Shrug

Dayton Is a Frequency, Not a Place: A Love Letter with Feedback to a Scene That Won’t Sit Still

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If you want to understand American music, you don’t start in the places that market themselves as capitals. You start in places where people have learned how to survive without being watched. Dayton, Ohio, is one of those places. It’s not a brand; it’s a frequency—sometimes distorted, sometimes melodic, often both at once. It’s the sound of basements, nondescript halls, record stores, radio studios on the left side of the dial, and people who keep making music because not making it would be worse.

Dayton has long lived with the mythology of The Ohio Players, Brainiac, The Breeders, and Guided By Voices, and rightly so. Those bands didn’t just “come from” Dayton; they carried its nervous system with them. The Ohio Players reshaped the structure of music. Brainiac turned post-industrial anxiety into neon futurism. The Breeders made abrasion feel intimate. Guided By Voices proved that lo-fi wasn’t an aesthetic so much as a work ethic—songs written because they had to be written, not because the market asked for them. But the mistake outsiders make is assuming the story ended there, like a museum exhibit frozen in amber. Dayton never stopped. It just got better at multiplying.

What makes Dayton’s music community distinct is density. Musicians don’t just play in one band; they circulate. You’ll see David Payne one night in The New Old Fashioned, another night anchoring something else entirely, as if styles were jackets you try on before walking back out into the weather. You’ll hear Rich Reuter bring the same melodic intelligence to Kittinger. You can see Howard Hensley sing the narratives of your life that you keep hidden in a private journal. You’ll catch Kyleen Downes making vulnerability sound like strength, then turn around and hear Chad Wells and Aarika Voegele in Cricketbows and Creepy Crawlers remind you that psychedelia is still a radical act.

There’s a particular Dayton knack for bands that feel communal rather than hierarchical. Shrug operated like a shared engine—power pop with muscle memory, hooks built from collective trust. Smug Brothers do something similar in an indie lo-fi manner, but with a wink, as if to say: yes, we love the song, but we also love the joke inside it. Me Time pares things down until you can hear the room breathe, while Oh Condor leans into texture and atmosphere, stretching Dayton’s sound outward without losing its spine where punk urgency meets craft instead of fighting it.

And then there’s the streak of theatricality that runs through the city—not showbiz gloss, but the drama of people who know that art is a way to survive the week. Moira thrives on that tension between polish and pulse, while Todd The Fox reminds us that music doesn’t have to be ironic to be intelligent. Novena creates music that wraps around you and takes you through the experiences that you need not categorize but live within. Ghost Town Silence and Sadbox explore all of the corners, not as cosplay, but as honest terrain. They understand that Midwestern quiet can be loud if you listen closely enough.

Dayton also knows how to honor the songwriters—the ones who can stop a room with a voice and a guitar. Shannon Clark and The Sugar balance heart and harmony without sentimentality. Nick Kizinis crafts music that feels deeply personal and belonging to all of us at the same time. Mike Bankhead and Heather Redman carry storytelling traditions forward without turning them into nostalgia acts. Charlie Jackson, Sharon Lane, and Colin Richards and Spare Change all work in that space where craft meets community, where the goal isn’t fame but connection.

What’s striking is how the city supports experiments that don’t fit easy categories. The Nautical Theme reminds us that pop intelligence doesn’t have to announce itself with a thesis statement. Motel Faces and Motel Beds (separate names, shared grit) translate restlessness into motion, road songs for people who might not leave but still want to move. John Dubuc’s Guilty Pleasures embraces joy without apology, while Nick Kizirnis’s various projects show how longevity comes from curiosity, not branding.

Dayton’s rap and hip hop scene carries the same DIY backbone as its rock underground, but filtered through sharp lyricism, lived experience, and a deep sense of place. Tino delivers verses with clarity and purpose, balancing organic storytelling with an ear for hooks that stick without softening the message. Illwin brings a cerebral edge, blending introspection and technical skill in ways that reward close listening, while KCarter operates with a commanding presence, turning personal narrative into something anthemic and communal. Around them is a broader network of MCs, producers, DJs, and collaborators who treat hip hop not as a trend but as a language—one spoken fluently across clubs, community spaces, and independent releases. Like every vital Dayton scene, it thrives on collaboration over competition, local pride over imitation, and the belief that telling your own story, in your own voice, is the most radical move there is.

One of Dayton’s greatest strengths, too often undersold, never underpowered, is the depth and range of its women songwriters and musicians, artists who write with clarity, risk, and emotional authority. Amber Heart brings a fearless intimacy to her songs, pairing melodic grace with lyrical honesty that cuts clean through pretense. Samantha King writes with a restless intelligence, her work balancing vulnerability and bite, proof that introspection can still swing. Khrys Blank bends genre until it gives way, crafting songs that feel both deeply personal and quietly defiant, while Sharon Lane carries a lineage of soul, grit, and resilience that anchors the community itself. Add to this constellation the many other women shaping stages, sessions, and scenes across the city—singers, instrumentalists, bandleaders, collaborators—and a clearer picture emerges: Dayton doesn’t just feature women in its music culture; it is being actively defined by them. Their presence isn’t a sidebar or a trend. It’s the spine, the pulse, and the future of the sound.

Poptek Records operates like a pressure valve for Dayton pop intelligence, a label that understands hooks are a form of radical communication. The 1984 Draft brings nervy, literate indie punk rock that sounds like it’s pacing the room while thinking three steps ahead—melody sharpened by urgency, guitars wired straight into the bloodstream. Jill & Micah offer a different kind of voltage: intimate, harmonically rich, emotionally precise songs that trust quiet moments as much as crescendos, proving that restraint can hit just as hard as distortion. XL427 leans into power pop’s finest tradition—tight structures, smart turns, choruses that land without asking permission—while still carrying that unmistakable Dayton DNA of grit and sincerity. Taken together, and alongside the label’s other releases, Poptek’s roster feels less like a genre exercise and more like a shared belief system: songs matter, craft matters, and community matters. It’s pop music that knows where it’s from, isn’t embarrassed by joy, and refuses to confuse ambition with emptiness.

