Juliana Hatfield: The Pencilstorm Interview - by Jeremy Porter

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST FOR THIS ARTICLE - Listen while you read!

Juliana Hatfield has been on a roll. Her last three records have arguably been some of the best work of her 33-year music career. Pussycat (2017), was an unplanned rally-cry against the Trump regime, sometimes more subtle than others, but never without her signature pop overtones and cutting lyrics. Weird (2019), her most current release, leaves the political sentiments behind in favor of a modern indie-pop-rock sound.  And the …Sings Olivia Newton-John (2018) covers collection, a nod to her musical hero, was nothing short of a masterpiece.  And then there’s the back catalog. Her first band Blake Babies were a bit less refined and polished, but brought a real charm to the table with that innocence, and her early solo records – including her commercial high-water mark The Juliana Hatfield Three – Become What You Are (with her biggest hit single “My Sister”) were staples of early 90’s alternative rock and MTV’s 120 Minutes.  

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The 20 years between this recent renaissance and her early alt-rock success were a little quieter for Juliana, in the world spotlight at least.  She delved into some side projects – Some Girls, Minor Alps (with Matthew Caws of Nada Surf), and The I Don’t Cares (with Paul Westerberg). There were Blake Babies and JH3 reunion albums and short tours, and a string of solo records and EPs that often cast-aside the ear-worm poppiness for a darker, more sparse and spacious sound. Her touring schedule slowed down considerably, and while she never disappeared from the public eye, sightings were certainly less frequent. In 2009 she published her auto-biography When I Grow Up: A Memoir, a revealing and compelling look into her career, anxieties, and personal life. 

On Friday night, Juliana will return to the Detroit area for the first time in 18 years, by my calculations, for a show at The Magic Bag in Ferndale (Get your tickets HERE!). It’s a short, 10-city US tour on the heels of a UK tour in May, and we can’t wait!

We were lucky to catch up with Juliana recently to chat about her recent resurgence, her history in the Motor City, and if we might ever get that follow-up to the I Don’t Cares’ record. 

Jeremy Porter: You seem to be on a great roll with the last couple records – Pussycat, Sings Olivia Newton John, and this year’s Weird.  You’ve been consistently active and busy, but this recent string of releases seems exceptionally inspired, and now you’re playing out more than you have in quite a while. What brought on that change and do it see it carrying forward? 

Juliana Hatfield: I just feel time moving faster than ever before. I feel an urgency to keep producing work and not stopping because the world is hurtling toward destruction, or something, and it will all be over soon so I may as well push really hard until we all hit the wall as a species. Plus, I have gotten to the point at which I have streamlined my life to accommodate work and not much else.

JP: Pussycat was a personal response to the political climate after the 2016 election. Looking at it a couple years later, where do think we’re at now?  Are we still in the same boat or can you see any rays of light on the horizon?

JH: I don't even like to think about it. I don't think things look very good.

JP: JHSONJ was my favorite record of 2018 and the reaction seemed universally positive. We’re you surprised at the reaction to that record?  Did anything unexpectedly special, personally or musically, come out of that experience? 

JH: I was surprised at the love it got, yes. I was afraid that people were going to think I committed sacrilege on her catalog or that I tainted her legacy, because Olivia is so loved and such an icon. But I am really happy that people responded positively to what I did. They understood that I just wanted to show how much love I feel for her and her music, and to share that love. It was wonderful and unexpected to hear from Olivia, personally. A couple of times she tweeted to and about me and the album. That was pretty great, to get her public seal of approval.

JP: Weird feels like a natural transition from Pussycat and JHSONJ – not so much lyrically but musically.  The guitar tones,  arrangements and riffs have a nice growth but a consistent feel that sort of takes your natural pop vocals and vocal melodies and puts them above a musical bed that weaves somewhere between 70s classic rock and indie-pop-rock. Do you approach the writing process with a direction in mind? Or do you just sit down and whatever happens, happens?  Can you expand on that a bit and how it might relate to the feel of this trilogy of records as compared to some of your previous releases?

 JH: I never have a direction plan when I sit down to write. I have an open mind. But I do have habits and things that I tend to do over and over again. I can't change my instincts. I have a certain aesthetic preferences, and I have a certain natural, personal style that I have settled into and I produce all my own stuff which is why my stuff lately tends to have a sound and a feel. It's raw and unpolished but also really melodic. I am also in love with the mellotron flutes sound on my Microkorg keyboard that I acquired about five years ago so that sound ends up on everything I do these days. No matter how gnarly the guitars get, I always like to mix in some keyboard flutes. It sounds good with everything.

JP: The recent reissues of Hey Babe and Only Everything were really well done, as was the Blake Babies Innocence and Experience, from the remastering to the packaging.  How closely were you involved in those projects?  Any plans to follow up with the `93 JH3 album or The Blake Babies’ Sunburn record (hint hint)? 

