Psycho Depot Issue 413 May 6, 2005 Current # of subscribers: 188 (daily and digest) Subjects in this issue: RE: Psycho Depot Issue 412 City Beats reviews Fetters/Arduser's CDs..... Liner notes and lyrics Celebrity Motorcade CD review.... Musician review 'dots Enquirer article ++ psychodots ++ Date: Wed, 4 May 2005 09:07:07 -0500 From: "Riley, Paul" Subject: RE: Psycho Depot Issue 412 The Indy show will take place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the Pagoda Plaza on the Coke Cola stage on the second day of qualifications. Admission that day is ten dollars the show is free. They will play two sets at 1:00 PM & 3:00 PM I hope to see all of you diehard dots fans. ++ psychodots ++ Date: 04 May 2005 09:17:50 -0700 From: Mary Bosken Subject: City Beats reviews Fetters/Arduser's CDs..... City Beat May 4, 2005 http://www.citybeat.com/current/musicspillit.shtml Double Dippin' Dots Spill It By Mike Breen Saturday is like triple-Christmas for fans of local Pop/Rock institution, psychodots. The trio -- Chris Arduser, Bob Nyswonger and Rob Fetters -- is not only doing a reunion show at the Southgate House (with openers Culture Queer), but they'll use the gig as a springboard to launch two new solo 'dot releases. If you think you already know what a new Rob Fetters disc is going to sound like, don't be fooled. Fetters' Musician doesn't exactly shatter expectations, but it is certainly the songwriter's biggest musical stretch yet. On his first solo album since 1998's Lefty Loose, Righty Tight, Fetters' knack for perfect Pop hooks and clever, master songwriting is still intact. But Musician is more daring, as Fetters utilizes the recording studio to its fullest extent. Augmenting several songs with synths, loops, effects and samples, the album strays some from the comparatively "live band" sound of his other work, giving some of it an electro undertow that is jarring at first. The result is a true "headphone experience," especially on the wild and unusual track, "Musician/No/Dinner," a three-song collage that begins as a straight Pop tune before evolving into a head-spinning trip-out of spoken samples that wouldn't be out of place on an experimental music album. But Wolf Eyes this ain't -- for the most part, the sonic tricks are subtle, enhancing the layering, but never diminishing the impact of the song. Longtime Fetters fans will still find a true "Fetters album" in Musician, with great Pop tunes like "I Didn't Know" and "Zero," and his trademark mix of wit and deeper emotional musings is in full force (the quirky calliope spin of "Clown" brings those forces together in one track). And many times the more adventurous production approach results in something gracefully layered, giving a few tracks ("Slave," "Malcolm and Margerie") a Peter Gabriel vibe. Ultimately, Musician is Fetters' most engagingly challenging album, a refreshing, bold move from one of Cincinnati's finest songwriters ever. Fresh off of his collaboration on guitarist George Cunningham's solo effort, Stumblingham, Chris Arduser returns with The Celebrity Motorcade, the solo follow-up to 2002's Hostage. While not quite the sonic leap of Fetters' disc, Motorcade finds Arduser in top form from a songwriting standpoint. Performed, written and produced entirely by the pyschodots drummer/vocalist, Motorcade is a "concept record" revolving around characters from old Hollywood. Arduser gets into the head of comedian Fatty Arbuckle on "Roscoe," painting the tragic figure sympathetically as a victim of circumstance ("They called you Fatty/'Cause that's all they could see"), while "Remember Irving Thalberg" remembers the sacrifices of the unsung movie maven who revolutionized the role of "producer" in film. The thematic thread that runs throughout is fascinating and works incredibly well, but it wouldn't hold up without Arduser's tremendous songwriting. It never feels like he's forcing the theme into the songs (or vice versa), as "Thalberg" and cuts like "Disneywhore" and "At the Factory" are each strong enough to stand apart from the rest of the album. Other highlights include the early Who Pop of "She Might Try" and the wispy, fluid "Erich Von Stroheim." Brilliant stuff. Come for the stories, stay for the sounds. Both albums will be available for purchase at the 'dots show Saturday and at thebearsmusic.com. ++ psychodots ++ Date: 04 May 2005 15:42:54 -0700 From: Ashley Morris Subject: Liner notes and lyrics Howdy y'all, 1. The dots are playing at the Speedway in Indianapolis. That's right. Also, the only place to hear 2 sets, AFAIK. 2. The dots page now has liner notes, lyrics, and HI RES photos from musician. Check it out now. Ashley, your man in Prague. ++ psychodots ++ Date: 05 May 2005 09:21:26 -0700 From: Mary Bosken Subject: Celebrity Motorcade CD review.... Cincinnati Post May 5, 2005 http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050505/LIFE01/ 505050353/1006/LIFE Arduser spins CD saluting early days of film by Rick Bird It's not just a CD, but a sort of filmography - in this case a salute to "the talkies" and Hollywood's groundbreaking directors and actors, especially those under-appreciated or simply beaten down by the system. The unusual, but wonderfully written and compelling concept album, "The Celebrity Motorcade," is the work of veteran Cincinnati musician Chris Arduser (The Bears, psychodots, Bluebirds, Graveblankets). "I was slowly amassing tunes about the early filmmakers because I'm