BTOC Behind The Orange Curtain

College Rock - Before ‘Indie' or ‘Alternative', College Rock was the most commonly used term for new music existing on the periphery of established trends. The term derives from the student-run radio stations on college campuses of the 1980s, which picked up new waves much faster than the commercial channels. This was at a time when the boundaries between mainstream and underground music were far less porous than today. Bands Featured: The Replacements, Pixies, Hüsker Dü, The Pogues, Dead Kennedy's, Elvis Costello, The House Martins, The Stone Roses, Janes Addiction, Suzzane Vega, Camper Van Beethoven, 10,000 Maniacs, Billy Bragg, Nirvana, The Dukes of Stratosphere, The Call, The Mighty Lemon Drops, The Connells, The Cult, The Colourfield, Flesh For Lulu, The Lucy Show, and Red Hot Chili Peppers.  

Power pop is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It originated in the mid-1960s as young music fans began to rebel against the emerging pretensions of rock music, and developed mainly among American musicians who came of age during the British Invasion. The genre typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and "happy"-sounding music underpinned by a sense of yearning, longing, or despair.   Bands Include: The Spongetones, Squeeze, 20/20, Nick Lowe, The Smithereens, Let's Active, The Posies, Material Issue, Gin Blossoms, The Rembrandts, Jellyfish, Dramarama, and The La's.

This week we will look Christmas in the 80's and bands that either covered or wrote originals for the holiday season.   Bands Include: Billy Idol, Fishbone, The Pretenders, Band Aid, The Waitresses, U2, The Pogues, The Alarm, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Queen, WHAM!, The Ramones, The Primitives, XTC, Eurythmics, Alison Moyet, Hoodoo Gurus, Young Fresh Fellows, Odds, Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, and Billy Squier.

This week we will look at 80's bands from the Land Down Under, Australia.  Specifically the music scene of Pub Rock which would launch such Iconic Bands such as INXS and Midnight Oil. Pub rock is a style of Australian rock and roll popular throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and still influencing contemporary Australian music in the 2000s decade. The term came from the venues where most of these bands originally played — inner-city and suburban pubs. These often noisy, hot, small and crowded venues were not always ideal as music venues and favored loud, simple songs based on drums and electric guitar riffs. Bands Include: The Saints, Midnight Oil, INXS, IceHouse, Men at Work, The Church, Divinyls, Hoodoo Gurus, Crowded House, The Lime Spiders, and Boom Crash Opera.

Welcome to part 2 of the second US festival held 1983. This week we will continue to look at the US Festival focussed this week specifically on Day 3. Tonights show has an amazing line up of iconic bands from the 80's.  Bands Include: Berlin, U2, Missing Persons, The Pretenders, David Bowie, and the Hoodoo Gurus (Critical Cut Artist)

This weeks episode we will look at the famous US Festival of 1983.   Steve Wozniak, cofounder of Apple and creator of the Apple I and Apple II personal computers, believed that the 1970s were the "Me" generation. He intended the US Festivals, to encourage the 1980s to be more community-oriented and combine technology with rock music. The first was held Memorial Day weekend in May of 1983. Join me as we look at the festival, some of the bands that played, interviews, and the music from the 1983 US Festival.   Bands Include: Divinyls, INXS, Wall of Voodoo, Oingo Boingo, Flock of Seagulls, The English Beat, Stray Cats, Men at Work, The Clash & Wolfgang Van Halen (Crandall's Crucial Cut)

Welcome to another episode of Behind the Orange Curtain. This week we will look at the 1982 US Festival. The goal for the month of November is to look for threads and themes of thankfulness and giving.  If there is one individual who gave the most in the 80's when it came to live music and his personal wallet, it was Steve Wozniak of Apple Computer and we are thankful for the historic events that he created in the world of live music and festivals. Bands In this Episode: Gang of Four, The Ramones, Oingo Boingo, The English Beat, Talking Heads, The B-52s, The Cars, The Police, Men at Work (Crucial Cut Artist)

