Welcome, one and all, to week 15 of Covered-20. Today, I'm really happy to present my version of "On The Next Time" by my good pals, The Stereo State.

Back in 2010, I had just joined Let Me Run, went to Italy, got my tonsils out, and then went on my first tour with the band. Needless to say, it was a bit of a whirlwind. Our first show of that tour was in Cleveland with A Wilhelm Scream, and our second was in Boston with The Stereo State (who needs to sleep, when you can drive?). From the moment we met, we became fast friends, and for the next couple years, we did runs of shows together all over the place. One of my most ridiculous tour stories of all time is when we were in Indianapolis together, where we faced dirt, bugs, horror movie tropes, and a man named Genesis. I am beyond thankful to have this group in my life, and to this day, I love them with all my heart. If you want a taste of what it was like to be on tour with these guys, check out the Better Things to Say podcast, which Gabe (guitar/vocals), Pat (Bass), and Andy (Vocals) host.

This song came out after we had become friends, and I'll tell you, on an EP that is full of fun, this song just hit me the right way. I played it acoustic on tour one time, and when I was trying to sort out some spots for this project, I happened to be listing to BTTS and thought I could do a fun version. I took some liberties to fit my gut feelings a little; add a little give and take, and some bells and whistles. What came out is something like Motion City Soundtrack meets The Flatliners, which also is like this band Museums I was friends with back in the day.

This was the first song I got to use my new Matchless Chieftain on, which is an amp that I first saw used by Matt in TSS. That paired with my Bilt Revelator with a fresh Luther Lee T-90 gave a nice chime to one side of the rhythm guitars. That contrasted nicely with the chunk of my Cabronita into my Sommatone Vibe-85, and all my guitars for the last few tunes have been recorded using my 4 mic setup on my 4x12. I have a Sennheiser MD421 and a Cascade Fat Head on a Celestion Lynchback, and a Sennheiser e609 and an AKG C414 on a Celestion V-30. On this song in particular, I favored the 414 and the 421 quite a bit.

Now, on to the keyboards. I guess it might just be how much I've had to use them for other songs, that I keep going to my MIDI controller and synth plugins for texture. I felt like there were spots in the original version that could have used a little countermelody to break apart the song a little more, so that's why I added the saw sound synth lead throughout the choruses and bridge. Everything else was done to set the stage and add atmosphere. I've grown really fond of arpeggio pads to add tension, and I completely acknowledge that I'm just catching up, slightly, to technology and sounds that are 50 years old.

As I write this, the NIVA is hosting a digital festival for their #saveourstages campaign. Yesterday raised a substantial amount of money, but it's nowhere near the amount that is necessary to protect our independent music halls. I posted a bunch of pictures from the last 3 years, since it was Mercy Union's anniversary of our first show, and in that series, I showed numerous spots that are in danger of closing. Institutions like The Troubadour, and newer spots like our beloved House of Independents, need us to protect them and keep them afloat. Great Scott, in Boston, was one of the other ones I posted, and unfortunately, it already succumbed to the depression that COVID instigated. Please consider donating, either to this series, or on your own, to the NIVA; this is so important.

Thanks to everyone who's followed this, and I'll see you next week with a tasty singer/songwriter gem.

Cheers!