Dinner w/ Brendon Small and Mike Keneally (AKA Eating Real Food w/ a Fake Band)

I'm not going to write a flowery introduction: I had dinner with Dethklok.  Admittedly, the food wasn't prepared by a six star, dismembered then put back together then reanimated, chef (I cooked the meal and then humbly offered it to my guests) but I literally got to sit down with a band that doesn't literally exist.  If you don't believe me you can ask anyone in my family (who photobombed several of the pictures).

The conversation, as you can guess, was fascinating.  I picked Brendon's brain concerning the process of creating, developing, then inhabiting his characters.  My imagination was captured by a recent Radiolab that dealt with Mel Blanc and his cartoon voices and I thought it synchronistic that I would have the opportunity to eat dinner with someone who chats with and as cartoon characters on a regular basis.  In addition to talking about the show, Brendon and Mike speak to their experience as the "Metalocalypse Players" on tour and we have an obligatory conversation about food on the road.

After the dinner, my father and I headed into the show.  Brendon invited my whole family, which was a really sweet gesture, but my dad was the only one brave enough to take him up on the offer.  And I have to hand it to my dad, he seemed to enjoy himself even though several parts of the show were lewd enough to make me squeamish.  That said, the show is such a good time.  Not only do you get to hear the songs you enjoy from the show, but you are essentially treated to an hour long episode of Metalocalypse as the songs, with accompanying videos, are broken up by sketches featuring all of your favorite characters. 

Thanks to Brendon and Mike for stopping by Wealth Underground Farm and participating in the Farm to Artist project.  You probably don't need my help to find info about Metalocalypse on the internet but for more information about Dethklok and the show you can visit their Adult Swim website.  While you are surfing around, go check out Mike Keneally at his website.  Check back soon for the podcast!

A Word From Our Sponsors w/ Jeans Wilder

As I was editing the Jeans Wilder podcast I was reminded of the fact that we just went through an election season (aka the last couple of years).  It seems like it ended an eternity ago and I thought about how lucky we are to no longer get bombarded by news from the campaign trail.  I'm glad that the Jeans Wilder prediction, that we would have Romney in the White House in 2012, did not come to pass.  I'm also glad for the turning seasons, the abundance of good food here at Wealth Underground Farm, and the opportunity I get to meet and converse with so many interesting people via the Farm to Artist Project.

Jeans Wilder was on a short tour when they took the time to swing by the farm to participate in the project.  They brought an incredible energy with them, which translates into a fast paced podcast.  I hardly remember what we talked about since the conversation was such a frenzy.  

Unfortunately, I didn't get to catch them when they played in Portland but Andrew did grace us with a special, one time only performance of Dog Years.  Be on the lookout for that Road Snacks short to be released in the coming weeks.

Thanks to Jeans Wilder for a raucous lunch at Wealth Underground Farm.  To here more from them go to their Bandcamp Page.

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to the Road Snacks podcast on iTunes.  Also, go to Facebook and "like" the Farm to Artist project.

The Skeletonwitch podcast was a lot of fun to produce and I hope you enjoy listening to it.  There will be a special treat from Jeans Wilder out at the end of the week to tease that upcoming podcast.

Early Dinner w/ Skeletonwitch

At a time when their is a lot of division amongst the people of the United States of America, when two men take the spotlight in a mud throwing charade that makes us all feel dirty and defeated, there is still music.  Skeletonwitch, from the much disputed state of Ohio, brings to all of their shows a sense of acceptance and positivity that is especially refreshing during election season.  Their songs are often dark, pursuing themes of brutality and violence, but the opportunity for amusement and escapism that they create leaves everyone who encounters them better off.  Plus they are five incredibly pleasant individuals who are able to leave their aggression on the stage and in the studio.

Any day is worth celebrating but a day without rain this time of year in the Pacific Northwest is to be cherished.  The sun came out as we toured Wealth Underground making it difficult to motivate a transition inside for the meal and the podcast.  When we did go inside, an assortment of roasted vegetables, pasta, and a homemade tomato sauce was there to greet us.  

