Interview with Kqhyt Kqhyt

By Deaglan Howlett | Posted Monday, April 25, 2022

Kqhyt Kqhyt has to be one of my favorite bands to emerge from Asbury Park since I started writing for Jersey Indie. Whether you know how to pronounce their name or not, you have no doubt caught them playing their booze soaked rock and roll throughout Asbury Park. Since forming in 2019, their long anticipated first single “Carey Bronson” was released April 8th of this year. Accompanied by a great music video, their self-titled release came out April 22nd and is available to purchase here. I recently reached out to lead guitarist Alex Rosen and the band to talk about the beginnings of the band and their upcoming plans. Thanks again, Alex. <><>

When did you first start making music together? How was the band formed?

In early 2019. It is a bit of a long story, but the short of it is I had gotten Brian and Brendon down to jam. I went to Brendon's house and Bronson came down and asked when practice was. That was pretty much that.

What is your songwriting process like?

Brendon pretty much has a couple albums worth and growing of songs. So he brings some to practice and we just kind of work ‘em out.  Or he has older fully realized tunes and we all just work it to full band. I have contributed some songs and Brian has a few up his sleeve. It is a mostly collaborative effort. You hear this a lot with bands, but it is always cool to see how the idea you had for a song completely transforms when you bring it to other people and jam on it.

Favorite song you have written as a group so far? Why? 

Brendon wrote "Mullica" and I really dig how everyone kind of added their own little mark to it. Brendon had the song already done, but each member added themselves to it. Lyrically, it is great as well.  

Favorite venue to perform at? 

Not sure if we have a favorite of all time since we are pretty new. But places like The Saint, Asbury Park Yacht Club, and Bond St. have always been good to us.

You recorded an album last year. Who did you work with? How was that experience?

We worked with Pete Steinkopf at Little Eden. The experience went great, and I am really so happy with how the tunes sound and how everything came out. Pete knocked it out of the park!

The band name is super unique. How did you end up with it and what does the band name mean to you?

No comment at the moment.

Your first single “Carey Bronson” is accompanied by a great video. Who did you work with for the video and how was that experience?

I went to my bud Mike Brown (Phasor Video) who is a really interesting dude. Does a lot of touring with big musicians as well as has a bit of a cult following in the WWE or wrestling world. I asked him if he would do a music video for us. We just gave him free creative control and that was that. I sent him, I think, three songs, and he picked “Carey Bronson.” It is cool just letting someone have their own vision on something you did. Kind of shows you how a song can mean different things to different people.

Any upcoming plans for the group?

We have a full-length out on vinyl and digital on 4/22. It is self-titled and limited to 100.  In late April, we are going to record our new record with Mike Mobius at Moonlight Mile. We also have a live album recorded, actually the final show at the Brighton Bar, just been slow-moving with it. We have some shows in Buffalo later this year and May 15th at Red Tank brewery. I would like to get a brewery to do a beer for us, get a tattoo gun and maybe give Bronson another nickname. Just try and make up for some lost time.

We have a bunch of merch we are working on and if you would like to grab our record and future items please check out our Bandcamp: kqhytkqhyt.bandcamp.com

Instagram: @kqhytkqhyt

You can find our stuff on Spotify and all that stuff too.

Thanks again.

You can listen to and support Kqhyt Kqhyt here <><>

Maplewood Porchfest 2021 A Huge Roaring Live Music Success in Hilton, Maplewood, NJ

By Gregory Burrus | Posted Saturday, September 18, 2021

I should say that as a live music lover, ambassador, event planner, community partner and board member of Maplewood Community Music (MCM), the Maplewood Porchfest event is clearly becoming one of my favorite live music events of the year.

This year's Sep 5th, 2021 volunteer-driven Maplewood Porchfest was a huge success as the schedule showed 55 bands across 37 porches, producing 61 hours of live music all around the Hilton neighborhood of Maplewood from 1-5 PM. Technically, it's 62 hours because it all starts with one of my favorite events of the day, the Honk Parade. The good part of this year’s Labor Day weekend event once again was that there was a high level of live music performances from beginning to end across all musical genres.