This ecosystem works because Dayton listens to itself. Bands go to each other’s shows. Musicians play on each other’s records. Area radio, house shows, small clubs, and DIY spaces form an infrastructure that doesn’t depend on permission. You can hear that lineage in The New Old Fashioned’s country infused power precision, in Oh Condor’s punk economy, in The Paint Splats’ melodic insistence, in Guided By Voices’s expansive moods still evolving. It’s a scene where influence flows sideways instead of top-down.

If the great rock critic, Lester Bangs (who I have been reading a lot of lately) taught us anything, it’s that scenes matter not because they’re perfect, but because they’re alive. Dayton’s scene is alive in the way a good band rehearsal is alive—messy, loud, generous, occasionally miraculous. It’s alive in the refusal to wait for validation. It’s alive in the way new bands grow up hearing old ones not as legends, but as neighbors.

So yes, celebrate Brainiac, The Breeders, and Guided By Voices. You should. But don’t stop there. Pay attention to Sharon Lane, Shrug, Amber Heart, Smug Brothers, The 1984 Draft, Age Nowhere, Moira, Tino, The Heisy Glass Company, Harold Hensley, Todd The Fox, Ghost Town Silence, Sadbox, Novena, Me Time, Oh Condor, Motel Faces, Motel Beds, Mike Bankhead, Cricketbows and Creepy Crawlers, The Nautical Theme, Illwin, Khrys Blank, Seth Canan, XL427, Samantha King, The Typical Johnsons, KCarter and all the songwriters and collaborators who keep showing up. Dayton isn’t a chapter in a rock history book. It’s an ongoing argument about why music matters—and it keeps winning that argument one show at a time.

11 Questions with… Tod Weidner

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Tod Weidner is an institution in his home town of Dayton, Ohio. Tod is a visionary songwriter making music that drives a listener to tap their toes without realizing the impactful lyric until one has been hooked. Tod has led the incredible band Shrug for decades. The admiration for Tod’s music has been well earned from a songcraft that brims with a direct and honest rock and roll that veers across rock, indie, folk and more. Tod’s gift for writing catchy songs that open an honest dialogue is one of the most important characteristics of his music! While Tod has relocated to the Bay Area, his music continues the sonic journeys he started in Dayton.

Dr. J: What can you share with us about when and how you started writing music?

Lyrically speaking, I’ve been hugely influenced by my dad. He was a high school English and Literature teacher for over 30 years, and he passed on to me a love of words and how to put them together.

Musically Speaking, I started playing guitar in my sophomore year of high school, in January of 1986. I grew up in a rural area of Ohio, about 25 miles geographically and a thousand light years philosophically from Dayton. Underground rock (“college rock” as it was known then) was a thing, but it hadn’t really reached our sheltered little school to any real extent. We just had the radio – AOR or Top 40. If I had been more familiar with punk and DIY indie bands of the day, it may have occurred to me that I could write my own music as soon as I had a couple chords under my belt but, as it was, those radio formats instilled a feeling that these artists were untouchable superhuman beings descended down from Mt. Olympus, so the best we mortals could do was to learn how to play their music and- maybe, if we were good enough- join a cover band. 

At some point around 1990, I began to realize that I didn’t have to play covers of other people’s music. The early “gateway drug” bands that lured me from the flashy ‘80s hard rock into more organic, underground stuff were Jane’s Addiction, Soundgarden, Mother Love Bone, Screaming Trees, Masters of Reality, Faith No More, and bands like that. I started coming up with riffs and developing them into truly dreadful early attempts at songs. Those bands led me to early R.E.M., Robin Hitchcock & The Egyptians, and other groups that had a little more “jangle” to their sound, and that was a turning point in my sense of songcraft. In 1993 I joined a short-lived Dayton band called Tim, which is where I first started contributing my own songs. After a year or so, I left Tim and started Shrug, and that’s where I really shifted into a higher gear. I was a sponge- I was devouring music as fast as I could find it, and learning about songwriting along the way.

Dr. J: What first led to your recording music? How do you approach production?

TW: When I was just starting out writing songs, my bandmate and I found this huge monstrosity of a stereo called a Sinclair Studio 100 at a close-out furniture store in Columbus. It was about the size of a window unit air conditioner, with a turntable, a tuner, and a dual cassette deck. The thing was, though, that it also had a setting where you could use it as a four-track recorder- the EQ sliders turned into faders, and you could record multitrack demos on it. My buddy and I each bought one, and I developed some extremely rudimentary recording chops, by trial and error. I haven’t listened to any of those cassettes I made for years and years; it would be somewhere between amusing and horrifying to hear them again.

How do I approach production? That’s a complicated question. It’s always evolving. My favorite way to do it is to get everyone in a room together and just play live. Let some happy accidents and mistakes happen- that’s where the good stuff lives. That’s not always doable, though. Sometimes space or noise limitations force you to build songs one or two instruments at a time, which gives you more control over the finished product and opens up the song to some interesting possibilities for experimentation. 

There’s a time and a place for both approaches. Ideally, I like to let the song dictate the method. Having said that, I’ve been writing and recording demos alone on GarageBand lately, so building the song piece by piece is kind of the default mode for me at the moment, at least as far as pre-production goes. 

The solo singles I’ve released so far and the ones in the immediate pipeline- aside from “The Boys of Summer” (which was done by myself at home) have been mostly recorded in a beautiful, big, spacious studio in Los Angeles, and I’ve been blessed to have some monster musicians on the sessions, so the lion’s share of the music gets tracked live, with vocals and some extra guitar overdubs added later. It’s a good mix of the two methods.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfdza2JhIq8

Dr. J: Boys of Summer is your most recent music, what led to the making of that song? What was the main influence on your recording this cover?

TW: It was serendipity- pure happenstance. I’ve always adored the original version, written by Mike Campbell and Don Henley. It’s such an evocative song about nostalgia, and it resonates with me more and more the older I get. I always thought it would be cool to cover it at some point.

So it happened that, this past New Year’s Day, 2022, I was at home, in my music room, with a few hours to kill, so I just started messing around with the song, kind of flying by the seat of my pants. I didn’t want to do a copy of the original; I never understand it when artists do that. What’s the point? I had an idea to keep it sparse- dark and skeletal, kind of turning the upbeat mood of the original into something that delivers the same sentiment in a more brooding way. Don Henley’s version is, in my eyes, sung by a successful alpha-type guy who’s reminiscing about an old flame. But he never really gets close to owning up to taking any blame in why the relationship ended. The narrator of my version of the song is a loser. He let the best thing that ever happened to him drift away, and he knows it. 

