Simply Six: Ed Pettersen

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you?  ****June 3, 1978, Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale LI, NY.  I was working at my high school radio station, WKWZ-FM, as a sophomore when the station manager, who was a senior and didn't normally hang with us soph's and freshman, told me he had an extra ticket someone bailed out on for a rock concert by some guy named Bruce Springsteen who I had barely heard of (I knew onlythe song Born to Run).  By some miracle my usually protective parents said yes and gave me the $17.50 for the ticket.  It changed my life.  It was like entering the everlasting church of rock n' roll holiness inhabited by the best rag tag bunch of outcasts and misfits I ever saw.  I was hooked.  I came home that night, many hours later than expected, and proclaimed to my mother as she stand waiting at the front door. "I know what I want to do with the rest of my life".  My mother asked, "What's that?".  "ROCK N' ROLL!!!!", I practically screamed.  Shesaid, "That's nice dear, now get to bed.  It's late".  I've never been the same since.

2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites? ****Generally I mostly listen to jazz because I like it, it was my first love before rock n' roll, and because instrumentally it doesn't mess with my own writing.  It's nice to have something completely different to clear my head.  But of the the popular music I listen to I think Richard Thompson, Leonard Cohen, Lyle Lovett, Nick Drake and Neil Young come to mind off the top of my head.  I also listen to a lot of Norwegian artists like my friends Sivert Hoyem ( formerly of the band Madrugada), Henning Kvitnes and Susanna and the Magical Orchestra among others.

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live? ****Hmmmm, tough question.  Having some of my songs covered by artists I revere like Candi Staton and Bettye LaVette is certainly up there but the two moments I remember best is meeting Dion for the first time and bringing him to hang with Bruce Springsteen at an unannounced gig in NJ and working on the Song of America and Happening operetta with some many great artists who gave of their time so freely.  Happening (which is available as a free download at:www.noisetrade.com/madkingedmund) is I think my highest artistic achievement because I never thought I could write a libretto and operetta (albeit a free jazz one) and because of the subject matter, representing the 99% and the Occupy movement which I think is still very important.

4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events? ****Music has often been a the forefront of changing the world, attitudes and mores for as long as I've been listening to music and it continues to be though I think in today's' disposable mass media and reality crap it tends to get lost.  I shudder to think where we'd be without protest music and socially conscious artists.  Plus music would REALLY be boring without it.  I'm usually attracted to stuff that comes up from the streets anyway.

5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician? ****At one time I though technology was great and was really opening doors creatively and as a production vehicle.  Now I think it actually slows things down and is creating a morass by allowing too much out at one time.  There's no filters anymore.  Some A&R is good.  For instance, when my second record was released by Universal there were roughly 2500 records a week being released.  Now there are 25,000 because people can make records in their bedrooms and pressing is cheaper and more accessible.  But we all know the print press has declined and even blogs can't keep up with that kind of volume so the only thing the major outlets have room for is Lady Gaga.  However it's affected my life as a musician in a positive manner because I have worked outside the major label system since 1998 and there's no way I could keep making music if I hadn't learned Pro Tools and invested in myself.  So it's a double edged sword.

6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be? ****Converse Chuck Taylor High Tops, size 13.  Most comfortable shoes I've ever worn (and I'm a shoe hog).

Simply Six: The Shining Skulls

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer.  For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later.  Is there such

 a defining moment for you?

       It was the first time I heard "Appetite for Destruction" by Guns n Roses. At that time Top 40 was all derivative pop-metal and neon colored R&B. I was in 4th or 5th grade and my mom bought me the album. I put on my huge listening cans and there were the initial delayed guitar stabs of "Welcome to the Jungle", echoing in a dirty urban world I never knew. In a way the title was completely appropriate. It took me to a place in my imagination that I had never been.  I never really came back. I have wanted to play music ever since.  

Though none of their later work measured up in my ears, Appetite for Destruction stands out to me as one of the finest rock albums of the last 2 generations. If you do not own it, I suggest you get  copy. Put on some really nice head phones and turn it up.

2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to?  Who are some of your favorites?
I have been listening to a lot of Tom Waits lately, Nick Drake, Nick Cave, the Black Keys. Cave SIngers. I'm sort of in a phase as a listener that I want to hear incredibly screwed up characters tell vividly screwed-up stories. As I have gotten older, I don't really buy teenage angst so much. I get it, I'm just not buying anymore. I prefer an older voice...musicians that can tell stories and can funnel all that neurosis into something less self-absorbed and more entertaining.  Oh yeah, and I have been digging on Trentmoeller a lot lately as well.

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live?

I think finishing our album was the greatest moment for sure. We took it upon ourselves to produce the album having never really done so before. I worked on demos and our first EP, but I really had no idea how to pull off a full-scale production, especially considering the expectations we had. Instead of going into a studio, I outfitted a small but high quality recording rig and we recorded the entire thing in the basement of a house where Andrew and I lived. I was learning everything from mic placement to mixing while on the job so it took some time for me to get my confidence up. It was a massive amount if work and sometimes I just wanted to quit...b/c what I heard was not as good as I what I wanted. But we pressed on and after about 8 months of tracking, re-tracking, re-writing, second and third guessing, we finally finished the album. When I sent it off to mastering, I had the most amazing exhale of my life.