JH: I had nothing to do with the Only Everything re-release. The company doing it did not inform me that they were doing it, nor did they send me a copy. I don't own those masters ("OE") so that's how that was able to happen without my involvement. American Laundromat Records handled the other stuff, and they are great and I am personally in touch with them about all the other re-releases. I hope to do more re-issues with them. I want to do "Bed" on vinyl but I can't find the master tapes. I'll keep looking.

JP: The I Don’t Cares record really seemed to come out of nowhere to a lot of people, a wonderful surprise. Was that just a one-off or is there a possibility for further collaboration with Paul Westerberg?  We heard from him a bit around that release, but not so much from you – care to talk about that project a little?  

JH: It was a one-off but it could conceivably happen again in the future. It is up to Paul. I didn't talk much about the project in deference to Paul. It was mostly his songs and I thought I should step back and not be the mouthpiece.

JP: When you played in Detroit quite a few years back, at the Magic Stick, if I recall correctly, you mentioned during your set that your father was from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I am from Marquette, in the UP, so I have always wanted to follow up about this! Can you talk about that a little?  Where in the UP?  Have you spent time up there?  .  

JH: My dad was raised in Indiana but later in life ended up living in Houghton, Michigan. He got a job at a hospital up there.  That's where he died, in Houghton. My mother was raised in Detroit. I used to visit my grandparents in Birmingham when I was a kid.

JP: The Magic Bag Theater is a really nice room in Ferndale, Mi.  Great sound and an intimate vibe. What can we expect when you come to Detroit (Ferndale) in June?  Who is in the band, and will the setlist be pulled from your entire catalog?

JH: I am not sure yet who all will be in the band. But I know we'll be playing songs from all over my vast catalog.

JP: Any special stories, recollections, or feelings about playing or visiting Detroit or Michigan over the years?

JH: I've had some good show experiences there. Lots of fun times. Playing with Jeff Buckley was fun.

JP: What's next for you after the tour?  I think I saw some recent photos from a recording studio? 

JH: I am in the studio now trying to finish up a new album before I go to Europe at the end of May.

JP: Thanks Juliana – we’ll see you in Ferndale! 

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Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos - www.thetucos.com

Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit -
www.facebook.com/jeremyportermusic 


Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic | www.rockandrollrestrooms.com

 

A Baseball Song For Your Father's Day - by Colin Gawel

Dad Can’t Help You Now - by Colin Gawel

If you have worn out your copy of Cats in the Cradle by Father's Day, please give this song two minutes and thirty-four seconds of your time. Dad Can't Help You Now tells the story of a nervous father watching his young son attempt to pitch out of a bases-loaded jam in "the last game of the season." It resonates with any parent who has struggled with their emotions while watching their kids play youth sports. It is a song for Dad on his day (or any day) and also seeks to take its place in the National Pastime Songbook alongside songs like Glory Days and Centerfield.

Official music video for Colin Gawel's "Dad Can't Help You Now." The single is available on "Superior: The Best of Colin Gawel" released by Mike Landolt's Curry House Records. More at www.colingawel.com. Video directed by Wal Ozello, produced by Maria Clark, director of photography Alex Williams, edited and visual effects by Eric "Bing" Ringquist, and features Sam Ozello and Tim Baldwin.


You can download a copy of the song with this SoundCloud link.

Click here to find it on Spotify and add it to a playlist.


What do critics think of it?


"Rather than trying to shrug off the dad-rock label, Colin Gawel's 'Dad Can't Help You Now' fully embraces a part of this Watershed songwriter's life that is entirely inseparable from the artist he has become. Gawel refuses to rest on the laurels of his youth, instead turning his keen eye to the boy standing right in front of him."
- Joel Oliphint / Pitchfork, Columbus Alive

"Colin is one of the few songwriters who survives the transition from adolescent rock and roll to songs that describe the condition of growing older. "Dad Can't Help You Now" is a guaranteed heart tugger for anyone who has ever had kids. It is full of kindness, wisdom and great songwriting."
- Eric Zimmer / host, The One You Feed Podcast.

"Colin Gawel is a great voice of America and this is a great song of America's pastime."
- Lou Brutus / Nationally Syndicated Rock Radio Host

"Our listeners and community love Colin Gawel and his music! And what a great song to get you excited for baseball season and perfect for Father's Day weekend"
- Maggie Brennan / Music Director, Host of Global Village WCBE 90.5FM

Lyrics

It's the last game of the season, you are standing out on the mound
Bases loaded, score is tied and the batter has a full count
And you are staring in at the catcher and I've never been more proud
But my heart shakes buddy cause Dad can't help you now

I'd trade every kiss i ever got to get you one more strike
I'd volunteer to paint the Eiffel Tower for a lazy fly ball to right
Now remember that it's just a game but don't forget to cover home
you're not alone out there but Dad can't help you now

Now the trick to life is to get back up after you get knocked down
and winning's fun but you learn a lot more when you get punched in the mouth
now i know these things but I'd still prefer to never see you frown.
to never see you frown

Now the pitch looked good to me, but the ump he didn't agree
and as the winning run it crossed home plate, you turned and looked at me
And you're fighting back those tears as you slowly walk off the mound
and my heart breaks buddy but Dad can't help you now
You'll get em next time buddy but Dad can't help you now.

