as a five-piece group. Now, the band returns with a new album, “Welcome to the Drama Club,” finding a wiser Alexakis writing songs on a par with the band's heyday.
“We appeal to a lot of kids as well, but mostly we appeal to people who have grown up with our music or alternative music and have gone on to something else: People who don't listen to alternative radio anymore,” said Alexakis. “People who have lived a lot of life and can connect more with someone who writes songs about failure and hope and heartbreak and trying to make sense of it all.”
Everclear may never reach the dizzying heights of the late-1990s, but the group rolls into San Diego's House of Blues Monday as the headliner of the Van Wilder Tour with a renewed sense of purpose.
“I'm 44 and I get to play guitar in a rock band and I have a healthy kid,” said Alexakis. “I love the music I'm making. I love talking to my fans on Myspace. I just put my heart out there. I have a great job.”
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ART ALEXAKIS
Even rock stars have chores when they're not on tour. As Everclear lead singer Art Alexakis talked via phone to help preview his upcoming San Diego show, his hometown of Portland was digging out from a rare snowstorm. This complicated his daily schedule, which usually consists of driving his teenage daughter Annabella to high school before settling down to talk with management and press.
“This is what I do in the morning: I take my kid to school, I come home and I do press,” confessed a deadpan Alexakis, poking fun at his non-glamorous lifestyle while not on tour. “Today, I have to take my kid to school because it's a snow day. It snowed in Portland, and when it snows in Portland people loose their minds. The whole city shut down for three days. I have one four-wheel drive vehicle and my girlfriend took that to work. And now I have this rental car, this hoopty Chrysler, and I have to take my kid to school.”
Before skipping out the door into the rain, sleet and snow, the bleach-blond singer admitted that he might consider a change of scenery: “I love San Diego. I almost moved there (when I was younger). When my daughter graduates from high school, I'm probably going to move to San Diego.”
– CHRIS NIXON
DISCOGRAPHY
“World of Noise” (1993)
“Sparkle and Fade” (1995)
“So Much for the Afterglow” (1997)
“Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 1: Learning How to Smile” (2000)
“Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 2: Good Time for a Bad Attitude” (2000)
“Slow Motion Daydream” (2003)
“Welcome to the Drama Club” (2006)
LINEUP
Art Alexakis – vocals, guitar
Dave French – guitar
Sam Hudson – bass
Josh Crawley – keyboards
Brett Snyder – drums
By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
January 25, 2007
Everybody loves a rock star on the rise: young, rail-thin and good-looking with a guitar slung over the shoulder and an earnest look in the eyes.
But rarely do you hear about the journey to the stage: a father skipping out on his family, poverty in the projects, a teenage brother dying of a heroin overdose, a failed suicide attempt.
You don't hear about the tribulations brewing behind the platinum records and sold-out shows: two divorces and drug abuse. And you certainly don't hear the story when the stage lights dim: bankruptcy and another broken marriage.
You don't hear these stories unless you're talking with Art Alexakis, lead singer of Everclear and rock 'n' roll survivor.
Whether speaking candidly about his single parent upbringing in the Mar Vista Gardens housing projects in Los Angeles, his band's startling rise to fame in the late-1990s on the back of three-straight platinum albums or the slow rebuilding of his life after the songs stopped paying the bills, the 44-year-old Alexakis remains a storyteller.
His stories make for an entertaining conversation. More importantly Alexakis' stories give his songs a timeless appeal, pulling the listener into his world.
As with a lot of musicians driven to perform, Alexakis knew early on he had to write songs: “I realized I was never going to be a Wall Street banker. I'm never going to be the guy that's going to be successful the way that the world deems the normal way to do it. I play rock 'n' roll. That's what I do.”
Everclear started as a trio in 1992, after Alexakis, disillusioned with the Bay Area music scene, left San Francisco. Along with bassist Craig Montoya and drummer Scott Cuthbert, Alexakis penned some of the most memorable singles of the 1990s: “Santa Monica” (from 1995's “Sparkle and Fade”), “I Will Buy You a New Life” from 1998's critical and popular success story “So Much for the Afterflow” and “Wonderful” from 2000's “Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 1: Learning How to Smile.”
Everclear provided an accessible alternative to grunge bands, trading the snarling guitar riffs of Soundgarden for Alexakis' crisp, compact songwriting. The threesome received an unfair branding by some critics as Nirvana-lite, but Alexakis' songs simply contained more pop sensibilities than the metal-driven Soundgarden or the punk-influenced Nirvana.