Each year since its inception in 2017, I look forward to figuring out how I am going to see the bands I want to spend time with and, at the same time, put enough other bands on the same walking route to catch as many live music performances in the same day as possible. It’s a real challenge.

What Happens at the Maplewood Porchfest?

Maplewood Porchfest Honk Parade

This opening event, true to its history, was a New Orleans-style Second Line Band led by the brainchild of Porchfest local pianist/vocalist Bill Tally, Saxophonist Ben Williams, along with Umbrella Dancer/Porchfest Planner Susan Williams, amongst others. They led a happy-go-lucky group of folks in this kick off event down Lexington Avenue from Dehart all the way to the former home of James W. Buchanan.

Jim and Carol Buchanan leading the 2017 Maplewood Porchfest Honk Parade

Jim is a retired music educator and full-time musician, a former Cultural Affairs Director for the Maplewood Recreation Department, and a co-founder of Maplewood Community Music. He lived here with another very much loved community supporter, his wife Carol Buchanan (RIP), who was a force of her own, as she was very active in the community. I personally love the fact that the Maplewood Porchfest Honk parade honors its founders and is just a lot of fun.

Time to Check Out the Live Music Bands

As mentioned, the Maplewood Porchfest contains a wide array of live music entertainment across all musical genres throughout the afternoon. So you can see Bluegrass, Jazz, Country, Rock, Americana and more. My decision this year with a limited amount of time was to check out a few Jazz Bands with stops along the way.

Baker Street Trio in Maplewood Porchfest

My first stop on my route was the Baker Street Trio. My social media post said it all. Baker Street Trio—3 teenagers (15, 16, and 17) will be making a serious mark on Jazz for a longtime. These young cats were killing it in Maplewood Porchfest. After performing a number of tunes that if you closed your eyes, you would've thought they had way more experience than their actual ages combined.  A testament to how good they were, they had Ed Palermo, the alto sax player and arranger, sitting in with them. Ed Palermo has had a big band for twenty-five years, which is an impressive feat in itself, and has had his band performing the music of Frank Zappa for over a decade. With Ed the level rose up again and these young folk were swinging hard. A big shout out to Jazz House Kids and Ed Palermo for joining and supporting them—very cool move. I highly recommend all jazz fans should check them out whenever, wherever you can.

Meant To Be Jazz Quartet in Maplewood Porchfest

Next up on my tour was the Meant To Be Jazz Quartet. Note, you can get around Maplewood Porchfest a few ways and most folks walk or ride a bike. As you can see, you can hear the music everywhere in a Porchfest. Listen in and get a feel as you walk along, as the music is in the air everywhere you go.

On this walk we encountered the Meant To Be Jazz Quartet featuring Glenn Merritt on keys, Pete Omelio on Drums, Alan Hayes on Bass and John Higgins on Trumpet. Having played together for over 20 years, they have developed a synergy that is evident amongst how they play and perform with each other. This group is a regular set of performers at the Shanghai Jazz Club and the performance was just as stellar as if they were there onsite at a regular performance. The jazz was flowing oh so smooth from this Lexington Ave porch. It was a beautiful day, beautiful music, and the large crowd that gathered enjoyed it tremendously.

What makes Porchfest so cool is you never know where the next porch is going to be. Well, another group was starting as this one ended, directly across the street led by Fishmarket Stew performing Phish covers led by local resident David Shields. He was performing on the porch of another well known Maplewood townsperson.

Gregory Burrus with another huge supporter of the event, former Mayor Vic DeLuca and Maplewood Township Committee Member.

Former Mayor for 20 years and a resident of the Hilton neighborhood, Vic DeLuca hosts events on his porch of course and did so again this year. Vic was quoted earlier saying that the event is “one of the top events in town. Porchfest brings people to the Hilton neighborhood to enjoy a special day of music and community […] It highlights the diversity of our town and the tremendous talent we have living here.”

However, I had to move on as I received a call saying, guess who's playing at such and such a place. As a live music jazz fan on a jazz tour, hearing that a world class drummer is playing around the corner in Maplewood Porchfest is amazing and, well, you just got to go.