We met up again at Branx in Southeast Portland for their show with Havok and Mutilation Rites.  They played a ferocious set to a surprisingly large crowd for a Monday night.  If you missed Skeletonwitch this tour, you will no doubt have an opportunity to see them in the coming year, playing an array of new songs, as they are not going anywhere soon.

 

Thanks to Skeletonwitch for swinging by the farm on their latest tour.  Visit their website or Facebook page to hear songs or get information about upcoming shows.  

Also, on the podcast I promised a link to Happy the Hobo's obituary.  Here it is as well as his Facebook page.  RIP Happy the Hobo.

Tacos w/ Torches

Other than cover crop seed, a handful more garlic, and maybe some winter hoophouse crops, nothing more is going to be planted in the field until springtime.  Our time is mostly spent harvesting as the season quiets and the cold puts most things to rest. 

In the midst of this seasonal transition Farm to Artist remains active, recently playing host to Torches from Los Angeles.  They brought up some sun with them on the van ride up from California, which was much appreciated.  We once again hypnotized a chicken, the same one from a few week prior.  It's probably the easiest one to catch now since the first time we hypnotized it we convinced it that it was a human.  Once we stopped harassing the chickens we went inside for a lunch, which consisted of farm fresh taco fixings.

After lunch Torches visited Sauvie Island on a recommendation and then headed into town for their show at the Rotture.  Their sometimes referred to as psychadelic but they more reminded me of the indie/emo bands I saw when I was in high school.  Their is an infectious youthful energy to their live shows that definitely played on my nostalgia.  Torches are both talented and creative and they have a lot of potential. 

To hear more from Torches you can visit their bandcamp page or check them out on Facebook.  Also, check out this video for their song "I Want Something" off of the album Heads Full of Rust:

Chicken Hypnotism w/ Slug Guts

Have you seen the film The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser by Werner Herzog?  There is a scene where these kids, who are taunting a world shy Kaspar, bring a chicken into his holding cell and hypnotize it.  I'm not sure who Kaspar is in this scenario (maybe Le Beouef, our duck?) but Albert, the bass player from Slug Guts, performed the role of the rascal kids when the band recently paid a visit to Wealth Underground Farm.  After the bird laid still for about thirty seconds, he snapped his fingers with the hand not holding a Miller Lite and the dazed hen stood up, assessed the situation, and ran over to the rest of the flock.

Slug Guts, coming all the way from Australia, was in Portland playing a show at The Know.  It was the third show on their tour, following a show in L.A. and San Francisco.

We toured the farm, tasting veggies and having precious animal moments, before going into the house for the meal.  We are in the middle of the most abundant season at the farm and the meal consisted of a diverse array of vegetables.  For the early dinner, we had a slaw featuring radishes, carrots, beans, beets, and torpedo onions as well as roasted broccoli with parmesan.  The recipe for the roasted broccoli is on the Wealth Underground page accompanying the picture of the first share.

I've mentioned before that I appreciate the Know for it's 11pm show end rule, a rule that allows me to see the headlining band and then get home and get a good nights sleep.  Slug Guts played a bawdy set to a full room and even ended a little early.  Instead of taking advantage of the early ending, I ended up saying my goodbyes around one after partying for a while with these Aussie punks (and Mike, their awesome tour manager from New York).

Thanks to Slug Guts for making the trek out to the farm.  Check out their newest album, Playin' In Time With The Deadbeat, released by Sacred Bone Records.  For more info on Slug Guts, visit their Facebook page.

