New Recording Studio

Well, they're laying the cement today for a new recording studio in my back yard. I'm very excited to be able to have my own place to work. And I'm sure the neighbors will be thrilled. ;)

What's this mean for you? It means more recorded output from Roadside Attraction! I won't have to tromp all the way downtown every time I get an idea for a song now. I usually forget it by the time I get there anyway.

Last week was weird...

It was a strange week for shows last week. Small audiences everywhere. We struggled to get 50 into the Improv. And the show there the next night was cancelled altogether. I wasn't on that one. The show at E3 was very sparse, but we had a good time anyway. Even the open mic I hit on Wednesday, which is usually full, was very on the empty side.

Could it be graduation/prom/holiday time? Maybe. I try not to blame things on outside circumstances. It's just one of those things that happens sometimes.

I'll be at the Grame Matthew Studio on Bascom Ave in San Jose this Thursday... Headlining in a great little room. :)

The Improv Comedy Competition

So, I did the competition at the San Jose Improv this past Tuesday. At first we weren't sure the show was going to happen due to lack of audience. But we managed to get 50 people or so in there.

I didn't place, but I wasn't worried about that. I like the stage time.... Or do I?

I've never been a fan of competitions, but I've done a few over the last couple of months. They are, of course, a popularity contest despite voting rules that try to make up for that. But two of the top 3 will always be the guys who brought the big crowd, funny or not.

But I always went for the stage time in front of a good crowd. What I increasingly find is an audience that mostly laughs at who they came to see. Incidentally, my fans laughed at everyone. But my sure-fire material never works as well a the competitions. And even though I don't really care if I win or not, I still kinda hope to hear my name called at the end of the night. I don't have much of a competitive streak, but it does pop up a little at these things.

So, I don't think I'm going to do too many more of these right now. I'm booked for two more this summer and I'll see how those go. But I'd rather play a regular show where everyone in the room can enjoy each other. Just my thoughts.

Here is why I'm not on a major label or American Idol or any of that other "mainstream" junk. I've been fortunate to have trustworthy people giving me advice on the direction of the music industry. Trent Reznor makes some very common statements here that I hear all the time from previous major label acts. And Trent is a master marketer and music craftsman.

Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails/Herald Sun





Q: It must be an odd time then to have a new album, Year Zero, out?



A: It's a very odd time to be a musician on a major label, because there's so much resentment towards the record industry that it's hard to position yourself in a place with the fans where you don't look like a greedy asshole. But at the same time, when our record came out I was disappointed at the number of people that actually bought it. If this had been 10 years ago.



I would think "Well, not that many people are into it. OK, that kinda sucks. Yeah I could point fingers but the blame would be with me, maybe I'm not relevant". But on this record, I know people have it and I know it's on everybody's iPods, but the climate is such that people don't buy it because it's easier to steal it.





Q: You're a bit of a computer geek. You must have been there, too?



A: Oh, I understand that -- I steal music too, I'm not gonna say I don't. But it's tough not to resent people for doing it when you're the guy making the music, that would like to reap a benefit from that. On the other hand, you got record labels that are doing everything they can to piss people off and rip them off. I created a little issue down here because the first thing I did when I got to Sydney is I walk into HMV, the week the record's out, and I see it on the rack with a bunch of other releases. And every release I see: $21.99, $22.99, $24.99. And ours doesn't have a sticker on it. I look close and 'Oh, it's $34.99'. So I walk over to see our live DVD Beside You in Time, and I see that it's also priced six, seven, eight dollars more than every other disc on there. And I can't figure out why that would be.





Q: Did you have a word to anyone?



A: Well, in Brisbane I end up meeting and greeting some record label people, who are pleasant enough, and one of them is a sales guy, so I say "Why is this the case?" He goes "Because your packaging is a lot more expensive". I know how much the packaging costs -- it costs me, not them, it costs me 83 cents more to have a CD with the colour-changing ink on it. I'm taking the hit on that, not them. So I said "Well, it doesn't cost $10 more". "Ah, well, you're right, it doesn't. Basically it's because we know you've got a core audience that's gonna buy whatever we put out, so we can charge more for that. It's the pop stuff we have to discount to get people to buy it. True fans will pay whatever". And I just said "That's the most insulting thing I've heard. I've garnered a core audience that you feel it's OK to rip off? F--- you'. That's also why you don't see any label people here, 'cos I said 'F--- you people. Stay out of my f---ing show. If you wanna come, pay the ticket like anyone else. F--- you guys". They're thieves. I don't blame people for stealing music if this is the kind of s--- that they pull off.





