Best of Matt Connarton Unleashed volume 44
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From the studios of w m n H ninety five point three FM in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire. You are tuned in to the best of Matt Connerton unleashed. My friends, I'm not given them the wild and supported statements, and I tell you that we must evacuate this planet immediately. Jello aasionable.
Once there was a civilization much like ours, but with a greater intelligence, greater powers, and a greater capacity for good. In one tragic moment, that world was destroyed, But there was one survivor. Oh let me do all get up? Because of the wisdom and compassion of Joel, because he knew the human race had the capacity for goodness, he set us his only son. His name is Khalil. He will call himself Clark Kent, but the world will know him as Superman. This year, Superman brings you the Gift of Flight.
Superman the movie superheroes have been a popular culture phenomenon since the early thirties, from radio shows, weekly serials at local movie houses to today, whereupon release the latest film from the Marvel Cinematic Universe dominates the box office. Comic books have translated from page to celluloid very well, but there was a time when this was not the case. That was until the original Superhero made his big screen debut, and it showed that comic book films can be blockbusters. It also made us believe a man could fly.
Directed by Richard Donner and released in nineteen seventy eight, Superman the Movie stars Christopher Reeve in his career defining role as Clark Kent slash Superman, who, shortly after aving in Metropolis, is set to battle. The villainis Lex Luthor, screen legend Gene Hackman, who is set to cause nuclear armageddon for financial gain. Rounding out the ensemble cast is the late Margo Kidder, who plays, in my opinion, the quintessential Lois Lane ned baby, and a powerful cameo by screen icon Marlon Brando who plays Superman's father, Joraal.
What is a great superhero movie without a love interest and a villain. This film delivers both, and our next two clips are examples of this. First, shortly after meeting Lois and Clark encounter a mugger on the streets of Metropolis. The role reversal is quite striking here, Clark, who shouldn't be timid, is and Lois who should be timid, stands up to the criminal and ends up chasing him away, and then is the first scene where we encounter Lex Luthor. What is great about Lex Luthor in this film and Hackman's performance is he encapsulates everything we associate with evil and villainy into this role.
He is loud, boisterous, ego, maniacal, callous, and even has bumbling sidekicks. Not he's a really nice guy. Jimmy elphins Man, Hey, come here, come on, come on, come on, get in here, hurry, come on, Clark, I think we better get out of here. I think we better do what he says. Come on, come on, get in here quick. Don't don't do anything, sorr coming, come on, we're coming. Come on. Yeah, yeah, don't point out of me, sirry sorry, okay, okay, all to day, just a minute thestor just a minute now. I realized, of course, that times are tough for some of these days.
But this isn't the answer. You can't solve the societies problems with a gun, you know, somebody, You're right, I'm gonna turn over a new leaf. Good for you, sir, that's this bird. See, he doesn't really want to hurt anybody right after I rip up this lady's purse, of course. Now come on, lady, hand it over. I don't know, let's just think. Maybe you better. Well what are you doing, Carr Clark? Are you all right? Clark? What happened? I guess I must have fainted? He's fainting? Sorry? Wow? Well? Really, lois supposing that man has shot you?
And is it worth risking your life over ten dollars to credit cards? I hary brushing a lipstick? How do you know that? Go? What?
You just describe the exact contents of my first m hm um wild guess
docs And now introducing lax Luther sick. Thank you're really sick? Sickness test marker sick? What on your days? Mexicaning the crime of the century? No, no, no, no, no, step away from that place.
How do you choose to con grab the greatest criminal mind of our time? Huh? You tell me that I'm brilliant? Oh no, no, no, that would be too obvious. I grant you charismatic, fiendishly gifted, try twitted? Get away, get away, get away, joy.
Tell me something right? Why does so many people have to die for the crime of the century. Why you ask, why why does the phone always ring when you're in the bathroom? Why it's the most brilliantly diabolical leader of our time, surrounding himself for total incomes. I whacked, mister Luthor. Yes, I was just talking about you. You're followed again. It's one of those cat like reflexes, mister Luthor, missus luthor. I'm sorry, Oh, this is that the newspaper I ask you to give me. Yeah, why am I not reading it?
Because I hadn't given it to you yet? Right last, it's official. Thanks to the generous help of the United States government, we are about to be involved in the greatest real estate swindle of all time. Let's what is this obsession with real estate all the time? Land? Land Land? Its Desparker. When I was six years old, my father said to me get out before that. He said, some stocks may rise and fall, utilities and transportation systems may collapse. People are no damn good, but they will always need land, and they'll pay through the nose to get it.
Where this film excels is it brightens the Superman comics to life in a way. The Batman film from nineteen sixty eight did, but it does not do it in the over the top campy way that the Adam West led film did. It has a quote unquote dad joke esque one liners and quips that we expect out of the Man of Steel. Our next clip is an example of this. We will hear Superman with his witty comebacks capture criminals, and much like the early comics, at the end, we will hear from the dumbfounded police at what they have seen from the Man of Steel.
Either something wrong with the elevator going down? Nah,
officer good evening, officer mooney. Well, they say, confession is good for the soul. I'd listen to this man. Take them away. H
come on, let'st move your ass. Come on, come on, okay, let's go. Rut's go rock here with oder you got bad vibrations,
Dodgeon, you don't believe me, I swear playing with a big red tape and bright red boots as well, because the week he was gone blue boop in the here again he gives like a big blue birds, like a big blue bird, I don't believe me with bright red boots. Say you wanted to take the night over, go back to Bry's bar, and continue when you started, he was I'll be off in a few minutes and I'll meet you there myself. At the beginning of this review, I alluded to Marlin Brando and his performance. Although his appearance is short, it would be near criminal to not include him.
His performance as Jorrel, even the short time he is on screen is simply mesmerizing. Our final two clips are examples of this. First, we hear Jarrell tell his son goodbye and send him hurling through space towards Earth as the doomed planet Crypton is destroyed. Then he speaks to his son on his eighteenth birthday after Clark uncovers the heralded Fortress of Solitude and sets Clark on the path that will become his life's mission. You'll, Cavil five, will aloud, we will never leave you, even in the face of our death, the richness of our lives, it will be yours.
All that I have, all that I've learned, everything I feel, all this and more. I I bequeath you, my son. You will carry me inside you all the days of your life. You will make my strength your own. See my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father, and the father the son. This is all I well I can send you. COMEO and now the Fortress of Solitude. My son, you do not remember me. I am jo L. I am your father. By now you will have reached your eighteenth year, as it is measured on Earth.
By that reckoning, I will have been dead for many thousands of your years. The knowledge that I have matters physical and historic, I have given you fully on your voyage your new home. These are important matters, to be sure, but still matters of mere fact. There are questions to be asked, and it is time for you to do so. Here in us, Misfortress of Solitude, we shall try to find the answers together. So, my son, speak
O. My your name is Klel. You are the only survivor of the planet Cryptom. Even though you've been raised as a human being, you are not one of them. You have great powers, only some of which you will as yet discover. Come with me now, my son, as we break through the bones of your earth confinement, traveling through time and space, and the sister of your powers will far exceed those of modern It is forbidden for you to interfere with human history, rather let your leadership still others too.
In this next year, we shall examine the human heart. It is more fragile than the year. As we passed through the flaming tumoil, which is the edge of your own galaxy, we will enter the realm of the red cryptom Sun, source of your strength and nourishment and cause of our eventual distinction, the planet Cryptos, your heart as it was. This year, we shall examine the various concepts of immortality and their basis and actual fact.
The total accumulation of all knowledge spanning the twenty eight non galaxies is embedded in the crystals which I have sent along with you. Study them well, my son, we have reasoned our biological judgments. By the time we return to the confines of your I said, twelve of your years we have passed. For this reason, among others, I have chosen best for you. It is now time for you to rejoin your new world and a service collected. Live as one of little color, to discover why your strengthen your power of leader, always holding on hard of pride of your special heritage.
They can be a great people color they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way well this reason about their capacity for good. I have sent them you my only son. This film laid the blueprint for comic book films as we know them. Start with a powerful origin story, have a compelling villain at intense and explosive action, with the possible love story. It seems simple enough. However, until this film, superheroes were mainly relegated to the small screen. This film showed that superhero movies could not just make money, but make it by the boatloads.
It grows three hundred point five million dollars worldwide, spawned three sequels, and without a doubt, laid the groundwork for television series that followed, such as Smallville in Lois and Clark The New Adventures of Superman. Even the performances in this film are seen in the modern day characters of Clark Kent, Lois Lane in Lex Luthor. It caused a renewed interest in the comic books into this stay remains one of the truest and greatest comic book adaptations to hit the big screen. It is a visual tree for anyone to see me.
I hope you joined me. Next week, when in honor of Memorial Day, we will look at the heart wrenching Steven Spielberg film Saving Private Rhyme for WMNH and Matt Connerton Unleached. This has been a classic film review with Eric Pilcher the from the studios of w m n H ninety five point three FM in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire. You are tuned in to the best of Matt Connerton Unleashed. I grabbed that menu off that window one night. Get in, it's unlocked. Just throw that the glovebox. This car is not from the motor poole.
It's not sexy dough in there. So where's the office? Back at division? In the office? Baby, going out? Day's a training day, officer, hoy show you're around. Give you a take to the business. You know. I got thirty eight cases pending trial, sixty three in active investigation, another two hundred and fifty on the log I can't clear. I supervised five officers. That's five different personalities, five sets of problems. You could be number six if you act right. But I ain't holding no hands, you understand, I ain't babysitting.
