Rex-A-Vision:The Podcast

Andrew McConathy is a regular Renaissance man. He's a member of the Drunken Hearts, one of the founders of the Colorado based Yarmony Music Festival and he writes young adult horror novels! Okay....made the last one up but if he had the time to write I am sure he would be excellent! We chatted about his fest and the cool things it has that sets it apart from the crowded field like the floating stage and the gorgeous back drop, his own music including his brand new song he and his band graciously allowed me to include here and more! Dig it!

Jay Cobb Anderson, one fifth of the mighty American powerhouse that is Fruition (Not to mention his solo work and side stuff like his work with TK & The Holy Know-Nothings) pops by to chat about life on the road, his song writing methodology and whether or not there has been a full band collision as they frenetically weave in and out of each other when the spirit moves them! Pretty proud of this one, from the content of the conversation to the rigiggered intro and my first attempt at having music under the entire chat and the special bonus song "Emmanuel" by  TK & The Holy Know-Nothings that you can here if you make it to the end of the episode!!. Hope you dig it!

Bassist Reed Mathis, formerly of the Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, Tea Leaf Green, the 7 Walkers, The Rooster Conspiracy and his newest and awesomest project, Electric Beethoven (Whose latest tune, "The Fifth," can be listened to and purchased HERE)pops in for the first official Color Red Records Wednesday here on the Rex-A-Vision Podcast. Mathis is a serious, life long student of the form and I was delighted to get to learn from his extensive musical knowledge and I think this is one of the best chats yet! Big ups to the Color Red record label for helping with this and partnering up for a series of Wednesday chats with folks like Reed and so many more to come! Dig it!

Photographer Marc Millman is more than just a stellar capturer of the live music scene, he's a steward of the craft and a wonderful, charitable guy to boot. He's one of my favorite people to share a photo pit or crowded front row with at any show or festival because he is always smiling, always considerate and consistently captures awesome images. As he winds his way to New Orleans for Jazz Fest where his work will be featured in a galler of images being shown by Relix magazineI thought it might be fun to talk shop and get hyped for the fun to come! Dig it!

Aaron Johnston is a wonderfully eclectic drummer and percussionist whose beats have shaped the spine of music from the Brazilian Girls to his current love, the infinitely improvisation Aaron Johnston's J.E.D.I. I got the chance to have a chat with this New York based legend about his wild career, his work with the Color Red label and so much more. Really excited to share this conversation, even though one of my mics died in mid chat. We muddled through and the result was one of my favorite episodes yet! Enjoy!

Today we chat with Jessica Kinnick-Wesley from Stable Studios, a recording and concert/festival/multi-purpose venue located just outside of Spencer, Indiana. I've seen every one from Bill Kreutzmann of the Grateful Dead and George Porter Jr from The Meters there to garage bands from the surrounding counties. The one consistent thing was the quality of the music and the friendliness of the folks who run the place! They have been helping produce music events, often focused on giving new bands their first experiences recording and performing on real stages, as well as giving the community a place to gather for a host of other fun and zany events, like the Beerlympics! Jessica and her family were kind to me in my early years and showed me a lot of heart when unforeseen circumstances conspired to make one of their events a rain soaked nightmare. This isn't just a cautionary tale of the pitfalls of festival promotion though...it's a celebration of what can happen when you operate a business with love as the central mandate! Enjoy!

Brian Tyndall usually holds down the deep end as the bassist of The Mantras though on today's episode he holds court with me about the pressures of throwing the band's signature festival, Mantrabash, the realities of touring and just how hard you can step on a photographers head before you cause brain damage! Check out our chat and don't forget to pick up tickets for the Matrabash HERE! 

Derek Oldham is a wonderful musician, a talented songwriter, a full fledged entrepreneur and farmer and a special soul to boot! He and his band Driftwood Gypsy have been setting the south on fire and now, with their second album percolating and festival appearances around the country on the summer horizon they are poised to bring their brand and band to the next level. It's an ascension that is well merited. Driftwood Gypsy play in the style of the great rock and roll review bands like The Band and their music will make you smile. There are two of their tunes embedded in the podcast and a lot of silliness in between! Enjoy!

Christian Schaumann is one of the founding forces of the much loved Aiken Bluegrass Festival (May 10th and 11th, with Del McCoury, Keller Williams, Larry Keel and Billy Strings! Tickets available HERE) and a genuinely dedicated fan of music and festivals. His efforts over the years have borne tremendous fruit as this years fifteenth anniversary edition of the event surely attests. We chatted about the fest, music and DOGS! YAY DOGS! Dig it!