Split Cassette Tape Release w/ Vows & !mindparade

Limited Edition TRANSLUCENT PURPLE tape cassette (free shipping!) from Tree Machine Records now in Pre-Order. Split release has previously unreleased tracks from New Jersey based dream-rockers VOWS and Indiana based psych-pop band !mindparade. Release date: Oct. 31, 2014

Pre-Order HERE

Sub-Rock's "7Q Interview" w/ Bonfire John

Indianapolis musician Bonfire John is releasing his second full length album titled "College" from Tree Machine Records. After being taken aboard Sub-Rock's orange submarine it was decided the only way he would be allowed to leave was to answer 7 Questions from 20,001 leagues below the sea.

Bonfire John on Facebook Tree Machine Records on Twitter

:: 7Q Interview ::

S-R: Three years after your first full length album "Making the Most" you have a new album titled "College". Is it safe to assume this time frame corresponds to your own experiences in college?

BJ:

Yeah I think that's fair to say. Essentially, "College" is an album that reflects my life for the years that most felt like college. I have a lot of memories in that time frame and I think each track is a decent indicator of what year and period it was for me. But I think it's also suggestive of many people's experiences during college.

S-R: How would you describe four years of college in four phrases or less?

BJ:

"A Grand Ole' Time!" followed by, "What just happened" closing with, "Now what?"

S-R: I hear the vinyl version for "College" will have four different album covers, this is a unique release! What is it about vinyl that influenced your decision to release four different covers for this format?

BJ:

Yes that was the original plan, and I hope we can still manage that, but as of right now, we've actually gone with 400 CD's, 100 short-run orders of each cover. Our original thought was to have every format with all different covers. I think if we were rich, we could make it happen. But we're poor so... To me, having vinyl with four different covers just added some sort of mystery/legend and it seemed like a first. I hadn't heard of artists doing that before and it really worked with the essence of the album. I think it lends itself well to the idea that college is what you make of it, and each four years are a different experience for each person.

S-R: Are the musicians accompanying you on this album the same or different from the last release?

BJ:

Joe Linnemeier is someone I've played music with since even before the first album, but his presence on the new album is much more prominent and you can hear how he adds something to the music. We also had Kate Haldrup, who did some mixing and mastering with us, play drums on "Wouldn't You Now". In a perfect world, the next album will be a full band exhibition, as opposed to me playing all the instruments and hoping some friends can make an appearance on the album.

S-R: I noticed a harmonica in some of the songs on your first album and it sounded great. Did you lose your harmonica in College? I didn't hear any harmonica on the new album.

BJ:

Well, actually two of the bonus tracks on the CD use harmonica but it's funny because those are two of the earliest written songs for this album. As far as the completed album not featuring any harmonica, I think it's because in most cases, the songs didn't lend themselves well to a harmonica. If they did, it's possible, I just didn't have the right key for the song. I think I only have a G, C, and E these days.

S-R: Bonus tracks?! Niceness!

S-R: Jill, Bill and John were out in a boat, two were fake, who was left?

BJ:

Well that's actually a really good question. The obvious and short answer is John of course. But Bill and Jill both represent those parts of your personality trying to please a social norm/pressure... and they're trying you know? And John is someone who accomplishes certain social pressures and so he just says, "At this point, I don't give a f_ck if you don't approve or if you're staring at me, prodding me with questions about my future. I've done what I'm supposed to do, so f_ck off." So, John is real, but in a sense, Bill and Jill both exist, they're just dormant right now.

S-R: If Bonfire John was given a submarine for "One Night" where would he go or what would he do, W.W.B.J.D.?

BJ:

World peace, that's the answer right? I don't know, I'd probably try to find a Giant Squid and maybe record some Planet Earth footage on my Android Mini. Or I'd throw a massive party... Mac Demarco would open for the Haim and hopefully I'd wake up in the morning with Keith Richards asking me how the hell he got on some crazy submarine.

S-R: Noted.

Recommended Album's & EP's ARCHIVE 2014

Sub-Rock Music's "Two Subs Up!!" Archive - START DIGGING!