I had no intention of doing anything with my version- it was just sort of something to do for a few hours. I sent it to my manager on a whim, because I knew he liked the original as much as I did. He really liked my version, and convinced me that we should release it. I have a song coming out soon that we really want all the pieces in place for, so releasing a version of a song that people are already familiar with makes a certain amount of sense from a business standpoint. We figured a cover would reach a few new ears to give us that much bigger of an audience when the “real next course” gets served up. How that goes remains to be seen, but the response to “The Boys of Summer” has been really great so far, so I’m already considering it a win.

I’m actually glad I recorded the song with no lofty goals for it to be released, because there’s a vulnerability in the vocal performance that probably wouldn’t have survived all the overthinking I would have done had I been trying for “a single”. “Quick, dirty, and instinctive” is the way to go sometimes.  

Dr. J: The song ‘City of San Jose’ captures a remarkable constellation of musical influences. The song seems to have an almost 1970s feel. Is that a correct interpretation? If that is correct, did you intend to create a song that connects to that time period? If that is not correct, how would you describe the feeling of the song?

TW: No, I’d say that’s a very accurate assessment. Most of what I do is rooted in the music of the 60s and 70s, either directly or one generation removed, and most of my favorite artists were doing their best work back then.

Dr. J: How did the song ‘City of San Jose’ come together musically for you?

TW: The song is kind of a love letter to a section of the San Francisco Bay Trail near where I live. During the peak of Lockdown, it was a great place to get some exercise away from a lot of other people. I also came up with a lot of lyrics for this current batch of songs out there. 

I used an alternate tuning on my guitar for that one- DADGAD, a tuning that a lot of British artists gravitated towards in the late 60s and 70s; people like Bert Jansch, John Martyn, and Nick Drake. Jimmy Page used DADGAD on a lot of Led Zeppelin tracks, as well. My original demo for the song was very much in the British Folk vein- a bit quieter, more pastoral. When we got in the studio to record the actual version it became much more upbeat, but I’m not mad about that at all. I like both approaches a lot, and the final version we did in the studio served as a good introduction to the world of “Tod Weidner as a solo artist.”

Dr. J: Where do you often derive inspiration to make music?

TW: Well, it’s a compulsion, really. Playing guitar is really the one thing in my life that never fails to make me feel better. If I’m depressed, anxious, or out of sorts, there’s nothing I like better than to just pick up the guitar and lose myself for an hour or two. It’s my form of meditation. More often than not, a kernel of an idea will pop up somewhere in the course of my aimless noodling. The “voice memos” app on my phone is overflowing with minute-long ideas that either eventually will or already have become full-fledged songs.

Lyrically, I’ve been really making an effort over the past few years to simplify. In the beginning, I delighted in using big flowery words in my songs just for their own sake. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with that, per se, I’ve been fascinated lately with the songcraft of people like John Prine, Johnny Cash, or Tom Petty: songwriters who can lay down a simple truth that everyone can relate to, but with a clever little spin on it that just makes it land like a bomb. There’s a deceptively fine art to that, and I’m always trying to get better at it. Fewer words, more impact.

Dr. J: How would you describe the music that you typically create? How has that process evolved or changed over time (especially as you think about your journey in the last few years)?

TW: My standard line about my music is “songs about Love, Loss, The Loss of Love, and The Love of Loss”. There tends to be a touch of yearning, or wistfulness, a bit of melancholy in most of my music- “Sad Bastard Music”, as some people call it. It’s not dark all the time, but I think most artists have a tendency to ruminate about things, at least the ones I gravitate to. 

Moving to California from Ohio was already a big new chapter in my life in and of itself, but the prospect of starting a solo career with a new tribe of people also definitely represents a turning of the page. Dayton will always be home, and I thank my lucky stars that I got to learn how to be a musician and writer in such an amazingly fertile music scene as Dayton’s, but there comes a time when a nurturing, close-knit environment runs the risk of becoming an insular echo chamber-type situation. In all honesty, that’s what Dayton started feeling like toward the end of my time there. It was time to get somewhere new and try my stuff out on people who hadn’t known me for decades. It’s a healthy thing to do. 

My dear old friend, and now manager, Jack Piatt, has always championed my music, and through him, I’ve gotten to meet and work with people out here from very different backgrounds than mine. Which is also a healthy thing to do. Nomad, the gentleman who has produced my first five singles, has a resume that includes- among other things- a long stint as Babyface’s musical director. So he has a strong background in Soul and R&B, and that gives him a much different perspective than I have, coming from a more-or-less strict rock background. The “me” from 10 or 15 years ago would’ve been very skeptical of working with someone like that. But, as I said, this is a major new chapter of my life and career. I told myself, “Tod, you’ve been doing things a certain way for over 25 years. If you want to continue in the same bubble you’ve been operating in, you might as well just go back to Dayton and record the usual stuff with the same people at the same places.” If I want to get somewhere new, it’s a good idea to take some new outside advice, be open to change, and let go of some of my innate urges to control every aspect of the situation. I decided to start saying “yes”, instead of, “I dunno, that’s not how I usually do it.” And I have to say- it’s been working out really well so far. It’s refreshing, and exciting.  

Dr. J: What is next for you musically? How would you describe your thoughts at this point for your next project?

TW: The next single is coming out sometime in February, and I think it’s going to really surprise people who are familiar with my back catalog. I’m very excited about this track, and the people I recorded it with. That’s all I want to say about it for now.

The plan is to release a digital single at a rate of about one a month, and eventually end up with enough songs for a full, physical album. I’m still old school enough that I like to hold a record or a CD in my hand and read liner notes and whatnot.

I came out of Lockdown with about 20 new songs, and I’m as proud of them as any I’ve ever written; I really believe it’s some of my best work, and I am dying to get on the road and play them for people. 

Dr. J: What is your favorite song to perform live? What is your favorite song to perform in general? What makes that song a current favorite in your performances?