The sudden success caused some emotional jarring for Alexakis, which he had to battle through despite the accolades and dollar bills thrown at him.
“To be honest with you, I grew up poor,” said Alexakis. “I grew up in a housing project. So when all that stuff was going on, it was like a whirlwind and I made a lot of bad choices. I think I was one of the few that got to live the rock 'n' roll dream. And I'm still standing.”
After Everclear's disappointing sixth album, “Slow Motion Daydream,” Capitol Records dropped the band in 2004. Alexakis parted ways with Montoya and Cuthbert, taking a break from recording to reassess his career and his life.
“I still wanted to do Everclear, but I wanted it to change,” said Alexakis. “I knew it was going to be a long process. I didn't know I was going to lose my wife and go through bankruptcy along the way. But looking back now, I couldn't get to where I'm at now if I had still been in that place.”
It took a year or two, but Alexakis rebuilt his life and started the current incarnation of Everclear as a five-piece group. Now, the band returns with a new album, “Welcome to the Drama Club,” finding a wiser Alexakis writing songs on a par with the band's heyday.
“We appeal to a lot of kids as well, but mostly we appeal to people who have grown up with our music or alternative music and have gone on to something else: People who don't listen to alternative radio anymore,” said Alexakis. “People who have lived a lot of life and can connect more with someone who writes songs about failure and hope and heartbreak and trying to make sense of it all.”
Everclear may never reach the dizzying heights of the late-1990s, but the group rolls into San Diego's House of Blues Monday as the headliner of the Van Wilder Tour with a renewed sense of purpose.
“I'm 44 and I get to play guitar in a rock band and I have a healthy kid,” said Alexakis. “I love the music I'm making. I love talking to my fans on Myspace. I just put my heart out there. I have a great job.”
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ART ALEXAKIS
Even rock stars have chores when they're not on tour. As Everclear lead singer Art Alexakis talked via phone to help preview his upcoming San Diego show, his hometown of Portland was digging out from a rare snowstorm. This complicated his daily schedule, which usually consists of driving his teenage daughter Annabella to high school before settling down to talk with management and press.
“This is what I do in the morning: I take my kid to school, I come home and I do press,” confessed a deadpan Alexakis, poking fun at his non-glamorous lifestyle while not on tour. “Today, I have to take my kid to school because it's a snow day. It snowed in Portland, and when it snows in Portland people loose their minds. The whole city shut down for three days. I have one four-wheel drive vehicle and my girlfriend took that to work. And now I have this rental car, this hoopty Chrysler, and I have to take my kid to school.”
Before skipping out the door into the rain, sleet and snow, the bleach-blond singer admitted that he might consider a change of scenery: “I love San Diego. I almost moved there (when I was younger). When my daughter graduates from high school, I'm probably going to move to San Diego.”
– CHRIS NIXON
DISCOGRAPHY
“World of Noise” (1993)
“Sparkle and Fade” (1995)
“So Much for the Afterglow” (1997)
“Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 1: Learning How to Smile” (2000)
“Songs From an American Movie, Vol. 2: Good Time for a Bad Attitude” (2000)
“Slow Motion Daydream” (2003)
“Welcome to the Drama Club” (2006)
LINEUP
Art Alexakis – vocals, guitar
Dave French – guitar
Sam Hudson – bass
Josh Crawley – keyboards
Brett Snyder – drums
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Taking the time to incubate
Incubus came in from years on the road to unwind, reflect and energize itself
By Chris Nixon
For The Union-Tribune
January 11, 2007
Give us time to shine / Even diamonds start as coal sings Incubus vocalist Brandon Boyd on “Diamonds and Coal,” a track from the band's sixth full-length studio album, “Light Grenades.” Boyd uses the metaphor to describe a burgeoning romantic relationship (and learning to love instead of squabbling), but the 30-year-old singer could be talking about himself.
After 15 years honing his songwriting skills and maintaining a career in music, Boyd fine-tuned his vocal skills to evolve into one of rock's best singers.
“We formed the band in 1991,” recalled Boyd recently, as he prepared to start the band's current tour in Vancouver, B.C. “We started playing concerts shortly after that, playing people's backyards and bar mitzvahs and whatever we could get. When we started, I didn't know what I was doing. I can say that with pure confidence. I just knew that I liked it, and I knew there was an energy there that was very infectious.”