Willie Williams Jazz Quintet in Maplewood Porchfest

Arriving on site, I encountered a hardcore group of seasoned jazz professionals that came to play big time. The Willie Williams Quintet led by Willie Williams was swinging hard in this year's Maplewood Porchfest, that's like wow. Having had a Willie Williams performance up at my favorite jazz club, Clements Place Jazz, this I knew would be a special treat. Willie Williams has played with a stellar cast of musicians his whole career and in beautiful venues like the Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C., Afro American Museum, Philadelphia, PA, the All Star Reception at Vice President Al Gore's Mansion, and our own South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) in the Giants of Jazz tribute to Jazz Giant James Moody.

Unfortunately, my video was not clear but the music video to the event is awesome and as good if not better than any show in a big club in any big city. The Willie Williams Quartet featuring Alvester C. Garnett on Drums, Kenny Davis on Bass, Miles Lennox on keys, his son rising star Ace Williams on Trumpet, and Willie Williams on Sax were just killing it all afternoon.

Speaking of Ace Williams on trumpet, a special treat was the group I first mentioned: the Baker Street Trio joined in with Ace Williams on Trumpet and they had a ball.

About Maplewood Porchfest

Porchfest Planning Committee

Big huge kudos to the Maplewood Porchfest Committee — Matt, Bill, Tracy, Susan, Jay, and Bill — which did a phenomenal job this year.

Maplewood Community Music is the official presenter of Maplewood Porchfest. Maplewood Porchfest was the brainchild of local pianist/vocalist Bill Tally, who went to Jamaica Plain Porchfest in Boston every year. He brought the idea to friends in his hometown, and put together a committee of musicians from Maplewood Community Music to run the event. The committee chose the Hilton neighborhood for its perfect layout, easy walkability, and its porches (of course). You can read all about it here at https://maplewoodporchfest.com

About Maplewood Community Music

Maplewood Community Music (MCM), a non-profit based in Maplewood, NJ, was founded in 2003 by Jim Buchanan and Susan Williams. Susan had played in the Rutgers Band and after a number of years without playing, she approached Jim Buchanan about starting a band. At the time, Jim was the Cultural Affairs Supervisor for Maplewood.

The dedicated group of volunteer musicians and conductors continue to work towards MCM's major goals of giving hobbyist musicians the opportunity to play and perform and bringing music to Maplewood, South Orange, and other nearby communities. In addition, MCM is proud to support community events and community/youth music enrichment programs. Since its formation in 2003, the organization has grown to well over 50 musicians and has numerous active ensembles. MCM hosts between 4-6 events each season and our ensembles perform at even more local events each year.

Read more at  http://www.maplewoodcommunitymusic.org/

About the Author, Gregory Burrus

I didn't get to see all the bands I know, but thanks to all bands for making a great day even better. If you didn't get in this year, you can always join up for next year, just let me know. Please note, the views and opinions expressed in this article are from Gregory Burrus, the writer, blogger, live music lover and community partner. https://gregoryburrusproductions.com/author/gregoryburrusproductions/ 

Hope to see you all again in September 2022. 

#maplewoodporchfest #livemusic #livemusicbands #labordayweekend #laborday2021 #outdoors #honkmusic #outdoormusic #maplecommunitymusic #HiltonMaplewood #gregoryburrusproductions

Interview with Jonathan Francis. New EP "Borrowed Songs, Vol. 1"

By Deaglan Howlett | Posted Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Jonathan Francis is a singer songwriter based out of Asbury Park, New Jersey. Having cut his teeth in the New Brunswick punk scene with his band, The Moms, their 2019 split led Jon to start working on music under his own name. Jonathan released his “Borrowed Songs, Vol. 1” EP on March 10th, a mix of covers as well as an original, stripped down version of his own track, “Borrowed Song.” This first release is just a fraction of what is to come from Jonathan Francis, having recorded a full band release as well last year with his trusty producer Pete Steinkopf. Jon was kind enough to let me in on the process of making the “Borrowed Songs” EP and the importance of working harder despite the current circumstances. 

When did you first start releasing music under your name?

JF: The first official release was on November 2nd, 2020.  It was my version of Woody Guthrie’s “Tear the Fascists Down” which is part of my new EP, “Borrowed Songs.” I kind of pushed this track ahead of other stuff I’ve been working on because of what was going on in the world.