You got today and today owned to show me who and what you're made of. You know, like narcotics. Get back to the office, get a nice big desk job, you know, chasing bad checks or something him out here. Okay, But if you want to be an arc, I want to serve my community by riding in dangerous drugs, right correct? Or why you want to be an arc? I want to make detective. There you go. You can do it. Stick with me, you can do it. Unlearned that book they teach you at the academy. Know, don't bring none in get you killed out in.
I will do anything you want me to do. Roll your window down, start there.
So you gotta hear this stream. You gotta smell it. You know, you gotta taste it feeling. I just learn that. Learn that get you killed. He got plot and all kinds behind your back. Denzel Washington,
that name alone draws such reverence from film fans. His performances are legendary, and time and time again, he is wowed filmgoers with his wide range of abilities. Before two thousand and one, there were questions if Washington could be one character that was the quote unquote bad guy or villain. This week's film answered that with one of his greatest performances, directed by Antoine Fuqua, and released in two thousand and one. Training Day gives us the story of idealistic cop Jake hoy Ethan Hawke in his resurgent role, who is wanting to become a narcotics detective or a narc He is selected by Officer Alonzo Harris Washington to go through a training day to try and make his squad.
As the day evolves, we see Harris's facade as a decorated, well respected, in feared cop fall apart in the ruins of corruption, greed, and lawlessness. Our first clip sets the stage for this day. Our next clip is the first meeting between hoy and Smith in a coffee shop. We hear the coldness that Harris has and the eagerness of hoy This is important because as this film progresses, the Harris coldness evolves into ruthlessness and Hoyt's eagerness turns into helpless despair. I'm trying to read my paper.
Please shut up the last year wouldn't mind not roasting a high black and white olsmer tell me a story, wit like my story? No, not your story? A story. Since you can't keep your mouth shut long enough for me to read my paper, tell me a story. I don't think I know any stories. You don't know any stories. All right, I'll tell you a story. This is a newspaper, right, it's ninety percent, but it's entertaining. That's why I read it, because it entertains me. You won't let me read it, so you entertain me with your boy.
Tell me a story, right now. Go Well, there was a dui stop, a dui stop, let me load up my gun a d uh oh listen, all right, it's kid. We were on her to watch oh me and Debbie, who's I'm sorry, Debbie Maxwell, my training officer had a female training wawser, yes, sir, o, okay, okay, right, all right? So what was she? Black wife's wife? It's pretty pretty good, Debbie midwatch Go all right. Well so it was a real quiet you never know, that's the point. Go all right, Well it was it was quiet night. We're rolling on van no one.
I'm driving this accurate. Just a beautiful car comes out of side street all over the media and in access. I lighted up. Hit the whaler. Guy drives on. I'm like, I'm invisible for ten blocks before he pulls over. He plays run clean, and so I feel tasked and arrest, and I'm I'm belting him in our unit and Debbie's tossing his car. She calls me over to the vehicle and shows me snup thirty eight and two shotguns fully loaded and locked. So she calls our supervisor and I keep searching. I find five hundred grams of meth in the dash.
It turns out this duy is unbailed for distribution. It's on his way to smoke his ex partner before trial. We prevented a murder. You got him. It's amazing. It is that you could be out there with a fine for a year and the most entertaining story that you can come up with to tell me is a drunk stop. But I don't believe you. We tap that, you know you tap that. You put it in a bagsy bam code X man. I gotta way, you gotta do You do have a diction? Yes? Okay? It lines up straight like that, right to the right of it and to the left of it, or pockets right in those pockets of money looking either one of them paid to build.
With most cop films, there is corruption either right in front of our eyes or it is heavily implied. What makes this film different is it is not over the top. It is painfully real and drives this story. Our next two clips are examples of this. First, Alonso has to meet a group of officers that call themselves the Wise Men because of their ability to use corruption to get whatever they want. In this meeting, we hear the trouble Alonzo is in after a disturbing and disgusting story. Then, after Alonso kills someone to take millions hiding in his own home, his relationship with Hoyt begins to unravel, but not until Alonzo makes one more attempt to convince Jake that what they are doing is acceptable.
To see a jam. It's my new guy who works on my squad, j hooy Captain Luke Jacobs. You haven't need to talk to the Fed. You talk to him first, good man. He can take you back for you. Stan Gerski over here, he runs the DA shooting team. You think about him before you pull the trigger, because you're room he'll snap nuts out using for dice. Detective Doug Riseli right here, and it's high dollar deft cases for the French poodle crowd. You know if you lose a Picasso he'll find it for your diage. Fine, he's a good man.
Please meet you, good man. Boom shoo, get yourself a baseball steak or something. Yes, I don't know why I'm meeting you. I don't talk to dead man. Ain't dead Jenny by a long faced Doug. Huh, bet sees your house or something. Couple told him the story. Come on, tell the story. You think it's so funny you talking? No, No, it's your story, you tell it, all right, all right, all right. This is cereal Burglar tracing him for twelve months and real slickster gave up nothing. Captain's writing my ass the entire time.
Sensing was today Judge's female. That's right, Landers, Yeah, I know Landers shop lady. So before the hearing, guy gets hold of some pebout pack and he's standing tall before the bench and he's waiting to give a statement. So he shoves his hand down his pants, comes out with a gob an extra chunky chief. Bailiffs won't come near him.
Now he's looking to judge right in the eyes, licks his fingers cleaned. So Judge says, uh, oh, this poor man's insane. He can't go to prison, orders him to psychiatrist he fell for. Yeah, that's because he's smart. Times she found out it was sandwich spared. The order was signed, that guy has been transferred. He's closed, freckled six months in the puzzle factory. Then they'll call him normal and let him lose. Ever do a damn prison ye, give him quitit though, work. The system deserves his freedom.
Yeah, so or not. I'll tell you what. I'm gonna find this guy on the street and I'm gonna do him.
You better take his bullets from him, standing lonzo. Yeah, an expensive weekend in Vegas? How did you ever screw up so bad? Nothing? It's nothing, forget it. You know, I didn't know. It's not my town. I'm not am nisition, But Russians don't care. If you have a badge, whack you. You're to hyper jet out of here. Why it's an easy fix. How he's cashing an account? Oh yeah, yeah, who's one of my old ones? My first one. It's not a problem. Look, the guy's a high security risk anyway. If I'm not around, who's gonna keep him off rate?
Are you? I'm just taxing that so okay, that's your call. I do not want you to I do not want to see you on the front page like those others.
Yeah, I understand who's driving me Grand Mercedes? Okay? And now hoit? Questions? Alonzo? All right, later I d be who's you're not the ground justifiable on a side lined to be okay, now what happened. What happened was a murder and arm bre Oh we have badges, so it's different. Son killed from your eyes? Can't you see? That man was your friend and you killed him? Come my friend? Uh mean why because he knows my first name? So this is the game. I'm playing his ass. That's my job. That's your job. Roger sold dope the kids.
The world is a better place without him. Hey, this man was the biggest major violator in Los Angeles. I watched that Tucker operate with impunity for over ten years, and now I got it the ship. Yes, it ain't check us what you think we're gonna do. We're gonna roll up in a black and white huh, slap the cuffs on him. You'reunder arrest. That's a high roller dog think of money and already told you I'm not gonna take this take. I'm not gonna take that you don't just burn it. Barbecue and fish fry. I don't give but the boys will feel better their feelings.
Jacob, You're not making them feel like you're part of the team. The team. You guys are insane. All right, I'll go back to the valley. I'll cut parking tickets. You know he can't be like this. It is this way, man, I'm sorry I expose you to it, but it is. It's ugly, but it's necessary. I became a cop to put away drug dealers, the poisoners, the criminals. Not to be one sounds just like man, and I know what you're going through. I know what you're feeling. You're scared. I'm not scared as you want to terrified.
Anybody goes through that the first time I went through as the SONA. You can match what's in your head. That's what's going on in the real world. The better you're gonna feel in this business. You gotta have a little gut on you for anybody to trust you. I'm gonna all this is behind you. It's gonna be a home on the world that opens up for you. I walk a high and past sun, but I can give me the keys to all the doors's. My guys are pretty good. But then I leaders, then the clowns. You're a leading You want my job, You got it.
You want to lock up poisonous. This is the best place to do it. But you gotta just you don't take your time. You make detective and play the game and grow wise, and then you can change things. But you gotta change him from the inside. So let's go down down to the station. You talk to my guys staying, and then we'll walk you through what you gotta say to the da guys. Okay. This film has many great performances and cameos from the aforementioned Hawk, Tom Barringer, Doctor Dre Macy, Gray Snoop Dogg, and Eva Mendez.
But no mistake, the performance that is not just the top in this film, but one of the greatest ever, is that of Washington. In our final clip, the unraveling of Alonso is complete when men that Alonso allows to illegally operate in a local neighborhood do not take Jake out when he commands them too. He loses all control and gives a speech that many, my self included, feel is one of the most memorable in cinema. Street. Oh you mother? Okay, all right, I'm putting cases on all you. Huh. You think you can do this, Jane, You think you can do this to me?
