Medleyville

Checking in with Cindy Wasserman

Only recently did her band release its first album, Honey and Salt (Populuxe), but Dead Rock West singer Cindy Wasserman is no rookie when it comes to music.

Wasserman has learned a thing or two from bassist brother Rob Wasserman, not to mention Lou Reed and John Doe.

Speaking of Doe, Dead Rock West is on tour with the former X man, opening for him and also serving as his backing band.

Medleyville.us: Prior to Dead Rock West coming together in 2002, what was your musical track record?
Cindy Wasserman: "I had recorded and/or played with many different artists, such as Grant Lee Phillips, Rickie Lee Jones, Tom Brosseau, Gregory Page and, more recently, John Doe and Mark Olson. However, Dead Rock West didn't really come together until early 2004 as a full band; 2002 is just when [singer/guitarist] Frank [Lee Drennen] and I started singing together as a duo, yet we didn't gig out. We were both in other bands when we met. So DRW's evolution has been slow, but when [bassist] David J. Carpenter, [drummer] Bryan Head and [pianist] Phil Parlapiano came onboard DRW was 'born,' so to speak."

Honey and Salt, the band's first album, was released earlier this year. Was it actually five years in the making, or was it written and recorded more recently, in a condensed period of time?
Wasserman: "Honey and Salt was really only one-and-a-half years in the making. We began in late 2004 and finished in 2006. The reason it took so long was two-fold -- one being money! Since we recorded to tape, the process was much slower and cost us much more. Then Frank and I took off for a monthlong U.K. tour after the initial tracking of the album was completed.

"The last delay was due to the schedule of Richard Dodd, who mixed our record. We were so excited when Richard said he would mix the record, we would have waited another year for him if need be. He has worked with Tom Petty, Steve Earle [and others]."

Talk about how Lou Reed has influenced your music career.
Wasserman: "I have had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with Lou. My brother has been playing and recording with Lou since 1989 -- the New York album. Lou is in my Top 10 list of great songwriters, as is John Doe. So getting to spend time with Lou and hear his views on life, art and music has been such a treat, to say the least.

"As far as Lou playing a role in my singing, it was really both my brother and Lou. My brother bought me a four-track machine, and I played Lou some of the stuff I had been recording. He was very encouraging and gave me some really great feedback. So, I guess you can say, any time someone like Lou tells you he likes what you're doing, it makes you want to keep going."

What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned about the music business from your brother Rob?
Wasserman: "I would have to say the biggest lesson I have learned from my brother Rob has not been about the music business, but about the craft of music itself. Since I was a kid, he would bring me along to sessions and gigs he was doing. Thanks to Rob, I have had the opportunity to watch, listen and learn from some of my favorite artists -- Elvis Costello, Lou Reed, Rosanne Cash, Neil Young, Jerry Garcia, Brian Wilson, Willie Dixon and many more.

"Unlike my brother, I have never had any formal musical training. I learned to sing by trial-and-error, lots of gigs and the 'School of Rob Wasserman,' so to speak! Clearly, I am my brother's biggest fan."

Dead Rock West is opening for John Doe and serving as his backing band as well. Does that require any physical or mental adjustments on your part to give equal effort during both sets?
Wasserman: "I always give 100 percent to all that I do musically. I love singing and hope that it shows. Pulling 'double-duty' has really been energizing for me. This is my second tour with John where I pull double-duty. The first was a double bill with John and Grant Lee Phillips, where I was in both bands as well.

"It's been great getting back on the road with John. He is such an amazing singer and songwriter; he is one of the greats. I have learned so much from John about songwriting, singing and life. So, to get the opportunity to open the show with my own band Dead Rock West, and then sing with John Doe all night? What more can a girl ask for?"

-- Introduction and interview by Chris M. Junior

Dead Rock West on tour with John Doe (schedule subject to change):

* July 24: 8x10 -- Baltimore

* July 25: World Cafe Live -- Philadelphia

* July 26: Mercury Lounge -- New York

* July 27: T.T. the Bear's Place -- Cambridge, Mass.

* July 30: Maxwell's -- Hoboken, N.J.

* July 31: Iota Club and Cafe -- Arlington, Va.

* Aug. 2: Capital Ale House -- Richmond, Va.

* Aug. 3: Hideway BBQ -- Raleigh, N.C.

* Aug. 4: Visulite Theatre -- Charlotte, N.C.

* Aug. 6: The Nick -- Birmingham, Ala.