What was the songwriting process like for your new release "Borrowed Songs"?

The title track, “Borrowed Song” is one that I’ve had forever. I put together this EP which includes 3 covers that resonate loudly these days.

Woody Guthrie, a big influence on the “Borrowed Songs” EP. Listen to “Tear the Fascists Down” on Spotify.

Who did you work with on this release? How did they influence your process?

This one was just myself and Pete Steinkopf (The Bouncing Souls). It was Pete’s idea to turn the whole thing up and ditch the acoustic for the 335, and I’m glad we did.

How has the pandemic affected your songwriting process, if at all?

I’ve been keeping with it and trying to constantly expand my approach, but at the same time feel like I’m just drifting without progress. I know that’s not true, but it’s definitely easy to feel like time is stalled. We don’t do anything the same these days, so the milestones I used to make in my mind with a track are not the same as they once were. Additionally, the lyrical content has been focused in a different direction, naturally, as nothing is the same as it was pre-pandemic.

You released a cover of Woody Guthrie's "Tear the Fascists Down" late last year. Did you plan on digging up older songs for this project, or was that a spontaneous decision due to the state of our country at that point?

It just kind of happened. The songs are all from different decades. I guess they were just resonating with me particularly heavily due to the state of things. The idea to make an EP out of the songs came later. Each of the covers was its own endeavor when I started putting them together.

How have you been maintaining your sanity as a musician over the past year?

Well, I’ve been TRYING to maintain my sanity, but it doesn’t always feel like it’s working. It’s been hard but the three W’s help.... Weed, Water, & Willie. No, but for real, getting outside (even though the Jersey winter is no fun) and playing music with the same intention that I’d have if tomorrow was a show. It was easy to get lost for a while, time seemed even more fleeting, but staying focused on what I love doing makes it feel like there’s light at the end of the tunnel. Now, if I could just remind myself that every morning haha.

Any bands/venues you are looking forward to playing with when shows come back?

Too many bands to name, but where we will play is the bigger question. Punks are resilient, like cockroaches. There will be places to play, but it is a bit anxiety-inducing to wonder where, knowing that so many places have already and will close. It’s pretty scary to say the least. But we’ll be okay.

Photo by Abby Clare.

Sammy Kay – “Civil/War” (Album Review)

By Deaglan Howlett | Posted Sunday, October 13, 2019

“If there is one thing this past year has taught me, it's the true meaning of the word ‘Unconditional.’” This was part of a eulogy Sammy Kay spoke to a crowded AP Brewery last May, in between new songs that would be on his next album, Civil/War.  Five months later, Civil/War has been released into the world, and I truly believe we are all better off for it.

Civil/War is an album unlike anything we have heard from Kay before.  While his previous records included influence from ska and roots rock, C/W is a much more stripped back record.  Calling upon local musicians and friends from Nashville, TN, Kay is accompanied by lap steel guitar, organ, piano and bone chilling harmonies (e.g. “Thoughts and Prayers"). This record was also recorded at Little Eden by the great Pete Steinkopf, another crucial member of the New Jersey music scene.  Additionally, this album was helped funded in part by fellow fans and friends throughout the world.

            Civil/War is a heavy album.  While album opener “Silver Dollar” invites you with its major chords and harmonica, the mood starts to change almost immediately after.  “Thoughts and Prayers” is a title alone that criticizes the way people handle heavy situations these days.  The album deals with depression, self-doubt, loss, just about any pain you can imagine.  Though the topics and stories may be heavy, the songs provide a deep sense of comfort.  The album ends with “Orange Swirl”, the perfect crescendo to cap off the album, leaving the listener to reflect on “fireflies and summer nights.”

            Do yourself a favor and listen to Civil/War as soon as possible, and tell your friends and family that you love them.  

The Random Hubiak Band - "Slipping Through My Hands" (Interview)

By Sonia Schnee | Posted Thursday, September 26, 2019

On September 19th, The Random Hubiak Band released their latest single, “Slipping Through My Hands.” If you’re a fan of Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, John Hiatt, Del Amitri, or Neil Young, then this track is sure to be up your alley. Jersey Indie was fortunate to interview Asbury Park frontman/singer-songwriter Rand M. Hubiak to learn about the inspiration behind this latest track. Be sure to catch The Random Hubiak LIVE this Saturday, September 28th, 4pm, at Asbury Park PorchFest.

