The Sound Podcast with Ira Haberman

Many of us know Jerry Garcia, as the frontman of the Grateful Dead and the spiritual leader of the Deadheads. But his story doesn’t nearly begin with the Mother McRee’s Uptown Jug Champions, the acid tests or even the goings on at 710 Ashbury Street. His passion for music and his ability to play at a high standard, his penchant for story telling began much earlier. As we’ll unpack that history with Dennis McNally the Grateful Dead’s biographer and publicist for the majority of their existence. We recently down with him to discuss the forthcoming release of a rich compendium of early Garcia works aptly titled, “Jerry Garcia before the Dead”.

Last time we spoke to Tauk, they were gearing up to get in the studio to record the follow up to Sir Nebula. At the time I remember letting Matt and AC know that I really dug their sound, and was looking forward to new music. Well, since then, they have indeed recorded a new record, but before they release that canon of music in the Fall, they dropped an EP Shapeshifter 1: Construct a tidy 5 track effort with lots of new twists and sonic turns. We caught up with Matt to talk about the the EP and to get more info on the new record and their spring and summer plans.... Always enjoy speaking with the guys from Tauk they are so insightful, musical and let's face it, make very great tunes.

I first heard about Anderson East from a friend in New Jersey, who I trust implicitly with music recommendations and such. He's the guy that turned us on to Marcus King, so as you can imagine, when he says I need to check something out, I usually obey and listen. We actually posted pictures on our instagram channel back in January of Anderson's gig at the Bowery Ballroom. Truth is, I cannot say enough about this young dude's tremendous talent as a singer-songwriter, but to say he is exclusively that, also doesn't tell the whole tale. Anderson's vocal stylings will make you think of R&B and Soul singers of days gone by, but his lyrics, will conjour up images of love lost, good times and plenty more.

One of the things I enjoy most about The Sound Podcast project is bringing you new artists and bands that are on the cusp of really big things. I spend a lot of time reading about up and coming bands on-line, and listening to all kinds of music. I'm kind of your filter for whats good, and what isn't so strong. As for what's good, I recently came across Ripe, a band based out of Boston, that combine rock, funk, and fun into a tight little package of lively songs. They also feature a small but powerful horns section, which contributes mightily to the band's overall sound. Ripe recently began a 30 city plus North American tour, and have also released their first full length record, Joy in the Wild Unknown. I caught up with Robbie Wulfshon the band's lead singer, to get the scoop on their sound, their aspirations, and much more. For more on Ripe visit ripetheband.com and if you plan to see one of their shows, don't forget to take a toy to the show for their toy drive.

Truth be told when I first hit play on this record I was a touch confused. Matthew was dubbed as blues instrumentalist, who has played with Charlie Musslewhite, but what I heard was something totally different. A bit of a mind bender to be sure. You see Matthews music combines all kinds of genres like garage rock, psychadelic rock, acid blues, and afrobeat. But a man, with the talent that Matthew Stubbs brings to the table shouldn't be pigoen holed into any sort of genre. His guitar playing is tenacious yet melodic. He blends riffs with melodies and attacks you sonically with a bevy of takes. Actually, its a very refreshing record, and if you listen right through, to his record, you'll quickly find that he has created a great soundtrack for your day. Since the record has been out, I've enjoyed multiple spins, and the record itself has been lauded within the jam band community.

Moon Hooch makes more noise than anyone I think I've ever heard. For those of you who don't know, Moon Hooch is comprised of drummer James Muschler with Mike Wilbur and Wenzl McGowen on various saxophones. There are also some synthesizers mixed in for good fun and to keep the beat, and the electricity going! Now only 8 years into a professional career that started with busking on New York city streets, these cats are on fire, having recorded 4 full length albums and a couple of EPs in that short time. I find their live presence extremely intricate but totally interesting. I'm not sure anyone truly understands how all that stuff works, but Mike and the boys do, so good on them. They sound great, and we're looking forward to hearing more from them, and seeing them on the road. For more on Moon Hooch and some tour dates in North America visit moonhooch.com.

As you know we've been toiling in Bluegrass music of late, and when we came across Billy's music we had to get him on the show. While he is a pretty young cat, and started in the business as somewhat of a prodigy, he has a very mature sound to his voice and his playing, his flat picking in particular is off the charts. We caught up with Billy on the road, where, he spends a lot of time. Billy not only brings a maturity to his music and to the bluegrass genre with a very fresh take, but he also has a ton of knowledge about those who have come before him, and his role within that ecosystem. You'll want to visit billystrings.com for more on his music and his tour dates. We're pretty psyched to follow what happens with King and Strings at the Rooster Walk festival, and we'll be sure to pass that information along from our facebook page.

