October 7, 2024 • 27 mins
I think this marks the 4th episode with Jeremy Jessen. This time we're chatting all amazing things about the song "Doppler" from Rad Owl's banger of a new record, "Rage Gracefully".
Telling on myself, the episode was recorded in late May 2024 and I wasn't able to finally finish the episode until last week.
Pinky swear, I'll do better.
"Rage..." came out in late Spring 2024, on Sell The Heart Records based out of San Francisco, and the fellas have been busy performing and supporting their new release across the US & Canada.
Amazing for me that they are coming to Orlando, FL to play Will's Pub on Wednesday, Oct 23 (Along with B-Side Breakdown Alum, The Raging Nathans!!!) and at FEST! on Saturday Oct 26 at The Backyard @ Boca Fiesta & Palomino in Gainesville, FL.
This Will's Pub show is going to be amazing as I saw The Raging Nathans, Rad Owl, Reconciler, and Jon Snodgrass perform together at The Earl in East ATL a few years ago. I'm stoked to get a second helping of that show.
Go see them. Please show your support and buy their amazing records.
@radowlband
https://radowl.bandcamp.com/
@selltheheartrecords
https://selltheheartrecords.bandcamp.com/
@threecrowsclub
@brettjamesjohnson
@bsidebreakdown
#RadOwl #Doppler #RageGracefully #SellTheHeartRecords #JeremyJessen #brettjamesjohnson #threecrowsclub #musicpodcast #bsidebreakdown
Telling on myself, the episode was recorded in late May 2024 and I wasn't able to finally finish the episode until last week.
Pinky swear, I'll do better.
"Rage..." came out in late Spring 2024, on Sell The Heart Records based out of San Francisco, and the fellas have been busy performing and supporting their new release across the US & Canada.
Amazing for me that they are coming to Orlando, FL to play Will's Pub on Wednesday, Oct 23 (Along with B-Side Breakdown Alum, The Raging Nathans!!!) and at FEST! on Saturday Oct 26 at The Backyard @ Boca Fiesta & Palomino in Gainesville, FL.
This Will's Pub show is going to be amazing as I saw The Raging Nathans, Rad Owl, Reconciler, and Jon Snodgrass perform together at The Earl in East ATL a few years ago. I'm stoked to get a second helping of that show.
Go see them. Please show your support and buy their amazing records.
@radowlband
https://radowl.bandcamp.com/
@selltheheartrecords
https://selltheheartrecords.bandcamp.com/
@threecrowsclub
@brettjamesjohnson
@bsidebreakdown
#RadOwl #Doppler #RageGracefully #SellTheHeartRecords #JeremyJessen #brettjamesjohnson #threecrowsclub #musicpodcast #bsidebreakdown
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Stree Tros B Side Breakdown.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Hey everyone, welcome to the B Side Breakdown. My name
is Brett Johnson and I'm your host. This is a
podcast where I talk to other artists, musicians and songwriters
but a song they've written that's meaningful to them that
they want to get deep into the why behind it's
meaningful to them, and then we play the song in
its entirety on this episode so you the listener get
to hear it and see what we're talking all about.
So today I'm gonna be talking with an old B
(00:29):
Side Breakdown favorite, Jeremy Jesson, who's been in multiple bands
on the podcast in the series. But today we're going
to be talking about the song Doppler from his band
rat Owl, which comes out their new record Rage Gracefully.
So let's get into it. Here is Doppler by rat Owl.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Never Fit Side, They Won't Bake It One more stars
a devil Chat set of very smart as we tried
to make your poyless suiting day. So I come bot
bot Usty Boone from the closets. We claim we are
(01:23):
got on me never Quarto j Doll in a big book.
So take what you find to a.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
No fo sartin.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
We're set it sway now I've shot I footed preaching
in the time dever fit side. They won't bake it
one more stars a ball chant to wada erything slong
as we tried to make your poiless suiting did that's
(02:00):
no God go sny reach, whats we meet? We all
love Cristo, We don't leave you, and here we are,
rus Felix, you have no food shirts would wait well
the reason the time never side. We'll make it shut
(03:16):
a set of Beth Wait, so thank you boy.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
This dude, I'm like, wait, wait, wait, wait, all right,
And that was Doppler by rat Owl off their new
(03:44):
record Rage Gracefully. We're gonna take a quick break and
we're gonna come back and talk with Jared Jesson about
the song, the new record and everything that's going on
with rat Owl. So stay with us, all right, and
we're back. Let's bring in Jar and talk about the
song Doppler. Hey, Jared, how's it going man? Thanks for
taking some time to come back to talk with me.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
Yeah, thanks for having me back, Brett. I think this
is my third time on your show, so that's got
to be up there right.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yes, yeah, it sure is, and between you and your bandmates,
I think you have in the various bands you sure have,
a fourth of the episodes have probably been related to
something that you've been working on.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
So it's always awesome to have you.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
And I'm super stoked about Rage Gracefully and the song Doppler.
So yeah, Doppler is a slamming, slamming song as all
the listeners just heard, and it's so good. Tell me
about it, man, like, tell me about what's kind of
how did this new record come about?
Speaker 5 (04:42):
Why that song? Tell me what you can well.
Speaker 4 (04:45):
I mean, I'll start with the song because the song
has kind of a story all its own. It's actually
it's kind of a part two because we have a
common thread with the two records we've made now where
the first song on each record was the last one
we wrote for the record, and neither was necessarily intentional,
(05:06):
Like it wasn't like we're going to write the first
song on the record right now. It just kind of
happened that way in different ways, but specifically with Doppler,
it was I think it was like toward the end
of twenty twenty two.
