August. For those of us in the northern hemisphere, it’s the dog days of summer. Hot days, summer doldrums. France takes the entire month off–see, they get it. However–much like rust, rock and roll never sleeps. And that means Woody Radio keeps on blasting away, forging ahead with our unique style of delivering the rock and roll to you, 24/7. My personal mission is to bring you as much independent music as humanly possible.
So just 12 hours into this new month, we kicked it off with a bang–a full-length interview with Rogers & Butler (Edward Rogers & Steve Butler). Each of these gents has had long and storied musical careers; both great singer-songwriters on their own. Edward has 7 solo albums, and you might know Steve from his career in Smash Palace. Well, they traveled in similar circles around the greater New York City area, and found that they liked each other’s music, and more importantly, got along great and decided to write some songs together.
In the interview, we learn that they both have very different writing styles, but created an entirely new kind of workflow that suits their partnership well. Last year, they released their debut EP, “Diana Dors”, which featured excellent songwriting and songcraft, and left us music fans wanting more. This summer, with their first full length record “Poets & Sinners”, Rogers & Butler deliver on that promise. Clever, meaningful songs. Some, like “Olde Store Front”, are instantly relatable, due to the strange times we live in. Other songs started from a brief observation of someone or something. “Jump Like Alice”, an unabashed rocker, is the one that grabbed me immediately, since I’m an unabashed rocker. “Skimming Milk From The Cream” caught my attention too, as a modest ode to being satisfied with having enough in one’s life. “Noel Coward” is a fun, old-timey sounding tribute to “the star of stage and screen”, and always brings a smile to my face. In fact, the guys are now two for two in having a celebrity profile song on each of their records. I think this trend should continue–and who knows, it may. Turns out they have more songs written, for a potential next album!
Oh–and did I mention that their band is made up of world class musicians Sal Maida, Dennis Diken, and Don Piper? Talk about doing it right. These five men made some amazing music together, rather quickly, without much fuss at all.
We had a really fun, lively chat. Listen for the poignant explanation behind the closing track “The Other Side Of Midnight”. I really like this album–it’s a really great “grown up” album, located at the intersection of songcraft and artistry. More info at www.facebook.com/RogersButlerMusic.
Enjoy the show!
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