Lost Ring In Armenia.

Words: Mitchell Peters

I don't remember how this story starts. It's not a story, though. It's a tale. Not typical. Actually, I dont even know what a tale is. OK. It takes place in this little country called Armenia. It's tiny; I'm not exaggerating. Have you heard of the place, dear reader? Of course you have. Hey, do me a favor. Go to your nearest map/globe and find the country. It borders Turkey and Russia. And a couple others, too. I know what the other countries are, but I'd rather not tell you. You'll find out if you go and look for yourself. It'll be worth it, trust me. Do you trust me? Yes. Anyway. I was in Armenia with a handful of students from Fresno State. July 2005. Have you heard of Fresno? It's a town in Central California. It's hot. Dry. Desert. Or so they say. Roll down your car windows in the summer. No air conditioning. What do you call that? Armenian air conditioning. That's what someone once told me. Maybe my brother-in-law. Or my cousin. Some people like Fresno; others don't. I like certain aspects of it. My house if one of those aspects. It's peaceful: grapevines and pink sunsets. Quarter-mile driveway. Wild dogs. Rooney. Coyotes screaming at night. Packs of them. Stray cats. Lizards. Soaring hawks. Oh, how I love watching the hawks. Sixty-foot pine trees. My dad's '77 golden El Camino all original. Dirt roads. Shattered windows. Sheds with lime green chemicals inside. Tractors. Many tractors: green and red. A long canal with tadpoles; sometimes small fish. Quiet. A chemical plant down the road. An orange orchard across the street. Acres of plums in my front yard. Almonds. Flames. Raisins. Fowler. Planted with Armenian hands. Yes. Armenian hands. Not mine. Family that came before me. Many years before me. Sounds good, right? It is. But there's something that saddens me. And angers me at the same time. Track homes. But we won't get into that. They won't destroy my property. I'll stop now since you have no idea what I'm talking about. Or do you? It doesn't matter. Let's get back to the story - I mean - tale. Tail. I was about to tell it, remember? Tangents.

The tale is about a ring. The ring is silver. I wear it on my right hand almost every day. On the fourth finger from my thumb. I don't know what that finger is called. I don't care. Now, I don't wear this particular ring on special occasions. I save my Madrid ring for that. I got it in Spain. Madrid. Miriam. Madness. Denmark. Copenhagen. Pilgrimage. Breathtaking. Random art museums. Sol. OK, I'm done now. Tangents, dont you love 'em? The ring (not the Madrid one) has a black line going around the center. The inside has an imprint: "925." That means its silver. That's what they told me. I don't remember who "they" are. But I know "they" told me. My sister gave it to me. A gift. Older sister. Do you know her name? I do. I've had the ring forever. Yes, forever. I'm not sure how long that is. But It's a long time. I think. When I went to Armenia, I simply had to take the ring with me. I'm not sure why. I guess I would feel sort of naked without it. Or maybe it's because I wanted to have a piece of my family there with me. Although, they were already there. My ancestors. Like I said, I'm not sure why. But I took it. I love that ring. Connected. I'm not wearing it as I write this. It's nighttime. I usually take it off at night, then put it back on in the morning. Anyway. Where was I? Oh, yes; the ring. We were about two weeks into the trip. The group was based in Yerevan. Yerevan is the capitol (I spelled that wrong on purpose) of Armenia. You didn't know that. Well, maybe some of you did. The special ones. One night, I was with some friends. We were standing in front of a post office in Yerevan. It was near the city square. Republic Square. Sounds Soviet. It probably was. You know, back in the USSR. Long gone. Or is it? As I was standing on the steps under the dark sky, I used my thumb to reach over and play with the ring, which should have been on the fourth finger over of my right hand. I'm left-handed. It wasn't there. Missing. Panic. Let me repeat that: PANIC. I never take my ring off. Only when I got to bed. Or the bathroom. I'm in the streets of Armenia. Lonely. The name of the street is too difficult to spell. (Mesrop Mashtots.) Armenian alphabet. A. B. C. (Ա. Բ. Գ.) Heart beats faster. It never does. "Where the fuck is my ring?" Over and over, I repeated this. In my head. I'm a little obsessive about it. Can you tell? I try to stay calm. Search my pockets. Not there. Look on the sidewalk below me. Not there. I stay silent. Cigarette smoke everywhere. Could it be at the restaurant where we just ate? Mmmm. That was a great meal. So good; so cheap. No. Confusion, followed by more panic. Ugh! I leave the people I was with. I did. You already know why. I don't remember if I told them my ring was missing. The ring with the black line. "925." My sister. It was 10 p.m. Or something like that. I wouldn't sleep that night until my ring was found. My eyes grew wide as I walked the street retracing my steps. I walked for what seemed like miles. Maybe more; probably less. My eyes focused on the ground, hoping to spot a silver sparkle. It slowly slipped. Hope, that is. So cliche. But that's OK. It was true. I kept telling myself: "There's nothing you can do. It's gone. Just accept it." I began to accept it. I tried to spin the tragedy to my favor. "Hey, at least you lost it in Armenia - the Old Country." It would be like leaving a piece of myself in the birthplace of my ancestors. My people. Bitlis. My family's old stomping grounds. Armenia. Sunflower seeds. Authentic, beautiful women. Mona. Saroyan. Fresno. $8,400. Farming. Ashes scattered over the mountains. That whole bit.

I walked for a couple hours. No ring. Gone. Goodbye. Forever. I went back to my hotel room. 413. I thought it would be there. (The ring; black line) I had little doubt in my mind it wouldn't be. I arrive at our room on the fourth floor. Five beds. One bathroom. Four flights of stairs. I search the room. Nothing. Hope fades, fades, fades. Gone. I've accepted that its gone. My heart breaks silently. Tears. Beats skipped. Whatever. It did something, I know that much. Empty pain. Filled my stomach. Hurt. Bad. I walked back to the outdoor caf where my friends were. I order an espresso. I love coffee at night. They asked if I found the ring. No. No more words. A sad silence. I walk back to my hotel. 413. Who knows what time it is? University Hotel. Alone. Depressed. Miserable. I crawl in bed and sleep. The window is open. The breeze blows the blue curtain. The comfortable night reminds me of Fresno. So does the day. And the people. Of home. On the ranch. My favorite tree, the Canford. It's roots break the brick surrounding it. The next morning in Yerevan. In the hotel. My room. I wake up early. Go downstairs. Get breakfast; the same thing every morning for weeks: bread, butter, ham, Apricots, cucumber, boiled egg, olives, yogurt, tea, water. OK, I'm full. Our group is meeting at 9:30 (a.m.) in the lobby. The blonde one is late. Again. As usual. It's funny. Seb gets upset. While I'm waiting, I walk down the hall. There's a bathroom at the end of it. I need to take a leak. So I do. I finish. Wash my hands. Look at the white sink. Sitting there. So perfectly undisturbed. My ring. Found. Life has new meaning. I had taken it off at some point yesterday. Bar soap. I feel a slight sensation: disappointment. I dont know; why?

Magical Meatball Memories.

So. Hi. How are you? I'm OK. A little tired. I had a rather heavy lunch. But I followed it with a Diet Pepsi. So that kinda woke me up. I'm back on track now. Thinkin' about having another Diet Pepsi. I haven't decided yet. Not sure if the soda machine in the break room has any left. I drink them too much. We'll see. Anyway, I'm ready to start this blog now.

Let's start with this: Fresno's beloved electro dance party, Meatball Magic, is celebrating its one-year anniversary this Friday, February 3rd. In honor of the FREE extravaganza, "DJs"/founders Heinz, Cuddles and Princess Cuckoo have invited local indie favs It'll Grow Back, The Batteries, and Rademacher to provide live music/chaos. It starts at 10 p.m. at the Red Lantern on Belmont. And this time, 10 means 10. Probably not, but you never know. Stranger things have happened. I think the "DJs" will be playing some music in between or after the bands finish. You'll have to ask. If not, you can just dance to the music the bands are playing.

Now that we have all the facts outta the way, let's get to the fun shit. I was sittin' back the other day trying to figure out a blog I could write to promote this week's Meatball Magic. Then I though to myself, "Hmmmm. Why not e-mail the 'DJs' and the bands and ask what their most memorable Meatball Magic experience has been this past year." So I did. Unfortunately, not every one responded. But I didn't get them much time. So it's partly my fault. Well, not really, but whatever. I do what I can.

p.s. If you're wondering why I'm putting quotes around "DJs," go here. You'll find your answer there.

Mitch on Speed's memory:
I guess we'll start this off. Don't worry, I'll it keep it short. It happened a couple weeks ago. I was at the bar ordering up a Bud Light in the bottle, and some guy at the end of the bar told the bartender, "I got that." I wasn't sure what to do. Do I refuse him and say, "No, thanks, I can pay for it." Did this mean I have to go talk to the guy??? I was baffled. A guy had never bought me a drink before... So I just looked at his and said, "Thanks," and rushed off. Ha. (In case you haven't figured out, this place is a Gay bar. But Meatball Magic nights are all-encompassing). I have more memories, but that is the freshest one in my mind.

