Doug Stalnaker Q&A

Your name:

Doug Stalnaker.

Where are you from?

The United States. Born in Ohio, grew up in West Virginia. Now living in New Mexico.

How would you describe yourself and your music?

My genre is ‘psychedelic folk.’ I record my songs in my garage with the Audacity digital audio editor. I use acoustic and electric six-string guitars as well as an acoustic twelve-string guitar.

Who are your main influences musically?

John Lennon & Paul McCartney, Nick Drake, Donovan, Pete Ham, Kurt Cobain, and Ian Curtis.

What do you hope to achieve in music?

I am a songwriter first and foremost. My goal is to have my songs performed and (hopefully!) recorded by others.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

Being signed by my publisher (Voice Ranch Music, BMI) only a month after I began sending out my demos.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Nothing worth mentioning. I wouldn’t want to forget a negative moment in any event. It’s better to remember and learn from one’s mistakes, however big or small they may be.

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

There are several – ‘Another Piece of You,’ ‘Youngstown Girl,’ and ‘She Is the Sun’ come to mind. If I have to choose one I would say ‘She Is Anyway.’ It’s a Psychedelic Folk love song that contains what I feel are some of my best lyrics and chord progressions. I used acoustic six and twelve string guitars to record it.

Where can we listen to it?

https://youtu.be/sm-wTz8w0Dk

Where can we find out more about your music?

Twitter: - https://twitter.com/RadioFreeINFP

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6yYqX_AK7cUDK5dalLGgKg

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/doug-stalnaker-1

ReverbNation: https://www.reverbnation.com/dougstalnaker

I have more songs uploaded on YouTube at the moment.

Anything else you’d like to say about your music that I forgot to ask?

My peculiar brand of psychedelic folk is just a small contribution to an indie music scene that is so very organic, vibrant and diverse. Social media/the internet are powerful tools that have enabled me to connect with songwriters and musicians I would have not discovered otherwise. Indie music is not an ‘either/or’ ‘you or me’ – it’s a communal effort and I believe that we need to support each other via Twitter, sharing links, and word-of mouth. The more music the merrier!

New album from My Baby

TRANCE folk rock band My Baby will release their new album Shamanaid on May 25th.

They precede that with lead single Uprising with an accompanying video.

The Dutch trio - brother-sister pairing Cato and Joost van Dyke and guitarist Daniel 'daFreez' Johnston - have recently been touring the UK with US blues hero Seasick Steve.

My Baby carry a unique sound - as you will guess from my shoddy attempts to pigeon-hole them at the start of this article - taking in elements of folk, blues, roots, rock, dance, house, trance, psychedelia, gospel and lots more.

Talking about their sound, Joost says: "I always describe it as a drink. It's a brew loaded with the music styles we love. We borrow from the rich history of folk music from all around the world and bring it to the moment of now."

You can make up your own mind by listening/below and getting the album from iTunes,YouTube, SoundCloud or Spotify.

To find out more on the band visit mybabywashere.com, facebook.com/mybabymusic or twitter.com/mybabywashere.

Captain A & The Commercial Monsters Q&A

Your name:

Eoghan / Captain A.

Where are you from?

North West Ireland. Donegal to be precise. It's the same rocks that make up the Scottish Highlands. It's coastal and rugged postcard Ireland.

Name of band: 

Captain A & The Commercial Monsters.

Who else is in your band?

Well I'm addicted to collaboration so there have been about 20 or 30 people through the doors over the years. I basically just borrow people from other bands so we play with different line-ups all the time. The live band right now is, with the band I'm stealing them from: Rohan on bass (Velvet Alibi), Neil on keys (Comrade Hat), Orlaith on clarinet/vox/sax (Calamity Gin), Mike on drums (The Poxmen), Fionn on guitar (The Caledonia Highly Strung Orchestra).  

How would you describe yourselves?

Oh dear, I've made about 10 albums over past ten years. I like to change genre every record. There was Asian folk, Irish folk, electric things but i suppose the main thing I do is big collaboration. The 'Dreams' record I'd say is melodic, psychedelic, experimental, layered megapop. Live we really go for the traditional band thing, big noise, lots of wig outs and harmonies and crescendos and things. 

Who are your main influences musically?

The past few years I'd say Bowie, various prog, lots of soundtrack music. My voice is in the range of Cohen and I often come back to 'I'm Your Man' when I need a kick as it was big record to me as a teen. I'm happy with noise as I am with lyrics, melody is everything though. 

What do you hope to achieve in music?

Exactly what I'm doing right now. Being surrounded by great musicians and making lots of sounds. More live shows would be nice. 

