Performance Anxiety

Steve Dawson grew up listening to a transistor radio instead of satellite radio and streaming platforms. And that informs the music he writes today. After playing in Dolly Varden for years and releasing albums as a solo artist, Steve stepped away from music. But after taking a class with Richard Thompson and Patty Griffin, he felt the time was right to come back. Some of the work he created in that class made its way onto Steve’s new album, At The Bottom Of A Canyon In The Branches Of A Tree. But there’s an entire lifetime of stories Steve shares with us, like the inspirations for several of his albums, and how he got the name for his band Funeral Bonsai Wedding, and how he came to write a book about songwriting. Follow Steve @stevdawso on Instagram. Pick up At The Bottom Of A Canyon In The Branches Of A Tree on bandcamp or wherever you get new music. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on social media. Rate & review. Merch can be purchased at performanceanx.threadless.com. Coffee can be donated at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. So please enjoy this episode with Steve Dawson on Performance Anxiety, part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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Lizzie Edwards of Lizzie and The Makers is my guest. And we were having a really fun talk when we were interrupted by an uninvited guest. We were talking about music literally being in her DNA, how she had created and booked a blues festival, featuring her band, when everyone but Lizzie decided to quit two weeks before the show. That led to meeting Greg McMullen and the formation of Lizzie and The Makers. They’ve been going strong for ten years now and have a new album coming out in September. Lizzie describes it as a love letter to David Lynch. I don’t know about you guys, but that’s enough for me to be interested. There’s a lot of great stories here, like playing in a cover band with a bunch of lawyers and her dad, getting Reeves Gabrels involved in the new album, and having Tik Tok performance anxiety. Follow the band @lizzieandthemakers on social media. Order the new album at lizzieandthemakers.com. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on social media. Merch is available at performanceanx.threadless.com. We happily accept a cup of coffee at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. So buckle up and pay attention, because this one comes full circle. Here’s Lizzie Edwards of Lizzie and The Makers on Performance Anxiety, on the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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I am joined by singer, Kate Clark. She’s an up and coming country music star but she’s not exactly new to singing. Prior to her move to Nashville to concentrate on her music, she lived in LA, trying to learn everything she could about the entertainment business. She wound up being a body double for Scarlett Johansson and singing in the Pitch Perfect movies. And before that, she was a girl from Texas, driving around with her dad, bonding over country music. And those memories are the foundation of much of her music. Check out her singles No Halo, Last Names, & Summer. Follow her on social media @kateclarkmusic. Follow us @PerformanceAnx. We are eternally grateful for the coffees you buy for us at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Merchandise is available at performanceanx.theadless.com. So buckle up for some sweet stories, great country music, and a lot of laughs with Kate CLark on Performance Anxiety, part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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We chat with Alan Hewitt this week. Alan’s list of credits is too extensive to mention in a short podcast intro. But they include Earth, Wind, & Fire, The Moody Blues, Warrant, & The Grand Tour. He has written music that has appeared in critically acclaimed movies and TV series, played with Hall of Fame musicians, and released several solo albums. His new band is called One Nation and leans more on Alan’s love of prog rock. His new album should be released by the end of summer 2021 (it better be because it’s titled 2021 & he has tour dates in place). Alan is very candid about his career. He started as a drummer and taught himself keyboards, which blows my mind! In addition to touring with The Moody Blues & writing original prog rock with One Nation, he’s also an ambassador for Fetch Fido A Flight, which helps adult dogs find homes before it’s too late. Check out alanhewittandonenation.com for release info, tour dates, & social media info. Follow us @PerformanceAnx. We like coffee and accept it ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Merch like shirts, mugs, & shower curtains is available at performanceanx.threadless.com. I can’t think of a prog pun to get us into this episode, so let’s just start it, here on Performance Anxiety; part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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This episode I am honored to be joined by a great guitarist as well as an all-around great guy, Dave Weiner. Dave has been Steve Vai’s rhythm guitarist for many years. He shares how he met Steve and how Steve has helped him grow by keeping him out of his comfort zones. He also tells us the most important lessons he’s learned from Steve. Dave has released three solo albums (and already remastered one of them) and is set to release another soon. It’s not easy writing and recording music when you tour with Steve Vai. So when everything was locked down last year, Dave took advantage of the time. He also talks about his website guitopia.com, how is began and what’s in store for it in the near future. Follow Dave on Instagram @daveweinerguitar, @guitopia, @visibleatnight, or @monumentshine on Twitter @daveweinermusic, @monumentshine, or @visibleatnight. Facebook is daveweinermusic. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on IG & Twitter. We do like coffee from ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety if you’re inclined to treat us to a cup. You can purch some merch at performanceanx.threadless.com. So let’s get right into the conversation with Dave Weiner on Performance Anxiety, part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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This is a Performance Anxiety Podcast first. We welcome Livio Ercoli of the punk band Round Eye. Round Eye is based in Shanghai China. But the band is not Chinese. It’s full of ex-pats. Livio talks about how he got to China from Italy and how he started playing music there. He talks about how things are changing there and not for the better. Livio tells a story about having a meeting with the Minister of Culture about shutting down their tour while reviewing screen shots of band members’ phones and threatening to deport everyone...but doing the tour anyway in the most underground, punk move ever! The new album is a wild one and was produced by Mike Watt (from Pedro). This is a great episode and I know I learned a lot! Follow Round Eye on Facebook and Instagram. Pick up the new album, Culture Shock Treatment on Paper and Plastick Records. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on the socials. Coffee is happily accepted at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Cool stuff like shirts, mugs, shower curtains and onesies are available at performanceanx.threadless.com. Now let’s take a trip to Shanghai with Livio Ercoli and Round Eye on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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Mark Farner, formerly of Grand Funk Railroad, and currently part of Mark Farner’s American Band is hanging out with us this episode. His extensive career began after a football injury. He has a great technique for conditioning your brain to sing and play guitar at the same time. 

