xifersbraincookies... whoah!

ABOUT XIFER AND HIS BRAINCOOKIES :::

Xifer Fortier is the resident production manager at Jay Siegan Presents and heads up the sound crew at the Red Devil. A fan of music, love and cocktails, he is enjoying spouting off about his experiences in the crazy world of local rock n roll. Tell him you love him, or let him know he should get lost at christopher@jaysieganpresents.com

This is sent to our friends in the music community... with love.

::: XIFER'S BRAINCOOKIES ARCHIVES :::

::: MORE INFO

Hey there, go ahead and forward this to your friends... or even better have them sign up for our mailing list (braincookies, show announcements and more) here.

Xifer doesnt book the shows at JSP (we would never allow that)... but you can always contact Sarah for such things.

The Red Devil's website is here.

Come by and have a drink with us. : )

November 12 , 2003

Sorry to have taken so long to return to my page--I had to disappear for a bit and tend to the zoo. Goddamn marmots are impossible, gnawing on eachother, always squabbling about something or other...

It seems like its been forever since we last spoke. I don't write, you don't call...and so many momentous things have come to pass. We have so much to discuss. It might be a little early to start pulling that Jon Carroll shit, to wit: Braincookies is on vacation, but we're reprinting the same old "classic" Braincookies indefinitely in hopes of faking Xifer's death down the road.

Forgive me. I didn't mean to leave you. I'll endeavor to be a little more present in our relationship, but like every guitar-player on earth I make no guarantees. I reserve the right to vaporize at will and without warning. It's my column, and I vote.

Speaking of voting, are you?? Voting, I mean. I know I sound like a solemn dad, but in Australia there's a law whereby folks who don't vote are charged with a misdemeanor. Here they don't arrest you, they just make Arnold fuckin' Shwarzenegger your governor. Frankly I'd rather do the time.

The recall of Arnold is gonna cost a fortune. But see -- if every women's organization in California got together, that's 90,000 signatures in the first couple o'days....hold on...oh yeah, this is a music column. Sorry. Sidetracked.

Dim lights, spin disco ball, cue theme music, let good times roll...

Folks, Braincookies is back and bullshit rich as ever!! Yadda yadda, record scratch, end theme...and HEY!! No smoking in the back unless you brought enough for the whole class!

Some cool things that happened while we were apart:

Drove down to Carmel Valley into a high security ranch to play engineer for Jackson Browne at a pre-wedding bash. Honest. Good thing there was plenty of Irish courage around.

Got to within a hair's breadth of completing tracking on the new GRIDDLE LP. Pretty excited.

Worked with PC Munoz and the Amen Corner TWICE. I love when that happens, since they knock me out every time. Have you seen this band? They're like a gospel/r&b/soul outfit with smart stories and freaky analogue synth tones. Is PC a frenamine? Sure. And am I here to shamelessly plug my pal's band? Well, no... (Hi, PC. How are ya?)

I'm here to say that [THEME OF COLUMN ALERT!!! THIS IS IT!! HERE IT COMES!!!] Bay Area bands knock me out with stunning regularity. Many of my most enjoyable musical experiences these days come from seeing a band from here.

for cheap.

or free.

Depending on the band, I'm often pleasantly surprised at how rockin' or dynamic or nasty or raw or fun or dark or sincere or ironic or together or insightful or bold or (occasionally) rotten they are.

Sometimes, a band decides to leave me a disc at the end of the night. It's likely to get at least a spin or 2 when I have a sec and if I liked the band (I'm generally quiet about that part -- I'm supposed to like all bands equally).

Peep this post from Craigslist musician's forum:

sfo stripper tune at red devil < SKA-BOY > 2003-09-11 11:27:13

[anybody here hang out at the red devil? tryin' to find out who does the tune about getting hit by a stripper.heard it there a bunch of times. i think "stripper" is in the title.]

Its not uncommon for me to spin local discs between bands at the club and for the response to be really fine. A few weeks ago I was playing a disc by The Working Poor and no fewer than 3 patrons and one staff member came up to say, "Who in the hell is this? I love this..." Note to the Working Poor -- one woman was so damn effusive i gave her your disc, but only if she promised to get in touch with you and tell you how much she loved it. Oh, and can I have another one?

