pled newspapers for insulation. A variety of materials can serve as insulation, including sawdust, chicken feathers or fiberglass batting. Insulation is key, because you want to trap heat in the box as effectively as possible to offset shading by clouds that will invariably show up to block the sun. In optimal conditions, the cookers we built can heat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit in about an hour, which is hot From MOTHER EARTH NEWS, by Joel Dufour enough to cook anything from a casserole to biscuits. That’s a Solar radiation is the pretty good appliance most prolific source of energy for only a $50 investment. For me, on our planet. About 84 billion kilowattthe deal was even sweeter — I married hours of light reach Earth every day — Mark’s sister a few years later, and we’ve more than four times our global energy been solar cooking together ever since. consumption. The challenge is to efficiently You can easily manage a solar cooker by harness this energy. Most people settle for keeping these elements in mind: gathering solar energy by eating vegetables from their gardens or catching its reflection Sun. Don’t put the oven where a shadow with their cameras. Trap that energy in an will fall across it. If you use recycled glass insulated box with some food — then you’ll for the top, make sure it hasn’t been treatreally be cookin’! ed with UV-resistant coating.
Nearly
20 years ago, as I was helping a friend build his straw bale house (at which point he figured out I was into “weird stuff”), he mentioned that some people he knew were teaching a solar-oven-building workshop. I was intrigued, so I sent in my 50 bucks to attend. Three weeks later, I found myself on a homestead out in the Kentucky woods, looking at the piles of plywood, cardboard, tinfoil and glass that were to become solar ovens. The instructors, Mark and Andy, had just returned from a nonprofit-sponsored trip to Peru, where they taught people how to build and use solar cookers. Many of Peru’s mountain villages suffer from deforestation, so solar cooking offers a good alternative to cooking with wood.
This solar cooker requires only cheap materials and the design is so simple: square, with an inner box and an outer box separated by 1 or 2 inches of insulation, and a glass cover on the inner box to let in sunlight. Additionally, four reflectors are arrayed at obtuse angles to the glass to focus more light into the box and raise its internal temperature enough to make cooking possible. We used plywood for the outer box for rigidity and durability, and crum-
Solar Ovens Can Be As Simple As 2 Pizza Boxes, Foil, Black Construction Paper, Newspaper, Plastic Wrap, and a Stick
and had fun figuring out what worked. When cooking grains or beans, you only need a little more than half as much water as on a stovetop. Cooking veggies in the slow, even heat results in incredibly savory dishes. Food rarely burns, and only ever on top, so nothing ever sticks to the bottom of the pot. Even bread, pastries and meat will do well, although you’ll need to maintain a high average temperature, so plan in advance, and cook on days forecasted to be completely clear and sunny. Frying is difficult as the temperature typically isn’t high enough and you’ll lose heat every time you open the cooker to stir the pan — but you could experiment with quick-cooking foods, such as eggs.
Dark-colored
Cooking times are longer than in a conventional oven because average temperatures fluctuate during the day. As long as the oven temperature remains above 200 degrees, your food will still cook.
cookware works best — dark objects convert sunlight into heat energy more easily than light-colored or reflective objects. Cast iron, black enamel and dark ceramic are good options, and lids help hold in heat. But, when cooking colorful veggies, don’t use a clear lid. The concentrated sunlight will bleach the vegetables’ color.
A
I painted the outside of a couple of wide-
For
mouth, quart-sized Mason jars flat black with high-heat paint (including the outsides of the lids), and these became my rice- and
Time.
sense of adventure. You never really know what the weather will do. best results, preheat the oven for at least 30 minutes — allow it to heat while empty or with an empty pot inside. Also, someone should be around to adjust the cooker now and then. The reflectors will angle sunlight into the box for about two hours of the sun’s path across the sky, after which you should rotate the cooker to follow the sun. With this method, solar cooking will take about twice as long as cooking with electricity or gas, but cooking time will decrease dramatically if you rotate the oven every 30 minutes.
bean-cooking jars. They heat up quickly, are space-efficient, and double as storage jars for leftovers. Never fill the jar more than half-full, including water. A cup of brown rice needs 11/2 cups of water and is usually done after 70 minutes. Don’t tighten the lid all the way when cooking in a jar or you’ll risk an explosion.
Excerpted from MOTHER EARTH NEWS, the Original Guide to Living Wisely. To read more articles from MOTHER EARTH NEWS, please visit www.MotherEarthNews.com or call (800) 234-3368 to subscribe. Copyright 2015 by Ogden Publications Inc.
Cover reflectors with basic aluminum foil, Mylar tape, acrylic mirror or other highly reflective products. The top of your solar cooker should be inclined, either by design or by tilting the box on blocks. The best angle is based on your latitude and the declination of the sun, but in the Northern Hemisphere it should be about 30 degrees during summer and 60 degrees during winter. To increase your solar oven’s ability to convert light to heat, paint the bottom of its interior with black, high-heat paint. To improve heat-holding ability, add some thermal mass, such as a large rock or brick. On days with strong sun and no cloud cover, two to three hours is enough to cook almost anything, from a pot of rice to a loaf of bread, without adjusting the cooker.
I put my oven to use right away
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CONTENTS SOUTH TEXAS ON THE COVER...