After his time in other bands was over, Mark co-founded Grand Funk Railroad and had a harrowing trip to their first gig at the Atlanta International Pop Festival, opening for Janis Joplin, CCR, Sly & The Family Stone, Led Zeppelin, and a few other bands of note! Mark also worked in the studio with Todd Rundgren & Frank Zappa and tells us how different those experiences were. Oh, and he died...twice. He’s very candid about the issues he’s had in the past with Grand Funk Railroad and how that led to him technically suing himself. He also tells me what a Peaner is. He has a live DVD that helps support The Veterans Support Foundation. Go to markfarner.com for all the info and to find upcoming tour dates! Follow us @PerformanceAnx on social media. If you like the show, you can send coffee our way at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Shirts, mugs, shower curtains, & more are available at performanceanx.threadless.com. So put your dinner on hold, because I did. Mark Farner is that good; here on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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Welcome Scarlett Sabet to the podcast. She’s not a photographer, but she’s on the podcast because of one. When I had photographer Scarlet Page on the show, I mentioned that I loved this photo she had taken of a red headed young woman with the sun shining in the space between her arm and her face, partially obscuring her. It’s an incredible shot. She said, “That’s Scarlett Sabet. She’s an incredible poet. You should have her on the podcast”. Well I reached out and she agreed. We talk about so much here; acting & writing, the moment she knew poetry was her calling, the influences of Jack Kerouac, Bob Dylan, & William Burroughs and his cut-up poetry. And not only do we talk about the album of poetry she released in 2019 called Catalyst, that was produced by Jimmy Page, but the more recent work celebrating the 200th anniversary of the death of John Keats. You need to follow her on Instagram @scarlettzsabet, @scarlettsabet on twitter.. Go check out Catalyst on her website scarlettsabet.com. She reads some of her work on her youtube channel as well as her IG page. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on social media. Rate & review, please. More of those helps the show get in front of more people! We accept cups of coffer at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Merch is at performanceanx.threadless.com. Now let’s ease on into this wonderful conversation with poet Scarlett Sabet on Performance Anxiety part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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This episode I have put together a panel of creative people to discuss the effects of literature on popular music. I’m joined by artist Christa De Mayo, author Robert Duncan, and musicians Morgan Geer and Jordon Zadorozny. The ground rules were to pick two musicians who were influenced by literature and used it in their songwriting. The discussion quickly goes off on all kinds of tangents and ends up with the US military blasting heavy metal at Manuel Noriega.

Check out new music from Jordon’s band Blinker The Star and Morgan’s band Drunken Prayer on Bandcamp. Check out Christa’s photography on Instagram. And grab a copy of Robert’s latest book, Loud Mouth. Feel free to support the podcast with coffee at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Or buy stuff at performanceanx.threadless.com. rate & review to help our algorithms out. Enjoy the funniest conversation about music & literature you’ll hear...today, on Performance Anxiety, part of the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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I’m joined by the entirety of the band Kataan. That means I have two people on the show this time. Nick Thornbury of Vattnet Viskar and Brett Boland of Astronoid have joined forces to create a death metal EP. And it’s been a long time coming. It’s a great talk about their history, the band name, and the effect of context on our perception of people and music. And maybe doing a Def Leppard covers album full of blast beats and death metal vocals. The self titled EP (with artwork by the renowned Travis Smith) is out and available at kataanband.com and all the usual places. Follow them on social media @kataanband. Follow us @PerformanceAnx. Rate & review because more people find the podcast with good, 5 star reviews. You can show us love with a coffee at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Merch exists at performanceanx.threadless.com. I know you’re all dying to hear this one, so let's get into it with Brett & Nick from Kataan on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.

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