Brad Sucks: Dirtbag
October 30, 2005
Brad Sucks is the stage name of the artist Brad Turcotte, whose “one man band with no fans” was among the first to take full advantage of the free culture movement for advertising and distribution.
Turcotte opened his website in 2002 with the intention of producing “open source music”. His self-produced single, Brad Sucks One, included the audio source files used to create the finished files, and later he posted these source files to his website along with the MP3s.
Turcotte waives all rights to his songs, essentially making them public domain. This total freedom allows him to promote his music through sites such as Magnatune and ccMixter, as well as Myspace and Podsafe. Since he was one of the first to make this decision, he also received free publicity through blogs and interviews in free culture magazines. His first full CD, I Don’t Know What I’m Doing, was released both through Magnatune and a limited “professional” printing from his own website.
Turcotte also runs the website stripcreator.com , which allows participants to create their own talking-head webcomics. He is also the creator of in4mador. [bio]
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New London Fire: Different
October 28, 2005
Some people make music because they want to, others do because they simply have no other choice. New London Fire frontman Dave Debiak fits into the latter category. As the brains behind the prolific indie outfit Sleep Station, Debiak released nearly one album a year for the past six years, most notably 2004’s critically acclaimed After The War. However, New London Fire is a completely different beast, one that couldn’t be tamed by one man alone.
While New London Fire’s moniker was inspired My Chemical Romance bassist Mikey Way, the band quickly took on a life of their own. “[Way] is a really big supporter of the band and asked to play on the next record, but obviously can’t right now because he has other commitments,” Debiak explains. “He asked us to help him get together a Brit Pop band a long time ago and call it New London Fire, but nothing ever came of it. So when this band started, I asked him if we could use the name and he was all about it.”
Comprised of Dave, his brother keyboardist Jason Debiak, drummer Nima Shirazi, guitarist Jonathan Lam, bassist Eric Willis and studio collaborator D. James Goodwin, New London Fire’s debut, I Sing The Body Holographic is an album that doesn’t defy genre categorizations—it transcends them. “We may not have anything in common with someone who’s listening to our music, but we’re just looking to make connections, regardless of what genre of music they typically listen to,” Dave explains.
Cinematic in scope and vision, I Sing The Body Holographic’s 12 tracks are more like chapters in a book than individual songs. From the impossibly catchy opener and first single “Different” to the synth-driven dance floor anthem “I Sing The Body Holographic” to borderline southern rock feel of the closer “Somewhere In Between,” none of the songs on I Sing The Body Holographic sound like each other, yet together they form a cohesive musical statement.
Lyrically, the album is equally haunting (as anyone who’s seen the urban Lord Of The Flies-esque video for “Different” already knows). “’Different’ is a song about this guy who falls in love with a prostitute and wants to love her, but she tells him things aren’t going to change,” Debiak explains. [bio]
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Benjamin Stockwell: Good For You
October 27, 2005
Benjamin Stockwell is a folk slash country slash acoustic singer and songwriter in Minneapolis. His debut album is called ‘Love More’, and this song can be found for free at his website below. (Formerly posted here in 2005 on the Daily Dose as ‘King Benny’)
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Alkaline Trio: Bleeder
October 26, 2005
Jerry Finn (Of Blink 182 and Green Day fame) may have produced the Trio’s NEWEST CD “Crimson” (which frankly is just a “mature” rehashing of their better, earlier efforts); but back in 1999 when the band was still struggling, their music was so raw it hurt. Honest. So edgy it begged to be accompanied by angry tears and alcohol.
This is Alkaline Trio. The band that introduced me to the word “emo” and semi-grotesque lyrics so catchy you had to sing along. In their case, it’s emo-core, but whatever. This song rocks despite the genre and despite the age.
Best line: “And you broke me like the cigarette that I busted on the day I quit”
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Insomnia Radio #39: Muncie, Indiana
October 25, 2005
(This episode originally released Friday, October 25th 2005)
Nestled about 50 miles north-east of Indianapolis sits Muncie, Indiana. Semi-conservative, turn of the century gas boom town. Home to Ball State College. But more importantly, it’s home to the Good Beer Show and a small batch of overwhelmingly excellent bands, most under the Standard Recording record label.
Sit back for the next hour with your speakers cranked and enjoy what this little city has to offer us.
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The Inspiration:
Jeffrey T, Good Beer Show
Jeffrey T’s Inspiration:
The Heorot
And now, the Bands:
- Mantis: Dildozer
- Everything, NOW!: The Ritual
- Everything, NOW!: I Live in a Trailer Park
- Margot & The Nuclear So and So’s: Quiet as a Mouse
- Margot & The Nuclear So and So’s: Jen is Bringing the Drugs
- Pravada: Atlas
- Pravada: Judi
- Thunderhawk: Computer Science Department of Justice Alliance vs. Robots
- Thunderhawk: Castiron Silhouettes
- Jonas: Square
- Jonas: Let it Go
- Mantis: Hangman
- Mantis: Evolver
- Killjoy Confetti: My Lip is Bleeding, But I Am OK
Standard Recording: Home to Margot, Pravada, Killjoy Confetti, and Everything Now!
Props:
All the thanks on this one goes out exclusively to Jeffrey T Meyer of The Good Beer show. He shipped me a box of CD’s from local Muncie bands, warned me against listening to Margot, and the rest is history. Hope you all enjoy this, and hopefully I got all my facts straight
See ya gang.
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No Use For a Name: For Fiona
October 25, 2005

Fat Wreck Chords (A long standing punk label, now podcast-aware) says “No Use for a Name are back with their 5th full length album for Fat. Since forming in 1987, NUFAN have been one of Fat’s longest running, flagship bands. Keep them Confused showcases the band’s ever maturing sound and steadfast commitment to longevity.”
For Fiona is pop-punk at it’s finest. Crank it!
- No Use For a Name – Fat Wreck Page
- No Use @ MySpace
- No Use @ Facebook
- No Use @ interpunk | itunes | amazon
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The Spies: Domino
October 24, 2005
The Spies are wrapping up the recording of 6 new songs with producer Godfrey Diamond (Lou Reed, Aerosmith, Pricess Superstar) for a tentative release in October. I’ll be the first to say I cannot wait. What we have here is high energy disco-infused pop rock that is undeniably catchy and bouncy enough to make even yours truly attempt an ass shaking. It’s also worth noting this particular track enjoyed a 7 week run in the #1 Spot on 15MegsofFame.com
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The October: Strangest Thing
October 22, 2005

- The October Website
- The October @ MySpace
- The October store | itunes | emusic | amazon
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The October: Bedroom Girls
October 21, 2005

- The October Website
- The October @ MySpace
- The October store | itunes | emusic | amazon
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Secret Dakota Ring: Open Your Mouth
October 20, 2005

- Secret Dakota Ring Website
- SDR @ MySpace
- Storefront: itunes | e-music | amazon | store
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