Q: Where does that extra $10 on your album go?



A: That money's not going into my pocket, I can promise you that. It's just these guys who have f---ed themselves out of a job essentially, that now take it out on ripping off the public. I've got a battle where I'm trying to put out quality material that matters and I've got fans that feel it's their right to steal it and I've got a company that's so bureaucratic and clumsy and ignorant and behind the times they don't know what to do, so they rip the people off.





Q: Given all that, do you have any idea how to approach the release of your next album?



A: I've have one record left that I owe a major label, then I will never be seen in a situation like this again. If I could do what I want right now, I would put out my next album, you could download it from my site at as high a bit-rate as you want, pay $4 through PayPal. Come see the show and buy a T-shirt if you like it. I would put out a nicely packaged merchandise piece, if you want to own a physical thing. And it would come out the day that it's done in the studio, not this "Let's wait three months" bulls---.





Q: When your US label, Interscope, discovered the web-based alternate reality game (ARG) you'd built around Year Zero, were they happy for the free marketing or angry you hadn't let them in on it?





A: I chose to do this on my own, at great financial expense to myself, because I knew they wouldn't understand what it is, for one. And secondly, I didn't want it coming from a place of marketing, I wanted it coming from a place that was pure to the project. It's a way to present the story and the backdrop, something I would be excited to find as a fan. I knew the minute I talked to someone at the record label about it, they would be looking at it in terms of "How can we tie this in with a mobile provider?" That's what they do. If something lent itself to that, OK, I'm not opposed to the idea of not losing a lot of money (laughs). But it would only be if it made sense. I've had to position myself as the irrational, stubborn, crazy artist. At the end of the day, I'm not out to sabotage my career, but quality matters, and integrity matters. Jumping through any hoop or taking advantage of any desperate situation that comes up just to sell a product is harmful. It is.





Q: Is the Year Zero ARG something labels will copy now?



A: Well, their response, when they saw that it did catch on like wildfire, was "Look how smart we are the way we marketed this record". That's the feedback I've gotten -- other artists who've met with that label ask 'em about it: "Yeah, you like what we did for Trent? Look what we did for Trent". They've then gone on to try to buy the company that did it to apply it to all their other acts. So, glad I could help them out. I'm sure they still don't understand what it is that we did or why it worked. But I will look forward to the Black Eyed Peas ARG, that should be amazing.





http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,21741980-5006024,00.html

Words of Wisdom...

Be happy with and enjoy what you have. But always be pushing for a better future.

Who said it? I don't know... But you'll be hearing variations of it from me pretty regularly.

Jetting off to LA.....

Well, I'm headed to LA for the Music Strategies conference this weekend. There's nothing like getting in a room with 150 of "my people" and immersing ourselves in the music business for 3 days.

Ok, it's getting our asses kicked for three days by our mentor, but good nonetheless. :)

If you happen to be in the LA area this weekend. Come by the Westin LAX Hotel on Saturday night at 7pm and see the huge performance night we do each time. I'm probably MC'ing the event again.

And when I get back on Monday, I'll have all kinds of great new ideas and energy to get my music and comedy out to the world. :)

Meanwhile, check out my friend Tim Lee's hilarious scientific comedy:

The New Dynamic of Fan/Artist Interaction

Check out this great article in the New York Post.

It's almost as if they're reporting the obvious. Certainly as artists we've been working at being closer to our fans for a few years now. It will certainly be interesting to see where it all goes.

The whole idea of being a socialite artist is fairly new. It used to be that I'd show up for soundcheck, then sit in the back of the room and read a book until it was time to go onstage. I've always been a very shy person. I know, you can't tell from my stage show, but it's true. I feel utterly at home on stage talking to a room full of people. One on one is much different though.

I had to get used to being a people person. And two things have happened. One, it's fueled the rise of my career. Two, it's made me a happier person. I enjoy knowing people and being known.

Will it become drudgery like some of the artists in the article mention? Overwhelming maybe (hopefully), but not drudgery, I think. Though face to face communication is more fulfilling than internet, at least we have something.

Check out the article and leave me a comment on what you think.

Phil Johnson
http://www.RoadsideAttraction.com

Preview DVDs

I've got a new promotional device that I'll be experimenting with over the next few weeks. I've been using introduction CDs for years and done pretty well with them. Now I'm trying out Preview DVDs. They include a short comedy set and the trailer for "Raising A Rockus" along with my artist story and discography. I'm interested to see how well they work and I'll find out tonight as I hit my first couple events with them.