Your mother will be playing basketball in Pelican Fay when I get finished with you. Shoot program twenty three hour Lockdown. I'm the man up in this. You'll never see the light of dude, though you think you with. I'm the police. I rushed you, just lifted. Yeah, that's wack. You better walk away. Gonna walk away because I'm gonna burn this one down. King Kong ain't got on me. This film marked a major turning point for Washington. As I stated before, proved he could play the villain and do it well.
It gave him an added dynamic to his already awe inspiring range. So much so he has went on to play other unscrupulous individuals in other films. While they are great performances, they do not match the verocity and powerhouse performance he gives in this film. This film was a hit. It was the second highest October opening in cinema history, at twenty four point two million its opening weekend. The only reason it opened in October is following the September eleven attacks. The film was delayed by a month.
It finished with one hundred and four point nine million gross worldwide. It was nominated for two Academy Awards, Best Supporting Actor for Hawk and Best Actor for Denzel Washington right Fully and Deservingly Washington one for Best Actor. It has spawned a sense canceled television series, and a prequel of the film is currently in production. It is timeless and its realness, rawness and unabashed power. I would recommend this film to anyone, no matter what films they like. With my highest recommendation, I hope you will join me next week when we will look up to the sky and answer is it a bird?
Is it a playing? Well? Maybe, but one thing is for sure. It is the first comic book film blockbuster. We will look at Christopher Reeves in the nineteen seventy eight film Superman, the movie for WMNH and Matt Connerton unleashed. This has been a classic film review with Derek Pilcher still sloped up and d I ain't d yes who was backing? Still he's still doing that show? Yeah, shut me out, It's still Tray t ain't Jay through our phones fly can't keep it home a lot because my frequent in spots that I'm knowing the rock you hit the base from the struck when I'm home the block ladies, they cain't home, but hate to say straight feel love fou.
My last album was The Droning. They want to know if he's still got it, they say, raps change. They want to know how I feel abody in laying out. Doctor Dray is the name my head of my game. Still puffing my leaf, still with the beats, still not loving police, Still rock my cafies for the cup in the creases. Still got love for the streets, rapping two one three, still the fat fans, Still doing my thing since I left, ain't too much change. I'm representation for the gamesters on across the back, still hitting them countless in the lolos because still taking my time to perfect a beat, and I still got love for the streets.
It's the dr for the Gangster Tho across the water, Still hitting Encountress in the lolos, Still taking my time to perfect a bit, and I still got love for the streets. It's the Dyrs. The last time you heard from me, I lost some friends. Well hell me and Snoopy dipping again, I kept my head to the streets, signed him and them, he's tripping flatten. I'm doing fifty week Still, I stayed close to the heat, and even when I was close to the feet, I wrote some of my feet. All my life's like a soundtrack.
I wrote to the feet street wrapped like he likes until I sleep wake up in the a m composed of beat. I bring the fire to your soaking in and seat. It's not a fluke, it's but tried. I'm the truth since turned out the lights from the world class wrecking clue. I still flatted after mathematics and the homing sid I got asthmatics. Why me snimms? He getting bad traffic. I dipped through. Then I kids get this dr feet for them. Ain't that thrown across the world. Still hitting them counters in the lolows because still taking my time to perfect the bet, and I'm still got love for the streets.
It's ther one. The gangsters don't across the world. Still hitting them countless in the middlehomes. Still taking my time to perfect a bit, and I'm still got love for the streets. It's the dyr e. It ain't nothing but Mohai, another classic CD for y'all to vibe with. Whether you're cooling on the corner with your flock laid back in the shack, play this track of representing for the gangsters all across the world, hitting the counters and the bubblers because I'm breaking neck planning it. Put your face in your lap, trying to be the king or the aces.
Back to da doctor dre b the name, Still running the game. Still got it wrapped like a mummy. Still ain't ripping. Love to see young blacks getting money, spend time by the hood, take their mom's out. Could hit my boys off the jobs. No more living hard Barby Cuice every day, driving fancy cars. Still gonna get Moby God. I'm representing for the gangsters on across the world, Still hitting them countless in them lowlows, because still taking my time to perfect a bit, and I still got love of the streets.
It's the gr the Dansters on across the world, Still hitting the countless in the blowlows, Still taking my time to perfect a bit, and I still got love of the streets. It's the gr the Gansters on across the wild, still hitting him countless in the middle still taking my time to perfect a bit and I'm still got love for the streets. It's the g r E like that right back up, beating nine five plus four pennies and it's dumb d r he right back up on the type of things. Wants so much you, Doug low Stress, skinch swams mans sweans it was he he hits you put it in the end where you he wants me.
From the studios of w m n H ninety five point three FM in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, you are tuned in to the best of Matt Connerton Unleashed. How are you welcome? I'm doing well, Thank you? How are you good? Good? Am I saying her last name? Correct, it's Beechered. Oh it's Beechered. I was saying Bichard. I think I'm sorry. Has French roots close? And uh? You are a how do you describe what you do? A promoter? Primarily? Yep, so I'm a promoter and a booking agent. Um putting on live shows?
Excellent, excellent? Yeah. Um, actually we're gonna play something in a little bit um that you had sent this band house Lights. This is really good. Thank you. I love this track. Love and understanding. Now, are they someone that you work with on a regular basis. Yeah, we we go way back. Um, for anybody that's been in New Hampshire for fifteen twenty years. UM started out around Milford as Horns, become Halos Um, same group of guys. Okay, just we've kind of evolved over the years. Yeah. Yeah, you know, that'll be a full story for another day.
You know, have the band on the on the show? Yeah? Album comes out? Yeah, absolutely, but yeah, you know we've we've been able to stick together, um, you know, and and just Matt the main guy who it's most of music, and myself of UM, you know, we we work really well together. Are you in the band or do you vos on the track? Oh? Okay, I didn't realize that. Okay, I thought it was just someone you you managed or booked. Oh awesome, so that's you on there? Oh fantastic. Yeah. I mean two bands currently, um House Lights and then Astronomist as my other band.
Oh I got you. We're working on a EP. Just didn't have anything ready for the show today to play on the air. But okay, okay, yeah, so you do it all then, So you're a musician and you're and you and you do the business as well. Excellent, excellent. Um yeah, I'm that's part of what I wanted to talk to you too while I was looking forward to this uh discussion today, because um, I kind of have a similar background. I don't play anymore. I used to play in a lot of bands, but I also did, you know, promoted a lot of shows and did a lot of you know, booking and some artist management and all that kind of stuff.
So um, and I always found that, um, you know, to me, it's it's all interesting, you know what I mean, because I think most musicians really would like to not have to do any of the business part of it, you know, they want to just focus on making the music. But I think it's um but for whatever reason, the way my brain is wired, and maybe you're the same way, I just think it's all fascinating. And I not that there's anything quite like being on stage, but you know what I mean, Oh yeah, that's the goal to get back on stage.
But in the meantime, you know, I figured I can help other people realize those dreams as well. Yeah, because like you said, there's there's no better feeling if you're a musician being on stage in front of you know, tons of people that know your music, rocking out, singing along. Oh yeah, it's it's a you know, a high unlike any others. So absolutely, let's go ahead and play this for everybody. I'm anxious to hear it again. This this track house Lights, and I'm sorry the band is house Lights. The track is love and Understanding and anything you want us to know about this before we listen to it.
About the song, I mean, so, it's this album that we're coming out with. It's probably just gonna be self titled. Um, you know, we've been working on at the last kind of year plus, I mean, Matt for a lot longer. He approached me a couple of years ago with the music and it's kind of like, Okay, we're gonna we're gonna start this up again and you know, give it another go okay, you know. Uh, the only thing I'll say is is just uh, you know, this album in particular was pretty personal to me. Um as far as the lyrics, you know, I wrote probably ninety eighty five nine percent of the lyrics um for the album, and uh, you know, we can get a little bit more into that after we hear the song, but uh, you know, just it's a lot about you know, personal experiences and kind of what I try to promote in my daily life and and you know more that I wish out of society.
I guess well, okay, say, okay, cool, cool, all right, let's give this a listen. So this is Love and Understanding is a song and the track, but the band is houselights. Um you know what it it's it's eighty seven degrees and it's not even the middle of April, and it's just messing with me in every way possible physically, mentally, It's it's nuts. So, yeah, this is Love and Understanding. The B and his house lights. Check this out. This is really good. I know I'm shruggling to day. Everything is out of place.
It's so razy to faget to suggle down. So many faces, yourn alone, spa, you're fighting your not alone beside you still fighting woman, comfort myself, remember saturation over the same ye runs off around, run through round love just association turned pain into motivation. In spite of my creation, my hands you above you love speaking out. I can't alve you. I love you, my ra said our ration
get look, why can't my race? I don't know trall Is Camber. Why nobody has the band is house Lights and from house Lights we have here at the news desk. Sam Beechart is with us. How are you, Sam? Doing great? Welcome to the show today. Thank you. Have you been here before? By the way, have you been in this building? I have not. It's what It's wild, isn't it, because you would never know, like from the outside, you would never know there was a radio station up here, very very indiscriminate door. Yes, yes, it's very Uh it's it's like we're we're sort of tucked away.
Um, but which is kind of nice. But uh and uh it is a beautiful day out of course in downtown Manchester. It's hot. It was eighty seven degrees when I came in, and uh, it seems like every every year, I feel like we get that first blast of summer weather a little bit earlier than the year before, and it just keeps going. And I like the heat, but it worries me a little bit too, you know what I mean? But uh so, uh, Sam is here looking forward to uh to talking with him? So, um, are you a summer guy? Sam?
