Gus Johnston Talks Homophobia in Sports

Certain things I have to admit. First, when I first started watching this video, I had no idea who Gus Johnston was. Second, I had no idea there were places that took their field hockey so seriously. And lastly, that watching this interview would bring a tear to my eye.



You can tell Gus Johnston how much this moved you on Twitter here. I did...

Jason Walker Unplugged Pt 2

In the first part of my interview with recording artist Jason Walker (posted here), we talked about his upbringing, his moment on Showtime At The Apollo, and his work with Junior Vasquez. Now we move on to his latest album, and the recently-released unplugged EP.

Leave It All Behind was his first pure Pop album. It sounded like a step away from the clubs. “Yes, and I wanted it to be. I found that many of the things I was writing about didn’t have anything to do with the dance floor, and didn’t warrant that kind of production. I didn’t want to make just another dance record - everyone and their mother was doing it. And it really wasn’t where my head was. I was without a label, and could finally call the shots, so that is exactly what I did,” he tells me proudly. “I made every decision and was responsible for every aspect of the record, which was a pain in the ass. I don’t think most people realize how much work goes into it. They think you decide to make an album, you record it and boom, it comes out. That is not really how it happens. It was something that I needed to do, and I learned a lot from it. And it was worth it.”



The songs seemed much more personal on the album. What was it like putting it together? “The thing was, when I was with the label,” he confesses, “I didn’t want to give them any of my material. So half of the album, I wrote myself.“ Could he tell us a little about those songs? “I felt that the things I was writing about, it turned out to be an accurate representation of where I was at the time, and how I wanted to be heard. I knew that some people were going to turn their nose up – the hard-core dance folks – they weren’t going to understand where I was. But I really didn’t care. At the end of the day, I am not just a dance artist, I am a singer. “

The new stripped-down, unplugged EP is yet another departure. Rather than exploring the muscularity of his voice, there is an exploration of nuance and restraint. “Well, I feel like with all the stuff I did with Junior, it was all about the power and the production,” he remembers. “It was so for the dance clubs. So when I left that situation, I just wanted to take a step away form the insanity and sing a song without all of the lights and the kick drums, the baselines and synthesizers.”

But that wasn’t the only reason. “My dad, he’d always say, ‘You know I love to hear you sing, I know you like dance music and it’s not really my thing, but when are you going to sing a slow song, when are you going to sing a ballad for me, because I love when you sing that.’



“Well, I found myself wanting to do that, after I found myself immersed in dance for so long, I just wanted to do other things. They were things that I used to do, that I have never forgotten how to do, but they weren’t in the forefront of my life anymore. I wanted to revisit that. I wanted to explore those again. So that is why the album not only happened last year, but especially why the 'Unplugged' EP happened, too.”

So how did the EP come about? “That is just a recorded rehearsal, one song after the other, no editing, no autotune, no anything,” he revealed. “I had no plan on releasing it. I did it at a friend’s studio in the city, and when I listened back to it, and let a few people listen, they all thought I should release it – put it out there. It is the other end of the spectrum. There is everything from This Is My Life and Flexible, so Hi N-R-G and so heavily produced, and there is this, where there has been almost nothing done – a little bit of vocal compression and a bit of reverb, that is it. And I felt like it was a natural progression of me as an artist.”

How did he feel without the driving drums and instrumentation he had for so many years? “I didn’t feel naked at all. In fact, I felt better and more comfortable than I ever felt in any nightclub. I know that sounds a little crazy, but it is the truth. When I let people listen I thought maybe people would identify with it. And maybe they’d like it.”

With those questions completed, my own curiosity got the best of me. Is there a song that he has yet to sing that has him wanting to give it is that Jason-spin? “I’ve always wanted to sing A Song For You from Donny Hathaway. I just always wanted to.“ What about his ‘guilty pleasure’ that might surprise his fans? “Do you know who one of my favorites is? Toni Childs is one of my favorite singers, she has such a unique voice, and I love that. She is such an individual. She had that big booming voice that not a lot of people are going to get, but I get it and I love it. That might be a surprise to some people.”



