Schnitzel

I Got Strings

2008-05-28T20:44:00.000-07:00

There's something about this interview with Tom Waits that doesn't ring true, but is entertaining nonetheless....the answers were just too ready. Must have had a lot of editing. Yet, it's still fun.

So we played Merelefest. Songwriting competition. Made a promise to myself long ago I wouldn't go to that happy place til I went as a performer even though I was kidding myself. Even I can't tell when I'm joking anymore.

Got third place out of the 3 finalists picked for my category. I was really happy just to be nominated. That sounds like bullshit and I usually am full of it but it's true. Sent in submissions for a loooong time to the Chris Austin Songwriting Competition and then out of the blue I got a call. I was in. Can't really express the gratitude of being recognized for laboring at something I didn't think others would notice. I mean, my friends told me they liked my songs but that doesn't count somehow (plus I'm always ready to dump them once someone cooler comes along). So yeah, to get picked is really great. That sounds generic but I mean great as in you only get so many great moments in one's life and that one counts as one of them.

There's a whole nother idea I have about songwriting contests and I don't give much weight to them but CASC I respect. Look, Tift Merritt won. Gillian Welch won this one too. This is one contest I have to admit, I wanted to get into.

But once I got there a funny thing happened. I wanted to win. Now that thought never crossed my mind before we pulled into Wilkesboro. I honestly was more than satisfied just to get there. But as a friend put it, we all have a fantasy in our head that we'll get our due as geniuses someday and roses thrown at our feet. I'll admit I'm not above that.

But I can keep that delusion in check. What I didn't prepare for is the reality TV show effect. And what I mean by that is when you watch a reality TV show (don't say you don't)you see people have these terribly emotional reactions to the most trivial matters. They fall in love with a bachelor they've known for less than a day. They confide in people they've known for less than that. Why? I think it's something to do with being put out on display and with the knowledge they'll be judged. It heightens one's sensitivities and competitiveness. I'm not articulating it correctly. But suffice to say it makes you weird. Something like that happened to me.

Or maybe I cared more than I thought. Maybe I want this music to gain more acceptance than I've let on.

With that said and left unsaid the folks who ran Merlefest were nothing but great to me. If someone nominated for CASC years from now is googling to find out what to expect let me tell you, in 2008 it was great. This part of North Carolina is beautiful. Except you say some mean things to your wife and you are a jerk to her because you're nervous. It's OK. She forgives you.

I found some great music there. The winner of the bluegrass category Brandon Story gave me his CD and I've listened to that thing to death. The second place winner in the country category, Jaimi Shuey, has an incredible voice.

Oh and I forgot to thank my accompanist Jeff Williams on the mandolin up on stage. I was the first one to play and was too nervous to think of that. Evryone after me wo had an accompanist thank their accompanist but me.

But he didn't really accompany, he's part of Schnitzel. And Schnitzel played Merlefest. Fuck yeah.

Shelby

2008-03-28T19:47:00.000-07:00

Today we say goodbye to one of our own.

Ok, so we haven't been real up to date with this blog. So what?

But today, or to be more exact, yesterday, we learned that bassist Shelby will be moving shortly. To Colorado. With his wife and kids.

Shelby added a level of professionalism to this band that we didn't deserve. He knew good ideas from bad. And he had the decency not to criticize us when we did the wrong.

Thanks Shelby.

End of An Era

2008-01-06T17:31:00.000-08:00

If you go to open mic at Penny Lane, well don't. Cause it's over.

Per Jeff, the man who ran it, it's done.

Hello to all,

I hope every one had a happy new year. Every new year brings new changes. With a good bit of sadness, I'm sending this email out to announce that one of those changes means that there will be no open mic at Penny Lane going forward. It was time for it to end.

Attendance had been down for a while, and I didn't feel that the food and drink sales resulting from the open mic justified its existence anymore, so I asked Terence if I could pull the plug and he reluctantly agreed. Penny Lane was an awesome place to work, and I really will miss everyone down there. I really appreciate the opportunity they gave me to keep things going after the demise of Matt's Village Pub. I encourage everyone to go by there often and pop in for a pint. I know I will. Please help me out by forwarding this email to any other open mic'ers out there you can think of... I know I missed many.

Though I am looking forward to the break, and not having to go to work sleep deprived on Thursday mornings, please know that I really will miss doing the open mic night every week. As I look back, I realize how many good things came to me from running open mic... Most of my best friends I met at open mic..... I'm now in a band that I'm intensely proud of because I met Dickie and Jamie at open mic, Jim and Betsy met at open mic... , I got to practice my mandolin chops with a lot of different folks,... and I got to watch a thousand brilliant moments on stage. I've definitely shared a ton of laughs, more than a few beers, and great times with many people I never would have met otherwise.

Please support the other open mic nights. It's the people that come and play that make an open mic night a special thing. For me, you guys often made it magical.

Thanks again for everything and I hope to see you guys soon!

Jeff (Former Open Mic Night Host)

I didn't start playing til I played at Jeff's open mic night. That was at Matt's Pub, 7 maybe 8 years ago. Saw a lot of good performers come through his stage. There was a long stretch where I would concentrate all week on what 4 songs I would play when I got up onstage. Those nights taught me a lot. Not just how to perform but how to write. Every week I could judge my stuff on how people reacted. That's something you can't always do playing sporadic club dates. Certainly not sitting in your bed playing music to just yourself. And not a week goes by I don't wish I still had the open mic at Matt's go to. All things end of course and it had a good run. It moved to Penny Lane when Matt's closed. I was a little busy with a family at that point so I didn't go as much there. Still it was good to know I could go there when I wanted.