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WWW STEAMMAGAZINE NET
ADOLESCENCE By DREW RILEY
NOVEMBER 2015 VOL. 4 ISS. 8
ENTERTAINMENT 3 BUILD YOUR OWN SOLAR OVEN 15 TROUBADOURS INSIGHT 24 STUFF FILM FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
ALWAYS IN STEAM
ART
MUSIC 8 DWEEZIL ZAPPA
12 IN THE ARTIST LOFT: DREW RILEY 19 STEAM PICKS FOR NOVEMBER
9 CC LIVE: CATHOUSE 11 COHEED & CAMBRIA 16 THE MISFITS
QUICK READ 5 COMICS 6 CD REVIEWS 7 NEW RELEASES: CDs & MOVIES 18
PUBLISHER RUSTY HICKS EDITOR TAMMA HICKS COMICS EDITOR ALLENE HICKS STAFF WRITERS RICK BOWEN, DALE MARTIN, TAMMA HICKS CONTRIBUTING WRITERS J MICHAEL DOLAN, DEREK SIGNORE STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS ALLENE HICKS, RUSTY HICKS
TO ADVERTISE WITH US 361-904-4339 | SALES@STEAMTX.COM SEE US ONLINE AT WWW.STEAMMAGAZINE.NET SUBMIT YOUR MUSIC, BOOK, ART, OR SHOW FOR REVIEW! HAVE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? SUBMISSIONS@STEAMTX.COM
ALTERNATIVE WEEKLY NETWORK STEAM Magazine is published monthly by STEAM Magazine, South Texas Entertainment Art Music, in Corpus Christi, TX. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Views expressed within are solely the authors and not of STEAM Magazine. Typographical, photographic, and printing errors are unintentional and subject to correction. Please direct all inquiries to: submissions@steamtx.com
corp. We live in a “direct to customer” world, and if you want to expand your empire you must consistently interact and engage with your fans, followers and customers DIRECTLY—way beyond Facebook or social media. To the degree you continue to collect emails and build up your customer/fan base, and remain in constant communication with your tribe, to that degree your followers will be there for you when you offer them something special. Building your tribe is the most intelligent investment of your time.
3) Build Your Own Presence: Don’t be
5 BUILDING BLOCKS J. Michael Dolan (1:13)
1) Build The Best: Use the best tools, the best tech, and the best talent you can possibly afford. Then build and produce the best art and commerce you can possibly manifest. * Personal note: When I invest in anything, I always look for people or companies that do one thing better than anyone else. Focus on that one thing that you do better than anyone. Then do more of that. (Please don’t send investment ideas).
2) Build A Marketing Base: Waiting until the
record is finished, the product is built, the video is launched or the service is proven before you begin a marketing blitz is old-school thinking, and most often a "death knell" to the project. Your “marketing plan” starts NOW! I tell all of my clients to do a weekly blog or newsletter—doesn’t matter if they’re an artist or the CEO of a mega-
hypnotized by the hoopla of Facebook! It’s the lazy man’s business card! Many artists & entrepreneurs, even pros & CEO’s seem to think that their Facebook page is enough. IT’S NOT! When it comes to doing business, NOTHING is more effective than consistently reaching out directly to your fans, and there is absolutely no better place to do that then via your own storefront—your website! Remember, Facebook is Mark Zuckerberg’s website, not yours. And he knows how to distract and target your followers much better than you do. (Reread my blog “Weighing Facebook”)
4) Build Trust: That’s all we
really want. We want to know that
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we can trust you to do what you say, and deliver the art/product/service you promised. Doesn’t matter if you’re a rock star, Corp CEO, or candidate for president, we must have some kind of assurance that we can trust you. And the way to do that is to consistently produce and distribute extraordinary art & commerce that matters most to us—your devoted followers.
5) Build A Solemn Vow:
Doesn't matter if you're a fledgling band, struggling writer, savvy business owner, or the CEO of a mega-corp. The ruthless “commitment” you make to produce your very best work “trumps” HOW you’re going to do it.
Bonus Block: No matter what condition your career is in, fledgling or flying high, never underestimate the power of building your own stairway to heaven, one block at a time; slowly and intelligently. As your art or brand continues to grow, you’re going to need solid ground to stand on—especially if what you’ve built begins to wobble someday.
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www.theawkwardyeti.com | www.lunarbaboon.com New Books Out Now! Order Yours Today!
CD REVIEWS
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sadness and longing in Delia Come To Me. You can feel the ache and tender feelings that inhabit every fiber of the singers being. The song absolutely takes you inside of it so you feel the love, longing, and desire that makes this song elicit such powerful emotions.
JOE ELY PANHANDLE RAMBLER (RACK’EM RECORDS) By ROB DICKENS Texas singer/songwriting troubadour Joe Ely has been a significant force in the alternative country scene for decades. Ely was born in Amarillo and followed his family to Lubbock, both in the northern-most region of Texas referred to as The Panhandle. This region is known for its flat, dry and vast wind-swept plains. It is this environment that has helped form his story-telling over many years. With almost twenty solo recordings, a member of The Flatlanders (with Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock) and numerous key collaborations throughout an illustrious career, this makes for an impressive CV. Now living in Austin Texas, he’s also recently been recognized as the Official Texas State Musician for 2016.