If Jason got first crack at any song from the last five years, which would it be? “Ha! I’ve always loved – this is gonna sound a little cheesy, but - I’ve always loved the song The Climb from Miley Cyrus. She just doesn’t know enough yet to sing that song. It’s like when LeAnn Rimes and Trisha Yearwood both sang How Do I Live. LeAnn Rimes was what, she had to be less than 20. [She was actually 15]. And Trisha Yearwood was a mature woman. I mean LeAnn’s version was vocally amazing, but when you listened to Trisha’s you just heard the maturity and the way she turned a phrase, and how she connected with the lyrics."

I’ve read that you performed at a Broadway Bares benefit. Is musical theater something that interests you, or was that just a one-off appearance? “Yeah, that was a couple of years ago. Well, it is funny, because I was singing at a benefit remembering the Paradise Garage. It was at Santos Party House and Quentin was playing, and they had asked me, Robert Owens and Barbara Tucker to perform. So I was going to perform during Quentin’s set. I was doing two songs. I was doing the Reverend Carl Bean’s Born This Way, not Lady GaGa’s, but the first one,” he retells with a wry smile in his voice. “And I was doing I Need Somebody To Love Tonight by Sylvester. Quentin was all about me doing that song. He said ‘you really gotta do this song by Sylvester. It’s obscure but it was prevalent during the times of the Paradise Garage.’ Well, when I was performing, the director for Broadway Bares was in the audience that night, and he asked me if I would sing that song in a portion of the show."



“I had never done anything remotely associated with Broadway,” he explained. “I was used to singing in dance clubs and blues bands, not anything even close to Broadway. It was a really good experience and I had a great time. The audiences were great and very receptive.” So would he be open to doing a Broadway show? “Sure! I don’t limit myself,” he said, laughing.

Is there anyone he’d like to work with, living or dead? “Oh, there are two. Rollo [Armstrong] from the band Faithless, who produced Christine W’s first album [Land of the Living], which is, in my opinion, the best Dance record ever made. And there is T-Bone Burnett. I would cut off an appendage to work with T-Bone Burnett because that man is a genius. I mean there are other people, like Red One and Babyface, who I’d like to work with. But those two, Rollo and T-Bone Burnett, oh,” he stops for a moment for a respectful breathe, “they are at the top of my list.”

Is there a favorite song he has written or likes to perform? “Uhm, you know what? No,” he told me matter of factly. “Honestly, honey, I never put a set list together or do an order. It just happens. Everything I write comes from a different place, and they all mean just as much to me as the others. There is no favorite.”



When should people start looking for tour dates so they can catch Jason Walker live and in person? “Over the next month or two. I have a few shows lined up in New York, but I am working on a few shows for the European market. So the next couple of months.“ I certainly can't wait until he is playing a show in my area.

I'd like to truly thank Jason Walker for taking the time to talk to me, and answer all my questions. After spending some time getting to know him, as much as I love his music, I am now every bit a fan of the man. Leave It All Behind, and the new EP, Live And Unplugged can be purchased on iTunes here and here, and Amazon.com here or here. Don't forget to check out Jason on his official website here. You can also be his friend on Twitter and/or FaceBook, and get the updates as they happen. And if you haven't already, please consider making an investment in your listening pleasure and check out Jason's Kickstarter page here. With a pledge of $10, $25, $50 or more, you can pre-order a new album, and get many other benefits you can read about on that page.

Interview with Songster Aiden James

Singer/songwriter Aiden James released an interview where he talks about music and the new album he is looking to release.



For more about Aiden James, check out his official website here. I can't help but get excited when I think about new music coming out!

Jake Walden at the Seafront Diary

It's not often I do this, but my blog-buddy Jason Shaw did a fantastic interview with Jake Walden, so I thought I would share it with you. While there, you might want to check out the entire site, cause I really enjoy reading Jason regularly.

It’s not often a voice just stops you dead in you tracks and pricks at your very soul, but that’s what happened to to me when I first heard Jake Walden’s ‘Alive and Screaming.’ It’s hard to categorize his sound, as Jake's voice has so many textures, from silky smooth to rough-hewn lumber, forever capturing heartfelt emotion. He can take you from cool sheets to a gravel road, never failing to lend a hand to grasp.