Early Dinner w/ Young Magic

Songs get stuck in your head, which is an (nearly) indisputable fact.  With their first full length release, Melt, the band Young Magic have crafted an entire album that, from start to finish, is one big earworm.  They gifted a tape version of the album to Wealth Underground Farm at the end of their visit and I'm nervous that we are going to pretty soon play it until it no longer works.  Not only do they make beautiful, captivating music but Young Magic, featuring Melati, Isaac, (Michael, the third member of the band, was not on this tour due to Visa issues), and their tour companion Ashley were incredibly pleasant people.  They ended up missing their sound check as the time spent chatting and eating a meal heavy in collard greens went by rapidly.  We probably could have continued sitting around the table for much longer if they did not have a show to get to.

Later, that night we reconnected at the Doug Fir on Burnside.  I arrived in time to catch the end of Imaginary Cities and wished I could have caught more of their set.  Quilt played and if I closed my eyes I could have sworn I was listening to Jefferson Airplane and the year was 1967.  They were excellent and a perfect compliment to the more poppy psychadelic sound of Young Magic, who played last.  Their first album, Melt, is good listening on a record player but, like an awesome movie, is better experienced live.  Even though they were performing as a two piece due to visa issues and, as a result, used a lot of pre-recorded music their live set came off as spontaneous and organic.  Catherine, a friend of Farm to Artist, described the music as transcendent and, along with the moving images on the screen behind the band, there were moments when I felt lifted by the music.  It feels like Young Magic is tapping into an energy stream with their music and I'm thankful they are willing to share that energy with us.

Thank you Young Magic for a pleasant day.  To hear more from the band you can check them out online on Facebook or on their bandcamp page.

This Will Destroy You nearly destroyed!

Hear This Will Destroy You recount a horrifying tale of gang violence in Austin.  Well, it's not that horrifying but there is more action than in most Road Snacks podcasts.  Download it.

Lunch w/ This Will Destroy You

Even though I love listening to music, there is no match for the ambient sounds that resonate from  the field and forest around the farm.  When I'm working in the field I feel like the sounds I make become a part of a greater production and that I've tapped into an unseen energy.  When listening to This Will Destroy You it is apparent that they are aware of that feeling.  Not only are they trying to channel something overwhelming and huge but they are also trying to be it.  I would love to hear them perform in the field at Wealth Underground Farm.


This Will Destroy You visited the farm the day after their Portland show before heading up to Seattle.  It was a beautiful day and we had plenty of time for a meandering farm tour, tasting some of the early available crops.  For lunch we ate roasted potatoes and a salad overflowing with Wealth Underground greens.  We chatted for a bit about scoring movies and getting caught in drive-by's before we said our goodbyes and they left for Seattle and the rest of their tour.

Thanks to This Will Destroy You for visiting the farm on their tour with A Place to Bury Strangers.  You can hear more from them on their bandcamp page or on facebook.

The Torche is lit!

Listen to the newest Road Snacks podcast on iTunes or the sidebar.

Lunch w/ Torche

Torche brought a party with them to Wealth Underground Farm when they joined me before their show at the Hawthorne Theatre.  I know that our goats are inclined to party so, as an experiment, I let them out of their pasture so they could follow us around the farm.  Of course, everybody in the Torche posse fell in love with the goats and I had to take a count when the band left to make sure none were missing.  It is probably the last time I'll let them free range like that, though, as they found my trellised hops and ate a fair amount of the lower leaves before I could grab them and return them to their fenced in area.

Inside, we ate a meal that included green garlic that was half eaten by gophers and lots and lots of salad as we were flush with large, beautiful heads of lettuce.  The conversation was quick and fun.  We talked about many things including Andrew's infamous bat urine story that recently vaulted Torche into national news.

I'd streamed the new album Harmonicraft (pronounced like harmonica, not harmony as I mistakenly pronounced it during the meal) a number of times but it was given a completely new meaning in the context of Torche's live show.  The band proved why they are one of the most relevant artists in heavy music, playing a dynamic and interesting set in a venue where the quality of sound tends to blend everything together (the instruments, the music, the crowd voices, the shirtless drunk guys, etc).  Not only is it fun music but the songs are high quality and the music is tight.

