places where i wanna play songs this summer and fall, help if you can friends? Email Me

philly
nyc
boston
providence
baltimore
dc
charlottesville
richmond
pittsburgh
toronto

louisville
chicago
milwaukee
madison
iowa city
kansas city
omaha
minneapolis

portland
seattle
san diego
san francisco
LA
denver
phoenix

HEADLINE:

Folk-punk music artist Thick Red Wine releases new LP “Never Wanted to Be Cool”

SUMMARY:

The singer-songwriter of folk-punk music known as Thick Red Wine has released his premier LP digital record album, “Never Wanted to Be Cool.”

PRESS RELEASE:

The singer-songwriter of folk-punk music known as Thick Red Wine has released his premier LP digital record album, “Never Wanted to Be Cool.” The album contains 10 original tracks over an approximate 40 minutes of playing time, and serves as an excellent and comprehensive introduction to Thick Red Wine’s own inimitable style.

This style is based on the American roots of folk music and focuses mainly on acoustic guitar playing and unpolished, raw vocals, although there are horns, female chorales, and a variety of instruments here and there just for the delightful textures they add to the album. Thick Red Wine’s sound is folksy in the composition of the music and instrumentation, but the vocals on “Never Wanted to Be Cool” are of the purest punk rock at heart, which is where TRW gets very, very interesting.

The far-and-away chiefest of all Thick Red Wine’s attractions are the vocals. Thick Red’s vocals are occasionally reminiscent of Jeff Mangum from Neutral Milk Hotel, and sometimes very much like Rodney Linderman of The Dead Milkmen (the title track from the album, “Never Wanted to Be Cool” has elements that recall the Milkmen’s famous song, “Punk Rock Girl”), but the sheer genius, openness, and downright humanity of Thick Red’s lyric writing places “Never Wanted…” in a place reserved for true contemporary poets like Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, and Leonard Cohen.

“I’d rather watch you smile than watch you watch your weight,” one particularly gorgeous phrase goes. The following lines from the title track are also seem conspicuously stunning:

“I chased Bobby’s skinny, little, sad and slow, misshapen body around the recess yard like dogs chase prey – well, that’s how I chased Bobby.”

And from later in the song, “This song might not win me any Grammys, but I shall sing it proud, as an exception to the rule, and I’m glad I never wanted to be cool.”

To be clear, lines such as these seem particularly awe-inspiring, but only until the listener must contend with the conclusion that practically every notch and nook of “Never Wanted…” maintains the same shockingly perfect quality, the writing of which is the glittering diadem on the head of all this musical majesty. The earnestness in Thick Red Wine’s playing, singing, writing and recording, together with a warm friendliness and inexplicable, steadfast optimism are attributes that are certain to win (and keep) every listener who hears this literally wonderful record as a lifelong friend and admirer.

Thick Red Wine intends to record with a full-scale electric band in the future, but in its present incarnation music fans can ask no more of its utter flawlessness. “Never Wanted to Be Cool” by Thick Red Wine is available online worldwide as of February, 2013.

Never Wanted to Be Cool
Geneva’s Song
Middle School Dance
Meeting Girls
Franzia

sometimes when i perform, strangers think i’m crazy. there’s an errant vulgar lyric. angry guitar mashing instead of fingerpicking. maybe i’m wearing a wifebeater or shirtless.

i feel afraid to talk about my shows sometimes. they’re very self-conscious odd celebratory affairs. and they do keep me believing in and following this strange dream. i’ve tried to make every night a unique experience. so that even if nobody else remembers, i will remember.

sometimes that means there’s one song i play even if i don’t really know it at all. or in april, i played a new song “come at me bro” hours after i’d written it. there were some fuckups and some improv-ed lyrics. but it was freeing.

it feels like i never play quiet songs at my shows. some of them are pretty personal and sad. if it’s a loud venue, playing the songs solo would just make me sad.

of course when a place is loud, i try to make myself louder. because maybe someone thinks “who the hell is this guy?” and they listen to my lyrics for 3 seconds. there’s always a thin line separating whether i pick up another fan, awkwardly offend someone, or make someone uncomfortable.

i have plenty of missteps during my shows. my song lyric sheets have been flying everywhere recently. forgetting duct tape to attach lyric sheets to a mic stand can be easily remedied by learning the words to my own songs. i stepped on my own guitar cord and it came out on stage during a song the other night. definitely screwed up a guitar harmonic here and there.

these things don’t really bother me though. because i know i just have to keep moving and keep getting better. i distrust those people who believe success ONLY comes by treating your music like a dead-end job. where you hire professionals and make investments and run social media campaigns. i’m sure that can work for you and it could even be really fulfilling for you.

i’d rather hope that a musician’s success come from something inherently physical and primal. standing on a stage and making sounds that will engage someone. whether you’re playing a metal solo at a bad irish pub or singing a ukelele lullaby in a coffee shop, the heart of the matter is still sound. you’re making sounds that others are attracted to.

maybe i’m going to become a noise musician. people who make noise music have cultish fans. they love noise as a genre. isn’t that a beautiful thing? i’ve been to some noise shows. they’re always fascinating, sad and exciting. it’s a range of emotions that i don’t get when i’m texting during a bad electro pop act at a loud awful bar.

all of this just to say i truly want to be playing music for people as much as possible. starting now. i’m more than appreciative for getting the chance to play songs for people and positively impact their lives for even one small moment. leaving austin doesn’t make me appreciate this fact less.

so friends, how many shows can i play this summer? where at? your friends’ house? your local dive bar? i really do want to see you. and i’d like to sing my little songs about our lives. about how we’re all just trying to figure out where we belong and who we belong with. maybe we can even cook something from my Coolio cookbook afterwards and hang out while i play r&b songs. it will be nice! friends i’m coming to you!

love
woj