There’s a refreshing honesty to the sensitive and emotive lyrics that have that rare ability to truly reach into your mind, into your very soul and transport you to different place. The son of hippies, born and raised in Northern California, he’s already building up a vast fan base, which is just as well, for his next album really does depend upon his friends and fan’s, no really, it does, literally!

For more of the interview and to visit Jason's blog, click here.

When Did You Choose To Be Str8?

I saw the funniest video when checking out a FaceBook posting by the the beautiful and amazing Miss Ginger Grant. I couldn't resist posting it. Here it is, a short film with "street interviews conducted by Travis Nuckolls and Chris Baker in Colorado Springs prove that asking the right question can be more important than anything you can tell someone."



It is an amusing and smart 3 minutes, so thank you, Ginger! And you can check out Ginger's blog, which is never dull and always fun. Check it out here. You won't be disappointed.

SIRPAUL - The Interview II

This is the second part of the interview with SIRPAUL. These questions speak to his musical journey, the evolution of SIRPAUL in his music, from the beginning up to Music And Me, which is set to be released on June 1 on iTunes. I will complete this series with the discussion about the making of the album and a review of it. And it was just announced SIRPAUL will kick off his live shows in New York City on June 26th at the Triad Theater. Tickets can be purchased here.

Your first recording, 2003’s Thrust EP, seems to me offered a nod to the late 80s Euro-Electronica of Depeche Mode and Yaz, yet had your own spin. How did you approach your first recording?
SP: My first recording was actually my album SIRPAUL. For that one I basically hid in my bedroom and hoped no one was listening! Lol!! I was working with the absolute basics- a keyboard, a mic, a digital 8 track and one sampler. My second album (the unreleased Sexual.Human.Being) no one ever heard, although I think it was quite good. At that point I had incorporated some acoustic guitar and my songwriting skills were getting better. I was creating more polished, well-crafted Pop songs. By the time I got to Thrust I was working on a computer in my tiny NYC apartment. The Thrust EP was just a sampler of my songs from Switch. Switch was my first REAL album and Thrust was going to be my first REAL single. I wanted Thrust to be a respectful nod to Prince and George Michael but I honestly can never shake that Euro feeling completely out of me so you can hear those influences in anything I record. I had my cousin James come over and help me out with the process of recording the vocals on that song and he helped me get to the that part where I sing in a falsetto. We were totally cracking up during the recording but I'm actually really proud of that song! I think it doesn't take itself to seriously and it really set the tone for a lot of my future work.



Robotika had a more brooding feel, a bit sparse, almost jazz instrumental in nature. Does the music come easier?
SP: Robotika was an experiment and the birth of my synonymous “alter ego.” I was trying to give myself very specific parameters and rules for the record. No real instruments were allowed. So if you heard a guitar it was totally synthesized. I loved making that album. I really stretched myself artistically and it was a huge relief to not have to feel obligated to reveal so much lyrically! But I don't think any one particular style or genre of music is easier for me to create. I honestly make music in the most organic way... It kind of just flows out of me and I have absolutely no explanation as to how or what I will create next. If you listen to the track 2001 from Robotika you will hear that I sampled it as the basis for one of the songs from my next release Music & Me (the song Break the Beat (Don't Stop!) So sometimes I'm starting one idea and finishing it almost 10 years later! When you get to the point where you are sampling yourself you know you have made a LOT of music! lol



In 2004, you released the album Switch, a much more pop-flavored outing with influences ranging from Middle Eastern rhythms and acoustic simplicity. What brought that on?
SP: I think Switch was deeply subliminally influenced by what was happening in the world and in my personal life at the time. We were at the war in the Middle East and at the same time I was finding my artistic voice. I thought I could take that influence and let it speak through my music. That album almost never happened because immediately after completing it my apartment was broken into! I was out at the release party for Robotika and a compilation my label was releasing called Very Controversial! When I got home my computer (with all of the music I had ever created) along with my all of my recording equipment was gone! The police told me it was definitely an inside job done by some I had known...I was so devastated that I almost stopped making music. But I felt like without music I had no purpose in my life so I asked every person I had ever given a CD to to please return it to me so that I could put my library back together. I got back every single song except one! The sound quality of some of the songs on Switch aren't perfect (to me) because they still needed some tweaking and EQ adjustment. Without the master files I couldn't adjust anything so I had to just compile the songs, press the CD's and move on.