Credits

Dad Can't Help You Now - by Colin Gawel
Superior - The Best of Colin Gawel
Produced by Mike Landolt for Curryhouse Records
Recorded by Rick Kinsinger


Lima is Alright! Cheap Trick Live Wednesday, June 12th - by Colin Gawel

Budgetwise, I always figured Lima, Ohio as more of a Foghat town. But I guess that’s not fair considering I’ve never seen a show in Lima. In fact, I’ve never met anybody who has ever seen a show in Lima. Still, the city council must have passed that hat or cut the 4th of July Fireworks expenses because Cheap Trick will be playing at the Lima Civic Center Wednesday June 12th. Click here for ticket info.

If you are wondering why Cheap Trick is playing a Wednesday night in Lima, join the club, but it’s just par for the course these days. Cheap Trick has moved into completely uncharted territory for a band of their pedigree and history. THREE NEW RECORDS in less than FOUR years plus the usual non-stop touring. No gig seems to be too big or too small. In the entire history of rock n roll, I can find nothing comparable to what Trick are doing in the later stages of their career. They are playing like a band still trying to make the rock n roll hall of fame. Heck, they have 60 more shows scheduled in 2019, including Madison, WI the night after this gig. Whew.

A very wise man once said “Everything Works If You Let It,” and Cheap Trick cannot or will not stop working. We are all the luckier for it. Catch em’ while you can. There will never be another rock band quite like them. To learn more and have some fun, just Google the words: Cheap Trick Pencilstorm. Hope to see you in Lima. I’ll be about 15 rows back having my faced melted by Tom Peterson’s 12 string bass.

Listen while you read! Click Here for a Spotify Playlist of recent Cheap Trick Tunes (and a couple Watershed too).

Colin Gawel plays both solo and in Watershed. Cheap Trick is the reason they started a band in 7th grade.


Pencil Storm & Proust, Remembrance of Bands Past, part one: 98 Colours - by JCE (intro by Ricki C.)

When I first received this piece from the best friend I have whom I have never actually met in person - JCE - his main question was, “Is a blog about a band from the 1980’s nobody has ever heard of outside of Virginia a proper topic for a Pencil Storm article?” My reply – of course – was, “That’s EXACTLY what a Pencil Storm article should be.”

My thought is: probably every 10th or 20th Pencil Storm reader has a band in their past that nobody outside their circle of friends has ever heard of. (For example: My lovely wife Debbie’s version would be The Lindley Boys, a kind-of new wave power-pop cover band that employed her childhood boy-next-door friend Jay as soundman.) (For that matter, mine might have been Willie Phoenix’s 1978 band, Romantic Noise.) Does that make that band any less important or – more particularly – any less LOVED than Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Motley Crue, Mumford & Sons, (or, in Colin’s case, KISS), etc.? My main problem with the The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is that it’s core CONCEPT is far too ELITIST. Rock & roll is an art form that ANYBODY can – and has – mastered. And the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame caters only to The Stars of the form. History is written by the winners: The Eagles, Queen, Journey, Bon Jovi and Radiohead are in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; The MC5 and Mott The Hoople are not.

Myself, I subscribe more to Ian Hunter’s point of view in The Ballad of Mott The Hoople, March 26, 1972 – “Rock & roll’s a loser’s game / It mesmerizes and I can’t explain / The reasons for the sights and for the sounds.” Here’s a blog about a band you never heard, or heard OF. (From what I’m reading here, by JCE, I bet you would’ve liked ‘em.) – Ricki C. / June 3rd, 2019.


REMEMBERING THE GOOD TIMES I HAD HANGING OUT WITH A BAND CALLED 98 COLOURS

by JCE

For a few golden years around 1985-1988 or so, I spent a lot of time with a band called 98 Colours, making new friends and even being a roadie for a few days. I was living in Charlottesville, VA, where I attended the University of Virginia from 1981-1986. I was always on the hunt for good bands. Charlottesville had a pretty decent music scene, with clubs like the Mineshaft, Trax and the C&O. Bands like the The Deal and the Michael Guthrie Band, which were great power pop bands, were percolating around the area providing a good local scene along with touring acts that came through my college town. My favorite band, although far from the biggest, was 98 Colours. I became good friends with them: Randy, David & John. I want to share a few stories about the good times I had with this band called 98 Colours.