Born in the Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas, Incubus fought and clawed for gigs until earning a major-label contract with Immortal/Epic Records (a subsidiary of Sony) in 1996. The band's third studio album, “Make Yourself” (1999), yielded a single in “Pardon Me,” catapulting the five-piece group into the national spotlight. Mixing crunching guitars by Mike Einziger, scratching and samples from turntablist Chris Kilmore and Boyd's riveting melodies, Incubus built a sound all its own: softer than Korn, harder than Pearl Jam.
After five albums, years on the road and a nasty contract renegotiation with Sony, Boyd, Einziger, Kilmore, drummer Jose Pasillas and bassist Ben Kenney were mentally and physically exhausted.
“As a young band we just stayed on the road for 10 years,” said Boyd. “We'd come off to make a record, rest for two weeks and then go right back onto the road. We wanted to build our career by keeping that kind of pace. After doing that for 10 years, we got pretty burnt out with all the traveling and everything.”
Boyd and company ended up taking a year off to reflect on the past and create the material that would develop into “Light Grenades”: “During the break, everybody had a chance to rest and reassess and unpack and get to know families and friends again.”
“We basically let our lives fall apart and put them back together again; all the stuff you have to go through as a human being,” continued Boyd, who spent many weekends with grandparents in Chula Vista growing up. “So when we went back to start writing this album, there was no shortage of things to write about because we actually had a chance to live on the other side again. Touring is an amazing experience, but it's very sheltered and bubble-esque. We needed to break out of that.”
From the opening notes of the trip-hop tune “Quicksand” to the all-out rocking title track, “Light Grenades” shows a young band hitting its stride.
“I feel like this is our strongest record, in that it sounds more multidimensional than it does chaotic,” admitted Boyd. “On our other albums, one of the dark qualities, but also one of the endearing qualities, about us is we're all over the place. We do a little bit of this, little bit of this. On this record, we are still doing that, but it's in more of a mature way. We've found a way to do it that's not scatterbrained.”
By surviving the trials and tribulations of life in the music business, Incubus has emerged as a more cohesive unit. “Over the years we've not only learned restraint, but we've actually learned how to craft a song and how to craft a memorable album and how to put on a memorable concert and how to do it in a sustainable fashion. (And ) In way so we can actually do it every night.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
By Chris Nixon
For The Union-Tribune
January 11, 2007
Give us time to shine / Even diamonds start as coal sings Incubus vocalist Brandon Boyd on “Diamonds and Coal,” a track from the band's sixth full-length studio album, “Light Grenades.” Boyd uses the metaphor to describe a burgeoning romantic relationship (and learning to love instead of squabbling), but the 30-year-old singer could be talking about himself.
After 15 years honing his songwriting skills and maintaining a career in music, Boyd fine-tuned his vocal skills to evolve into one of rock's best singers.
“We formed the band in 1991,” recalled Boyd recently, as he prepared to start the band's current tour in Vancouver, B.C. “We started playing concerts shortly after that, playing people's backyards and bar mitzvahs and whatever we could get. When we started, I didn't know what I was doing. I can say that with pure confidence. I just knew that I liked it, and I knew there was an energy there that was very infectious.”
Born in the Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas, Incubus fought and clawed for gigs until earning a major-label contract with Immortal/Epic Records (a subsidiary of Sony) in 1996. The band's third studio album, “Make Yourself” (1999), yielded a single in “Pardon Me,” catapulting the five-piece group into the national spotlight. Mixing crunching guitars by Mike Einziger, scratching and samples from turntablist Chris Kilmore and Boyd's riveting melodies, Incubus built a sound all its own: softer than Korn, harder than Pearl Jam.
After five albums, years on the road and a nasty contract renegotiation with Sony, Boyd, Einziger, Kilmore, drummer Jose Pasillas and bassist Ben Kenney were mentally and physically exhausted.
“As a young band we just stayed on the road for 10 years,” said Boyd. “We'd come off to make a record, rest for two weeks and then go right back onto the road. We wanted to build our career by keeping that kind of pace. After doing that for 10 years, we got pretty burnt out with all the traveling and everything.”