COLIN LINDEN RICH IN LOVE (STONY PLAIN/WARNER) By BOB GOTTLIEB An absolute gem by this Canadian that is a member of the much heralded Canadian group, Blackie and The Rodeo Kings (and if you haven’t heard them treat yourself). He seems to be a permanent part of the Nashville scene now. This disc shows off his tremendously versatile instrumental skills, (guitars, ukuleles, and mandolins), his vocal range with his just slightly roughened voice, and the production skills of his fellow Rotting Matadors and longtime collaborators, John Dymond and Gary Craig. Listen to the heartfelt delicacy with which he deals
The songs are the foundation for making this disc such a powerful one; they are what the instruments and vocals use as building blocks of emotion with which to relate to the listener. There are 12 songs here and he wrote 7 of them by himself, the other 5 he collaborated with an assortment of people though most frequently with his wife Janice Powers. There is a strong emotional power in all the songs and yet they also display a non-mawkish and yet powerfully sympathetic delicacy that tries to see a whole picture in a non-combative way. As well as his long time Canadian friends, The Rotting Matadors he has some guests here that put some fantastic icing on this cake. Charlie Musselwhite contributes some fierce harmonica on 2 cuts; Amy Helm’s heartfelt harmonies on 3 cuts; Reese Wynans piano/organ on 5 cuts; and Tim Lauer organ on 2 cuts. These additional musicians truly take this cake from a delicious
Panhandle Rambler (out on his own label Rack’em Records in September 2015) is his first release since 2011’s Satisfied At Last. The new record is a stylish outing throughout. The songs are deeply personal and reflect his experiences with the spirited characters of this world and its gritty environment. The production here is especially good. The opener “Wounded Creek” speaks of a troubling scene involving a young girl with a somewhat mysterious ending. A similar mood infuses “Coyotes Are Howlin'”, with a story so vivid you feel like wiping the dust out of your eye. “When The Nights Are Cold” is immensely comforting, while “Early In The Mornin'” and “Wonderin’ Where” contains wonderful recollections of past experiences. “Southern Eyes” has a nice Texas shuffle backdrop and “Four Ol’ Brokes” is a colorful hobo tale. “Burden Of Your Load” talks of a gypsy, a mighty wind, evil, a black Chevrolet and inspirational persistence in life. “Here’s To The Weary” is a tribute to ‘restless souls chasing crazy dreams’, pioneering heroes such as Woody Guthrie, Bob Wills, Muddy Waters and Pinetop Perkins. “Cold Black Hammer” is perhaps even the best yet – it slides gracefully through the air like wafting smoke and the playing is perfectly sublime. By the time you get through to the closing song “You Saved Me”, you know you have witnessed a stylish and elegant storybook. All songs were written by Ely bar “Magdalene” (Guy Clark and Ray Stephenson) and “When The Nights Are Cold” (Butch Hancock). The album was recorded in Spur Studios Austin and produced by Ely. It features a long line of musicians including the great Lloyd Maines (father of Natalie) and the legendary Kenny Vaughn to name just two. A special mention though should go to the Spanish and Flamenco guitarists (Jeff Plankenhorn and Teye Wijnterp respectively), as well as the accordion and keyboardist Joel Guzman whose influence on the sound and the mood cannot be overstated. The result is an exquisite and deeply felt collection. Panhandle Rambler is a moving tribute from a class act. . FACEBOOK.COM/OCEANCAROLINA WWW.ROBDICKENS101.COM
ASHLEY MONICAL FACING THE SHADOW (SELF RELEASED) By BOB GOTTLIEB This is one of the strongest debut albums to be heard in an extremely long time, and that is said with the total package being beautifully delivered. The voice is strong even when delicacy is required there is strength and not uncertainty or hesitation in her voice, it seems to always come from inside her and a place of strength, even when she is unsure. The songs are all either written of co-written by her, they show her as any complex human being is, with many facets and variables. The songs have a very personal feel, however at the same time they are universal; facing ‘wants’/desires and what to do, and personal truth. She (lead vocals, acoustic guitar and keys) and Producer John Evans (guitar on this disc) recruited some fellow Austinites to play on the disc such as Scott Davis (bass, electric guitar, organ, acoustic guitar, accordion, and keys), Trevor Nealon (keys track 9), and Falcon Valdez (drums and percussion) Band of Heathens members all, plus a scattering of others to flesh out the sound on backing vocals and violins. They set up recording out in Wimberley on some land her father had and spent a couple of weeks living and recording out there. What truly stands out on this disc is the power and conviction of her songs as they are portrayed and presented by her strong rich voice. It is almost as if she is discovering the power that is in her to do something this liberating and at the same time intimidating and intense. There is that terrifying deep cliff of self-discovery and she has navigated the twists and turns and steep falls. ASHLEYMONICAL.COM www.RASCALSFAIR.com
creation, and make it into a masterpiece. Each one of them adds the only the touches that are necessary and nothing extraneous. This is disc is one of the true standouts of this year. www.COLINLIDEN.com BOB GOTTLIEB is a freelance music writer based in Arizona. www.RASCALSFAIR.com
FROM GUITARIST TO MUSICIAN Words: Derek Signore, Sound Magazine for STEAM Magazine
STEAM: Son of Frank Zappa, to what to you credit your ability to stay clean from the headlines where other children of rock royalty only earn ink for the errors in their ways? DZ: I think a lot of people expected that with our names being so unusual we were going to turn out to be a menace to society but our upbringing was strongly based in reality. We didn’t have the crazy upbringing that people thought. We had chores to do and all those kind of thing. It was pretty normal with the exception that we had a different example of what the business world was with my father. For me to rebel in my family I would have had to become an accountant or a lawyer (laughing). STEAM: At age twelve you decided to take up the guitar, inspired not by your fathers music but by those you heard on the radio. As your fathers’ guitar playing must have been intimidating to you at such a young age were you aware just how much you had to learn to perform like him or did you just think it was just a different style you were hearing on the station? DZ: Music is one of those things where anything can be an inspiration and for me I knew that my dad’s music was something I was going to have to inspire to. What listening to those other bands taught me was that there was a way to start out and build that bridge. At that time hard rock was the most popular music in the world so it was hard not to feel the urge to pick up a guitar.
to do is use those techniques when teaching in an improv way to do a lot of exploration with the students which is a lot of fun. These techniques have kind of become a style of my own which is why people have interest in it and it’s shown with attendance numbers as high as 60 people sometimes. S T E A M : You’re quoted as saying that playing your fathers music for the better part of the last decade has graduated you from a guitarist to a musician. How do you differentiate between the two? DZ: Most of the time guitar players don’t have any awareness of what is it like to play in an ensemble as most of the time they are leading what is going on and they don’t have the ability to play in other styles and make a contribution. What I’ve learned over the course of learning and performing his music is that ability. STEAM: Thoughts on your children taking up a guitar one day? DZ: I think if they do I’ll be in the perfect position to give them some pointers. I think it’s different than when I was growing up so that choice will be theirs to make but if they do it will be tough for me because some of the stuff I learned isn’t applicable in music today so it might actually be a learning process for both of us.