A Slow Start…

I had a college buddy that always went to rock n roll shows with me. After about a year of finding nothing but boring rhythm ‘n blues bands like The Skip Castro Band and Johnny Sportcoat & the Casuals, we started to discover some of the aforementioned bands that were more up our alley, so to speak. After seeing 98 Colours open for someone and liking their sound quite a bit, we started to look out for them. One night we saw that they were on a bill with a psychedelic garage rock band on tour called Plan 9. We headed to the C&O for the show. 98 Colours never played and we left after a couple of electric organ-drenched tunes from Plan 9. Years later, Randy still swears that 98 Colours never had that gig. I contend that they probably got to drinking that afternoon and blew it off. I guess we’ll never know for sure. So I guess you could say that my love of the band got off to a slow start.

Randy (bass and vocals)…

In my grad school year of college (1985-86) I had a friend who began dating Randy and she knew that I liked 98 Colours. She also thought Randy and I would get along. So one night, Randy put me on the guest list for a show they had at the Mineshaft. 98 Colours was the only band on the bill, so they played a couple of sets that night. Between the first and second sets, Randy came and sat at the bar with me. We had a great conversation and I found him to be a really genuine person right away. If I remember correctly I was watching my favorite baseball team, the Boston Red Sox, on the bar TV that night. I mention this because a year later I was temporarily living on Randy’s couch and surviving on cheese sandwiches, and one night we were watching the 1986 World Series, the one the Sox lost when Bill Buckner (R.I.P.) let a routine grounder go between his legs. Anyway, LeRoi Moore was there hanging out, and he bet me five bucks the Mets would win. They did, and I paid up. LeRoi (R.I.P.) was a sax player that would occasionally play a few songs with 98 Colours. Of course he became rich and famous years later playing in the Dave Matthews Band before his untimely death in 2008. I often think about the fact that I lost a five dollar bet to a guy who, according to the internet, eventually had a net worth north of $40 million. Anyway, at this point, Randy and I had become close friends.

Little Sister… and the 98 Colours Crew…

Soon after meeting Randy and becoming friends with him, as well as Dave, his brother, I started dating a girl who I took out to Trax one night when 98 Colours was playing. I remember saying to her, “Hey those guys up there are friends of mine, they’re super nice.” She then says to me, “I know they’re nice, they’re my brothers.” That was a shock. Of course I thought right away that it was probably not too cool to be dating my good friends’ little sister. But no one seemed to have any problem with it, and we flamed out pretty quickly anyway. I went to see 98 Colours at every opportunity. There was a group of people that I got very close to. All of them grew up around Charlottesville and none attended UVA. I had gotten my undergraduate degree in the spring of 1985 and most of my college friends had graduated and left. I stayed at school to pursue a Masters degree, and I liked some of my fellow students, but I LOVED the people I met through 98 Colours. There was a crew of people around that band that I will never, ever forget.

Being the Opening Band…

98 Colours played a lot at the Mineshaft and Trax, often headlining, but sometimes opening for bigger bands. I remember talking to Randy, David & John years later and asking them about some of the bands they got to open for. The Neighborhoods were always cool, and they slept on the couches of my closest friends on several occasions. But 98 Colours agreed that one of the nicest, and best bands they ever got to play with was Jason and the Scorchers. That particular show was also one of the best sets I ever saw 98 Colours play. There was general agreement that the biggest jerks they ever had to deal with were The Replacements. That does nothing to dampen my enthusiasm for one of the greatest bands ever, but true to their reputation, The Replacements were apparently drunk, ornery, and not much fun to be around.

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Clipping from a Charlottesville newspaper – I have every demo they ever made, but

unfortunately 98 Colours never made a proper record.

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Flyer for the Scorchers show with “special guests” 98 Colours

The “Tour”… and my big chance to live the rock n roll life of a roadie…

I got out of grad school at UVA in the spring of 1986 with a Master’s degree. (editor’s note; Holy shit, Colin, were we aware Pencil Storm is employing bloggers with Master’s degrees? Are we BUDGETED for this? I think Anne Marie is our only other shot at this higher education bracket.) Time for the real world, but I decided to delay it a bit longer, as I had no desire to immediately get serious about a career. I took a job doing outdoor maintenance and stayed in Charlottesville to keep partying with 98 Colours and the crew. I got my friend, who was still Randy’s girlfriend, a job at the same company. That summer, 98 Colours manager/friend Maynard organized a mini ‘tour’ down through North Carolina. The band would play the Fallout Shelter in Raleigh, Ziggy’s in Winston-Salem and the New Deli in Greenville. The band asked me to join them for the trip. I was thrilled. On a Thursday morning (I think), Maynard and Dave took a car and John and Randy took a car and they headed to Raleigh. Randy’s girlfriend and I had to work, so the two of us left that evening. We arrived at the Fallout Shelter just in time to see the opening band pack up. 98 Colours followed with a great headlining set. After the show, we all set about the task of finding someone willing to put us up. I hit it off with a young lady attending N.C. State who had a house nearby which she assured me had a couple of couches, but by the time I informed the rest of the crew they already had been promised accommodations on the floor of a nearby apartment. Their loss, my gain.

