Upcoming Sept./Oct. Band Interviews on BFN!

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

Heya Hungry Hungry Hippos,

Great news on the BFN Networking front! I'm scoring band interviews by the ton for late September/early October 2005. I don't have exact times yet, but I can confirm the following artists will soon be partying with us in the studio!

John Davis - September 23, 2005
Sponge - September 24, 2005
Joe Bonamassa - October 14, 2005
The Navigators - October 15 (or 16), 2005

I'm also working on interviews with these artists. No promises yet, but I'm currently bribing the people who get things done:

Annie - September 19, 2005 (most likely off-site at the venue)
Lucero - September 23, 2005 (might not happen because the band will be flying out for their first tour of Japan the next day -- Go Lucero!)
Dredg - October 1, 2005
Danko Jones - October 2, 2005 (Yeah, I know we already interviewed him a few weeks ago, but now I want him to bring the band in to play a few live songs.)
Josh Joplin - October 7, 2005
Porcupine Tree - October 11, 2005
The Mountain Goats - October 13, 2005

Last but not least, the long shots. If I somehow blackmail enough people to schedule an interview, it would most likely be at the venue. Cross your fingers:

David Gray - October 12, 2005
Tracy Chapman - October 15, 2005
Mike Doughty - October 15, 2005

Yeah, that's a lot of interviews. If I get half of 'em, I'll be a lucky bastard. If I get all, you might want to get dressed in your Sunday best for the Apocalypse.

Either way, keep checking here for further details. I'll list the time and date of the interviews as soon as I get them.

T-U-R-T-L-E Power,
BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

I missed out on Annie because the promoter dropped the ball. (In all fairness, the CMJ Festival in New York was Priority #1 for all radio reps.)

Lucero won't have time to stop by because they have so much to do before they take off for the Far East. (Shit, a bunch of rednecks in Japan . . . I would love to shadow them on that tour.)

Danko Jones is too busy this time around to come in and play a few live tunes.

And The Mountain Goats don't do official interviews when on tour. Some trivial bullshit about the singer not wanting to ruin his voice on tour or something . . . what a pussy. (However, I did get two comps to the 10/13 show, though! So, yay!)

And then there were six . . .

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

It's confirmed: BFN Spotlight Artist John Davis will stop by the studio. Alas, you're gonna have to wake up early if you want to catch it live.

Interview starts at 10:00 a.m. CT, Friday, 09/23. Hit that snooze button more than once, and you'll miss it. Now that would be a shame.

BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

Hey Ecstatic Waxers!

It's confirmed: In a bold BFN move, we razed the outlying villages of the peaceful label Idol Records and kidnapped Sponge in the process!

Tune in at 3:00 p.m. CT, Saturday, 09/24 to find out how this 90's staple is making their mark on another decade!

BDD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

The interviews were a success! John Davis and Sponge came in this weekend and humbly suffered the BFN!

To check out the interviews, follow these links:

John Davis Interview 2005/09/23

Sponge Interview 2005/09/24

More interview news coming soon...
BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

We have a problem. A big problem.

I've been getting the run-around from this one (expletive deleted) at Interscope. After getting nowhere with Brent Reineke -- everyone's favorite aloof, ego-tripping college radio rep -- for over a month, it was time to find out what the fuck's going on. (Don't worry, kids, I proudly refrained from using profanities.) After all, the interview with Dredg would only be two days away!

Yes, you guessed it -- I poked the bear. (Actually, it was more like the bear refused to come out of hibernation, so I asked to speak to his boss. Only then did he choose to open his eyes and let out a great, big RAWWWWWWWR! Oh, Brent, you silly ol' bear!)

Needless to say, we didn't get the interview. Nor are we dealing with Interscope EVER AGAIN. Well, okay, maybe that's a stretch. How 'bout this: We're no longer dealing with Brent Reineke at Interscope EVER AGAIN.

To that I say . . . THANK YOU, SWEET JESUS, HAPPY MOSES & FUNKY BUDDHA! Seriously, you would not believe how difficult it has been trying to set up this interview. This has to be the most difficult rep I've EVER worked with. I've been getting severe headaches dealing with this guy -- I'M NOT JOKING!

So what next? Well, I have a few more tricks up my sleeve. However, if this doesn't work out, look forward to BFN dropping Dredg from our Spotlight Artist list. As much as I don't want to do that, I find that it's incredibly easy to lose interest in a band that you just can't seem to get through to (i.e., Kings of Leon!).

Please await further details . . . I'll make a separate thread in due time.

Brent, can't we all just get along?
Survey says: No. No, we can't.

BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

I just got word from Andy Leff, Porcupine Tree's manager. The band won't be able to do an interview because they'll be busy shooting footage for an upcoming live DVD.

Hmmm . . . Wait a second! Why can't I be in the DVD? I'm worthy of a few seconds of celluloid. That would be great press for BFN! C'mon, Steve [Wilson - lead singer of PTree], you owe us for that one time we stopped you from -- oh yeah, I promised I wouldn't tell anyone.