Let's move on to other peoples' memories. By the way, feel free to post your own favorite Meatball Magic memory in the comments section. Let's do this interactive style...

Princess Cuckoo (aka Miss CoCo):
It was sometime last fall or maybe late summer, one of those t-shirt nights when everyone wants to sit outside and drink, and that's exactly what we did. It was early-ish in the night, before my set and after Vance's, and probably Sandra was spinning something everyone remembered and loved. I'm standing with Vance on the Red Lantern's outside patio drinking a vodka press and smoking a cigarette and someone calls my name, but when I look over to my left I realize it could have been anyone. Then I look to my right and realize it could have been anyone there too. It takes a few seconds for it to dawn on me, and it seems that Vance comes to the same realization at the same exact moment. "Wow," I say. "Look around, Vance." And he does and he sort of nods and says "It's all our friends." Every single person we've ever called a close friend, it seems like, along with new ones and people we'd just met -- they were all out there on that patio talking and smoking and drinking and bopping their heads to the music wafting out the door. And when I look inside, I notice that there are even more people we love just swarming the dancefloor. It was the perfect culmination of all these elements conspiring to create one perfect night that I'll never forget.

Heinz:
There was this one Friday; it was totally packed. Madonna and I were breakdancing to Neutral Milk Hotel when suddenly Missy Elliott decided to join in. She totally did a backflip off of Annie. She totally stole our thunder. Totally. This really happened. And if you don't remember, well you probably weren't cool (or sober if you're me or Cuddles or Cuckoo) enough back then to have known what was up. There is a moral. Go to Meatball Magic. I love you.

Cuddles:
*"DJ" Cuddles was too busy making a birthday cake. She'll answer shortly.

Guest "DJ" Dexter:
I love Meatball Magic with all my flailing limbs. Fresno has hungered for something both danceable and substantial and the Meat to satisfy has finally been served. It's been a great privilege to witness the growing number of guests reserve their Fridays to enjoy each set... and they always do, whether they like it well-done, medium-rare or raw. And as Meatball Magic continues to attract true body-breakers, great music makers and Fresno socialites, what I'll remember is a moment that proved that the night does not only cater to the indie elite, but welcomes any ol' fool who'll move their meat.

On the eve of my debut performance as DJ Dexter I arrive at the Red Lantern and am met with a flash from the camera of my number one fan: my mom. "Now pose in the DJ booth!" she coaxes. Oh dear lord no. The 61-year-old mother of seven struts to the dance floor in the sparkly clothes purchased at Wet Seal and proceeds to raise her arms, shake her hips, and kick out her boots in a dance fashion she developed from aerobics classes in the '80s. I ask my brother why he brought her as I imagine a guaranteed empty dancefloor (besides the Vic) the rest of our set. Yet I find as the folks begin arriving, they are much more accepting than am I. People either ignore the spectacle and dance and converse without regard, or they meet and greet and hug my old lady. Everyone is extremely friendly to her (although it may have helped that she bought anybody who talked to her a drink) and she continued to dance and sparkle and smile and glow. She kept commenting on how great the beat was and after two glasses of Chardonnay and a taste of somebody's Malibu & pineapple juice she confided to me: I think I should have been gay.

Mom, you are gay.

As for the Magic of the Meatball, I must compliment the chefs and clientele for providing an environment where even the most unlikely guest leaves a satisfied customer.

Crazy It'll Grow Back singer, Josh:
So I don't have an specific favorite Meatball Magic memory. That said: I love to dance. I mean-freak-out, body-thrashing arm-flailing all-out-dance-party dance. And that's Meatball Magic's magic, right? When you're out on the smoke-filled dance floor, packed in with sweaty fools, and time just sort of slips away and suddenly it's last call and someone's yelling 'cause they didn't hear their favoritre song and all you can think is...Damn, I'm sweaty and tired. Or something like that.

Batteries singer/guitarist, Mike B (the "B" stands for Batteries):
A Meatball Magic memory hmm... When someone played the new Madonna song "Hung Up" and I realized for the first time that it was actually a great dance song. I think if it weren't for Meatball Magic, I wouldn't go out dancing let alone to Madonna songs.

Rademacher (Fresno indie-rock gods):
*Members of Rademacher were too busy trying to take over the world to answer my e-mail.

Now it's YOUR turn.... any favorite memories you'd like to share. Come one, I know you have AT LEAST one...

Event info:
Meatball Magic
Friday Feb 03, 2006
10:00 PM
The Red Lantern
4618 E. Belmont Ave.

As seen on Fresno Famous...

The Dalloways. Photo taken by Esther Sotello.

Interview: The Dalloways.

The Dalloways? California Dreampop at its finest. Think The Smiths meets Belle and Sebastian meets The Doves, and you're halfway to understanding these sometimes moody, often upbeat dreamers.

by Mitch on Speed
January 26, 2006

So, let’s see. Why did I decide to interview Fresno five-piece, The Dalloways? Oh, yes. I saw a bulletin posting on MySpace that said the band had an upcoming show at The Starline on January 28. So I took a look at the quintet’s Web site and decided they were probably worth a couple hours of my time.

As I was reading through The Dalloways’ bio, the word “dreampop” kept showing up as description of its sound. Now, I’m just going to come out and say it: I have no friggin’ clue what “dreampop” is. I mean, I have an idea, but I couldn’t really give you a definition. I guess I’ll have to go to the show and find out. Now that I think about it, I’ve actually seen The Dalloways before. At least I think I have. It was quite a while ago. But I’ve forgotten what they sound like. I do, however, remember the guitarist having a cool guitar. Man, I just used the word “guitar” twice in the same sentence. Oh well. Maybe I’m thinking of a completely different group. Who knows?

Anyway… This interview was done via e-mail with Dalloways singer/guitarist Gerhard Enns. He’s also an English professor. I forgot to ask him where he teaches. I guess it’s not that important. If you really wanna know, just ask him at the show this Saturday. This interview turned out really well. I think it’s because Gerhard answered the questions in a very detailed manner. And I’m not just saying that so you’ll read it! I should interview more musicians/English professors. It’s makes my editing job a lot easier.

I won’t go into too many details about this history of the Dalloways and all that stuff. It’s not important. Well, it is important but I’m too lazy to write a long-ass intro (it’s getting lengthy enough as it is). The band has a great bio on their Web site if you’re interested. For now, let’s just read this interview and make an attempt to see The Dalloways at the Starline January 28. We’ll figure the rest out later.

Interviewed by Mitchell Peters

After I e-mailed The Dalloways MySpace and asked for an interview, somebody named Matt said to interview you. And the first thing that popped into my head was this other guy named Gerhard Potuznik. He’s this electro-techno guy who goes under the moniker GD Luxxe. Have you heard of him?

Gerhard Enns: Never heard of him. I’ll go for a listen on iTunes after this conversation. We Gerhard’s have got to stick together.

OK, moving on… I got this quote from The Dalloways blog (http://dalloways.blogspot.com/):

“Cross a college English lit. professor with a Britpop inspired rhythm section and one platinum synth girl (who happens to be married to the prof.), and you’ll get something like The Dalloways.”

Kindly elaborate on this statement so our readers get a better understanding of what the person who wrote this is talking about. Thanks…

I’ve been into books for a long time – in particular British modernism. The band name is an allusion to a Virginia Woolf novel, and other literary characters pop up from time to time in subtle ways in the songs. For instance, I got the name and character idea for Tiffy from a John Cheever short story that I really loved. I’ve written about marginalized Biblical characters like Lot’s youngest daughter, who’s hometown and fiance got burned up by a wrathful God. I’ve just finished a song called “Ada” based on Lord Byron’s mathematician daughter. So I guess that’s where the English prof. in me comes out in the music.

The Britpop inspired rhythm section? Well, our whole sound is basically British, if you ask me – though we’re all California born. The pop luminaries we admire always seem to be British – The Jam, The Style Council, Prefab Sprout, The Smiths, Gilbert O’Sullivan, Lloyd Cole.

And, as fate, luck, and love would have it, I married a platinum blond synth-playing girl who happened to fit perfectly in the band.

I really like the band’s bio on your Website. It seems well written. Guess that’s ’cause you’re a English professor.

I prefer others to write our press material whenever possible, but that’s not always practical and can get expensive. You’ve either got to hire great writers and pay them well or do the hard work of description and elevator pitch writing yourself. If you’re an introvert or even slightly humble, then telling others how great you are is a difficult task.

Tell us about your latest full-lenth record Penalty Crusade.

Penalty Crusade is pop music. Most of the songs move from slightly understated verses to climactic choruses, like “Lot’s Youngest Daughter.” But other songs do break the pop structure. “Ice Capades” for instance seems to swell into one longer, more rambling chorus rather than the pop structure of a repeating chorus.

Regarding the sound, we’ve been inpspired a little by dreampop/shoegaze. I think you can hear that in the lush delays of the guitars in “Clarissa, Dear” and “Marriage Arranged.” Those are my favorite guitar songs on the album.