To be clear: I'm not asking anyone to send me discs. I'm not soliciting. I don't want to suddenly start receiving 25 stinking discs a week in the mail. I'm saying maybe you're one of those bands that likes to leave a disc with the engineer at the club you played. At the Devil, its a good idea because sometimes I play them, and sometimes the response is good. Am I fair about it? Does everyone get equal play? No. While I VERY occasionally take requests, make no mistake about 2 things:

-This ain't no radio station and I ain't no DJ.

-For 6 to 8 hours per night, that crow's nest is a monarchy.

I'm usually choosing music to play between bands based on how much I wanna hear it, how it works with the vibe of the crowd, and how much I think it makes sense for that music to fill the space between the last band and the next one. Sometimes I choose music to keep folks drinkin' for another 15 minutes before last call, and sometimes Cheap Trick is the best option. Sue me.

But consider this (incomplete) list here. Bay Area Bands that get played at the Red Devil on a weekly basis:

Butch Berry
The Fingers
Hopscotch
LZ Phoenix
Clay Bell
Kingstreet Crossing
Beanweevils
PC Munoz
Hammerlock
Spoke
Working Poor (until recently)
Griddle (natch)
The Real
Deadweight
Kirsten Candy
Ill-Gotten Gains
Arcus
JND
Zmrzlina
Brad Brooks

And these are just the ones I remember off the top of my head. So much for being a real investigative journalist...

Maybe it sounds like less of a big deal to you, but I'm pretty amazed at how much I enjoy this stuff--my job, the bands I get to work with, and the music I am privileged to hear.

I'm the guy sittin' behind the console for 40 hours a week hearing stuff loudly and intensely. I'm supposed to get tired and cynical and unkempt. I'm supposed to do my duty to help a band realize its vision in the live setting in some agreeable fashion and get the smile and the handshake at the end of the night for not fucking it up. After all, you sounded good when you showed up. If I'm lucky, I get smoked out on Clay St. (EAST of Polk please, away from the MEAN neighbors). I'm not supposed to get excited. I'm not supposed to enjoy it, right? Well, I do.

So do members of the general public (read that: your fanbase).

So there. So what. Sew buttons. The truth is out.

See y'all again soon.

x
christopher@jaysieganpresents.com

ABOUT XIFER AND HIS BRAINCOOKIES ::: Xifer Fortier is the resident production manager at Jay Siegan Presents and heads up the sound crew at the Red Devil. A fan of music, love and cocktails, he is enjoying spouting off about his experiences in the crazy world of local rock n roll. Tell him you love him, or let him know he should get lost at christopher@jaysieganpresents.com This is sent to our friends in the music community... with love.	::: XIFER'S BRAINCOOKIES ARCHIVES ::: Spet 3, 2003 \| here Aug 26, 2003 \| here Aug 22, 2003 \| here Aug 14, 2003 \| here Aug 6, 2003 \| here July 30, 2003 \| here July 23, 2003 \| here July 16, 2003 \| here	::: MORE INFO Hey there, go ahead and forward this to your friends... or even better have them sign up for our mailing list (braincookies, show announcements and more) here. Xifer doesnt book the shows at JSP (we would never allow that)... but you can always contact Sarah for such things. The Red Devil's website is here. Come by and have a drink with us. : )

