Just recently, I answered a series of questions for a very cool site which my friend Michele Jennae started. It’s called Indieographie dot com and they chronicle the histories of indie artists; boasting ‘all the guts, all the glory’. The final question in the interview was actually a pick up question inquiring after anything people should know that I hadn’t, yet, divulged. Below, is my answer and it pertains to supporting the indie artist, not necessarily from a seat in a venue, but beyond that;

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Wives and girlfriends, Husbands and boyfriends as well as those with life partners and significant others; *please listen*. 

And by that, I mean listen to me as you’re reading this as well as *listen* to the starving and struggling artist you have chosen to love.  Know that when they’re practicing in the house and they miss a chord or sing a sour note that everyone sucks once.

Know that this amount of time can be longer than a few months, but also know that with *your* support and love, (and honest/fair/kind criticisms), that they just might take you with them on their European tour.

Know that in each artist lies a seed may be the very thing which could place you in a velvet upholstered chair at the Grammy’s some day. Support them knowing that you may be who they thank first or even better, last at the podium after commenting “this thing *is* heavy”

Know that each song they write is a slice of their soul and that when they get on a stage, (no matter how big or small), that some of these ‘soul slices’ will be about you, (they’re usually the sweet ones, trust me). 

Know that what they do is an offering of love and adoration which they freely give to the world; hoping for the day where someone tosses a dollar or two into their guitar case out on the street or even better, a recording contract.

Above all, please be patient.  Rome wasn’t built in a day, nor was the Rolling Stones.

Junkyard Academy

“….Sing, Dance, Live…”

Where have you found the most support?

Attention, class…

Professor Jimmy here. I’m not sure if I have the right lecture hall. Just mainly testing the acoustics while the room is occupied. I shall saunter back to my drum room, then.

Thank you. Class dismissed.

Last night, I g…

Last night, I got home from our gig at the Redwood Cafe in Cotati, CA to discover that my drummer and Lead Guitarist both had put up vlogs on their facebook pages.

Not to be outdone, I’ve started a new vlog for Junkyard Academy called “Homework Assignments”. They are clips of the band members offering our thoughts about the most recent gigs.
Here’s mine…

Change is good…

Hi everyone,

It’s Lewis here – we’ve been working hard on getting a new site launched and I just finished talking to our Bassist, Rob, who has been doing all the hard work to get it designed and happy.  Stay tuned, you’re going to love it.

Sing, Dance, Live…

Long time no see…

Hi everyone!  Lewis here!

Sorry I’ve not been as busy and active as I used to be on this page.  I feel I should explain that Junkyard Academy has grown to four members and I’m discovering that each of them has a crazy amount of talent.  It’s why I’ve been under the radar…that, and we just bought a house…and the mother in law was visiting…and I got a job working from home…and…and…and!

The band has gone from ‘just me’, (claiming to be all the members of the band as I have for the past five years), to an, honestly phenomenal bunch of guys.  I’ve been taking the reins as an actual ‘official band leader’; conducting pre-practice meetings, mapping out where we’re headed, formulating ways for us to get there and, web stuff, merchandise stuff, scouting sites to get gigs…. and of course, working on the music.

Every song I’ve written has been written in this notepad; given to me by my wife.

Up to recently, it was too easy for me to write a song, tab it out into a lead sheet, and play into a camera to post a video on YouTube, (a place which I have, in the past, dubbed as my ‘online notebook’), but with the amazing talents of Jimmy, Rob and Kevin, we expect to wow you with a whole new sound!  One with more than one voice and one guitar…and yes, we’re in the studio working on two new songs for you!

By the way, I know I’ve said this before, but I am absolutely floored at how much talent these guys have, both with their craft as well as the off-stage creativity; something you’ll soon be getting a taste of soon!

If this is sounding like a press release, it’s not…honest, it’s just little old me, Lewis, talking from the heart.

I want so badly to get the band in front of a bigger audience and I know that our efforts will pay off.  We just know that you’ll all recognize what we’re about to do as just plain awesome.  So, with as much work to do getting the band ‘out there’ I hope you will forgive the temporary absence here on Word Press – feel free and let us know what you’re up to as well, we’re interested in you, the fans!

Best,

-Lewis =8^)-

Everything has a reason

When I first started as a graphic designer, my first creative director told me to, “Always fear an empty plate.”

A bit over a week ago, I had my final day at The Racers Group/Adobe Road Winery. Indeed, my departure wasn’t entirely as surprise. The worlds of high end, boutique wineries and world class racing teams, though incredibly exciting, are extremely vulnerable to economic changes. With two cars on one series, and one car in another, there just wasn’t room in the budget for a marketing director. The empty plate theory was working.

The result, though, is that I have had time to concentrate on making “Petaluma the Musical” a success, and I’ve had time to devote to reviving the skills I once had as a bass player. I’ve managed to rehearse every day, stopping just before my fingers either go completely numb or begin to bleed.

When I arrive at band practice this week, there will be a marked difference in my playing. I’ve felt that I was holding the group back by not having the skills to keep up. That is changing. With each passing day, my ability to play like I did thirty years ago seems to come back.