Boyd and company ended up taking a year off to reflect on the past and create the material that would develop into “Light Grenades”: “During the break, everybody had a chance to rest and reassess and unpack and get to know families and friends again.”
“We basically let our lives fall apart and put them back together again; all the stuff you have to go through as a human being,” continued Boyd, who spent many weekends with grandparents in Chula Vista growing up. “So when we went back to start writing this album, there was no shortage of things to write about because we actually had a chance to live on the other side again. Touring is an amazing experience, but it's very sheltered and bubble-esque. We needed to break out of that.”
From the opening notes of the trip-hop tune “Quicksand” to the all-out rocking title track, “Light Grenades” shows a young band hitting its stride.
“I feel like this is our strongest record, in that it sounds more multidimensional than it does chaotic,” admitted Boyd. “On our other albums, one of the dark qualities, but also one of the endearing qualities, about us is we're all over the place. We do a little bit of this, little bit of this. On this record, we are still doing that, but it's in more of a mature way. We've found a way to do it that's not scatterbrained.”
By surviving the trials and tribulations of life in the music business, Incubus has emerged as a more cohesive unit. “Over the years we've not only learned restraint, but we've actually learned how to craft a song and how to craft a memorable album and how to put on a memorable concert and how to do it in a sustainable fashion. (And ) In way so we can actually do it every night.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
Dead Rock West
Frank Lee Drennen takes another career twist with a new band
By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
January 4, 2007
The early days with Christopher Hoffee in a duo called Homer Gunn (named after his grandpa); the gritty country rock of the Hatchet Brothers with friend Gregory Page during a lengthy residency at the Ould Sod; the visceral rock of his on-again, off-again band Loam ... from country troubadour to distortion-driven rocker, former San Diego musician Frank Lee Drennen discovers imaginative ways to reinvent himself with each turn of his multifaceted career.
Dead Rock West features Cindy Wasserman and Frank Lee Drennen, a former San Diegan who still fronts the band Loam.
With his new band, Dead Rock West, Drennen finds himself strumming pleasant roots rock with vocalist Cindy Wasserman, multi-instrumentalist Phil Parlapiano (mandolin, organ), drummer Bryan Head and bassist David J. Carpenter.
“I'm definitely one of those people that feels most comfortable doing a lot of different projects,” Drennen said recently from his home in Los Angeles. “But Dead Rock West is easily and by far my priority. Side projects are good for me to help stir my imagination.”
Drennen will be pulling double duty at tonight's show at The Casbah (which also features San Diego's Truckee Brothers), both with Loam (expected to release a new disc in 2007) and Dead Rock West.
His “priority” band is set to issue “Honey and Salt” this month. Driven by the vocal harmonies between Wasserman and Drennen, this beautifully constructed album finds the veteran San Diego musician in rare form.
On the chemistry between Wasserman and himself, Drennen admits: “It just really clicked, the two voices. It was something special that you don't get very often. I learned how to harmonize listening to Byrds' records. I love harmonies.”
Mixed by the well-traveled Richard Dodd, “Honey and Salt” oozes the well-crafted country rock feel of some his former employers: early Wilco, Tom Petty, and The Traveling Wilburys. After recording the album in L.A.'s Echo Park, Drennen cold-called Dodd to gauge his interest in working with a relatively new artist: “I asked if he would ever consider mixing someone who wasn't rich or famous.”
Dodd gives the album a subtle mix, seamlessly blending the harmonies, strings, pedal steel and mandolins into a cohesive whole.
“The thing I'm personally proud of with this record is it doesn't hit you over the head,” Drennen said. “But after you listen to it a few times, it starts grabbing you. My hope in this age of instant gratification is that people will give it the time to sink in. Because musically, we put everything we've got into it. And lyrically, I'm super proud of every song.”
On “Honey and Salt,” Drennen and the rest of Dead Rock West decided to stick with analog recording on 2-inch tape, as opposed to the industry standard of digital recording with programs like ProTools. According to Drennen, you can't hear the difference between analog and digital recording much these days. The primary distinction derives from the recording process.
Drennen explains: “With digital, you don't have to wait for the tape machine to rewind. So it's instantaneous: fast, fast, fast. You've got an unlimited number of tracks. But you could record 24 vocal tracks and edit them all together to make this super-Über Cindy or super-Über Frank.
“Working with tape is a little slower, but it allows you to gather yourself while you're rewinding. The record represents what we're able to do. It's not a fake version of what Dead Rock West is. In this day and age, it really makes us unique.”
