Well-Rounded Radio: Episode 010: Douglas Fir + The Baskervilles

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This past winter saw the release of two debut CDs from two great pop bands that are really the perfect soundtracks for summer: New York's The Baskervilles sound right on breezy, sunny days and Boston's The Douglas Fir are the perfect accompanyment for driving around on warm, summer nights:

Patrick Cooley and Jay Walsh of The Douglas Fir
Guitarist/vocalist Jay Walsh and bassist Patrick Cooley met in 1997 by way of a flyer that Walsh posted at a Cambridge night club. Discovering they shared a love of music from The Smiths, H?sker D?, The Red House Painters, Afghan Whigs, and PJ Harvey, they started creating their own music. They released several singles in 2000 and 2001 before starting work on their debut CD, "When this Wears Off," which was released in January 2004 on their Dark Years Records label.

Walsh co-produced the CD with Ian Kennedy, singer and guitarist of Boston's Reverse. "When This Wears Off" is a collection of atmospheric and narrative pop songs that showcases some of their influences while developing a signature sound that's both dramatic and literate. Walsh mixed the CD with Matthew Ellard, a producer and engineer whose worked with such luminaries as Elliott Smith, Morphine, Wilco/Billy Bragg, Jesse Malin, and Tanya Donelly.

The release has garnered strong reviews in The Boston Globe, All Music Guide, Amplifier, CMJ New Music Review, Magnet, and The Weekly Dig and the band is currently working on overseas distribution.

I recently spoke with Cooley and Walsh in Cambridge, Massachusetts to discuss:
* why it is that Walsh's vocals often get compared to certain British and Australian singers of the 1980s
* some of the pros and cons of releasing your own record in these days of monolithic record labels and the great equalizer, the Internet.
* and what the band is working on now...and when we should expect a sophomore release from The Douglas Fir.

Catch The Douglas Fir live on the Internet: Tuesday, June 15th at 12 Noon EST on KEXP, performing from the Museum of Television and Radio in Manhattan as part of a week of KEXP broadcasts from New York and live in New York City at Piano's on Friday, June 18th at 11 PM.

Samples from The Douglas Fir's "The Vinyl Singles Archive" and "When This Wears Off" featured in the Well-Rounded Radio Interview include:
IN PREVIEW: Departure (When This Wears Off)
1) My Favorite Thing (When This Wears Off)
2) The Arsonist? (When This Wears Off)
3) The End of the Beginning (The Vinyl Singles Archive)
4) Unwelcome (The Vinyl Singles Archive)
5) I Think I Loathe You (When This Wears Off)
6) At the Hotel (When This Wears Off)
7) Your Gorgeous Mess (When This Wears Off)
8) Wherever You Go (Hugo) (When This Wears Off)
9) Overcast (When This Wears Off)

If you like The Douglas Fir, give a listen to the Well-Rounded Radio Interviews with Francine and Joe Pernice.

Well-Rounded Picks: Featuring highlights from Sonya Greta's "Vigilante Arcade," Anne McCue's "Roll," and The Stairs' "Miraculous Happens."

Rob Keith of The Baskervilles

Starting out in Tampa, Florida in the mid-90s as The Baskervils, The Baskervilles came into their own in New York City in the late 90s, with singer/guitarist Rob Keith, bassist Christoph Gerozissis, singer/keyboardist/violinist Stephanie Finucane, and drummer Craig Van Orsdale joining forces.

Working with producers Mitch Easter (R.E.M., Velvet Crush, Pavement, and Squirrel Nut Zippers. Easter was also and the singer/guitarist in the 1980's band Lets Active) and Al Houghton (They Might Be Giants, Latch, Sylvain Sylvain), The Baskervilles have incorporated influences as wide as Television Personalities, The Kinks, The Left Banke, and Belle and Sebastian on their eponymous debut, released early this year on New York's Secret Crush Records.

Rob Keith and Christophe Gerozissis also have a side-project with an upcoming release: AUTOPARTY is a laptop, pop group who will release their debut, "Lumlight," in June. AUTOPARTY showcases a different side of the members? interests in electronic, disco, and go-go music.

The Baskervilles also contributed a song to the upcoming Television Personalities tribute CD to be released in the coming months by the Beautiful Music label.

I recently spoke with Keith on Manhattan's Upper West Side to discuss:
* what brought the 3/4s of the band from Florida to New York City
* how their new home town became one of the main characters on their CD
* how the band writes its words and music in a truly collaborative method and avoids repeating itself

Photo: Tamara Rafkin

Hear The Baskervilles perform live on the Internet: Wednesday, June 16th at 12 Noon EST on KEXP, performing from the Museum of Television and Radio in Manhattan as part of a week of KEXP broadcasts from New York.

Samples from The Baskervilles' eponymous debut and unreleased material featured in the Well-Rounded Radio Interview include:
IN PREVIEW: After Work (Baskervilles)
1) Day One, Amanda Year (Baskervilles)
2) I Panic (unreleased, 1996, with Laura Taylor)
3) Sex Rock (unreleased, 1998, with guitarist Chris Carlino)
4) Anthem for the Acquantances (Baskervilles)
5) A Free Show in Battery Park (Baskervilles)
6) Opening on Thompson (Baskervilles)
7) John Riley and the Housewives Who Love Him (Baskervilles)
8) Have You Seen the Ideal? (Baskervilles)
9) Je Je Boom (AUTOPARTY, from Lumlight)
10) This was the Weekend (Baskervilles)

If you like The Baskervilles, give a listen to the Well-Rounded Radio Interviews with Burnside Project and Ashby.

The Douglas Fir on Dark Years Records available direct from Dark Years.