More Weird! (Review Wrap-Up Fall/Winter 2017)

In a world where it seems music either gets pushed to the forefront for the masses or the background as wallpaper, it's pretty easy to lose sight of the weirdos -- which is, anyone who's making music who's not shooting for superstardom or complete anonymity.

I hesitate to call the following albums from the past 2-3 months the product of weirdos -- those artists I've met personally certainly wouldn't fall in that category -- but to the extent that these aren't albums aiming for the Billboard Top 40 or your local Pottery Barn soundtrack, they are a little weird. I'm not sure that there would be many kids who would like all of these albums equally, but there are probably more than a few families in which at least one of the clan would find something of entertainment value within. There are some other albums out this fall that have given me joy, but these are some of the highlights, as well as being music I haven't really covered much, if at all.

Dreamers - Lard Dog and the Band of Shy: That cover art, with its angular illustrations suggesting a family-friendly Picasso, nails the overall Lard Dog attitude. The music itself, swing and Tin Pan Alley-influenced, seems beamed in from another generation -- this is an album that features a song called "Who's Your Favorite Beatle?." Meanwhile the lyrics at times seem beamed in from another planet altogether, either because they're non sequiturs or literally in some made-up language (lookin' at you, "The Kimbaloo.") The second track, "I Like," expresses a variety of the singers' favorite things, including Stravinsky and Mork from Ork, which would scan poorly if sung in "My Favorite Things," but fits the attitude here just right. There's a kindness here that is very endearing.

Endangered Species Project - Fire Dog: Mark Pagano and his St. Louis, Missouri-based band started off making music for adults, but is spending more time these days making music for kids and musically, there's no difference between this album and one made for the older set. (Heck, kids'll love the guitar riff on "Kingdom Phylum" not knowing that it's ripped off from Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Not that I'm complaining.) This is a concept album about, unsurprisingly, endangered animals. Where I think the album succeeds more than most similar "nature-inspired" albums for kids is twofold -- first, it's far more focused on endangered animals, with a song about the federal Endangered Species Act, songs about habitat and what it means to be endangered, and songs about some animals themselves. It's a coherent whole. Second, and I admit this is totally personal taste, I dig the indie-rock vibe. (You or your kids may differ. Or may rock out.)

Songs from the Monkey House - Jack Forman: The bassist from Seattle trio Recess Monkey (and afternoon DJ on Sirius-XM's Live from the Monkey House call-in show) releases his first album through Amazon Music and pretty much goes the full "Weird" Al on this one. These are silly songs for the 7-year-old (and possibly 37-year-old) goofball in your life, with drooling dogs ("Dog Park"), Star Wars ("Yodeling Yoda"), and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ("Candy Tour") serving as some inspiration. There's an amusing song ("No Name") about a band that has everything but a name in which the denouement from the punchline is better than the punchline itself. Not that Recess Monkey ever made its name based on its heartfelt odes to family life, but Forman dials the comedic id way up here. If someone in your family has ever entertained the notion of buying a rubber chicken (or is amused by said notion), this is for you.

Gonna Be Great - David Tobocman: Tobocman has a slightly rarer niche in kids music -- sophisticated AM-radio pop for more a slightly younger set. (After all, his first album, Very Helpful Songs, was explicitly created to help teach kids the ways of the preschool world, a description that doesn't adequately convey how pleasant of a listen it was.) There's a gentleness and quiet optimism on this new album, and while there are a few "helpful" songs -- the touched-by-southern rocker "Keep Your Hands To Yourself," the '70s funk "Don't Put Money In Your Mouth" -- the songs that'll probably stick to you and your 6-year-old's brain will be the more story-focused "Dalia" (a figure-skating elephant) or "The Cookie Factory" (yes, a song about bakers, but more subtly, an ode to the working man and woman). And, hey, if your six-year-old doesn't appreciate the Shakespeare (or Beverly Hillbillies) references in "Something Called King Lear," just give her time.

