Today’s guest is a challenge. But I don’t mean that in a negative way.Welcome Arwen Lewis to the podcast. She’s a musician and a podcaster. And this show starts off almost like it’s duelling interviews. And before I go any further, I need to thank Astrid Young for the introduction. Arwen has quite the family tree. Her dad is Peter Lewis of Moby Grape. But going back farther, her grandfather founded the Armed Forces Radio Network. And what’s more, her grandmother was legendary actress/entertainer Loretta Young!
Arwen grew up with entertainment in her blood. But she wasn’t immediately drawn to music as her calling. She talks about what she did before starting her music career and when that finally did become evident. Her first endeavor is a collection of Moby Grape songs, reimagined for her by her dad and John DeNicola. She talks about how she puts her own spin on covers, the influence of astronomy (aided by another mutual friend, Jason Achilles), and how she became the booking manager at Lost Chord Guitars. We also geek out on how we both got into podcasting.
She’s got a great EP out and a new single. We wrap everything up discussing new projects and critiquing fast food restaurants. Give her a follow @arwenlewis on socials. Her website is https://arwenlewismusic.com/. Check out our socials @PerformanceAnx. Our stuff is available at performanceanx.threadless.com. Or you can throw money at us at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Now get ready for a fun, casual chat with Arwen Lewis on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.
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1:27:52
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1:27:52
The Problem With Kids Today
Today’s guest is plural. I’m fortunate to be joined by the entire band The Problem With Kids Today just before they hit the stage. Tate, Silas, and Reena talk about the music that inspired them, some early band experiences, and how the band came together. Tate tells me about their unusual name, their less unusual previous band name, and gelling as a band because of COVID. These guys are self-described goofballs who have a lot of fun with their music. They’ve got a new album out called Take It! It’s an energetic blast of crazy fun punk rock with a few left turns sprinkled in. Make sure you check it out on streaming platforms. If you’re like me and need physical copies, check out Bandcamp. Give them a follow on Instagram @theproblemwithkidstoday. Follow us @PerformanceAnx on socials. Get our merch at performanceanx.threadless.com. Send coffee money through ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. And you can still get a copy of the Spinal Tap tribute album with 35 Spinal Tap covers at teencanceramerica.org . Click the shop button and it’ll be right there. Now prepare for a high energy talk with Tate, Silas, & Reena of The Problem With Kids Today on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.
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52:53
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52:53
Crispian Mills (Kula Shaker)
This week’s guest is very grounded. That could be because he’s British. Or it could be because his career spans several decades. Welcome the singer and guitarist for Kula Shaker, Crispian Mills. This episode is so interesting. Crispian talks about growing up in a family rooted in entertainment. He started playing gigs in pubs at a pretty young age. In fact, his first gig was with Chris Thompson of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. But success wasn’t instant. He reveals how one of his earliest pub gigs didn’t go over so well.
He played with friend and former podcast guest Lora Logic in the reformed version of X-Ray Spex. And when you give it a listen, you can tell it’s him.
Crispian talks about forming Kula Shaker and why he became the singer. I learn the truth about Cricklewood, the wild success of the band’s debut album, K, and how it affected the band. It probably didn’t help that they headlined Glastonbury twice in one weekend. It was due to Neil Young’s finger injury, but it still means that Sting opened for Kula Shaker once.
The band broke up and reformed. Crispian talks about life during the gap and how the band reformed. They’ve been expanding their sound ever since and have just recently released one of their best tracks ever. Look for a new album soon. Follow them @kulashakerofficial on Instagram. Check out their new music at kulashaker.co.uk, on Spotify or wherever you get new music. Look for tour dates!
Follow us @performanceanx on socials. Grab our merch at performanceanx.threadless.com. Send us coffee funds at ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. And now get ready to have your chakras blown away by Crispian Mills of Kula Shaker on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network.
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1:22:51
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1:22:51
Side Projects: The National Symphony Orchestra w/Aaron Goldman & David Teie
This episode of Side Projects is a little different. THey’re all different, if I’m being honest. But this one is…unusual. I welcome two members of the National Symphony Orchestra to the show; principal flute player Aaron Goldman and cellist David Teie.
It’s a quick hitter so I’ll have to have them back on. But we discuss how young they were when classical music grabbed them. They enlighten me on some of the workings of an orchestra, how auditions are done (it’s really fascinating), and David’s connection to Metallica. This episode was so much fun to do. I’ll be taking my first trip to a performance at the Kennedy Center so they prep me on what to expect, even though they won’t be performing (it’s for French pianist Alexandre Kantorow).
I encourage everyone to check out kennedy-center.org or @kennedycenter on YouTube or Instagram. And be sure to check out orchestral music wherever you live. You might be surprised at how “metal” it is!
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48:47
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48:47
The Majesty Of Rock: A Spinal Tap Tribute For Teen Cancer America Pt. 3
Welcome to the third installment of our Spinal Tap series. In this episode we welcome four members of Teen Cancer America' Play It Back Program; Nathan Hooper, Savannah Mason, Juan Razuri, and Elissa Waller as well as the co-founder of the program, Kenli Mattus . They all participated in the Tap project by recording a version of The Majesty Of Rock, from Spinal Tap’s second album, Break Like The Wind. Turns out, a lot of them were not familiar with Spinal Tap, the band, prior to the project! We get some history about the program and how it was started, how each of my guests became involved with the program, and their approach to making the Spinal Tap song their own.
Please check out each person’s music. They tell you how at the end of the episode. But just as important, please pick up a copy of the album they worked so hard on; The Majesty Of Rock: A Spinal Tap Tribute for Teen Cancer America. You can go to www.teencanceramerica.org/product/spinal-tap/ or just go to TCA’s site and hit the shop button. Your donation gets you 35 Spinal Tap covers but it does so much to help adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer. Thank you to Teen Cancer America, The Play It Back Program, and The Pantheon Podcast Network for all the support and guidance, their belief in the project, and help getting it over the goal line. Please enjoy this episode.
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Have you ever wanted to sit down with your favorite artists and talk about what happens behind the scenes? Have you wanted to hear the crazy stories about recording, touring, and creating art that we all know exist? Performance Anxiety gets those stories for you.
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