When we met up again the next morning, John (drummer) switched to my car for the remainder of the trip so Randy could ride with his girl. John is an awesome guy to be around. I treasure the couple of days I had travelling with him, my Ford Escort loaded with drums and Milwaukee’s Best beer. Our next stop was Winston-Salem. We washed up after the drive in a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant bathroom and then went to Ziggy’s to set up and drink some (more) beers. It was a beautiful day, which was fortunate since the bands play outside at Ziggy’s. I danced some at this show and it was really fun with all of us hanging out really late afterwards. John had a hilarious drunken “dance-off” with a guy who was a Marine that was there. The Marine finally admitted defeat when John did an amazing super-speed version of a dance called the Potato Digger that just couldn’t be matched. We slept on the floor at someone’s house and got up the next morning for the final leg of the “tour.” My car had received a parking ticket which I threw away.

The final gig in Greenville was an opening slot for Southern Culture on the Skids. The venue, The New Deli, offered all of us free food and it was the best meal we had gotten since we left Charlottesville. 98 Colours played to an enthusiastic crowd of East Carolina University students. After the set, Randy, John and I went out back to the parking lot while the others stayed inside to watch Southern Culture’s set. After a few minutes hanging out by our cars drinking more cheap beer, three police cars screamed into the parking lot and gave us all drinking in public tickets. That one I paid. That was the entirety of my career as a roadie, except for one other show in Richmond, VA when I lugged equipment for 98 Colours opening for the Neighborhoods at a club called New Horizons.

Grateful for the Impact on My Life…

Randy, Dave & John all turned me on to new music, and that is something for which I am truly grateful. All of them had great taste in music. I used to feed Randy’s bird when he was out of town and he encouraged me to hang out in his apartment for as long as I wanted and sample his record collection. I recall discovering the Screaming Tribesmen (from Australia) and also the Outlets. I still love those bands. I have many, many stories related to 98 Colours and my friends that were part of the Charlottesville music scene. My wife, Janet, was away at Old Dominion University during most of these adventures, but she grew up with these guys and she knew them long before I did. We’ve been married 28 years now and I probably would never have even met her if it weren’t for the 98 Colours crew. Randy and Dave were in our wedding party. My life would be much different without them.

Thank you guys, truly.

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I skated relentlessly back then and Randy knew he had a fan when I painted their logo onto my favorite ride.

(editor’s note: If any of our other Pencil Storm writers or - even better - any of our Pencil Storm READERS would like to contribute to the Pencil Storm & Proust series, please feel free to send a submission to Pencilstormstory@gmail.com.)

Ricki C. and JCE (John, to his friends & family) first bonded over their shared mutual love of Boston's Finest Sons - The Neighborhoods - and everything extended out from that rock & roll ripple.  JCE lives in Culpeper, Virginia with his wife & daughter, and he & Ricki are STILL waiting for the long-rumored NEW Neighborhoods record to be released. Maybe in 2019.

Catching Up With Jeremy Porter - by Colin Gawel

Jeremy Porter is a regular contributor to Pencilstorm. He is also an accomplished musician who records and tours with both his band the Tucos and solo. Since he is usually he is the one usually doing the interviews, we thought it would be fun to turn the tables and ask him some questions about his latest release, EP 1987. - Colin G.

1) So where did the inspiration for your new solo EP 1987 come from?

Hey Colin! Well, we had a lineup change in the Tucos over the holidays, with Patrick out on bass and Bob Moulton coming in. We've done just a couple shows (including Bob's first show with us, in Columbus with the Bowlers in January) and have been hyper-focused on new material for a new record. As is my normal process, I write way more songs than we'll need, and a lot of the leftovers are throwaways, but some are decent songs that just don't really have a place with the new Tucos material.  So with The Tucos being off the road and nothing new coming out in the near future, a few songs without a home, and an itch to get out on the road, I decided to throw it together quickly and get it out. GTG Records said "hell yeah," in their usual super-supportive way, and there we have it.

2) How is it different than recording with the Tucos?

It's completely different. I engineered it myself in my basement, and had only myself to look to for quality control. That's not necessarily a good thing, but it sure is liberating and convenient. I asked Gabriel to mix it, not only because he's talented and has a great ear, but because he knows what I am after and he'll (hopefully) let me know if something sucks. The Tucos, on the other hand, take a much more labored, deliberate approach. We work the hell out of the songs to varying degrees, then demo them in the basement, then record them properly at The Loft with Tim and/or Andy Patalan. There's a lot of collaboration between the band and with the Patalans, and it takes a lot longer. They're both good approaches - each has is pros and cons - but they are very different. 

3) It is definitely more stripped down than your recent  recordings at The Loft, was this the plan all along or did it just happen organically?