Imaginary Universe - Johnny Bregar: I've long been surprised that the Seattle-based Bregar hasn't received more attention for his crafty and well-crafted roots-rock for kids. I suspect that his under-the-radar impression is due to his comparatively low output (that link above is to his last album, released in 2012) and minimal touring. It's really too bad, though, because he's particularly good at striking the balance between kid-focused but not "kiddie" lyrical approaches, heartfelt but not sappy. In any case, it's so good to have Bregar and his voice back to tickle your family's ears on his latest album. You can listen to the entire album on the standard digital outlets as well as Bandcamp, and if you just have time for a couple tracks, give his take on the traditional "Ain't No Bugs" and the rocker "Sleepy Heads" a try. (If I told you which song the latter reminded me of, it'd give away the whole joyful final act reveal of the song.)

Listen To This: "The Cardoons" - Pointed Man Band (World Premiere!)

As the drabness of winter hangs on, the thoughts of kids (and their parents) turn to sunshine and outdoor explorations. As an unofficial theme song to this run-up to spring, might I suggest "The Cardoons"? It's the first single from Portland's Pointed Man Band forthcoming album Between the Waves and the Cardoons, and the track is a particularly joyful celebration of enjoying youth, not only from the perspective of the young ones themselves, but also their parents. For this, the album's closing track, PMB mastermind Dan Elliott also brought along Jack Forman (Recess Monkey) and Josh Shriber (Josh and the Jamtones) to sing along on the chorus.

"From the firewood / To the neighborhood." Indeed.

I'm pleased as punch to offer up the world premiere of "The Cardoons" today (along with that sweet GIF). Between the Waves and the Cardoons is released on March 3, and you can pre-order the album here. Enjoy the song!

<a href="http://pointedmanband.bandcamp.com/track/the-cardoons">The Cardoons by Pointed Man Band</a>

Review: Hot Air - Recess Monkey

I've come to think that the biggest risk Recess Monkey takes is the opposite of most bands' risk: rather than waiting too long between albums, the Seattle trio's insane level of productivity offers its own perils. Producing an album a year (if not more) like clockwork might almost make listeners think of the albums as interchangeable cogs rather than unique creative expressions.

With their new album Hot Air, the band has released one of their more stylistically varied albums. With song subjects -- or at least titles -- loosely grouped around an airborne topic ("Lighter Than Air," "Paper Airplane," "Head in the Clouds," to name just a few song titles), the band covers broad distances (see what I did there?) musically. From the soft-rock of "Lighter Than Air" to the Beatlesque tunes of "Paper Airplane" (White Album) and "Head in the Clouds" and "Morning Sun" (Sgt. Pepper's) to the XTC ripoff (lovingly, I'm sure) "Thunder & Lightning," there are many approaches, and in a more sophisticated way than the "buffet" style kids albums sometimes employ. "Oh Lando" might be viewed as a shameless (and spoiler-filled!) courting of the Star Wars fanboys and fangirls in their retelling of The Empire Strikes Back, but there have been much worse attempts. There isn't a single song that's the can't-miss hit of the summer (and "First Things First," though it may be popular in concert, wears out its welcome quickly to the adult listener), but on the whole it's yet another solid collection of tracks that will appeal to varying degrees to a wide sector of the kids' music world.

The 39-minute album is most appropriate for kids 4 through 8. The album comes packaged -- for those of you who still buy albums -- with a DVD that ties the songs on the album together into a movie -- a series of music videos, really -- about a boy who grows up to enter an air race with a homemade balloon and encounters a penguin... OK, does the story really matter? (Not really.) It adds value and so your preschoolers might enjoy it, but it's not essential to enjoyment of the album.

To go back to the opening question, yes, I think there's a chance that Recess Monkey's rock-solid consistency and productivity has led to folks -- including me -- to take their music for granted. As much as it feels weird to me to say this, I kind of wish they'd take a year off just to see how it affects their musical output -- and their fans' reactions to a longer-than-normal recorded absence. Regardless, Hot Air is definitely recommended.

