Forgotten Album of the Month: Travis Tooke

Forgotten Album of the Month: Travis Tooke

This is going to be the final post for the Forgotten Album of the Month so I decided to make the final entry the newest one; in late 2007, former For Squirrels/Subrosa guitarist Travis Tooke released his first solo album after a ten year hiatus from the music business. When Artichoke was first released, one could only obtain it via his record company’s website using PayPal. As a result of it’s tiny release, it didn’t even start getting much attention until the summer of 2008 when major publications like Billboard started checking him out. What they discovered was an experimental record but one that was obviously a labor of love.

The first thing one notices when they listen is that his voice has not changed at all but the music has gotten a bit moodier. His ironic wordplay that was all over the Subrosa record is still in full effect on tracks like “Lonely and Not Alone.” For the most post, tracks sound like alternative rock that would’ve been heard on the radio in the mid nineties but towards the end of the record, that’s when he starts to branch out and that’s when it gets interesting. Probably one of the finest tracks on the record, “Two Arm Army” is a diatribe against just about everything and sounds like the ranting of someone who has been in seclusion for the better part of a decade. The vocals are the strongest on the record and ironically, this ended up becoming the single the label tried to push to radio; it didn’t get very far but it did get a ton of spins on MySpace.

Songs like “Anyway” and “Would You Burn?” make this record one of the best records of 2007 but the very last song is hands down, one of the best songs of that year; “Wrongsong” is a moody, organ driven piece that’s one of the most haunting and creepy songs on the record. The lyric ‘fuck me, fuck you like you want me to’ is one of the creepiest lyrics of the year but that’s what makes the song so powerful. Now note there is only one video but that's because there was not much to choose from online, which is a damn shame.

Since 2008, Travis Tooke has gone back into hiding but knowing that Artichoke was a minor success in the underground. Let’s just hope that he won’t disappear for another ten years as people who know about the album spread the word.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

An Interview with Too Much Joy

Image
Back in the late 80s, goof-pop was everywhere, thanks to the likes of the Dead Milkmen, early Ween and New York's own Too Much Joy. Songs like "If I Was a Mekon," "Making Fun of Bums," "Take a Lot of Drugs" and the immortal "Clowns." Bands like this did not come around that often and when they did, they usually didn't stick around long. Fortunately for TMJ, their songs and legacy have endured because of their website, http://www.toomuchjoy.com/ and through the work of frontman Tim Quirk, who now works for Rhapsody. The following are two interviews conducted in about 2008 with Mr. Quirk as well as drummer/former NYC cop Tommy Vinton. Tim's Interview: What was it like when you guys got started? Depends what you mean by “it.” The business was radically different – it was a lot more difficult (and expensive) to record quality-sounding material, but since that meant there were fewer other releases to compete with, it was much easier than ...
Read more

The Wondertruck Crashed: The Tale of Mary's Danish and David King

Image
             Mary’s Danish were one of those bands that never made it. They were popular in the L.A. scene in which they were spawned but through a variety of reasons they never hit it big like their friends in Jane’s Addiction or the Red Hot Chili Peppers. What follows is a sad tale of unfortunate errors and mistakes that doomed a really great band to the dustbin of obscurity.              The band formed in the mid-‘80s by a group of friends: singers Julie Ritter and Gretchen Seager, guitarists Matt Colleran and David King and bassist Chris ‘Wag’ Wagner. The band were a little bit of everything including indie rock, alt rock, some surf influences and loads of funk to go around. They blended all of these together in a tasty stew that soon began to attract attention. After working with a series of drummers, Nick Ziegler was drafted in and the band began to attract a heavy fanbase throughout California. The band eventu...
Read more

In Rapture: A Conversation with Chadwick Salls (Seed/Color)

Image
Seed Discography: ling  (Mechanic/Giant, 1994) Color Discography: Are You With Me? (Melisma/Arista, 2001) Following-up with notable musicians I've chatted with previously has become a new favorite thing to do. Up next is Chadwick Salls, best known as the bassist/singer in two different bands, Seed and Color. While neither band lasted very long, caught in the wheels of major label indifference, they managed to carve out their path and establish notable fanbases. Salls has gone on to establish his own career on his own terms and was happy to take a fuller look back with me at both of his bands and where he is now. Pete Crigler: When did you first become interested in music? Chadwick Salls: As far back as I can remember! I was under 5-years-old and I remember reaching up as high as I could to hit the keys because I couldn't get up on the bench. The verse of "It's Only Love" by The Beatles was the first thing I picked out by ear and after teaching for so many years,...
Read more