Where are you from originally, and where are you based now?

I was born outside of Salt Lake City in Utah. I grew up alternately in Franklin, PA (in the old Oil Heritage region, where we moved when I was four), Irvine, CA (where I lived from age twelve to sixteen before we moved back to Franklin, PA), and Cranford, NJ (where I spent my summers with my grandparents). I moved to New Jersey in 2003 and have been living in Asbury Park since 2011.

Who are the members of The Random Hubiak Band? Where do you record?

We have a rotating cast of characters besides myself, particularly where live shows are concerned, since we have to sometimes strip down to more of a cabaret ensemble of piano/vocal and rhythm, or where we may have a full band, but the studio members/songwriters aren't necessarily all available to play their parts, so we have good number of occasional members.

But besides myself (Rand Hubiak — I play piano and occasionally rhythm guitar, sing, and write), the permanent studio crew consists of Paul Galiszewski on drums and percussion, Adam Silverstein on piano and synth strings (Adam also writes), Julian Michalski on bass, and Tom Briant on guitar (Tom also occasionally co-writes with me and sings backing vocals). We recently added Paul's son Dylan as permanent rhythm guitar. He hasn't done any studio work yet, but we've just given him some demos to start arranging, and he's played a couple big live gigs with us, so we're stoked to have him in the band. He'll draw the youth market (ha ha).

Saxophonist Michael Squillace has played on several of our recordings and also toured as my backing band in 2017, so he's a permanent member, even if he's not always available for live gigs. And I've just added two strings players in Pittsburgh as permanent studio ensemble, cellist Barbara Anndrea Delaney-Arriaga and violinist Megan Williams, the latter of whom I met as a teenager at Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts.

We record partly at Jankland Recording in Wall, NJ under the wise auspices of Steve Jankowski, a horns player for Nile Rodgers/Chic, Blood Sweat & Tears, Chicago, and Three Dog Night. We do some recording at my much less capable (but more easily affordable) home studio, which I call The Seaman Shanty.

How would you describe your musical style? Who are some of your influences?

My influences are all over, but the obvious ones are piano pop-rock songwriters such as Elton John, Tom Waits, Billy Joel, Ben Folds, and Leon Russell. You can particularly hear those influences when Adam is at the helm with me, because he's a huge fan of Elton, Billy, and Ben, as well as Randy Newman.

When Tom is co-writing with me, we come up with songs that sound like the Beatles and Bowie. If I'm writing on my own, it depends on my mood: I'd say my lyrics can often take on an Elvis Costello/Aimee Mann tone (a lot of hyper-literate cynicism), but if I'm writing on guitar, my chords structures are pretty basic, so you'll get chord progressions and arrangements that sound like Neil Young or R.E.M., whereas if I'm composing with samples I'll write stuff that has weirder sounds — Peter Gabriel and the like (although most of those are still “in the vault,” because you don't want to overwhelm with too wide a palette when you're not an established commercial act).

My vocal arrangements almost always end up sounding like Fleetwood Mac. I love their harmonies, and that tendency invariably manifests itself the second I add a harmony line to anything I do.

Congrats on the recent release of your single “Slipping Through My Hands.” What can you tell us about the inspiration behind the song and what it’s about?

“Slipping Through My Hands” is pretty ancient. I wrote it back in college. I didn't have a piano at my disposal, so the guitar was my instrument for composing. Hence the very simple chord structure. It's one of the few songs I've written from my own perspective.

I do write a lot of first-person narratives, but they're usually fictionalized at least somewhat if not outright. And while I did fictionalize a few facets of what happened in the relationship that this song is about — or rather synthesized details from other relationships besides the one that triggered me to write this song — the song itself was spawned from an early college romance that didn’t work out. The details are culled from other people I’d either dated, been friends with, or other friends’ relationships besides my own, because I rarely find my own life interesting enough to write about, and I don’t think there’s much art in simply journaling experiences in purely literal terms.

