This last month Brent Amaker and the Rodeo were some busy men. There was the drop of the album Year of the Dragon, a West Coast tour, and a red and white wine bearing the Amaker name thanks to Walla Walla’s Proletariat Winery. You would think that after such a busy month a guy would like to take a break, and smell the roses, but not in the Rodeo's case. They do smell the roses, but then take the picture, add another tour with Fox and the Law, and add more studio time. Hang on people. This might be one hell of a ride.
IDLE EARS : How did you come up with the name Brent Amaker and the Rodeo?
BRENT : 1. My name is Brent Amaker. We play western music. The Rodeo seemed appropriate name for the band.
IE : So I think I read that you formed the Rodeo sometime in 2005. How was the Western music scene in Seattle at the time? How were the first few years here Seattle?
BRENT : I wasn't really aware of a Western music scene when we first started
this project. The great thing about Seattle, is that it's not defined
by a specific genre. People once thought of Seattle for Jimi Hendrix
and then it was grunge. But I think of Seattle as "the city of music"
meaning we've got ALL types of music. Sure, there are clicks. Like the
"beards" in Ballard. Or the hip hop scene in Capitol Hill. And every
once in a while, somebody hits a home run. Right now everyone in the
world is talking about Macklemore. But we've got way more than hip hop
and beard rock. Seattle is a place where you can meet like minded
musicians and form a band. I'm still not sure that the Rodeo fits into a
scene. And that hasn't changed since we started in 2005. We are doing
our cowboy thing, and we hope folks will get behind it. But whether
they do, or not, doesn't really impact the music we play. And I'd
rather not be tied to someone else's preconceived notion of what's hot
right now anyway.
IE : How were your first shows? Did you do anything like what you do now with dancers, and props?
BRENT : In the early days we showed up on our motorcycles and played our set.
Other bands helped us with back lined gear so we could get to the venue
on our bikes. The motorcycle thing was a huge pain in the ass and we
ditched that idea pretty quickly.
IE : As the Rodeo you have traveled the world, and probably seen some cool things along the way. What was the best place you've played minus America, and could we get a story too?
BRENT : I suspect you are speaking of Jacques Willis on Vibes. He's been doing a bunch of shows with us including some of our recent tours. When we recorded Year of the Dragon, we added some non-traditional sounds including a Moog synthesizer. We didn't want to do the exact same thing live, so we added vibraphone to cover those notes. Jacques is a master at the vibes and he does some really unique stuff by processing the signal with pedals and custom pickups for his instrument. At the core, the Rodeo is still a five piece band. But we're happy to have Jacques with us whenever he is available.
IE : It seems that you have a very unique group of cowboys. Could you tell us a little more about each member?
BRENT : It's a tough thing to find talented musicians who will stick with a project and make their mark on it. But these guys are the best. The thing that really makes it work is that everyone brings their own personality to the instrument that they play. And they also bring their own style within the context the band.
IE : Sounds like you have a diverse group of guys. Kind of reminds me of your Instagram post, and how in one picture there will be cowboys in a bar looking tuff, and the next is a homemade pie. So, what inspires a Rodeo photo?
BRENT : We are performing at Capitol Hill Block Party in Seattle this coming Saturday. We are also performing at the VIP artist dinner on Sunday night when the festival closes. In August we leave on a joint west coast tour with Fox and the Law. We'll be announcing those tour dates soon. Our next public show in Seattle will likely happen in the fall. We are working on specifics for that show now.
We put on
a show, and we incorporate lights and dancers when the budget allows.
But to this day, many of our shows play out on the road with minimum
extras. I'm most proud of my band and the music. And we
get the same reaction with or without the glam. What we are doing
is unique and we tend to stand out pretty much anywhere we go. We
travel in our matching gear 24/7 when on tour. Some times we change
from black outfits to white before going on stage. And once on stage,
The Rodeo delivers. I'm proud of our music and lucky to be touring with
these guys. If we could do all our shows with a big production budget,
I'm sure we would. But the show works well either way.
IE : As the Rodeo you have traveled the world, and probably seen some cool things along the way. What was the best place you've played minus America, and could we get a story too?
BRENT : I get this question a lot. Anywhere we play is a good time, so I hate
to single out a location. I do really love Berlin and we've played
there several times. Our appearances at Berlin music have been some of
my favorites. But more more remarkable stories go down in Europe,
not excluding the time we played a maximum security prison in Antwerp,
Belgium. Following our set, the inmates served us rare steak in the prison cafeteria. What a way to welcome cowboys to prison! Total weirdness and total Rodeo. That's the kind of shit that makes me love this band.