Jeff always had the best sound. He cared more about how things sounded in the room than any other sound guy I know. Even if you and him were the only people in the room. And he encouraged the right atmosphere too. A lot of open mics can fall into a clique, where only the friends of the guy who runs it are heard. Anyone could walk into Jeff's open mic and play. They may have had to wait their turn a good while but it was always fair. I remember a night when a studio musician from Nashville stopped in. He was followed buy a girl playing her own songs, performing in front of a crowd for what probably was her first time. Both were made to feel just as at home, just as appreciated, just as welcome. That's a rare feat to pull off. Yet Jeff always did just that.

Ballpoint Pens

2007-11-14T16:16:00.000-08:00

It's rare that someone's side project is as good or interesting as their main band.

But I can't say enough about Ballpoint Pens. That's Ross's other band besides the Gaskets.

I liked his stuff enough before to edit it into a home movie I made for my family. Just footage of the little kids playing. And that should tell you how the music sounds if it can suit a family video; warm, fun, familiar. Anyways you can get the newest Ballpoint Pens' album for free right here.

I can too as soon as I figure out how to convert a zip file.

I am an idiot.

Nov 12, 250 years ago

2007-11-11T16:53:00.000-08:00

Did the Germans have advance warning we would be attacked?

Yes.

I'm no conspiracy nut but they did.

I'm referring of course to this date in history 250 years ago when French Canadians and Indians attacked and plundered the town of Herkimer NY.

All the houses and buildings were burned, and the grain, cattle and horses, except what was consumed by the raiding party for their own subsistence, were brought back to Montréal

Although the cause of the war is often touted as French fear of anti-Catholicism in the English territories or expanding fur trading opportunities, look at this:

The damage inflicted on the enemy is estimated, according to the representations of the English themselves, to wit : in grain of all sorts, a much larger quantity than the Island of Montréal has produced in years of abundance, the same of hogs, 3,000 horned cattle, 3,000 sheep. All these articles have been sent, in a few days, to Corlaer

Wake up people! This war was about Big Hog!

But what could we have done to stop it? Easy. How about not patting our asses when the warning came from an Oneida chief?

they paid not the least regard to what I told them; and laughed at me, slapping their hands on their buttocks, saying they did not value the Enemy

Granted that doesn't sound like Germans to me either but remember they had been living in the Mohawk Valley for some years.

The Year So Far

2007-11-07T16:30:00.000-08:00

Well the CD has been out for a while now. The reception in general has been good if subdued. I can't say I can retire off of Cold Harbor's CD Baby's income but I can't complain. Maybe I fantasized about a grassroots groundswell that propelled me into megastardom. Heck, Time magazine picked me- ME!- as person of the year last year so I thought I had some momentum. But my profile hasn't changed. That's probably for the better. I'm insufferable as it is.

But I should note I've reached some lofty goals I've set for myself. Not just goals for the year, but goals for my life. One was getting a review in No Depression- and I had a good review at that. That was the highlight of my year. And I had a son born too! So um, yeah my wife doesn't read this. If that wasn't cool enough, the same writer, Rick Cornell, interviewed me for Raleigh/Durham's Independent Weekly. It's a cliche to say, I know, but that was a freaking honor.

The other goal was met when I stood next to my idol Scott Miller as his opening act, The Atkinsons, covered one of my songs and I had never even heard of that band before*. I was able to turn to Scott and say "Hey, I wrote that song."

Strange goals, yeah I admit that. But they satisfied something in me. Maybe something so deep that it's taken a little drive. Once the album was finished I didn't know what to do in regards to promoting it. It's been sent to a few sites but only Bluesbunny.com reviewed it. I'm grateful for that. But no one else seems much interested. So if you can think of a few sites that might be let me know. I could use the help.

* I'm lying for the sake of the story. I know and love them and had begged them to play the song.

I Decline The Nomination

2007-09-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

Blogging has been light. It's hard on the road, etc.

News: Solo acoustic show this Thursday at Coffee Lane right here in Mechanicsville. It's on Bell Creek right next to the Food Lion which I try to avoid. But also right next to Nirvana Hair Salon where I get my hair cut.

The new album "Cold Harbor" has gotten some good reviews where it's gotten them.
Here's Bluesbunny take.

And here's what No Depression said:

SCHNITZEL, Cold Harbor (self). Schnitzel’s music – call it indie roots rock for lack of a better slippery tag – is not as much for those of a certain age as it is for those of a certain record collection. “Broken Bottle” will make you think of, if only for a second or two, Violent Femmes, Uncle Tupelo, the Pogues, the Mountain Goats, the Minutemen, and the Avett Brothers. And then, after 1:47, it’s on to track two. The remaining eight songs aren’t quite as eclectic and their echoes aren’t as evocative, but the delivery will get you. Acquired-taste voice aside, lead Schnitzel Jim O’Brien sings loud and clear and without a flinch, the most confident dude at the talent show. And whether rolling out cryptic recollections (“They know what you want before you can ask/They cannot not love you in a Halloween mask,” he sings) or waxing metaphoric and meteorolgic (“North Carolina/Absorbs a storm like a truck bedliner,” observes the album’s humble tour de force of a closer, “Truck Bedliner”), he’s also the one with the most interesting things to say.

