Mike Baker - guitars, singing, broken crockery
Other Sounds credited to crafty machinery
Influences
Chris Whitley, Prince, Seymour Hersh, SF Bay AM radio in the '70s (Hellooo, Dr. Don Rose!), Outkast, Crowded House, Juliana Hatfield, Elton John before he turned into an MOR zombie, Nevada, Jimi Hendrix, Charlie Watts, Elliott Smith, Tony Visconti, Deathray, Temescal Cafe, Murray Waas
Hi There!
Thanks for dropping by. My name's Mike, and I have a band called Slim. If you'd like to email me directly about anything, just click HERE.
I should probably also mention that you can get Slim CDs at CDBaby. If you'd like to head over there and pick up a copy, please go ahead--it's cool, I'll wait...
Okay, now what do you want to know about Slim?
Well, probably the first thing to say is that Slim is always a little different. I play solo acoustic shows as Slim, and when the full band comes together, we call it the same thing. Confusing but efficient.
I write all the songs and do the singing and guitar playing. I put the band together and recorded our debut album after five or six years of playing strange house parties and stupid coffeehouses, but there are a few other things that probably have more to do with Slim than the late-90s open mic scene in san francisco.
1) When I was growing up, my family would drive from the Bay Area to Idaho every summer. Back in the day, when you crossed the Nevada and Utah deserts, the only radio you could get was this classical AM station out of Salt Lake. In order to keep the kids from beating each other to death, my mom would make up stories to go along with the sonatas and fugues we were hearing. There was one I especially liked about the bloodthirsty Mouse King and his sworn enemy, the Baron d-Con. So I got imprinted with the whole combination of music, empty roads and stories early on.
2) I played saxophone in my high school jazz band. One class, after the bell rang but before the teacher showed up, our guitar player stopped running dom13b9 arpeggios, whipped out a Boss Metal Zone pedal and started playing Back in Black so loud that one of the clarinet players vomited. Before that, it had never occurred to me that you could actually learn songs that the radio played, and play them yourself (I hear that people who are actually cool had this same epiphany with the Sex Pistols--close enough).
3) When I was six, my dad borrowed my record player to listen to one of the 78s (!) that his band had cut back when he was in high school (The Vagabond Five, rockin' the Montpelier, ID metro area from '52 to '55, yo). When he was done, I trawled through his record collection looking for the shiniest, most colorful album cover and played the lp inside, which turned out to be Sgt. Pepper's. Psychedelicized at six--it's hard to recover.
So that's really the most important stuff. I should probably say some more pertinent things about the band (former members of Primus, Counting Crows, 3rd Eye Blind, Mazzy Star, Van Morrison's band), the record (it's called "Interstate Medicine", you can get it at record stores across the U.S. [thanks, Burnside Distribution!], it's on the radio everywhere too), and the live show (real good, sold out San Francisco clubs [Slim's, Cafe du Nord, Hotel Utah, Red Devil Lounge], opened for Colin Hay, Luce, and, um, that Night Ranger dude's son], but I'm soooo bored of that shit.
So I'll just say some more about me.
I play a black strat that some previous owner apparently took a belt sander to in a vain attempt to give it some Stevie Ray mojo, and I often run it through one of those PB&J-sized Marshall amps--perfect for clipping to your belt and chasing the cat through your house with the riff to Crazy Train.
I crank my amps louder than Tom Petty, but not as loud as Cannibal Corpse.
I'm wordier than Jane's Addiction, but not as yappy as e.e. cummings.
I'm taller than Prince, but not as tall as Krist Novoselic.
I write most of my songs while I'm driving, on an ancient Casio keyboard bungee-corded to the passenger seat. This is not safe. Last summer, I got pulled over doing 80 in a 45 because I was so cranked about this chorus I was writing (Casio rock rhythm no.6 is very inspiring!). Then I almost drove off a mountain.
I have rocked crowds of several hundred people with nothing more than an acoustic guitar and a well-timed Britney Spears cover (were they sober? No).