www.dweezilzappaworld.com Facebook & Twitter = dweezilzappa
STEAM: As you perform your master class for attendees what decisions have you made in terms of whose music you teach, your father’s, your own, or a mix of both? DZ: The thing that I developed when learning my father’s music was a whole bag of new techniques that I never had access to before so as a guitarist my new music reflects those changes. What it allows me
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Dweezil Zappa Via Zammata In Stores 27 NOV 2015 STEAMMAGAZINE.NET
Words: Tamma Hicks, STEAM Magazine
So tell me about Cathouse. I thought there were two bands but there's only one, correct? I Started Cathouse in 1997. A good way to look at it is Cathouse A and Cathouse B. Cathouse A is a three piece guitar oriented group. I consider it to be my priority as we play originals and open for bands and guitar players. Cathouse B is a five piece cover band and we play around town a lot, have different players, and is a great way to keep our chops up and play for fun with my buddies. Occasionally we can sneak in some originals. The most fun we have is playing
the originals and I think here in the city that it's almost a lost art to play your originals for a group that actually responds well.
comes across is that we are very guitar oriented bands. And that's what I thrive on, so there's a jam element with fusion, with blues, and jazz.
So since its essentially two bands, do you have different players? Yes, actually we do. My brother, Miguel Davila, plays bass for the original band and occasionally for the cover band and Luis Garcia plays drums for both bands. In the cover band we have a singer, an additional guitar player, and different bass players; which is really kind of cool, because it widens our variety as to what we can play and how we interact with the crowd. I know that if we play with this bass player it'll drive in this direction and if we play with that bass player it'll go in another direction, so basically we double our repertoire. We try to keep it primarily in the classic rock genre of the late seventies and eighties era where the music was a really guitardriven. We play with ballads and upbeat tunes such as Aerosmith, Whitesnake, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the Eagles, but really it's all going to be guitar driven.
You said that Cathouse A has opened for a lot of bands and guitar players. Yes, we have and there's a long list of bands that we've opened for like Foghat, Thin Lizzy, and many more. We've also opened for a lot of guitar players as well like Dick Dale, Chris Duarte, Michael Landau, Michel Angelo Batio. Whether its blues, fusion, jazz, or instrumental guitar players, we’re able to play for them.
Are all of your original songs instrumental or do you have vocals as well? Oh yeah, we have vocals and there are a few instrumentals, but what
Here in Corpus Christi where can we see you guys playing? Well we play a lot at It'll Do Saloon, Outta Bounds Sports Lounge, and House of Rock. We’ll be at the benefit for JT Coldfire on November 8th at Boozers. I really haven't booked a whole lot for the next few months because of the holidays, so the best way to do that is to look it up on Facebook or ReverbNation and follow us there. Who are the influences for the cover band? Well again, we’re a very guitar driven band. We play Ozzy Osbourne, Thin Lizzy, Van Halen; really if its guitar-driven music we’ll probably play it. What we do in that band is try very hard to make sure that our show is exciting and keep our audience interested in what we're doing. Our guitar player is Jose Quiroz and we do a lot of solo trading, sometimes we act like we’re doing a solo competition. Who are your influences? Well really, I like the underdogs, you know; the names that don't get mentioned a lot. Rory Gallagher from Ireland. Danny Gatton. These are guitar player’s guitar players. These are the guys that don't get their
names called but they're on all the albums; Allan Holdsworth, Eric Johnson. Eddie Van Halen, of course. Man, right out of junior high school; he was the one who made you want to pick up a guitar. The old blues guys are really my favorites; Robert Johnson. I really try to stay away from the mainstream and, like I said, I go for the underdogs. You know something else that really inspires me are drummers because they have a lot of insight into guitar playing. So do you stylize after anyone in particular or actually try to incorporate a little bit of everyone? I don't copy anyone in general. I give it all my own style and signature with specific picking. I do my homework because I don't want to sound just like everybody else and I think I set myself apart by doing that. Do play other genres than just classic rock? Yeah, Cathouse A really has a jam element to it. When you're listening you’ll hear some blues riffs, some country licks, some fusion jazz; really we try to incorporate all of the styles and genres. When did you actually pick up the guitar? I think I was in junior high. One guy that I went to school with, on Fridays he would take his guitar to school and I'd see him leaning up against a row of lockers playing and just after a couple of chords BAM! there were 10 girls around him. And I thought that's how that works (laughs) You know he still plays around town, Roland Villarreal. He was my biggest inspiration because in junior high he was with his own
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Words: Scott Yager, Sound Magazine
STEAM : I am a big Coheed and Cambria
Coheed and Cambria have been making awesome music for years now and have an iconic sound that combines progressive rock, pop-punk and heavy metal, all as the backdrop for Claudio Sanchez’ recognizably higherpitching singing style. October 9th marked the release of ‘The Color Before The Sun.’ This is the outfit’s eighth studio album and their first non-conceptual release, with the previous offerings forming the larger story of The Amory Wars, a science fiction saga depicting the story of Coheed and Cambria Kilgannon. Claudio dropped by to discuss being a “concept” band over the years and whether embracing the concept is a necessary part of the listening experience, what makes this album different and lots more! On Friday November 6th you can catch Coheed and Cambria at Austin’s Fun Fun Fun Fest 10 on the Black Stage at 8:45pm.
fan and have been for years. I have a bunch of your albums. I have seen you live many times. I would consider myself a pretty hardcore Coheed fan. Yet, I know very little about the The Amory Wars and the sci-fi counterpart and don’t really connect with the concept aspect of your music and your band. I just love rocking out to you guys. Does that bother you? CLAUDIO: Absolutely not. It doesn’t bother me at all. That’s kind of the idea with Coheed. I write these songs from a very personal place. They all start with me and experiences and people that I’ve shared those experiences with. And then I take them and I translate them into what you see in the comic books. It was always my intention to create this thing with this counterpart that wasn’t a complete necessity. It’s just there should you choose to want it. It allows the records to live in a new way. So I am totally on board with whether you participate with the concept or not.
