Feedback And Forth

Does anyone remember the year 1991? We do and clearly from the title of this episode we talk about it. What do we ramble on about that has to do with 1991? Well, all the great (and not-so-great) records that came out. Records that changed the world! The world and elsewhere! Listen to the thrilling reading of the list by Scott! Look on in awe as we mention Neil Diamond AND Barry Manilow in the same hour! There's also talk about haircuts and mustaches, organs and keyboards appearing where they shouldn't, Diamond Dave retiring from his ego, Buzz Osborne once again being a dick to the mighty Matt Lukin, and the lack of seatbelts when listening to some of these records. Check out this one and see if we mention anything of relevance to your life of 1991! Or not! I have more exclamation points!!!

Every once in a while an episode will come along that changes the fabric of our society so radically that it alters our perception of the world around us. This isn't that episode. This episode is about time and space: the time and space around our first gig, time and space inside our van, time and space inside our heads. You won't need drugs for this episode (but it can't hurt). So come on along! Yes, we talk about our first gig again. But this time we have the one, the only, Mr. Tony "Never Stop Playing Even If Your Kick Drum Pedal Breaks" Nyitray! But that isn't all! Oh no, not by a long shot. We talk about our van. AGAIN! We talk about the scene, what we ate after shows, trying to find the Washington Hall in three cars with no GPS, Bob from Seaweed! We have it all! That's why you need this episode.

Drugs: you know I love ’em! We reminisce about them in this episode, in particular LSD. Thrill to the spectacle of a guy laying across a footbridge at Tacoma’s Point Defiance park while a mother and her kids avoid crossing a small stream, learn what to look at while at the movie theater (here’s a hint: it’s not the movie) and ride along with our heroes as they brave Revolution 9 (Number 9, Number 9, Number 9…). But wait! There’s more than drugs in this episode. Did I mention theft of a bear? How about crappy equipment, Sean’s perilous journey back to the fire, us making enough noise to clear the city of Parkland, charred pork products and someone taking a bet on said pork product? All this and more as we live through another jam packed podcast! But that’s not all because there is more that I can’t even remember! That’s how good this one is!

Guess what? It's special guest time once more! For this one we got the mighty John Ledington to appear (well, not literally appear, we are still in a pandemic after all) right in your ears. John tells us all about his life at Yelm High School, living life under the sea while making food for a bunch of guys stuck inside a metal cylinder, playing in his several bands, what he did after some of those several bands, and dishin' on Tony (I'm kidding!)(Or am I?). Another amazing thing about John: he put on two of our first three shows! Oh, you better believe we talk about those (if we didn't, what the hell would be the point of this podcast?!), plus other shows. And it doesn't stop there (although you may wish it did)! We talk about drink tickets, the Rocket directory, punk rock, Mark Tatum's legendary punk rock induced stitches, and so much more!!!

Ever wonder what our first real rock show was like? You wouldn't be the first but you may be the last because we finally talk about it here, on this podcast! Shocking, isn't it? You thought we'd never get there but here we are. It was all thanks to us being, uh, meticulous. That's right, meticulous. I said it and you can't deny it because we may or may not have been just that. Also punctual. We talk about the drive. Not the drive to perform but the actual drive to Seattle. Hear the thrilling tale about the freeway and downtown Seattle. I'm just going to mention Seattle again! How were we before we went on? Listen and find out! How was Giant Henry (aka Unwound (R.I.P. Vern Rumsey))? What did I just say about listening?! Did we power through without making mistakes? Dammit, I told you to listen!! Celebrate this historic event! Cringe at some things I won't mention here! ROCK OUT, YOU HEATHENS!

If you ever cared to know what we were into when we were kids, this is the episode to listen to. Or some of the other podcasts from this series. But this one is the definitive episode to listen to. I would never steer you wrong. I guess. What I do know is this Sidetrack is about toys, bikes, TV shows, movies. There’s so much we cover that it’ll feel like a virtual king sized quilt covering your entire room, with ease, you won’t know what to do! Except listen! And listen you shall, unless you decide not to. If so, it’s your loss because it’s amazing! Yes, we talk about the toys we obsessed over and at times coveted. Planet Of The Apes, Space 1999, Evel freakin’ Knievel cycle sets that didn’t really jump anything but were super cool! What was on TV back then? Whatever we were watching because that’s how riveting this show is! Again, the Planet Of The Apes tv show, the Animated Star Trek, so much more. Just give it a listen and you’ll learn about the cool bikes we had. Banana seats, mini sissy bars and tall handlebars. It’s as cool as this series, baby!