Once the new album is out in 2006, I think that PC will stand out as our more melancholic album. It is full of break-ups and splits and losses. It was what I was feeling at the time I wrote those songs. The new material has its share of melancholy, but there’s a little more joy and light shining through, as if those characters on PC have benefitted from the passage of time as I have.

I know The Dalloways have been around the Fresno music scene for a while. Give us a brief history of the band.

The Dalloways started over a mutual love of beautiful post-punk edge. After the punk revolution, the music scene seemed to backlash and get pretty, but it maintained that punk edginess. My high school chum Jonny Wall and I both loved The Smiths and The Ocean Blue. Some of those Smiths tunes are twangy honky tonk punk songs with this strange British guy crooning in a beautiful and sad way about young people feeling tragic. That’s just plain strange, beautiful, and heartbreakingly sad, especially if you’re in high school.

All high schoolers should listen to The Smiths. They need that healthy outlet for their tragic tendancies.

More history? Enlisted Matt Wall (aka Bluff) on bass, and Aaron Wall (40 Watt Hype frontman and producer extraorinaire), then Ricky Gonzales (40 Watt guitarist) to take the place of Jonny, who’s priorities had changed, and then Nico Rhodes on synth to round out the live sound.

We share CDs, we listen to the same stuff in order to maintain a cohesion. For instance, I’ve shared Feist, Stars, The Dears, The Pernice Brothers, etc. with everyone in the band. But everyone has their own taste. In the tour van, the music shells break open. We’ve listened to Tool, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Burt Bacharach, 50 Cent. We’re always listening and enjoying. All of it fuels the songs in ways we don’t even understand.

I tried to Google your label – Bird In Box Records – but the page that came up didn’t load. Where are they based out of and how did you hook up with them?

The URL, www.birdinbox.com is up now. The Dalloways are indie in the purest sense. We do the music making, producing, management, and public relations. Bird is Box our own imprint, our own company. As a band taking on many business roles, it’s useful to create a company to help separate the business aspects from the music. So if Nico is working through Bird in Box, for instance, she can represent The Dalloways in a more detached way than is possible as a band member.

If/when we sign a label deal, the Bird in Box imprint will hopefully follow. You see this precident set on lot’s of indie bands that move on to larger labels.

Where does your band’s fascination with Britpop come from?

Hard to explain. Early in high school I gravitated to the Brit sound. I may have longed form something more exotic than a life in Reedley could offer. There was something that seperated the sound of a band like Ride, for instance, from anything coming out of the states. The cymbals were awash, the vocals were dreamy. New Order was simply amazing to me. The Cure’s Disintegration. It was all Brit.

Do you remember the first real concert you went to?

The Simple Minds at The Selland Arena in Fresno. It was the Once Upon a Time tour. That album was huge. They were up there with U2 at the time – so it seemed, anyway. The album is really over the top, and great in some way. They were beautiful post-punk. Members even started out in a punk band Johnny and the Self-Abusers.

I read that you have a background in fiction writing. Does this play into your music at all? If so, how?

Most of my songs take a narrative thread – they are snapshots of the lives of their characters. “Ice Capades” for instance is about a fictional male figure skater and womanizer who nearly wins a gold in Innsbruck 1976 and carries on with one of many women in the Olympic Village. Flash to present day, and he and the woman meet again at his Ice Capades show. He’s a wash-up, really, skating in a viking costume with his old silver around his neck and his unrealized dreams following him around the ice like ghosts. But here is this living, breathing ghost from his past, and suddendly, there’s a chance at something good growing out of the ashes. It’s my favorite song of mine because I feel so strongly for the characters and want them to connect and finally find love. I wrote that one on Post-it notes stuck to my steering wheel on a long drive back from a gathering at the coast. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone – it’s very dangerous.

What current bands/artists are The Dalloways listening to these days – Fresno and beyond?

Feist is beautiful. The Pernice Brothers are fantasic. The Sleepover Disaster (Fresno) is a longtime favorite. Bart Davenport – especially Maroon Cocoon. I just bought The Essential Willie Nelson, and that keeps me company to and from work right now. Talk about a great story teller! It’s very creepy when you realize that behind that soft, benign voice of Willie is a menacin first-person fictional character that is promising his ex-lover, “Oh, in time you’re gonna pay.”

Browsing through your Website and blog, I saw quite a few rave revues for Penalty Crusade. Did you guys make press kits and send them our yourself or do you have a publicist?

We sent many out through our label. Some of them were requested by music journals and e-zines, and others we just sent blindly. It’s a good idea to connect with editors before you send out. It helps when they’re expecting the CD.

We send to every reviewer a copy of the CD and a one-page that includes a pic, a bio, credits, and contact info. In general, reviews have been really positive.

Your heart stops when you get a review back. I always have Nico read them first and then tell me about them because I’m really not very tough when it comes to these things.

I see you have California tour dates from February throug April. I’m not sure if you all have day jobs but, if so, how do you manage to juggle working and touring?

Right now, we do have day jobs. I teach, so summers are fantastic for me. We all work hard to make time for the band. Sometimes it necessitates burning up a few vacation days for some of us. More often, it means planning for weekend shows. We frequently play a night show in San Francisco or Los Angeles and then blitz back the same night because one of us has work the next day. If you love music, you make time for it however you can. It, of course, is the dream of us all to retire from our day jobs and enter the world of full time music.

Does your band have a booking agent and/or manager?

Contact booking@dalloways.com for booking information.

Any memorable shows you’ve played in Fresno that you’d like to share?

The Starline is always a highlight in Fresno. The engineers and the sound system are first-rate there, and we’re usually very happy and content on stage. I remember a fine show there in February 2005 with our buddies Cerus Victoria and Winter Wardrobe. The place was packed with happy people and had a great vibe. We felt warm and inspired on stage that night. Not all shows have this feeling. Some, especially on the road, can be real disappointments. Seattle, for instance, was a real dud – a room full of drunk frat boys standing at the bar with their backs turned to us. They didn’t inspire us, and we didn’t inspire them.

Judging from your band photos, you’re all pretty snappy dressers. I hate dressing nice. I guess I’m just lazy. Anyway, do you always dress this nice, or just for photo shoots?

We like to shop and dress up for the night. When we come to perform, we want to stand out, even when we’re just talking before or after the set. We want people to think, “Oh, they must be in the band,” even if they don’t know us. Why do all those old school jazz and soul musicians always look so dapper in their suits and skinny ties? Same theory, I guess. But maybe we’ll change. For the next album, maybe we’ll all be wearing hipster T-shirts and tight jeans. Or maybe we’ll go mod, like The Lilys.

What are your short/long-term goals for The Dalloways? Do you want to take the project pretty far, or is it just for fun?

We have a lot of fun along the way, but if this were just for fun, we wouldn’t be feeling so much of the business pains that come with touring and promoting. We would just play locally and would not be going through the hassle of making retail-ready CDs. This is a lot of work and sometimes demands all your money. We’re recording new material right now and will be shopping it to major indies as soon as we’ve chosen and spruced up the new singles. The new album will be out in 2006. We’ll be playing some of the tunes at The Starline January 28. How’s the new stuff? It rocks in a very pretty way.

The Dalloways will be performing January 28 at The Starline (833 E. Fern Ave., Fresno, CA 93728). The 16 and over show costs $6.

For more info about The Dalloways, visit its Web sites: http://www.dalloways.com & http://www.myspace.com/thedalloways.

Merry Christmas.

Today is January 6th.

Just wanted to wish everyone a very merry Armenian Christmas.

I'm not sure why today is Armenian Christmas, but it is. I guess I'm a bad person for not knowing the reason behind it. I think it may be an Orthodox thing. My family celebrates Christmas on the 25th, but many Armos celebrate it today. Maybe I'll look into it. Maybe I won't. If somebody out there knows, fill me in.

At any rate, as you may have noticed, I haven't written a blog in awhile. Why? Because I'm tired. Physically. These blogs take a lot outta me, ya know? Just kidding. But yeah. Whenever I'm inspired, I'll write another one. Until then, I welcome anyone who has something to say.

Hmmmm, is there anything else I want to say? ... (silence) ... I guess not.

(Moments before I wrote this "blog," I decided to make some coffee. I'm at work. Well, I have a coffee-maker at my desk. It was recently given to me. At least, I think it was given to me. I'm not sure. Anyway, I decided to make some coffee, even though I'm not good at it. I always have trouble putting the filter in and deciding how many beans to grind. Anyway, I was walking yesterday's used filer to the break room, and it dropped outta my hand. Fuck. Old ass coffee grinds spilled everywhere. I was pissed. Oh well. I'm drinink the coffee now and it's good. Damn good, if a may say so myself.)

Oh, wait...

Jen just bought me a ticket to go see Bob Pollard at the Knitting Factory in L.A. That show isn't until late February. It should be cool. I've been to that venue once before to see the Gossip and Stereo Total. I saw Mike M and Jarah at that show. Ashod was there, too. I think he was tour managing for Total. It was a pretty cool show.

What else...

In case anyone hasn't checked out Fresno Famous' new format, do it. I like it. It's good. Very good. Very very good, actually. Yeah.