"IT SOUNDS LIKE A CAT BEING SUCKED INTO A LAWNMOWER IT HAS BEEN CALLED PSYCHEDELIC HONKY-TONK FROM THE NOT TO DISTANT MISERABLE FUTURE, A STYLE OF MUSIC THAT IS THE DIRECT RESULT OF CRAWLING ON ONES HANDS AND KNEES THROUGH BROKEN GLASS AROUND THE WORLD THREE TIMES. IT SOUNDS LIKE AND ENDLESS DUMPSTER FULL OF ANIMAL PARTS NEXT TO YOUR APARTMENT ON THE 4TH OF JULY. IT WILL BE REMEMBERED AS THE EPIC CONTENT WHICH CONVERTED JESUS TO CHRISTIANITY AND PRY APART THE DEVILS WALLET WITH THE JAWS OF LIFE, PSYCHEDELIC COWBOY PARTY MUSIC FROM THE NETHER REGIONS OF SPACE OR THEREFORE THE SPACE IN BETWEEN. HIP-TONK OR ACID GRASS THE PERFECT MIXTURE OF TWO WORDS THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE ACTUAL SOUND AND MOTION INFLICTED. PISS IN THE WIND AND LISTEN FOR YOURSELF, EACH SONG IS DIFFERENT, BUT NOT BY MUCH, EACH SHOW IS A COMPLETELY UNFORGETTABLE AND AN AMAZINGLY ENTERTAINING TRAVESTY. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE UNDERWEAR OF CULTURE IS SOILED BEYOND REPAIR, WE WILL BASK IN GOD'S SWEET LIVING EMBRACE AND SWALLOW HIS SWEET SUNSHINE AND LISTEN TO PLASTIC FANTASTIC LOVER" WES FREDLEY-- KRZY RADIO----CARVER, PA----9/9/07
are you excited for addy to move?i wasnt for keifer but i guess yesterday he went to go visit and refused to back to the 2s and stayed with sharen the hole day! i think addy will do fine because she is very sassy so the bigger kids wont pick on her:)she moves monday? you gonna be able to help her out? did you ever start on them online survey things i told you about? i hope you did, i just another check, this was for $237 from 2 weeks ago. if you didn't yet, pshhh, get on it; i guess you'll have to type the link into internet explorer or whatever, but here it is again:
July 17 LocosporJuana Free Concert en Los Angeles!!!!!
at Levitt pavilion Los Angeles
Mac Arthur Park Concert Series!!!!
Los Angeles Nos Vemos Pronto!!!
Much Love & Blessing Family
Hey! Tickets are now available for the Alterlatino Rock Showcase! This is an all ages show + your paid ticket doubles as an entry to win a 160GB iPod Classic! Seven Bands & Art Exhibition= One Rockin' good time!! Presale tix available @ sagavalmgmt@live.com & through other bands on the bill!
Hello Slim on behalf of One less reason and Tom Wopat. We are giving away a free song download thru True Anthem Music. Just click the banner below!! DO IT!! :)
Hello Slim, how are you? I just upload my new track "reflections". If you have free time ... I.d like to know you opinion and thoughts about my new track
Don't miss this!! Interview & live acoustic set on Generacion Radio "El Universo del Rock" April 25th 8PM pacific Check it out on www.justin.tv/generacionradio Bilingual Format station, with music that everyone can understand!
just wanted to say first off i got NEW TRACKS UP an hope u dont mind i sent u this but check out my playlist on my page and u can download my mixtapes for freee!!!!!
Have you taken a look at our guitars! We have a dealer in Dublin, CA called Hertlein Guitars. They have great prices for artist like yourself. I didn't know if you knew or not. I just figured that you were one of our friends and wanted to take a look at them. Let me know if there is anything I can do for you!
Sincerely,
Kevin Hall Sales www.badenguitars.com Kevin@badenguitars.com 760.738. 0370 office
Chelsea (12 years old) performs Beethoven and Chopin at a church. Different musicians got together to share each others talents. It’s normally called a shed. Chelsea thought it was comical to hear other musicians reacting to her performance. Check it out.
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