No? No, The it's the humidity. Yeah that gets me. Yeah. Yeah, it hit seventy five and I'm if I can't even sit without starting to sweat. Oh really yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm kind of the opposite. I I like the heat. I don't like the cold, although the cold bothers me less than it used to. But I like spring. I really like summer. I don't like fall because of what it leads to. You know, the trees are nice and everything with the foliage. But but yeah, it feels like I don't know what it's supposed to be like tomorrow, if this is supposed to last.
But boy, I'll tell you it showed up quickly this year. Yeah. But um So, tell me more about um So that track? I love that song, Love and Understanding the band house Lights one of your bands. Well, what can you tell us about that? I'm particularly curious to know, and I'm a bit of a geek this way. I love to hear about the process of recording songs because you know, I'm older, and when I was growing up, it was, you know, basically your options were. Well, of course, if you are in a big band, you go to a million dollars studio, and if you're in a little local band.
You know, you find a cheaper studio to go and record at. But we live in an era now where you've got so many options as far as how you record. So I'm really curious to know more about that and h and anything else you can tell us about that that track. Yeah, so, yes, the whole album is recorded right you're in Manchester. Self produced excellent. So Matt Matt, lead guitarist for the band, writes pretty much all of the music for the band. Um and so he has all of that just rerecorded. Um, you know, demos that stuff at home and then uh, you know, we get to come in and hear it and kind of lay our lay down our parts.
Um our drummer shout out Adam Susy. Uh he's a Berkeley boy. Uh he's he's pretty much uh the most I jokingly say, is the most successful. He's a touring uh drummer and session drummer for a ton of bands around the area. Cool and people listening probably have heard his name. He plays with a lot of different acts, um, you know through it from around Boston and everything. Um. So he's always he's always drumming. Um and he's amazing Yeah, he laid down some killer drum tracks and his home studio. UM sent him over to us and and you know, got him put together.
And then uh, we were looking for someone to to mix the tracks. Um. Obviously we none of us have a lot of experience in that. Yeah. And uh, you know, again the advent of technology and the internet. We went to sound Better UM and we found uh, we had a lot of bids actually, um so sound Better is a website where artists can can post their music and engineers will bid on. I didn't know about mixing and mastering. It's an incredible website. Wow. So we actually found a guy, um, Augustine Pugh out of a studio Dukie in uh Argentina, who is mixing or mixing our album for us.
And the mixes are coming out incredible. Um. His prices are incredibly reasonable, and he's taken all of our feedback and just made magic. Um. Wow, he's he's amplified the songs. He's had some input on his end too, of like you know, we're a little bit you know, liberal with it. Like you know, hey, if you got something that sounds good you think would be you know, help the song, send it over to us and we'll check it out. If we like it, we'll roll with it. Yeah. Um, So that he's he's made the process you know, very very um you know, easy and comfortable.
Yum. And just you know, he's he's quickly developing into another part of like our project, you know, somebody that could definitely see us work with again in the future. It sounds like he's And it's so often it just sort of happens by accident where someone is is engineering or mixing, but they become sort of a de facto producer. Yeah. In the process of that. Yeah, you get somebody that's uh, you know, more of an objective observer and they're they're detached from the music a bit, so they can pick out these things that you might be fighting for that are just they only mean something to you, Yeah, but don't necessarily serve the music.
Yeah. So yeah, honest objective feedback UM is always great and I offer it to any bands ever. Um. You know obviously uh novacoy you guys you had in here months back. Um, Matt and Tye from Strange Tractions booking. Obviously they're in NOVACOI. Um, you know, we've become good friends and they've been helping me along with the booking stuff. Attle cool well cool, um, so you know, yeah, it's standing offer any musicians, any any bands out there that you know, if you guys need objective, constructive feedback from you know, an open minded person.
I la pretty much every genre. Yeah, um, you know, and I enjoy pretty much every genre. So cool, you know cool reach out excellent, excellent. Now so sound better because I was not aware of this website. So what do you so you um musicians post? Well, what do you what do you post when you're looking for someone to bid on your work? As far as mixing? Like like, what do you do you post like demos or yeah you post like you know a thirty thirty second minute long clip um or links to you know if you have staff hardy on Spotify or band camp or SoundCloud.
Ye, you know, you can give send the links over the engineer. They'll take a listen and then they can bid if it's something they think fits or if they want to add the you know that style to their portfolio. But how do you when when you um, when you send things to the engineer for them to decide if they want to bid, how do you how does that initial connection happen? Do you do you put your uh do do you put yourself on this? And then engineers, well some prospective engineers will see it or how does it?
How does how does the connection happen? Yeah, so I I Matt is the one that handled most of that, Okay, So I don't know one hundred percent. Yeah, I just know that I think we did a little bit of reaching out, um, you know, just paying a few people like, yeah, we're interested in in some mixing services or mastering services. Yeah. And then yeah, and then you you kind of post your link too. I think it's like a message board, okay, thing um, and then the engineers can go on and search it. Yeah, and if they are interested, they send a message out directly to you.
Okay, and then you kind of work out the details. That's really cool. I I'll have to look at I mean, you know, I don't have anything to post or need mixed, but I'm gonna look at that site later, just out of curiosity, because that's a great idea. That's a great concept. Yeah, and there's a lot of them like that, you know. Obviously you've got for artists. You have five now, which is a big one. Yeah. Yeah, you know that people can go on and even have people make songs for them or produced stuff. So you know, the almost anything you can think of, you know, yeah, you can find it.
Yeah yeah, Um do you know if uh I understand, So Matt handled that part of the process, But do you know if other did other mixers or engineers bid Yeah, oh yeah, so anyones that that came back to us, you know, uh, Matt and Bobby who does the scream vocals um in there? Yea, I do pretty I do the cleans for house lights, ok um. Working on getting into more uh more types of vocal um working on my extreme vocally called UM but haven't done any for that project yet. Um. Uh. But yeah, so Matt and Bobby and I would talk over UM.
You know, Matt would would field the requests and kind of send them out to us. We'd have group chats and stuff and you know, okay, this person's offering this much, and here their references who they've worked with. UM. So we we definitely did our research, you know. We we had a certain um, you know, certain style that not everyone can handle. Sure, it's a bit different. We don't want to sound generic. We don't want to sound you know, cookie cutter. So we wanted somebody that was going to be excited, um, you know, to to work with us.
And uh so I don't know if it's always the case, but Augustine actually did some free demo like work for us when we were initially uh you know, trying to trying to find out who we wanted. So he did like a whole like minute mix for two different songs, um and sent them back to us for free, no charge. Yeah. Yeah, it's like, if you guys want to continue, this is what you know the price would be. And oh that's really cool. Yeah, that's a great resource. Wow. J Fed is asking in the chat and he uh, I don't know if you've heard many of the other interviews, but he asked this question of everybody.
Uh. He's he's got his wife's birthday is coming up in September, so he wants to know do you play birthday parties? Well, so with both of my projects, so house Lights, Um, again, we're finishing our full length album, but we are still looking actively looking for a second guitarist. Um. We haven't played any of this music live together yet. Yeah, so we wanted to finish on the music, get it all done, and then build out our live live show, so house Lights. Unfortunately it would not be I it'd be hard pressed to be ready for that that time frame.
Yeah, and then with Astronomist, kind of same thing. I just joined Astronomists back in like November December. They were just starting to form the project. They're from kind of like middle central Maine area. But you know, I heard them posting some stuff on Facebook. Came across them one day, and uh, they were looking for a vocalist and I really dug their music. So I was like, you know, gave a few months because I was just super busy with stuff. Yeah, and it was still open and I'm like whatever, I'll just I'll give it a shot.
Yeah and uh so yeah, through through a demo together for them on one of their songs that they sent over, and uh, you know, the rest is history. So working on an EP right now, you know pretty much the band is is you know, fully formed, but again still very early stages. Unfortunately, I can't help you out with the birthday parties for this year, but maybe next year we can talk. So his next question was, what if I play a guitar for you. I mean, depending on my availability, I would always come and do some covers, just me and somebody.
I unfortunately am not a musician. I cannot. I used to play bass in bands. Um, I would not call myself a good bassist really passing, you know, kind of picked it up because they needed one ye back in the day. But you know, vocals have always been my passion and I'm happy to now have the chance to do that for bands and focus my attention on that. Yeah. So you know, I've been working with a vocal coach and really I've added an extreme vocal coach as well. Okay, I'm just you know, pushing myself to get a bit you know, best vocal that I can.
That's interesting to me. So you have a you have a vocal coach, and then so you have a someone else you've just started working with to get that to be able to UM. I always hear uh. I've heard a lot of singers talk about there's a DVD, although now it's probably just you. You can find the online of uh. I think it's called the Is that The Art of Screaming? Yeah? Across? Oh yes, yes that uh that came out way back when I was in high school, um, middle school, high school. Me and my buddies all all knew about that up out um a lot of the bands that we liked were going to melist Across.