Speaker 6 (05:20):
Where Ryan Tate, our new guitar player, had really kind
of he'd really kind of acclimated to our songs, come
up with his own parts, his own flavor, and we
really felt like we were close to being ready to record,
which took a while because we did want him.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
We didn't want him to just join the band and
like have me like show him parts and then just
be like, all right, let's go record now. He's a
far better guitar player than I am, so we wanted
him to sit with the songs and get used to
our vibe and become a member of the band, you know,
because we started this band as like childhood friends with
(05:58):
Ryan Felgian and we all kind of add the same
sort of communication style, and it took a while, I
think for Ryan to acclimate to that. But so so
around the end of twenty twenty two, we had like
fourteen songs and we're like, all right, we're pretty much
ready to go. But Dave always, you know, he always
(06:19):
brings like an interesting perspective to the songs that I
write in that he'll always he'll always evaluate kind of
the all the different vibes that are going on on
the record, even before it's recorded.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Just sure, And so he was like, I feel like
we need one more like anthemic kind of fucking hit,
you know, which is you know, it's a loaded term.
Speaker 4 (06:48):
But anyway, like I was like, you know, I always
have riffs that are sitting around, and I was like, okay,
let's let's tack one more on to this group of songs.
So I had I think I had the verse riff first,
that kind of Stephan edgerton ye like downstroke kind of
descendancy riff, and then I built the kind of the
(07:10):
refrain riff from that. And then when I first demoed
the song, just with you know, just super milk toast
like garage band drums just tapping on a midipad in
my basement, I actually wrote I wrote that middle like
that that kind of almost MEGADETHI yeah, middle riff like
(07:31):
I just with like a cut time like halftime beat,
Like none of the dynamics that are on the record
were in that riff when I demoed it. But I
was like, this is like this is a template for
us to be able to do, Like we could do
almost anything with this part, and just you know, it
could be a build up thing, it could be a
(07:52):
straight up like huge bridge thing. It was just kind
of like the sky was the limit, and so once
we actually put the song together and arranged it, it
was just kind of, yeah, this is the first song
in the record for sure, and we kind of we
had a few touch points, like so Burgo, Dave and
(08:12):
I are all fascinated with this Scottish arena rock band
called Biffy Clyro and they they even though they're straight
up like radio rock and just you know, pop as heck,
they always have these extremely musical like sections of their
songs that are are would you know, would titillate any
(08:35):
prog rock fan or rush Rube or you know what
I mean. Like it's just just riffy riffs and just
awesome like stuff that you don't hear in pop music.
And so that was kind of that was the direction
that I wanted to take that bridge and then just
kind of expanding on that, Like the beginning of the
(08:55):
song was the last thing we were like, the beginning
and the ending like those damn damn, yeah, those those
were the last things we tacked onto the song. And
it was very intentional kind of homage to two specific records.
It was dough Boys Happy Accidents with Countdown yep, because
Countdown starts with a chorus and this song starts with
(09:18):
a chorus, and then Big Drill Car Takeaway because Big
Drill Car Takeaway has that really just that extended a
chord kind of thing that just introduces you to the
song and then it gets immediately melodic and just joyful.
And that was kind of those were sort of the
touch points in my mind, at least for Doppler.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
And by the way, your impersonation of Dave was like
spot on. I could just totally see him saying that,
like that was that was amazing.
Speaker 5 (09:51):
No, man, that's super great. That's I love that story.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
And uh and I'm glad that, you know, just to
hear even how you approached as a band, just with
Ryan joining and letting him get a feel for everything
that you guys are doing and acclimate like you said,
because yeah, that had be a that'd be a tough
thing to walk into, you know, with you guys being
lifelong friends. Here's this body of work and here you
go learn this. You know, it's like, uh, okay, you know,
(10:16):
but no, that's that's.
Speaker 5 (10:17):
Super great that you did that.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
So I know I've heard I've been listening to this
for a little bit. Thank you for giving me kind
of that access and I really appreciate it. But for
everybody else, when now this did this officially? When did
this actually come out? You just had a listening party,
but was it actually formally released like last week?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Yeah, it came out on May thirty first.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
It did, okay, And is it on I mean, I
imagine it's I know you can get it on band camp.
I imagine it's on Spotify and the streaming platforms everywhere else.
But you're selling vinyl through band camp as well?
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Yeah, yep.
Speaker 4 (10:56):
So we worked with a label out of San Francisco
called Sell the Heart Records. Andy Pole, super super great guy,
and he's doing all the vinyl mail order through a
big cartel and you know, obviously he's got he's got
a band camp set up as well, but all that
stuff is going through him.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
There are two variants to the vinyl.
Speaker 4 (11:18):
There's a really cool kind of translucent orange almost gold
that really matches the artwork, which was again amazingly penned
by our brother.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
Burgo's little brother Justin has done.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
He's done the cover art for both her records and
just I mean both times, just absolutely jaw jaw dropping stuff.
So and then we have a kind of a Northern
Lights sort of swirly blue for the other variant, and they.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Both look amazing.
Speaker 4 (11:52):
But yeah, so those are available again via the sell
the Heart Records link on big cart sell or on
band camp.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
Got it, yeah, because I bought it, and i don't
know which one I got, so I'm super excited to
get it and see which which version.
Speaker 5 (12:08):
But that's that's super great cool.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
So how did the sell the Hard Records thing come about?
Speaker 5 (12:14):
When did that happen?
