YEP ROC TURNS 20: An EXCLUSIVE Q&A with Yep Roc co-founder Glenn Dicker

STEPHEN SPAZ SCHNEE: Before starting Yep Roc, were you an avid music collector? Were there any particular genres that you focused on personally?
GLENN DICKER: I would say that I was very much a music collector since I was a little kid. I got very interested in collecting 45’s when I went around to garage sales with my parents and as I got older that spread to full albums when I could afford it. Early on I was into ‘60s music, mostly what would be considered classic rock these days like The Beatles, Stones, Who, Kinks, etc. But as I got a bit older I got caught up in the punk rock thing, mostly the English bands. My favorite was The Jam. When I got out of school and went to work for Rounder Distribution, I got turned onto so much more that really opened my mind to all kinds of great stuff that I had previously only dabbled in like World Music, Blues, Jazz, Folk, Bluegrass, etc. Once I get into an artist, I usually want everything.

ERIC STEWART: An EXCLUSIVE interview with the former 10cc member and Rock icon!

A SILLY PHASE I’M GOING THROUGH:

It is quite possible that you have something by Eric Stewart in your music collection at this very moment without even realizing it. Eric was a member of Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders, eventually singing lead on their 1966 hit “Groovy Kind Of Love” after Fontana had left the fold. By 1969, with the Mindbenders in his rear view mirror, Stewart was recording backing tracks for Bubblegum hits at his Strawberry Studios facilities. His recording mates included hit songwriter Graham Gouldman and multi-instrumentalists Lol Creme and Kevin Godley. In 1970, Stewart, Creme and Godley released the surprise hit “Neanderthal Man” under the group name Hotlegs. Two years later, American singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka arrived in the UK in hopes of recording new material and making a comeback. His backing band featured Stewart, Gouldman, Godley and Creme. Sedaka and this quartet of talented musicians recorded two albums together, both directly responsible for the enormous success that Sedaka and 10cc would achieve within a few short years.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: ALBERT CASTIGLIA/UP ALL NIGHT

While he may be classified as a Blues artist, Albert Castiglia will certainly appeal to more than just that genre’s enthusiasts. Fans of Alt-Country, Roots Rock and Americana will most certainly fall under the spell of Castiglia and his 2017 album UP ALL NIGHT, which hits stores on October 6. His name may not be familiar to some but he’s been raising the roof since 1990 when he joined Miami Blues Authority. Discovered six years later by Blues legend Junior Wells, Albert became his sideman until Wells’ death in 1998. Working as a sideman for a variety of other artists, Castiglia didn’t step into the solo spotlight until he released his debut album in 2004.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: ZARA McFARLANE/ARISE

British Jazz/Soul vocalist and songwriter Zara McFarlane returns to the scene with her third album, ARISE, the follow-up to her 2014 album IF YOU KNEW HER. Like her first two albums, ARISE is available on the beloved Brownswood Recordings label. Brownswood was founded by Gilles Peterson, the respected French-born British DJ who was also responsible for the Acid Jazz and Talkin’ Loud labels. Anyone familiar with Brownswood’s eclectic roster and Zara’s first two albums will already know that she is a musical force to be reckoned with and that ARISE does not disappoint on any level.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: JON LANGFORD/FOUR LOST SOULS

Jon Langford is a rarity in the music business. I can’t think of another artist that can be called a pioneer of British Post-Punk (with The Mekons and The Three Johns) AND a beloved Americana singer/songwriter. But don’t misunderstand the man: this is NOT a case of an artist changing musical styles to chase fame and fortune! In fact, one can find traces of the American musical landscape in the early Mekons releases although they are buried amongst the many shadows that the band were prone to throw during their inspiring career. Over the years, Langford traveled many different musical roads, all of which lead to the glory that is FOUR LOST SOULS.

ODESZA: An EXCLUSIVE Q&A!