She was kind of one of the first pioneers of of you know, the extreme vocal uh you know coaching. Yeah yeah, and hen she has her own method um. You know, so there's a bunch of different methods, and there's you know, the main the main types are a sort of false chord and fry scream, which a lot of the industry doesn't necessarily light even like those terms, but those are just terms that people have given to so that's kind of how people identify them. Yeah, so you know, those are kind of the main two main types of extreme vocal uh, which is how they're known kind of as a broader, broader category.
Let me let me ask you this because I've always been kind of fascinated by it, and I'm not a singer myself. I mean, I can sing, um, I the only thing I can really do as far as a vocal, Like, you know, I can do backing vocals. I've done backing vocals and bands, and I'm actually not a bad harmony singer. I seem to have an ear for being able to find the octave and kind of lock in where I need to on my own though I get lost. I could never be a lead singer, but um, I've always been fascinated by so with the with the extreme singing is um is the biggest part of it, Just learning how to do it safely, yes, because obviously, I mean you if you do that wrong, you could really I mean, you could shred your vocal chords right yep.
And a lot of people have, um. I bet you know a lot of people even going to Melissa Cross and any of those other schools, it's very easy to It's a lot of famous musicians that have had multiple vocal surgeries because they, you know, either are not following the technique properly or just you know, in the moment they pushed you hard. Um. You know, it's it's definitely all about technique. Once you have technique, and in technique plus breath control seems to be the magic key to unlock all those doors.
Once you have those two things, it's gonna take a lot of time, yeah, but you can at least make those sounds. And once you know how to make those sounds, then you can start to you know, develop and find your own sound within the technique. Is there still even if you're doing it safely? Is there still I would imagine some some risk of of long term damage if you,
um, if you're just singing that way a lot on a consistent basis. Am I wrong? Uh? In you know, I certainly wouldn't claim to be an expert to speak on that. Yeah that anybody really is? Yeah, you know, I don't know famously obviously. You know. Will Ramos is one of the most from from Lauren Shore is one of the most famous extreme vocalists at this current time. Yeah, you know, and they did the face you know, the the YouTube video the laryn joscopy of Will Ramos. They actually put a camera down his throat and had him scream while it was in there to see the movement of the vocal chords.
Interesting if they could figure anything out, um oh wow it you know, it's just really as long as you follow that technique. I mean so far for me, like using the technique and the breath control that I've learned, I can kind of just sit there all day. No, couldn't do it because you don't get a sore throat or anything or any Oh excellent. That's that was the most important part. When I went to my extreme vocal coach. When I was looking for one, I identified, you know, okay, who in the scene is doing this and and you know what other abilities that they have.
So I found someone that has amazing cleans as well as really really like super technical narly screams. Um, you know. And I'm like, Okay, well, if this guy's been doing this for for as long as he has, he probably knows something. And he's an established vocal coach as well, been doing it for years. So oh excellent. So shout out to uh, shout up to mister Black Kyle Kyle Farrar. He's in late nine, um, a few other bands out of the Boston area. Okay, check out his stuff. He's amazing, cool cool. Um.
Now you write most of them lyrics? Yeah, yeah, So for the most part, um, you know, Matt handles most of the music, and then I'll come in, I'll do a draft of lyrics. Um. You know, if there's any that I'm not kind of catching a vibe on or getting inspiration on, um, you know, then Matt and Bobby will kind of sit down and work through through those, um you know, or for some of Bobby's parts, um, you know, definitely like I'm like, okay, you know, I have an idea here, but I'm not the one who's actually screaming these parts.
Oh okay. Yeah, So you know, if there's any particularly challenging parts, I'll they'll kind of sit down and write it and then you know, we'll we'll get together and go over any corrections or um. You know, even as we're recording, we'll go, Okay, it doesn't sound the way we thought it was going to right, so we'll you know, do a little session and you know, oh, this word doesn't work as well in this part. You know, we don't like the flow, we don't like the um you know, the meter of of the phrasing or whatever.
So we'll change it up a little bit. Um. But yeah, for the most part, you know, I would say, like, you know, do do eighty to eighty five percent of the drafts become final lyrics for the songs. And you had mentioned for that song Love and Understanding, Uh, you would mentioned there was more to say about the lyrics to that that they were very personal to you and yeah, um, you know, and really for you know, anyone that has experienced loss, which is most of humanity, you know, if you're in tune to that and you spend time, um, you know, dissecting your thoughts and and trying to better understand grief and loss and everything that comes along with it.
Um. You know, uh, I A lot of that was sparked more in me last year. Um, you know, had a really tough death of one of my friends, very prematurely. Um, and it just it was you know, I have been playing in the scene for a long long time and been wanting to, you know, do promotion, and I get a good sense of joy and accomplishment from helping and serving others. Yeah, so I figured, you know what, like, you know, why why am I waiting? You know, they all the cliches you only live once or you know, your life's too short whenever you want to say, but it's true.
Yeah, those are cliches because they are true as they are, they come back again and again. So I said, I'm done waiting. You know, I'm gonna jump into this and you know, put my energy into creating something positive, you know, using those energies that I that are inside of me, that are battling every day and saying I'm gonna I'm gonna do something good, you know, instead of being overcome by any of that sadness or that grief. I'm gonna do something good. Yeah, I'm gonna help people, you know, realize their dreams, achieve my dreams.
Um. You know, I like to say, if if one of us succeeds, we all succeed together. Yeah, And that's true of the scene right now. You know, very very happy to be part of the local scene New Hampshire, New England. That's things are popping off again and it's awesome. Oh, there's so much great talent around here. Absolutely. But yeah, I always I always say, and you know this will sound cliche, but it's true that you know, if if you can take any anything negative, you know, grief or whatever it is, and like you said, it's something we all you know, it's universal.
Everyone can relate to it. You know, anytime you can take a negative experience or negative feelings, trauma, whatever, and and and do something positive with it, do something productive with it. Um, that's the best therapy you know possible, you know, And because it partly because not only are you creating something, but also because it's not only helping you, it's helping other people who can take something from what you do, you know, um uh, which which is wonderful and and that that's great. You know you you help others with UM yeah.
To tell me more about the so the promotions part of things, yep, um so I back in October, um I filed for you know, my business application, um so I am an official booking business. UM always forward events. UM. You can find me always forward an h on pretty much Instagram, Facebook, TikTok. All the socials, Yeah, still learning a lot of the socials. UM got to be there at content but um yeah, I mean my my main mission is to bring the scene together, you know, by providing more more kind of mid range UM venues for bands to play.
I mean, you know, back in the day, obviously I was playing in the scene and uh you know a lot of times it's you're you're breaking your back to play bars for ten people, um, you know, playing backyard shows, playing basements, which is great, um, you know, and there's a lot of bands that thrive in that scenario. And the IY scene is definitely alive again and it's a necessary party. But I'm trying to you know, there's a lot of people that are doing that part of it. Um, So I'm trying to hit a market where, you know, trying to get into those one hundred and fifty three hundred, five hundred seat venues you know where normally they're booking you know, they're big enough for they're equipped to book regional or national acts sometimes, but getting the local bands that stage time, um, you know, uh, bringing them you know, out of the basements a bit um and trying to get them to a broader audience.
Yeah, you know, and just I know, you know, the times I got to play theaters and you know, big events spaces back in the day, it was awesome. Okay, like now we're talking yeah yeah, so yeah so and just bringing people around that, you know, getting the word out about local music and um, you know, trying to help people realize their dreams. It's interesting how things have changed. Um And you know, it's kind of um, some of it's In some ways, I think all of this is more challenging and in some ways it's easier, and I think it probably kind of balances out.
I think it's it's it maybe a wash, but you know, there was a time when, um, well it's always been hard, like if you're a local band or or a solo artist and you're especially if you're in the early stages of your career and you don't really have much of a following and you're you know, you're you're trying to get out there. Um, obviously it's it's very challenging. And I think that over time what has happened is as you know, like you referred to social media, Um, now we're in an era. You know, like I think back to when I started in the scene, and you know, now I you know, my my involvement in the scene now is really interviewing people in the scene.
I don't I don't play in a in a band currently and really wouldn't have time too. But um but I feel like now it's so there's a I think there's a larger challenge and it's all it's all been brought on by the Internet. So the part that I think is harder, just from my perspective, and again I'm sort of on the outside looking in. The part that's harder is you're you're competing with so much more than you were before social media and all the streaming services and all of that, because you know, before you were competing with everybody else in the scene.
You know, you might have a show somewhere and somebody else has a show, and you know, you're trying to get people to go to your show. Now you're competing with you're competing with Netflix, and you're competing with somebody who you know, maybe somebody just wants to watch TikTok videos or they're streaming on on Twitch or whatever it is. You're competing with so much more now, more than ever.
On the other hand, because of social media and other elements of the Internet, it's also easier than ever to promote what you do into market what you do um because you know, back in the day, it was you know, I remember specifically getting yelled at by police here in Manchester for stapling flyers to a telephone pole, you know what I mean. And we've all you know, we've all either been there or watched it happened to other people, you know. And of course today, if I were actively promoting a show, it wouldn't even occur to me to bother you know what I mean, Why why would I even bother stapling a flyer to a telephone pole, I'm gonna, you know, post something online.
So I think it's it's on one hand, there's more that you're competing with than ever, but at the same time, because of that, there's also more opportunities than ever to promote what you do. So if you can find a way to cut through all the noise, um if if you know you can, you can actually if you do it right, you can build a fan base pretty quickly if if you do it right, if you if you figure it out, which it sounds like you've you've done to some extent. I mean, you've had some success, so you know it's always it's always a slog but um, you know, but you know you're you're making it happen.