Speaker 3 (12:17):
So? Burgo had kind of sort of.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
Started a friendship with Andy just via the Internet around
pandemic times when Andy was trying to you know, desperately
to sell all his band's records and keep everybody, you know,
afloat and alive through a really strange time in all
our lives, and we just kind of we just kind
of kept in touch with him, and then once we
were finally ready and we finally had recordings and and stuff,
(12:46):
we you know, started talking more with him, and it
just it worked out where we could have him handle
you know, mail order and us distribution, and then we
kind of threw him connected with Engineer Records in the
UK and then Dingleberry Records in Germany and we got
some UK and European distribution as well through those guys.
(13:12):
So yeah, it's been really great. He's super awesome to
work with, and I mean, yeah, I can't say enough
about like all this stuff. It's very very life affirming.
You know, It's just it's you know, I wish we
could play more shows. I guess that's the only thing,
but you know, life is life. So well, we'll do
it when we can, and we'll keep, you know, chasing
(13:34):
down whatever opportunities are out there.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
For us for sure, and you know, I'm just so
excited about that for all you guys. I mean it's
just such a It sounds so good. I mean, the
records sounds so good. You guys sound like rat Al's
really matured as your sound with your current lineup. I
mean you can just hear it. It just screams at
(13:58):
me when I listen to it. Sounds amazing, and I'm
so stoked that you got this final hookup and plus
you got distribution in Europe and everything else. I mean,
it's just to me, it's just I'm excited to see
where this takes you guys, because it's so it.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
Man, it's so good. I'm just super stoked for you guys.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Thank you man. It's yeah, it's it's exciting.
Speaker 4 (14:17):
I'm very happy with how everything is going.
Speaker 5 (14:21):
Yeah, that's great. That's great.
Speaker 3 (14:23):
So then.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
So is there Uh well, I guess a couple questions
other formats? So are you putting out CDs too? Are
you putting out cassettes or is it just final and digital?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
There are CDs, yep, they're also sell to heart at
Big Cartel. And then yeah, obviously just all you know,
it's at all the streaming services, right, Spotify, Apple, et cetera.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
YouTube?
Speaker 5 (14:51):
Sure, sure, So then what.
Speaker 6 (14:57):
Is there?
Speaker 2 (14:58):
You know, you had your listening party on bank Camp.
But then are you doing like a formal kind of
release show or is there like a specific set of
dates that.
Speaker 5 (15:05):
You guys are going to play to kind of celebrate
this now that it's out.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Yeah, it's kind of strange. We had that a couple
of weeks ago.
Speaker 4 (15:13):
We went out and played Boston and New Hampshire and
then Montreal for Pooza Fest, which is really cool. That
was kind of like, even though it was two weeks
before the official quote unquote street date.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
We had the records, so we.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
Were able to play a really cool punk festival in
Montreal and sell a few there, and I met a
lot of really cool people. But at the same time,
as you may or may not know, Burgo and Dave
are kind of John Snodgrass's rhythm section for a lot
of his touring, so we're kind of just peacemealing shows
(15:51):
in between when they're on the road with him, So
we didn't really get a chance. We kind of we
kind of missed our window on booking a quote unquote
official release show in or around Minneapolis. Sure, so we
just have we have a couple of support kind of
sets at Palmers in Minneapolis this weekend or Friday, June seventh.
(16:16):
We're playing with Slow Death and a bunch of friends
of theirs, Mike he or John Snodgrass, et cetera, et cetera,
Lost Leader, just as kind of the Slow Death fifteenth anniversary.
So and then we're playing Palm Fest also at Palmer's
in late July. But we we are kind of tentatively
(16:38):
planning an official kind of late release sort of celebration
weekend over September sixth and seventh in man Cato and
then at Zora Darling the new venue in northeast Minneapolis
to kind of just you know, even though it'll be late,
it'll be you know, hopefully we'll curate a bill with
(16:59):
a much of really great bands and that'll be kind
of our late celebration for it.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
No, that makes sense. Yeah, I look forward to that.
I hope I can.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
And then obviously we'll be down at Fest again in
October in Gainesville.
Speaker 5 (17:13):
Yep, yep.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
And do you know how many dates you're playing that?
I mean, are you doing one show? Are you doing
more than one?
Speaker 5 (17:18):
Do you know?
Speaker 3 (17:20):
As of right now, I don't know for sure.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
I think I think we struck out on the pre
Prefest stuff in Orlando and Tampa, who was all booked up.
So we're trying to figure out whether or not we're
just going to go in for that show. But there
are a couple of other things that we're sort of
banding about right now, trying to figure out when we
can get out to Colorado, out to like southern California,
maybe the Pacific Northwest. Just you know, we have so
(17:46):
many friends and so many far away places that if
we plan it right, we can do this and still maintain,
you know, a not insane life trying to be rock
and roll band in our late forties.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
But that's just kind of that's kind of the way
it goes.
Speaker 4 (18:01):
It's kind of the way we have to navigate these waters.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
At this age.
Speaker 5 (18:05):
No, I get that, I get that.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
One thing that I was also interested in, where did
you guys record this one? Did you guys do a
different process or where did you where did you go?
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (18:18):
So the first record we did basically in like a
weekend and then like a handful of extra days with
Adam Tucker at Signature Tone, which I've recorded there multiple
times with my old band technician and a line and
stuff like that.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
But this time it was basically we we.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
Really wanted to get Dave's stuff done a sap because
at the time that we were recording this, he had
a really busy work schedule. It was kind of things
were kind of hectic for him, so we kind of
took his lead in terms of comfort. He really really
enjoyed recording with Jacob Carlson at def how Us in
(19:01):
its Lauderdale, which is a little like village.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Kind of within Saint Paul.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Yeah, and he because he had recorded with Jacob for.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
The Justin Pierre solo stuff and then for Dead History
as well.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
So yeah, we did.