November 12 , 2003 Sorry to have taken so long to return to my page--I had to disappear for a bit and tend to the zoo. Goddamn marmots are impossible, gnawing on eachother, always squabbling about something or other... It seems like its been forever since we last spoke. I don't write, you don't call...and so many momentous things have come to pass. We have so much to discuss. It might be a little early to start pulling that Jon Carroll shit, to wit: Braincookies is on vacation, but we're reprinting the same old "classic" Braincookies indefinitely in hopes of faking Xifer's death down the road. Forgive me. I didn't mean to leave you. I'll endeavor to be a little more present in our relationship, but like every guitar-player on earth I make no guarantees. I reserve the right to vaporize at will and without warning. It's my column, and I vote. Speaking of voting, are you?? Voting, I mean. I know I sound like a solemn dad, but in Australia there's a law whereby folks who don't vote are charged with a misdemeanor. Here they don't arrest you, they just make Arnold fuckin' Shwarzenegger your governor. Frankly I'd rather do the time. The recall of Arnold is gonna cost a fortune. But see -- if every women's organization in California got together, that's 90,000 signatures in the first couple o'days....hold on...oh yeah, this is a music column. Sorry. Sidetracked. Dim lights, spin disco ball, cue theme music, let good times roll... Folks, Braincookies is back and bullshit rich as ever!! Yadda yadda, record scratch, end theme...and HEY!! No smoking in the back unless you brought enough for the whole class! Some cool things that happened while we were apart: Drove down to Carmel Valley into a high security ranch to play engineer for Jackson Browne at a pre-wedding bash. Honest. Good thing there was plenty of Irish courage around. Got to within a hair's breadth of completing tracking on the new GRIDDLE LP. Pretty excited.	Worked with PC Munoz and the Amen Corner TWICE. I love when that happens, since they knock me out every time. Have you seen this band? They're like a gospel/r&b/soul outfit with smart stories and freaky analogue synth tones. Is PC a frenamine? Sure. And am I here to shamelessly plug my pal's band? Well, no... (Hi, PC. How are ya?) I'm here to say that [THEME OF COLUMN ALERT!!! THIS IS IT!! HERE IT COMES!!!] Bay Area bands knock me out with stunning regularity. Many of my most enjoyable musical experiences these days come from seeing a band from here. for cheap. or free. Depending on the band, I'm often pleasantly surprised at how rockin' or dynamic or nasty or raw or fun or dark or sincere or ironic or together or insightful or bold or (occasionally) rotten they are. Sometimes, a band decides to leave me a disc at the end of the night. It's likely to get at least a spin or 2 when I have a sec and if I liked the band (I'm generally quiet about that part -- I'm supposed to like all bands equally). Peep this post from Craigslist musician's forum: sfo stripper tune at red devil < SKA-BOY > 2003-09-11 11:27:13 [anybody here hang out at the red devil? tryin' to find out who does the tune about getting hit by a stripper.heard it there a bunch of times. i think "stripper" is in the title.] Its not uncommon for me to spin local discs between bands at the club and for the response to be really fine. A few weeks ago I was playing a disc by The Working Poor and no fewer than 3 patrons and one staff member came up to say, "Who in the hell is this? I love this..." Note to the Working Poor -- one woman was so damn effusive i gave her your disc, but only if she promised to get in touch with you and tell you how much she loved it. Oh, and can I have another one? To be clear: I'm not asking anyone to send me discs. I'm not soliciting. I don't want to suddenly start receiving 25 stinking discs a week in the mail. I'm saying maybe you're one of those bands that likes to leave a disc with the engineer at the club you played. At the Devil, its a good idea because sometimes I play them, and sometimes the response is good. Am I fair about it? Does everyone get equal play? No. While I VERY occasionally take requests, make no mistake about 2 things:	-This ain't no radio station and I ain't no DJ. -For 6 to 8 hours per night, that crow's nest is a monarchy. I'm usually choosing music to play between bands based on how much I wanna hear it, how it works with the vibe of the crowd, and how much I think it makes sense for that music to fill the space between the last band and the next one. Sometimes I choose music to keep folks drinkin' for another 15 minutes before last call, and sometimes Cheap Trick is the best option. Sue me. But consider this (incomplete) list here. Bay Area Bands that get played at the Red Devil on a weekly basis: Butch Berry The Fingers Hopscotch LZ Phoenix Clay Bell Kingstreet Crossing Beanweevils PC Munoz Hammerlock Spoke Working Poor (until recently) Griddle (natch) The Real Deadweight Kirsten Candy Ill-Gotten Gains Arcus JND Zmrzlina Brad Brooks And these are just the ones I remember off the top of my head. So much for being a real investigative journalist... Maybe it sounds like less of a big deal to you, but I'm pretty amazed at how much I enjoy this stuff--my job, the bands I get to work with, and the music I am privileged to hear. I'm the guy sittin' behind the console for 40 hours a week hearing stuff loudly and intensely. I'm supposed to get tired and cynical and unkempt. I'm supposed to do my duty to help a band realize its vision in the live setting in some agreeable fashion and get the smile and the handshake at the end of the night for not fucking it up. After all, you sounded good when you showed up. If I'm lucky, I get smoked out on Clay St. (EAST of Polk please, away from the MEAN neighbors). I'm not supposed to get excited. I'm not supposed to enjoy it, right? Well, I do. So do members of the general public (read that: your fanbase). So there. So what. Sew buttons. The truth is out. See y'all again soon. x christopher@jaysieganpresents.com