TW: I don’t know if I have a favorite song to perform. I have favorite types of songs, maybe. I love playing a song that lets me stretch out and go somewhere on the guitar because, at the end of the day, I still think of myself as a guitar player.

And I love a song that I can crawl inside and live in while I’m singing it. I just want to play something that moves people. That’s the objective: to play with sincerity and move people. There’s not much point in doing anything else. 

Dr. J: What is one message you would hope that listeners find in the unique nature of your latest music?

TW: Well, as I said earlier, I tend to lean toward the darker end of the emotional spectrum with my songs, but lately- with this latest batch of songs, especially- I’ve been making more of a concerted effort to include a little ray of sunlight here and there in the songs. With the last several years of trauma and uncertainty, I think Hope is a valuable, rare commodity, and people need as much of it as they can get. 

Music, and Art in general, serves multiple purposes: it can provide a feeling of escape for the listener, a chance to forget their troubles and go somewhere else for a few minutes. That’s a lovely thing.

But Music can also be a hand to hold in the dark. It can tell the listener, “You’re going through some painful times. I know how you feel, I feel that way, too. Let’s feel that way together.” That can be a beautiful thing, too- letting the listener know they’re not alone. I know Music has gotten me through some dark days and nights, and if my songs can help someone in that way, then I’ve done my part.  

Dr. J: As a musician, how are you adapting to the challenges of the Coronavirus?

TW: Same as everyone, I suppose. It depends on the day. I miss playing shows, I know that. I hope that, sooner than later, I can get back to playing a gig without worrying about people going home sick. I’m also very aware of the privileged position from which I’m speaking.; my wife has been working from home, and we’re getting by alright. A lot of folks don’t have that luxury.

The silver lining for me, as a musician, has been the enforced down time. As I mentioned, it’s allowed me to really buckle down and work and produce a lot of songs I’m proud of. I’m thankful that I have songwriting as a way to work out my fear, dread, and anxiety. Again, a lot of people don’t have an outlet like that. 

I guess it comes back to what I touched on in the previous question. As a singer/songwriter during this whole mess, I have a responsibility to reflect the times, relate to the listener, and provide them with some degree of solace. All things considered, it’s not a bad job to have.  

We want to extend our sincere gratitude to Tod for answering our questions and continuing to make some really excellent music! Click on the links throughout the article to visit his social media or to listen to various songs that were discussed! If any musicians or artists would like to participate in future ’11 Questions with…’ columns, please feel free to email us at drjytaa@gmail.com. All photos and images courtesy of Tod Weidner.

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YTAA Playlist 08-11-2020

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unnamedThis week we have created a YTAA Playlist on Spotify for you listening pleasure! Next week we return to the YTAA Studio and the airwaves of WUDR 99.5 & 98.1fm in Dayton and online! We recommend that you visit the artists social media, webpages and bandcamp pages to support them!

The artists this week include new music from Guided by Voices, Benchmarks, Peopleperson, Tiny Stills, Frontier Folk Nebraska, Jess Cornelius, The Psychedelic Furs, Smug Brothers, Kathleen Edwards, Ryan Allen And His Extra Arms, Lydia Loveless, The Jayhawks, Nana Grizol, Samantha Crain, The Avett Brothers, Real Estate, CrocSoc Workshop, The Great Serpent Mound of Ohio, Carbon Leaf, Surfer Blood (featuring Pip Blom), Dolph Chaney and The Blow Monkeys — yup, they have new music for us all!

Some classics from Pere Ubu, The Pursuit of Happiness, Shrug, The Mayflies USA, Lab Partners, The White Soots, Captain of Industry, The New Old-Fashioned, Mandy Jewell, The Katawicks, Whiskeytown, Andrew Duhon, Gretchen’s Wheel, Manray and The Grapes of Wrath!

And some live versions of terrific songs from The Long Ryders and The Kyle Sowashes!

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Today’s YTAA Playlist

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The playlist today includes new music from Lydia Loveless, Al Holbrook, Bob Mould, Chris Forsyth, The Beths, Momma, Mike Bankhead and Tino, Waxahatchee, Speaking Suns, Rufrano, Nada Surf and more! Plus music from David Payne, Wussy, The Story Changes, The Typical Johnsons, Shrug, The Pullouts, Tim Pritchard, The 1984 Draft, The Nautical Theme, The Flamin’ Groovies, Me & Mountains, The Mayflies USA, Toxic Reasons, The Regrettes, American Werewolf Academy, Ass Ponys, Greg Dulli, Son Volt and Samantha Crain.

Some looking back indie courtesy of James, The Smiths, Graham Parker and The Rumour and Brainiac. And a live classic from The Replacements! We pay some small tribute to far overlooked songwriter Emitt Rhodes.

So give the playlist a listen or three!

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11 Questions with… David Payne

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101714517_10163801825875154_1076073664824213504_nThere are always those key individuals in any town who give of themselves to help make the music community stronger. David Payne is just such a fixture of the Dayton Music Scene!

Since he arrived with the achingly beautiful solo albums, ‘21‘ in 2009, he has spun a series of tales about life and music. David recognized the vibrancy of the Dayton music scene with an album of cherished covers ‘Dayton, Ohio‘ in 2017. That same year he released another solo record ‘Cheaper than Therapy‘ which spoke to the powerful healing that lies in making music.

David’s latest solo record ‘Orange Glow‘ was released last year. And that is not the half of his musical productivity. With Kent Montgomery, Tom Blackburn and Matt Oliver — The New Old-Fashioned — he released a stellar debut in 2012. Low Down Dirty Summer Nights was released by the band in 2015. And the captivating energy of the band was obvious to the crowds at their shows. In 2018, the band shared their most recent impressive collection of music, Smalltown, Midwest, USA. Of course, a slew of singles and a fantastic shared ep with The Repeating Arms, Hilltops and Highways is also part of the music that David has been involved in creating.

a2100498429_16Most recently he has released an EP of local music covers with his partner Heather Redman called ‘Stay at Home‘. Their two voices glide and slide along as if they have been singing together their entire lives.  Listening to their interpretation of these songs is a joy.

As always we wish to thank David for taking the time to answer these questions! We appreciate his answering these questions for our readers/listeners on YTAA! We cannot say this enough — thanks again for taking the time!