This week we will look at 80's bands that have siblings in them. The goal for the month of November is to look for threads and themes of thankfulness. Bands with siblings have been happening since the beginning of organized music. The harmonies, creativity, synergy, and camaraderie are an essential part of the song writing process. I will attempt to provide insight into the sibling relationship, the band origin, and I will look to introduce in some instances some deeper cuts, when possible giving you you a deeper dive into some of you favorite bands from the 80's.   Bands Covered Include: The Bangles, Felony, The B52's, Cowboy Junkies, The Del Fuegos, Devo, Flock of Seagulls, Gene Loves Jezebel, INXS, Jesus and the Mary Chain, The Meat Puppets, Men Without Hats, The Psychedelic Furs, Spit Endz, Crowded House, UB40, The Replacements, and the Ramones (Crandall's Crucial Cut)

As we are now into the week of All Hallows Eve, this episode focus' next a band from Los Angeles, Ca. That would change Halloween forever in the 80's for us here in Orange County with their Annual Halloween shows at Irvine Meadows and Pacific Amphitheater. The featured band we will look at next week is Oingo Boingo. so join me as we pull back the Orange Curtain and look at the history of the band led by lead singer Danny Elfman that would escalate him to movie soundtrack stardom. Songs Included: You Got Your Baby Back, California Girls, Only A Lad, Violent Love, Ain't This The Life, Little Girls, On The Outside, What You See, Controller, Grey Matter, Private Life, Nothing To Fear, Who Do You Want To Be, No Spill Blood, Nothing Bad Ever Happens To Me, Gratitude, This Buds Fo You (Oingo Commercial), Just Another Day, Dead Man's Party, Stay, Elevator Man, We Close Our Eyes, Not My Slave, Winning Side, Goodbye Goodbye, I'm Gonna Be (The Proclaimers)

Tonights show is purely focussed on Echo & the Bunnymen's released singles from 79-87 and there is no doubt that they had an impact not only in the states, remaining under the mainstream radar, but flying ever so much higher in Southern California and especially Orange County. Songs Include: The Pictures On My Wall, Rescue, The Puppet, Do It Clean, A Promise, Over The Wall, The Back Of Love, The Cutter, Never Stop, The Killing Moon, Silver, Seven Seas, Bring On The Dancing Horses, The Game, Lips Like Sugar, Bedbugs And Ballyhoo, People Are Strange, and (Oingo Boingo) I Am The Walrus.

Tonights Episode explores the singles released from the Cure and although they are still active and have released music well after this period I want to stay true to the influence that they had during the 80's here in Orange County and around the world. Tonights show was purely focussed on The Cure's released singles from 78-92 and there is no doubt that they have earned a spot as not only one of the most influential bands in rock, fashion and pop culture but their influence here in Orange County is stronger than ever.

As we enter into October, we will be looking at bands with a darker edge.  Tonights band is Bauhaus.They are an English rock band, formed in Northampton, England, in 1978. The group consists of Daniel Ash (guitar, saxophone), Peter Murphy (vocals, occasional instruments), Kevin Haskins (drums) and David J Haskins, or “David J” (bass). One of the pioneers of gothic rock, Bauhaus were known for their dark image and gloomy sound, although they mixed many genres, including dub, glam rock, psychedelia, funk, power pop and ska. Bauhaus broke up in 1983. Murphy began a solo career while Ash and Haskins continued as Tones on Tail and, later, reunited with David J to form Love and Rockets. Both enjoyed greater commercial success in the United States than Bauhaus had, but disappeared from the charts in their homeland. Bauhaus eventually reunited for a 1998 tour, again from 2005 to 2008, and once again in 2019. Bauhaus, Tones on Tail, Love and Rockets, Peter Murphy, The Cure

In this episode we are going to look at the world John Hughes, his 80's teen movies and the music that made an indelible mark on us all during the 80's, here in Orange County and around the world.  His movies would become the quintessential representation of being a teenager in the 1980's. Through his love of music he would introduce us to new music that would be forever tied to scenes from his movies but also launch bands into super stardom. So let's pull back the curtain this evening and start exploring bands and artists that John Hughes saw fit to include into his movies. Bands Included: The Stray Cats, Altered Images, Oingo Boingo, Spandau Ballet, The Specials, Thompson Twins, Wang Chung, Simple Minds, Killing Joke, OMD, General Public, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Yellowfins, Psychedelic Furs, Suzanne Vega, INXS, New Order, The Smiths, Charlie Sexton, Billy Idol, Lick the Tins, and Bauhaus.