Did you know that some people lack the ability to read italics? It's true. Fuck 'em.

Anyways, if you have the album, make a copy for a friend. I appreciate you buying one, I really do (these things aren't cheap to make). But the purpose is just to get folks to hear it.

Thanks.

The New CD Release Show

2007-08-04T18:36:00.000-07:00

We have to change the date of our CD release show. It was gonna be next week but with our drummer forgetting his parachute (again!) we need some time to recoup. It's back to solo acoustic mode for Schnitzel until Johnny Five is better. So that leaves the next show at The Cave in Chapel Hill.

We'll be a full band again for the Richmond premier, Sept 8th at Cafe Diem (with the Atkinsons). Hopefully Shelby can get away. He and his wife just had their second child and the band is honored they named him in honor of the band, Schnitzel Murphy.

I try to make this more of an interesting kinda blog as opposed to just giving stupid band updates so here's some obscure Schnitzel trivia. My favorite blogger Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit fame just finished reading Mark Helprin's "A Soldier of The Great War". He liked it. I loved it. It made a huge impression on me. My girlfiend at the time, Julie Finnel (and I mention her full name in case she ever googles herself-if you do how the hell have you been for the last 10 years?) thought it was ridiculous or stupid or something. Whatever, my point is that the book stayed with me and I always wondered if it should since she was the only other person I knew who read it and I respected her opinion. But I respect Glenn more. Well now I do. At the time I don't the Internet was more than the CB radio of the 90's.

Anyways, the Schnitzel song "Song For Tift Merrit to Sing" has a line "When birds take off they go straight across borders". That was really about a moment in the book when the main character is asked if he believes in God and he says he does everytime he sees birds take flight. When I wrote that I was thinking specifically of that.... as opposed to all the stuff I ripped off of Honore Damuier. But that's for a post some other time.

CD Release Show

2007-07-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

It's gonna be Sept 8th (Update: It's been rescheduled from the original August date-same venue, still with the Atkinsons). We'll be opening for The Atkinsons at Cafe Diem. It's a free show. The CD is only 10 bucks and Schnitzel will be a full band.

But if you can't wait that long you can order it from CD Baby right now. The link is in the right hand corner. It's actually cheaper to buy it from there than it is at a show. That wasn't intentional. I priced it wrong with CD Baby by mistake and after a few copies sold I didn't think it was right to change it. Well, it's only a buck and some change difference.

This has nothing to do with Schnitzel or 'Cold Harbor' but I found this link fascinating. Tons of fascinating science thingies.

Cakeeater Rifle

2007-07-07T17:12:00.000-07:00

So I went to the Hanover County Tomato Festival (They are seriously prideful of tomatoes around here and that's good thing- the best you ever tasted for 99 cents a pound) which is right down the street. It's big-30,000 to 40,000 people every year. We just kinda walk through it and leave but its one of those events you have to go to when you live around here. Kids stuff mostly, and a lot of arts and crafts booth's.

There was this Confederate/Southern Heritage booth. It caught my attention for a bunch of reasons; they were giving out free Confederate flag stickers (which apparently no one turned down) and they had the most obnoxious bumper stickers. I'm not talking about "Heritage Not Hate" mantra but things like "The War of Northern Aggression: America's Holocaust". There were others too but I literally couldn't read anymore it was pissing me off. They even had some lily white cracker girl dressed up like Scarlett O'Hara.

Anyways, they were having a raffle to benefit Lee-Davis High School (!) and the prize was a shotgun. I went up and looked at the rifle-yup a Remington, manufactured right in the town next to where I grew up- Ilion NY. Now I hated Ilion growing up. Herkimer and Ilion were and still are bitter rivals. Today however, I took pride in them.

But as you may know they have a few different plants, including one in North Carolina. So I read the owner's manual (apparently they can be dangerous). This one was from Ilion. The guy asked me if Sean wanted some coins-I guess they were giving out Confederate coins to kids. I said no and asked him if he knew where the gun was made. He said no. I said "It's ironic-you're giving away a Yankee gun" To which Scarlett O'Hara yells back "Well the North has to do something right"

What's Wrong with Style Weekly?

2007-07-06T18:44:00.001-07:00

clipped from www.google.com

Style Weekly : Richmond's alternative for news, arts, culture and ...
This site may harm your computer.
Style Weekly is Richmond's alternative for news, arts, culture and opinion.
www.styleweekly.com/ - Jul 5, 2007 - Similar pages

Richmond's alternative weekly website could be bad news. Well that's what Google tells me.

You may know that when you search on Google and they return a site, they'll tell you if there's a good chance you'll be infected with malicious software. (Read more here)

I dunno why I googled Style instead of entering the site directly. But I did. And now I know. And knowing is half the battle.

Update: Another Richmond blogger, Rick Whittington, noticed the same thing a few days ago. (Only with screen shots!)

One of the commenters said she went to the site and her "virus protection went wacky". She won't go back to the site until she reads it was fixed in either Style's dead tree edition or the Times-Dispatch. I was thinking the same thing. But you know how in those dumb horror movies a character goes back into a house to confront a killer and you just know they'll die but it wouldn't be much of a movie if they used some sense and just ran as fast as they could? Well, I have this urge to go to the site anyways.

Can't explain it. Maybe I've been using Firefox too long. And why do I have a major case of shadenfreunde?

UPDATE: I don't see that warning anymore from Google so I guess the problem is fixed.