STEAM : I have to imagine also that with
the massive success you guys have had over the years and the number of casual fans you have acquired, that not all of them are up for keeping up with a decade long science fiction narrative that goes along with the music. As you guys got more and more popular, did you need to come to terms with the fact that only a percentage of your fan-base would be into all that went into the concept entirely? CLAUDIO: All this stuff sort of happens organically. It was never really this completely methodical thing. It was really an idea that blossomed into this thing. You can really enjoy this in any way possible. As a fan who might like one song and that’s it, that’s fine, or if you’re all-consuming of everything, it’s really all about how you choose to experience
it. Art is so subjective. We can experience it however we want to. I’m open to all forms of experience.
STEAM : Is “concept album” a term that might scare people off and make them think they are biting off more than they can chew, or are ready for? It seems like something that might turn people off whereas you guys have proven, along with albums like The Who’s Tommy and Green Day’s American Idiot, that the music on a concept album can be enjoyed whether you are following the “concept” as a whole, or not. Was it a label you put on yourselves or one that was given to you? CLAUDIO: I think there’s always something that resonates with any listener personally, regardless of the tag ‘concept’ or not. I think the reason we have that in the Coheed consciousness is because of its relation to The Amory Wars and to the comic books but that is all the power of suggestion. The fact that we pose this idea gives us that title and therefore that’s the experience that some may have with it and might find that daunting and might discredit it and never give it its shot. You feel like you’re investing too much of your energy into something like that. But for me, it’s really the power of suggestion. If I were to have said, in 2002, nothing about the idea of a science fiction concept that counterparted with the music, like you yourself, who experienced the music this one way, that would just be the case for everyone.
STEAM : I am guilty of being one of the many Coheed listeners to have compared your sound to that of Rush, the main reason being that you and Geddy Lee both have higher voices when you sing. I read that you guys were never even really fans of them when you were growing up. Sorry to bring it up again, but I’d love to know how you feel
about that frequent comparison? CLAUDIO: That doesn’t bother me. I can only dream to have the career that Rush has had. It’s got longevity and I could only aspire to have that. I don’t necessarily mind the comparison. I have a fun story about Rush and it involves my first playing guitar. I was a kid in junior high school, when I started my first band. At the time, I was going to be a drummer. Can I tell this story?
STEAM : Absolutely! I would love for you
to tell this story. CLAUDIO: So I was going to be a drummer. A friend of mine was a singer. We had these ideas. So we went looking for a guitar player all over town that could accompany our Rock N Roll band. I didn’t even have a drum set. So we find this guy and he comes to my friend’s apartment and he sets up his guitar and amplifier and he’s amazing. He goes to us and says, “If I’m going to be in this band, we’re going to need to play Rush covers” and I don’t even know who Rush is. And I’m the drummer. And I don’t even have a drum set. So I just say, “Cool, we’ll play Rush covers.” That evening, he had a friend call my friend and say that he thought we were just a bunch of dreamers and nothing was going to happen for us and my friend calls me to tell me this and I’m like “f#$k that guy!” and that’s how I started playing guitar.
STEAM : When did you start thinking about being a vocalist and when did you establish your iconic style? CLAUDIO: I had no intention of being a singer. I picked up the guitar because of that…jerk. It wasn’t until years later that I continued on pg 21 STEAMMAGAZINE.NET
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In The Artist Loft: Drew Riley
Jenner for example, has acknowledged some of her privileges. Money, media, and whiteness gave her a privileged transition that many trans folks don’t experience. She also expresses herself as a white upper middle class female, which conforms to society’s expectations of binary gender that accepts only stereotypical female or male gender expression. Laverne Cox expresses her gender as feminine in a form that mainstream media accepts. Not all LGBT folks identify with only male or female gender identities or gender expression. So listing steps to this process may fit for one individual but that glass slipper is not for everyone.
Continued from Page 13 ing. In the past two years there has been a visibility explosion in the mainstream media. It’s like society is ready. They’re understanding identity and using the correct pronouns now. I had planned on doing videos convincing people I’m normal. But now I don’t have to because of the recent societal shift and that’s so wonderful”.
A year later Riley completed her second
self-portrait, Exploration. Illusionistic with impressionistic and painterly brushstrokes the image is set in a public space with other figures surrounding the central figure. The central figure sits on a barstool in a red dress, harsh makeup, and a short black bobbed haircut. She contrasts with the woman to her left who is wearing a relaxed pony tale, casual denim skirt, and loafers. The central figure presents an air of detached sex appeal and stiffness. Twisted on a barstool her legs struggle to support her position. Surrounding her are bar patrons absorbed in their own conversations while she looks away to her right. Wearing a forlorn expression and searching the crowd she’s rigid and seems apprehensive someone may approach her. She crosses her arm over her torso in a protective manner and grips her knee, supporting herself in her severe pose. The picture plane opens up to the viewer; we’re in the room too. Do we approach her? Walk around her to the bar? Perhaps we just stand and stare a while? The figure radiates from the canvas through techniques of high value contrasts; illuminated with chiaroscuro light plays like a Raphael painting. Riley said, “This piece represents my coming out. Socializing for the first time bringing my internalized identity into the world. I’m in a crowd but not with projected confidence, my insecurity and disconnectedness radiate. It’s a clash between my expectations and the reality. I wanted the column of light on myself to enhance the disconnect, the different envi-
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ronment I was in under the pressure of being observable but with no one to talk to - my tension and disharmony”.