It was the plan. All at once I had a bunch of solo shows booked - some Michigan dates with NP Presley and The Ghost of Jesse Garon, a farm show down in Kentucky, shows in Ohio and West Virginia.  When I realized I had the songs, and I had the shows, I had a very short window to record-mix-master-manufacture & release.  It had to be stripped down.  But the material calls for that anyway.    

4) Where did that cover photo come from?

That's me sitting in the back of my dad's Toyota pickup truck in the Marquette Senior High School parking lot in the spring of 1987, leading into graduation. Tim Demarte, one of my best friends, always had a camera handy. I was smoking a cigarette and we were probably trying to figure out where we were going to go get high. I'm wearing a Milwaukee Zoo t-shirt I bought at the zoo the same day we saw Hüsker Dü down there not long before that photo. I look pretty pissed off. I was probably thinking, "I better look cool, this might end up on an album cover someday." 

5) You recently covered "Christmas in Washington" by Steve Earle and I can detect some of his influence on the new EP. Did recording that song open a new creative door for you ?

Yeah, it seems every year either The Tucos or myself solo are doing a song for a holidays comp. We've got a handful and keep wanting to release a Christmas EP and one of these years it's gonna happen. I always prefer to record and play with The Tucos over solo, but the Steve Earle song came together because we were in the middle of the Patty-to-Bob change in the Tucos and I needed it quick, and I'd wanted to do it for awhile.  The only door it really opened is that I played slide on it, and I've been getting a lot more into that. I've been playing lap steel for a couple years now, but this is just slide guitar. Well, Joe Walsh I ain't by a mile, but there'll be a little slide on the next Tucos record and hopefully in the live set too.  

6) As usual, all the guitars sound amazing. Tell me a little about Reverend guitars?

Thanks, man! Reverend guitars was started by Joe Naylor and is basically run by Ken Haas, a guy I've known for 30 years, played a million punk and other shows with, and we remain good friends. It was a Michigan company for a long time but they moved to Ohio, just outside of Toledo a couple years back. They make an affordable line of guitars that for my money stand up to just about anything out there on the market. I can't fawn over them enough. I've been playing a couple of the Pete Anderson signature hollow-bodies for years. To be honest, I've been trying for the last couple to put them down - just purely for the sake of mixing it up a bit. I've got a lot of guitars and most of them don't get played until we record. I took the Tele to the UK last year, I've got some Gibsons I've brought out, but I keep going back to the Reverends. They stay in tune, they keep their intonation, they sound and play amazing, even after bouncing around the back of the van for long runs. I'm addicted. I need help! I'm honored to be one of their "Featured Artists" but this isn't a commercial - they make a great instrument!     

7) Between all your music, touring and writing it seems you always have something going on. What is the secret to your productivity? Yoga? Trucker speed? Do tell.  

Man, that's a good question. I have a lot going for me, for starters. I have a really supportive wife, a demanding but flexible job, no kids, and bandmates that are all-in and can almost keep up. A few things have happened in the last decade that have put things in perspective for me: previous band breakups, getting older, health things, people dying, and I just have this feeling like I'm on the clock and don't want to waste another minute. There's certainly some OCD at play in there too. I just can't be idle. I go nuts and get depressed.

Another factor is that I am just resigned to being perpetually exhausted. It's not that I have endless energy, I just think that going to or playing shows is more important than a good night's sleep or being tired at work the next day. You'll rebound, you can always catch up on sleep, but if you miss seeing Ex Hex, you're going to regret it forever! People get so wrapped up in getting enough rest and watching TV and staring at their phones that they never go out. I enjoy that stuff too, but I'm not ready to do it seven nights a week yet.

8) I assume you will be hitting the road for some shows. Will you be playing more solo dates or will the Tucos be coming along too?

I just wrapped up a couple runs of solo shows. I've got my EP release show next weekend with Shane Sweeney and Todd May coming through Detroit to play that with me (look for a Pencilstorm article later this week!).  The Tucos have a couple shows coming up, then we're gonna spend the rest of the summer finishing the writing of the next record.  In September and October we'll hit the road hard, break in all of the new material, get some good miles in, then come back and start the record right off the road before the holidays.

9) What’s up with your book Rock And Roll Restrooms - A Photographic Memoir?

I've got another small batch of prototypes printed up and they're at the merch table and the shows these days. Still looking for a publisher who can help me get it out there at an affordable price and in greater numbers, but it's all me at the moment.  I'm pretty wrapped up in making music and don't have the time to really shop it, so I just try to keep it in conversation when I can. One day I hope someone will help get it out there. The owner of Howard's Club H in Bowling Green recently had the cover framed for the bar - that's their bathroom on the cover.  I can't wait to get back there to see it!  Meanwhile you can follow me on Instagram @onetogive and #rockandrollrestrooms to keep up on all the great cans in the dive-bar circuit.

10) Final question, you have played so many different places, what are a couple of your favorite places to perform outside the USA?