Seems like there's more... Anything else interesting? Probably, but I can't think of anything else to say.

Oh, wait... A long time ago, I sent a MySpace message to Modesto's Grandaddy asking why their city seems to get better shows than Fresno. Now, I'm not sure Modesto does get better shows than Fresno, but at the time I asked them the question, it seemed like they did. So I won't second guess what I was thinking at the time. Anyway, here's a response from two different peeps involved in the band.

I am only a partial member. Considered by the band a full member, but fan wise i don't play on stage except durring line checks. Promotion. We here in Modesto have the two Chris' Chris Rikki and Chris (i forget his last name) They both do the Moma award show and also X-fest/ Summer Jam all that stuff. Also Mike, the dude that runs Devil in the Woods. He is based out of here. As a Modesto-ite, there are no good places to play. The Fat Cat downtown may have a nice set up but the security guys they bring in can Fuck Right Off. Bands play once get a taste and don't come back. We used to have cool little bars that hosted bands, but not too many anymore. The Mustang they can pack in only a couple hundred. Grandaddy doesn't have a hometown place to play. The backyard of the Built Like Alaska Boys in Oakdale or the Manzer in Merced. I think the boys are done playing live anways. Keep on pushing the Fresno scene. ~bon

i'm not much for blogging, and really i don't think modesto gets good shows at all. there's been a couple times that we made the radar brothers play here and the same for earlimart, and we rarely play here at all. eddie money plays here more than we do. i think fresno is coming up though. i used to think fresno was the only valley city worse than modesto, but i think there was a switcheroo at some point. modesto is hella lame. ok later aaron

I guess that's cool.

Going To The '80s Well.

Percival Sweetwater is back!

In his dubut guest blog, "Fresno, Then and Now," old man Percival compared Fresno's music scene to that of approximately 20 years ago. His words were enjoyed and digested by many. The blog caused a splash/minor stir in the LiveJournal community f_chip. (You should check out f_chip for local show postings and stuff.)

Anyway, all you musicians out there should pay close attention to what Percival has to say. He may be old, but he knows what he be talkin' about. I'm just kidding... About the old part, not the "he knows what he be talkin' about" part.

p.s. Before we get started here: What's up with this new text messaging show announcement phenomenon? Is this new thing or what? Do people just send out a mass text message to every number they have in their cell?

OK, let's get on with this. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Sweetwater...


Guest Blogger: Percival Sweetwater

I would like to thank Mitch on Speed for a second guest appearance on his increasingly popular web log. Please take a minute ... what I want to say will be quick so that we can discuss it below.

As Mr. Speed likes to point out at every opportunity, I’m old. In fact, I’m face to face with my 40th birthday, when life truly ends. And lately I’ve been very arrogant, flaunting the fact that I lived in the Eighties (like every other bozo my age did) as some kind of musical superiority when it comes to talking about new music.

I’ll decode that. Where you hear Interpol, I hear Joy Division. When you hear The Futureheads, I hear the first two records of The Jam. Bloc Party? Hmm, probably early Cure. A band from the U.K. called Hard-Fi sounds like a rockin’ Specials. Hell, Rancid sounds like the first Clash album, mi amigos.

Somewhere in the midst of listening to Hard-Fi it hit me in the face like a cold, wet trout: I’m not bitter that you young chumps are mining the intellectual property of Eighties bands. I’m mad that you aren’t ripping off of the right ones!

I can’t speak for all cool, young, hip Eighties kids (mind you, 95 percent of my high school friends were into Night Ranger, not the Violent Femmes). But those who were on the fringe of cool, at least the ones I knew, weren’t listening to Joy Division.

To my age-mates, I apologize immediately for the following list. These are the bands that I recall a lot of us listening to, meaning those people in my little circle of trust. Maybe it’ll inspire some people to check out influences other than the ones the NYC bands are suggesting.

Translator - a San Francisco band that was universally liked.

The Three O’Clock - Los Angeles band that amassed critical kudos. The guitarist dated a Bangle and co-wrote one of their hits, "Walking Down Your Street."

The English Beat. Seriously, I don’t think any modern band has copped them yet. That has to stop.

Public Image Ltd. - John Lydon, mates.

The Alarm. The first EP was awesome before they sold their corporate soul.

I’ll wrap it up quickly. Yes, there was U2 and R.E.M. Beyond that, there were XTC, Kate Bush, King Crimson, The Meat Puppets, Roman Holiday, Midnight Oil, Green On Red, Dream Syndicate, The Untouchables, Wall of Voodoo, Style Council (aka post-Jam crap), and Aztec Camera, to name a few.

Am I missing something, or are most of these bands unknown to today’s generation? I’m assuming yes, and I just wanted to say that I wouldn’t mind hearing them again. In other words, I wouldn’t mind hearing an unimaginative, lazy, thieving young band with an eye on commercial success rip off some of these bands. It’ll do my old heart good.

Interview: Rachael Olmstead.

Here' an interview I recently did with Fresno photopgrapher Rachael Olmstead. The reason I interviewed Rachael is because she has photographed several local bands here in town. Since the Q&A pretty much speaks for itself, let's get on with it, shall we?

Interviewed by Mitchell Peters.

Mitch on Speed: Before we get started, I want to tell everyone that you and your husband, Jason, are very cool people. I was at your house once, and I saw some Venus magazines laying around. In my book, that makes you cool. Anyway... What first got you interested in photography?

Rachael Olmstead: Funny that you mention coming to my house. I was just thinking the other day – with the holidays coming up and all – how many random people have been in and out of there for get togethers and after parties and what not.

I guess I've always been interested in the creative. I did a lot of drawing and painting growing up, and my dad was a hobbiest photographer. He bought me a Polaroid when I was pretty young. I always loved taking photos, though it wasn't something that was ever focused on until recently. I have always dabbled in different things – art, music, crafts – but never really enjoyed and wanted to pursue something as much as photography.

My current camera came around about six years ago, but it wasn’t until about two years ago when I started to think about taking photography more seriously.

Have you had any formal education in photography, or have you pretty much learned on your own?

Pretty much on my own. I took a beginning photo class at Pasadena City College right out of high school but, like all my other classes that semester, it was dropped half way through. The only thing I even sort of remember from then is dark room stuff, which I don’t even use now.

But there is so much more I want to learn. I like the idea of approaching it like a science. But when it really comes down to it, all I have on my side is the art. I really like the idea of pursuing it in the long run to grow in terms of what can be done technically and artistically.

OK, let's get to the good stuff. I know you're involved with many different photo projects, but let's stick to the music stuff. What was the first Fresno band you photographed?

I would have to say that I think one of the first Fresno bands I photographed was probably (live) Montecore or Gypsy Cab about two years ago. Photographing bands just sort of grew out of the fact that we were going to shows and my friends were playing and I had this camera and was sort of interested in photography and I thought it would be cool to document it for them as well as learn in the process.

In terms of "press" photos my first ones were last summer when Shannon Hunter and myself photographed No Cello for their press kits.

Do you prefer taking live shots of bands or stills? Why?

Tough question. If you would have asked me a year ago, I probably would have said live. But now I would have to say stills.

There are too many variables with live shots – mostly crappy lighting. So there is this fine dance between camera settings and film and positioning, and watching when the best time to shoot the band. Sometimes it just takes all the fun out of a show that I’d rather be watching or dancing! But the nice thing about live photos is the excitement of shooting stuff as it is happening. Catching random stage antics and the swoop of an arm across a guitar can be very rewarding.

Recently, I was very happy with some of the photos taken at the Fresno Famous QUIET! Thanksgiving benefit show. The lighting was perfect, and the music and crowd were both great.

Stills are fun because you get to work one on one with people, rather than just watching from a distance and waiting for a shot. You have much more control over the environment and, in terms of learning, you can see progression. I also like working with people in general. Many people don’t like having their photo taken. To be able to make them feel comfortable and provide something that will hopefully benefit them is also really rewarding.

As a music journalist, I've received many band press kits. Within those packages, there's usually a promo/publicity photo of the band. Many of them are cheesy. Is it a struggle not be totally cliché when photographing a band?

Luckily (or unluckily!) I have little to do with how the actual press kit actually comes out. I always find it interesting to see the photos that are used in press kits and reviews. It is not that hard to avoid cliché because really there are so many different things you can do with a band and a photo.

You had something on your blog a while back about advertising in magazines or something and, maybe I’m from the old school, but I still read music magazines. I read online stuff too, but magazines get you off of the computer, which we all need to do more. I like looking at press photos and ads. If something catches my eye in terms of an image I am more likely to follow up on a band. So I think having a good photo really is important in presenting a band.

I've heard that photographing bands by a railroad track and against a brick wall are a HUGE no no. What's your take on that?

The funny thing about that though is that bands will state that. And while I'm aware of it, you’d be surprised how often things like pop up during a shoot without being aware of it. For some of the Rademacher photos I took this spring in downtown Fresno, we ended up taking a few shots near some old railroad tracks without even really noticing that is what we are doing.