Speaker 4 (19:16):
We did bass drums and like scratch guitar tracks with Jake,
and then we moved over to Tree Speak in Northeast
with Andy Matheson from the band Class of eighty six,
who is a childhood friend of Ryan Tates and that
we you know, we met Class of eighty six when
when rad Alp first started playing out, we kind of started,
(19:38):
you know, reintroducing ourselves to more of the like the
pop punk and the skate punk kind of bands around
Minneapolis that we hadn't really been interacting with in our
other bands. And so Andy became a really really fast
friend that way, and he we did all the guitars
and vocals with him, which was amazing, Like we we
(19:59):
spent so much. He did like some little punching guitar stuff,
He did some backing vocals. It was you know, me,
him and Ryan just kind of throwing stuff against the wall.
So that was that was super like creative and fruitful
and really fun to just kind of you know, because
you know, I put a whole lot of backing.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Vocals on this record.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Yeah, a ton of it so and not all of
it worked, So it was like that that was kind
of that was a really kind of creative sort of
time in the middle of all this. And then we
went back to Jake to mix it, and then ultimately
Chris Fogel, who was another casual friend of Ryan's from Colorado,
(20:42):
he was in the band the Gamuts.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yep, he did the mastering, got it and I was
going to ask about the vocals. Actually, yeah, because the
harmonies are just jumping out the record, and are you
reproducing those live? I mean, is everybody singing in this
or is it was that all you doing all the
all thevocals or did everybody kind of chip in?
Speaker 4 (21:02):
It's a it's really all me and Ryan, uh, and
then some Andy live. It's just me and Ryan and
a lot of like there are textural things on record
that we do not even bother doing live. That's just
kind of you know, another sort of lesson or pointer
(21:23):
that I got from listening to those more like produced
you know, pop rock records like Bibby Cliro that I
mentioned before, is like, you know, you don't have to
I mean, people hear it in their head, you know,
like as long as you're getting all the major melodic
touch points the rest of the stuff, it's okay if
it's record filler. It took me a long time to
(21:43):
get to that point, you know, being a punk rock kid.
I was like, no, if you if you didn't, you know, like,
if you record you have to sing it.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Yeah, right, but yeah, no we don't. We don't do
all of it for sure, got it, got it right on.
Speaker 5 (21:56):
That's cool.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
Anything else specifically you want to share about Doppler or
the record, I just.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
Like Doppler specifically, like lyrically.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Again, it is definitely cut from the same mold that
Hanna Barbera was on our first record, and they were
both tracked one. It's it's very much meant to be
sort of a new beginning kind of posycore, you know,
Like I think about people like Dave Smalley and down
by Law and yeah, you know songwriters like that that
(22:29):
you know, they just they had a hopeful, sort of
anthemic kind of approach, and I feel like a lot
of times I get sort of repetitive and bogged down
in cynicism in my lyrics. So I did make a
conscious effort with this song to just it was meant
to be a kickoff of the record in a positive fashion,
(22:52):
and you know, just kind of a thing that you know,
would would would just get people up and you know,
on their on their on their tippy toes, feeling good
about where we're going.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
And that was that was the intent.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
All right, Let's take a quick break and then we'll
come back with more with Jared Jesson from Radewl to
find out what he's working on next. All right, and
we're back with Jared Jesson from rat Owl and we're
talking about the song Doppler and their new record Rage
Gracefully that just came out, and what they're working on next.
Speaker 5 (23:26):
So jar I just wanted to check in more about.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
Kind of the road to fest this fall because I mean,
I got my tickets and I live in Orlando, so
I'm super stoked to come up and see you guys.
Speaker 5 (23:39):
But what does that look like for you guys.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
I know that you.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
Mentioned, you know, Dave and Bergo are doing stuff with
John Snodgrass. So is there kind of a run that's
going to happen because I know you've done that sort
of before where you played the shows in Atlanta and
then kind of came down.
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Is there is there any sort of plan like that.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
Yeah, I mean it's it's not definitive yet, but it
is a possibility. I don't think we're I think we're
just kind of waiting and seeing how John wants to
structure his travel, more so because.
Speaker 3 (24:13):
That'll kind of.
Speaker 4 (24:16):
Define how we go about doing our stuff. But I
will say that regardless of whether or not we play
shows around Fest, we are playing Fest and there are
a few other things for the fall that we're pretty
excited about, bringing some old punk rock friends from out
east back to the Midwest to celebrate a thirtieth anniversary
(24:39):
of one of their records. I don't want to say
anything more than that yet, but it's in motion, and
we're just kind of we're trying to fill up the
rest of the year as best we can, just to
have fun and play shows and be excited about about
you know, this record being a reality.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
It's been a long time coming, you know.
Speaker 5 (25:02):
Yeah, No, that's awesome, man.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Well, I definitely look forward to seeing you guys this fall,
and it just seems like that there's so much to
ride high about with it just being out and all
the good things that you guys coming up. So again,
congratulations to you and the rest of the band for
just all the work that you put into it and
to make such a great record. And I'm just again
stoke for everything you guys have coming up. So yeah man,
(25:27):
thank you for coming agne coming on again for like
the fourth time to talk about all the awesome music
you make.
Speaker 5 (25:35):
It's always awesome to have you on. Jaren, great to
catch up with you.
Speaker 3 (25:38):
Thank you so much, Brett. I appreciate the support always.