We’ll see how things go at tonight’s session!

The plate is beginning to fill back up.

Stay tuned.

-Rob “The Squid”

Life gives you avocados….

"Damn, I can use this thing as a canoe!"

…Make guacamole.

For the most part, the band has been ‘just me’ over the past five years.  I’d get up to a microphone and say:

“Hi, I’m Lewis Nowosad and this is Junkyard Academy, your looking at all…the…members….of the band…”

This would usually elicit some sort of chuckle and I’d start my set.

Recently, it dawned on me…I’ve known my best friend now for….shit….my whole life.  So…I pulled a dastardly stunt and posted on his facebook page:

“I’m pulling the lifetime friendship card and drafting you into the band, no more of this sitting on our asses, I know you got the talent. And I have a Fender 300 Watt BASS AMP now. (just needs a speaker to plug into it). These things work when there’s two brothers or high school friends involved, AND….I know you can write. We’ve got the chemistry, dude. Call me today – practices will start as soon as you get a bass. =8^)-”

He took the bait, hook, line and sinker, so we got to work on getting him ramped up for a show and he just amazed me in learning 12 songs inside of a month.  Never mind the fact that he hadn’t played the bass in over 25 years.  Never mind the fact that he didn’t even have a BASS to practice with.  And never mind the fact that despite the fact that he’d never played a stand-up bass before, he mastered it in two sittings.  In the image above, you see the size comparison.  (No we don’t own this blonde beauty, it was a borrowed rental)

So, by the time we had the gig, we both were using cheat sheets, but still, his chops weren’t too far beneath the surface.  His history in music had been singing classical music and once the show started he found his legs…right up until the lighting changed and he looked up to acknowledge it in his head with a mild “oh, that’s cool”.  It was just enough to distract him from what he was doing and he had to wait for the next stanza to continue.  On a recent post, he quipps:

“Minor difference between classical and geek pop: when singing “ave Maria”, the lights don’t change color.”

...Taking it all in....

Having one’s best friend in a band is absolutely amazing, I highly recommend it if you’re starting a band because while communication is key in any relationship as delicate as one with a band mate, it’s good to have a leg up by being able to shoot a glance over to him and know that he what you’re thinking.

So, with that said, please welcome Mister Rob Neidel to Junkyard Academy!

America’s Got Talent

Last year while watching America’s Got Talent, my wife commented to me from her couch that I should audition for the show.  I took it as one of those spousal support things, (which, if you’re a musician, is always great), and went on with the evening.  By the time I got a chance to check out the online auditions on their site, I was too late. 

Flash forward to this season…

My wife commented to me from her couch that I should audition for the show. 

                      Dé jà vu…

It would have been swept under the ‘passing comment carpet’ in my brain a bunch of my friends, family, (and in some cases, strangers),  had not suggested the same thing in the weeks prior to that comment.

To some degree, every musician starts on a level of hobbyist and moves forward to different levels.  My goal has always been to get on a stage overlooking thousands of screaming fans.  It’s not too unrealistic, right?    I know that the steps one must take to reach a goal such as this involve getting myself out there and as a talent scout once told me;

A closed mouth doesn’t get fed”

A few days ago, I recorded an acoustic version of “Joan of Arc” and answered the online audition forms for America’s Got Talent season 7.

Here’s to breakin’ a leg….

You’ve got to believe it’s getting better…

As you can see by the title on this post, one may extrapolate that things were, indeed, ‘not better’ before this moment in time.  We’re all human and sometimes we get a little down.  For me, it kind of follows the moon cycles.  If that big white ball of dust up there in the sky can move oceans, it has to have some kind of power over us puny humans who are comprised of 98% water.

Before continuing, I ask that you right click this link to a classic Beatles song and open it in another tab/window as you read on…

Yesterday, on  YouTube, the view count for Joan of Arc reached 777…

Today, on Reverbnation.com , the total ‘Daily Plays’ stat reached 888…

This morning, I look at my view count for the ‘May 21st End of the World FAIL!’ (Pass The Salt) video and it reads 1,111…

Something is afoot eand it’s a good thing because last night, when I called Ganache Cupcakeery in Vallejo, Ca to find out when the open mic started, thy said that there isn’t one anymore, owing to the fact that the guy who runs it got picked up at KMEL radio.

I figured, seeing as how I was talking to the owner, I might as well tell her that I have an amp, a mic and a boom mic stand.

She got notably happy about this…

Sooooo….

I have a meeting with her on Tuesday…

Boo-Yahh….

Greetings from the Junkyard!

We just couldn’t stand the backlog of music in the tire pile so Gene and I hiked to the top of it and started tossing tires off to dig out the songs we knew were in there.  About 23 tires down we found what we were looking for.

I hope you enjoy them as much as we did digging them out!

-Junkyard Academy

Lobotomy or  “Waaaaaay too much time on his hands”

Bonaparte or “unfortunately punked”

Witless or “never piss off a musician.