The CD is done

2007-06-21T12:21:00.000-07:00

We have the discs back. "Cold Harbor" is finally ready.

Just got our first edition back from our friends at Revolve

The cover photo was done by Kirsten Lewis. You can see some of her other work at her website.

The pic above is modeled by the very lovely Boise who apparently is terrified of cameras.

I sent off a stack of discs to CD Baby so hopefully you can order them from there soon. Otherwise you can grab one at a show. Don't know when we're playing next though. Well just ask me about em next time you see me.

New Tracks

2007-05-07T17:35:00.000-07:00

Got the tracks back from mastering. The new album is done except for duplication and getting final permission for the cover photo.

We posted 2 of the tracks, each at different sites. "Freelancer" is at our Myspace and "Sorry Kate"is at Noisehead. (search for Schnitzel)

2007-04-16T17:43:00.000-07:00

Nervous Tics

2007-03-31T16:15:00.000-07:00

From one link to another link, I stumbled across a miliblog www.acutepolitics.blogspot.com The originator goes by Teflon Don. I don't know much about his personal details from the blog but I can tell he's extremely articulate and a very good writer. He's serving in Iraq and his perspective on the war is invaluable considering journalists in that country, as good as some might be, don't give the whole story. Well who does, right?

Anyways, his post Nervous Tics struck me hard. I could go on about how it profoundly conveys the mindset of this serviceman and others like him. And as great of an accomplishment it is for anyone actively serving to do that (who else has? Edward Thomas, yes) it was also a feat to take the reader's mind through a list and make them wonder 'What's next?". It's no laundry list-as one commenter put it-it's a poem.

A comment later said it should be a country western song. Maybe. But I heard Woody Guthrie in there. (yeah yeah I know- I hear Woody everywhere!). So here's my take on his post, talkingblues style.

Update: Link to the Acute Politics fixed. Also you can hear my song at my Myspace site

New Record

2007-03-31T15:38:00.000-07:00

The new record should be ready sometime in May. May 1st, in fact, is the date planned for the mastering. Once again it'll be done by Fred Kevourkian. The artwork is all set too and I'll blog about that separately. But I felt like the music had to be finished first.

It's 9 songs coming in at just 30 and a half minutes.

I Believe Everything I Read

2007-02-17T06:57:00.000-08:00

The mixing for the next record, "Cold Harbor" is just about done. You can hear one of the tracks, "Broken Bottle" at the MySpace site. Next step is mastering and I haven't even thought about the cover art. So if you got any idea email us. Though I'm tempted to use that pic above. (Here's more info on where that came from.

Some changes in the lineup, however. Got a bunch of solo shows coming up but soon we'll be adding bass and drums. Like a real band. Johnny and Shelby from 6 Foot Loofah will be playing with me. Dave from the same band may also. Tentative plans are for a CD relase/full band at the April 21st show at the Canal Club.

Shows and Noisehead.

2007-01-11T20:46:00.000-08:00

There's one tonight (Friday) at Alley Katz with the Ex-Patriots. Schnitzel starts at 10pm. Then a band called A Good Natured Riot. They have a Myspace site but without any music so I don't know what's up with that. Anyways, Schnitzel has played many shows with our friends the Ex-Patriots and they're always fun.

And then on January 26th we're opening for The Atkinsons. That was a reschedule from a show in November. Double booking other calamity postponed it. This was also gonna be their CD release party for "American Gothic" but it may not be ready.

Speaking of CD's, we're done recording "Cold Harbor". Just gotta mix it. Two of the guys from the Atkinsons play on it. There's a rough mix "Sandston Girl" up on the web now at a site called Noisehead. It's a little like Myspace except its geared for independent bands and not so much for social networking. They were kind enough to make us the featured artist. I dunno for how long. Maybe a day. But that was really cool since we didn't ask for it.

You know something? I take back that stuff I said about 2007 sucking.

Broken Bottle

2006-12-30T18:12:00.000-08:00

So most of posts seem to have some sort of variation of "I'm recording soon."

Yeah I think you get it by now. But I haven't said much about the songs. I have a pretty good story about one of them. Some years ago I was packed into a large shed behind Cary Street watching the band PCP Roadblock. The only word I can use to describe them is intense. They are (were?) an incredible band that are closer to a contained riot than any other music group I've seen. Someone took a recycling bin full of glass, threw it down and the leader singer and fans did belly slides on top of it. Bloody and muddy stomachs.

My friend Bruce turns around and tells me his friend has a song called "Broken Bottle" and he starts singing it. I wasn't interested as um, people were doing belly flops on shards of broken glass right in front of me. But i turned and asked him to repeat it when he sang "Broken Bottle on the ground, where are you now?!!??Where are you now??"

I said that was some great lyrics but from the way he sang it I figured it was a grindcore song. Tommy (Wolf) later told me a few more lyrics, Bruce wasn't exactly singing it right and said I should check out the guy who wrote it, Lars. But I knew nothing else for years except those lyrics and they stuck in my head. I used them to fill out a song about Wolf and when I played people always said they liked that line. I told them some busker named Lars wrote it, I think he lives in Flordia but that was it.

Just this week I fugured out that Lars is Lars Din. I emailed him, telling him the story and he was gracious enough to give permission to me to use those lyrics. I say gracious because he downplayed the similarities between the songs. But mine wouldn't have been written if not for his.

He's a pretty fuckin great song writer. His version is definietly better than mine but I'm grateful he was cool about it cause I woulda killed the song if he said no.