A few weeks ago, while putting the finishing touches on one of our weekly Spotify playlists, I came across Big Something. Shame frankly that I didn't know about these guys earlier, because they play a blend of music styles that I enjoy. In fact, its this sub genre of genreless bands that is continuing to pique my interest. Hailing from North Carolina, Big Something have been at this awhile and are set to release their fifth studio record, The Otherside in late April. Like other bands of their ilk, Big Something make their bread and butter on the road. This 6 piece has shared the stage with the likes of Umphrey's McGee, Galactic and The B52s!

When two of your favorite musicians team up to create a new "super group", you want to get all the details you possible can on the project. Unfortunately those details have been few and far between, so we tracked down Holly Bowling and Tom Hamilton Jr. to try and pry a little more out of them, about Ghost Light. We had a moderate degree of success, and are excited for the release of their debut record, and their upcoming tour as a band.

For those unfamiliar with Kevin Kendrick, he is a New York based singer songwriter, who got his start with Fat Mama back in the early 2000s. In fact, virtually all of the members of Fat Mama are now in Kevin's project Big Yes and a small no. His latest record Mise En Abyme due out April 20th, is a musical ode to Kevin's trials and tribulations. It is, artistically an opportunity to turn the personal page and begin a new. It is filled with thoughtful lyrics and a sonic landscape I found appealing, fresh and eclectic.

A few weeks ago, during the north east leg of Spafford's tour, they invited Goose to open their shows. I had never heard of them, so I checked out their record on Spotify, and really dug what they they were doing. We even played a track on our weekly playlist on Spotify. They saw on Twitter that they were part of the playlist and reached out. I'm glad they did. Always great to hear from guys excited about the music they are making and the response they are getting. Goose is definitely a band we are going to keep on our radar, and you should too. Their current tour schedule and more is available at Gooseband.us.

I first came across SOJA, a reggae infused 8 piece outfit, back in 2009, when their third record Born in Babylon was released. Since that time, they have grown substantially and are a mainstay now on many festival dates, and continue to tour extensively. Poetry in Motion is actually their eighth record, and front man Jake Hemphill continues to deliver genuine, socially motivated lyrics in keeping with reggae's tradition of thoughtful messaging. We caught up with Trevor Young, who has a unique story on how he became a full time member of the band. Grammy nominations aside, SOJA is a terrific youthful reggae band that continues to keep the genre alive and well. The appetite for their brand of reggae music has never been stronger, and their community of followers are devoted to them like other jam band fans. You can learn more about SOJA by visiting sojamusic.com. They are also a fabulous follow on social media.

Soulive has been a part of the quote unquote Jamband scene for quite some time now. The trio fuses hip-hop grooves, R&B melodies and jazz playing to deliver a unique sound onto its own. Each of them are terrific musicians and have gone on to busy careers in the larger music industry. Many of us have kept our eye and our ears on them, and have been waiting since 2012 for new recorded music from. They'd play the odd festival, their bowlive series at the brooklyn bowl each year, but the trio never committed any new music to recordings, as Soulive. Towards the end of last year, the trio went to Japan where they have a huge following to play some dates. While their they too came to the epiphany that they hadn't recorded in some time. As the story goes, thats what got them back in the studio. Recently I sat down with drummer Alan Evans to talk about just that.... and thats how our conversation started. While, Cinamtics Vol.1 is a great EP. I wish it was way longer. I am thrilled that they have developed a new formula for making music, and will hopefully make some time to record more.

The Ode is the title track from the Horseshoes and Hand Grenades latest release, and their first on Tape Time Records, the Infamous Stringduster's label. We had the very good fortune of sitting down with Adam Greuel to talk about the new record, the band's maturation process and of course being signed to a label fronted by the Infamous Stringdusters. Make no mistake about it, while this band is rooted in "old-timey" music, they, like many of their newgrass colleagues have expanded their sound. I dig Horseshoes & Hand Grenades quite a bit. Mostly because while Ode is such an eclectic  record, it does more or less stay in the pocket of newgrass, and thats a sound I am digging right now. You'll want to check out hhgmusic.com for tour dates and more. Show Notes First Song: 00:34 - The Ode Interview: 04:02  Closing Song: 28:50 - Eat the Cake 

SIMO is a band that is difficult to define, and I am not sure you need to. They are a traditional power trio featuring namesake JD Simo on guitar with Elad Shapiro and Adam Abrashoff making up the rhythm section. We sat down with JD recently to get an understanding of why it is so hard to define his band. Intriguing and somewhat mysterious, marks that define a true artist. I suspect we will hear a lot more from SIMO as JD and the band continue to develop their sound.