Dr. J: What can you share with us about when and how you started recording your latest record, Stay Home (with Heather Redman)?

David Payne (DP): Well, when the stay at home order went into effect Heather and I both started missing our friends and the Dayton music scene immediately. I had just finished up my first month of running my own sessions at Reel Love Recording Company here in Dayton when this all started and I really wanted to keep working.

So, I gathered the small amount of recording gear I had at home, Heather and I both picked a few of our favorite songs written by our friends, and started recording some covers.

We didn’t think of it as anything other than a fun project that would keep us busy and that our friends might enjoy. The response we’ve gotten has been a totally unexpected and very pleasant surprise!

Dr. J: You have worked closely with Patrick Himes at Reel Love Recording Company here in Dayton, Ohio for several years, what first led to your recording with Patrick? How has that relationship shaped your music?

a3300088116_10DP: Well, The New Old-Fashioned started recording with Patrick back in 2011 or 2012. I had met Patrick back in 2006 and was a big fan of his old band, Flyaway Minion. By the time TNOF was ready to start recording, Patrick had relocated to Nashville and was running the studio down there. I heard he was looking for bands to record and it seemed like a really good fit for what we were doing. I was a big fan of his previous work like the Minion records and Shrug’s Whole Hog For The Macho Jesus to name a couple, so I was excited to get to work with him.

Patrick has helped shaped my music in just about every way you could think of. When I first started going to Flyaway Minion shows, I was 18 and hadn’t been to very many shows at all. Before then my idea of what a modern rock and roll band was we’re bands like Green Day and Weezer. This huge, most likely unobtainable, pipe dream. What Patrick and Flyaway Minion showed me was there were rock stars right here in my home town and that I could make classic records and play killer shows right here in Dayton.

69872267_2877973685565015_8034193719710187520_nThe other most important thing I learned from Patrick is that we can make classic sounding records the way our heroes did. Modern recording is very convenient and while I think that’s mostly a good thing, it’s easy for the romanticism of making records to get lost in the convenience. Everyone has their own way of making records and every way is valid, but the way we make records at Reel Love helps capture all the things I enjoy about making records. I’ve been very fortunate to be able to work with and study under Patrick. He’s taught we almost every thing I know about making records, which has become something I’m very passionate about. I’m forever grateful for that.

Dr. J: Stay Home is a very different record than Orange Glow (your last solo record), how do these records compare? What influenced your work on each of them?

DP: Orange Glow is a very personal record that I made with Patrick at Reel Love and making it was a very cathartic experience. Stay Home was recorded for fun at home on my iPad and is all songs written by our friends. Ha ha!

I’d say personal experience and Willie Nelson we’re probably the two biggest influences on Orange Glow. The pandemic, the subsequent shutdown, and the infinitely inspiring Dayton music scene were what influenced Stay Home.

Dr. J: ‘Outta Town’ addresses forms of self-doubt or concern with a band or a relationship lasting – is that a correct interpretation of some of the lyrics? In addition, if that is correct, did you intend to address overcoming doubt or did the song evolve in that direction over time?

DP: Yeah, I’d say that’s accurate. I wouldn’t say I was trying to address overcoming that doubt as much as I was just trying to express how the doubt made me feel. I guess it just kinda ended up that way do to the reflective, sort of tongue in cheek angle I took when writing it.

Dr. J: How did the song ‘Outta Town’ come together musically for you?

DP: Orange Glow is a pretty heavy record. I was at the tail end of a really difficult period in my life when I was writing those songs. I was reflecting a lot and feeling a little self isolated. I wanted to write a song that still dealt with those feeling but from a hopefully more humorous and lighthearted way. I wanted it to be a brief moment of levity in an otherwise serious record. I think bringing in a bunch of my rowdy friends to sing on it with me helped drive that idea home. We had a blast that day too!

Dr. J: Where do you often derive inspiration to make music?

DP: Of course it can come from anywhere, and often unexpectedly, but I think conversations with people are where I get the most of my inspiration for songwriting. It could be a whole in depth discussion or sometimes just one thing someone said that sticks with me.

a0785063098_10Dr. J: How would you describe the music that you typically create? How has that process evolved or changed over time (especially as you think about your journey from Cheaper than Therapy to Orange Glow to Stay Home)?

DP: That’s a tough question to answer and probably best left to outside perspective, but If I had to describe it, I guess I’d like to think that first and foremost, it’s honest.  As far as the sound goes, I think it sounds a lot like where I’m from. My own personal take on what the Midwest sounds like, I guess.

I don’t know that my process has really changed that much other than I’ve gotten a little better at it, I hope. Although, I do look to outside perspective a lot more these days.

Dr. J: What is next for you musically as a solo artist and as a member of The New Old-Fashioned? How would you describe your thoughts at this point for your next project after Stay Home?

DP: I’m always writing, and although I haven’t found the shut down to be a very creatively inspiring time, I have written a handful of things.

a3987746246_10We’re almost done with the next New Old-Fashioned record which is a companion EP to our last record, Smalltown, Midwest, USA. It’s a couple songs from those sessions and a couple new ones. We’re excited to get it out, whenever it seems appropriate to do so, I guess. Kinda hard to know what to do right now.

As far as solo stuff goes, I tend to plan that out a lot less than I do with the band. That stuff seems to kinda just happen. I’ve got a few things that I’ve written recently that are more personal and I’ve also been working on some more character driven, concept sort of stuff that’s leaning a little more towards traditional country. Anyway, we’ll see what comes of any of that, but I’ve got some wheels turning.

Dr. J: What is your favorite song to perform? What makes it a current favorite in your performances? Do you enjoy Live Streaming?

DP: Favorite song to play with the band is Kid 2000. It’s just got a lot of energy, it’s relevant, and it’s just fun to play. All Over Now, from the first TNOF record is always fun too and has been a staple in our live set for years. It’s one of Kent’s songs, so he sings it and I just get to play Chuck Berry riffs and goof off with Tom and Matt. Ha ha.

Whatever I’ve written most recently is usually my favorite thing to play solo, but a fun one to play from Orange Glow is, What I Mean To You. The finger picking is fun and it’s my only solo song with an actual guitar solo!