And just the other day, I was taking Sparklejet photos. Towards the end of the shoot, we ended up under these floodlights with this cool cement tile stuff. When I got the photos back, I realized they were in front of a brick wall and a chain link fence. So I think actively not pursuing those types of shots is important, but it is funny when they sort of happen on accident.

When approaching a band photo project, how do you decide where the setting will be? Do you try to match the photo with the style of music the band plays, or does it depend on the members' individual personalities? Does this question make sense?

The question does make sense. But I don’t really have an answer! It’s always hard to decide where to shoot. I usually let the band take the lead on where they’d like to do it because they usually have an idea of how they want to portray themselves. I also keep a mental catalogue of places and scenarios in case we can’t come up with something.

Can you give a couple specific examples of bands you've worked with and how you went about setting up the photo shoot and whatnot? Feel free to throw in a funny story or two, if you'd like.

Shoots really do just happen organically. I get asked, and we decide on a location and time and go from there. I usually try and think beforehand about positioning and lighting and all that. I like to talk with the band and figure out what they want and see if they have any ideas or preferences, and let them know I’m extremely flexible and casual with all of it. I also like to work progressively. You can only take a few shots in one spot, so I like the idea of moving around to give them different options.

No Cello was fun because Shannon Hunter and I shot it together. We just wandered around downtown with them. We started at Storyland, went for ice cream on the Fulton Mall, and ended up at Jimmy’s Emerald thrift.

My first Rademacher shoot was when it was just Mike M. He called me up last minute and asked if I could come over and shoot him and this old piano in the alley behind the Pearl building. Josh and Mehran were painting the mural and had some flood lights out there. I was really worried about the lighting because I wasn’t too comfortable with night shooting. We took a lot to be safe and got some pretty good shots. Brianna Johnson Smeds ended up using them to create the artwork for both the self-titled EP and the Ice Age EP.

With the most recent Rademacher lineup, we started out in Playland and ended at the Astro Lounge. Playland was fun. We got to talk to the train conductor. He even jumped in some of the photos. And it was fun to watch Brad shoot himself with water over and over in the face to get the fountain shot.

And one of my favorites from the recent Sparklejet shoot. It’s not one of the "best" technically or artistically but rather for what it captured. Toward the end of the shoot, we had just got on the elevator. I planned on taking a few photos while we were in there, and a group of office ladies got on complaining about the smell of the cleaning products they were using somewhere. It caught us all so off guard. I like seeing a rock band like them full of unapologetic giggles.

Has photographing a Fresno band led to any other cool projects? You know, through exposure and all that?

Yes and no. I went with Mike M. from Fresno Famous to shoot Built Like Alaska when he was interviewing them in Oakdale. And I think Sparklejet felt comfortable using me since they know me personally and know I have some experience. I volunteered recently to do a photo essay for Fresno Famous on the new hookah bar in Tower. I think you have to put yourself out there and pursue projects, and maybe something will present itself along the way.

So is band photography a hobby, or could you see yourself turning it into a little business?

Photography in general is my hobby. I just enjoy doing it. I was the main photographer at a friend’s wedding. I’d like to do more work like that. I also enjoy shooting life: friends, camping trips, shows, vacations and dance parties. I would like to do more "work," whether it’s shooting for bands or business. There are more things I’d like to learn technically before I’d ever consider offering my services on a more serious level. I take it one day/photo at a time.

Any advice you can give to young Fresno photographers who want to get into band photography?

Like anything, just get out there and try it. If you’re already around bands, then you’re set. Take your camera to shows. Don’t be afraid to think about composition at a show, but don’t be that person who is in the way of the people enjoying the band and shooting like crazy with too much flash.

In terms of doing stills or press shots, start out with people you know. Friends are much more fun to shoot and easier to make mistakes with.

OK, enough of the music stuff. Any future photo projects (music or non-music) we should be on the lookout for? Where can people buy your stuff, if they're interested?

Along with John Flores and Shannon Hunter, I have some photos up through the month of December at Cafe Fulton on the Fulton Mall. I always have prints for sale. I can be contacted via my Web site http://www.rachaelophotography.com or on MySpace.

I have a few ideas brewing in the back of my head for future stuff. Shannon Hunter and I would like to put together a show in the spring of various artists (photographers and not) for a yet-to-be-announced show. I will also be working with Brianna Johnson Smeds on a group project in the summer. And I would like to photograph more bands. In fact, doing this interview with you makes me think I need to look into doing a local bands photo show!

I feel that I still have a long way to go before I get to where I want to be. But I really think that each time I do a shoot or a project, I get better and better. I just want to keep building on that.

Fresno Record Stores.

I used to work at Fresno's Tower Records. It was only for about eight months or so. This was back in 2001. I remember it was 2001 because I went in and talked to the manager a couple days after September 11th happened. It was kinda awkward trying to pitch myself for a job during that time. I was like, "Yeah, that whole thing was really horrible. So... are you guys hiring???" I was compassionate about the whole thing but, at the same time, my ass needed a job. My mom was buggin' all the time saying, "Mitch, when are you going to get a job?!?!"

So, I took some intiative and got a job. At the time, Tower was the only place I wanted to work in Fresno. And one of the only establishments I was qualified for. (This was back when Tower was actually still cool, to a certain degree.) I'd walk in there once a week and ask the manager if they needed anyone. Textbook. I scored big in my Tower interview. Don't you love it when you do really well in a job interview and walk out with a super high sense of confidence? Of course you do; everyone does.

To this day, working at Tower has been one of my all-time favorite jobs. Mostly because I was surrounded by music. Another reason was because I had an excuse to flirt with cute female customers. It was sweet. But that almost cost me my job a few times. My supervisors would say, "Mitch, you need to stop talking to the customers so much." So I'd lower my head, kick the imaginary dust and say, "OK, so and so."

But it was fun talking to customers. I liked asking them what they listened to and stuff. If they liked stupid bands and whatnot, I'd secretly make fun of them in my head. (As most people know, people who work at Tower are music elitists. I guess I was one of them.) I loved peoples' response to: "So, what kinda music do you listen to?" They'd answer: "Um, everything but country!" I didn't love that answer, actually. In fact, I hated it. I guess they just weren't listening to the right country. Throw on some Waylon or somethin'.

It was also interesting to try and play the guessing game with people who heard a song on the radio and couldn't figure out who it was. I loved that challenge. When I actually figured it out, I'd get a deep sense of satisfaction (I'm serious).

One of the best things about working there was the fact that I met some really cool people. (You guys know who you are.) Through certain people that worked there, I was exposed to many many many new and cool bands. Tower was where I first discovered Ladytron. Every so often I'd hear this song come over the loud speaker. It turned out to be Ladytron's "He Took Her To a Movie" from their album 604. Man, I love that song. That's just one example of many.

There's so much to say about working at Tower. Unfortunately, I can't tell every story. But I have to say this before I forget. Many of you know that Tower has a porn section. I used to HATE when I'd work the register and old crusty ment would come up and purchase gay porn mags. I guess it's their right to do so, but it was just kinda weird, as you can imagine. But I did get a kick out of saying, "Would you like a bag for that?" It was funny. But I felt bad for the girls who had to do that stuff. I'll never forget the image of Shannon pricing porno DVDs. Ha. There was also this time a mentally retarted guy was caught doing something really bad in that section, but that's a whole other story you don't wanna hear about!

But enough about the Tower days. What I really want to know is why Fresno doesn't have a cool independent music store? Tower has a decent indie section, but it still sucks, for the most part. I mean, you can't even order CDs because their ordering system SUCKS. It takes like five years to get anything you want. Besides, now that we have the Web, who needs to order music from a record store?

But, yeah. Does anybody have a clue why Fresno doesn't have a decent record/CD store other than Tower? It's kinda sad. Maybe people tried to start them up in the past and ultimately failed. I don't know. It would be nice to have one, though.

Any theories?

Why Do YOU Go To Shows?

If you go to local shows around here, ask yourself this question: Why do I go to shows in Fresno?

I was talking with a friend recently about why I (Mitch on Speed) go to local shows. I go to maybe one or two a week – max. There are many reasons, I guess. I’ll list three. 1) because there’s not much else to do in Fresno; 2) I like live music. Well, music period; and 3) I like the social aspect – talking with people and whatnot. I’m guessing these are reasons most people would give.

I’ll be honest. If I went to local shows solely to see the music, then you’d probably only see my face at approximately one show per month. Let’s examine this realistically. How many times a month can an individual watch "band X"* play every other week at Tokyo Garden and/or Starline, without getting bored outta their mind? After a while, that person will get tired of "band X" and stop going to their shows. Don’t get me wrong; I like Fresno bands. I like some of them a lot. But there’s only so much a person can take.

*I don’t wanna name any specific bands. No reason/point in doing that.

There are a few things I’m trying to say here. First, it disappoints me that Fresno doesn’t have a bigger variety of solid live bands. Within the "indie" scene (that I tend to frequent), I can count the amount of bands that regularly perform on one hand – and, interestingly enough, that number is slowly declining. I find that pathetic. With a city of Fresno’s size, there should be a TON of bands playing out. But where are they? Are they in their parents’ basement waiting for the right opportunity to expose themselves to the world? Please, tell me where they are hiding. I’d really like to know. (If you’re thinking to yourself, "Well, if this guy wants more bands, then why doesn’t HE start one up?" then refer to my "Jaded" blog. You will find your answer there.)