My first purchase, 2006’s Dismantle, returned to the slightly dark and brooding side, only amped up. There seem to be more rock influences, both in percussion and mood. Vocally, you really stretched yourself, in a good way. Even the videos had a darker feel. Was that something you were trying to do?
SP: Well yes and no...but not really. I think Dismantle was just about taking yourself apart and examining every single aspect of your person and the way you love both yourself and other people differently sometimes. I was just creating and that's what came out. I did want to add more rock guitars and more Drum & Bass, Techno and Breakbeat elements but it was just what I was feeling like fusing together at the time, sound wise.

The 2007 Do U single seem to go flat out rock at times, with driving beat, but many of the mixes utilized electronica to soften that. What is your favorite version?
SP: I think Do U has a very “Rock” attitude to it, but for me it was the most electronic single I had made to date at the time. Do U has a very interesting story behind it... I had “virtually” met French producers Human Body through MySpace. I fell in love with what they were doing with Naomman (who I also “virtually” met through MySpace) at the time and they really liked my sound as well. They sent me an instrumental demo track and I couldn't stop listening to it! It was the first time I was ever set to write lyrics to and sing on a song that someone else produced so it was very exciting to me. I came up with the hook for Do U while I was out dancing at Mr. Black one night and it just stuck in my head and I knew we had something special there. So I went out to the studio on Long Island and my sister Cherylyn and I finished up the lyrics and I recorded the vocals to what is now the Human Body Original Version. After it was done, I was just so excited about the track that I had to remix it. So I started editing the vocal arrangement and played with very new sounds and that's how I came up with the Robotika Remix (which is always what I call the versions of songs where I feel like I've stretched myself artistically.) I felt that the original version was a little too abstract for the “aurally repressed ears of the US” at the time so the Robotika Single Version wound up being the version we used for the video. But I can't pick just one... I love them ALL!!



Last year you had Objectified, an electronic collection that is sexually charged, both in rhythms and themes. The videos were also more abstract, with the one for the title song to have almost a layered computer screen feel. Yet vocally, you never step away from the emotional intent of the song. Was that always the intention?
SP: The running theme in all of my work is always the concept of Technology vs. Nature. I just think these two forces are constantly battling to dominate one another. I never get tired of exploring this dynamic and I also feel that I'm always finding new ways to express it. On the album Objectified, I loved creating a pure dance pop album that still had smart lyrics while maintaining a sexy, fun tone. Andreas Anastasis had done the video for Do U and it was my most successful single so far, so when it was time to shoot the next video and Andreas wasn't available, I really had no idea what I was going to do! The next video needed to be really strong and I had only ever worked with Andreas. His unavailability opened the door for me to work with a new director for the first time. I was put in touch with Mark Odgers and I could tell that immediately after we met, he was the right person to shoot this video and that this was going to be something completely ground breaking and different for me. I feel like visually, this video is really quite an achievement and he did an amazing job.

Look for the conclusion and my review of Music And Me around the time of the release to iTunes on June 1. Also check out the music videos to be posted momentarily for those not familiar with his work. For more information on SIRPAUL, check out his website here, Twitter here, and FaceBook here.

SIRPAUL - The Interview I

In a new feature for Soundtrack to my Day, I am proud to post an interview with one of the voices that are certainly part of my own personal soundtrack, SIRPAUL. I have been a fan for several years, and when he mentioned he might be up for an interview for the blog, I jumped at the chance. It has been many years since I interviewed anyone, so I will admit to being nervous, but working with SIRPAUL was a wonderful experience, and I look forward to the readers thoughts.



First, for a bit of background information, where were you born, you grow up?
SP: I was born in a tiny harbor town called Port Jefferson out on the north shore of Long Island, New York, and I lived there until I moved to NYC. My whole family still lives there and they are all about 15 minutes away from one another so when I go to visit I can see them all...I'm really close with my family.