Here's his version.

Mine is up at my MySpace.

Cold Harbor

2006-11-09T16:43:00.000-08:00

The second set of sessions for the next album, "Cold Harbor", picks up next week. That means some last minute rewrites are going on. Does anyone have a word that rhymes with 'bottle'?

Hey you can hear Schnitzel from our friends' at Planet Claire Aligre FM 93.1 They seem real nice. And I say that in a sense that it's not a 'MySpace friend' sorta way. Here's a funny article about what I mean by MySpace friend...but you probably know what I mean already.

Speaking of Myspace, there's an interesting site that works a little like myspace called noisehead. It's for independant artists, and you can upload your tracks, hear others, etc.

In the Studio

2006-11-04T17:10:00.000-08:00

So we had a show recently cancelled and have been barred from the studio while the cleaning crew works it's magic but there is some movement on the Schnitzel front.

We're recording again. Not this week but the one coming up. And we have some more dates lined up which should be finalized soon.

And we've had some press. Looky here at www.jefitoblog.com/blog. You have to scroll or search for 'Schnitzel' but it's an interesting review. This guy doesn't like Americana at all and really (I mean really) hates my voice.

So do I, actually. But he picks on our name which is unfair. There's nothing Octoberfest about us. We're Rocktober all the way.

And then there's this review.

The problem here is the shrink wrap. I'm actually responsible for that.

Anyways, they are both interesting reviews. Wonder what they'll say about the new record.

Recording

2006-09-18T22:26:00.000-07:00

Schnitzel starts recording today. Same lineup as the last record.

But we probably shouldn't considering we failed this quiz.

Update: There will be 9 songs on the next release and it's gonna be called "Cold Harbor". Two days of recording are done and we'll pick back up again sometime in October. Shooting for a late January release. Looks like we'll get the services of Ross Harman (The Gaskets, Ballpoint Pens) on one of the tracks.

Speaking of the Gaskets, they put together a really cool video of us covering their song "B-A-D" over at youtube. They should be releasing a DVD of their CD release party at some point.

2006-09-09T06:27:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from Musiccircus. That's a music tribute to John Cage where essentially a bunch of musicians all jam to seperate stuff at the same time. Brian Jones heads it up, that's him in the yellow shirt.

There's some seperation of the acts so its not chaos. But it is a little wild. I taped it so I should have a video from it as well.

By the way, Schnitzel is recording again soon. Probably 9 songs including 2 covers. It will be a little more folkish than the last one. Probable title for the album is "Cold Harbor". Some of the songs titles-at this point-include "Broken Bottle", "Sandston Girl" and "Saying It Don't Make it So." Recording should be done within the next 2 months, and it may even start within the next 2 weeks. Dunno. Depends a lot on other peoples' schedules.

To Where the Messenger Returned From

2006-08-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

That's the literal Indian (don't ask me which tribe) translation of Appalachin.
Appalachin is a town I lived in outside of Binghamton NY til I was 3. Then I moved to Herkimer. That explains the pictures below of the great Revolutionary hero.

And while the first 2 sentances of this post usually means somebody's about to get bored, I mention it to set up something specific and that is: If you want want a good deal on CD replication and packaging go to Revolve.

Revolve is a funny word if you look at it long enough. But the deal Revolve will give you is so good it's not even funny.

Anyways, the youtube video below also has nothing to do with Revolve, either. The man who runs Revolve is all about business and finding you the best deal in CD duplication!

But this post is about so much more. It's about telling you that you can buy Schnitzel's last CD Southbound Freight on iTunes. That's a milestone in our house.

And we'll be recording a new CD in October. It's about 80% written. Will have a lot of the characters as last season including Stewart Meyers producing and Fred Kevorkian mastering...and Revolve duplicating.

Limbo

2006-08-06T18:19:00.000-07:00

This is what I was doing last weekend. Taping drunk people...frickin drunk people.

The General

2006-07-27T15:55:00.000-07:00

Everyone's Gone to the Movies

2006-06-28T21:49:00.000-07:00

From the Poe's gig.

Not this Saturday But the One Coming Up

2006-06-16T17:45:00.000-07:00

Schnitzel returns to the stage June 24th at Poe's Pub. We'll be playing with Gameshow Hero and 6ft Loofah. And when Schnitzel and 6 Foot get together, you know there'll be some Gaskets shit goin' ahn.

And it won't be the exact songs we played for the Gaskets January CD release party either.

2006-05-03T16:23:00.000-07:00

Schnitzel doesn't use MSG but maybe you should.

Also, there's a new song on the MySpace site. It's called "Sandston Girl". I almost called it "Pretty Girl from Sandston" in honor of the Avett Brothers. This was written for my wife's birthday as a way to get out of those expensive earings she really wanted. This will probably end up on the next album.

2006-04-08T21:39:00.000-07:00

There's a new song up on the Myspace site. It's called "Sorry, Kate." though I dunno about the punctuation. But I wanted to get across it's an apology not a statment about a girl.

It was recorded on the home computer and I'm pretty proud of my piano skills. Well, it was played on the computer keyboard but it wasn't a Garageband loop.

2006-03-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

This is cool It's about a "record a record in a month" challenge in New Hampshire:

The challenge took its inspiration and most of its rules from FAWM, but it called for 10 songs instead of 14-- and the bands had to record them. The Wire took sign-ups at the website, www.rpmchallenge.com, and announced a kick-off meeting for participants. Nolan personally badgered his friends: "One of my responsibilities early on was to go and make sure we had at least 10 people who were absolutely going to come through for us. In my head I was thinking, we quite possibly could have 30 albums if we really hit it out of the park.

