THE REB LANDERS INTERVIEW with DANNY McCLOSKEY

The Alternate Root (TAR): So, out of nowhere came Alternate Root TV and you immediately have people like Colin Linden, Corb Lund and Hot Club of Cowtown. How did that happen?

Reb Landers (R.L.): Well we actually had access to those folks through The Alternate Root Magazine prior to Alt Root TV. Our artist relations guru Big Kev Ploghoff and director Fred Boenig have been around the Roots Americana format for years. They were doing the Living Room Series and Motel Time Series as strictly an audio gig for years.  We began running the interviewsand performances in audio format in the magazine back in 2007 and started filming the interviews and acoustic performances last year. We also have a good channel through publicists like Mark Pucci Media, Conqueroo and Cary Baker and Martha Moore. They give us access to what we need. Oddly the record companies like Lost Highway, Yep Roc, Rounder have been less forthcoming but that’s probably more due to us not approaching them as opposed to them avoiding us. The Americana Music Association appears firmly committed to avoiding association with anything that the magazine or Alternate Root TV does…why that is? Well you’d have to interview them.

TAR: Killer background song, who is playing?

R.L.: That’s Peter Parcek. He’s a pretty heavy blues cat from New England, fairly well documented in these parts. He was the music director for Pinetop Perkins, he’s played with Ronnie Earl and was a co-founder of Dragonfly now called The Singhs. The Singhs have a much larger global footprint than here in North America but it’s a formidable band.

TAR: The mix of video and acoustic performances is simple and sticks to
the music. Will that be the way the show plays out?

R.L.: No idea how this show is going to play out Danny. We copped the MTV model since they haven’t used it in a while and we modified it a bit. Still it’s a fine line between MTV and Wayne’s World and we have to be conscious of that line. We want the show to be informative without the focus being on what I say or do. I’m not a personality, just someone who tries to be informative about artists the audience may not be familiar with. We want the in-studio guests, the interviews, the performances and the video to dictate how the show runs. We have some plans to bring on guest hosts to co-host with me. One in particular will be in St. Louis in May where we are going to bring in some of the local legends of the St.Louis music scene. Another is planned for Boston later on. The show is an ongoing process so if we get feedback about particular segments we may adjust.

TAR: With your beret and sunglasses, you may be the coolest VJ going. How do you stay so relaxed?

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JOSH LANGSTON INTERVIEW WITH REB LANDERS

“I try and write songs that actual people can relate to instead of what you hear on mainstream radio; all fluff and no truth. Nashville wants songs that are happy and upbeat, but life ain’t always happy and upbeat,” says Josh Langston, his long blond hair tucked under a houndstooth pork-pie hat.

Langston is kind of renegade, a musical equivilent to a wild mustang. he is completely familiar with his terrain, roaming as a free spirit and will fight to the end to maintain it. His album Liberty or Death is a ‘how-to’ document on the outlaw spirit. His writing reflects a maturity and poetic awareness usually reserved for artists well beyond his years or experiences. Think Steve Earle or Rodney Crowell...Hank Jr., Merle Haggard.

The Alternate Root (TAR): Was there a particular turning point in your life that put you on this path?

Josh Langston (J.L.): Well, I didn’t pick up a guitar until I was twenty years old. By the time I turned twenty one I had quit my job and was on the road playing music and I have never looked back!

TAR: So you didn’t grow up in a musical family.

J.L.:  I never really had anybody in my family that was into music. I totally absorbed myself with music. I spent a lot of time sitting in my room listening to vinyl. Probably why I haven’t been influenced by much new music.
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MARK WEHNER INTERVIEW WITH REB LANDERS

“If anything, today’s independent musician has more opportunity to succeed than at any point in musical history. If they fail to have a basic grasp of the business of music, they are destined to fail.” says Mark Wehner.

Mark Wehner knows the music business. The Philadelphia native now residing in Nashville played a pivotol role in developing the roots / Americana format in it’s infancy when he established Americana Tonight, a weekly showcase in Nashville that ran for three years and helped to launch a long list of careers including Joy Lynn White, David Olney, Rosie Flores and Elizabeth Cook. The syndicated show was one of the first to highlight Americana Music as a genre in the backyard of Music Row. The pull of the music was too strong and after it’s three year run Wehner returned to his musical roots to complete some unfinished business. The resulting album ‘Wait..I Wasn’t Finished’ has just been released to a warm reception at Americana radio.

The Alternate Root (TAR): It’s been quite a journey completing this album, how long has it been in the works?

Mark Wehner (MW): “Wait … I Wasn’t Finished” really took over 10 years. Some of the writing began in the late 90’s and all but two songs were released on my two previous records. There was always something about them that wasn’t ringing right, so my producer and I sat down and went over each song and made modifications; adding/deleting instruments, vocals, etc. This record captures the essence of each song as it had been envisioned. Thus … the title.

TAR: Did you produce it yourself or did someone hang with you for the whole ten years?

MW: Dan Frizsell has been my bass player, producer and engineer for over 10 years. When we listen to a song, we both tend to hear the same thing or have the same ideas on where to go with it. The other players on the record have all been hand picked by either Dan or myself. I’m extremely fortunate that many of them I can call my friends. This record in particular has a large cast of characters since it has been 10 years in the making. Vassar Clements, who plays fiddle on 3 of the tracks, isn’t with us anymore. One of the backing vocalists is now the bass player for Boston, and another has gone on to have a very successful writing career.

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