Who were you listening to as a kid, your early influences?
SP: I have three sisters and one brother and I grew up listening to the music they exposed me to... They each had artists they listened to the most: Madonna, Prince, Stevie Nicks, George Michael, and Van Halen. You can hear all of those elements in my music...But I was OBSESSED with Cyndi Lauper. My entire room was wallpapered with images of her. I had every single piece of memorabilia that was available and I would sit in my room and listen to She's So Unusual over and over and over! I really felt like she was the only person in the world that I could relate to at the time because she looked crazy and I did too! I was really into the whole “New Wave look” and you could see it in the way I dressed...I was kind of androgynous and had crazy hair colors all the time.



When did you first start making music?
SP: My parents were both musicians. My father was a drummer and he played on the Ed Sullivan Show once with his band and my mother and her sister were a singing duo called Judy & Jo. They signed to Capital Records when they were teenagers and they had put out some records. One of them was an answer song to Elvis's Good Luck Charm called Don't Wanna Be Your Good Luck Charm. Their songs were GREAT! So at one point or another we all were encouraged to try our hand at music. My brother Brendan is an amazing guitarist and my sister Lisa totally rocked on the drums. But I always sang, made music and wrote songs. I remember being a little kid and making my own tapes and designing the album covers and forcing my friends to be in “bands” with me. I took it very seriously. Then my sister Cherylyn and I started playing around with a keyboard my parents bought me and we began writing real songs when I was around 12. It was all over from there. We were obsessed! By the time I was 16 we had recorded our first demo tape together as a freestyle/techno group called Double Exposure. We were offered the opportunity to start putting out music in Japan but we didn't feel like the offer was legit. (Maybe it was the fact that they wanted my sister to pose for Playboy??) My voice was still changing and I had a lot of work to do so it really wasn't the right time but we thought we were totally gonna be the biggest stars in the world!



How does being a DJ influence you as a singer/songwriter?
SP: Well there's always been this misconception that i'm a DJ but I'm not. I've had a very close friendship with one DJ since the very beginning of my career. In 1998 I recorded my very first album, (the self-titled, out of print CD, SIRPAUL) in my bedroom on a keyboard and I was feeling very ambitious. I had just moved to NYC and I pressed a thousand copies of my album and 200 pieces of vinyl for my first single I Disagree. I remixed the song myself (very well, I must say at the time, considering that I was only working on a basic keyboard, a digital 8 track and one sampler!) and my co-worker at the time was Andreas Anastasis. We had just started hanging out and he was really excited to see what would happen with my singing career. He ran the door at a gay club called Twirl in Chelsea. He told me to come down and bring my vinyl to the club because he knew the DJ. When I got there he grabbed my hand and ran me over to the DJ booth and introduced me to this ridiculously beautiful DJ...DJ Alex Lauterstein. I was so nervous, but Alex was totally cool and we clicked right away. He said he would play my record and my heart just stopped beating for a minute. When I heard my song playing for the first time I think it changed my life forever!! We both loved New Wave (Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, Erasure) so I guess that since Alex and I shared an affinity for the same types of music, I was probably tailoring my remixes specifically to appeal to that particular sense of aural aesthetics right from the very beginning.

In your personal life, you have a partner, right? How has that helped you with your music?
SP: Yes. Paul is actually the best thing that ever happened to me. I really have never been in love before so this person coming into my life has really changed everything for me. I believe we are soul mates. Our families have both been amazing at welcoming us both respectively into their lives and rallying around us to support us as a unit. They do not treat us any different than any other couple. We both feel very blessed.



What makes you happier, making your own music, or spinning the music of others?
SP: Nothing makes me happier than making music. I love to play and listen to other peoples music too, but it's honestly just not the same level of satisfaction. DJ's make music by combining other peoples music and mixing CD's together. Producers and artists are creating something out of nothing at all...which feels like magic.

Do you enjoy performing for an audience? Where can a fan catch you performing live?
SP: I love performing live. I've had such an overwhelmingly emotional response from fans in the audience at my shows so I'm really curious to see what the response is like when I can actually encourage people to get up and dance! I'm in the very early stages of putting together a show in NYC to coincide with the release of my new album Music & Me. [Editor Note: It was just announced SIRPAUL will kick off his live shows in New York City on June 26th at the Triad Theater. Tickets can be purchased here.]

End of Part 1 - Part 2 to follow tomorrow night