I want to thank Torche for a great meal and for being really sweet guests to the farm.  Go see them when they play in your city and make sure to pick up their newest album, Harmonicraft.  Also, check out some of the art of Santos, who illustrated Harmonicraft and who was with us for the lunch with Torche.

Across Tundras podcast - go get it!

You know the drill: listen to the podcast on iTunes, Facebook, or on the sidebar.  Enjoy!

Lunch w/ Across Tundras

A lot of the artists who have participated in the Farm to Artist project are involved in a diverse array of activities.  Some enjoy to garden, some have gone further and worked extensively on farms, but Tanner (guitar, vocals) from Across Tundras, as the founder of Ramble Hill Farm near Nashville, TN, is the first farmer to participate in this project.  Tanner, along with Casey (drums), Dennis (bass), and Taija, joined me at Wealth Underground Farm for a tour and a meal.

I said this during the meal but I didn't immediately enjoy the music when I first listened to Across Tundras.  I cut short the first spin of their album and didn't come back to it until about three weeks before the band rolled through Portland on tour.  I'm not sure what happened, maybe it was all the Sergio Leone spaghetti westerns and John Wayne movies I binged on or maybe I cleaned out my ears but when I relistened to Sage it suddenly resonated and I couldn't stop repeating it over and over again.  The tracks skillfully blends doom, country, psychadelic, and Americana in a way that, when you close your eyes, paints in broad swaths the mountains and plains, the mystique and allure of the American west.  It's also catchy and fun, there is a progression I occasionally get stuck in my head that I've realized is from the opening track, In the Name of the River Grand.  I would love to see this band score a movie some day as the music is incredibly visual and can really get under your skin.

Due to van trouble, they were only able to make it to one of the two Portland shows they were scheduled to play.  A sidenote, the van trouble ended up cutting short their tour and cost them a fair amount of money, so please consider purchasing their album (links at the bottom of post).  The turnout at Plan B was low and I have to think that not enough people have listened to this band because anyone who here's the recorded music will want to see them live.  They played a strong set and were then followed by Farm to Artist alum Megaton Leviathan.  The two bands were musically and thematically complementary and, though the show stretched late into the night, it was thoroughly enjoyable.

Thanks to Across Tundras for joining me at the farm.  You can hear their music, including their most recent album, Sage, at their bandcamp page or purchase the Sage double lp here.

Getcha Frittata w/ Reggie Watts

It's difficult to hold back the compliments/applause when talking about Reggie Watts.  I'm not going to fight it; skip to paragraph two if you don't want to read pure gush.  In my humble opinion, Reggie Watts is one of the most relevant entertainers of our time.  He is bright and talented and, through improvisation and stream of consciousness, can weave a tapestry of humor and gracefully stumble upon incite.  We talked briefly about the idea of sincerity in entertainment as a form of medicine and I believe Reggie is a doctor in the entertainment field, not just prescribing sincerity pills but curing the disease by treating the problem as a whole.  On top of it all, he is an incredibly nice guy who doesn't put on any sort of disaffected or jaded act.

Gush fest over, Reggie and Abke recently joined me at Wealth Underground Farm to participate in the Farm to Artist project.  It was a standard manic PNW day, overcast with bursts of sunlight shining down on us as we walked around the farm.  For lunch, we ate salad that had been harvested hours before, a frittata made with WUF eggs, broccoli, and garlic, opened a jar of pickles, and chatted before his performance at the Crystal Ballroom that night.  The conversation bounced around but some topics we hit were life in Brooklyn vs. Seattle, his involvement with Comedy Bang Bang, the process of improvising, etc.

That night he played an early show at the Crystal Ballroom.  I unfortunately missed the opening acts as they were given ten minutes and they started right on time.  When I walked in, Reggie was in the middle of his act, performing in front of  a packed crowd of sitting spectators.  I was amazed with how well he followed the energy of the crowd and was able to continually get laughs via talk or song.  The highlight for me was definitely his final song when an impromptu dance party broke out.  People got out of their seats and crammed against the front of the stage.  For his part, Reggie extended the song to allow people to get out their dancing jitters, at one point making a lap around the audience while singing along to the beat he had looping on stage.  It was a one of a kind performance and I'm stoked that I got to witness it.