When
I first approached writing about Riley’s work I wanted to compare the phenomenon of transition - between her own gender transition and the transformation in her artistic output. How she and her art followed the steps of a “transition process”. Later I learned that transformation takes on many forms and there is no one size fits all. However, with Riley’s example one can infer a relationship between her path to transitioning and that of her work.
I asked if Dr. Hogan had a chance to see Riley’s work and what she thought. She responded, “I was struck by the range of gender expressions depicted lovingly. The work offers a complex and validating picture compared to mainstream media’s interpretation”. I agree.
I spoke with Dr. Kristen Hogan, Educa-
tion Program Coordinator for the Gender and Sexuality Center at The University of Texas inquiring about the stages of transition. She said, “From the approach of psychology, transition processes have traditionally been studied and written about by people who are not transgender, therefore I do not subscribe to those tools. My approach is to support students on their own specific journey”.
Riley had the advantage of being an adult for some time before transitioning, and despite her apprehension that plagued her for years; her parents became very supportive and sought to learn about transgenderism. Dr. Hogan painted a different picture of other journeys. She said, “Transition is not an A to B linear process as popular media likes to present. It’s not about one binary to the other binary. Senses of self change over time; and there are a myriad of expressions that don’t all conform to hormone and surgical responses. The validation piece is so important; we seek out openings for our students to find opportunities for validation. And each of their journeys is different. Some have the support of their family while unfortunately
Riley
Drew Riley, Adolescence (2013), acrylic on canvas, 30 x 48 inches
many suffer complete rejection. New York saw a serious spike in LGBT teen homelessness after same sex marriage was legalized. The teens felt that legal acceptance freed them to express themselves, yet their families were not so ready to embrace this freedom when it came to their own Children.” She also stated “Processes are different because of that support but also resources. Caitlyn
will be participating in Big Medium’s EAST (East Austin Studio Tour east.bigmedium.org) in November with works from this series on display at Link and Pin Gallery at 2235 E 6th St #102, Austin, TX 78702. Opening night of the show (and my curatorial debut) is Saturday, November 7th at 8pm with an artist talk at 8:30 and music at 9pm with musical performances by gender diverse artists. Come out and enjoy the evening! You can explore this series in more depth online at genderportraits.com.
THE NORTH END
San Antonio/New Braunfels/San Marcos/Austin
Troubadour Insights Here we are talking about
With Dale Martin
Texas music legend George Strait again. When King George announced his retirement from touring, it by no means meant any more live shows or new albums. Strait confirmed this a few weeks ago by holding a press conference to announce six concerts to be held at the new 20,000 seat Las Vegas Arena being built in Las Vegas. He will perform two shows in April, two in September and two in December. Naturally all six shows sold out within minutes of going on-sale. That same day he announced that his new CD, ‘Cold Beer Conversation’ was now available at Walmart and at all the usual download sites. In a statement to Rolling Stone Country, Strait said "I wish they would have released it months ago, because I look at the charts and I don't see me in there. I always said I'm not going to retire; I’m just not going to have any structured touring. But people didn't really hear any of that." While Strait reports that he has no regrets about his decision to stop touring, he is "getting a little antsy to play some music," he says. Other than television broadcasts such as this past April's ACM Awards in Dallas, the singer and his band haven't worked much together in the past year. So he's not only anxious about reuniting with his fans, but also with his band. The task at hand now is working up the new Cold Beer Conversation songs to play live. Strait believes the new LP is the best thing he's ever released. Then again, he has said the same of a lot of the 30something albums in his massive catalog. "I'm not trying to do anything that I'm not comfortable with. I am who I am and I do this kind of music, and I've tried to make good records my whole career. I've tried to make each better than the last one, and that's the way you have to look at it," he says. "That's the only way you can get inspired. If I say I'm going to try to find a song like 'Amarillo By Morning' and duplicate it on this record, that's boring. Even though I love 'Amarillo By Morning,' you have to find new things to make it sound fresh. . . It's always a fun challenge to go to the studio to try to make a better record." Strait did that as singer, songwriter and co-producer, with Chuck Ainlay, on the project. He's a co-writer on three of the album's 13 tracks and names one song penned with his son, Bubba Strait, along with Dean Dillon and Keith Gattis, as being a personal favorite. "The song that means the most to me is 'Everything I See,' because we wrote it about my dad after he passed away," says Strait. In a way, this album and the three-time CMA Entertainer of the Year's decision to spend a lot less time on the tour bus made him further realize his love of music. When asked what he's learned about himself now that he's settled retirement from that one aspect of his career, Strait gets philosophical. "The thing I never really thought about that much, was just how much music is part of me and has been a part of my life for so long. It's who I am. It’s what I do, and when I got away from it I thought, ‘Well, this is
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weird.'’ "I always had NOV 2015 time off," he continues, "but I knew that in January or whenever, I was going to go out and start touring again. Well, that wasn't the case this time, so it really made me realize that that's just me. I guess I was born to do this." We fans are certainly happy to hear this news. See more info at georgestrait.com.
Every year, the music press seems
to pick an artist and determine that he or she is the ‘new’ star to keep an eye on. A few years ago it was Jason Isbell, and then it was Sturgill Simpson, then Kacey Musgraves. This year’s critical darling is Chris Stapleton from Lexington, Kentucky. Born in 1978, his mother was a health department worker and his dad was a coal miner. After high school, Chris enrolled in Vanderbilt University to become an engineer but left after a year to pursue a music career in Nashville. He landed a job writing songs for Sea Gayle Music in early 2002. He started singing and playing guitar in a bluegrass band called The Steeldrivers. In 2010 he formed a southern rock band called The Jompson Brothers and released one album. After fifteen years of writing hit songs for artists like Kenny Chesney, Adele, Tim McGraw, George Strait, and Darius Rucker, Chris decided to record his first solo album. His wife Morgane helped him pick through a decade worth of songs to include on his debut album. That album, ‘Traveller,’ was released earlier this year and was nominated for several CMA Awards. Fans of Luke Bryan may like his recent hit ‘Drink A Beer,’ well, that’s a Chris Stapleton song. Go get your copy of ‘Traveller’ today.
