Couch Riffs

My guest on this episode is none other than Brian Baker , guitarist/bassist for more legendary punk rock bands than anyone else we can think of. This list could begin and end with Minor Threat but is complimented by so many more bands. Bad Religion. Samhain. Bash & Pop. Junkyard. Dag Nasty. Government Issue. More. Many more. I loved having this conversation and I hope that you enjoy it, too.   If...

Our guest this episode is Vicky Warwick , and English session and touring bassist living and working out of LA. She's toured and gigged with a number of notable artists including Charli XCX and puts out music under her stage name, Ainslie. She is launching a podcast called Where Are We Again? featuring guests and stories of being on the road as a touring professional and I can't wait to dive in! I...

It was my pleasure to host Andrew Ross on this episode of Couch Riffs. Andrew is a musical theater major and has sang with a multitude of productions including Trans-Siberian Orchestra since 2007. He has an incredible voice and can count multi-instrumentalist as an additional talent. I can't wait until covid is a thing of the past and I can go see him in action. I hope you enjoy this conversation...

Our guest this episode is Taylor Cox, the owner/operator and builder at Amplified Nation out of Boston, MA. Taylor started out re-housing amps and recovering cabinets and evolved into b https://couchriffs.com uilding super high-end amp clones after building himself a reputation in the boutique and hobbyist amp community. Today he's building some CRUSHERS. Go check out some demos when you get a cha...

Our guest this episode is MLNY Parsonz of Royal Thunder . MLNY has one of the most compelling voices in contemporary rock music and her band is amazing! Please stay on the lookout for a Couch Riffs video featuring her talents as a bassist and vocalist in the very near future. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much I did. This was a fun and interesting conversation for me.  If you are enjoying...

Our guest this episode is Taylor Locke , singer/songwriter, producer/engineer, studio owner/operator, former guitarist of pop rock band Rooney and creative force with the musical comedy "Don't Stop, The Story of Fleetwood Mac" which I'm dying to see. He recently released a solo EP (October 2020) full of tasty pop morsels called The Bitter End. Go check it out HERE . Taylor has done a TON in his ca...

Guests on this episode of Couch Riffs are South of Eden 's Ehab Omran (vox) and Justin Young (guitar). South of Eden are a young midwestern band out of Ohio that throw it down with some old school flavor ,tipping their hats at multiple generations of rock music that came before them. They released an EP in 2020 and a couple of videos over the past year with a full-length and some more fun covers/s...

Our guest this episode is Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal and we are quite happy to get the opportunity to host him. Ron is a great guy to hang and talk with and I first met him in 2009 while my band, Loaded, was on tour and he played some songs with us a couple of different nights in and around NYC. Ron is a stop-what-you're-doing-and-listen level guitarist and a master of the fretless guitar, to boot. He'...

This episode we have the pleasure of hanging out and speaking with our bandmate Burke Thomas who started a podcast this year called The Drum Recovery Network . Go check it out! Burke has played in a number of bands over the years, does a bit of music production work for TV/advertising, runs a music school called Loudhouse and is an avid gardener and fitness fanatic. Check out the performance of So...

Our guest this episode is Sarah Carbonetti, the Brooklyn singer and songwriting force of Ess See . I thoroughly enjoyed discovering Ess See's music this past year and had a great time learning about Sarah's musical history and on-the-job education. AND, we were lucky enough to have her sing in a Couch Riffs video for our rendition of Making Plans For Nigel by XTC. I hope you enjoy this as much as...

Our guest on this episode is Jeff Smith, CEO of Newman Guitars . Newman Guitars has roots back to the early 70s and the founder, Ted Newman Jones worked for Keith Richards, building him multiple guitars including some famous 5-strings. He went on to build guitars for Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, Billy Gibbons and more while he has a shop set up in Austin TX. Today Newman guitars is base...

Our guest this episode is Charlie Starr of Atlanta's Blackberry Smoke . Charlie recounts some of his early influences, moving to Atlanta in pursuit of his musical dream, starting Blackberry Smoke and the making of their yet-to-be released new album for 2021, recorded and mixed mid-2020. Charlie will be performing SHOWS IN JANUARY 2021 through the south. Check the hyper link for dates!  Thank you s...