Thanks to Reggie and Abke for joining me at Wealth Underground Farm.  Be sure to pick up Reggie's newest album A Live At Central Park released by Comedy Central.  Also check out Reggie on Comedy Bang Bang, which airs every Friday on IFC.  You can see videos of him "making music" with the guests on the IFC website.  Stay up to date with Reggie on his facebook page, where you can hear more of his songs/comedy and find information about his upcoming shows.

Check it!

Newest podcast is available on the sidebar or iTunes.  Get a healthy dose of Screaming Females and be sure to let me know what you think in the comments or on the Farm to Artist facebook page.

Late Lunch w/ Screaming Females

If you are not feeling well, I highly recommend eating a meal full of fresh vegetables.  And when I say fresh vegetables I mean vegetables that are harvested and then immediately prepared and eaten.  You feel the energy of the sun coursing through you and are quickly revitalized.  Though only Marissa was sick upon arrival, the entire Screaming Females crew, featuring Marissa, Mike, Jarrett, and Eloy, seemed lifted after a fresh lunch at Wealth Underground Farm.

For lunch, we took the harvested brussel sprout raab and steamed it.  Along with the raab we ate a fresh salad featuring lettuce and arugula from the farm, hard boiled eggs, and roasted root vegetables.  Over lunch, Marissa became fast friends with a slug that was in her salad.

The show in Portland was at the Know, one of my favorite venues due to the 11 pm curfew.  When you go to a show at the Know you know you are going to have the option of getting a decent night's sleep.  Maybe it's because they were only balancing the outputs of three people, but they played one of the most balanced and clean sounding sets I've heard at the Know.  Every song had an energy that required some kind of release, there was a lot of foot stomping, air drumming, heads bobbing throughout the entire set.  At the end, when the clock struck eleven and the music stopped, the audience unenthusiastically cleared out of the venue after begging the band to play more songs.

Thanks to Screaming Females for joining me at Wealth Underground Farm.  To hear more from them you can visit their website or their Facebook page.

Gull podcast - ready for download

Check out the Gull podcast via the sidebar or on iTunes.  Also, if you haven't yet, jump over to facebook (www.facebook.com/farmtoartist) and "like" the project so you can get updates via that social media leviathan.  While you are there, check out the pictures from the lunch with Screaming Females.

Lunch w/ Gull

Gull showed up at Wealth Underground Farm after a snow flurry and before a flurry of other Farm to Artist bands.  Nathaniel Rappole, the everything man/creator of Gull, recently joined me at the farm for a really pleasant afternoon.  The visit was easy going and spending time with Nathaniel was like reconnecting with an old friend even though it was the first time we had met. 

We walked around the snow covered farm and then enjoyed lunch indoors.  We had a simple meal consisting of delicata squash, mustard greens, and roasted beets and rutabagas.  I tried going into the conversation with notes, a few questions to keep the conversation going, but they were not needed.  We talked about Nathaniels travels, the inspiration behind Gull, and projects he has coming up in the future.


That evening I travelled east of the Willamette to see Gull play at the Doug Fir.  Nathaniel went on relatively early, opening for White Rabbits.  Though the band consists of just one person there was a lot of movement and activity on stage and the songs were strong and filled out.  He was primarily behind the drum kit with a guitar strapped on and wearing the skull mask, which contains the microphone that picks up his vocals, but Nathaniel often times left the drums to play guitar or stand on his amplifier.  The set was energetic and I think that if you were to see him in a tiny basement, on the street, or in a stadium, that Nathaniel could fill out the space with a one of a kind performance.