This Episode looks at the world of cover songs where we explore and dedicate an entire episode to current artists covering 80's artists, 80's artist covering other 80's artists, and even 80's artists covering new artists. So let's pull back the curtain this evening and start exploring bands and artists that pay homage to one another through the highest form of flattery, the cover song. Bands Include: Matt Nathanson, The Pretenders, Radiohead, Morrissey, Royal Blood, Dido, Sting, NEIL FINN, Duran Duran, Simple Minds, Violent Femmes, Green Day, Smashing Pumpkins, The Offspring, My Chemical Romance, Duran Duran Ft. Gerard Way, Anberlin, Goo Goo Dolls, and Flesh For Lulu

Glam metal, also known as hair metal or pop metal, is a subgenre of heavy metal, which features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, and borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam rock. Early glam metal evolved directly from the glam rock movement of the 1970s, as visual elements taken from acts such as T. Rex, the New York Dolls, and David Bowie were fused with the decidedly more heavy metal leaning and theatrical acts such as Alice Cooper and Kiss. The first examples of this fusion began appearing in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene.   Bands Include:  Van Halen, Mötley Crüe, Dokken, Def Leppard, Night Ranger, Quiet Riot, Ratt, Bon Jovi, Twisted Sister, Stryper, Poison, Cinderella, Whitesnake, Guns & Roses, Warrant, Skid Row, Metanoia, Anthrax

Episode 10 will be looking at the influential women of punk and new wave that revolutionized the way women were seen, heard, and represented in the music industry.  Women have made significant contributions to punk rock music and its subculture since its inception in the 1970s. In contrast to the rock music and heavy metal scenes of the 1970s, which were dominated by men, the anarchic, counter-cultural mindset of the punk scene in mid-and-late 1970s encouraged women to participate. This participation played a role in the historical development of punk music, especially in the US and UK at that time, and continues to influence and enable future generations. Women have participated in the punk scene as lead singers, instrumentalists, as all-female bands, zine contributors and fashion designers. Bands Include: Debby Harry, Chrissie Hynde, Exene Cervenka, Wendy O Williams, Annabelle Lwin, Souxsie Sioux, Dale Bozio, Terri Nunn, Pat Benatar, Annie Lennox, Belinda Carlisle, Poly Styrene, Ari Up, Joan Jett and Lita Ford

There are those who claim that Athens' transformation from sleepy hick college town to globally recognized mecca of cool was not slow evolution but the result of a single cataclysmic Big Bang event. The date of this Big Bang: February 14, 1977 — the Valentine's night that five hipster kids, dressed in funky thrift-store drag and banging inexpertly on bongos and a toy piano, played their first party under the name The B-52's. Their combination of retro-kitsch style, outrageous stage presence, and danceable hooks is a wake-up call in those days when Southern boogie was the dominant party music. The local buzz surrounding their performance draws the nucleus of “the Athens music scene” and it is generally agreed upon that this is the beginning of the phenomenon.  Bands Include: The B-52's, Pylon, The Method Actors, Love Tractor, The Side Effects, REM, Oh, OK!, Guadal Canal Diary, Kate Pierson, Blondie  