I really have enjoyed the live stream stuff I’ve done, but it sure doesn’t beat playing in front of people. I feel like it was fun for a few weeks, but it got kinda old pretty quick, for me at least. The comment sections are always fun on those.

11823081-1143573845671683-4996563248581076865-oDr. J: What is one message you would hope that listeners find in the unique nature of your latest music?

DP: I hope ‘Orange Glow‘ helps someone going through heartbreak know that a lot of people understand what that feels like, that they’re not alone, and that there might just be a little light at the end of the tunnel. When you’re in that space, it’s hard to believe people when they tell you it’s gonna be OK. I think songs that express how you’re feeling can be really helpful in hard times.

With Smalltown, Midwest, USA, the grandest hope would be that it might make someone show a little more empathy for someone who has it harder than them. I suppose a more realistic hope is that people that do work hard to show kindness and empathy, know that they’re not alone and that we stand with them. I like to think that record is ultimately about trying to understand people.

Dr. J: As a musician, how are you adapting to the challenges of the Coronavirus?

As a musician, if I’m being honest, I don’t think I’ve adapted very well at all. I’ve never been very good at digital media or promoting and distributing my music online, for better or worse. Hats off to those who are!  I’ve always enjoyed the classic approach of trying to make records that sound timeless, then playing the songs live in front of people, and hopefully selling enough copies to make the next one. Rinse, repeat. That model was already dated and out the window before the pandemic. It’s kinda just dead right now and who knows when we’ll get it back. That’s the hard part. I have been able to continue to do some work in the studio, although not as much as I’d hoped to being doing this summer. I am optimistic that when the time comes, people will need live music more than ever.

From a personal standpoint though, it’s forced me to slow down, and spend more time with my fiancee and our little girl. Which has been great! We’ve gotten a lot of family time we wouldn’t have had otherwise and I think it’s made me a better partner and Dad.

a2033241784_16My entire identity has been wrapped up in being a musician, performer, and songwriter since the moment I got my first guitar. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. So, I guess I’ve been going through a bit of an identity crises trying to figure out who I am outside of music.

I miss playing loud sweaty rock shows and seeing my friends. I can’t wait to get back to that, when it’s safe to do so.

Until, then I’ll just keep holding on tight to my family, writing as much as I can, and enjoying the brief time I do get to spend with friends in small groups. I can’t wait to see everyone at the rock show and give out a bunch of sweaty hugs. I hope everyone takes good care of themselves and each other in the meantime.

Thanks again to Mr. David Payne for answering our questions! All pictures used courtesy of the artist.

David Payne on Bandcamp    The New Old-Fashioned on Bandcamp    TNOF on Twitter

David Payne on Facebook    The New Old-Fashioned on Facebook    Magnaphone Records

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Tomorrow’s YTAA Playlist

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your-tuesday-alternative-new logoYTAA 07-07-2020 Playlist is set for tomorrow over there at Spotify!

This week the playlist includes music from The Sighs, The Motel Beds, Reno Bo, The Overtures, The Nautical Theme, Saul Glennon, Shrug, Tijuana Panthers, Mike Bankhead Music, Brandi Ediss, Benchmarks, The Vapour Trails, The Corner Laughers, Wussy, Sam at Eleven, The Foreign Films, Dr. Pants, Flyaway Minion, Ken Sharp, Slumberjet, No Age, The New Old-Fashioned, Donora, Bribing Senators, Debra Devi, Cold War Kids, Jasper the Colossal, Josh Joplin and The 1984 Draft

We also have some looking back indie with Sisters of Mercy, Archers of Loaf and GUIDED BY VOICES!

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Best of 2019: Gladgirl Shelly Hulce’s Picks and Thoughts

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downloadThe whole Maganaphone / Reel Love Studio or as I refer to them “Dayton’s own awesome Wrecking Crew” is going to be well-covered in a list for 2019! To be honest there are  probably multiple crossover’s on local lists, but I’m going off the grid here with my faves that are IN ADDITION to the amazing music coming out of Reel Love.

Let’s start with the NON LOCAL NOD’S:
“Who” by The Who was an incredible return to form!220px-The_Black_Keys_-_Let's_Rock
“Let’s Rock” by Black Keys* (*see nod to the Gabbard bros on my local list to tie this in.) was a powerful record.
“Internet Arms” by Diane Coffee was mesmerizing while sound fresh and connected to musical past and traditions.
“In the Morse Code of Brake Lights” by The New Pornographers was a biting record with melody and energy. (NOTE: January 29, Diane Coffee joins up with The New Pornographers as openers on the current tour!)

LOCAL NOD’S:
The Gabbard Brothers have had a head-spinning year, together and separately.
Joining the touring band of The Black Keys on the “Lets Rock” tour did not slow them down on self releases. I will do my best to count them all, and it’s A LOT!
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Andy Gabbard:
Under the artist name Strawberry Tapes, he released “Strawberry Tapes “Vol. 1” “
As Andy Gabbard he released the following:
“Trancer”
“Cedar City Sweetheart” and performed live as “Andy Gabbard and the Cool Ranchers”

With M.Ross Perkins, Andy created the digital release of “Gabbard + Perkins” a self titled sweet LP, featuring local favorite “Donuts at Bills”, a love note to the Centerville, Ohio institution, Bills Donuts.
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With Gabbard Brothers (Zack + Andy)
Single digital release, “Sell Your Gun, Buy A Guitar” was published while they toured in The Black Keys which tells you a little something about their fantastic work ethic and ability to craft a great song.

Zach Gabbard:
One of the many Gabbard Brothers productions from Zach’s Madison, Ohio farm studio, “Howler Hills”, comes his latest project “Sunday Creek Fed Birds”, released on the Gabbard Brothers home label, Sofaburn.

Seth-Canan

Other fave local releases from this past year included:
Black Sire self titled LP “Black Sire”
Seth Canan and Carriers “Strange Forces”

 

From D.Robins (Derl) Overthought Musik label comes the amazing “Album”, the brain child of Robins for the first annual “Local Music Day” event. This LP features many favorite local artists as guest vocalists and instrumentalists in roles you would not expect.

a3408849665_10Another fave is all the Overthought Musik releases of Derl’s, (D.Robins), self performed and produced projects recorded under his pen name “Peopleperson”, he set out between March and September of 2019 to re-release his past work, as he states, “for your pleasure/confusion.” His trademark Dayton Surf sound, as we came to love in The Motel Beds days, is ever present in the Dayton Music Scene, but with more electronica thrown in for good measure.

