;)
What happens when you take two thirty something innovative and gifted indie rock musicians? Put them in a rented RV with a makeshift recording studio and filming equipment for a 24 day cross-country journey? Oh, and one more thing. Their plan was to travel to twelve different locations to collaborate musically with twelve different artists with whom they had never met, except for one.
Well, the answer is a film festival award-winning music documentary and praise worthy CD called "Don't Quit Your Daydream." The Los Angeles based duo, Clark Stiles and Nathan Khyber and their band "The Good Listeners" recently regaled an enthusiastic audience at the American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theater in Hollywood with a viewing of their celebrated documentary complete with a Q & A session followed by a live courtyard performance.
As the documentary unfolds, we learn that Stiles and Khyber were former members of a 90's rock band named Absinthe who had been signed by Sony and given a $500,000 advance only to be unceremoniously dropped by the label before they even really got out of the gate. Through the filming of "Don't Quit Your Daydream" we meet a myriad of colorful characters like Bingo Richey living in a desolate area of Joshua Tree who boasts that he is succeeding economically earning hundreds of dollars a year! The song born from that encounter is "Square Houses." On an art ranch in Marfa Texas, we meet the affable Bugs Salcido who informs us that he received his nick-name in his youth as a result of an over-bite. The duo also came aboard a swamp-tour boat in Louisiana to record with Ron "Black" Guidry and were hustled into paying $500.00 to an auto mechanic named "Daddy Mac" Oar for a taste of his down home blues guitar and vocals. And, out in a barn in Lexington Kentucky they collaborated with an artist named Adrian Grenier well known for his HBO role of Vincent Chase from Entourage. Grenier, a guitar player and friend of Stiles and Khyber was an associate producer on the project with his company Reckless Productions. During the Q&A session Grenier talked about how the duo used to ask if they could come over to his house to rehearse, and how much he enjoyed the benefit of hearing great live music filling the house. He also commented on how proud he was of the guy's for getting this project done.
The "Don't Quit Your Daydream" audio CD is extremely well produced and will rhythmically delight your senses and engage your imagination. And, the benefit of the companion award-winning DVD will place everything into perspective. The music these guys create is very appealing. This however is not the first time that the Good Listeners have conceptualized unique formats for albums. Their first release was "Ojai" recording one song per day at a rustic residential home in that town. Next came, "Crane Point Lodge" which was made in a remote town located in upstate New York among ghosts and spiritual aberrations.
To acquire the "Don't Quit Your Daydream" DVD and CD go to www.dontquityourdaydream.com