Dan Bell Goes For Fifty Show @ Rumba Cafe 2/7/2020

Since it's Templeton week here at the blog, it's good timing to mention the upcoming "Dan Bell Goes For Fifty" show at Rumba Cafe on March 7th. In addition to Templeton, Dan beat the skins for Punchbug, The Last Hotel, Stonevelvet, and Miranda Sound.

Video: Useful by Templeton

Cringe.com: 1998 Interview with Christian Hurd

Before Templeton, Christian Hurd was busy with other bands and projects. In 1998, a year prior to the release of Templeton's first album, he talked with Cringe.com. Here's some of the interview:

Cringe: Can you explain why you chose the name Templeton for the band? 

Chris: I like bands that have childhood references because rock and roll has always been something that makes me feel young- just pop in some Rolling Stones and it's going to make you feel youthful and maybe even a bit rebellious. Templeton was a character in the book Charlotte's Web. As the story goes, Charlotte (a spider) wanted to save Wilbur's (a pig) life. Her idea was to spin a word into a web that described the pig, but she couldn't think of the right word and she needed help. Templeton was a resourceful rat who Charlotte knew could help. With a bit of coaxing, he went out and found some words in print that had some impact. The gist of it is that if you are putting together any kind of project which has some intricacy to it, then you have to use your resources. The first thing you need in putting a band together is getting people to play with you. I could write a million songs, but unless I have people playing with me, they'll never be performed the way I intended them to be.

New Additions: Trash To Treasure album by Templeton

Calling this a "New Addition" is sort of a cheat. I bought this album when Templeton had their CD release way back in 1999. But of course, like so many others, this was lost in my massive CD purge of the early 2000s when I converted everything to MP3s. Of course, a dumb mistake on my part. Luckily, years later, I tracked down the Derailleur Records release, and I'm glad I did. This was always one of my faves from the era - Christian Hurd has a knack for lyrics and hooks and the band has the right combo of raw/loose and precise/tight.

Know Yer Band: Templeton

Band: Templeton

Members
Christian Hurd - vocals/guitar
Bryan Myers/Tony Nguyen - guitar
Emily Ann Allen/Caleb Bandy - bass
Ben Kemp/Dan Bell - drums

Releases
1999 - Trash To Treasure album (Derailleur Records)
1999 - The Gift compilation (Not On Label)
2001 - Cringe.com/pilation Vol. 1 compilation (Cringe.com)
2003 - Documenting The Sounds of Relay Recording(s) compilation (We Want Action)
2015 - Near Misses compilation (Bandcamp)

Nowhere Fest XX 2020 Happening March 19th & 20th

Nowhere Fest is back for 2020 (or XX) on March 19th and 20th at Ace of Cups and Dirty Dungarees. See the line-ups below for each night/venue:

THE NOWHERE 2020 LINEUP

PRE SHOW AT DIRTY DUNGAREES 3/19/2020

Keynote Speaker: Dana Riashi of Near Paris
BODY FARM
DEATH GRIPPOS
THE EEDIOTS

NOWHERE 2020 at Ace of Cups 3/20/2020
X___X
Mike Rep and the ___________
Baby Lindy and the Drug Mothers
Kneeling in Piss
Donkey Bugs
PHLOX
Spodee Boy
The Scratches
TORGO

Video: Manda and the Marbles Documentary

In Music We Trust - Interview with Manda And The Marbles

On the heels of re-releasing their fourth album Angels With Dirty Faces in 2005 with Addison Records, the band chatted with the website In Music We Trust. Here is part of that interview:

Looking to become more poppy, less pop-punk and more pop-new-wave, Manda and the band were excited about the creative choices having a full-time keyboard player in the band would allow them. So much so that the band tried a lot of different stuff on their third full-length, Angles with Dirty Faces. 

"We did a lot of different things," she says of the recording process. "On this new record, 'Seventeen' is a slower song that we normally would not have put on a record. Now we just don't care about what people think is different and put on the songs that we really like." 

With the new record done and ready to shop around, the band, anxious to get something out, asked their friends at local label Sick House Records to release the record. Soon after the album's release, their manager started up a label, Adison Records, and the record was re-released with wider distribution. 

"The first version of Angels With Dirty Faces was released on Sick House Records. But, it was recently re-released on Adison Records," Manda tells me. "We put out an early release on Sick House Records. They're friends of ours, we knew them, and they wanted to do it, so we put out the new one with them. Then our manager started a label, so it got re-released. Sick House was cool with it all. We're good friends." 

With the record now available in record stores, the band hopes to tour soon to support it.
"We're going to tour in late spring and summer, when it is easier to get away from work. And we won't have to deal with the ice and snow," she informs me.

New Additions: Seduction album by (Manda And) The Marbles

While I didn't get all their albums back in the day, I was a fan of Manda And The Marbles going back to when they were just called The Marbles (guess that makes me really old school). They were a breath of fresh air, playing straight-forward pop-punk that leaned more on the pop side. As the years have passed, I've been picking up their releases here and there, and recently acquired their second album Seduction, which is where the band really took off for me.

Know Yer Band: Manda And The Marbles

Band: Manda And The Marbles

Members
Manda Marble - Vocals/Bass
Joe "Damage" Mertz - Guitar
Mark Slak - Drums
Elias Dubok - Keyboards

Releases
1999 - Rock's Not Dead album (Break-Up! Records)
2000 - Seduction album (Break-Up! Records)
2002 - More Seduction album (Go-Kart Records)
2003 - Reputation 7" single (Sickhouse Records)
2004 - Angels With Dirty Faces album (Sickhouse Records)