Yeah, and you know again it's it's I guess I should you know, it should definitely be happy too because I just started in October and to have a success that I've had um so far has been really great. Um, you know, I definitely need to find a way to get to more um more I more non band members right right, you know those connections are amazing thing. And obviously you know I've got tons of bands that are looking for shows and and you know, without them, obviously I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing right.
Um. But at the same time, they're not necessarily paying to go to a show every weekend. You know, they're playing a show, or they're practicing, or they're working their actual job and trying to get paid. You know. Again, local musicians don't really get paid. Um. You know, it's another thing that I'm trying to to change. Um. Definitely bid off a little more than I could choo. Early on my first few shows, I was paying bands out of my pocket to you know, book the venue and all stuff. So that was a that was a good learning lesson to me and for anyone else who's thinking of doing it.
Um. You know, as much as you want to go from zero to one hundred and twenty, uh, it's not sustainable. Um Less. You know you're gonna get the people in the door. So you know, if you're gonna take a risk, try to make sure that it's the least risky risk you can take. That you're gonna get a band that's gonna draw you know a lot of people, U know, So kind of dialed things back and looked at my business practices and again took it as learning experience and said, Okay, I got to modify things for now to get myself in a better position to start building that momentum, and then you know, then identify a point where making you know, make that the target is.
Eventually I'll be able to give bands guarantees again, or I might be able to target you know, a regional act coming through on a tour or something and get some locals on it. Um. You know that definitely seems to be more of the move right now. Um. So yeah, doing it doing a lot of a lot of business research and trying to trying to figure out where I'm gonna, you know, make the most impact, and so much of being an entrepreneur, whether it's in the music industry or or in anything really is it Unfortunately involves losing money.
Yeah, Um, but it's j j Fed says in the chat room, sounds like you should do birthdays. How about you paying Jake. I don't know if he'll pay you, but I do not, but I do know this. Are you interested in getting into an ice bath? Because today today I would be yeah, because he's he's very into the ice bath. Okay, he didn't ask that question yet, but that's that question always comes up too. He posts on Facebook every day. You know, he's he's in an ice bath and he and he loves it. Wouldn't be for me.
I'd be worried about hypothermia. But but apparently it's it's very healthy. Yeah, I guess it's I have heard as much. Yes, it's a it's a healthy thing to do. But uh, yeah, it wouldn't be for me. We've got Sam Beechard as with us. What what came first for you? The creative aspect of it being a musician or or wanting to to promote or yeah, definitely music. Um, you know I started back in middle of the high school really because fourteen fifteen sixteen, um, you know, started in some local bands had you know, so horns become halos.
Um. I met Matt in college and we started playing together. And then I had another band that was my first high school band were Kilbird Shadows, break us O BRUO, A bunch of different names, a couple different vocalists, Shadows break us as a cool name. Thank you. The half the funny, the most funny, funniest part about that is that through all of our iterations. No one in the band ever liked all not everyone liked the name at any you know. That was always our joke was like, you know, okay, like four out of five would be good with it, but then it would be one person.
It's like, that name's so stupid. Why do you guys like that? And uh, you know we we kind of been playing off and on too. Um. You know, it's more of like a hard hard rock, experimental kind of metal inspired, um, you know inspired band. Yeah. So we played a lot in Manchester back in the day, played Roccos, played Millies. Those places were around je Yeah, way backs, way backs. Um, we may we may have crossed paths at some point. Yeah, we probably did because I played all those places. And yeah, well Roccos are remember vividly the Wall of Mirrors.
What a weird thing that was. Yep. But I mean again, you know, but it was cool. I mean a lot of the bands that grew up in that time are now back in the scene. Yeah, and they're there's that with the rebirth of the scene. They're also they have new projects out, they're reviving old projects where some of them or even have been still going. You know, there's a handful of bands that I see that are coming back to the area that's like, oh wow, Like you guys were playing fifteen years ago. Yeah, when the scene blew up, and you're still doing it.
They they hung on somehow. So I've run into that where uh, bands that I would consider kind of my peers in terms of just uh they were like really active at the same time I was really active, where I'll I'll see something on social media and I'm like, oh, they're they're still playing. Yeah, I didn't. I didn't know that, or are they you know, had gotten back together, and it's it's it's kind of kind of funny. It's uh like I saw something recently, if it was a Crown Victor, pro Prospect Hill or somebody, and I was like, oh, they're still doing stuff.
Cool, yeah, respect Hill still playing. Yeah. I didn't that must have been the band I'm thinking of then, because I'd seen something recently and I was like uh uh oh wow, and I and I had seen uh, I had seen Adam at uh somewhere, but I didn't. I didn't realize the band was still active. And I was like, that's great, you know, I'm I mean, I I felt kind of like how did I not know that? But then but then again, it's like I'm in this weird position where it's like, you know, I'm of the scene but not in the scene.
Or I'm in the scene but not of the scene. How would that work exactly? You know what I mean, Like I'm still a part of it, but I'm not really a part of it. Yeah, yeah, you know, well, I mean, you know again, this is you know, I want to take a second to thank you for for doing this. Local bands anything for free is is Um, you know that that's there. You're not gonna not jump on that. Yeah, you know, to provide free promotion to local bands is amazing. Um, So thank you for you know, to do that. Absolutely glad to do it.
I'm seeing a lot more uh you know, places jump jumping up, a lot more podcasts and internet radio stations that are coming back, yeah, which is very exciting. Um. So hopefully you know, we can just continue to build the network and yeah, you know, get people talking about local bands again. Absolutely, there's so much great talent around here. It's incredible. And to people out there listening, if you haven't go to a local show, pick one, pick one, you reach out to one of the bands and see what genre they are, see if you might dig it.
There's something out there for everybody right now. Um, you know, and there's a lot of talent. There's a lot of talent and a lot of bands working really hard to to put on good shows. We should mention too. I'm not the um this is not the only show that that also spotlights uh local music here. Um, I don't know if you're familiar with do you know Rob as a veto, I don't believe I do. You'll probably meet him at some point. He so he does a show also called Granite State of Mind. But yeah, but he's he's been doing it for a long time too, and and uh yeah you should connect with him or um but uh yeah, so he features a lot of really great local music.
Um, and he has you know, he has bands coming in play. And but with the shows that he does at Pembroke City Limits, it's it's like he can have a full band come into a full set electric and you know here in studio we kind of keep it acoustic because it's not you know, this room isn't really designed for for a full loud band. But um, yeah, so Rob does a lot and and yeah, you're right, I mean there's a lot happening, you know. And and again with the internet too, I think it's it's easier than ever to put things out there.
You know, it's just a matter of of finding ways to cut through the noise. Um. I mean in terms of that so
and we kind of talked about that cutting through the noise with with with music, but with the projects musical projects. But as far as promoting the shows that you do, I mean, how do you how do you figure that part out? How to cut through the noise if you're promoting a specific event, and again you've got you know, there's a million other things online that you've got to compete with. I mean, do you have um, do you have a way you approach that or without giving away any trade secrets necessarily, I'm not doing really you know, maybe it may it's part of the problem, not doing too much original, right you know, but uh yeah, I mean, you know, still still something that I'm working on figuring out, you know, building that network.
Um. You know, I've got a lot of you know, connections with bands and and still trying to get you know, the view out to the broader audience. UM. So you know, part of part of what I need to start doing more of and making more time for is again getting out to shows, um, you know, getting out too shows, getting face time with people, um, you know, and meeting them face to face, letting them know what I do, um, you know, and then just trying to network with other industry you know, opportunities you know, radio stations, production companies.
UM. You know, I have, I've fairly big long term plans you know, once the booking starts to catch on. Um, I have no shortage of things I want to do. Yeah. Um, you know, it's just finding the time and and being able to do them effectively. Yeah. So yeah, the promotion has been been difficult, you know, and not something I've really done before. And you know, kind of just putting stuff out to the internet audience is you know, I gotta find more creative ways to do that because get some visibility. But definitely, you know, local turnout has been a bit of a challenge.
Um. You know, so I think I gotta target do some more targeted promotion within where I'm trying to have the shows and and you know, work with you know, local recreation departments, communities and stuff to get the word out. You know, obviously Facebook is one of the biggest tools. There's a lot of groups on Facebook that are pretty big. True, you know that you can post stuff too, but everyone else is using it too, right you know. Um, so you know, just having really nice, clean looking flyers. They have a good my own you know, kind of branded design.
Um. My wife is an amazing graphic designer. She does for her job and been uh nice enough to help me out um in that regard. So she's kind of my my graphics and marketing expert. Um. You know. So that's just the first part of it is I kind of have my branding down, yeah, and now just trying to get get that visible. Oh yeah, gotcha. We do have a call. I'm Addie. It's Gary. Very impressive guests you have. Thank you very nice. Yeah. I really liked look. I like the workings are behind the groups. Um. He's very impressive, very very well spoken on things too.
I really appreciate you. Thank you. I appreciate it. I had a couple of friends who had a couple of bands, and I, you know, I can't play guitar or anything like I was brass a brass instrument person and I used to do a lot of sound for them and they said, well, we can't pay you. I said, you don't have to pay me. I'm a musician. I love music. Just just buy me a soda and a burger and I'm happy. You know there you go, Yeah, and just promote him. And I promote him all over the place, like um, my old, my old neighbor, m Tyler Riggierio, he was on I got him to go on as Vito Show and he was kind of shy about it.