IE : I've noticed that you guys have a new instrument in the last couple of
years that doesn't seem to be too Western. What is it, and how did it
come about?
BRENT : I suspect you are speaking of Jacques Willis on Vibes. He's been doing a bunch of shows with us including some of our recent tours. When we recorded Year of the Dragon, we added some non-traditional sounds including a Moog synthesizer. We didn't want to do the exact same thing live, so we added vibraphone to cover those notes. Jacques is a master at the vibes and he does some really unique stuff by processing the signal with pedals and custom pickups for his instrument. At the core, the Rodeo is still a five piece band. But we're happy to have Jacques with us whenever he is available.
IE : It seems that you have a very unique group of cowboys. Could you tell us a little more about each member?
BRENT : It's a tough thing to find talented musicians who will stick with a project and make their mark on it. But these guys are the best. The thing that really makes it work is that everyone brings their own personality to the instrument that they play. And they also bring their own style within the context the band.
Ben Strehle
is the guy wearing the mask. He plays rhythm guitar, but he's also our
band problem solver. Many things go wrong when you are out on the road.
Ben takes great joy in figuring shit out. He's like a cowboy version
of MacGyver. Whether the van has broken down or gear has gone missing, Ben's the man who will find a solution. You need someone like that in every band. We have the best.
Tiny
Dancer is a genius on lead guitar and the ladies love to look at him.
He likes everything grape. Grape jelly, grape juice, grape gum, grape
soda - if it's grape, he loves it. He's also a big time chain smoker.
It's best to pull the van over when Tiny Dancer needs a cigarette.
Making him wait could lead to unnecessary tension in the van.
Bryan
Crawford is our drummer and we call him "The Kid". At one time he was
the newest and youngest member of the band, and I think the name may
have come from that. At this point he's a seasoned road warrior, but
the name stuck. And he wears it well.
Cinedrella
is our bass player. He's an interesting guy that Cinderella. He hates
onions. Onions are Kryptonite to Cinderella. He's also an exhibitionist. Don't ask him to
strip down and dance naked. Unless you really want it.
Jacques plays the vibes. He takes a classical
instrument and turns it into something else. I've heard folks call him
the Jimi Hendrix of vibraphone. I'm not sure you can play the vibes
left handed, but otherwise that's a pretty accurate comparison.
IE : Sounds like you have a diverse group of guys. Kind of reminds me of your Instagram post, and how in one picture there will be cowboys in a bar looking tuff, and the next is a homemade pie. So, what inspires a Rodeo photo?
BRENT : I don't put a lot of thought into the things I post on
social media. I play in a western band. We wear matching cowboy
outfits and that's what we wear all day / every day on tour. I'm also a
baker at home and my specialty is pies. So on Instagram, you get cowboys and pies. If I planned it all out, maybe things would be more
cohesive. But this is my life and I'm not much for filtering that. My
only inspiration for photography is capturing a real moment as it
happens. You won't find us staging photos.
IE : So what is next for the Rodeo? Any upcoming shows?
BRENT : We are performing at Capitol Hill Block Party in Seattle this coming Saturday. We are also performing at the VIP artist dinner on Sunday night when the festival closes. In August we leave on a joint west coast tour with Fox and the Law. We'll be announcing those tour dates soon. Our next public show in Seattle will likely happen in the fall. We are working on specifics for that show now.
Today I'm back in the studio working on a
new track. I'm not sure what we are doing with this song, or when it
will be released, but it's definitely good to be recording. The band is
on fire right now and that should be documented. The one thing I've
learned from the Rodeo is that you never know what the future holds and
every moment in time is perishable. If you have something special
happening, it's best to get into the studio.
7/27/13 Neumos Seattle (CHBP)
7/27/13 Neumos Seattle (CHBP)
8/8/13 Electric Owl Vancouver, BC
8/21/13 Alhambra Theatre Portland, OR
8/22/13 Milk Bar San Francisco, CA
8/23/13 TBA
8/24/13 Hotel Monte Vista Flag Staff, AZ
8/25/13 Pappy & Harriets Pioneertown, CA (B.A.R. ONLY)
8/26/13 Redwood Bar & Grill Los Angeles, CA
8/27/13 TBA
8/28/13 Night Light Oakland, CA
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