We toured the UK last fall and had a couple great shows - London, Workington, and Ilfracombe come to mind. I love Montreal.  We play a super-fun show up there every September for my pal Eric who does a charity golf tournament, and we play the draft/kickoff show. The theme is Hungover Golf. We don't golf, but we contribute to the hangover. London, Ontario has been fun the couple times we've played there - lots of good people.   

Domestically, Lexington, Kentucky is wonderful. I have so many good friends down there who are really supportive. It gets crazy in the best way and it's super-positive.   Huntington, West Virginia has been great the last couple years. Detroit is great as long as we spread it out. In Ohio our best city is probably Dayton. We love Columbus, tons of friends and so much great music out of there, but it hasn't been our best city. We need to keep working on that, man!!! 

Click here to learn more at Jeremy Porter Music.

Five Life-Changing Concerts - by Jeremy Porter

Spotify Playlist for this article! Listen while you read!

Alice Cooper - Thunder Bay Drive-In, Alpena, MI, July 5, 1981 - My first concert, held at the same drive-in where I saw Star Wars a few years earlier and I got busted for being smuggled through the gate in a car trunk a year or two later. These were the dark, cocaine years for Alice. We were way into the 1980 Flush the Fashion record, but not as much into Special Forces, which he was supporting that summer. I remember the snake, the guillotine, the volume, and the smell of weed. I also remember The Rockets - a popular Detroit band at the time that opened. It was a cool “first” and belongs on this list for that reason alone, plus it’s Alice, but other than that it wasn’t particularly noteworthy.  

Dead Kennedys - Riverside Ballroom, Green Bay, WI, Nov 2, 1985 - This was my first punk show. I was pretty green, hanging with guys mostly 3-5 years older than me, who somehow agreed to meet my parents and then let me tag along for the four hour drive from Marquette, Michigan to Green Bay, Wisconsin. I got caught up in the moment and dove into the massive sea of slam dancing during the opening set by The Crusties. Some giant dude with a spiked mohawk head-butted me and I went down hard, got picked up, and found my way back to my friends. I shook it off and started to rebound, but then the walls started to close in, I started seeing spots, and thought I might puke. I made it to the bathroom where a couple dudes commented about how fucked up I was (I wasn’t) as I realized I didn’t actually have to puke. I walked out of the bathroom, made eye-contact with a couple of my friends across the floor, and hit the ground. They ran over, picked me up and sat me down, also assuming I was wasted, and the night went on. Eventually I was able to collect myself. I had a splitting headache, like migraine-level, but I managed to enjoy direct support The Magnolias (a great band to this day from Minneapolis), and the DK’s. They were great - and played pretty much everything we wanted to hear. I’d never seen so many wonderful freaks in one place, and I felt like I got away with something being there, but I learned a valuable lesson in the pit at that show that I never forgot.  

After the show, my pal Tommy was walking around with only one shoe, the other lost to the same pit that did me in, and Carl couldn’t find his keys. To make matters worse, the dome light of his red `82 Olds Omega was left on, shining down like a beacon from Heaven through the smoky haze above a precarious, still-smoldering, translucent-blue plastic water bong sitting nicely on the console between the two front seats. Somehow we avoided getting arrested and got back on the road. Soon after that, the bong would tip over and spill really, really nasty bong-water on the floor behind the driver’s seat, creating a stench that not only made the already miserable drive back to Marquette the next morning unbearable, but stayed with that car for the remainder of its life.

13 years later I was back in Green Bay, on tour with my own band, and we took in a Face To Face show on a night off. I started talking to a guy working the show and told him the head-butt story. Turns out he was one of the dudes in the bathroom.  He even remembered what I was wearing. Crazy.

Ramones - Harpo’s - Detroit, MI, September 24, 1988 - Harpo’s is a big theater in a bad neighborhood in Detroit that caters primarily to metal. The Ramones were touring in support of their Ramonesmania collection and it would be their last tour with Dee Dee. The Dickies opened, who I knew from their Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath covers, and they were great.  Their singer Leonard Graves Phillips had an arm’s length penis puppet that was hilarious. The Ramones came out and basically destroyed the room. It was one after another after another great song, played with precision and purpose, with no breaks, no breaths. It was a 90-minute onslaught of rock and roll perfection. They were all business and masters of their craft. We got to meet Joey and Johnny afterward. It was the best concert and they were the best live band I’ve ever seen.