And he's good. And now he has UM. He's doing his own thing and he's got um. He joined a group called Nostalgic Lane, Nostalgia Lane, and they're gonna be playing at UM They're gonna play at the Shots game this weekend. So I got him. I got him out there, and I promote I promote any any musicians, because there is there's a lot of talent around here and no one seems to really you know, know it. And of all gendres too, So do you know them? Sam? Very impressive guests. Gary, So that name is very familiar.
I think I have an idea of who that is, but can you tell me what their project is. I don't want to misspeak and say there's something they're not Nostalgia Lane. Yeah, they're doing all They're doing all the covers now, yep, is it? Are they doing food Fighters covers? They're doing everything? Okay, everything there's it's probably the same band, but it's a band. I know, uh that a few people from some area bands, one from Manchester that they are Tyler. Tyler was doing his own stuff and he's doing like some and he's got some other he does some some projects on his own now and and he works, he has a job, he's you know, he's electrician.
But I promote him because he's a real good singer. He's going to try to teach me how to play guitar. Who fart? So I can just see that. But he's, um, he's out there and um yeah he was kind of afraid to go out. But I promoted him because I love music. Maddy knows how I love music, so yes, yes, and but he's out there doing good and like yourself, you know, promoting I just said, you know, I by saying when I was a kid, I'm not out there to you know or seeing at a band. I'm too old to do stuff like that.
But I just love promoting music for everybody. And we have so many talented people, Like I said, so many talented people. Absolutely, they just you know, they've got to get the word out there. You know. They go to Schafsky and they play the Chosky in or they play you know, different places. Um, he's going to finally play there. That's like it's the top he taught one of his top lists because he usually goes to, uh, what's the place to go to? Whatever he played, he plays there once in a while. Yeah, but he plays his gendre music is kind of like country but not plan country and um nostalgia Layne is all.
Um. They're doing a lot of their project right now, is doing a lot of different different songs, different covers of all different bands. But it's rock, you know, it's not just uh but yeah, I think you're I think they're doing some of that stuff. But he's going to be playing to Schafskin Saturday night or Friday night at nine o'clock. Oh okay, nice, I'm sorry, I said I had to promote it a little. No, thank sorry, Maddie, no worries. No, that's good. That's good. I just want to promote a little but yes, I'll let you go.
I'm fantastic, you know, fantastic people, Maddie. You know, you know I love the show and I love when you got to talk behind the scenes of bands too and how the working so like that works. So yeah, cool, well excellent actually excellent person a great show today. So all right, well, thank you Gary, We appreciate it. I'm a cheerleader, a man as always, you know, channing so and I love you that. So feel free to reach out on Facebook. Man, I'd like to connect and talk some more. Oh no, I'm an old start.
I don't have computer. Well, well you know people who can find me now, so we'll make any book signals. I'll keep my eye out. I get a smoke signals. Yeah, all right, Gary, Well thank you for the call, my friend. Appreciate it. Love you guys, and fantastic show. All right, thanks Gary, great, great night, by bye. All right, very nice. That was our friend, Gary. Yeah, Showsky and that's a nice room. Yeah, I've always like that play. I've seen a few shows there, um, you know, hoping to to work with them at some point to get some shows and you get some bands in there.
Yeah, um, you know, trying to trying to increase my venue network as well. You know, my my other biggest obstacle all the promotions now is getting dates to book bands. Yeah. Um you know a lot of a lot of venues either have somebody on staff or they have their own process or whatever, um you know, or I might be booking genres that they're not interested in or right you know. Um so that that's been a little bit tough. Um but you know, uh speaking of shows, you know, and we're running a little bit out of time here, but um so I got two shows coming up next week.
Um. You know. One of the main reasons I wanted to promote uh got I've been working with the Strand and Dover Hampshire. Um so along with Strange Attractions booking. It's Matt in the tie from Novocoe. Um. For those that don't know, Yeah, we're we're pretty much almost every Friday, um. You know this year we're getting in local bands cool, you know, three to four bands showcase all locals. Um, you know, trying to to make uh you know, create those spaces fun to play and be featured on. UM. The owner Dan has been really great about helping us get in there too.
Um, you know it's a strands of nonprofit and and idn't Oh yeah, and uh, he's got a really great mission over there. Um kind of aligns with a lot of what me and strange attractions booking you're trying to do, um, you know, to feature local bands. So he's he's got dedicated time for us, um over there, excell So next Friday, it's April twenty first. Um, we've got Proleum Is headlining. They're out of Portsmith with Echoes, Fade Trading Tombstones and Hobo Wizard. Um. Hobo Wizard has been putting a lot of work.
Loves their name, a bunch of cool guys. I'm looking forward to meeting them. They they've been they've been playing everywhere. They're making a making a big, big name for themselves right now, which is nice. Um. And then so that's doors are at six show at seven pm, ten bucks at the door. Um, come on down and uh next Friday and then Saturday over at the rocking Ham Ballroom in New Market. UM, I've got the Jerry Tones are headlining with Marvel Prone Um the Turbocats. It seems like kind of a newer band on the scene.
Uh. And then Indoor Friends, Um, a lot of a band out of Massachusetts, Boston area. UM that's been playing a lot of shows as well. Been trying to get one get them on a show for a long time now. So cool. Yeah, So that one is going to be doors at seven, show at eight. Also ten bucks. Um so rocking ham Ball Room in New Market. Um, so I hope to see you guys there. Excellent, excellent, um yeah, and before we run out of time too, where should people go? Do you want to keep up with with all you're doing in terms of shows?
Is there a website or a social media yeah? About so my main uh you know, main spot is always four NH on Instagram. Instagram is the one I keep up to date most uh. You know. They Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok like to go back and forth with what you can share to each They make it hard when you wake up one morning you can't share the one that you used to be able to get h. Yeah. I was like that's not cool, but okay, um, you know, because that's a full time job in itself, uh is doing social media stuff.
Um. But yeah, so Instagram has my link tree link on there too. Um, so that's got all the stuff. Link tree is decently helpful for at least a landing page. Yeah, have a full website. Um but yeah yeah, always forward nhum. On Instagram, Facebook TikTok um, my dad is in the Facebook live chat and he says, hobo wizards been putting in a lot of work. Yeah. Um he My dad lives on He lives on the Sea coast, and he's hipper than me when it comes to music. He listens to w U n H. He loves college radio. Yeah.
I love college radio too, but he um, yeah, he's you know, he's in his seventies, but he loves hearing new music. He's not like you know, you know, most people they get stuck. Like it's different for everybody, but like people hit a certain age and then it's like they don't want to hear anything new. Yeah, and uh, my dad's never been like that. And I'm not like that either obviously, So maybe it's genetic. I don't know, but yeah, like you wouldn't catch my dad listening to oldies, you know what I mean.
Like, he he loves hearing new music. It's it's awesome. Yeah, Yeah, he's very he's very supportive that way. Um also too, before we run out of time your bands, we should up house Lights UM is my main project. Um. You can find us Houselights on Instagram, Facebook, Uh, Spotify, I think you'll have to search the Houselights UM. You know, there was a band that beat us to the name, but very like it's like some sort of like house DJ or something right, so it's very different. And and because of spotifys like regulations, there's a track that's on our Spotify homepage that is that band and we can't remove it.
Oh no, let's try a whole bunch of times, and they won't let us remove it, So ignore that one. But back in twenty fourteen, we have put out an ep UM called stage Es ep UM seven tracks about the five Stages of grief as a concept album that we did um and then just didn't really you know, kind of came and went um. But yeah, so we've all reunited again for the new the new project, and uh, you know, we're we're looking to stay this time and start playing out some shows hopefully later this year. Any eta by the way, on the album, Uh, we're still looking at we gotta get it mastered, and we're still looking at doing potentially doing some videos um around the singles that we're going to release.
Yeah, so I would say late spring, early summer as a tentative release and then astronomist Um. You can find us at I believe it's astronomist on Instagram. This is astronomist on Facebook, okay, and and if I'm wrong that then just type in astronomist um. We have a gorgeous new logo that we got on there from a graphic designer over in Europe UM that we're pretty pleased with. And uh, you know, if you have in trouble find them, just go to my Instagram. I've got um my personal one. I'm at Sam sings and screams on Instagram.
Um, so that one links to both the bands. Cool cool, by the way, I love and understanding. Had that been played on the radio yet Nope. So we had two world radio premieres. YEP, awesome. We love it. We love it. Sam, Thank you so much, Thank you for having met associate it. This has been wonderful. Sam Beecherd, Thank you again so much. From the studios of w M n H ninety five point three FM in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire. You are tuned in to the best of Matt Connerton Unleashed. We have a call.
We'll grab this. Hi, Welcome to Matt Connerton Unleashed. Who's this? Hey, Matt Connerton, how are you? Good? Familiar voice, but I can't place it. Oh that's good. I'm just letting you know. I'm part of the pod Awful cult. Oh yes, and uh yes. Two musicians you have on their names again, Weasel and the Rists or something. This is live by the way, if you're gonna ask, uh, Weasel and the Rists. That's a catchy name. Yeah, I think any name would be better than what they have now, because that was the worst garbage I've ever heard ever.