Speaker 5 (25:41):
Yeah man, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (25:45):
Tross breakdown.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
All right, and that wraps up another episode of the
B side Breakdown. For those of you that think this
was just recorded, it wasn't. We did this at the
end of May and it took me forever to get
it out. So my apology jeez to Jare in the
rest of the band for taking so long to get
this one together.
Speaker 5 (26:03):
But life showed up and here we are.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Look forward to seeing you guys up in Orlando prefest
shows because they did get one and I'm super stoked
about it. Also looking forward to seeing them at Festing
Gainesville at the end of October. So if you're in
the area, please come check them out and please support
Rato however you can please.
Speaker 5 (26:21):
Go to band camp.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
I think it's rad alldat band camp dot com and
you can find them on Instagram and everywhere else. Follow them,
listen to their music wherever you can. Amazing dudes, amazing band,
amazing friends. Can't wait to see him. I want to
thank Adam Koolong and Carry Bosel for helping me put
together the jingle you hear at the beginning and the
end of this episode, and please.
Speaker 5 (26:40):
Subscribe to this podcast wherever you get your podcast.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Unfortunately, I don't got anything else to push for the
next episode at this time, but I guarantee you I
will have something in the next few weeks. So thanks
again for your support and for your continuing listening, and
we'll see in the next one.
Speaker 5 (26:55):
Thanks
Stree Tros B Side Breakdown.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Hey everyone, welcome to the B Side Breakdown. My name
is Brett Johnson and I'm your host. This is a
podcast where I talk to other artists, musicians and songwriters
but a song they've written that's meaningful to them that
they want to get deep into the why behind it's
meaningful to them, and then we play the song in
its entirety on this episode so you the listener get
to hear it and see what we're talking all about.
So today I'm gonna be talking with an old B
(00:29):
Side Breakdown favorite, Jeremy Jesson, who's been in multiple bands
on the podcast in the series. But today we're going
to be talking about the song Doppler from his band
rat Owl, which comes out their new record Rage Gracefully.
So let's get into it. Here is Doppler by rat Owl.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Never Fit Side, They Won't Bake It One more stars
a devil Chat set of very smart as we tried
to make your poyless suiting day. So I come bot
bot Usty Boone from the closets. We claim we are
(01:23):
got on me never Quarto j Doll in a big book.
So take what you find to a.
Speaker 3 (01:33):
No fo sartin.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
We're set it sway now I've shot I footed preaching
in the time dever fit side. They won't bake it
one more stars a ball chant to wada erything slong
as we tried to make your poiless suiting did that's
(02:00):
no God go sny reach, whats we meet? We all
love Cristo, We don't leave you, and here we are,
rus Felix, you have no food shirts would wait well
the reason the time never side. We'll make it shut
(03:16):
a set of Beth Wait, so thank you boy.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
This dude, I'm like, wait, wait, wait, wait, all right,
And that was Doppler by rat Owl off their new
(03:44):
record Rage Gracefully. We're gonna take a quick break and
we're gonna come back and talk with Jared Jesson about
the song, the new record and everything that's going on
with rat Owl. So stay with us, all right, and
we're back. Let's bring in Jar and talk about the
song Doppler. Hey, Jared, how's it going man? Thanks for
taking some time to come back to talk with me.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
Yeah, thanks for having me back, Brett. I think this
is my third time on your show, so that's got
to be up there right.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yes, yeah, it sure is, and between you and your bandmates,
I think you have in the various bands you sure have,
a fourth of the episodes have probably been related to
something that you've been working on.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
So it's always awesome to have you.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
And I'm super stoked about Rage Gracefully and the song Doppler.
So yeah, Doppler is a slamming, slamming song as all
the listeners just heard, and it's so good. Tell me
about it, man, like, tell me about what's kind of
how did this new record come about?
Speaker 5 (04:42):
Why that song? Tell me what you can well.
Speaker 4 (04:45):
I mean, I'll start with the song because the song
has kind of a story all its own. It's actually
it's kind of a part two because we have a
common thread with the two records we've made now where
the first song on each record was the last one
we wrote for the record, and neither was necessarily intentional,
(05:06):
Like it wasn't like we're going to write the first
song on the record right now. It just kind of
happened that way in different ways, but specifically with Doppler,
it was I think it was like toward the end
of twenty twenty two.
Speaker 6 (05:20):
Where Ryan Tate, our new guitar player, had really kind
of he'd really kind of acclimated to our songs, come
up with his own parts, his own flavor, and we
really felt like we were close to being ready to record,
which took a while because we did want him.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
We didn't want him to just join the band and
like have me like show him parts and then just
be like, all right, let's go record now. He's a
far better guitar player than I am, so we wanted
him to sit with the songs and get used to
our vibe and become a member of the band, you know,
because we started this band as like childhood friends with
(05:58):
Ryan Felgian and we all kind of add the same
sort of communication style, and it took a while, I
think for Ryan to acclimate to that. But so so
around the end of twenty twenty two, we had like
fourteen songs and we're like, all right, we're pretty much
ready to go. But Dave always, you know, he always
(06:19):
brings like an interesting perspective to the songs that I
write in that he'll always he'll always evaluate kind of
the all the different vibes that are going on on
the record, even before it's recorded.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Just sure, And so he was like, I feel like
we need one more like anthemic kind of fucking hit,
you know, which is you know, it's a loaded term.
Speaker 4 (06:48):
But anyway, like I was like, you know, I always
have riffs that are sitting around, and I was like, okay,
let's let's tack one more on to this group of songs.