fascinated by the '20s," Arduser said. "The silent cinema gets short shrift. It's summed up in the image of Charlie Chaplin when there was so much else going on. I find it endlessly fascinating. It was an out-of-control time." Movie buffs will delight in Arduser's songs about such pioneers as Erich Von Stronheim, Irving Thalberg, John Garfield and Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, as the CD concludes with a contemporary take on Hollywood art with "Disneywhore." They are mostly bittersweet songs couched in Arduser's buoyant pop melodies. It is, dare we say, a pop album that is actually educational with his take on early Hollywood and celebrity. The opening title cut sets the overall theme as Arduser explores that age-old relationship between art and having to work within the system. "I wanted to write songs that explore notions of fame and celebrity. So many of us chase after it, myself at one point," Arduser said, remembering he had a Nashville publishing and recording deal in the late '90s with mixed results. This is the second solo release in two weeks from a member of the psychodots, with guitarist Rob Fetters releasing his solo "Musician" last week. In honor of the two releases, the psychodots are getting back together for a show Saturday at the Southgate House ($10, non-smoking). The trio will play selections from Fetters' and Arduser's solo efforts along with the 'dot favorites. ++ psychodots ++ Date: 05 May 2005 23:00:31 -0700 From: "David Ash" Subject: Musician review Hello 'dot-heads, I'll be attending the Southgate House show; hope to see many of you there. I'm entranced by Rob's new CD, and I posted a review to the Adrian Belew Yahoo group, hoping to evangelize the wonder of this album to those who might not automatically buy it, but I thought preaching to the choir couldn't hurt either, so here's my blabber: I've been following Rob and Bob in their various musical endeavors since the early 80s, have seen them live literally hundreds of times, and I've loved about everything they've done, so I'm predisposed to spew positive about any new recordings... that said, I think Musician is Fetters' best work ever and an amazing achievement. After receiving my copy of the CD a week ago (has anyone who ordered in advance directly from Rob not received theirs yet?), I immediately burned a copy and put Lefty Loose - Righty Tight on the same disc (had to cut "Try" to make it fit), and I've had it in my car player ever since. On first listen, I found Musician to be adventurous and compelling, but wasn't sure if it was a home run or not - was Rob overproducing himself? There's a contingent of psychodots fans, crazed with their live performances, who have found the Dots albums and Rob's first solo CD to be so studio-smooth as to dilute the impact of the songs, compared to the live versions we knew and loved before hearing them recorded. And hearing Lefty Loose a lot again this week, I still find the songs that were introduced to me first as live Dots performances (Try, History, Every Day, Age Of Miracles) a bit production-heavy. Great, but maybe not as hair-raising as when pounded out live by the Dots. So maybe my coming around to deciding Musician is the best thing Rob's done and among the best new music I've heard in a decade partially stems from not hearing any of the songs before, having no preconceptions. But I think it's more than that: Rob has managed to hone his studio craft to be a true embellishment to the music, without robbing any of the emotional impact of the songs. The "Sgt. Fetters" invocation has some merit, in the best sense. That's a lot of high-falutin' praise, so maybe I should get more specific: Clown: this is a ballsy album opener, a bit off-putting at first. Where's the guitar? It's in clown makeup, and that's the point. Lyrically, it shows Rob's longtime strength: irreverent and hilarious while exposing a raw layer of emotional honesty that few songwriters dare. Zero: it rocks, a crunchy riff-driven song with a melodic chorus in the best Dots tradition. How come nobody thought of the concept of numeral 0 as a stinging metaphor for the emptiness of modern mainstream society before? Life Is Hard: an adult play off Fetters' early influences perhaps - he mentions the Beatles and Randy Newman in his online liner notes http://morrisxp.cstcis.cti.depaul.edu/dots/musiciannotes.html) but I hear some Rundgren in there too. Lyrically, this doesn't stretch much beyond themes he's explored before, but how can you not love a line like "Drones in monochrome sort bones and play a game"? I Like Girls: pure pop-rock, it references an old Raisins song, and has a very Raisins-y guitar solo, which I love but then I'm a sucker for nostalgia. If radio didn't suck, shouldn't this get airplay? The piano break harkens Empty Glass-era Townshend in a most satisfying way. Tell The Truth: since the very theme solicits honesty, I'll admit that the verses are slightly trite, but the chorus has seeped into my neurons and I've been replaying it in my head more than anything else from the CD. And the acoustic solo ranks among the most head-turning performances he's ever done, which is saying a lot. Malcolm and Margerie: this and Zero are the only songs I heard performed live before getting the CD. It's even better here. The soaring melody of the chorus is neck-hair Viagra... someone else admit it too so I don't feel embarrassed! You might cry along, if you've had