* Aug. 7: The Basement -- Nashville, Tenn.

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Her band's first album, One Cell in the Sea, is due in stores July 17 via the Capitol Music Group. A Fine Frenzy leader Alison Sudol, 22, recently took time to discuss some of her other musical firsts.

FIRST ALBUM PURCHASED: "Tell Mama by Etta James. [Laughter, then long pause] I have a feeling that other things came before it . . . I think I bought a tape of Madonna songs when I was 6."

FIRST CONCERT ATTENDED: "The first concert that I’m willing to admit to [attending] was a radio station concert [in Southern California]. The Bee Gees were playing at the end, but it was all of these different groups. I remember thinking that was pretty cool, seeing all of those people. . . . Celine Dion played as well, and it was interesting because it was right around the time Titanic came out . . . she had an entire stadium of people singing along, and I thought that was awesome."

FIRST SONG LEARNED TO PLAY ON THE PIANO: "It was 'Moonlight Sonata.' I started to learn how to play it, and then I got frustrated, so I wrote a song on my own and gave up on learning how to play ['Sonata']. I did that with 'Hey Jude,' too. 'Hey Jude' actually led to 'You Picked Me,' which is on my album. I tried to learn 'Hey Jude' . . . I started banging on the piano, and my frustration led to a new song."

FIRST LIVE PERFORMANCE: "My ballet recital when I was 4. I loved it. I loved performing. It was a while between that one and the next one, but that definitely was fun -- and I was not meant to be a dancer, at all (laughs)."

FIRST THING PURCHASED AFTER BEING SIGNED: "I bought a computer because I had this PC, and it was dinosaur. The actual computer itself was from 1994, and it started to take about 10 minutes to load . . . so I got myself a Mac, and now I'm attached to it."

-- Introduction and interview by Chris M. Junior

A Fine Frenzy on tour (schedule subject to change):

* July 29: Moore Theatre -- Seattle

* July 31: Crystal Ballroom -- Portland, Ore.

* Aug. 2: Wells Fargo Center for the Arts -- Santa Rosa, Calif.

* Aug. 3: Nob Hill Masonic -- San Francisco

* Aug. 4: Mountain Winery -- Saratoga, Calif.

* Aug. 6: Paolo Soleri Amphitheatre -- Sante Fe, N.M.

* Aug. 7: Fillmore Auditorium -- Denver

* Aug. 9: Voodoo @ Harrah's -- Kansas City, Mo.

* Aug. 10: Nokia Theatre -- Dallas

* Aug. 11: Stubb's -- Austin, Texas

* Aug. 13: Tabernacle -- Atlanta

* Aug. 14: Ryman Auditorium -- Nashville, Tenn.

* Aug. 15: Charlottesville Pavilion -- Charlottesville, Va.

* Aug. 17: Mann Center for the Performing Arts -- Philadelphia

* Aug. 19: Central Park SummerStage -- New York

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1980s package tours can be intriguing prospects, but not always for the best reasons.

Before the sensible concert-goer plunks down his cash to see some bands who were in their prime in a time when synthesizers ran wild, MTV was a tastemaker and the Internet was years from being dreamed up by Al Gore, a few key questions often come to mind: Who exactly is in the band, anyway? Can they get through a song without being winded? And, most importantly, can they still play?

With this in mind, Medleyville checked out the Rockin the Colonies tour this week at Jenkinsons in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J., featuring The Psychedelic Furs, The Fixx and The Alarm. Here is a handy
breakdown of each act (in the order in which they played):

* THE ALARM
Current touring lineup: Lone original member Mike Peters (vocals/guitar) with latter-day fixtures James Stevenson (guitars),Craig Adams (bass) and Steve Grantley (drums).

Positives: The quartet attacked most songs with a vigor befitting lads half their age, and it worked best on newer offerings, such as the opener "Superchannel" and the infectious rave-up "45 RPM" (though the latter was strangely spliced in the middle of the band's classic anthem "Spirit of '76) as well as "Absolute Reality," a dose of bouncy political pop from the mid-'80s.

Negatives: There were hiccups during staples like "Rain in the Summertime" that made it hard to forget that Peters, who left the original band in 1991, is essentially backed by hired guns.

Biggest surprise: The 48-year-old Peters looked remarkably fit, full of boundless energy and still in great voice, even after recently battling cancer for a second time.

** THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS
Current touring lineup: Core members Richard Butler (vocals),Tim Butler (bass) and John Ashton (guitars), plus Mars Williams(saxophone), Patrick Ferguson (drums) and Amanda Kramer (keyboards).

