early everything, old boots with skirts, pigtails, posture needs to be awesome. abstemious ways of living. avocado, heirloom tomatoes, quinoa, kale.
sartorial wit a plus.
port o'brien, dr. dog, paso mino, drakkar sauna, snowblink, the tea set, ola podrida, chad van gaalen, sad like crazy, phantom drummer, mates of state, san antonio kid, gogoyaya, japonize elephants, foreign born, nat russell, david gordon green, wes anderson, freaks and geeks, 30 rock, danny mcbride, feist, helio sequence, blue sky boys, bart davenport
the band 'the band'
john cale 'vintage violence'
they might be giants 's/t'
stone roses 's/t'
BEDHEAD 'WhatFunLifeWas'
depeche mode 'music for the masses'
lucinda williams 'car wheels on a gravel road'
stand by me soundtrack
grateful dead 'american beauty'
the kinks 'arthur'
Sounds Like
bottle rocket, jitterbug perfume, the jerk, all the real girls, knut hamsun, micheladas, racer 5
Golden Gram is a man of many talents developed out of necessity.
As a child he sang with his mother, so he learned the piano to
accompany. Pianos aren't very portable so he learned the guitar. A
friend's band needed a new drummer, so he learned the drums. After
bad experiences in recording studios, he learned to record himself.
He got offered DJ shifts, so he learned to do that too.
Nowadays, he can do all of these things reasonably well.
As the saying goes, "A jack of all trades, Master of None."
Master of None was written over the last few years in between touring
and recording with Rogue Wave, which he parted ways with in Spring
2009. It was recorded at Golden Gram's studio, LoveBuildingCompany,
and at 3431 Harlan between 2002 and late 2008, in Oakland.
"I made a $100 bet with a friend to have it finished by the end of
2008. I won that bet."
What does it sound like?
"A mix of the styles that made me a musician. I've struggled and since
given up trying to define a sound. I've decided to embrace the
differences."
"I've written over 200 songs since 2000 and a lot of them aren't that
great, but they were great exercises.
I learned to just get them out and not pass judgment until after the
creation. I was getting caught up worrying if an idea was good or not
instead of actually realizing it. Immersion Composition Society
helped a lot with that. It's like a writer's workshop for musicians.
A group of folks spend a predetermined day writing and recording all
new material, then you get together that evening to share your
results. The idea is to write as many songs as possible in one day.
You learn an awful lot about what your strengths and weaknesses are."
Why 8 years since the first Golden Gram record?
“Since I bought my first 8 track in 1997, I've always made my own
records, it just took a back seat when Rogue Wave started gaining
momentum and that was certainly a wonderful ride."
Master of None was initially completed as a Christmas gift for family and friends in
2006. Soon after, he felt something about it wasn't quite right.
"I needed help to make it feel cohesive. Louie Lino (Nada Surf) basically
saved it. I had finished and since abandoned the record for a good
while. We got to talking while on a European tour in 2008 and I
convinced him to have a listen. He then proceeded to remix and play on
4 songs. His vision and enthusiasm inspired me to finish 2 others.
Next thing I knew, I had what I thought sounded like a real record."
When not working on his own music, Gram plays with as many of his
favorite bands as possible. In the last two years he's played with Dr.
Dog, Spoon, Nada Surf, and The Heavenly States.
He'll be touring as multi-instrumentalist with Port O'Brien for the next few seasons as
they release their third record, Threadbare.
When not playing music, he can be found DJing in the East Bay at the Missouri Lounge, Mua, and Kitty's Bar. He also books shows and produces at his studio at Lobot Gallery in West Oakland.
if you ever visit the Dallas area, you should play a solo show or something here. with some notice beforehand, i could help ya set up something realy nice and get the buzz going for it in advance. just a suggestion, it'd be fun!
when you say you sound like the jerk....do you mean the part when he is "picking out a thermos for you", singing "i know" with Bernadette....or covering himself with the dog and leaving with the remote?
went to add you but i guess we are already friends.. thanks for doin sound last night.. nice meeting ya still totally interested in getting together for a beer and music
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