:: Corkbush Field Mutiny - "True Love Waits" EP - April 20, 2014
:: Deep Sea Diver - "Always Waiting" EP - March 28, 2014
:: Hippie Cream - "Trying to Turn a Unicorn Into a Horse" EP - June 17, 2014
:: Roladex - "Anthems For The Micro-Age" - February 13, 2014
:: The Vickers - "Ghosts" - March 28, 2014

Sub-Rock Music's Video Pick of the Week (04/27/2014)

Mock Suns - "Last Time"

Website: Mock Suns' website
Social Media: Mock Suns on Facebook

Sub-Rock Music's Video Pick of the Week (02/23/2014)

Roladex - "Cathode Rays"

Social Media: Roladex on Facebook

Sub-Rock's "7Q Interview" w/ Mark Martyre

Musician Mark Martyre recently released his second full length album titled "London" and agreed to answer 7 Questions from Sub-Rock Music via Sonar HD (patent pending and still trying to get Sonar HD added to Google Translate.)

Mark Martyre on iTunes, and upcoming Tour Dates

:: 7Q Interview ::

S-R: First things first, where were you the night of November 26, 2013?

MM:

Hmm... I don't really remember. For me it was just another night. Nothing special. The night most likely ended with me crashing on whatever floor I was sleeping on at the time.

S-R: The subject matter for the songs on your new album "London" seem to be very personal and full of uncertainty. Is this new territory for you as a musician or does it have any common ground with your previous release "Down, Record"?

MM:

Hmm, well I'm not sure if it's new territory. I guess it depends on how you want to look at it. To me, London is just another marker, that's just a little further along the same road that I was on with Down, Record.

S-R: How important was it for you to produce your own music?

MM:

For me, what's important, is having the control over the music. It's very hard for me to leave it in other people's hands, and relent that authority – as I'm sure the people I've worked with can attest to. So, I need to be a part of the process. I need to be able to see the project through, from start to finish.

S-R: The theme of traveling and being apart from someone is a recurring theme on this album, did that situation make for an easier or more challenging environment to write songs in?

MM:

Well, I've never considered one environment to be more or less challenging than another. You just sort of write. If my life consists of traveling and moving toward, or away from, people – then I guess that'll filter its way into the things I write. But, if other themes were recurring in my life, then I'm sure they'd also be recurring in my songs.

S-R: In regards to goodbye and hope, does either one prevail by the end of "London" and therefore have an effect on what's ahead for you musically?

MM:

Well again, it's just that road, y'know? London was a follow-up to Down, Record, and what occurred between those two markers may have had an affect on the music that eventually came out on London. And I'm sure there's another album ahead of me, and what happens between now and then will certainly influence that record in someway. In terms of what prevails at the end of the London – I have no idea. I guess it's whatever prevails to the listener.

S-R: The musical tone of the songs really set a specific mood for the entire album, Who are some of the people that were instrumental in accompanying you and where was the album recorded?

MM:

Well, the majority of the album was recorded in London, Ontario, at Down By the River. That's where I recorded my guitar parts, piano, vocals, bass, and harmonica. Also, in London, Jeff Kahl played drums on a few songs, and Jordan Mandel added the slide guitar to “Window of a Train” and the electric guitar at the end of “Goodbye.” The recording process was finished in Toronto. There we added: some violin parts - performed by Anna Wheeler, some cello tracks - performed by Anna Jarvis, some accordion - performed by Graydon James, and Myke Mazzei played some lead guitar on “Where Will You Go Now?” “The Next Song,” and “Falling Down, Tonight.” Myke and I also mixed the album in Toronto, at Typewriter Studio. Finally, Karl Machat mastered it at Misters Mastering House. All these people definitely played an instrumental role in this project.

The overall tone of an album, and how it will sound and feel when played in its entirety is definitely a big consideration for me. And it's something I always appreciate in other artists. So, thanks for noticing that.

S-R: Ah, so you're talkin' London, Canada not London, England!, not that the album cover really showed the latter.

MM: Well, yeah, the cover is an archival photo from London, Ontario. Though, I don't mind the ambiguity in calling the album "London." But I didn't name the album as an homage to the city in Ontario, nor would it have been a nod to the place in England. Its just a word. It was a title that made sense, and felt appropriate.

S-R: Trains, Greyhound buses and sailboats are all mentioned in your music, if submarines ever became a practical mode of transportation for people, is there a specific place you would like to go in a submarine?

MM:

I think travelling inside a submarine, regardless of where it went, would be a hell of an experience.

S-R: Noted.

Sub-Rock Music's Video Pick of the Week (12/29/2013)

Axel and the Farmers - "Dream#7"
Social Media: Axel and the Farmers on Facebook