So the song existed forever as a demo, and then Tom Briant and I began adding guitar bits to it in the studio back in 2011. I never wanted to finish it because it was part of a whole song cycle that I’d released as demos back in the late 90s or early aughts, and I didn’t want to finish re-recording those songs until I’d got more albums under my belt. But now our back catalogue of unfinished material is so large, and the business model has changed (you release the songs now one at a time and then compile the full album for physical release later), that it made sense to start finishing something.

Paul and I laid down drum tracks and new vocals for 15 songs across two days in the studio in March, including this one. Julian added his bass in August, and I uploaded it for September 19 release.

Do you have any shows coming up? What’s next on the horizon for you?

I’ll be part of this weekend’s Asbury Park PorchFest on 28 September at 4:00 pm at 1323 4th Avenue. The next confirmed gig I have — I’ve been so busy with my day job that I haven’t been too actively seeking gigs — is November 3 as part of the official entertainment for the NYC Marathon; I’ll be playing at 92nd Street and Gatling Place in Brooklyn that morning from 9:30 to noon.

Tell us a little bit about yourself, your background, your personal journey.

Well, I’ve lived all over — as mentioned earlier, I’ve spent all my summers at the Jersey Shore since I was a child, but I was born in Utah and moved to western PA at age four, then southern California for three and a half years, then back to western PA until I graduated high school.

My university days were all spent at Penn State, which I absolutely loved, and I lived abroad in Greece for half a year as part of my college experience. My collaborator, Adam Silverstein, moved to England with his wife for almost ten years in 2009, so my first album with him (MEMOIRS OF A MANWHORE: THE REELING WALTZ OF A DRUNKEN LOTHARIO) was recorded over there in his home. We refer to his studio there as The Brick House, which is kind of a joke we have with his wife. The Commodores’ “Brick House” irritates her to no end, and historically it’s been nearly impossible for us to go out for dinner or drinks without that song somehow playing in the background.

I’d say that the experiences of moving around, and in particularly living or traveling abroad, have shaped my perspective. While I will sometimes document my own experiences in music, or at the very least write from the first person perspective, I’m far more keen on observing others and telling their stories, exploring the emotional context of what may seem like ordinary or mundane events and then applying to them what facets might make an experience unique to an individual while simultaneously identifying what elements of an experience are universal and therefore easily shared with a wide audience. I think the experience of being an outsider, a traveler, allows one to fine-tune that talent.

What words of advice or encouragement would you give to someone who wants to follow a similar passion, or is maybe facing obstacles similar to what you've faced?

I’m pretty old for somebody who’s really just starting to pursue music seriously. I’d say keep plugging at it, because there’s nothing wrong with not encountering immediate success or acceptance. You may have to defer your goals a bit, or at least pace yourself, and don’t be ashamed of that; don’t be ashamed of having to take a day job.

The stories coming form songwriters whose lyrics are shaped by actual experience are a Hell of a lot more interesting than the songs being penned by cushy trust-fund babies who have never been forced to struggle: Those people don’t write with the depth of experience and haven’t been forced to develop the eye for detail or the degree of empathy that comes from having to navigate the social structures of our world for survival.

Where can people listen to “Slipping Through My Hands,” and how/where can they connect with you online (website, Facebook, YouTube, etc.)?

Free streaming at any of the following links:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1uKLTNEii6MGkgVk29azI1

YouTube: https://youtu.be/U2-uar1GsXE

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/therandomhubiakmusic/slipping-through-my-hands-single-edit/s-Ja6w7

It’s also available for download on CDBaby, Amazon, iTunes, and pretty much any other purveyors of digitally compressed music. We’re on Pandora, too.

My own website is www.therandomhubiak.com, and there’s an email sign-up list there for folks who want to know whenever I’ve got a new song coming out — and the band and I are hoping to release at least one or two songs a month for the next year or two just to clear out the back catalogue. I also send out recommendations of other artists whose work I think deserves recognition.

And of course, yes, I’m on Facebook as The Random Hubiak.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

I’ve probably already rambled on far too long. But yeah, I guess — I also have a side project called The General Electorate. It’s more of an 80s retro synth-pop sound, but all originals. It’s not on Pandora, but it’s pretty much all the other places. The album we put out in 2017 was entitled SYNTHETIC BONES.