4.  Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to?   How much can music influence current events?

Absolutely. I think art changes the world everyday. It's rarely so obvious as Jimi Hendrix playing the National Anthem at Woodstock. Most of the changes are small and passing and almost all of them occur within the brain of the person experiencing the art. The truth is that "the world" is both a universal thing and a starkly personal frame of reference...and the world is both of these things at the same time all the time. The right song or photograph at the right time of day can turn that day around. Turning a day around is the first step in turning a life around. In that way, I think all art contributes to a butterfly effect. It creates small changes in the experience of a person and the world as we know it the world of people. So yeah, I know for certain that music changes the world, but it is a subtle thing.

5. How has technology affected the music industry?  How has technology affected your career as a musician?

Now this is a loaded question. Digital technology has turned the music world upside down. Huge studios and massive retail distribution deals have given way to DIY philosophies and the tangled data-jungle of the internet. For bands willing to learn and do the work, music can be recorded and made available to every person on the planet with little more than a computer in some cases. 

I like that I can make music and not have to shell out tens of thousands of dollars in studio costs. The internet allows us to expand our reach to an international level. A lot of artists are doing this which has created it's own downside. The downside is that the internet culture is becoming a market of entitlement and short attention spans. Everybody wants everything for free and they want it now. For artists, the internet is both a blessing and a curse. The curse is that almost any piece of art available on the internet has less perceived value to a listener. It's simple psychology. We always value more what we have to work for or pay for with our own hard earned money.  Something given away for free has less value to the person consuming it. But if you charge for it there is a good chance most will never give it a try. The blessing is that it puts the onus on the artists to make the best art possible. My philosophy is that the only way to break through the static is to create music that will stand the test of time and keep putting it in front of as many people as you can. At the end of the day it's a numbers game. You increase your odds of success if you make sure that your art pleases you first....b/c only then will you muster the energy to try to share it with the rest of us.

6.  Now for my Barbara Walters question:  If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be?

Toe Sox I think. The Shining Skulls are Toe Sox. We have a snug little home for each of our toes....and by toes I mean fans.

Simply Six: Lola Bleu

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you?

My moment was back in 2004 broadcasting live on Net 2004 with my High School Choir over satillite in Baltimore MD. Thousands of Seventh Day Adventist were watching us sing via satillite, I had a solo. Since then people still recognize me and my voice.

2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites?

Pandora; Trey Songz, Drake; Darnell Levine, Janelle Monae,India Arie, Jill Scott, John Legend, Maxwell

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live?

My Album Release Party at Humphries in Huntsville AL. Seeing all those who came to support was unbelievable! Singing my heart out under the stars and hearing my supporters cheer for me was unforgettable.

4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events?

Yes I believe music can change the world. Having the right lyrics can change a persons perception about any subject. Words affect a persons mood or idea. Its a fashion people will follow if its hot! But music can alter a persons mindset about whats wrong or right.

5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician?

Technology has made it easier for people to purchase music online and hack music online. It has its pros and cons of course. But it has made it very convenient for people to carry the music with them. It has only affected my music in a good way by making it more convenient to direct people to find my music and purchase it.

6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be

I would be a pair of black swade, thigh high boots.

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SIMPLY SIX: Leslie

Leslie is a three man band that showcases the best of Southern Rock.

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when
they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance
of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the
Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a
defining moment for you?

I think the defining moment for me was when my parents took me to
Farm Aid 96 in Columbia, SC. I was about ten years old, and Neil Young
& Crazy Horse was the the last act. Seeing Neil electric changed my
life, the volume and power was so much that it rattled my chest, thats
when i realized thats what i want to do


2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are
some of your favorites?

I like to listen to old blues , old soul, and
classic rock when i'm not creating music, we like everything!! Since
we play rock and roll, some of our favorites are Nick Drake, Stevie
Wonder, all over the map

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist,
either on record or live?

I think the greatest moment in our career
so far is the release of our new EP "Rebel Souls" It just has a lot
to say on it, and i feel like people are getting the band that we've
always been but this is the first time they can hear it in a quality
way.

4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to
listen to? How much can music influence current events?

Music is
universal language. Its not the question of can it change the world,
it already has! Elvis, The Beatles, The Clash, U2....Music can
definitely affect current events because people listen to the artists

5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology
affected your career as a musician?

Technology affects everything. Now you have more ways than ever
to get music and hear about bands, the band thing is that you have so
many ways to get it for free! But I feel good to know that if someone
is getting it for free at least they're getting the music, but if
everyone was getting it for free, i wouldn't be able to have a career
in music! There's a lot of blood sweat and tears that go into making
records and I don't want to be stolen from on the ground level. Lars
can screw off!

6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes
what type of shoes would you be?

I would be a pair of good boots, cuz they are good in any types
of weather and they look badass'