Positives: Where to begin? The Furs thrilled the largely 40-something crowd right from the first seductive note from Williams' sax on funky opener "Heartbeat" and never let up. It was an undeniably fun trip back in time, as the band touched on its best (and best known) material from its first four albums and even tossed in a new-ish tune that fit right in.

Richard Butler sashayed around, drawing howls from the females in the audience on the radio hits ("Love My Way," "The Ghost in You," "Pretty in Pink") while the ultra-tight band behind him positively slayed the snarling "President Gas" with the precision of old punks. But this was no nostalgia trip; the Furs sounded as vital and relevant as ever.

Negatives: The only possible nit-pick would be that the Furs, the tour headliner, apparently opted for the shorter middle slot on this night for unspecified reasons and played about 65 minutes. The performance itself was as flawless as you'll find from a band that is basically a part-time project these days.

Biggest surprise: New drummer Ferguson, a late replacement just before the tour, didn't let it show as he locked into an airtight groove and even made a few songs sound fresh by taking the tempo down a notch.

*** THE FIXX
Current touring lineup: Mainstays Cy Curnin (vocals), Jamie West-Oram (guitars), Rupert Greenall (keyboards) and Dan Woods (drums), plus Gary Tibbs (bass).

Positives: For much of the performance, there weren't really highlights to speak of so much as moments that were less mundane than others. The late-set combo of "Deeper and Deeper" and "Red Skies" woke up some of the remaining crowd, and "Saved by Zero" sent the diehards home happy, but it was too late to salvage such a poorly paced show.

Negatives: Beginning with three short, obscure songs that were at best unfinished and at worst poorly conceived, The Fixx quickly sucked the life out the room, so much so that even the next selection, a somewhat reserved version of radio staple "One Thing Leads to Another," did little to rev the crowd up. The long pauses between songs, ineffectual banter from Curnin and a few forgettable forays into prog-rock territory didn't help, either.

Handed the headlining slot for a night, The Fixx failed not only failed to match the Furs' energy or showmanship, they seemed content not to try.

Biggest surprise: Curnin, now sporting a brown-ish buzz cut rather than blond locks, is starting to resemble comedian David Brenner.

-- By George Henn

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Britt Daniel discusses the new Spoon album

On one hand, recording Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, the new Spoon album, was business as usual, according to leader Britt Daniel (second from left).

"I'm always just scrambling to make everything as cool as it can be and as great as it can be," he says, "so I'll try any theory or any strategy to get there."

On the other hand, Spoon did work with multiple producers on the new album, due in stores July 10 via Merge and streaming now via www.gagagagaga.net. In addition to Mike McCarthy, who along with Daniel and drummer Jim Eno shared production credits on the band's previous three Merge albums, Spoon recorded with Jon Brion (Aimee Mann, Rhett Miller, Kanye West).

"It was a blast," says Daniel of working with Brion on the song "The Underground." "He's a pretty incredible human being. He's definitely doing the right job for his abilities because he's so talented, extremely creative and really great at working with people. It was a very positive experience."

Daniel says Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga was "an intense record to make" and that it took the Austin, Texas-bred band longer than usual to complete the project.

"I moved up to Portland, [Ore., in 2005], but I had to go back to Austin for the recording of the record, and I didn't have a place to live," explains Daniel. "So I was usually living at the studio, and once we were about two and a half months in and I couldn't see the end of it on the other side, it started to feel like, 'Are we ever going to finish this record? Is it ever going to be as good as we need it to be?' "

Spoon finished the album prior to this year's South by Southwest music conference/festival in Austin. That time of year, says the soft-spoken Daniel, "is when things get a little crazy" in the self-proclaimed Live Music Capital of the World.

"I do get stopped some, but usually I'm pretty much left alone," says Daniel, who was a panelist and performer during SXSW '07. "People in Austin are nice about it."

As for his level of celebrity, Daniel says he "doesn't need it to be more complicated" than it is.

"It's a strange juxtaposition because [as a musician] you're always doing things to reach more people," he adds.

-- By Chris M. Junior

Spoon on the road (schedule subject to change):

* July 4: Comerica City Fest -- Detroit

* July 5: Summerfest -- Milwaukee

* July 11: Battery Park -- New York

* July 28: Capitol Hill Block Party -- Seattle

* Aug. 4: Lollapalooza -- Chicago

* Aug. 5: Virgin Festival -- Baltimore

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