My love of music can be traced way back to when I
was about five years old. I loved to spend time with my Grandma Martin and she always had Johnny Cash records on her stereo. So I grew up immersed in country music. One day in early 1969, I was in the 6th grade and my uncle stopped by to visit. When he opened the car door I heard this incredible song blasting from his 8-track player. He said it was ‘Born On The Bayou’ and it was by his favorite band, Creedence Clearwater Revival. Soon they were my favorite band as well. I was still a fan of traditional country music, but Creedence introduced me to rock and roll. In 1969 they released three amazing albums, ‘Bayou Country,’ ‘Green River’ and ‘Willie & the Poor Boys.’ Take a few minutes to look these albums up on the Internet. Look at how many hit songs are on these records, and then realize that one man wrote all of these songs in one year. That man is John Fogerty. He wrote all the songs, wrote all the music, produced the albums, played many of the instruments in the studio and designed the album covers. Though the band included John’s brother, Tom, plus Doug Clifford and Stu Cook, the simple fact remains; John Fogerty was Creedence. After they broke up in 1971, Fogerty continued as a solo artist, but had to fight Fantasy Records for years to win back ownership of all his songs. He just released his long awaited autobiography, ‘Fortunate Son,’ and it’s an amazing look at the career of an American icon. It’s a great read and will make a cool Christmas gift for the music fan in your family, plus it tells the inside story of one of the most popular American bands in history.
www.martinsmusic.com
nore Words: Derek Sig Sound Magazine Artista Photo: Acervo do
The Misfits
are a band whose longstanding influence on punk rock and on pop culture in general is applicable to almost every era of the band. Whether the initial Danzig-fronted lineup or the current lineup fronted by Jerry Only - the band brings an imagedriven fixation with horror and science fiction to the masses like no other. We had a chance to sit down with Jerry to discuss their latest tour which will see the band play Static Age in its entirety, an album that almost never saw the light of day. On Sunday November 8th you can catch The Misfits at Korova in San Antonio. STEAM: The Static Age will go down in music lore as yet another example of a record company deciding to ignore the next great movement in music. As you prepare to tour the album, created before the bands look become so horror inspired, what changes are you making – if any – to the original material to make it fit the look and feel of the band now? MISFITS: First off the tempo is sped up more for a live situation. One of the main reasons for doing it was that we are approaching the 40th anniversary of the band and with my son alongside me in the band we had discussed learning every song that there was so he would be able to play every song the band had already done. We were offered 3 shows in California to showcase Static Age, Walk Among Us and Earth AD and the money was good and the opportunity was unparalleled. STEAM: What is it like working with your son, how do you separate being a band mate and being a father in an industry which tends to tear family apart?
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MISFITS: My son is thirty now and when he got out of high school he was already in a band. When we went on tour with Anthrax back in the day I actually took him on tour with me so he kind of grew up in the scene. From there he came on with the band in every role from our stage manager, our tour manager, our front of house guy, our monitor guy…he wore about five or six different hats over the last ten years. When De Cadena came down with throat cancer Jerry had to step up and become the main guitar player for us. He’s very talented and can play almost any instrument, much more advanced than me as far as technicalities go, I’m as basic as you can get. STEAM: Near four decades in do you ever see the Misfits retiring or are you still having too much fun? MISFITS: Yeah it’s never felt like a job over that time which is why I’m still doing it and now, with my son in the band and another album on the way this is the band of the future. I’d like to take this to fifty years myself and hopefully my kid can take it and make it all the way to seventy five, you never know. This might be a band of a complete century. The Misfits are a unique concept and very original
and I don’t think there will ever be anything like us again. When I put on Static Age I have no problem listening to it, it sounds just as good now as it did when we recorded it. There’s isn’t much music out there that can stand that test of time. STEAM: So you would be comfortable passing on the torch? MISFITS: It’s an evolution. It would obviously only work if he found the right people to do the job and I’m not even against bringing a vocalist on at some point as well. I’ve come to a point where I’ve grown into the job. We developed the formula as a three piece band so that we would have a lot of movement on the stage. Not having a lead vocalist turns away the crowd in terms of connecting with them but I think we’ve overcome that. My reign of terror is end as a live album where we introduce a new vocalist alongside me. STEAM: Your Skull might be the last great band logo out there. Why do you think that is? MISFITS: Our skull is very unique, it’s not actually human which makes it intriguing. It’s also binary, black and white for the most part. They once made a Misfits coloring book which was a paint by numbers and the funny part was that the color black was really the only color used (laughing). I guess it’s like the cross for the Catholics, it tells the characteristic of who we are and what we do…horror, science fiction and heavy music. I think it’s up there with the Grateful Dead Skull and Rolling Stones Lips. The goal in life is to be immortal so why not try to do that with your music as well? STEAM: The Misfits are labeled the most famous underground band that there is. As you approach year forty and these shows grow bigger and bigger are you willing to sacrifice that anonymity that made the band so great? MISFITS: You couldn’t buy that kind of aura if you wanted to. Our lack of huge success really bred that. I also think that us getting out of the circus so quick with the original lineup fueled that too. There was a time when we were something you heard about but you never thought you’d see, like the Yeti. We’ve never done a video, except a video giveaway with our action figures…again, action figures. I’m very cautious moving forward. I want to get the bigger shows and production but not if it looks like the band is trying to compromise to become mainstream. That’s even if we could get famous (laughing). When you called me earlier I was loading equipment into the machine at the machine shop where I work when I’m not on the road…I still work. We’re always here grinding it out and that’s what makes us the Misfits.