They ended up getting more than 165. That's a lot for a small place in frickin' New Hampshire.

Which makes me rememer a show I went to at the old Hole In The Wall. A microshow. 4 Bands in 15 minutes. I got there right when it started. But I was frickin wasted by the end, man.

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Lies, Damn Lies and No Schnitzel

2006-03-17T10:08:00.000-08:00

This shoulda been posted a little closer to 2005 but it's interesting anyways. It examines every known "Best of" list from 2005 and agri...um aggre..um I can't pronounce it but it kinda combines them all together.

Reminds me of a dodgeball game once , when a notoriously efficient and terrorizing participant was himself taken out. He said, "A million is a statistic. One is a tragedy." And that was presient because we didn't have statistics til the next semester.

The author's personal picks are interesting too if for nothing else than that he doesn't include Sufjan Stevens.

2006-03-16T21:07:00.000-08:00

If Schnitzel ever does a music video it would look a lot like this.

Via BoingBoing (as are most good things) who got it from WFMU's Beware of The Blog ...you know, there was study done somewhere that says 65% of all are just links to blogs that link back to themselves.

Citation

2006-03-11T11:13:00.000-08:00

Here's the bad news first: Scott Miller's new release "Citation" is too short. It clocks in just under 30 minutes. And for a great songwriter, you have to ask "What are you doing with your time? Why can't it be spent writing songs?" A man like Mr. Miller should have more songs than he knows what to do with.

And you can't argue that he's a good editor of his work. One track, albeit only 27 seconds long is studio noise, and 2 whole songs are complete filler. Plus, one is a Neil Young cover (though it's a really frickin good cover).

With that said, wanting more material from an artist is a compliment. "Citation" is a better album than the one before, "Upside/Downside". Sure it doesn't have as anything as good as "Amtrak Crescent" or "Ciderville Saturday Night" but those ones were written well before he made his first album, "Thus Always To Tyrants". But then who can ever follow up an album as good as TATT?

Citation is a very good album. Four stars out of 5.2 stars. This is a work from a writer no one else can match in historical songwriting. His ode to Sam Houston follows 2 main themes in Scott's work; leaving Virginia and people who lived over a hundred years ago. Plus, I don't know how long he's lived there now but I'm sure his Tennessee fans are happy he's finally mentioning his adopted state.

His WW2 song "The Only Road" (co-written with former bandmate Mic Harrison) is solid (though it reminds me a little of those Time/Life Book commercials from a few years back where the announcer would say "A woman in New Mexico falls down a well and screams for help. Two hundred miles away her twin sister feels a sharp pain through her left arm. Coincidence?").

But he also writes about more recent wars. His song "Jody" is a rockabilly-like ode to the soldier stationed far away from his girl. "8 Miles A Gallon" (the most rocking Scott Miller track recorded yet) is an ode to his tour bus but one of the smartest commentaries on the Iraq War I've heard that's out there.

It may take some a few listens to get into this record but I am confident most of Scott's fans will like this one. Some of the songs don't grab you right away. Take the Avett Brothers' new one "4 Thieves Gone" for example- There's an album that grabs you at first and stands up to repeated listens. I love that album and try to convert anyone to the Avetts who havent already joined the church. Yet I find myself reaching for "Citation" over "4 Thieves".

So maybe in 6 months I'll look back on this review and wonder why I seem kinda lukewarm for Citation. Maybe I expect too much from Mr. Miller. Like I said, this is the man who gave us Thus Always To Tyrants. I believe Virginia should be known as the birthplace of Scott Miller and our nation's founding fathers. In that order.

Jim Dickinson produced this record and while he has been at the helm of some of my favorite records of all time (The Replacements' "Pleased To Meet Me" and The Flat Duo Jets' "Go-Go Harlem Baby") I think Scott needs some sort of another partner. Or an editor. Would Scott have released "Only Everything" (my favorite) as a single if the label Sugar Hill didn't? Could he have put more songs on it if Mic Harrison hadn't just dropped by for just one afternoon while he was recording but instead stayed a few weeks? At Scott's live shows he's always joking that he's short on new material. He's not being self-effacing. It's true. But most of what he does write is great. He just needs a partner. Like he had in the V-Roys.

Let Me Get In Your Pants

2006-03-11T07:31:00.000-08:00

When I first saw a headline "Former White House Advisor Charged in Retail Theft" I thought, " Oh jeez what did they find down Sandy Berger's pants this time?".

But Claude Allen? The man who wanted us to teach only abstinance-only Aids prevention? The man who everyone recently thought had quit his job cause the military only performs non-denominational services? (I wish I could quit my job cause of some "principle"). This is the man who headed our Commonwealth's department of health and human services?

Actually on second thought I don't care so much about Claude. But it's amazing this theft gets so much attention and not this theft.

I'm telling you now, our nation's banking system is gonna crash hard and soon from these attacks.

But don't misundertand, I still and always care about Sandy's pants.

2006-03-08T10:57:00.000-08:00

We have a space on MySpace now.

It doesn't really have anything this site doesn't have expect there's one of them things where you can play some Schnitzel songs. Like a jukebox thingy. What do you call it? I want that for this site but don't know how.