Here we are again, still in the pandemic and doing our best to practice social distancing while bringing you another exciting episode of Feedback And Forth. What's on the docket this time, you ask (I can't actually hear you but I assume everyone's asking that question)? Well, we talk about a night that changed our lives forever and made us talk about it for weeks on end, to the annoyance of everyone outside of our circle of friends: LAME FEST '89! We give you a blow by blow run down of arriving at the show, that thing Kurdt did with his hair, a bass guitar in the ass of a prick of a security guard, the moon rising halfway through the show (you might ask how that can happen at an indoor show), and wonderful chaos that happened when the security got a taste of their own medicine. So sit back, grab a beer and your stash, and listen up you bastards!

Wait, do we have a special caller?! We do! We’re back and blabbering on about stuff in this new episode (I guess that depends on when you actually listen to this). Highlights(?) of this episode include our remote guest, cover songs that we managed to play live, others not so fortunate and still more that even we knew better than to attempt. But wait, it doesn’t stop there! We talk about hanging outside of the band, drinking and our first shows. The theme of this one is Punctuality and we managed to be just that. Shocking, isn’t it? It surprises even us. Get ready to slap your best friends on the back, light one up and pop a beer. It’s time to toast being friends and playing in a band. You don’t have to be in a band to do the three recommended things, but it would a lot cooler if you did.

Here we are, the final installment of this series of Sidetracks: Metalshop Part 3. Did we talk more about Steve Slaten? Damn right we did! Did he play Emma Peel by The Allies? Probably not. Mike, as usual, is getting it mixed up with something else. In this episode we talk about a band Scott's apparently obsessed with: Blotto. Who were they? No one knows. Well, we clearly don't at any rate. He talks about a song he remembers (is that possible?). We also talk about Perennial, a local band only some recall. Also discussed is whether or not the 90s local bands listened to Metalshop, let alone metal. Further on the docket is Deep Purple. Remember when they got back together in the 80s? We do and talk about the reunion and album as well as their amazing career of great songs and revolving band members. There's also talk about our friends from Confused?!'s previous metal bands and the amazing names they had in said bands. It's all here: metal, metal and metal. The Pacific Northwest and its relationship with metal is a subject (it really is). Give the horns and crank out this loud (?) podcast of metal!

Did you know that Scott created a list for this series of Sidetracks? Of course you didn't! I just uploaded this episode! He references it, which is good because if he didn't we'd run out of topics and it would've been a waste of his time. Twisted Sister, Queensryche, Culprit, and more metal than you can shake a tire iron at. Steve Slaton is mentioned again, and why not! We also discuss the letter Scott wrote to Metal Shop i.e. Steve Slaton. We also play "Do You Remember This Band?" where Scott asks Mike (me) if he (I) remembers any of the bands he (Scott) mentions. Do you remember Mama's Boys? If not, why not?! We also find out that Ronnie James Dio's cousin was in a band (and it wasn't even Dio). Plus, OZZY!!!!! Plus plus, even though we talk about radio, for some reason only known to us, we talk about magazines. Wolf's department store, Krokus, Raven, we cover it all!!! If you need a shot of metal, you need to listen to this episode, as well as the previous one, and hell, even the next one. METAL SHOP!!!

Does anyone out there remember Metal Shop?! No, I don't mean the elective class you could take in high school. We're talking the radio program that started in the 80s on the mighty KISW, Seattle's Best Rock! That's right, we take a trip down memory (what the hell is that?!) lane with this pandemic era offering. Join us as we recount our first listenings of this classic show where they, surprisingly, play metal. We discuss the bands we remember hearing either for the first time or for the second+ time. Did you know that Motörhead's I Got Mine was the theme song for a while? Well you'll find that out in this episode (even though I already told you). You'll also hear us talk about local metal bands in the 80s, national metal bands, international metal bands. Hell, we even talk about Twisted Sister! Kick back in quarantine fashion and listen to the odd sounding audio. Have a drink while listening to Mike blab on about how he could only get this to work by micing his phone (he got this to work with Tony in a previous episode) and why he had trouble. Riveting!