Alright, alright. I know some of you are saying that there’s a decent variety of bands playing around town. But I said good bands, remember? Just kidding....just kidding. But seriously... What’s up with that? I guess one could argue that some of the local venues are tight-asses and it’s hard to arrange shows, but I don’t buy that. If a band really wanted to play out, they’d find a way. One suggestion: more house parties.

In a perfect world, mid-sized nationally touring bands would roll through Fresno and local groups could open up for them. But, as we know, it’s very difficult booking decent out-of-town bands in Fresno (I’ve tried, believe it or not). I mean, who was the last semi-popular indie band to come to Fresno? Earlimart? And from what I heard, even they left pissed off because there was hassle in getting their money (guarantee) at the end of the night. I guess you can look at The Belmont’s (formerly Big Game) roster and see a bunch of hardcore/emo/punk bands, but I’m not really into that stuff. It’s cool if you are, though. Not that you need my reassurance or anything.

I may be going off on a tangent here, but it kinda pisses me off when I see cities like Visalia, Modesto and Bakersfield getting WAY better shows than Fresno. I’m not knockin’ those cities; I think that’s fantastic. More power to ‘em. It just confuses me as to how smaller cities can get better shows than us. It boggles the mind! (This is a WHOLE other subject I don’t want to get into right now.)

So here’s my idea: Since we can’t seem to get any cool bands to come to Fresno, I think some local musicians should get together and start an indie cover band. You know, cover songs that people actually know. (Examples: Interpol, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Bright Eyes, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, Decemberists, Cat Power, Arcade Fire, B-52s, the Shins, Elliott Smith, King Cobra, the Gossip – WHOEVER!!!

Sit back a sec and try to think of the last time you heard a local Fresno band play a cover. The last time I remember hearing one was from Pinkeye. They used to cover "Divine Hammer" by the Breeders. They used to play a really cool Beach Boys song, too. I almost forgot about that. Great song. Some of you remember that, I’m sure. I’d bet that an indie cover band would pack the frickin’ house at Tokyo. Am I wrong? I’d venture to say that people would MUCH rather see their friends playing covers of their favorite songs rather than originals (sad but probably true).

This goes back to what I was saying before about seeing the same band play every other week. Even if an indie cover band doesn’t start up, it would be cool if local bands threw in a recognizable cover every now and then. I can TOTALLY see No Cello covering the Black Keys. It would definitely peek my interest a little. You can’t deny that EVERYONE likes to hear a good cover. So, yeah.

Hmmm, what else did I wanna cover in this blog. I can’t really remember. I guess all I ask is that if a Fresno band decides to play out a lot, that they step up their game and do whatever it takes to make the show interesting and fun. Isn’t that why people go out to see band in the first place, to have fun? If a band plays the same exact show over and over and over, then people will get bored. The audience has to be left wanting more. That’s one reason I like Pinkeye so much. No matter how often they play, they keep it light-hearted and fun. Hell, Pinkeye got banned from the Starline because they played past 2 a.m. And the only reason they kept playing is because people couldn’t get enough. Now that’s the kinda shit I like to see.

So let’s brainstorm as to how bands can make their shows more interesting, ‘cause I sure as hell don’t have the answers. Also, if you decide to comment, maybe briefly include why you like going to local shows. And, please, be honest. No bullshit.

p.s. I expect a looong response from James L. on this one... Don’t let me down, kid.

2nd p.s. Sorry if this blog made no sense whatsoever. Ha.

The Perfect Flyer.

Course: Flyer-making 101
Professor: Mr. Alan DeCoronado
Place: Mitch on Speed blog
Cost: Free!
Time: Whenever

Course Description:
This should be an interesting blog for those of you going into the well-paid career of professional flyer-making. Flyers can come in handy for promoting shows, if done correctly. It may also provide a few well needed tips for those of you who indulge in making crappy show flyers (you know who you are...).

I thought I'd tap one of Fresno' best to give us all a lesson on what goes into making a kick-ass flyer. I can't think of anyone in this town (and probably Valley, for that matter) who can make a better flyer than Alan (aka Princess Cuckoo).

As some of us know, Alan (aka Princess Cuckoo) is a co-creator of Meatball Magic (you know, that DJ thing every other Friday at Fresno's Red Lantern). This guy knows a shitload about music. He also sends me rad mp3s while I'm at work, so he's cool in my book.

Anyway, who knows how the hell Alan (aka Princess Cuckoo) learned how to make such creative looking flyers. I guess that's why I wanted to interview him.


Interview: Alan (aka Princess Cuckoo)


Mitch on Speed: OK. Before I ask the first question, go ahead and tell people why I'm interviewing you in the first place. Tell us about your background and what you're musically involved with right now.
Alan (aka Princess Cuckoo): Well, despite myself, it's a case of Fresno gravity: What goes up must come down, or in this case, you go away, you're bound to come back. Born and raised here, moved to Portland, moved back, then again, then back. Sometime last year, after a lifetime of bitching about "nothing to do in Fresno," a couple of friends and I decided to get off our asses and do something about it, and in February of this year our little idea came to fruition in the form of Meatball Magic. For anyone who hasn't heard about Meatball Magic by now, there’s a great interview with the three of us on Fresno Famous. It’s pretty good, I guess… If you’re into that sort of thing… But I can’t for the life of me remember who wrote it… Hmm…

What's your background in flyer-making?
Newspaper journalism major in school, subsequent Managing Editor of the FCC newspaper The Rampage, subsequent burned-out graphic design major after I decided I wasn’t going to take after my dad (journalism wasn’t for me anyway), and I dropped out after three semesters. I changed majors because I don’t work well with deadlines, and assigning and editing stories wasn’t exactly the best creative outlet one would imagine. Designing things -- whether it be a website or a flyer or a CD cover or whatever -- has always been something I just do for friends and for fun. Lately, though, with super duper fun nights coming more frequently, it’s more necessity than amusement. But I’ve got an innate urge to create and a learned urge to edit, so it’s always fun anyway. What’s the point of doing anything unless it’s fun, right?

Give a step-by-step process into how you make a flyer.
If you’re expecting me to give up all my secrets, you’ve got another think coming. Seriously, though, there’s really not much to it. With enough practice, and with the right impetus, anyone can pull a decent flyer out of their ass. The only difference is that for me, from conception to delivery, it’s very much a labor of love. It’s like that every single time. From the moment I start to think about the feeling I want to try to convey, to the moment I’ve perfected the typography, I’m having the time of my life. If at any point during the process I begin to fall out of love, I scrap the whole thing and start fresh. Unless I’m like, you know, in a hurry or something. Then we get something half-assed and everybody hates everyone else.

In your opinion, Mr. DeCoronado, what constitutes the perfect flyer?
Well, I don’t know if I’m qualified to answer that question, but who is, really? Maybe Vaughan Oliver or Peter Saville or someone like that. In my humble opinion, though, you need three things to create an effective flyer: a good idea of your intended demographic, the right tools (physically as well as motivationally) and every last bit of information to be included on the flyer. There have been so many times when I’ve had something I’d been working on, that’d I’d been so proud of and that I was ready to turn into a vehicle for someone’s event, only to have my creative momentum thwarted when I suddenly realized I didn’t have a date or address. Just be prepared. I can’t stress that enough. In terms of the feeling of the flyer, you really have to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. That seems like a fairly obvious thing, being sensitive, but you'd be surprised. Unless you’ve really got balls (or a gift for spin), you wouldn’t want, say, a flyer based on Catholic imagery for a strip club, or a communist propaganda rip for a “Make Money at Home!” campaign. Use common sense. Finally, and most importantly, if you’re blocked, go out and get inspired. Take some photos. Look through old design magazines. Read up on those crazy Russian Constructivists. Then make sure you’ve got a decent computer, or if you’re going to kick down old school, a decent working space and, you know, a pencil sharpener or something.

What types of programs do you use?
Adobe Photoshop CS, almost exclusively. I’ve used Illustrator in the past, but I find that with Photoshop’s crazy vector stuff as of late, it’s not really necessary. I just got a copy of CS2, though, and even though it barely runs on my computer, I’m totally horny for all the new image manipulation stuff in this version. Maybe I’ll upgrade and switch over to that. You’re weak in the knees, I know.

How long does it usually take to make a flyer?
Depends. If I’m in no real hurry, I’ll spend an hour nudging a text field left to right until it’s perfect. I’ll nitpick for three days if I’ve got the time. Otherwise, I’ll probably crank something out within a few hours. It seems to work out better that way, too. If I’m inspired enough to finish a flyer in one night, I’ve usually got a good enough idea of what I’m going for, so I just go for it.

