There's an ongoing joke: When musicians get too wasted they start
side projects. These grandiose schemes usually fizzle as attention
spans are rerouted to deal with hangovers and coming back down to
reality. Occasionally there are exceptions to this rule...
Enter The Playing Favorites, a band born out of an idea conceived on a
drunken night in Japan when old pals Joey Cape and Luke Tierney were
on tour together in their respective bands (Me First & the Gimme
Gimmes and The Penfifteen Club).
Caffeine and/or alcohol-assisted brainstorms ensued with more good
friends; Tim Cullen (a solo artist and former singer/guitarist of
Summercamp); Marko DeSantis (guitarist of Sugarcult and bassist of
another Cape band, Bad Astronaut); and Mick Flowers (who had played in
Tim and Marko's early 90's band Popsicko, and bands such as The
Rentals, and The Lapdancers). The five of them originate from Santa
Barbara, CA but have all carved out new lives in different cities.
They have such an intertwining history of musical relationships that a
family tree would look more like a family forest. Soon after, the
concept of making a record together grew into a plan.
Everyone synchronized their calendars and found a week of time to meet
at The Sandbox Studio in Los Angeles. With Rick Parker (Black Rebel
Motorcycle Club, The Shore) behind the glass they rolled up their
sleeves and got right to work. Time and money were of the essence the
so process was as follows: set up the gear, throw up some
microphones, learn a song, record it, pass the mic to the next guy
that had a song, and do it again.
3 songs a day were recorded over a period of 5 days (the final 2 days
were used for a few basic changes), resulting in 14
inspired-by-the-moment songs; diverse in style, but united by mutual
respect. The raw tracks were then fermented for about a year; the
elapsed time providing a fresh perspective on the songs. Final
touches were made and the record was finished.
There's a refreshing honesty and authenticity to The Playing Favorites
that can't be fabricated. Their debut album "I Remember When I Was
Pretty" plays like a tribute to a collective and possibly checkered
past of a circle of friends.
<span style='font-size:20px; font-weight:bold'>Hey The Playing Favorites, I just bought you as my PET! <br/><a href='http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=361263053'><span style='font-size:larger;'>Click to find out how much I think you're worth!</span></a></span><br/><br/><a href='http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=361263053'><img src='http://static-lb-2.slicezero.com/oyf_prod/images/ffs_money2_myspace.gif' border='0' /></a><br/>
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Nickelback’s days are numbered. Here we are, less than one week old and we are 26 members strong. I would like to thank all of you who feel that this cause is worthy of your time. We are off to a great start, but we still have a long way to go. Our message has only just begun. The goal this week is to get at least one friend to join this group and its noble cause. If that works, we will be 52 strong at this time next Monday. We need to recruit!!! The most effective way to do this is to click on the link on the group site that states “Invite Others”. Once you have done that, start sending a group invite to friends who you think will support this cause. If more than one joins, great!!! For those of you who are not yet members, please go to the link listed below and at least read about what this group represents. If you agree and want to join, please do. If not, we will respect that. It is up to you. http://groups.myspace.com/disbandnickleback Anyone can join. The goal here is simple. I created a group that needed to be created. I invited all of you to join and make this “OUR” group and “Our” mission. Now it is your turn. Invite your friends. Then tell them to invite their friends. Before we know it we will be quite the force to be reckoned with. Look at it as “Paying It Forward”. We are doing the world a favor ladies and gentlemen. This will not be an easy journey, but it is necessary. We are not preaching hatred, though the group name says otherwise. We are simply doing what needs to be done. We need to be the voice for those who cannot be heard. We need to accomplish what no one has been able to accomplish. We need to send a message that everyone has failed to send. We will be heard. We will stop this pollution. We will Disband Nickleback. Once this happens, gas will be $1.50 a gallon, the war in Iraq will be over, the housing market will rebound, the recession will turn into procession and all will be right in the universe. Help us be heard.
Hello from the Red Planet! May fireworks light up your sky! Sometimes music bounces from inside your head to the next dimension and sometimes it's right in front of you. Just grab the magic and go for broke! I've always prided myself on having a low IQ since I was made with cheap re-processed American parts and a third class robot brain. Did you ever hear a synthetic human spouting philosophy in his underwear? Mickey Microphone the Robots From Mars Checkout our Robomusic and Tall Tale.
PS You're invited to a cookout at the summit of Mount Olympus, the largest volcano on Mars and within our solar system. Bring your own marshmallows. PPS ZZ Van Hendrix says that he remembers you from a past lifetime...I think he was a pretzel. PPPS We're building a giant TV-Radio Internet Link on Mars so that we can pick-up your My Space Page. Don't want to miss anything. We’ll be watching you… Who do you think taught Superman to see through walls?
HAPPY BELATED ACROSS THE UNIVERSE DAY!!! From the ROBOTS FROM MARS
Music from Earth has been deliberately launched into space by humankind. Other than attaching a disc to a spacecraft or randomly broadcasting TV and radio signals, the Third Planet has never before attempted to share it’s musical culture with the Heavens. A Beatles song has been beamed out into the galaxy. NASA broadcasted the song, "Across the Universe", through the transmitters of its deep space communications network on the 40th anniversary of the songs recording at London's Abbey Road studios. February 4th also commemorated the space agency's 50th anniversary. The music was converted into digital data and sent on a 431 light year-journey towards Polaris, the North Star. The broadcast began its galactic crossing at 7 p.m. EST/February 4th 2008. Martian Side note: It might take awhile for the flower children around Polaris to respond to this broadcast. They prefer space polkas and hate all forms of technology.
