Our song “Toying in Low Temperatures” just got featured on episode 13 of the “Jackass-Penguin Show’s Jazzy Selection” podcast. From their website description:

The Jackass-Penguin Show are a virtual instrumental band playing zoological, jazzy-funky-bluesy tunes. They produce the JPS’ Jazzy Selection, a weekly half-an-hour podcast showcasing instrumental jazz/fusion by independent artists. Visit myspace.com/jackasspenguinshow for music by the JPS (not to be confused with the Jackass-Penguin Show’s Jazzy Selection).

Go check out their podcast.  There is some great music to discover. This certainly gets the Eighth Whale stamp of approval.

Kudos to the creators of the podcast.

Here’s a nifty little flyer I put together for the upcoming show in Y-town, OH at the Lemon Grove. The inspiration came from listening to Earth’s “Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light” and Black Eagle Child’s “Lobelia” albums. Both highly recommended, by the way.

Eighth Whale at Cedars

Some exciting news for all of you.

We are hard at work at a new set of Eighth Whale recordings for our first full length release. We have all the drum tracks completed and are in the process of finishing all other relevant pieces.

Trevor deserves some serious high fives all around for the time he is putting into recording and mixing all the delectable whale sounds.  Or you can give him a hug.  But he seems more like a high five type of person. I would stick with that.  Also mad props to DJ for his ability to record all his parts in a single day, unlike a certain keyboardist.

We don’t have a name for the album or artwork yet. I think we have a semi-official song ordering.  Someone who was paying attention could probably tell you what that song ordering is.

photo by D Sharon Pruitt. released under creative commons

As of this August, we are officially 2 years old! Cue the balloons! Set off the fireworks! Baby proof the music venues!

I guess the 2 year figure really depends on how you are counting. We had the full guitar, bass, keyboard, drums lineup by August.  There are a few hasty practice recordings dated from July from before we any bass player. There were even more demos between Trevor and I before DJ was even in the picture.   Interestingly enough, some of the songs we had from those early practices, we still play today.

Others we don’t.  Some of them for very good reason. “Hot Pizza”, I’m looking at you.   You are a miserable relic from our past and shall never be played again. Don’t ask us to play it. Don’t ask us for the recording of it.  It has been stored in a vault and sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic ocean.  Or maybe the Pacific ocean.  I forget.

I digress. It is an honor to play and write crazy music with such open and creative individuals as Trevor, DJ, and Allison. Its cool to look back and see how we progressed into the band we are today. The last two years have been great and here is to even more!

To those of you blubbering on about how we need to play more shows, fear not.  You can have a whale sight seeing party on Sept 24 at the Smiling Moose. You can debate with your friends about whether you think the band or the venue’s name is better.

If it were up to Joe and Molly of Cereal Banter, we’d be meeting at Tree Country in Coventry Heights delighting in Mango Chicken Curry (Tofu for me, thank you) as we discuss what fuels their creative spaceship. In their words, “The specific and peculiar addictive sounds and colours of life; the extreme contrasts that make our sensory perceptions flutter.”

Instead, they sit in a public library quiet as church mice, and I sit at my computer listening to their new LP LIGHTS LIGHTS LIGHTS.

As I listen, I am not soothed. The ratter-tatter of Rafidi’s explosive and sometimes unpredictable drums atop McKay’s bumble-bee keys activates the adrenal glands; I’m unsure if I should fight or fly. And yet, perhaps this is exactly what keeps me listening, wondering what will happen next.

Described in turn as neo-psychedelic and space-jazz, Rafidi and McKay are inspired by the fact that their “collective sound resembles a yet-to-be described ET [extra-terrestrial, that is].”

Perhaps the synthesis of their creative condition is best experienced live. Rafidi and McKay provide a very visceral experience, feeding off of one another, the instruments, and the audience. “We try to let the viewers experience as best as we can what is going through our veins at that particular moment. We try to avoid dull live moments. We like to keep things minimal, revealing a naked mannequin-type live show. No computers, no caffeine, just human effort and human error. It keeps it abrupt for us!”

OK, time for full disclosure: Joe, Trevor, and I (of Eighth Whale) played in punk/indie rock band You Are the War That I Want in Youngstown during the mid-2000’s. Our sound was straight forward and rather sparse, not like what either Cereal Banter or Eighth Whale play. I ask Joe to explain how his music has evolved since those days. “It’s gone from playing in the pocket to avoiding the pocket. Now, I disregard anything that sounds ordinary and tasteful and go for the discomfort. I’ve realized that my worst mistakes turn into the most compelling sonic moments in a song.”

I agree with Joe. I like Cereal Banter’s style—abrupt, uncomfortable, visceral; and yet, sonically teasing/pleasing. As a listener and observer, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

You can listen to Cereal Banter’s LP LIGHTS LIGHTS LIGHTS here and order it from Indie Wax Records. See them live at Cedars in Youngstown on Saturday, July 9^th. They share the stage with Eighth Whale, Abortopotomus Rex, and if you’re lucky, there will be an impromptu reunion of You Are The War That I Want.

New stickers and actual physical copies of our basement EP! Now only available at shows (for the time being). Golly gee willikers.

Here’s some artwork I did for the band using ink pen and “Gimp” photo editor for linux. I was going for a pisces theme mixed with 60′s psychedelia. Maybe you’ll see this image coming soon to a sticker near you? Only time will tell.

Get Gimp here: http://www.gimp.org/

Hey there Eighth Whalers! Here’s a hastily put together recording of a new song we have been working on over the last few weeks called “metrospective”. This is just a sneak-peak at some of the new tunes we will be debuting at upcoming shows in the near future.

Though our songs usually aren’t really “about” anything in particular, the feel of the opening parts seem to inspire thoughts of riding on a train. I envision myself looking out the passenger window watching the world pass by in an amorphous blur of green and blue and white…

Here are some photos from our recent show at club cafe with Monsters!

Intentional or otherwise, we’ve taking a brief intermission from what was becoming a fairly regular gigging routine and are instead currently focusing rehearsals to the writing of new material. We plan to be back to the stage soon enough, hopefully with an expanded repertoire to present to you.

In the last few weeks we have managed to more or less finish two new songs, with a hand-full of other tunes getting kicked around on the songwriting whiteboard. Apparently, D.J. has recently purchased some new dry erase markers, so expect productivity to be up by at least 15%.

We’d also like to introduce to you the 5th member of the band; DJ’s new 22 inch K custom dark ride cymbal. To quote the man himself “This new cymbal I bought is the shit. It is the new star of Eighth Whale. It will be featured as a solo artist in every one of our songs and will have its own dressing room.”

And you thought we’d never have a frontman.

For advance tickets, please contact eighthwhale@gmail.com