So I had I think I had the verse riff first,
that kind of Stephan edgerton ye like downstroke kind of
descendancy riff, and then I built the kind of the
(07:10):
refrain riff from that. And then when I first demoed
the song, just with you know, just super milk toast
like garage band drums just tapping on a midipad in
my basement, I actually wrote I wrote that middle like
that that kind of almost MEGADETHI yeah, middle riff like
(07:31):
I just with like a cut time like halftime beat,
Like none of the dynamics that are on the record
were in that riff when I demoed it. But I
was like, this is like this is a template for
us to be able to do, Like we could do
almost anything with this part, and just you know, it
could be a build up thing, it could be a
(07:52):
straight up like huge bridge thing. It was just kind
of like the sky was the limit, and so once
we actually put the song together and arranged it, it
was just kind of, yeah, this is the first song
in the record for sure, and we kind of we
had a few touch points, like so Burgo, Dave and
(08:12):
I are all fascinated with this Scottish arena rock band
called Biffy Clyro and they they even though they're straight
up like radio rock and just you know, pop as heck,
they always have these extremely musical like sections of their
songs that are are would you know, would titillate any
(08:35):
prog rock fan or rush Rube or you know what
I mean. Like it's just just riffy riffs and just
awesome like stuff that you don't hear in pop music.
And so that was kind of that was the direction
that I wanted to take that bridge and then just
kind of expanding on that, Like the beginning of the
(08:55):
song was the last thing we were like, the beginning
and the ending like those damn damn, yeah, those those
were the last things we tacked onto the song. And
it was very intentional kind of homage to two specific records.
It was dough Boys Happy Accidents with Countdown yep, because
Countdown starts with a chorus and this song starts with
(09:18):
a chorus, and then Big Drill Car Takeaway because Big
Drill Car Takeaway has that really just that extended a
chord kind of thing that just introduces you to the
song and then it gets immediately melodic and just joyful.
And that was kind of those were sort of the
touch points in my mind, at least for Doppler.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
And by the way, your impersonation of Dave was like
spot on. I could just totally see him saying that,
like that was that was amazing.
Speaker 5 (09:51):
No, man, that's super great. That's I love that story.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
And uh and I'm glad that, you know, just to
hear even how you approached as a band, just with
Ryan joining and letting him get a feel for everything
that you guys are doing and acclimate like you said,
because yeah, that had be a that'd be a tough
thing to walk into, you know, with you guys being
lifelong friends. Here's this body of work and here you
go learn this. You know, it's like, uh, okay, you know,
(10:16):
but no, that's that's.
Speaker 5 (10:17):
Super great that you did that.
Speaker 2 (10:20):
So I know I've heard I've been listening to this
for a little bit. Thank you for giving me kind
of that access and I really appreciate it. But for
everybody else, when now this did this officially? When did
this actually come out? You just had a listening party,
but was it actually formally released like last week?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Yeah, it came out on May thirty first.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
It did, okay, And is it on I mean, I
imagine it's I know you can get it on band camp.
I imagine it's on Spotify and the streaming platforms everywhere else.
But you're selling vinyl through band camp as well?
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Yeah, yep.
Speaker 4 (10:56):
So we worked with a label out of San Francisco
called Sell the Heart Records. Andy Pole, super super great guy,
and he's doing all the vinyl mail order through a
big cartel and you know, obviously he's got he's got
a band camp set up as well, but all that
stuff is going through him.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
There are two variants to the vinyl.
Speaker 4 (11:18):
There's a really cool kind of translucent orange almost gold
that really matches the artwork, which was again amazingly penned
by our brother.
Speaker 3 (11:31):
Burgo's little brother Justin has done.
Speaker 4 (11:34):
He's done the cover art for both her records and
just I mean both times, just absolutely jaw jaw dropping stuff.
So and then we have a kind of a Northern
Lights sort of swirly blue for the other variant, and they.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
Both look amazing.
Speaker 4 (11:52):
But yeah, so those are available again via the sell
the Heart Records link on big cart sell or on
band camp.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
Got it, yeah, because I bought it, and i don't
know which one I got, so I'm super excited to
get it and see which which version.
Speaker 5 (12:08):
But that's that's super great cool.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
So how did the sell the Hard Records thing come about?
Speaker 5 (12:14):
When did that happen?
Speaker 3 (12:17):
So? Burgo had kind of sort of.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
Started a friendship with Andy just via the Internet around
pandemic times when Andy was trying to you know, desperately
to sell all his band's records and keep everybody, you know,
afloat and alive through a really strange time in all
our lives, and we just kind of we just kind
of kept in touch with him, and then once we
were finally ready and we finally had recordings and and stuff,
(12:46):
we you know, started talking more with him, and it
just it worked out where we could have him handle
you know, mail order and us distribution, and then we
kind of threw him connected with Engineer Records in the
UK and then Dingleberry Records in Germany and we got
some UK and European distribution as well through those guys.
(13:12):
So yeah, it's been really great. He's super awesome to
work with, and I mean, yeah, I can't say enough
about like all this stuff. It's very very life affirming.
You know, It's just it's you know, I wish we
could play more shows. I guess that's the only thing,
but you know, life is life. So well, we'll do
it when we can, and we'll keep, you know, chasing
(13:34):
down whatever opportunities are out there.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
For us for sure, and you know, I'm just so
excited about that for all you guys. I mean it's
just such a It sounds so good. I mean, the
records sounds so good. You guys sound like rat Al's
really matured as your sound with your current lineup. I
mean you can just hear it. It just screams at
(13:58):
me when I listen to it. Sounds amazing, and I'm
so stoked that you got this final hookup and plus
you got distribution in Europe and everything else. I mean,
it's just to me, it's just I'm excited to see
where this takes you guys, because it's so it.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
Man, it's so good. I'm just super stoked for you guys.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Thank you man. It's yeah, it's it's exciting.