Phil Johnson
Roadside Attraction
http://www.RoadsideAttraction.com

Comedy at the Swingin' Door

Last night's comedy show at the Swingin' Door Pub in San Mateo was really a lot of fun. More than I thought it would be. :)

I headlined the night, but my feature act, Lynn Ruth Miller was responsible for bringing most of the crowd. It was 98% women which can be a good or bad thing. In a room full of guys, some will laugh out loud and others will sit in stone silence. Women stick together though. If they like you, then nearly all of them will be in on the fun. If a few of them don't like you, the rest will tone down their response.

Luckily I got the former. All very nice ladies and I even worked them all the way up to LCW and still had 'em. So it was a good night. Quite a few picked up DVDs and CDs too, which means I get to eat today. ;)

Next show is this Saturday at Our Little Theater in San Francisco at 8pm. Check my website for details. And arrive early. They're not kidding with that name. The place holds about 12 people. I do it more like an intimate house concert there. Really fun. :)

Next week I won't be playing in the Bay Area due to a music convention in LA. For you hip-hop heads, my buddy Tah Phrum Da Bush is in town from New York. This dude is one of the most entertaining performers and top notch MCs I've ever met. Check him out at Club 6 in San Francisco on Tuesday the 15th and Club Anton in Oakland on Thursday the 17th. His website is www.FilthyClean.com

Phil Johnson
Roadside Attraction
www.RoadsideAttraction.com

What the heck is comedy music?

Alright... So, I'm going to try again to make a go of this blog thing. Seems I always get to busy with other things and sometimes forget to to communicate with the world. :)

So where to start... Well, maybe by defining a little bit about what I do. The world of comedy music brings up a lot of questions with people who don't know much about it. We are a comparitively small subsect of the comedy world, but there are the stars (Stephen Lynch, Weird Al, Adam Sandler) that people know.

Basically I break it down into three different types:

Parody - This means using someone else's songs and writing new, funny (hopefully) lyrics to it. Weird Al is the king of this. On one level, this is an easy task because the music and arrangement are done for you. On the other hand it's really difficult to write a GOOD parody that actually elicits laughter and doesn't sound hokey. Parody has never been my style and I stay well away from it. Why? Because I'm a music artist before a comedian. The music part is of utmost importance (and enjoyment) to me as a writer.

Novelty Songs - These are songs that are quirky, but not neccessarily funny. The lyrics will fall outside the normal love/social issues/psychological whining of the average songs you hear on the radio. They might be about dinosaurs or cucumbers. While they may have some funny lines, they're more about being different. A good chunk of what you hear on Dr Demento falls under this category. Musically they can fall between the very simplistic and the very complex, ie. Frank Zappa. Unfortunately, the term "novelty song" oftens connotes a throwaway quality. Like, "Oh, it's just a little joke". Yeah, ok.. Tell Zappa that. While I've written some songs that can fall into this category, I don't call them novelty songs. I call them my "Fun, but not Funny" songs. "Afrodizzyac" (one of my current Roadside Attraction favorites) is an example of this type of song. But it's certainly not throwaway material. It's actually one of the more complex and difficult songs in our repertoire.

Comedy Music - This is where most of my concentration is these days. Comedy music uses the principles and techniques of standup comedy, but in a musical form. So, there's setups, punchlines, act-outs, surprise elements, rule of 3 runs, hard "k" sounds. All the different ideas that regular standups use to make you laugh. Just surrounded by music. I find it a difficult and challenging medium since, not only does it have to be funny, but it has to rhyme and make musical sense as well. Each song is a new puzzle to work out. "LCW" and "Asshole" are two of my songs that fit in this category pretty well.

I try to make the message of my comedy pretty clear - That's life just isn't that serious and there's always someone more screwed up than you. But sometimes I write straight music as well. Pieces to sort out the more serious aspects of what goes on in my head. "Share My Pixie Dust", "Judgment Day", "Dead City Support Club" and the like. Those are a different discipline of their own, but right now I'm into the comedy stuff. :)

So I hope that gives you a little more insight into my art and what it's about. More to come. :)

Gotta go write now. :)

Phil Johnson
Roadside Attraction
http://www.RoadsideAttraction.com

P.S. You can hear samples of all the songs mentioned here on my website.

P.P.S. Don't forget to pick up a copy of our new DVD "Raising A Rockus" while you're there!