On the topic of songwriting, Drennen collaborated with some of San Diego's elite musicians on “Honey and Salt.”
“I've actually done some co-writing with people from San Diego: 'Pretty Disaster' I wrote with Dave Howard; 'Desert Rose' I wrote with Jeff Berkley; 'All I Know' I wrote with Gregory (Page),” Drennen said. “There's a lot of San Diego representation. And just so you know, I live in Los Angeles, but I consider San Diego to be my circle, my original circle. That's where I learned to do what I do, from playing with those guys and going to their shows. That's my touchstone for me, and it still is.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
January 4, 2007
The early days with Christopher Hoffee in a duo called Homer Gunn (named after his grandpa); the gritty country rock of the Hatchet Brothers with friend Gregory Page during a lengthy residency at the Ould Sod; the visceral rock of his on-again, off-again band Loam ... from country troubadour to distortion-driven rocker, former San Diego musician Frank Lee Drennen discovers imaginative ways to reinvent himself with each turn of his multifaceted career.
Dead Rock West features Cindy Wasserman and Frank Lee Drennen, a former San Diegan who still fronts the band Loam.
With his new band, Dead Rock West, Drennen finds himself strumming pleasant roots rock with vocalist Cindy Wasserman, multi-instrumentalist Phil Parlapiano (mandolin, organ), drummer Bryan Head and bassist David J. Carpenter.
“I'm definitely one of those people that feels most comfortable doing a lot of different projects,” Drennen said recently from his home in Los Angeles. “But Dead Rock West is easily and by far my priority. Side projects are good for me to help stir my imagination.”
Drennen will be pulling double duty at tonight's show at The Casbah (which also features San Diego's Truckee Brothers), both with Loam (expected to release a new disc in 2007) and Dead Rock West.
His “priority” band is set to issue “Honey and Salt” this month. Driven by the vocal harmonies between Wasserman and Drennen, this beautifully constructed album finds the veteran San Diego musician in rare form.
On the chemistry between Wasserman and himself, Drennen admits: “It just really clicked, the two voices. It was something special that you don't get very often. I learned how to harmonize listening to Byrds' records. I love harmonies.”
Mixed by the well-traveled Richard Dodd, “Honey and Salt” oozes the well-crafted country rock feel of some his former employers: early Wilco, Tom Petty, and The Traveling Wilburys. After recording the album in L.A.'s Echo Park, Drennen cold-called Dodd to gauge his interest in working with a relatively new artist: “I asked if he would ever consider mixing someone who wasn't rich or famous.”
Dodd gives the album a subtle mix, seamlessly blending the harmonies, strings, pedal steel and mandolins into a cohesive whole.
“The thing I'm personally proud of with this record is it doesn't hit you over the head,” Drennen said. “But after you listen to it a few times, it starts grabbing you. My hope in this age of instant gratification is that people will give it the time to sink in. Because musically, we put everything we've got into it. And lyrically, I'm super proud of every song.”
On “Honey and Salt,” Drennen and the rest of Dead Rock West decided to stick with analog recording on 2-inch tape, as opposed to the industry standard of digital recording with programs like ProTools. According to Drennen, you can't hear the difference between analog and digital recording much these days. The primary distinction derives from the recording process.
Drennen explains: “With digital, you don't have to wait for the tape machine to rewind. So it's instantaneous: fast, fast, fast. You've got an unlimited number of tracks. But you could record 24 vocal tracks and edit them all together to make this super-Über Cindy or super-Über Frank.
“Working with tape is a little slower, but it allows you to gather yourself while you're rewinding. The record represents what we're able to do. It's not a fake version of what Dead Rock West is. In this day and age, it really makes us unique.”
On the topic of songwriting, Drennen collaborated with some of San Diego's elite musicians on “Honey and Salt.”
“I've actually done some co-writing with people from San Diego: 'Pretty Disaster' I wrote with Dave Howard; 'Desert Rose' I wrote with Jeff Berkley; 'All I Know' I wrote with Gregory (Page),” Drennen said. “There's a lot of San Diego representation. And just so you know, I live in Los Angeles, but I consider San Diego to be my circle, my original circle. That's where I learned to do what I do, from playing with those guys and going to their shows. That's my touchstone for me, and it still is.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
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