Speaker 4 (14:17):
I'm very happy with how everything is going.
Speaker 5 (14:21):
Yeah, that's great. That's great.
Speaker 3 (14:23):
So then.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
So is there Uh well, I guess a couple questions
other formats? So are you putting out CDs too? Are
you putting out cassettes or is it just final and digital?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
There are CDs, yep, they're also sell to heart at
Big Cartel. And then yeah, obviously just all you know,
it's at all the streaming services, right, Spotify, Apple, et cetera.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
YouTube?
Speaker 5 (14:51):
Sure, sure, So then what.
Speaker 6 (14:57):
Is there?
Speaker 2 (14:58):
You know, you had your listening party on bank Camp.
But then are you doing like a formal kind of
release show or is there like a specific set of
dates that.
Speaker 5 (15:05):
You guys are going to play to kind of celebrate
this now that it's out.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Yeah, it's kind of strange. We had that a couple
of weeks ago.
Speaker 4 (15:13):
We went out and played Boston and New Hampshire and
then Montreal for Pooza Fest, which is really cool. That
was kind of like, even though it was two weeks
before the official quote unquote street date.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
We had the records, so we.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
Were able to play a really cool punk festival in
Montreal and sell a few there, and I met a
lot of really cool people. But at the same time,
as you may or may not know, Burgo and Dave
are kind of John Snodgrass's rhythm section for a lot
of his touring, so we're kind of just peacemealing shows
(15:51):
in between when they're on the road with him, So
we didn't really get a chance. We kind of we
kind of missed our window on booking a quote unquote
official release show in or around Minneapolis. Sure, so we
just have we have a couple of support kind of
sets at Palmers in Minneapolis this weekend or Friday, June seventh.
(16:16):
We're playing with Slow Death and a bunch of friends
of theirs, Mike he or John Snodgrass, et cetera, et cetera,
Lost Leader, just as kind of the Slow Death fifteenth anniversary.
So and then we're playing Palm Fest also at Palmer's
in late July. But we we are kind of tentatively
(16:38):
planning an official kind of late release sort of celebration
weekend over September sixth and seventh in man Cato and
then at Zora Darling the new venue in northeast Minneapolis
to kind of just you know, even though it'll be late,
it'll be you know, hopefully we'll curate a bill with
(16:59):
a much of really great bands and that'll be kind
of our late celebration for it.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
No, that makes sense. Yeah, I look forward to that.
I hope I can.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
And then obviously we'll be down at Fest again in
October in Gainesville.
Speaker 5 (17:13):
Yep, yep.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
And do you know how many dates you're playing that?
I mean, are you doing one show? Are you doing
more than one?
Speaker 5 (17:18):
Do you know?
Speaker 3 (17:20):
As of right now, I don't know for sure.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
I think I think we struck out on the pre
Prefest stuff in Orlando and Tampa, who was all booked up.
So we're trying to figure out whether or not we're
just going to go in for that show. But there
are a couple of other things that we're sort of
banding about right now, trying to figure out when we
can get out to Colorado, out to like southern California,
maybe the Pacific Northwest. Just you know, we have so
(17:46):
many friends and so many far away places that if
we plan it right, we can do this and still maintain,
you know, a not insane life trying to be rock
and roll band in our late forties.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
But that's just kind of that's kind of the way
it goes.
Speaker 4 (18:01):
It's kind of the way we have to navigate these waters.
Speaker 3 (18:03):
At this age.
Speaker 5 (18:05):
No, I get that, I get that.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
One thing that I was also interested in, where did
you guys record this one? Did you guys do a
different process or where did you where did you go?
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (18:18):
So the first record we did basically in like a
weekend and then like a handful of extra days with
Adam Tucker at Signature Tone, which I've recorded there multiple
times with my old band technician and a line and
stuff like that.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
But this time it was basically we we.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
Really wanted to get Dave's stuff done a sap because
at the time that we were recording this, he had
a really busy work schedule. It was kind of things
were kind of hectic for him, so we kind of
took his lead in terms of comfort. He really really
enjoyed recording with Jacob Carlson at def how Us in
(19:01):
its Lauderdale, which is a little like village.
Speaker 3 (19:04):
Kind of within Saint Paul.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:05):
Yeah, and he because he had recorded with Jacob for.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
The Justin Pierre solo stuff and then for Dead History
as well.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
So yeah, we did.
Speaker 4 (19:16):
We did bass drums and like scratch guitar tracks with Jake,
and then we moved over to Tree Speak in Northeast
with Andy Matheson from the band Class of eighty six,
who is a childhood friend of Ryan Tates and that
we you know, we met Class of eighty six when
when rad Alp first started playing out, we kind of started,
(19:38):
you know, reintroducing ourselves to more of the like the
pop punk and the skate punk kind of bands around
Minneapolis that we hadn't really been interacting with in our
other bands. And so Andy became a really really fast
friend that way, and he we did all the guitars
and vocals with him, which was amazing, Like we we
(19:59):
spent so much. He did like some little punching guitar stuff,
He did some backing vocals. It was you know, me,
him and Ryan just kind of throwing stuff against the wall.
So that was that was super like creative and fruitful
and really fun to just kind of you know, because
you know, I put a whole lot of backing.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Vocals on this record.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Yeah, a ton of it so and not all of
it worked, So it was like that that was kind
of that was a really kind of creative sort of
time in the middle of all this. And then we
went back to Jake to mix it, and then ultimately
Chris Fogel, who was another casual friend of Ryan's from Colorado,
(20:42):
he was in the band the Gamuts.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yep, he did the mastering, got it and I was
going to ask about the vocals. Actually, yeah, because the
harmonies are just jumping out the record, and are you
reproducing those live? I mean, is everybody singing in this
or is it was that all you doing all the
all thevocals or did everybody kind of chip in?