Over on the Gas Daddy Go label, the mind bending, sonic collage, “Land Baron of Barren Lands” from Don Thrasher’s electronic music project Crossfade Rivals was something to behold. A sound collage featuring a veritable powerhouse of local musicians.

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The Rockathon Label is still churning out more GBV releases than I can count (or afford), 3 GBV LP’s (Zeppelin Over China was a double LP), and Pollard side project as “Cash Rivers” rounds out 2019. GBV closes out the decade with a sold out NYE show in LA at the Teragram Ballroom tackling a 100 song set list. This team always wins at the rock games. GBV records will be on my top records lists every year, because they never stop.

Self released “Mobile Juke House Theater” by blues phenom, Noah Wotherspoon also needs to be included on a ‘Best Of’ list for the year.

thee-attack

From Poptek Records comes the long awaited, sophomore release from XL427, “Thee Attack”. Although officially release date is in January of ’20, digital releases have been served up via bandcamp during the pre-order phase. This attack was well worth the wait from bandleader and label runner, Andy Ingram.

So about the Reel Love / Magnaphone tsunami, I’ll step out for a second and tell all of you that I love all the faves that will be mentioned repeatedly on other lists (Amber Hargett, Dave Payne, and the like dominating the scene at the moment, I have to speak some of these titles, lest I blaspheme in the temple, number one being “Easy Is the New Hard” by Shrug).

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And I still get a huge endorphin rush from “The Transformation of Salvador Ross”.
Fun fun fun from John Dubuc’s Guilty Pleasures “Where Have I Been All Your Life” and the debut LP from The Paint Splats. (DANG IT, I said I wouldn’t overlap into Reel Love/ Magnaphone but it’s too hard not to do that when the music coming out from them is so good.) Okay, since I crossed over, I will end with this last fave, “Sympathetic Buzz” from the Tim Pritchard project, Superbloom.
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Shelly Hulce is THE Gladgirl in the Dayton Music Community who in addition to creating and promoting a wide variety of shows and specialty experiences, she writes about music, started Story Slam and related Story Telling in Dayton and is an active radio presence throughout the Miami Valley including as a DJ on WSWO Oldies 97.3 FM. She is a Freelance AFCI Certified Film Commissioner. Her artwork is also featured at local exhibitions and of course, cool rock concerts and shows. She is on twitter at @TheGladGirl.

Best of 2019: Mike Bankhead’s Picks and Thoughts

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Shrug – Easy is the New Harda1766992202_10

Shrug are stalwarts of the Dayton music scene, having been around for 25 years.  This is their first album to be released on vinyl, and as if that’s not enough, it’s a double.  Some of the songs on the track list that showed up in their sets 15 years ago (“New Amsterdam” and “Bender” being the oldest) coexist beautifully with new music that didn’t get played live until the album release show (“Powder” and “Follow the Captain”).  The result is probably the best, most eclectic work of their tenure, and certainly my favorite since 2002’s self-titled release.

    *favorite songs: “Powder”, “New Amsterdam”, “Follow the Captain”, “Blue Blanket”

 

220px-Sleater-Kinney_-_The_Center_Won't_HoldSleater-Kinney – The Center Won’t Hold

About the same time that Shrug was getting going here in Dayton, this band started up in Olympia, Washington.  This is their 9th album, and heads off in a different sonic direction from everything else in their catalog. This new direction cost them the powerful services of drummer Janet Weiss, as she departed the band just before they went on tour to support the album.  There is synth here, extra slick production, and pop sensibility, but it still sounds like a Sleater-Kinney album. That’s enough for me.

    * favorite songs: “Reach Out”, “Bad Dance”

 

911IuEsTDWL._SS500_Big Wreck – … but for the sun

Here’s a third band that formed in 1994.  Ian Thornley’s voice is the closest I have ever heard to Chris Cornell’s, and it’s still as powerful now as it was when I first discovered this band.  If you enjoyed Soundgarden in the past, I think you would like Big Wreck as well. This new effort is a big, loud, swaggering rock and roll record. You want guitar solos?  There are plenty of them here. You want riffage? There is plenty of that here. You like shouting along whilst driving? These songs are perfect for that.  

   *favorite songs: “In My Head”, “Give Us a Smile”,  “Alibi” 

 

767870659522_mainGuided By Voices – Sweating the Plague

How about a band that was already more than ten years old in 1994?  Indie rock royals Guided By Voices released three albums this year, because of course they did.  This one is the last of the three. I have had a hard time keeping up on all of Bob Pollard’s music over the years, and would only consider myself somewhat well-versed on the albums that came out between 1994 and 2004.  With that caveat in mind, this album isn’t what I was expecting. I heard tempo changes, a brief Boston-esque lead guitar harmony, a song that starts a capella, all paired up with the usual amount of fantastic hooks.

   *favorite songs: “Street Party”,  “Your Cricket Is Rather Unique”, “Immortals”

 

elbow_giantsofallsizes_mainElbow – Giants of All Sizes

Apologies to Oasis, but Elbow are now my favo(u)rite Manchester band.  This is their 8th studio album. Lyrically, it’s darker than what we normally get from them, but personal tragedies and these modern times will have that effect.  Guy Garvey’s pristine voice, the band’s orchestral use of dynamics, and at least one song with massive audience sing-along potential on the hook… those things are still here.  Also, Pete Turner continues to bring interesting choices to the bottom end, along with solid grooves from which most of the other instruments hang.

  *favorite songs: “Empires”, “White Noise White Heat”, “Weightless”

 

idlewild---interview-musicIdlewild – Interview Music

Let’s stay on the island of Great Britain for a moment, but head up north to Scotland.  I have five of this band’s first six albums on CD (I don’t have the first one). There was a time when I would listen to something from Idlewild just about every day.  Somewhere around 2008, I completely lost track of them. It wasn’t them, it was me. I’ve missed a couple of their albums, and nearly missed this one, only recently having discovered that it came out this year.  Other than the vocals (not the high ones), this doesn’t sound like the Idlewild I remember… there are plenty of atmospheric additions here, strings and reverb-drenched guitar and piano, and it’s all very lovely. I need to spend more time with this album, but I know that I’ll like it more with each listen.