In this action packed episode that zig zags wilder than Jim Rockford's evasive car driving, we talk all things early Tall Toad. From Scott's foray into immersive theater with Dan to early gear that sort of survived our manic playing styles. While more or less staying around 1989, we zoom all over the place talking about our time playing on an air force base (like Spinal Tap), record stores in Olympia and also our friend Todd's large bedroom practice space. All band jams, lots of Rainier beer and weed, hemp necklaces, beaded necklaces: we got it all in this episode! This particular episode should really be dedicated to the memory of Todd's parents' sanity, which we weekly put through the ringer. Rock 'n' roll your way with us through this high octane installment. Nothing says "What the hell?!" more than this one, folks.

In this, the final installment (?), we discuss the seventies KISS where they were surrounded by mystery and nobody knew what they actually looked like, and the eighties KISS where no one seemed to care anymore. Even when they announced in the mid 80s that they were going to appear without makeup, most people didn't care, including your intrepid podcasters. Oh, KISS. And yes, we're well aware of the fact that this was recorded BEFORE Episode 2.1 but came out AFTER that episode. This is how we roll. And what about the post makeup KISS? Oh, don't worry, we talk about that too. We talk about the Lick It Up video, in all its "glory". Trust me, the quotes are very much needed here. We also cover the reunion that we had waited years and years for, the KISS tribute album from the 90s, the Melvins (of course) and more. You wanted the best and you got the best ... podcast that's the third part of a three part podcast about a band they liked a lot!

A new season AND a new theme song, with drums recorded at a distant location by the amazing Cesar Molina at Cave Rec Studio in downtown Las Vegas. Besides telling the thrilling story of how this song came to be and whatnot, we also cover our heroes aimless wanderings both alone and eventually together, narrow escapes from shady apartment complexes, playing our first show together, what we thought of the movie Leviathan, local shopping malls, and even the Ramones. But that's not all! We also tell the uplifting tale of how the name Tall Toad came to be. Truly inspiring. We even throw in some wood grain drum sets, Datsuns that saved the day, Sean and Todd (if you haven't been listening to the show and don't know who these guys are, shame on you), and some good old fashioned ramblings. All for free!

So what do you do when you're a band on top of the world and you've got several platinum selling albums? You all put out solo records, of course. We discuss this weird and unexpected sidetrack in this episode of Sidetracks. From Ace's far superior album to Gene's sad collection of weak sounding wax. Why wouldn't John Lennon and Paul McCartney get back together to be on Gene's album? I suppose if they were into disco... We also delve into the glittery era of KISS (Gene finally got his way) with Dynasty. Which leads to the two coolest members leaving, one by one, although Ace stuck around for their "concept" album. Why? Nobody knows. Find out how we both maneuvered in this new KISS territory and how we felt about this change in their trajectory. Something tells me it doesn't go as well. From Unmasked to Music From The Elder and finally Creatures Of The Night, we give a blow-by-blow of the KISS car with wobbly wheels and how they clearly drove it off the cliff into the ocean, like an episode of The Rockford Files.

What can you say about KISS that KISS hasn't already said? Not a lot. Or so you would think. In this new series called Sidetracks, we take a subject that we would probably get sidetracked on (hence Sidetracks) and we discuss it at length, for about 15 - 30 minutes. Thus allowing us to stay on track during the normal podcast. One would hope. So this is number 1, but as you can see it says Part 1. It makes you wonder what's in Part 2. Or maybe you're screaming "Oh god, how many Sidetracks are there about KISS?!". Keep listening to find out. In this, our very first Sidetrack, we cover KISS. Obviously. It says it in the title. Geez. Moving on, we cover how we each first heard of them and when the first listen happened. We also talk about their early days and even KISS Meets The Phantom Of The Park, a not-nominated-for-an-Emmy TV movie made at the height of their career. I know you're probably thinking "Wow!", but don't "Wow!" yet because there's even more! What is it?! Hit the play button and find out...

The first half of this episode finds our heroes joking and laughing like a couple of ridiculous fools. Basically it’s the same old hilarity. Talking about parachute pants, various hairstyles we thought would have been cool (had they turned out like our lofty dreams were picturing), and the usual goofy-ass stories we found funny and informative. The second half takes on a more somber note. We finally reach the point in the story where we discuss our friend’s passing, by his own hand. We choke up on more than one occasion as we talk about the pain we dealt with over the loss of our amazing friend. Please, if you find yourself in his place, talk with someone. The world would be a far sadder place without you. Trust us on this, we know.