Anyways, right now Schnitzel is working on songs. If all goes well then there will be a proper recording in the late summer. Same lineup as last time pretty much. There will probably be just one song on it that we've played in years past, "Broken Bottle". Another one though, "Saying It" can be heard (in rough demo form) at the MySpace site.

The above pic is from www.toothpastefordinner.com

2006-03-04T11:46:00.000-08:00

You have to stand against censorship.

My "Buy Danish" kick by the way needs to be retooled. I kept getting that country mixed up with Belgium.

Friday

2006-02-01T10:09:00.000-08:00

This Friday Schnitzel returns to old-school form: just a guitar and one man. Hopefully I'll have all the new songs ready. Should go on about 9:30.

Many thanks to 6 Foot Loofah for lending a hand to the noble task of covering the Gaskets "Big Fun" record. It went better than I expected despite a mixed reacion to the finale.

I've listened to the Gaskets new one. "Loose Change", quite a bit. It's good. Definitely a step up from "Big Fun".

Saturday

2006-01-27T06:21:00.000-08:00

That pic is shamelessly stolen from here.
Bless that little guy.
His commentary on the action is quite insighful too.

Not that you could tell from the light posting but we here at Schnitzel have been busy. We 're doing a show still with the Gaskets on Saturday at the Nanci Raygun. You probably know but- it's the Gaskets new CD release show. We're covering their previous release "Big Fun".

So it's gonna be different than your typical Schnitzel show. In fact you could call it a 6 Foot Loofah show since the drummer, guitarist and bassist are from that band. I'll be singing mostly and not playing much guitar. I don't know now if that was a good decision but I figured from the onset I would only mess up everyone else if I played an actual instrument. I mean- it gets back to why I usually have to play by myself.

We're not doing the entire album as some reports suggest. That's only cause we only had so much time to prepare. I don't think people will care about that so much. It does sound better to tell people you're covering the entire rather than "some of the album." It sounds better. In reality though I think it'll work out better that we concentrated the material.

Oh and if you're going...get there early. The show is only 99cents and the Nanci Raygun holds only so many. It could get busy in there. We go on abouts 10 you know how those things go.

Remember Him Well

2006-01-03T21:07:00.000-08:00

I didn't know him but I knew of him.

Years ago, before I came to Richmond. when I was in high school in New York I read a review of his bands' album in Rolling Stone.

There was a line in there that stuck with me: "Tantilla, named for a defunkt dance-hall-cum-bowling-alley..." The image that a place, any place could at once inspire a name for someone's album, serve as a dancehall then inexplicably become a bowling alley made me want to seek this city out. Some may laugh, well those who know Richmond. And yes I laugh at most of my teenage notions now (apparently the internet wasn't a fad!) but my gut was right on this one. And the image that review put in my head was the tip of the iceberg. Richmond holds a mystery.

When I came to college in Richmond my freshman roommate got House of Freaks' "Cakewalk". We were pretty much losers so we stayed in and listened to that album nonstop. We were all impressed with someone we had met who had Bryan Harvey's brother as a teacher in high school.

So, I never met Bryan Harvey, and I don't believe I ever saw him perform live (there are a lot 'lost' years however so it's possible). But his death, long after the news reports' image of a friend last seeing his wife ashen-faced and disturbed greeting her at the door has left my head- will still mean a lot to me.

Falls On A Sunday This Year

2005-12-17T12:01:00.000-08:00

We mentioned a Christmas CD in a previous post. Some people have it, been meaning to get it to the rest of you who've asked. It's all recorded in the kitchen in between the kid's naps. (That sounds better than saying I done it on my computer- both would be correct)

It's just 5 tracks, 2 of which are instrumentals. There's one new original, "Saying It" and 3 covers; Townes' "Tecumseh Valley, "Holly Jolly Christmas" and Woody Guthrie's "1913 Massacre".

1913 Massacre is a true story of striking miners enjoying a Christmas party in Calumet Michigan. Some union busters (they were never caught nor convicted) yelled "Fire!" into the crowd on the second floor. They then barred the door at the bottom of the stairs and the people who rushed to get out suffocated in the stampede.

There's a question of how many people died. Woody says 73. He based his story on news accounts and some historians say that may well be right. Others say he used that number for the sake of the song or the news accounts of the time may have been inaccurate.

But it is agreed that the true number is likely close to that and not disputed is the fact that most of the dead were children. This link lists their names.

That site links to a better one.

I don't know how much you want to read about such a depressing event. I mean, c'mon, it's Christmas. But tis is one of the most powerful songs I've ever encountered. The song never loses it nerve. And it always seems to force people to listen.

Calumet never recovered from the strike that year. People left in droves in the decades since then and the site, Italian Hall, has been demolished. But they still have the archway of the building where the tragedy occurred.

Our Band Could Be This Guy's Life

2005-12-06T20:15:00.000-08:00

Sometimes people like your band too much and it creeps you out. But you can't say anything cause you need all the fans you can get, right? And you certainly don't want to piss anyone off. Not yet at least. So you do the devil-horns back at 'em.

The CD is up for sale online. Look to your far right. There's a link. I left it on the hutch, on top of the mail. Should still be there.

Also, if you have not heard of Schnitzel and are just browsing through, the site allows you to stream a number of the tracks. I like that feature. I know I wouldn't be jumping to buy an unheard CD when 2 web pages ago I was googling "schnitzel devil circus".

All in all, CDBaby has worked out pretty well. It didn't cost too much to set up and it's been easy. I also haven't been browbeatened into buying any unnecessary extras.