   *favorite songs: “Dream Variations”, “I Almost Didn’t Notice”, “Forever New”

 

The-Cranberries-In-the-EndThe Cranberries – In the End

A short hop West across the Irish Sea brings us to the home of The Cranberries.  This mention is kind of like a career achievement mention, as the band decided not to continue after frontwoman Dolores O’Riordan died in January 2018.  This is their final album, released this year. The vocals come from demos instead of normal studio takes, but if I hadn’t read that online, I wouldn’t have known.  Some of the music would easily fit in among the songs on their first two albums. I feel like most folks probably don’t know this band beyond their hit singles, and that’s too bad, there is some songwriting brilliance in their career, and this is a satisfying final statement.

   *favorite songs:  “Lost”, “Wake Me When It’s Over”, “Illusion”, “In the End”

 

Charly-Bliss-Young-Enough-1557243931-640x640Charly Bliss – Young Enough

Back much farther West across the Atlantic, Brooklyn’s Charly Bliss dropped their second full-length album this year.  Full disclosure, I really wanted to like this album because I have met the members of this band, and they were pleasant and engaging young folks.. I like them as people.  (They also put on a very energetic live show.) My first couple of listens to this album, well, I wasn’t enthused… lots of synth, some drum machine sounds, the guitars and rock had taken a back seat to sugary pop.  Then I paid attention to the lyrics, listened closer to the songwriting, and focused on the harmonic choices. These songs are painfully confessional and personal, and I wonder how Eva manages to sing them on tour night after night without bursting into tears.  Further, this band’s gift for arrangement and hooks persists behind the pop sheen… and these songs sound excellent live, right alongside their older guitar-heavy work. Go get this album.

   *favorite songs: “Capacity”, “Camera”, “Young Enough”, “Chatroom”

 

61470138_554840258255776_5954152654669086720_oJohn Dubuc’s Guilty Pleasures – Where Have I Been All Your Life?

Don’t let John Dubuc’s “aw shucks”, self-effacing demeanor fool you.  He is one of the best songwriters in Dayton. His lyrics oscillate between witty and silly, pointless and profound. He doesn’t feel the need to be constrained by the idea of genre, as there are sounds borrowed from reggae and country and fifties rock and power pop and folk.  Several songs from this album will absolutely get stuck in your head.  

   *favorite songs: “It Ain’t That Far”, “Crazy Days”, “By the Ocean”, “Peace Love and Hamburger Helper”

 

a2717136637_10Me & Mountains – Dream Sequence Volume One

This a very brief EP, so I feel like my comments here have to also be very brief.  I love everything this band does, their sound is right up my alley, and I want them to give me more music ASAP.

  *favorite song: “Demolish Me”

 

a0393637519_10Amber Hargett – Paper Trail

Amber is lovely and genuine and sweet, comes armed with a powerful voice and a knack for songwriting, and once told a story that will ensure I never look at a submarine hatch the same way again.  Oh, and her album is great.

   *favorite songs: “Broke”, “Carolina Blue”, “Stay”

 

0009715440_10Mike Bankhead is a writer and deeply thoughtful musician. Mike does not just create songs he curates sound. His latest record is Defacing the Moon, a split album with The Paint Splats, available now. Mike’s latest song is an impressively powerful narrative that he calls “Little Light” that was released this past May and is available on all digital platforms. He is on twitter at    @mbankheadmusic and Instagram at mikebankheadmusic.

His website is https://mikebankheadmusic.com/ We suggest you check it out! 

Tomorrow’s Show

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On the show tomorrow – new music from U2, Alvvays Cricketbows, Iron & Wine, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Mack McKenzie, The Typical Johnsons, The Afghan Whigs, The War On Drugs, Dan Auerbach and Sick of Sarah! Some classics from The Undertones, The Replacements, and Shrug.

We will play a live track from Counting Crows and one of Dr. J’s favorite Billy Bragg songs! Join us from 3-6pm tomorrow on WUDR.

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On Tomorrow’s Show – Music from Shows and Important Community Outreach!

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On the shows this week we are celebrating tons of great shows in the Dayton area by playing music from The New Old-Fashioned, David Payne, Starving in the Belly of the Whale, Charlie Jackson and the Heartland Railway, The Castros, Shrug, This Pine Box, Jetty Bones, The Florals, Andy Gabbard, Jesse W. Johnson & Coyote Scream, HEXADIODE, Salvadore Ross and The Afghan Whigs!

JOEWe have some new music from Mr. Joe Anderl and a cool demo from Fleetwood Mac that has Dr. J rethinking the sound and influence of that band!

Join us from 3-6pm on WUDR tomorrow – wudr.udayton.edu. or 99.5 & 98.1fm in the Dayton, Ohio area!  You can always request music by contacting drjytaa on twitter!

We also have special guest Gail Pop in the studio to talk about the important COAT initiative (Community Overdose Action Team). Our pal Gail is on the prevention branch of the team. Check out their important work –http://www.phdmc.org/coat!

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Amazing Guest

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As the pictures attest, we had a great interview with Tod Weidner the other day!  A big hearty thanks to Tod for his graciousness, patience and previewing two new songs on the show! Thanks to the talented Brie Boltz for the great pictures! Popthrillz---Alternative

Pure Acoustic 

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This Saturday music lovers will have a real treat with a Pure Acoustic show at The Old Yellow Cab building.  Not only is Yellow Cab one of many great venues in our fine city, it is also involved in some of the most innovative programs for music lovers!  Some of Dayton’s finest musicians will perform only acoustic — just like the poster says there will be no microphones — imagine just hearing the voices as they come from the singer!  No amplification, just real sounds from real musicians to a real audience.  Nothing added.  Just good music.  This idea has been kicked around for a while by Jeff and the folks at Yellow Cab, kudos to them for making this happen.  Go see some of our favorite local musicians for a rare musical experience.  Expect some exciting combinations and there could be a surprise or two for you and your ears! 

  • Old Yellow Cab Building
  • February 6 – 8pm $5 – want a low cost for something so cool! 

We will see you all there!