Our guest this episode is Jeff Pilson who is most famously known for being the bassist for Dokken. Jeff has had a ton of great opportunities over the span of his career to showcase his talents including playing with Dio and Foreigner and continues to do so most recently releasing Heavy Hitters , a covers album, with his Dokken bandmate George Lynch. Jeff practices hot pilates and yoga and leads a...

Our guest this episode Marc Ford , former lead guitarist for The Black Crowes, Burning Tree, Ben Harper, The Magpie Salute, and leader of a number of his own bands. Earlier this year (2020) the elusive  Fuzz Machine LP got a proper release and Marc has a live record releasing in January 15, 2021, Live In Germany , which is full of the same fire that his fans have come to expect. I've been enjoying...

Our guest this episode is Pete Nordstrom who is the bassist of Seattle band Stag, co-organizer (along with his wife Brandy) of SMooCH (Seattle Musician's for Children's Hospital) and who happens to have started his career in the women's shoes stockroom at the department store that bears his own family name (not a coincidence). We had a great time talking through tons of stuff including his early a...

Our guest this episode is Joe Balaguer of Balaguer Guitars, a boutique Pennsylvania guitar company who is among those leading the charge in price-accessible guitars of a quality that far exceed their price tag. I loved hearing Joe's story and getting to know him a bit throughout the course of this conversation. If you haven't check out Balaguer's website, you should There is a custom guitar buildi...

Our guest this episode is Carrie Akre , a major fixture in the Seattle rock music scene for the past 30 years. Carrie has put out a number of solo releases as well as fronted the bands Hammerbox , Goodness , and The Rockfords featuring Mike McCready of Pearl Jam fame. Hearing her story of walking into her first band audition after cold-calling an ad from a local newspaper is inspiring! She has mos...

Frankie Clarke fronts the LA band Frankie and The Studs and released their new single 9/20 called (Not Your) Victim. It was our pleasure to have her as a guest singer on a recent Couch Riffs video and we are looking forward to more and more from this great talent and her band. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!  If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast and/or our cover song vid...

I've played more shows with Jeff Rouse than with any other band member or person I know. We've created a bond of over 20 years and never had a single fight. Can you even imagine that? I'm not sure how he hasn't fired me as a friend over the years, but he hasn't. We played in Alien Crime Syndicate and Loaded for years of touring all over the world and I can't image having had any of those experienc...

Bob Wayne does it like no one else, he does it his way. And, I admire that. I had an incredible time speaking with Bob and we tour his property a bit as well as getting the backstory of his musical progression. If you enjoy this episode half as much as I did you'll love it! If you're enjoying the Couch Riffs podcast and/or videos please consider becoming a supporter at Patreon . Your support goes...

Tucker Rule is most well-known for being the drummer of post-hardcore band Thursday but stays busy playing for a host of folks including The Wanted, Frank Iero, and My Chemical Romance. You can hire Tucker to play on your record through SoundBetter.com and you'll be happy you did! This was the first time speaking with hm and we had a great time talking a lot of random crap. I hope you enjoy this a...

Our guest this episode is Jasin Cadic , a multitalented creative who is a painter/artist, musician, film maker, and set designer. He's the kind of person that gathers no moss, for sure, as he's always working on something and planning his next project. Currently he's making music with Kelsey Warren of Blak Emoji under the name PASSWORD: (dOOMsDAY). His film credits include The Perfect Age of Rock...

Dan Presencer  of Moar Guitars is building some of the most elegant guitars you'll find in the world, as far as I'm concerned, and I was very happy to get the opportunity to catch him with a little time over a recent weekend to tell me a bit about his history, what he's up to now, and what he sees himself doing in the future, possibly. If you've not seen his guitars you should do yourself a favor...

Our guest this episode is Anthony Cartinella of Black 35 Guitars out of Red Bank NJ. Anthony is a music teacher and a former drum company operator/owner and has poured tons of energy into Black 35 since starting in 2015. Recently he began building pedal boards featuring similar distressed appearances similar to his guitars and they are handsome bits of kit! Go check them out at his website and ord...

This episode features my conversation with Keith Nelson , former guitarist and founding member of Buckcherry. Keith shares his story of diligence in the music world as we catch up and talk about his going from working at Guitar Center to having a platinum selling album and owning '59 Bursts. As of late Keith has been working with a variety of bands and artists producing and cowriting a number of s...