This episode will is the third and final part of a series focussed on the 2nd British Invasion. The Second British Invasion consisted of music acts from the United Kingdom that became popular in the United States during the early-to-mid 1980s primarily due to the cable music channel MTV The term derives from the similar British Invasion of the U.S. in the 1960s. This week we will close out with a 1984 and part of 1985. Again my disclaimer for this show is that I won't be able to play everything and I won't always play the hit song from the bands but songs that influenced me.  Bands included: Roman Holiday, Aztec Camera, Wham, B Movie, Jo Boxer, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, General Public, Bronski Beat, Pet Shop Boys, The Smiths, Band Aid, Howard Jones, Bananarama, Style Council, Ultravox, King, Kate Bush, The Alarm, Wang Chung, The Cult, and REM .

the second part of a series focussed on the 2nd British Invasion. I originally said that this was a 2 part series but do to the sheer volume of UK artists during this time we will have to make this a 3 part series. The Second British Invasion consisted of music acts from the United Kingdom that became popular in the United States during the early-to-mid 1980s primarily due to the cable music channel MTV The term derives from the similar British Invasion of the U.S. in the 1960s. Bands Include: Thomas Dolby, Human League, Talk Talk, The Jam, Haircut 100, Simple Minds, ABC, Big Country, Culture Club, Tears For Fears, The Fixx, Echo and the Bunnymen, Eurythmics, Blancmange, Icicle Works, New Order, Thompson Twins, Soft Cell, and the Psychedelic Furs.

The Second British Invasion consisted of music acts from the United Kingdom that became popular in the United States during the early-to-mid 1980s primarily due to the cable music channel MTV.  The term derives from the similar British Invasion of the U.S. in the 1960s. These acts primarily brought with them synthpop and new wave styles of music to the American charts, and according to Rolling Stone, brought "revolution in sound and style". In 2011, The Guardian named the Second British Invasion among their "50 key events in the history of pop music”. Bands Included:  Elvis Costello, The Pretenders, The Police, Joe Jackson, XTC, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Squeeze, U2, Adam & The Ants,  OMD, Duran Duran, Bow Wow Wow, Spandau Ballet, Billy Idol, The Cure, Killing Joke, Heaven 17, Gang of Four, Depeche Mode, Flock of Seagulls

Slash Records was an American record label originally specializing in local punk rock bands, active from 1978 to 2000. It was notable as one of the first and most successful independent record labels in alternative music, before its eventual acquisition by Warner Music Group. Bands Include: The Plugz, The Germs, X, The Gun Club, The Misfits, After the Millennials, Fear, Bonnie Hayes and the Wild Combo, The Violent Femmes, Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians and Faith No More.

BTOC takes a look at the Neo Rockabilly scene in the 80's as Rockabilly gets a musical edge and fashion changes  to drape jackets, brothel creepers, and western shirts with punk clothes, such as tight black zipper trousers and modern versions of 1950s hair styles.  Bands: Stray Cats, The Wild Ones, The Paladins, The Rockats, The Pole Cats, The Blasters, Billy Zoom, The Rockin' Rebels, The Guana Batz and Jimmy and the Mustangs.

The Paisley Underground is a musical genre that originated from California. It was particularly popular in Los Angeles, reaching a peak in the mid 1980s. Paisley Underground bands incorporated psychedelia, rich vocal harmonies and guitar interplay, owing a particular debt to 1960s groups such as Love and the Byrds, but more generally referencing a wide range of pop and garage rock revival.   Bands include: Salvation Army, The 3 O'clock, The Rain Parade, The Nerves, The Plimsouls, The Dream Syndicate, The Pandoras and The Bangles

In this episode we hear the music and talk about the bands from the 2 Tone Ska era that influenced the ska scene here in Orange County in the Early 80's.  Bands: Madness, The Specials, The Selector, Fishbone, The Untouchables, The English Beat, and The Akrylykz

Episode 1 will be focussed on the Punk Rock, and we will be looking at, specifically, the bands that came out of Orange County in the 1980's. The Orange County Punk scene not only influenced, but earned a place in the history of Punk and helped to lay a foundation in which many bands in the future would build upon in the 90's and still today.  The Vandals, Social Distortion, The Offspring, The Middle Class, The Crowd, The Adolescents, Shattered Faith and Agent Orange