Thanks to Nathaniel/Gull for a great afternoon and conversation.  To hear more from Gull, visit him on Facebook, at his website, or check out his music here.  Also, Nathaniel talks about a successful Kickstarter campaign for a project he's working on called Street Muse.  You can learn more about that project on the Kickstarter page.

Dinner w/ Yellow Ostrich

The guys in Yellow Ostrich are familiar with Oregon.  They spent several weeks in Portland this past summer recording their new album, Strange Land.  For them, it was like a homecoming visiting Portland and playing a show at Mississippi Studios.  Fortunately, while they were here, they agreed to join me at Wealth Underground Farm to participate in the Farm to Artist project.

With help from Talia, we cooked the meal, which consisted of steamed brussel sprout raab, an egg scramble, and roasted rutabagas.  After the tour of the farm we sat down to eat the food.  The conversation varied but we talked about the transition from singer/songwriter to full band, their 10 show marathon at SXSW, their best tour meals, and the future of the band.

They had the night off and stayed at their producers house in the Mississippi neighborhood.  The following night my folks, Talia, and I had dinner at Interurban and then headed down the street for the show at Mississippi Studios.  My mom had arrived by train and my father by plane earlier in the afternoon, both travelling to Oregon from Indiana.  Yellow Ostrich started their set around 10 pm, which was 1 am for my folks, who drowsily watched the show from the comfortable movie theater style chairs in the balcony. 

Yellow Ostrich, as a full band, had an incredibly rich sound.  At times they lost the sparseness of the earlier recordings with the arrangements for multiple instruments but the set-up also allowed them to swell to heights that were previously unreachable.  As musicians, you could also sense how much they loved playing the songs and were willing to pour their emotions into the music.  They sounded great.  I'm also glad that I got to see them at this point in their band life.   I'm excited to hear more output from them and to witness them grow and evolve but it's exciting to get to hear all of your favorite songs from a band, which will change over time as they write more music and have to remove songs from their set.  

 

Thanks to Yellow Ostrich for joining me at Wealth Underground Farm.  You can find more from them at their website or on Facebook.  Stream/purchase their early ep's on their bandcamp page.

Like southern food?

Listen to the newest podcast featuring Black Tusk via iTunes (search "Road Snacks") or the podcast player to the right of this post.

Southern Cooking w/ Black Tusk

The van can be a confining place.  This is especially true when you are stuck in it for over 15 hours and you don't want to take off your shoes because you haven't changed your socks for days.  But Black Tusk is familiar with the wear and tear of life in the van and when they arrived at Wealth Underground Farm, yawning while spilling out of all the doors of the vehicle, they were ready to go.

One of the best aspects of the Farm to Artist project, in my opinion, is the amount of contact there is between Nigerian dwarf goats and tattooed dudes wearing leather jackets.  We toured the farm, which included a long visit with the goats who seemed to energize the guys in Black Tusk, pulling them out of their road stupor.  When we left to go to lunch, Pippie and Thelonious let out bleats of desperation, wanting to spend more time with the band.  A couple members of Black Tusk obliged them, walking back over to the fence and petting them/taking pictures.

Inside a freshly prepared meal was waiting for us.  The meal had a southern twist, consisting of braised mustard greens with bacon, garlic mashed rutabaga and potatoes, a simple egg scramble, and a bread/salami/cheese plate.  This is a good time to send a shout out to my parents who were visiting me from Indiana and who helped prepare the meal.

The conversation was quick as the band was heading into town to hang out with some of the guys in Red Fang before they had to get to the venue.  We jumped around, talking about their tour, the coming together of the band, as well as the upcoming Orion Music Festival curated by Metallica.  The climax of the meal was the conversation about southern food where, for a moment, everyone at the table was weighing in on their favorite dish/vegetable and how to prepare it.

I want to thank Black Tusk for making the epic drive up from San Francisco and joining me for a meal at the farm.  Be sure to check out their newest album Set The Dial.  You can find updates and hear music by Black Tusk at their Facebook page.