Release dates are subject to change, and often do.
6 November 2015 Björk Charlie Puth Ellie Goulding Ghost Town Kate Boy Kode9 Little Mix Seal Soldiers Of Fortune Tim McGraw 13 November 2015 Boots Cee Lo Green Chris Isaak Chris Young Cool Uncle ELO Jeezy Justin Bieber Le1f Mark McGuire MUTEMATH Norman Westberg One Direction Oneohtrix Point Never The Most Serene Republic Ty Dolla $ign Wreckless Eric 20 November 2015 Arca Enya Martin Crane 27 November 2015 Chris Brown Danzig Deerhoof Dweezil Zappa Pope Francis
FRIDAY 11/6
Vulnicura Strings Nine Track Mind Delirium Evolution One Nothing Get Weird 7 Early Risers Damn Country Music AQUΛRIA Heart Blanche First Comes The Night I’m Comin’ Over Cool Uncle Alone In The Universe Church In These Streets Purpose Riot Boi Beyond Belief Vitals 13 Made In The A.M. Garden Of Delete Mediac Free TC amERICa Mutant Dark Sky Island Physical Therapy Royalty Skeletons Fever 121614 Via Zammata Wake Up!
FRIDAY 11/20
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**Release dates and Parental Ratings are subject to change, and often do.**
STEAM PICKS FOR NOVEMBER
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continued from pg 11 started a band and at the time, the singer of the band couldn’t make the rehearsals so I would end up filling in for the singer just for reference. And the drummer said, “Well you have a good voice, why don’t you just sing the songs?” So it was sort of an accident. I always played around with melody but here was a moment to explore that. And it kind of came out where that was just how I sounded, in a higher register. I think a lot of it had to do with the singers I was inspired by in the 80’s like Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder. For some reason I was attracted to those types of singers and even female singers like Madonna. There was my father and my mother. My mother would listen to pop radio and my dad would listen to classic rock. When I was with my father, I wasn’t singing. But when I was in the car with my mother, she would start singing under her breath and so I would start singing under my breath and I think that’s where it came from. STEAM: And now talking to you and hearing that your voice isn’t actually that high and that it is definitely a singing choice and style, I feel you deserve even more credit. CLAUDIO: Well now I am going to make my voice even lower (laughs). STEAM: This is the first album for Coheed and Cambria that isn’t a concept album and isn’t part of the The Amory Wars. What makes this album different and what made you decide to stray from the concept route for this one?
CLAUDIO: With this record there is no concept. The concept is really just me. A lot of that has to do with circumstance. When I started writing the record, I didn’t know I was writing an album. At the time I was writing the record, I was living in Park Slope, Brooklyn. My wife and I, before we had our son, we wanted to try a few different spots. We tried LA and we tried New York City. It was great, I loved it, but I just had this hard time writing music. I had what I thought was writer’s block. The songs that I was creating at the time, they didn’t fall within the lines that got established by the formula of Coheed. I’m in my apartment; I’m working in the middle of the day. Normally I like to work at four or five in the morning and in an apartment in New York City, that’s just not really possible. You’ll drive your neighbors crazy and the cops are getting called. So I start writing these songs and there’s this sense of exposure. I know my neighbors can hear me and there’s no context to the music because I have headphones on so all they can hear is a man screaming in a somewhat woman’s voice. So there’s this sense of exposure happening and this struggle of my environment starts to make its way into the themes of the music. Pretty much the first third of the record is about identity because I couldn’t find the Coheed in the music I was writing. I was just like, what is this? And then my wife told me we got pregnant and then that veil was lifted. It was no longer a situation. I just started writing. I wrote “Here to Mars”, which is essentially a love song to her, since we had collaborated on things together but now we’re about to collaborate on life. It really charged my appreciation and love for her. Songs like “Ghost” and “Atlas” were about my son and what kind of father I was going to be and the idea of having to leave him because my occupation calls for that. It became this
product of circumstance. These songs were just reflecting a moment of time. It just seemed different to me and so foreign to what Coheed had been creating that I even considered doing it as a solo record. I started to think about Coheed in general. Whenever we create for Coheed, we try not to create any limitations; we try to explore all different types of music, we try to be as open minded as possible when it comes to touring partners and I thought why should the concept be any different? Here I am, about to make this journey, this new phase in my life as a father and why not do the same thing artistically. I thought why not allow these songs to speak for themselves without the veil of the concept.
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www.coheedandcambria.com www.funfunfunfest.com
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band and already playing gigs. Another big influence on me was Frank Zappa. Do you like his son, Dweezil? Yeah, and actually I saw him in San Antonio over the summer and I took his Master's Class before the show. That's great; we have an interview with him in this issue too. Yeah, the tour is called Zappa Plays Zappa. Did you enjoy the Masters Class? Well really what he did was teaches how to understand and play outside of the box. So if you like played this but added this one note, you would change it to something else. And that was really interesting Are you a guitar collector or do you have a specific guitar that you like to play more than any of the others? No actually I don't have a guitar that I prefer, however I have a neck I prefer. It's canarywood and African rosewood; I have two bodies that I switch between. I'll play one for 5 or 6 months and then I'll switch to the other one. Interesting, I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone prefer a specific neck over a body. Lastly, I thought I read something that said you went to a guitar competition last spring. Yeah, yeah. Every year for the last 10 years I've been going to Guitar Wars in San Antonio they typically have 30 guitar players quite often more and this year I came in second.
11/8 at Boozers (CCTX) Benefit for JT Coldfire Reverbnation and Facebook : cathouse.ccx