How To Rock The Turn

Just ask Marina.  She took care to Rock The Turn at BBQ Inc last Friday night.  Many thank you's going out to her for this video.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

B

Rock The Blog

Today was a business day.  It has led me here, to all of you, to catch you up on what I've been thinking.

First thing's first.  I imagine around half of you reading this have at least one tattoo.  The other half have "thought about it", but aren't so sure they could get used to having something emblazoned on their body permanently.  Rest assured, you can, it's not so hard as you might think. It's made especially easy if you find an artist you like that cares as much about their craft as they do about putting their indelible mark on your skin someplace.  When it comes time for your first, second, or whichever number it is, look no further.  Rich Verdino is the tattoo artist you want to go see. He is literally a brother in arms.  Both of mine have been illustrated rather ornately, and I couldn't be happier.  

This should say it all --->

I've also been thinking a lot about "influences" as they're described by most bands.  I find that these days there's something of a taboo against having modern or contemporary influences.  Every band on MySpace (including The Turn) cites The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and so on, as their influences. The fact is if you're playing music in 2009, you've been influenced by at least one, but more likely all three of those bands and a whole host of others from that generation that will go unnamed.  That doesn't bother anyone.  Then, yesterday at the gym when Fall Out Boy's America's Suitehearts came on, it occurred to me that they have been one of the bands Pat and I have done a lot of listening to over the years.  Don't look now, but they just released their fourth major label effort, and have been steadily touring for almost ten years.  The inclination among musicians to (consciously or otherwise) shun their modern/contemporary influences when discussing their own body of work is prevalent.  Why is that?  I suppose there is a fear of being lumped into a category or a "scene" as it were.  There's a fear of being accused of ripping off a band, but that's not necessarily reserved for your peers.  It's just a taboo that I can't exactly put a finger on, and am more than willing to let go of.  I'll gladly cite Kings Of Leon, Fall Out Boy, Keane, James Morrison and John Mayer all as artists I respect and to a certain degree, emulate.  In music, as in life, there is something to be learned from everyone around you.

That being said, an influence that I left out of the above segment in the interest of addressing them personally is The Police.  Their recent reunion made deserved international waves.  It had been something like 15 years since the last time they took the stage together for a touring effort, and what footage I caught of it on VH1 looked utterly insane.  I'll cop to not having any desire to spend upwards of $300 for a ticket, either way there's no love lost.  They're three musical geniuses whose work is worthy of timeless acclaim.  Though they only recorded together as a band for six years, they produced some of the most mind boggling music I've ever been privy to and I feel privileged to play it when the opportunity presents itself.  Take a few minutes and listen to Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.  There are few musical compositions, or even compositions in general that elicit such a universally positive reaction when played in any form.  The elevator version of that song probably gets carts of people dancing and whistling to themselves.  Leastwise, that's what would happen if I was in that elevator.  I could go on listing their greatest hits, but everyone's favorites would stake a valid claim to "best".  So, in order to avoid confusion I tend to listen to their greatest hits records, and soak it all in at once.  This one has the singles, which makes it very easy to whittle down their catalog and find what you want to hear.

That's what's going on inside my head right now.  I'll be back.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

B

Rife With Ideas. . .

There's been a ton of stuff running through my head over the last few days.  I'm in a little bit of a hurry right now so this will just have to serve as a preview to a longer, more informative post sometime in the very near future.

But keep your eyes open, I'll be back in no time.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

B

Off The Top Of My Head. . .

Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah is 6:57 of jaw dropping, awe inducing brilliance.  This is not the first blog entry of mine that references this song, but I thought I'd bring it back and encourage everyone to pop it on during this beautiful day.  Grab your iPod and take a walk, listen to Hallelujah, it'll feel good.  

While we're on the topic, Last Goodbye is a song worthy of a listen today.  Any day really, but definitely today.

Just chiming in.  See y'all later.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

B

Week(end) Update

This has been a crazy week.  And I'm glad I have a minute to fill you all in now.

