S3 E3: Tina Halladay of Philadelphia Hard Rock Band "Sheer Mag" Talks About On-Stage Stereotypes, Proving Yourself and "Acid Jazz"

Summary: Tina Halladay looks like the modern-day rock star, which like so many other things in our society, destroys the stereotypes of old. She is the lead vocalist of Sheer Mag, which formed in Philadelphia right after all of the members left college in New York and decided to move here. The band is a hard rock time machine that updates the stadium rock of the 1970s and 1980s without sounding outdated or artificial. Tina invited me to the Sheer Mag practice space in Southwest Philadelphia, which is a rectangular-shaped storage room filled with musical instruments, merchandise, personal belongings and a can of Coors Light or two. We talked about what drew the band to Philadelphia, how people react to her appearance and how she deals with it, her musical tastes growing up and the realization that other girls in the audience sometimes look just like her. Recorded in Southwest Philadelphia on March 9, 2020. In this podcast: Excerpt of the Sheer Mag song "The Killer" (00:05), how I first heard about her band (3:50), being a throwback band with sincerity (4:55), if being a female lead singer is a big deal anymore (6:29), why employees at venues mistake her for a "merch" person (7:00), what it's like proving yourself over and over again (8:15), the stereotypes of the music industry (8:55), how a Long Island girl ended up in Philadelphia (9:53), why she's glad she ended up in Philadelphia (11:10), trying to categorize her band and "acid jazz" (11:55), what I hear when I listen to Sheer Mag (12:55), where Tina's musical tastes began (14:30), how she ended up becoming a vocalist (15:50), growing up hanging out with a "pack of weirdos" (16:30), her looks (17:10), the difficulty of finding clothes (17:45), seeing other girls dressed just like her (18:29), if she feels she is putting a dent in stereotypes (19:45), the band's connection to presidential candidate Bernie Sanders (20:25), the importance of "DIY" culture with the band (23:31), why they want to own their music (25:09), releasing their music on vinyl (25:45), her vocal style (27:17), singing about her turbulent history with her late father (29:17), why it was important to seek therapy (30:30), the art of coming up with stage banter (32:30), winning over the crowd (35:35), other Philadelphia bands she listens to (39:15), where she hangs out in the city (40:15), the track "Steel Sharpens Steel" from the latest Sheer Mag album "A Distant Call" (42:37).