some gin or tequila. Rob's said onstage that it's the second in an unfinished trilogy that starts with Under The Volcano. Musician/No/Dinner: wow, a rock opera in under 3 minutes. Fetters says he cut Musician to a minute because it's "questionably sweet" but damn, it's infectious - I sure want to hear the full three minutes. But it's an admirably daring artistic choice to merge it with a dark center and a playfully sampled ending. I Didn't Know: actually, I heard this live too when Rob did it during a solo interlude of a Raisins reunion show in 2000, but that's a memory faded by middle age and adult-beverage consumption. This may be the centerpiece of the album, highlighting the best of his gifts: straightforwardly accessible on first hearing, but revealing depth upon each repeat listening. Slave: pull out your copy of the Raisins' Everything And More and listen to Leopards, which was one of Rob's most nakedly misanthropic epics from his late twenties, and a classic in my book. Is Slave, which borrows Leopards' core riff, better? It's boldly different, reminds me of the adventurousness of Kate Bush's Hounds Of Love side two, which is a good thing. Trailerpark Bob: an instant classic, hilarious while heartwarming. Rob really did want to be a rock star, and it's hard to doubt that despite his domestic tranquility at age 50, there's still a part of him that yearns on for that. Another part must be the envy of the Taoism of blue-collar bliss, which this song celebrates at the same time it mocks? You decide. Heaven: I wasn't sure about this one at first. Thematically fits with the Lefty Loose - Righty Tight exploration of failed expectations, but musically it plods a bit. Yet it works as a closer, ponderous but starkly honest. Please, let's hear some other takes... and I can't wait to hear Chris Arduser's new solo disc, which from early reviews sounds intriguing. ++ psychodots ++ Date: 06 May 2005 03:17:42 -0700 From: Mary Bosken Subject: 'dots Enquirer article Cincinnati Enquirer May 6, 2005 http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050506/ENT/ 505060369 Psychodots celebrate solo albums By C. E. Hanifin Enquirer staff writer What: Psychodots and Culture Queer When: 9 p.m. Saturday Where: Southgate House, 24 E. Third St., Newport Tickets: $10 advance, $12 at door; 18 and older; nonsmoking show Information: (859) 431-2201; www.southgatehouse.com; www.psychodots.com Ask just about any Cincinnati-area musician with a penchant for pop to name local influences, and you'll hear about the work of Rob Fetters, Chris Arduser and Bob Nyswonger. For decades, their finely crafted pop songs have charmed fellow artists and legions of other fans. The trio began its career in the '70s as the Raisins, became the Bears in the '80s with the addition of Adrian Belew, and, since 1990, has performed as the Psychodots. Well, actually, the three musicians, who met while growing up in Sylvania, Ohio, near Toledo, started out playing cover tunes. "Eventually, we decided we'd rather starve than do that. And we did," Fetters says, laughing. "That's a big reason why young musicians like us. They know we've paid a price for playing original music." So you can expect to see a lot of artists at the Southgate House when the Psychodots perform Saturday. In recent years, the band has played just one annual show at Thanksgiving time. But the group is breaking tradition to celebrate the release of solo albums by Fetters and Arduser. "Musician" and "The Celebrity Motorcade," respectively, showcase each musician's unique and compelling take on timeless pop songwriting. Since Fetters, 50, and Arduser, 46, go way back, they agreed to drop some dish on each other. Fetters' take on Arduser: The album: "I love this record because it's conceptual; it deals with the old Hollywood myth." The nickname: "Deathy. He had a song called 'Who is Deathy?' and we answered the question for him." The teen years: "Chris was prone to wearing a housedress when we performed, and he looked really good." Arduser's scoop on Fetters: The album: "This record is the perfection of Rob's songwriting and performing. It's just filled with all kinds of ear candy." The nickname: "Queenie. He wants to lead, so that was our gentle way of prodding and poking." The teen years: "There was a period when Rob's diet pretty much consisted of Cheez Whiz." Fetters says the Psychodots are planning to do some recording, and the Bears have nearly finished an album that likely will be released in early 2006 "We'll always work together in some way or another," he says. "Real musicians get better as they get older." ++ psychodots ++ End of Psycho Depot 413 May 6, 2005 Comments, suggestions, postings, and administrative or the switch between digest and daily versions of the Depot (or be on both!): Mike Brown depot @ psychodots.com To order psychodot merchandise: contact Stan Hertzman of Umbrella Artists and Strugglebaby Records shertzman@cinci.rr.com 513 871-1500 Voice 513 871-1510 Fax and Hal Bernard Enterprises, Inc., 2612 Erie Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45208 For back issues (2 ways): Email: Tony Nowikowski tony@nowikowski.com or Web Site: http://home.insightbb.com/~p-dots/ Check out the psychodot Home Page at: http://www.psychodots.com Check out the graveblankets Home Page at: http://graveblankets.com Check out the Bears Home Page at: http://www.thebearsmusic.com Check out the Ricky Nye Home Page at: http://www.rickynye.com