TOR 007 - The Sidekicks - Awkward Breeds w/ Steven Ciolek, Ryan Starinsky and Matt "Sanders" Climer

This weeks episode we set down with Aimee Argote of Des Ark to talk about 2011's Don't Rock the Boat, Sink the Fucker. This is by far my favourite episode I've ever done. Aimee talks openly about songwriting, the process behind her records, time spent recording with Kurt Ballou and eventually lending some vocals to a Converge record. We finish off talking about what led her to walking away from music completely in 2017 and how her life took a new route. 

This week we sit down with Touche Amore vocalist Jeremy Bolm to talk about 2011's Parting the Sea Between Brightness and Me. The record was a staple of "The Wave" movement in aggressive independent music but we explore how it became the spring board that transcended all that and turned Touche into the influential staple they are now. Jeremy takes us through his time hanging around Deathwish to eventually releasing records with them, what the recording process was like with Ed Rose in the Get Up Kids home studio and the eventual move to Epitaph records where they reside today. 

We're back with season two. We're starting it off by looking back on 2010's End Measure Mile from Make Do and Mend. I sat down with brother James and Matt Carroll (vocals/guitar and drums respectively) and guitarist Mike 'Toole to go over the recording in Boston, working with Paper + Plastik records and the eventual move to Rise Records. The band was incredibly candid looking back on their time with the band and I think this episode really gives you a sense of who these guys are and how they gave everything to this band. 

For episode 9 we talk with Kenny Bridges, singer and guitar player from Moneen about their 2006 LP The Red Tree. We detail the recording process at Salad Days studio with Brian McTernan, the writing process, signing with Vagrant records and the recording of the records both before and after the Red Tree. 

We sit down with Drew Thomson of The Drew Thomson Foundation to talk about their 2019 Self-Titled record. Drew talks about the loss that was the catalyst for doing a solo project, making the record in LA between Single Mothers tours, the band he also sings in, and how the COVID-19 lockdowns effected both the album cycle and future releases. 

This episode we sit down with Steve (guitar and vocals), Ryan (bass) and Sanders (drums) to talk about 2012's Awkward Breeds. We cover the recording process in Ohio, working with Red Scare Records and the transition to Epitaph and the subsequent records that followed and how record making evolved for the band over time. 

We set down with Sam Sutherland of Toronto's Junior Battles to talk about their 2011 record Idle Ages. We get a heavy mix of Fest stories, outside perceptions and the beauty in creating records with the people you love. 

Episode 5 we sit down with Tom May, Greg Barnett and Joe Godino of The Menzingers 2012 break through record On The Impossible Past. We talk about signing to Epitaph, recording in Chicago with Matt Allison, how it feels to explode into being a full-time band and how they managed to follow up a record many deem a classic in the genre. 

In 2008, Buffalo NY's Lemuria put out their debut LP, Get Better, via Asian Man Records. It started a 4 LP run that lasted around a decade where we saw a band truly embody a DIY ethos from releasing their own music to printing their own merchandise and booking their own tours. We also examine the illustrious friendship between Ozzella and Kerns and how they connected and got closer through their art from the loss of a parent to the great insecurity that sometimes comes from releasing music to the world. Through Get Better we examine the growth of Lemuria from a small band in Buffalo to international touring act. 

This episode we talk to The Flatliners frontman Chris Cresswell about 2010's Cavalcade. From the early days of being young kids in a touring band, to having Fat Mike tell them this record wasn't ready after handing it over to FAT, we go down the path of how the band got to releasing what quickly became a real fan favourite.