Note: I was given a copy of the album for possible review.

Video: "Penguinese" - Recess Monkey

Spring: like clockwork, the arrival of spring means that regular season baseball, cherry blossoms in DC, and new Recess Monkey music are all on their way.

Yes, in the kindie world's least surprising (albeit very pleasant) news, the Seattle trio have announced a release date for their forthcoming album Hot Air. It'll take flight (see what I did there?) June 16, and on top of the music (produced once again by band muse John Vanderslice), it'll also include a DVD with accompanying videos that tell their own story, including, to be sure, the video below for "Penguinese." Yep, there's a new kid in town and he's a fancy dresser...

Recess Monkey - "Penguinese" [YouTube]

Weekly Summary (5/12/14 - 5/18/14)

Sorry for the (comparative) dearth of posts recently - it hasn't been for lack of desire or great music, to be sure...

Blog: Video: "Ice Cream (Healthy Eating)" - Danny Weinkauf, Interview: Jack Forman (Recess Monkey)

Videos: None this week

Listen to Music: None this week

Free Music: None this week

Kids Music Reviews: None this week

iOS Apps: Dr. Seuss Band - Oceanhouse Media

Upcoming Releases: Constantly updating...

Podcasts

Kindie Week in Review: Ep. 61: Gotta Run!

My Other Other Gig: None this week

Bake Sale: None this week

Interview: Jack Forman (Recess Monkey)

My interview with Jack Forman, bassist in Seattle's star kindie trio Recess Monkey (not to mention to DJ at Sirius-XM's Kids Place Live), about the band's brand-new technology-focused album Wired started, ironically, with an electronic hiccup as I had difficulties getting cellular coverage for my iPhone.

Or maybe not so ironically, as the band's new album is just as concerned with playing IRL, as the kids say -- out in nature, in the real world. Forman chatted with me by phone a couple weeks ago about growing up in a nerd family, having an album produced by John Vanderslice, and how the shift to digital has -- and hasn't -- affected the band.

Zooglobble: Were you a computer nerd growing up?

Jack Forman: My dad was definitely a computer nerd -- he was in computer engineering in Boeing. He worked on government contracts, so couldn't tell us what he was working on. He was the dweebiest spy ever.

My parents met in the computing center at Indiana University. They had a big VACS machine with big tapes spools, with everybody carrying yellow punch cards. I distinctly remember being brought into the computer room, and I pressed a red button, and I literally deleted an entire reel of work.

After that, they had a strict "no kid" policy.

My dad worked for IBM, where he dealt with setting up standards for computing graphics languages. It wasn't until I was a teenager that I even really understood what he did, let alone be able to explain it to others.

Yeah, here in Seattle, we were festooned with dweebs, walking around in Birkenstocks with socks on.

I had computer terminals, the old school modem, eventually the Commodore 64, writing computer scripts. The floppy disk that was actually floppy.

Did you play with your physical environment?

That was something important with the record, actually -- we were trying to tap into that "maker" movement. [As a kid], I was a huge LEGO fan -- in terms of the hours spent, far and away that was my favorite. I was never a big sports kid -- [fellow bandmates] Drew [Holloway] were more so and Korum [Bischoff] somewhat, but me, it was indoor play. Sometimes my dad would have to evict me, "Go outside, it's 80 degrees."

And sunny.

Right! I definitely empathize with the engineering nerd.

Switching gears a bit -- pun unintended, I swear, looking at your album cover -- how was working with John Vanderslice on Wired?

We were all fans separately of him before coming to the band. It's art, how he approaches his songs. The Beatles, Elliott Smith -- he's up there with them in terms of my favorite artists.

It was actually you on your review of Tabby Road where the idea first came up of actually getting John Vanderslice on the next album. So the very next day I wrote an e-mail to him which started out, "OK, this is weird," and asked if he'd be willing to do it... We eventually met at Bumbershoot, and we recorded the bit that went on Field Trip.

