Couch Riffs

Our guest this episode is Mike Varney, guitarist and record label icon. As the young founder of Shrapnel Records, Mike Varney helped elevate the shred guitar movement as it grew and flourished through the 80s and gained niche celebrity throughout the guitar world through his labels and a column he wrote called Spotlight which highlighted local guitar heroes from around the country and world. Many of the artists Varney as worked with remain active to this day and are some of the biggest names in guitar music. Malmsteen, Gilbert, Friedman, Howe, Macalpine. The list goes on much further but when you're feeling in the mood go check out some of the releases from Shrapnel Records and later International Blues Bureau and Tone Center. You'll most certainly fulfill your guitar fix. I hope you enjoy!

If you are enjoying Couch Riffs please support us at PATREON. Patreon support is what we rely on to create, sustain, and grow Couch Riffs into a podcast and video platform that gets 100% of our creative focus. Your support there is what makes that possible. Thank you!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

This episode our guest is Rev Jones, an incredible bassist and vocalist who has worked with the likes of Leslie West and Mountain, Michael Schenker, Paul Gilbert, Steelheart and many others. Last year he released a solo album, In the Key of Z, which showcases his over the top and explosive bass talents. Rev was a great hang and has loads of stories to share and I hope you enjoy this conversation like I did! And, by all means, go check out some video footage of Rev performing live. He's a monster!

If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast or our performance videos please support us on PATREON. Your support is what makes these things happen and the greater support we gain the more we'll be capable of. Thank you so much!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

https://revjones.com

Our guest this episode is Frank Grocholski aka Frankie G, a talented guitarist currently living in Texas. Frank grew up on the east coast cutting his teeth on multiple styles, picking up the guitar very young and gigging early. He's currently playing with the band Cowboy Mouth as well as doing various other session gigs. Frank recently appeared in a Couch Riffs video for Ain't It Fun and crushed it! It was a pleasure to get to speak with Frank and hear his story and I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

If you are enjoying Couch Riffs please consider supporting us at PATREON. Your support helps perpetuate the podcast, our performance videos and all of the unrealized concepts for Couch Riffs' future! Thank you so much!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

Our guest this episode is Richard Shaw, former guitarist of Cradle of Filth and touring guitarist for King 810. Richard is a massively talented guitarist performing and recording for many projects both on stage and in the studio as well as teaching. If you're looking to bone up on your theory or improv chops reach out to him and schedule some time. He's the man! I hope you enjoy this podcast as much as I enjoyed being involved in this conversation. If you're enjoying Couch Riffs please consider supporting us at Patreon! Your Patreon support is what makes this and our cover song performance videos happen and as Patreon grows so will our abilities to create bigger, more exciting content for you to enjoy. Thanks so much!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

Our guest this episode is Whitfield Crane, singer for Ugly Kid Joe who has recently released a new full-length album titled Rad Wings of Destiny. I met Ugly Kid Joe (and Whit) on tour 10 years ago and became fast friends with all of the members of the band. This friendship eventually led to me doing some touring with the band over the summer of 2022 and I will continue performing with them for some UK dates in November 2022. Rad Wings of Destiny is a well-rounded rock album with strong riffs, clever lyrics and great hooks! I recommend checking it out and do catch the band live if you're able. Whitfield is one of the most criminally under celebrated front persons in rock music and the band is running hot! I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. If you're enjoying Couch Riffs Podcast or you love our cover song performance videos please consider supporting us on Patreon! Your support is what makes Couch Riffs possible and as Patreon support grows our ability to produce more and higher quality content will increase. Thank you so much for the support.

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://uglykidjoe.net

https://couchriffs.com

Our guest this episode is our one-time tourmate Martin Rebelski, keyboardist for a small handful of well-known and prominent English bands of note. A lifelong musician, Martin details his early years and development in this podcast conversation as well as his introductions into how he came to play with his most well-known bands, Doves, Peter Hook, and Echo & The Bunnymen. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!

If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast please support us at Patreon! Your support helps make this and our cover song videos happen and be there best. Thank you for the support!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

https://rebelski.bandcamp.com

My guest this episode is Chris Ballew, former singer/frontman for Presidents of the United States of America (PUSA). Chris is a prolific and magnificent songwriter and dynamo stage performer. He has one of the most commanding and comfortable stage presences I've ever seen, equally at home in performing set song arrangements and venturing off into impromptu sidebars of fun. He's begun to release solo music under his own name for the first just in the last couple years and has turned out 3 full-length releases with a handful more on the way. Please do go check out his latest, Primitive God. Recommended for fans of psychedelic and pop classics as well as fuzzed out freedom rock, maaaaaaan.

Thanks for listening! If you're enjoying Couch Riffs podcast and/or our video performances please consider supporting us through Patreon! Your support goes a long way toward making all of this possible. You're great!

https://couchriffs.com

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://www.chrisballew.org

This episode features my conversation with Kevin Sepriano of LA band, Spirit in the Room. Kevin has a long history playing music in many bands going back to the 80s. His day gig is an enviable one, working for Pete Anderson (Dwight Yoakam, etc.) and he has a great side hustle building and consulting pedal boards with his company, Anxiety Electronics. Spirit in the Room have a new EP called Famingo and it is stellar! I definitely recommend giving it a listen. I hope you enjoy this conversation! If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast please consider supporting it through Patreon at the link below. Your support helps make every aspect of the podcast and the cover song collaboration videos possible. Thank you so much for that support!

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com

https://spiritintheroom.bandcamp.com/album/flamingo

https://www.instagram.com/anxietyelectronics/

On this glorious return to the mic we are happy to be hosting none other than our great friend Rachel Flotard of Visqueen and Neko Case. Rachel is one of the funniest, most talented humans we've ever known and this was a perfect comeback episode, catching up on 25 years of laughs together. Visqueen will be playing a benefit reunion show in Seattle at the Tractor Tavern in historic Ballard! This show is a benefit for Lilith Fund which is a reproductive rights organization in Texas. The show is sold out but please follow the link below to help support this organization in a time it needs it more than ever. Than you.

Thank you to Variety Coffee for your continued support and to our Patreon community of supporters. If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast please consider supporting us through monthly patronage or by visiting our website and buying some merch! Thanks again.

https://www.lilithfund.org

https://varietycoffeeroasters.com

https://couchriffs.com

Our guest this episode is Spencer Moody, singer for Murder City Devils, Dead Low Tide, and most recently M. Krebs who have an album out now on all streaming platforms. The album is a collection of awesome, post-wave gothic americana tunes that were written quarantine style and recorded recently in Seattle at The Kill Room. I hope you enjoy this conversation! Go check out the M. Krebs album and look for Murder City Devils stuff in the near future.

If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs Podcast or our video performances (Spencer recently performed on You Ain't Goin' Nowhere!) please support us on Patreon. Patreon support is what makes Couch Riffs happen and I can't thank you enough for taking the pressure of the back end costs off of my shoulders. Thank you a million times.

https://patreon.com/couchriffs

https://couchriffs.com