How do you usually come up with your brilliant ideas?
That’s really sweet, thank you, but I don’t know that it’s brilliance so much as clever execution (toot toot). Someone once said that originality is the art of concealing your source, and I absolutely find that to be true. Anything you’ll ever do has most likely been done before. The delivery is the trick. People tend to like my flyers most when I’ve cannibalized something familiar or incorporated elements of something they recognize. I think that’s why our Mucha Lucha and The Haunting flyers were so well received. People get a kick out of something if they can relate. Incidentally, that’s also why the dance floor is always so packed when we play '80s freestyle or cheesy pop at Meatball Magic.

What's the best flyer you've designed and why?
God, that’s like asking which one of your children you love the most. Having said that, there are always times when I’m disappointed by trying to top myself. I think it all stems from that very first flyer back in February. There was such a sense of accomplishment tied to that flyer. We were finally on our way to doing something promising and cool simply out of sheer love. In love with music, in love with our friends and in love with our hometown, this first flyer represented our swollen hearts and fluttering bellies. That’s a pretty difficult thing to top.

Do you design flyers for bands too, or just Meatball Magic?
I do and I have. Bands, shows, parties… I’d design a flyer for a passed kidney stone if someone asked me to.

On your last Meatball Magic flyer, some dude left a comment saying something like, "It looks like somebody ate your flyer then threw it up." Do you respond well to criticisms like that?
Probably not, because I responded by telling him that someone did throw up… on his face. Obviously, I was being facetious, but I’m totally a mother hen when it comes to things like this. I totally respect people’s input and impressions, but nobody wants their babies to be ugly. It helps if you’ve got a healthy sense of irony. All I can really do is try to provide information and dates in as attractive a form as possible and hope people catch my drift. It’s all very subjective, though, isn’t it?

More Meatball Magic Flyers Can Be Found Here.

SparkleJet, An All-American Band.

Let’s take a moment of silence to bow our heads and respect Fresno’s SparkleJet (MySpace profile). They’ve been around a while and they deserve it.

Earlier this week I heard SparkleJet (official site) was scheduled to play a show this Friday (11/18) at Fresno club, Zapp’s Park. Former KFSR (90.7-FM) DJ Chris Corners LOVES them! If you ever used to listen to his radio show, that wouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Since I know Chris (aslo the guitarist in Pinkeye) loves/worships SparkleJet, I thought I'd ask him to say a few words about this "tried-and-true, all-American ROCK BAND." Hell, they recorded with Steve Albini (the guy who produced Nirvana’s In Utero, and more…) not too long ago, so they get the thumbs up from me.

Show Info:
SparkleJet/Sleepover Disaster
Date: Friday, November 18th
Venue: Zapp’s Park (on Blackstone, just south of Olive in Fresno)
Age: 21 +
Time: 9:30 p.m.
Price: $5

Rumor has it that SparkleJet’s label people from Long Live Crime Records are going to be at the show. Let’s get our asses out there and show them that SparkleJet rules Fresno.

Yours truly,

Mitch on Speed.

(P.S. future guest bloggers can pitch ideas to mitchonspeed@gmail.com)

Guest Blogger: Chris Eckes (aka Chris Corners)

SparkleJet is the tried-and-true, all-American ROCK BAND. That breed of bands/musicians was once a widely embraced staple of our cultural fabric. These days, for reasons I don't completely understand, true rock bands are suddenly being nudged aside in favor of who knows what. Indeed, the music world would be a dull, monotonous wasteland if it were still made up solely of straightforward, guitar-based rock ‘n’ roll combos. Let's make no mistake about that. I also can't deny that excess-driven hacks have given the traditional idea of "rocking" a bad name a few times throughout history.

Putting all that nonsense aside, we all know it would be nothing less than a disgrace for the right-minded "rock band" to somehow lose its important place in the grand scheme, and for people to suddenly forget about the inherent power attached to it (as it’s undoubtedly the foundation from which every other form of popular music is based upon). SparkleJet is here to make sure this doesn't happen. Not in Fresno, at least.

It's such a good thing, really. SparkleJet, that is. Better than most probably even realize. The very best part being that they go about their rock ‘n’ roll business in a completely honest manner that doesn't feel the least bit contrived or pretentious. They aren't trying to be anything but who they are and what they know. SparkleJet simply play the music they were designed to play. I can't speak for anybody else, but for me, that's all I can ask from a band. It's also the common thread among nearly every artist that I enjoy listening to. What a bonus to have a band in town who not only stylistically fill the void of a dying breed, but also do it with genuine purpose and conviction.

Oh yeah, let's not forget that the songs are good. Like, real good. SparkleJet’s Bar Guest is one of my all-time favorite albums by any band, from Fresno or anywhere else. It's a bona fide classic in every sense of the clichéd term. Certain aspects of the record's sound can naturally be compared to other groups like The Who, Pixies, Guided by Voices, etc., but it's void of any copycat shenanigans that so many bands are guilty of. Besides, I can think of worse bands to occasionally give a nod to than those just mentioned, and when the influences make an appearance it feels more like inspiration than any sort of direct duplication. I also appreciate the fact that the album sounds highly calculated and well thought out, but with no sign of the urgency and spontaneity being compromised in the performance itself. In other words, it's chock-full of subtle nuances that make it more and more interesting with every listen, but it still retains the no-nonsense charm of a punk record (i.e. - "Dog Riot").

And, really, everything about SparkleJet is very balanced in that same way. The band even managed the difficult feat of having never made the same record twice whilst rarely ever veering from their distinctive aesthetic base or feeling the need to completely reinvent their sound. They merely change things up a bit each time out to give their winning formula a fresh twist, as will be instantly noticeable on their new record slated for release on Long Live Crime Records in January.

I feel obligated to point out that this forthcoming SparkleJet LP, Beyond the Beyond, was primarily engineered by Steve Albini at his Chicago studio, which obviously rules. (Albini did record a Nirvana album, a Pixies album and a Jimmy Page & Robert Plant album [aka - 1/2 of Led Zeppelin. Eh, um!].) But I suppose it wouldn't be wise to jump to the conclusion that this guy's involvement automatically makes something "cool" or "great" (as badly as I’d like to say). At any rate, because of the way Albini approaches the recording process, the worth of a product ends up mostly in the hands of the artist. The producer has made it a simple priority to faithfully capture the natural sound of a self-contained band in the room that they're playing in, just the way our ears would hear it (no over-doctoring/altering of the sound, except when necessary or requested by the artist).

It's fortunate, then, that our SparkleJet boys happen to be a top-notch unit, entirely capable of taking advantage of such a streamlined approach, which is just what they did. The result is anything but Bar Guest Pt. II, yet none of the basic elements that made the old SparkleJet so alluring have gone missing. Absent is the underlying production polish of Bar Guest, yes. But maybe that's only a superficial curveball where instead we get an equally effective raw, live energy applied to the same great songs, the same great singing, the same great guitar work, the same great drumming, the same great bass playing -- the same great band.

It's a blast to listen to and a welcome addition to their back catalogue of work. They're currently showcasing many of the new songs live, so if you're curious about the new record and want to hear what the tunes sound like, the best way to find out is to go to a show and hear them in person.

Final thoughts. SparkleJet is that rare, tasteful rock band that every city should have and be proud of if they do. It's exciting to me when a group of guys from our own Central Valley locale can bring as much songwriting prowess and live performance value to the table as bands I might otherwise have to travel 4-5 hours to see/hear. They conduct themselves as a real band with a healthy work ethic that is equal parts focused, simple, fun, and meaningful. The same can only be said about maybe a handful of other Valley bands, and SparkleJet are at the forefront of what, to me, is "doing things right".

SparkleJet is a breath of fresh air. That is, in contrast to the fleeting, disposable, Fresno music buddies, who get together to write a quick- batch of songs so they can play a couple Tokyo shows and call it quits after a month without ever recording a thing-type of bands that Fresno is notorious for. And let’s not forget the Triple Rectifier half-stack-playin' kids on the other side who think that cloning the image and sound of the nu-metal flavor of the week is their instant ticket to rock stardom.

Maybe that stuff is all part of the Fresno charm. I happen to like the SparkleJet way better. Besides, any band capable of taking a cornball song like "A Quick One, While He's Away" and miraculously making it seem cool, just the The Who did 40 years ago, is okay by me.

Interview: Fresno Famous.

Before I get started with this blog, I have a quick announcement to make…

I saw two awesome shows last weekend in San Francisco: Chicks on Speed/Kevin Blechdom (Independent) and My Morning Jacket (Fillmore). If you missed Chicks on Speed in L.A. of S.F., then you screwed up BIG TIME. This was CoS’ first U.S. tour in three years. I doubt they’ll be coming back anytime soon. OK, that’s all. I just had to let everyone know that. We may now continue.

When I got home last night (11/13) from my S.F. excursion, I found an e-mail waiting for me from FresnoFamous.com Editor Jarah Euston (aka Abby Blackstone). I was like, "Hmm, I wonder why she’s e-mailing me…she probably wants me to write something for the site, or something." (As some of you know, I’ve freelanced articles/interviews for Fresno Famous*) Well, I was wrong. The e-mail contained answers to a list of questions I had previously asked her about Fresno Famous.

