The Royal Basement Podcast #8: Alex Robert (Black Whales) Part 2

If you've somehow managed to live your life thus far without knowledge of Lil Bub's existence, welcome to the next level. Lil Bub is a beautiful and magical space cat who lives with her dude (recording engineer/musician Mike Bridavsky of Russian Recording) and his family in the lovely burg of Bloomington, Indiana. Lil Bub is a special needs cat, a "perma-kitten" who has an extreme case of dwarfism and who will forever stay tiny and adorable. She is arguably one of the most famous cats on the internet (hanging out with Robert Deniro, Whoopi Goldberg, Michelle Obama and a cast of musical royalty like Steve Albini, Kim Deal, and Andrew W.K.), and she uses her incredible powers to help other animals in need with Lil Bub's Big Fund, and has raised over $300,000 for the ASPCA in her career as a famous cat. 

In late 2015, Lil Bub joined the elite ranks of "cats who have made records" with the release of her debut LP (Science And Magic, on Joyful Noise). It's a kaleidoscopic joyride through the world as Bub sees it, with some bubbly blasts of chiptune textures and epic, uplifting sweeps of color that paint the experience of Bub's journey to Earth in all of its giddy glory.

We sat down with composer/producer/performer/best dudes Mike Bridavsky and Matt Tobey (both of the criminally underrated Memory Map) and Lil Bub herself when the crew was in Seattle recently for an appearance at Silver Platters and talked about the making of the record and Bub's plans for 2016. 

Thanks so much to Mike, Matt and Bub for taking the time to chat! Go pick up Science and Magic at any store near you or grab a copy here. 

Part of why I've started doing this podcast is to pick the brains of folks who I find inspiring, both in their creative energy and the quality of their output. (It doesn't hurt if I'm friends with those folks prior to our conversation, either.) Ryan Allen exemplifies so much of the spirit of why I started The Royal Basement that it just made sense to have a chat with him. Ryan is an ambitious man and a musical lifer; a lot of folks tend to slow down or quit making music completely when kids are brought into the equation, and I've always admired Ryan's ability to shift gears into dad mode while still making great records. In 2015, he released a solo album of heartfelt power pop/folk-tinged songs (as Ryan Allen & His Extra Arms) and a brutally jagged indie/punk record with Destroy This Place. Through the wonders of technology, Ryan was magically transported from his home in Detroit to our beautiful basement in Seattle for a really wonderful chat. 

If there is one band in Seattle that's making the kind of music that my ears want to hear, it's Unlikely Friends. Steeped in the world of early/mid-90's college rock, the men of Unlikely Friends take from the strengths of their previous/current other projects (D. Crane with BOAT and Charles Bert with Math And Physics Club, respectively) and create a unifying project, one that marries the raucous anthemic qualities of BOAT with the pristine glistening pop of Math And Physics club. It never sounds overthought or underprepared, but somewhere right in the middle, that perfect zone where great songs come from. 

Charles and D. Crane stopped by The Royal Basement earlier in 2015 for a chat and to play a few songs. Tonight (10/3/15), they open up for Death Cab For Cutie at the Paramount in Seattle, WA. 

Triskaidekaphobes, beware! It's episode 13 of The Royal Basement podcast! 

This episode, we are joined by Sam Cohen, an astonishing guitarist/songwriter/producer based out of New York. Sam used to play in Apollo Sunshine before starting up a new band (Yellowbirds) that has since morphed into a proper solo project. Sam released Cool It, his first proper solo record, earlier this year on Easy Sound. Sam plays the Pickathon Music Festival just outside of Portland, Oregon on July 31, 2015. 

A lot of bands that make it to the decade mark start to recycle ideas and hit some auto-pilot moments musically, falling into creative ruts and making some less-than-adventurous choices. San Francisco's The Dodos, however, are an exception to that rule. With their sixth album (Individ, released in January on Polyvinyl), The Dodos are continuing to climb to their creative peak; while the band has always relied on curveball rhythmic changes and deceptively technical guitar playing, Individ finds The Dodos writing more urgent, cohesive songs that balance beautifully between sprawling epics and concise blasts. 

I sat down with singer/guitarist Meric Long and drummer Logan Kroeber in the basement of Neumos when the band was in Seattle recently and talked about their creative process, their gear, Jackie Chan and what it's like to watch the city you live in get taken over by development. 

Head over to TheRoyalBasement.com and listen to the playlist that Meric Long picked out to go along with the podcast, as well. 

(Please note: This isn't really episode 13. My timeline has gotten goofed because I need to finish my conversation with Zach Norton. So, this became episode 12. If you can't follow along, drop me a line and I'll walk you through it.)

I'm convinced Trapper Schoepp is lying about his age.  It's rare to see someone who hasn't even hit their thirties have such a knowledge and respect for the greats of classic American pop songwriting. Trapper is a man who cares about his craft and pays serious attention to the masters, and even as a grizzled old man myself, it's intimidating to meet someone who has such a vast well of musical knowledge to draw from. Hailing from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Trapper's music feels immediately familiar to me, like a sweet breeze of relief in the middle of an overbearing humid Midwestern summer. 

Trapper and his bassist/brother Tanner dropped by the Ol' Basement for a late night session to play a few songs and chat about sports, big boots, Tecmo Bowl, colorblindness and their upcoming record that they just wrapped with Brendan Benson. 

Stay tuned for episode 12 of the Royal Basement podcast, this time with The Dodos!

Tony Ruland (The Lonely Forest) and Kyle Holland (Cumulus) grew up in the same hometown (Anacortes, WA) and toured together with their recently departed groups. After a bit of time sitting on some microcassette guitar demos, Ruland recruited Holland alongside Erik Walters (Silver Torches, The Globes) and Chris Walla (Death Cab For Cutie) for the new glassy pop project Soft Sleep. Tony and Kyle stopped by The Royal Basement as part of their Seattle media barnstorming tour to debut their new single "Unravel" (Rocket Heart Records) and talk about their former bands, technology, making records, the legal precidence of a knock knock joke. 

Here's a set of songs picked out by Eric Slick (Dr. Dog/Lithuania/Maybe In Your Band?) for your aural pleasure.

1. Hermit Thrushes--Braided Stones

2. Celestial Shore--Valerie

3. Bjork--Stonemilker

4. Mt. Eerie--Sauna

5. D'Angelo--1000 Deaths

6. Anomie--So Long

Eric Slick seems to be a man who doesn't deal well with idle time. Spend a little time poking around on Google and you'll find an impressive trail of music, film projects, and other assorted art pieces for a man who hasn't even hit his thirties yet. Most well known as the drummer for Dr. Dog, Eric Slick has an impressive background in the world of avant-garde/improvisational music, drumming for Project/Object (a Frank Zappa tribute band) and working alongside his sister and King Crimson's Adrian Belew in Adrian Belew's Power Trio. When not touring with Dr. Dog, Eric is busy working on projects for bands like Lithuania, Norwegian Arms, Ape School, Paper Cat, and enough other bands that you'd likely need a diagram to visualize. We grabbed coffees and chatted about his musical lineage and his connection with the city of Philadelphia before the recent Dr. Dog show in Seattle. He also picked out a great playlist of tunes for your ears that you can stream below. For all things Eric Slick (including pictures of some of the greatest drums I've ever seen), go visit Eric's site here. 

Alex Robert of Seattle's Black Whales played a few songs along with his podcast chat. Here's one of 'em. It's called "Shangri-La Indeed" and originally appeared on the band's record of the same name. Recorded live using a Fender Telecaster (1972 Custom Reissue) run through a Sears Silvertone head and a Fender Bandmaster cabinet with minimal pedals.