In this episode we talk about concerts in the 80s, among other subjects. These include attempts to see Ozzy, a lackluster Judas Priest performance, another Maiden gig, and the infamous Metallica show after Cliff's death where our friend Vince ... maybe you should listen to the story and also find out if we were able to get backstage, thanks to Ed Bergh's friend Goose. Did Vince rage on the stage at the show? You'll just have to listen and find out. A special surprise also awaits you upon listening. What is it? Why would I tell you if I just told you to listen and find out?! Stop asking me already! We also discuss the John & Tony show, which landed while we were in high school. Did you know there were tables of cliques at Yelm high school? Learn all about the table of weird people that we occasionally hung out at. It's another action packed, thrilling episode. Buckle up and get ready to fly through our ramblings!

Imagine if we were able to actually make the movie we wanted to make. Part Magical Mystery Tour, part something-even-stranger, Wind Gods was supposed to be an odyssey, a road trip if you will. But that isn't the only thing we talk about, not by a long shot. We talk more about our first songs, about how early they were. You know what? We also talk about our friend Ron, the young George Lucas impersonator. Okay, so he wasn't actually an impersonator. Other things we discuss: a goat named O'Malley, begging for concert money, lasers on the ceiling, and this thing they used to have around called L.S.D..

Hey, why is there a picture of a rock over there? Does it signify how much we rocked? Or some other corny euphemism? In Episode 1.7, we talk about that (I’ll tell you now, it’s Fossil Rock) and many other things that center around our years in Yelm. Why, you ask? Well, why not, I answer. But it’s not just rocks, there’s also sand in this episode and vertigo inducing excitement! We also present a group ode to that little town from us and our friends Diplomatic Immunity and Velvet Rain (or were they still Morbid Youth?) called Where The Hell Is Yelm?. Listen and you shall find out what else we did in our spare time. You might even learn a lesson or two about various… things.

In Episode 1.6, we discuss all things Melvins related. Well, all sorts of things that related to us and the influence they made on us, young lads from Yelm and whatnot. The first time we saw them live, first albums heard/purchased, encounters with punk rock, Buzz's afro, Dale and his underwear, Matt Lukin. All this and more in Episode 1.6, The Sidetrack. Songs included in this one are Suburbs In Vacuum (a low-fi boombox recording from a practice in '95) and the third and final recording of Mollusk Blanket that would have appeared on an album called This Could Get Ugly circa '97, had we the cash to put the album out. Enjoy!

Have you ever tried being a serious musician with a 20-watt amplifier? If you have, we feel your pain because we've both been there. If you haven't, it's a pain, trust me. We cover that and other equipment related misfortunes. But that isn't all! In this extra long episode we also talk about Trepan's awesome logo and name, the hell we got from parents because of our love of loud and obnoxious music, Trepan's first and only gig, the D.E.D. Zone, our first attempts at writing songs, and much, much more.

What were shows like in the 80s? What were the first shows we saw, even if they did nothing to inspire us to rock? How about the shows the DID inspire us to Rock? And what did Fred do that one time? All this and more will be covered in this episode. Well, we can’t vouch for the “more” you might be thinking of. Only our own “more”. We don’t sidetrack ourselves too bad in this one. We do a little, don’t you worry. I’m not going to give anything else away. Except, of course, about the mummy and dragon. You already figured that one out, you intrepid and thoughtful reader! So have at it!

In this episode, we’re joined by a special guest: none other than Tony “The Whacka-mole Hammer” Nyitray. We discuss old gear, various practice spaces, fire, Yelm bands that created a “scene”, whether or not we were polite (We weren’t. We were punctual.), our first gigs, and talk about our friend Joel who got a song named after him. By us! As usual, we talk about Yelm and take many meandering sidetracks down hazy memory lane. Once again, Brooks Martin gets a mention and so does his missing P.A. system. So sit back and grab a listen to this extra long, rambling episode. Hopefully it all makes sense.

In this action packed episode we discuss how we both got into music, the travels to purchase the stacks of wax, KISS cards purchased at an absurdly low price, Brooks Martin, lyrics given to Melvins, weird leather jackets, shopping carts neglecting to sprout wings causing Icarus to fall to Earth, Spinal Tap, and for some reason, the Bay City Rollers. All this and some music too. As always, we get sidetracked numerous times and there was mention of Yelm a couple of times. Did you know Yelm had two record stores (at different times, of course) in the 80s? Oh, Yelm…

In this episode we introduce ourselves, explore the end of Tall Toad, give a very brief history of the band, continually get sidetracked, and drop several names of people and bands that have no idea who we are. Rainier beer is also consumed, as well as hazy memories dredged up to entice you to listen and attempt to decipher what the hell we’re talking about. And we mention Tony several times.