Social Distortion - Blondie’s, Detroit MI, October 2, 1988 - (One week after the Ramones show.) SD wasn’t really on my radar, it was a Sunday night, and I had to work early on Monday. It was unseasonably cold too  - with that dry, southeastern Michigan wind that just cuts right through you. And Blondie’s wasn’t exactly an easy hang. It was a dump in a nasty neighborhood. You were just as likely to get your head kicked in or mugged in the parking lot as you were seeing a good show. I had a list of excuses a mile long, but my roommate and one of our friends talked me into it and I’m glad they did. Social Distortion came on and I was sold. Great songs with hooks, some even about girls, but also a dark side, an angst that was distinctly punk. And they had guitar solos. Not the kind of beautiful, noisy chaos that Bob Mould or Greg Ghin created, but more thought out, arranged solos that stuck with you. There was a dude with a tattooed necklace of skulls that grabbed the microphone from Mike Ness at least a couple times during their set to angrily berate the 25 or so people there that they weren’t even punk enough to be there, and as one of the least-punk people there, I was scared for my life. And then Mike Ness did one of the most punk things he could have - he announced they were about to play a Johnny Cash song, and if that wasn’t punk enough, you can just get the fuck out. In 1988, Johnny Cash was not cool. For me, at least, that changed at that moment. I’d go on to see SD another dozen or so times, some crazier than others, and they are the reason I now listen to everything that branched out from hearing “Walk the Line” that night - Waylon, Patsy, Hag, Gram, Willie, Dwight, on and on. After the show we partied with the band for a while. It was a life-changing night.  

The Replacements - Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor, MI, April 6, 1986 - It was still winter and freezing in Marquette as we piled into Jim’s blue 1973 Camaro for the eight-hour drive to Ann Arbor.  The frame was rusted out and broken so they put me in the back, driver’s side, to minimize the weight resting on the fracture. Every bump in the road was a hard jolt to my rib cage. We left early - like 4am early - and arrived in Ann Arbor, where spring had sprung, and started partying.  At one point we were in the basement of the Nectarine Ballroom, formerly known as the Second Chance, where everyone from Cheap Trick to the Ramones (and The Replacements a year earlier) cut their teeth, drinking Chambord from the bottle and partying with someone who worked there. At another point we were “bugging” Bob Stinson for an autograph in Schoolkids Records, next to the venue, which is the perfect place to hang if you don’t want to be bothered by fans. When the band came on without Bob I was crushed.  All that effort and that painful drive and we weren’t even going to get the full band, but after a couple covers with stand-in guitarists, Bob came out and they were amazing. It was so loud, and they were at their peak - still wasted, but not to the point of a debacle. If you know about The Replacements, this was one of the “good” shows. I remember feeling like I was so lucky to be there. It was everything rock and roll was supposed to be. It was not lost on me that it was an important night. This is top-two, with The Ramones show. It was later chronicled in Creem Magazine.  


Three Honorable Mentions:

Mudhoney - The Beat, Ann Arbor, MI, October 27, 1988 - Later known as Club Heidelberg and currently known as The Club Above.  My buddy had heard good things about Mudhoney and said we had to go. I didn’t know them going in, but I sure did after. A local. mediocre, metal band opened. At one point during their set, Mudhoney said they weren’t going to play anymore until they got paid, and that the guy with the mustache was ripping them off (promoter Martin?, RIP I think). I was one of about 15 people there, and I started the chant “Kill the guy with the mustache! Kill the guy with the mustache!” The band soon joined in too, but it was all in good, drunken fun. They played an incredible, loud, aggresive set, and it was pretty clear at that moment that something new and special was coming from Seattle on the musical horizon.  

Bleached - Polish National Alliance Hall (Lounge), Hamtramck, MI, April 26, 2103 To set the scene, my wife, much cooler than I, was in main hall watching Easy Action. Front-man John Brannon (ex-Laughing Hyenas and Negative Approach) is as angry a dude (on stage, not in person) as you’ll find, screaming like a banshee and spitting like a viper, looking like the last thing you’d want to see in a dark alley. They are fast and loud, bombastic and aggressive. I get it, it’s beautiful in it’s own way, but I usually like my rock and roll with a little sweet sauce, some nice hooks and melodies, so after a couple songs I meandered into the adjacent lounge where a band from Los Angeles was playing on the floor to an engaged audience of about 30. Now THIS was my thing - great hooks, poppy-surfy guitars, and three girls and a dude who were swinging their hair, smiling, and having a fun time. It was a lucky accident that I saw them and I’m a fan for life. I’m still scared of John Brannon.  

Tom Waits - Orpheum Theater, Memphis, TN, August 4, 2006 I’ve had the good fortune of seeing Tom Waits seven times, including a special night at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, and a secret, last-minute show at the House of Blues in Cleveland that started at 2:30 am and ended at nearly 5am. He’s something else, for sure. The Memphis show sticks out because it was the first time I saw him, we had great seats, and I was just astounded at how goddamn good he was. What a master musician, and the music he makes is the the most pure, primitive, and real that there is. Not sure there will be another chance, but everyone should go if they can.     

Jeremy Porter lives near Detroit and fronts the rock and roll band Jeremy Porter And The Tucos - www.thetucos.com

Follow them on Facebook to read his road blog about their adventures on the dive-bar circuit -
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Twitter: @jeremyportermi | Instagram: @onetogive & @jeremyportermusic | www.rockandrollrestrooms.com