Whew. That was close!

BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

You know how I said that I had a few tricks up my sleeve re: the whole Dredg snafu. Well, I finally stumbled across their management. I explained what happened over at Interscope; here's what they had to say:

Hi Bob,
I am so sorry you had such a hard time getting a response from Brent! I just went through my emails and found a request for an interview day of show at the venue.

Does 3pm work?

Thanks,
Michele [Abreim -- manager of Dredg!]

She responded to my letter in less than an HOUR! Things are looking up!

Please hold for further information! I think we got ourselves a last-minute interview with Dredg!

BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

That's right, folks, miracles DO happen. I'll be interviewing Dredg at The Riv this Saturday, 10/01 at 1 p.m. If all goes well, we'll have it posted on BFN next week!

Cool!
BobbyDobbyD

P.S. I've started a whole new thread re: this bizarre tale. If you're interested in reading more, CLICK HERE!

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

FINALLY!

That's right, jaywalkers, beloved BFN Spotlight Artist Josh Joplin has arranged an in-studio interview with us this FRIDAY, October 7, 2005 at 5:30 p.m. CT. If you want a chance to hear one of the greatest performers of our time, this is it. DO NOT MISS THIS INTERVIEW!

Hot damn!
BobbyDobbyD

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

Josh didn't make it to the radio studio last Friday because he was stuck on the Dan Ryan Expressway (I-94) for FOUR hours! 4 HOURS! How's that for a good time in Chicago?

However, the concert that night was fantastic. Opening band Cordero -- think Shivaree with a Latin sound -- was a fuckin' riot. And Josh . . . oh, Josh, how we missed you! Backed by drums and upright bass, he instantly won the crowd over with songs new and old. He even played a handful of requests from the audiences -- Undone, Better Days and an impromptu "follow-my-lead" Trampoline! After the show, he stayed around to talk to everyone. He guaranteed me an interview next time he pulled through town. I gave him my phone number and told him to call me if he needed a second set of directions.

BobbyDobbyD

P.S. Yes, Chad, I gave him a hug for you and told him to play SF soon.

[Rachel]

I believe it, I was also stuck on 94 last Friday... took me over two hours to get where I was going. Which is nothing compared to four, but was still fairly ludicrous all things considered.

[Chad Wilkens]

bfnbob said:

P.S. Yes, Chad, I gave him a hug for you and told him to play SF soon.

Thanks man... I needs me some fresh Josh Joplin!

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

Okay, kids, the remaining October interviews ran into some scheduling conflicts, so I wasn't able to land in-studio gigs. However, this is what I did get:

Power bluesmonger Joe Bonamassa will be calling the radio studio on Friday, October 14, 2005 at 5:00 p.m. CT for a phone interview with BFN. I'll see if I can get him to leave a nasty voicemail.

And on Saturday, October 15, 2005 at 5:00 p.m. (these guys must be working the 9-5 schedule) former Soul Cougher Mike Doughty is giving us fifteen minutes to shoot the shit on his tour bus outside Park West. When I suggested to his promoter that Doughty just park the bus outside the university and walk the 100 yards to the radio studio, he laughed and laughed . . . and then he hung up. Fucker.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Navigators have pushed their concert at Wise Fools Pub back to October 20 (mark your calendar!), so we're aiming for an interview that afternoon. (We might just comandeer Master Whiggy's timeslot in the process! Manifest Destiny, bitch!)

Last but not least, I've been setting my sights on an in-studio interview with Guster. Alas, the band has already been snatched up by a more respectable radio station, but an on-site interview might still be in the works.

That's it for now. The moment I know more, I'll post again. Until then, stay excited.

BobbyDobbyD

P.S. David Gray was spectacular last night! Better yet, his management set us up with 5th row seats. 5th ROW! -- eat it, losers!

[JVH (f/k/a Bob Dubilina)]

The Mike Doughty interview was short and sweet. I got to chat with the man for a quick ten minutes on his tour bus. We should have it posted in the next few days. (Thanks again to neighborhood sound designer Maya Kuper for reformatting the interview into a digital file.)

The concert kicked ass. Doughty's stage banter alone was worth the cost of the ticket (over the course of his fifteen song set, he and the audience decided that his drummer's new moniker should be Jorge Lipschitz McCluskey III, Jr.), but the music -- oh, hot damn, the music! Lovely.

We left Park West at 11:00 p.m. and jammed it to Double Door just in time to see The Ike Reilly Assassination play to a packed house. As always, it was a blast to sing along to the wise-crackin' IRA. Of course, I once again met up with Mr. Reilly at the end of the night and requested an in-studio interview. The best I could get from him was the promise of a phone call to the studio, but now that I'm becoming chummy with his record label, publicist, booking agent and manager, I'll see what I can pull off for November. Per usual, keep your fingers crossed. I'll keep you informed.

BobbyDobbyD