(*Articles/interviews I've contributed to Fresno Famous include: Earlimart, Mommy and Daddy, Meatball Magic, It'll Grow Back.)

When I first started this blog a couple months ago, I was trying to think of interesting people I could interview. The first idea that popped into my head was doing a Q&A with Fresno Famous. They've been awesome in promoting Fresno's music scene. I was at work when I came up with the idea. I saw Jarah online, so I sent her an instant message asking if she wanted to do an interview for my blog. She was like "Um…sure, OK." I didn’t think she’d actually end up doing it. I gave up hope after the first month of not getting a response. I’m really happy she finally got around to it. I think Fresno Famous deserves a little publicity, even if it’s only a short blog interview.

Let me back up and tell you my first memories of Fresno Famous. I can remember the very first time I gazed upon the site. I was sitting at my job as a "PIB" (person in building) at Mondosphere radio group. (Mondosphere is the company that owns radio stations like 104.1 and 95.7-FM. A PIB is basically someone who sits alone around the studios and makes sure the automated DJ stuff doesn’t screw up — an extremely boring job. Just ask guest blogger Christy A.) So, yeah. I was screwin’ around on the computer at Mondo and came across Fresno Famous. Being the eager young journalist that I was, I contacted Jarah with the intentions of eventually freelancing for the site. I thought it was so cool that people in Fresno were starting a site like this. It was very inspiring. OK, that's the end of the story.

Before I go on, I can’t forget to give props to Mike M (aka Malcolm Sosa) – Jarah’s boyfriend – who also started/maintains Fresno Famous. Mike M and Jarah make an awesome duo. He’s also the singer/songwriter/guitarist for Fresno’s Rademacher (See "Self-promoting Rademacher" blog).

OK, enough of my babbling. I could talk about this shit forever. Let’s get on with the interview. OK, I lied. I have one more thing to say. I think Fresno Famous is one of – if not the most – important things to emerge within Fresno’s cultural arts scene. I’m sure MANY (millions upon millions) will agree with me on that. So let’s give it up to Jarah and Mike M who have give Fresno this amazing weekly-updated Web site. Thanks, guys. By the way, rumor has it that the Fresno Bee is a little intimidated by Fresno Famous. I don’t blame ‘em if they are. A little competition never hurt anyone, right?

Mitch on Speed: When and why did start Fresno Famous?
Jarah Euston: We launched Fresno Famous in April 2004 because we wanted to know what was going on around town. We figured in a town this size there had to be things happening, but we were totally in the dark. We'd look in the Bee and think, there has to be more than this. Looking at handbills in coffee shops wasn't very efficient. Fresno is one of the largest cities in the country without an alt weekly- where you would usually turn to get entertainment info. We also thought Fresno was absurdly disconnected. If you were in one scene you were plugged in to that, but excluded from everything else. We wanted to create a database of events and people so if you knew no one, you'd still have a way of finding cool things to do. And we wanted to support, encourage, and promote local talent. We thought that if musicians and artists living in Fresno got more recognition, they'd be more successful here.

Is it difficult keeping up with your weekly updates?
It can be. We are a community journalism site, which means that anyone can submit stories, photos, or other content. People pitch us story ideas all the time, which is kind of funny because we publish anything that is sent to us, as long as it's about Fresno. At the end of the month we'll be making some big changes to allow people to publish directly to the site.

Between the two of you, how much time do you invest in Fresno Famous?
I do it full time. Mike's focusing more on other projects so it really varies for him, from 2 to 20 hours a week depending. Our awesome programmer Suzi is putting in serious hours for the new site.

How did you come up with your clever pen names?
Inspiration from God.

What type of content do you cover on the site?
Entertainment! Our goal is to get everything happening in Fresno onto our events calendar. Everything, from punk shows to pancake breakfasts. Anything related to Fresno. People most often contribute stuff about local music and art, but we do a lot about downtown development also.

What’s been the most interesting story you’ve covered? Most controversial?
The most controversial was probably the Coconut Club snafu. The restaurant decided to withdraw its sponsorship of the Reel Pride Gay and Lesbian film festival he night before a champagne brunch. To make matters worse, the owner allegedly made a Reel Pride supporter cry when she called to complain, spewing homophobic remarks. What would have previously only been discussed among friends, is now on the internet for all eternity. We really felt like we had an impact that day. There have been lots of interesting stories. The interview with Donnell Alexander was a favorite, and I really enjoyed doing the story on Fresno graffiti. Luke Deniston's piece on the Broadcast Flag is another favorite, because no one else was talking about how a Fresno congressman was one of only a handful of representatives pledging to support that ridiculous legislation. It made a big, national issue very local.

What keeps you motivated to keep the site running?
Money, and the possibility of more money.

Do you encourage people in Fresno to contribute to the site?
Yes. We're very excited about the new site we are launching at the end of November. People will be able to post their own stories, photos, reviews, and editorials, as well as their events. We are inviting everyone to contribute to the online community and keep us posted on what is going on in their neighborhoods. We really want to be the place people go to find out about life in Fresno- local issues, where to get Thai food, what bands are playing, what local artists are showing, what happened at the school board meeting. We're opening it up to everyone to catch the stories and people larger news outlets miss.

Jarah can be contacted at jarah@fresnofamous.com

The Fresno Scene: A View From The Outside.

A long ass time ago (maybe two years), I became friends with Dany Sloan (yes, only one “n”). He’s a native of the East Coast. At the time of our meeting, he had moved to Fresno on a whim. He didn’t stay long. To this day, I still have no clue why he did that. Anyway, he’s a cool guy and he likes some really cool music. We hit it off because we both did a little freelance journalism. He went to a lot of local shows.

The last time I saw his was in Oakland when I was dropping him off at the airport to go back to Philly. That same weekend, we hung out and saw Q and Not U/Erase Errata at the Bottom of the Hill in San Fran. It was cool. But I’m still pissed off about something. We crashed at Ben and Eli’s (from now-disbanded Soma Holidays), and I left my favorite long-sleeved Guinness there. I got that shirt at the Guinness factory in Dublin, Ireland. It fit me so perfectly. Damn.

Before Dany flew the Fresno coop, I interviewed him about his take on the Fresno music scene. I pitched the story to Fresno Famous. I thought it’d be interesting to see what an outsider thought about the scene. He had some good things to say. To make a long story short, I got lazy and didn’t do it. But I didn’t give up hope. I asked Dany to write a short blog about his take on the scene, and he kindly accepted.


Guest blogger: Dany Sloan

[Dany Sloan is a former short-term Fresno resident who is currently acollege radio promoter at The Planetary Group in Boston and is a contributor to Prefix Magazine. He has also done time with AAM, Pitchfork, Rockpile and Rocket Fuel.]

I've always been weirded out by the West Coast. I mean, seriously. Thecities are spread out, it's always sunny and things just move so slowly outthere. Now you may wonder why I moved to Fresno for three months last year and the answer I have for you is this: who the hell knows? Did it suck? For the most part, yes, but looking back, it was a great time and I met some awesome people and got to know some really great bands.

Fresno is a sizeable city with the resources of a small town, stranded inthe no man's land between San Francisco and Los Angeles and there really is nothing to do there, but that didn't stop the local indie rock kids fromgetting a tight little scene going. It's the only thing that kept me interested during my time there. I was lucky enough to play bass in Ira for a short time, plus I developed a fairly tight relationship Fresno scene booster [Mitch on Speed].

Living in the Tower District, I saw a ton of bands during my three monthsthere. The ones that stand out were: Pinkeye, Rademacher, Bel and theDragon, Gypsy Cab and The Insects. Additionally, Bianca from Ira was one of the best songwriters I've ever come into contact with. Practices with Ira were amazing because each time we got together, Bianca would have like five new songs, all of which were great, but she just never had the self-confidence or the forum to do what she needed with them.

Being a close knit scene though, Fresno has its share of problems. It's afairly sizeable city that should do more to promote its local scene andbring in more touring acts. I remember people going apeshit over Cursivecoming to town, but seriously, Cursive is an ok band that used to be a lotbetter, and a band of their stature should be coming through Fresno muchmore often. It's situated perfectly between San Fran and LA, and is a greatmidway point to play and crash instead of doing a seven hour drive down the coast.

The local scene is way too exclusive. Small scenes typically start with anenterprising group of friends, but they need to expand outside of that. Fresno could be on the brink of having an exciting local scene akin to Omaha or Minneapolis or Portland by now, but its "friends-only" mindset was holding it back. I am not sure if that's the case now, but if there are kids who have exciting ideas, a wealth of experience and are willing to help, they need to be included. Greytank and Gardenside are good starts, but there is so much more to be done.

I am excited to find out what is going to happen to all of the excitingyoung bands in the Central Valley. Are they going to reach their potentialand put Fresno on the map or are they going collapse under the weight ofmaintaining their clique? Some food for thought: Washington D.C., our nation's capital, had a scene in disarray in the ’70s, but they rose above all of that to become a scene to be reckoned with. Dischord began to welcome exciting new people and thought outside the box.

Here's a link to Dany's blog: http://exitfare.blogspot.com/