But if you already have that, there's also a Christmas CD I can give you. You want that?

2005-12-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

These are 2 pics from the Musicircus. Amazing to literally stumble (and I don't mean literally like this) across such luminaries as John D'earth (below) and JC Kuhl (above left) and Brian Jones (above right). This time there was more emphasis on clusters of musicians working together than experimental noise, um, what's the word...experiments. But it all worked. Dozens of musicians playing simultaneously in a cramped location should be a mess, and it was, but what a fascinating and interesting mess.

Musicircus

2005-11-28T13:21:00.000-08:00

This Thursday at Chop Suey Books is a tribute to composer John Cage.

A lot of shows state a starting and ending time, but this event is strict when it starts. Get there before 8 cause that's when it starts abd it lasts only an hour. Besides that there aren't many rules. Just a host of musical performers (heavy on the expeirmental). Often these sort of music-free-for-alls can be an awkward, chaotic messes but each Musicircus' I've been to have been nothing short of mesmerizing. If you haven't been to one yet, then check it out. This Thursday.

Although Schnitzel is not a part of this some past and future members will be performing. Also if you see me, ask for a free copy of the Schnitzel Christmas album "Falls On A Sunday This Year". It includes a version of "Holly Jolly Christmas" as well as 4 other tracks done on the home computer.

The Next Time You See Me

2005-11-18T20:41:00.000-08:00

The next Schnitzel gigs were announced earlier today.

There's one on Feb 3rd at Cary St. Cafe. Part of the whole Richmond Roots Revival. We'll be playing with The Yokels whom none of us here at Schnitzel have ever heard of before. The other band is The Ex-Patriots (though neither Tony Glenn nor Drew Bledsoe are affiliated with). There'll be some new material. One is called "Saying it Don't Make it So" which I am intending to include on a Christmas EP but will probably not figure out how to record in time.

The other gig is January 28 at the Nanci Raygun. This one will be different. We're opening for the Gaskets CD release party. I don't know what the name of the new one is but I've heard it. They've come a long way since the last one- Big Fun. Just to drive home that very point Schnitzel's duty will be to cover the Big Fun album in its entirety as a full band. No imaginary drummers or absentee bassists. It may be a train wreck but it'll be so in a manner inconsistant with other Schnitzel train wrecks.

Quit Asking Me If I'm Mad At You

2005-11-18T20:26:00.000-08:00

The next post should say that "Southbound Freight" is available for purchase at CDBaby. (Well not the next post, the one coming up)

That's cause I sent them UPS the other day. CD Baby seems to have a decent distribution model for independents such as Schnitzel. I'll see how it goes but I have nothing to lose anyways. Except the 12 CDs I sent out. But even if they didn't even get there, I'd like to think they found someone to take care of them anyways. Sorta like how Moses' Mom had it figured out.

Of course most anyone who wanted a copy has one already.
Also, I never said "If I wanted you to have it you'd have one already."

Well I said it but I didn't mean it.

Didn't mean for you to hear it.

Real Schnitzel is made from veal.

2005-11-01T20:25:00.000-08:00

Remember when people would say, "Anorexia? I got a cure-just eat a sandwhich"

But that was mean and distatseful. Like the picure above.

But then i saw this article in Nature (hat tip BoingBoing)..where it says...

Delayed sleep syndrome

In delayed sleep-phase syndrome (DSPS), the patient falls asleep late and rises late. There is a striking inability to fall asleep at an earlier, more desirable time. This may present itself as either sleep-onset insomnia or daytime hypersomnia (particularly in the morning). DSPS is the most common of the primary circadian dysrhythmias, and may, in part, be the consequence of societal increases in night-time activities36. For example, a college student is habitually unable to fall asleep until 02:00, and has great difficulty getting up in time for her 08:00 classes from Monday to Friday. She finds herself dozing off during morning classes. On Saturday and Sunday she sleeps in until about 10:00, and feels rested upon arising, with no episodes of dozing during the day. Combinations of chronotherapy, phototherapy and medications may be effective in 'resetting' the clock. Unfortunately, the treatment regimen must be maintained, or the clock will again become delayed.

and thought, "Delayed Sleep Syndrome" and thought just go to bed early! And that made me feel better about myself.

A Band Without A Bio

2005-10-31T19:09:00.000-08:00

Or at least an updated bio. This one has been either rejected or ignored by promoters:

Schnitzel ist manchmal eine Einmanntat, manchmal ein
Band aber sie immer schaukeln. Nicht viele andere
Bänder in Richmond sind herum dieses lange gewesen- 10
Jahre- und stiller Überrest so ein gepflegtes
Geheimnis. Kann das für das beste obwohl sein, der
weiß? Manchmal scheint es wie deshalb viel, zu tragen.
Wie viel längere Dose es zuletzt? Der alte Mann ist
müde/ muss jetzt schlafen. ... "

I know what you're thinking but as my grandmother used
to say, "Fuck 'em if they can't speak German." It's too bad too cause I rather liked the "old man is tired now, the sparrow is dead" line.

Soon

2005-10-31T17:39:00.000-08:00

Soon CD's will be available via CD Baby. And maybe pictures of naked girls. I dunno yet. The Internet just provides so muh freedom and so many options...I like the option of naked girls though.

Blogs are easier

2005-10-31T17:21:00.000-08:00

...to make than regular websites. So communications from Schnitzel shall come through this site.

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