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

There is nothing I like more than when at the end of a gig, you can feel a buzz in the room that didn't exist before the tunes began. People are up, chatting, glowing. I think that might be what it's for. 

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Bad sound, lost in translation. Not good for gig goers or bands either. 

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

I'd pick something from the 'Dreams' record - it's not out yet though. From that record I've come to see 'Friday Night Amazing Light' as getting closest to what I'm trying to do on record. I barely play on it myself, I just kept instigating people to do their own thing and one morning I just woke up and this beautiful thing had emerged. Right now, only 'Richer' is public - it definitely represents the Dreams album - changing the instruments a few times in the tune without losing it, very lush sounds, collaboration, more than one singer, a bit trippy and honest. 

Where can we listen to it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGc_1O_e9ZY

Where can we find out more about your music?

Website:  www.captainaandthecommercialmonsters.net

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Captain-A-The-Commercial-Monsters/164274777611?ref=bookmarks

Anything else you’d like to say about your band/music that I forgot to ask?

Place all of your negative thoughts into a tuna sandwich, hand feed it to a crow.

The Sad House-Guest Routine Q&A

Your names:

Andy Duncan and John Edwards.

Where are you from?

Camberley in Surrey originally, but now Andy lives in Wiltshire and John lives in Hong Kong.

Name of band:

The Sad House-Guest Routine.

Who else is in your band?

The band is Andy Duncan, John Edwards and James Macdonald. We all play various instruments so the duties change from song to song.

How would you describe yourselves and your music?

Andy: The best description I can think of is psychedelic-folk, though sometimes without the psychedelia and sometimes without the folk. We love harmonies – in fact, we’re almost unhealthily obsessed with them, we like swirly guitars and we like bubbling bass. But we also like banjos, ukuleles and flutes (but none of us can play the flute).

Who are your main influences musically?

Andy: Definitely for me, Syd Barrett is a massive influence. He fascinates me and some of his songs are just perfect. I’d love to know what he could have gone on to achieve. Apart from him, I have the inevitable Beatles ardour, and I love Elephant 6 bands such as Neutral Milk Hotel and Circulatory System. The North Sea Radio Orchestra and Joanna Newsom are also people I listen to a lot, and I have discovered that I love the bleakness and big skies of gothic Americana – The Handsome Family have been a recent, wonderful discovery, thanks, I must admit, to True Detective. And I love some Neil Young, but only when he is sad. When Neil Young is sad, I am happy. It is a cruel state of affairs that would probably mean we could never be friends. Oh, and finally, Little Bear by Guillemots is quite possibly the most beautifully brutal song I have ever heard.

John: My favourite bands include the old greats like Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin and a few well known indie bands like My Bloody Valentine. At the moment I am a big fan of Sharon Van Etten, Conor Oberst and Father John Misty. There’s a slice of American folk right there. 

What do you hope to achieve in music?

Andy: I would love to be able to make music full-time. I am lucky that I happen to be in a band with two of my best friends, so if we could spend our working lives getting together, having a laugh and making music, I couldn’t think of anything better. To be able to sell a few albums, have songs in films and play a few festivals would be magic. We could tour the country in a campervan together, play festivals, and solve mysteries.

John: Getting positive comments on our songs on Soundcloud is always a delight. Follow us! And maybe we will follow you too. 

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?

Andy: I played a festival a couple of years ago. A smallish one on a farm in Wiltshire, but a festival nonetheless. It was summer, it was a glorious day and we were playing outside. The sun was setting as we played our last song, the crowd were up against the stage in a state of high excitement and for a few glorious moments I indulged in the idea of being a Rock God. (Then I drove home in my Seat Ibiza and had a cup of tea.) More recently, a New York record label has asked to use some of the Sad House-Guest Routine’s songs on forthcoming compilations, which is pretty exciting.

John: The writing and recording that we’ve done together over many summers has been great fun. Nothing beats the delight of listening back to a piece of music that you have made, and then sinking some celebratory Carling beers.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?

Andy: For me, it was the gig that immediately followed the festival highpoint. We played a club in Swindon where the band outnumbered the audience. The experience was compounded by my bass guitar breaking just before we went on, and I had to conduct a hasty repair by jamming a couple of chopsticks into the f-hole (if you’ll excuse the expression).

If you had to pick just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?

Andy: I think there are, broadly speaking, two sides to our music. One is the swirly psychedelia of Dead Section, which is steeped in echo and harmonies. And then there is the folky acoustic side too, of which John’s song, Sisyphus, is a brilliant example.

Where can we listen to it?

http://soundcloud.com/sad-house-guest-routine/dead-section

Where can we find out more about your music?

Twitter: @sadhouseguest

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sadhouseguestroutine