A MOMENT APART:

An EXCLUSIVE
Q&A with

Harrison Mills

STEPHEN SPAZ SCHNEE: A MOMENT APART has just been released. How are you feeling about the album and the reaction you’ve had so far?

HARRISON MILLS: This album represents the next chapter of our project. We’ve wanted for so long to push our sound and mature as musicians. With A MOMENT APART we’ve accomplished a denser, more cinematic sound that incorporates a lot of organic, symphonic instruments. We’ve always considered ourselves an album band, so it’s hard to give people a song out of context, and even harder to choose those singles. The advance releases cover a lot of styles and genres, so it’s been interesting to see listeners kind of pick and choose their favorites. We’re excited for people to be able to listen to the album in full – the narrative of the album gives a lot of context to those songs.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: BRUCE COCKBURN/BONE ON BONE

BONE ON BONE is the highly anticipated 2017 album from Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn. The album is his first in six years and is the follow-up to 2011’s SMALL SOURCE OF COMFORT. His 25^th studio album overall, BONE ON BONE finds Bruce Cockburn at ease as a musician but ill at ease with the world. For those familiar with Cockburn’s work over the years, this may seem like nothing new. However, BONE ON BONE finds Bruce at the top of his game. And for an artist that has been releasing albums for nearly 50 years, this is quite a feat. Mixing Folk and Blues, the album is warm, intimate and filled with songs that are destined to become Cockburn classics. Amongst the Folk Blues stomp of songs like “States I’m In” (the first single) and “Café Society” is “Forty Years In The Wilderness”, one of the loveliest songs he’s ever written.

An EXCLUSIVE Q&A with DEAN WAREHAM of LUNA

As Luna reassemble with their first new music in thirteen years, the group’s founder took time to discuss the band’s pair of simultaneous releases; an instrumental EP and an album of covers.

DAVE RAYBURN: With A SENTIMENTAL EDUCATION and A PLACE OF GREATER SAFETY you provide an outpouring of new music than Luna fans might not have been expecting. Why did you opt for an album of covers and an EP of instrumentals for the band’s return to the studio?
DEAN WAREHAM: I know what Andy Warhol answered when asked why he was making short films instead of painting. “Because it’s easy.” Making covers is easier of course because you don’t have to write the songs. And ditto with instrumentals, I don’t have to write any lyrics (the hardest part). So I thought an album of covers would be a nice way for us to record together after 13 years apart. Also we’ve done a lot of covers over the years and people like them. Sean Eden insisted we should do something more, and that’s how we came to record the instrumentals. So it’s cool, we’ve got two things that we’ve never done before, and personally I think that’s more interesting to people than “oh, these dudes got together and wrote some new songs.”

An EXCLUSIVE Q&A with ANTIBALAS’ Martin Perna

WHERE THE GODS ARE IN PEACE:

STEPHEN SPAZ SCHNEE: WHERE THE GODS ARE IN PEACE is just about to be released. How are you feeling about the way the album turned out and the reaction to it so far?
MARTIN PERNA: We are happy with the way the album turned out, or else we wouldn’t have put it out. It was a lot of work and represents several years of effort working through some problems that would have sunk most other bands. We had some members graduate to other projects not long after our last record in 2012, and this album proves both to ourselves and people who listen to us that we have more juice than ever.

AMPED™ FEATURED ALBUM OF THE WEEK: CHARLIE PARR/DOG

Singer/songwriter Charlie Parr has returned with an album that mixes his Folk roots with plenty of heart and soul. Although he may sometimes write as an observer, his songs put him square in the eye of the storm. Parr writes songs that are extremely personal yet universal at the same time. Listening to DOG, you’ll stumble across people that you feel that you already know, places that you are sure you’ve been and feelings that you most definitely have experienced. This is a world where both feet are firmly planted on the ground. You can feel the heat of the sun and smell the beer-soaked floorboards. This is an album that pulls no punches. Life is hard and then you die but in between, there is light in the darkness. However, that light may be only fleeting at times. But that is understandable because Charlie experienced some truly dark moments before making the album.