So last year he was setting up a living room tour, where he literally played people's living rooms. [Jack's wife] Ellen and I decided to host him -- we had 70 people downstairs, and he put on a great show. While he was here, I said we would love to do an album with him. So we went down to San Francisco in December.

It was an interesting conversation in my head. You can listen to an album over and over, create an exalted image of an artist, have this intimate connection. And he lives up to those expectations -- he's the coolest guy, so flexible -- but it's tricky to look up and see this person and have this life-changing experience.

What's it like meeting an idol, crossing that divide from fan to collaborator?

It would be more difficult with a diva -- you hear about people with their own... gravity and who are not afraid to exploit it. That would be challenging, but not the case with John. He's been running Tiny Telephone for 15-17 years, so he understands that role, it's not "paying homage to me." He knew what we wanted, he was supportive. He spent the night at our house [during the living room tour], and I knew him, but you never know. But he was great -- we've already booked our next record with him.

Did you have to explain kindie to him?

No, he did his research. Maybe a year or two before this he didn't know as much. But the Sippy Cups recorded their first album at Tiny Telephone, though not with him. And he'd actually had lunch with Alison Faith Levy the day before we started with him.

What did John bring differently as a producer to the recording?

His studio is a physical manifestation of the guy. We were in the B room, which is newer than the A room, but has the same gear, and his same understanding. He was almost like a tour guide, telling us about the sonic quality, helping us make the right choices. "What kind of vibe and energy do you want?," he'd ask, and then he and [engineer] Jamie [Riotto] would get to work.

There was a lot of experimentation -- there's lots of gear, all these amazing things. [John's] a savant, almost.

How did being in that studio affect the songs?

The songs obviously were written beforehand. We knew we wanted them to be more electric (especially compared to Desert Island Disc, which was almost entirely acoustic). We wanted the music to feel like a mashup between algorithms and electricity, duct tape and coat hangers. Sonically, we wanted to push that nexus. There was this foot-driven pump organ like on that last track on Radiohead's OK Computer. There were double tape delays, Dolby noise reduction, overdubbed melodies.

It was hugely instrumental, both literally and figuratively.

Since the album is so tied to this digital/analog split, I'm wondering how the shift to digital music generally over the past ten years has affected the band?

Well, I'm going to comment about us as a case study -- I definitely don't want to say that how others have approached it are wrong, this is just what we've decided works for us. We don't want to do a Kickstarter. I know that John Vanderslice raised $75,000, enough for him to do not 1 but 2 records. And it can be great for fan engagement.

Our model is playing shows and reaching fans in the real world. We do 100-110 shows per year, and others do more -- Jim Cosgrove ("Mr Stinky Feet") did 300 shows per year until he cut back with his new job; Chris Ballew (Caspar Babypants) did 200 shows per year until he cut back as well. We're constantly playing, and we always have a merch table. We've been here for nine years, and everything has grown, our audience has grown. Our sales have grown overall, though the growth has slowed.

Also, the royalties associated with Kids Place Live are enormous -- they've served as venture capital. Most of the great kindie albums over the past few years could be traced back to funding from KPL, and I'm not just saying that because I'm associated with them as a host.

With digital, more families are comfortable with it, but it's not yet cutting into sales. We're just making music and hoping it'll sell. We're trying to make authentic connections.

Finally, I'm wondering if you as a band have an experimentation philosophy since you seem to try lots of different things.

I think that "growth" is more along the lines of how we think. We're teachers (or used to be), talking about setting goals and how we get there even after the school days is done. So we're identifying goals and next steps -- right now I'm looking at our nearly finished garage, which I built over the winter.

Music is easy, you buy a new instrument, and the guilt alone of that being there will work on you. I live 2 blocks away from a vintage music store, and I'm constantly in there trading instruments.

It's super fun to be a funk band for three minutes, a hip-hop band for three minutes. It's fun to experiment in all these realms.

Band photos by Kevin Fry.