Speaker 4 (21:02):
It's a it's really all me and Ryan, uh, and
then some Andy live. It's just me and Ryan and
a lot of like there are textural things on record
that we do not even bother doing live. That's just
kind of you know, another sort of lesson or pointer
(21:23):
that I got from listening to those more like produced
you know, pop rock records like Bibby Cliro that I
mentioned before, is like, you know, you don't have to
I mean, people hear it in their head, you know,
like as long as you're getting all the major melodic
touch points the rest of the stuff, it's okay if
it's record filler. It took me a long time to
(21:43):
get to that point, you know, being a punk rock kid.
I was like, no, if you if you didn't, you know, like,
if you record you have to sing it.
Speaker 3 (21:50):
Yeah, right, but yeah, no we don't. We don't do
all of it for sure, got it, got it right on.
Speaker 5 (21:56):
That's cool.
Speaker 2 (21:57):
Anything else specifically you want to share about Doppler or
the record, I just.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
Like Doppler specifically, like lyrically.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Again, it is definitely cut from the same mold that
Hanna Barbera was on our first record, and they were
both tracked one. It's it's very much meant to be
sort of a new beginning kind of posycore, you know,
Like I think about people like Dave Smalley and down
by Law and yeah, you know songwriters like that that
(22:29):
you know, they just they had a hopeful, sort of
anthemic kind of approach, and I feel like a lot
of times I get sort of repetitive and bogged down
in cynicism in my lyrics. So I did make a
conscious effort with this song to just it was meant
to be a kickoff of the record in a positive fashion,
(22:52):
and you know, just kind of a thing that you know,
would would would just get people up and you know,
on their on their on their tippy toes, feeling good
about where we're going.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
And that was that was the intent.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
All right, Let's take a quick break and then we'll
come back with more with Jared Jesson from Radewl to
find out what he's working on next. All right, and
we're back with Jared Jesson from rat Owl and we're
talking about the song Doppler and their new record Rage
Gracefully that just came out, and what they're working on next.
Speaker 5 (23:26):
So jar I just wanted to check in more about.
Speaker 2 (23:31):
Kind of the road to fest this fall because I mean,
I got my tickets and I live in Orlando, so
I'm super stoked to come up and see you guys.
Speaker 5 (23:39):
But what does that look like for you guys.
Speaker 3 (23:43):
I know that you.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
Mentioned, you know, Dave and Bergo are doing stuff with
John Snodgrass. So is there kind of a run that's
going to happen because I know you've done that sort
of before where you played the shows in Atlanta and
then kind of came down.
Speaker 5 (23:56):
Is there is there any sort of plan like that.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
Yeah, I mean it's it's not definitive yet, but it
is a possibility. I don't think we're I think we're
just kind of waiting and seeing how John wants to
structure his travel, more so because.
Speaker 3 (24:13):
That'll kind of.
Speaker 4 (24:16):
Define how we go about doing our stuff. But I
will say that regardless of whether or not we play
shows around Fest, we are playing Fest and there are
a few other things for the fall that we're pretty
excited about, bringing some old punk rock friends from out
east back to the Midwest to celebrate a thirtieth anniversary
(24:39):
of one of their records. I don't want to say
anything more than that yet, but it's in motion, and
we're just kind of we're trying to fill up the
rest of the year as best we can, just to
have fun and play shows and be excited about about
you know, this record being a reality.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
It's been a long time coming, you know.
Speaker 5 (25:02):
Yeah, No, that's awesome, man.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Well, I definitely look forward to seeing you guys this fall,
and it just seems like that there's so much to
ride high about with it just being out and all
the good things that you guys coming up. So again,
congratulations to you and the rest of the band for
just all the work that you put into it and
to make such a great record. And I'm just again
stoke for everything you guys have coming up. So yeah man,
(25:27):
thank you for coming agne coming on again for like
the fourth time to talk about all the awesome music
you make.
Speaker 5 (25:35):
It's always awesome to have you on. Jaren, great to
catch up with you.
Speaker 3 (25:38):
Thank you so much, Brett. I appreciate the support always.
Speaker 5 (25:41):
Yeah man, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (25:45):
Tross breakdown.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
All right, and that wraps up another episode of the
B side Breakdown. For those of you that think this
was just recorded, it wasn't. We did this at the
end of May and it took me forever to get
it out. So my apology jeez to Jare in the
rest of the band for taking so long to get
this one together.
Speaker 5 (26:03):
But life showed up and here we are.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Look forward to seeing you guys up in Orlando prefest
shows because they did get one and I'm super stoked
about it. Also looking forward to seeing them at Festing
Gainesville at the end of October. So if you're in
the area, please come check them out and please support
Rato however you can please.
Speaker 5 (26:21):
Go to band camp.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
I think it's rad alldat band camp dot com and
you can find them on Instagram and everywhere else. Follow them,
listen to their music wherever you can. Amazing dudes, amazing band,
amazing friends. Can't wait to see him. I want to
thank Adam Koolong and Carry Bosel for helping me put
together the jingle you hear at the beginning and the
end of this episode, and please.
Speaker 5 (26:40):
Subscribe to this podcast wherever you get your podcast.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
Unfortunately, I don't got anything else to push for the
next episode at this time, but I guarantee you I
will have something in the next few weeks. So thanks
again for your support and for your continuing listening, and
we'll see in the next one.
Speaker 5 (26:55):
Thanks
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Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.