Terrible. You usually have some pretty terrible music on your radio show, but this was hands down the worst. Just letting you know. Shout out from Manchester, New Hampshire. Okay, eat up that one. Oh my goodness. Well well that's not that's not very nice. Well but Hughie, I mean, I'm sure you're used to not everyone. I mean, your music is very unique. I'm sure you're not used to everyone appreciating it. I'm almost certain that that was a human. And my music is lizard music. Ah, is that what it is?
So I I originally when I came up the concept for my music, Uh, it was something that I recorded because I said, you know, I enjoy these sounds. I want to hear them on playback. I like hearing them on playback. And uh, and then my geckos started bobbing their heads along to it, and I go, oh, this is reptile music. And is that the origin story of Huey the Gecko. So, Huey the Gecko is my first pet gecko and uh he is, Um, he doesn't lived with me right now, but he's always with me in the music. So you know, the current gecko that I have is is Jackie.
She's involved with me in the music too. So it's a it's a family affair with the geckos. I see, I see it's January twenty seventh, twenty twenty two. Oh, fairly news, like a year ago, a week ago. Um, and prior to that, were you just going by your real name? So I've been Huey the Gecko for about five years prior as an xbox handle. Oh really, so like people that know me from like whatever, like Vietnam or the UK or elsewhere. Know me as Huey the Gecko from Fortnite from you know, different avenues.
So I've been Huey the Gecko over the airwaves in a different personality trait, doing the gaming thing. Do you um, do you stream on Twitch or anything with that? I was doing that prior to the whole and then I had some gaming footage for Fortnite and UH and Call of Duty, and I'm transitioning away from that kind of I closed the Twitch account, cleaning out some of the videos from the YouTube that are gaming related and moving fully towards the musician pursuit. Okay, how do you if that's a wise decision.
I don't know if the caller or the call thinks the same, but yeah, that caller was not a fan. But you know not, like I said, I mean not, everyone's gonna gonna dig what you're doing it. We either look to induce that or we look to induce fear. We'd like to like we like to either get the look of like what is that? Or like you know, I like that? So it's one or the other, right, right, But you're not but you're not when you say, induce fear You're not You don't mean that in a threatening way. Oh no, I mean fear like gets you like, uh like concern, more like when you're dancing on the edge of a knife.
It's funner to watch you dance. I understand. I just don't want anyone from the part more fun I don't think funners are words. I don't want anyone from the pot awful cult to think you're trying to frighten them. That could be no, no, no, disastrous. Uh well, very so, how do you You probably hate this question, but I'll ask it. I mean, how do you describe If someone asks you someone who hasn't heard your music, how do you what is lizard music? More words? Yeah, yeah, yeah, So it's like reggae, hip hop, rap, electronic EDM, funky country, psychedelic pop, spiritual world music.
But like a short way of wrapping that up would be that I'm experimental indie, okay, rather than being indie where you're you know, indie pop or something like polished or whatever, or do you have a specific indie sound, I'm experimental indie where it's like, yeah, we're still working out the grooves and we're recording all that because we want you to hear that raw developmental process. Yeah, we have a call. Hi, Welcome to Matt Connerton unleashed. Do's this hello? Hell? Hello? Hey? Yeah, I'm telling you you kids got a crazy sound.
I can see it your name in lights. Oh.
How often do you get homeless people in your studio? You just give them instruments and just tell them go crazy? Or is this the first time? Things? Well? Now, well, in fairness, Hue, you do have geckos, so I assume you have a home. I hope you keep them warm at home. So Gecko Studios two point zero is now in Alexandria and your Hampshire, which is a little bit of a hike for the homeless. But Gecko Studios one, what Geckos Studios one was sorry about that. Gecko Studios one was at thirty Putnam Street, right across from CMC.
So we have a nice pink bloid helicopter sample from one of the medvacs with the condenser mic. We're getting all kinds of samples there, as you can imagine. So, but we're out of that location and we're up in the woods now. So now we're making our music in the woods and we're bringing it into the city. Oh see, so that's that's beautiful. That's so good to have it in the woods where no human could ever hear it. So how often have you been disappointing your dad? So the place out in the woods is just me and my lizards.
So it's perfect lizard music territory if you ever want to come down. But does your dad go to? About lizards is that they don't have the ears that humans or other mammals do, so they don't understand what you're doing. Yeah. They also don't have an end of cannibinoidal system, so I can't give them by acts And oh well, oh that's good. What about a job? Do they not have a job like you? I actually work in it, I meaning uh meaning I fixed payroll and benefit reports. I fixed payroll and benefit reports in terms of HR reports, but I do it in the back end on Excel reporting And yeah, I do I work by day and reptilian.
Wow that sounds almost as boring and terrible as your music. God. Oh yes, so this I think I think it's fair to say this gentleman is not a fan. But but that's okay. No, I'm a huge fan. Oh, it's glutton for punishment and terrible, terrible music. Paul, I didn't mean to be presumption, not exactly. Well, then it's just like Huey Lewis in the news, but it's hue the Gecko and it's on Apple Music Spotify, except Hue and Lei. Huey Lewis can play his instruments. That's pretty cool. Well, Huey Lewis does play the harmonica, that's true.
But but for all we know, perhaps you do as well. Uh, Huie, Yeah, I do. I do. Well, maybe we could jam sometimes. Oh yes, dude, I'd love to exist in front of a condenser mic with you. Yeah, I would. I would play the noose heck yeah, I'd love to hear the sound effect of that. Wow, you're you're a witty fun guy. Yeah. When I always say to my friends when I die, I want to go out with a nice poof like get like if I get hit in traffic, it would be great if somebody has a condenser mic or a digital audio recorder right there.
So what does what does the gecko say back to you when you tell him that? Seeing as that's your only friends? So the so the gecko is um it only communicates in like chirps. And so I've got a song, a Edim song where you can hear it's it's chirps that's sampled and you can check that out. All right, Oh cool? What's your website? Oh so now you know I don't have a dot com. I'm sorry, but I'm at here with a gecko on Instagram. You're easy to find? Yes, yeah, I have a lot of eating and beating a Mese fans.
They really liked easy to find. I'm watching him right now. Hey, hey, yeah, heck yeah, brother, what's up dude? Hell yeah, brother, I say hell, you can say hell, Hell yeah brother. What what got you interested in music? Was it your traumatic childhood? Oh? I was in a SKA band called Skamehameha where we made dragon ball Z songs and I played the trombone. Oh yeah, so the naturally into lizard music, you know what I mean? It was just a natural progression. Stepping stone that one. Wow, A stepping stone like like you between your two brothers.
Oh yeah, yeah, exactly, I'm the middle brother. Oh heck yeah, that's perfect timing. Man. My older brother is a composter. He runs a renewal, compost and garden and compost. And that's local here in Manchester Bedford area. So if you need your compost done, new compost. I don't know if you heard her. He was asking for his address. I think you need some composting done perhaps, but yeah, yeah, facebook, um, renewal, garden and compost. Oh all right, there you go, there you go. Wow. Well, this is that's very nice to you to plug your brother's business.
That is nice. This is this is the easiest interview ever. I just let the caller ask all these great questions. Yeah, I've got one more question. Yes, yes, go ahead. Hello, what do you do about dead air? Oh? Uh? We had a good laugh there. I thought I would have sampled that. I'll tell you what, as a fan of Ron Bennington, I can tell you that dead air, when used correctly, it can actually be Wait. Wait, Matt, Matt, Matt, Yes, I wasn't asking you, I'm asking the gecko. Oh I apologize, yes, yes, Hughie, I'm sorry I stole your question.
Jue the gecko, often described as a creative I got one more yes, go ahead? Sorry no, sorry, go ahead, I always say, and Huey the gecko shedding and shredding nocturnal after dark, preferably, Where where does the shredding come in? Sorry? Oh, the shredding. He's asking about the shredding's playing? Who's playing? What with which limb? That's that's what. I can't tell. How many? How many limbs are playing the instruments because it sounds like four feet playing at once. How do you do that? It's it's it can be a band, but it's more of an experience.
It's more of a vibe. That's not an answer. Well, I don't have I have more. I have more, you know. Uh, let's see, I have a You said how many limbs? Hmm, I've got two playing the guitar currently, and I have not quite figured out how to play. You use your hands to play at the guitar or your feet? Yeah? Hands primarily? Yeah? Wow, wow, primarily hands hold me good. Well, if you watch the video, you can see how Huey's hands moving. Yeah. I will never ever watch that video, but thank you for operating.
Well, I mean it will be available if you'd like to see it. So do you play? Do you play gigs? Or do you mostly get run out of town like a Frankenstein Oh no, I play gigs. I'm so sorry to hear that. Do they pay you to play the gigs or do they pay you to leave? So yeah, no, they pay me at the door, which is there's a lot of really nice or the local New Hampshire music scene. I can't say enough good words about it. I would name venues and names and whatnot, but I don't want to. Yeah, they don't, they don't.
I can attend free. They don't. They don't run him out like a Frankenstein at nine. If that's what you're thinking, right, I mean you there's always I'm thinking more like torches and pitchforks. Oh see, that's exactly the thing. I would love to solicit that. See, like he's saying, it's like a monster. It's like, like you said, like Frankenstein and I'm the gecko and I like it.
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