Wednesday after practice with Chris and Brian, I shot right through the Lincoln Tunnel and into Hoboken for a gig at The Dubliner.  It was my second time in there this month, and I'm very glad to have been welcomed.  Everyone is always extremely receptive and it makes it that much more fun to play for people that love music and just want to sing along.  Having the good fortune to be stuck in a room with a bunch of people that just want to hear songs that I want to play is a pretty special thing.  I'd like to send an extra special thank you to Emma Hardesty and our newest Hoboken supporter Michelle Attilio for coming out and singing along.

I briefly mentioned Thursday night at Gleason's in Astoria.  This is the newest spot I've played, and I can't wait to go back with Pat.  It's a brand new, beautiful bar on 33rd and Broadway. The front entrance has big wide windows so everyone walking by can see in, and they are welcome to come in and join the good time.  The staff was warm and accommodating, the crowd was gracious and there to have fun.  The best rooms to show up in are the ones where everyone is prepared for a good time.  I will let you all know when we're back in there, and you'll come out to see for yourself.  

Friday was our return to Rockville Centre.  Always feels good to run around a bit and then come back home to a place we've played a whole bunch of times.  BBQ Inc feels like home to The Turn, and we couldn't have been happier to play our first RVC gig since The Big Show on home turf.  The front door was open and we were projecting out onto Park Ave.  Anyone who wants to know where the party was on Friday night, it was at BBQ.  I'd like to thank Vicky and Chris (bartenders extraordinaire) for opening their doors to us, and leaving them open to let us make some noise.  It really was an awesome night, and we owe big hugs to everyone that made it out.  You can catch us back there on May 15th. Come on down.  Pig in, Pig out.

Last night was about as busy as it gets.  But busy often has its rewards.  We started the night at Blvd playing a spot at a benefit called Music Against Myeloma.  We were invited by our new friend Matt Ostrower of Lost In October to come out and play a short set.  The crowd was receptive, and they were there to raise money for a wonderful cause.  Everyone has been hit in some way or another by cancer, and this was a very special privilege to shed a little light on a less than ideal situation.  The Turn would like to send our heartfelt appreciation to Matt and Slava for planning the event which was celebrating its fourth year, and for having us in to share the stage.  We'd be happy to return with the full lineup next year, and you're all invited to come out, Rock The Turn and raise awareness for this and all cancer research/treatment.  As soon as the pictures are up on their website I'll post a link.

Off the stage, out the door, through the tunnel, and right into The Mile Square.  We walked in at 10:29 and started up at 10:30.  In the nick of time to say the least.  It was a great night.  We were already riding a high from having the opportunity to play earlier at Blvd for such an enthusiastic crowd, and carried it right on over to one of our favorite spots in Hoboken to play. This was our first time there in around a month, and it was a great welcome back.  Everyone in the house made it a super enjoyable Saturday night.  Coupled with the 80+ degree weather, and the birthdays, bachelorette parties, and hometown friends that came out to support (big love to Jonny, Heather, Beth and Jo), this was a uniquely awesome opportunity to play two shows for two great groups of people.  Nothing makes us happier than to be on a stage playing the songs you want to hear, and hearing you sing along with us.

Thank you barely touches it.  Your collective voices are what keep us going.  Check out our schedule on MySpace and come Rock The Turn.  We'd love to have you.  As mentioned we'll be playing with the full lineup Friday 5/22 at The Parkside Lounge and between now and then you can find us all over the metro area.  Come say hi, we'll be waiting.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

Brian

Coming Soon: Gleason's (Astoria, NY) & BBQ Inc (RVC, NY)

'Twas an awesome night at BBQ Inc this evening.  I want to thank everyone that came out.

I'm exhausted, so this is a short post.  But starting tomorrow I'm gonna do my best to synopsize each and every performance, so you will know where to come to find the fun.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

B

Rock The T-Shirt. . .

Whether or not you made it out to The Big Show last week, fear not.  We will be back in action as soon as May 22nd at The Parkside Lounge, and we're also hard at work putting together our summer performance schedule so you can all come out and Rock The Turn.

Also, in order to do so, you might want to consider getting your hands on one of these t-shirts.  

All the love to Mr Terence Kennedy again,  not only for designing and producing the shirts, but also for busting his behind running around at the show selling them.  

To get your hands on one you can call me (516) 458-7299 or e-mail BrianRipps@aol.com.  We'd be happy to get it to you, wherever you may be.

Peace Love and Vocal Harmonies

Brian