PANTS!004 Kalkaska "Exile On James Street"

James Street was far more than a location. It was a way of life. It was my home away from home through very hard times in my life as well as really amazing times in my life. It was a halfway house for all my favorite high school friends, completely random kids who needed a place to smoke pot, as well as 2 insane dogs and kittens galore. We weathered ice storms there, built a skate ramp in the living room, painted the walls brown, and mostly importantly established what would be Kalkaska's practice space.

While I didn't play on "Exile On James Street," it was almost immediately after I put this out that I became the full time drummer for the band until the bands demise. Mike Campbell had moved to Boston to attend the Berkley School Of Music, and I had just moved back to Michigan from Minneapolis after my first stint going to school out there and my ultimate transfer to CCS in Detroit.

Enough about what I had to say about this, lets see what other people had to say....

"Kalkaska formed in the Detroit suburbs in summer 2001 as the experimental project of art student Christian Jay Sienkiewicz. Originally focusing on layered electronic instrumentals, Sienkiewicz would soon become the group's lead vocalist as well as lead guitarist. With bassist Matt Porter and drummer Mike Campbell filling out the core trio, a slew of other musicians joined the group sporadically, making Kalkaska more of a revolving rock/dub collection than a traditional band early on. Brothers Eric Fouladabash and Joe Fouladabash joined as multi-instrumentalists, and Asim Ahktar performed randomly with the group, as well as a bongo player known simply as Pandamonious. The band's quirky live shows quickly raised eyebrows in the Michigan music scene. Starting in 2003, Matt Iannuzzi served as the band's house MC and roadie. After creating a buzz in the Detroit scene with three independently released cassettes, the band's Show Me Yr Riffs EP was released in the fall of 2002, and was remixed and repackaged on the Exile On James Street EP later in the year. Campbell left the group in late 2002, and was replaced by former My Brain drummer Ryan Cady. The Fun Lakes EP followed in 2003 on Sienkiewicz's own Electriks&dunes Records. ~ Stephen Cramer, All Music Guide"

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MyBrain.

MyBrain (1999 - 2000) was:
PJ Pawelek: Keyboards / Vocals
Geoff Pickering: Vocals / Guitar
Evan Smale: Guitar
Ryan Cady: Bass

Bio from the old Audiopants website:
In the band's brief existance, MyBrain made a name for themselves with thier fun and dancey new wave sound. After a few line-up changes, the band desided to lose the drums and stick to drum machines as the backbeat. It was during this line up that MyBrain was lucky enough to have played with such acts as Barcelona, Kleenex Girl Wonder, Swearing At Motorists, Elizabeth Elmore, Slumber Party, and Red Shirt Brigade.

While there were some favorable reviews of the MyBrain EP, my favorite was always this one from Punk Planet....

Fuck, fuck FUCK! Picture super wimpy naked boys pretending to be gay stereotypes with casio toy keyboard sets. This shit sucks! No punk rocker should be subject to this.

PERFECT!!!

Download "Movies Part One: The Prequel" from The MyBrain EP

Kalkaska "Smooth Move" EP

download here

"Smooth Move EP" Tracks:

01) Anything Else

02) Anchor Dropper

03) Smooth Move

These 3 songs are the last thing Kalkaska released.  The band at this point was just me (Ryan) and Christian.  Matt Porter had already moved to West Virginia, but we managed to make the band complete in a way by having him do the artwork.  The CD was pretty limited and was given away at our last show as well as to friends, because nothing is more punk than just giving your music away.

After this EP, Kalkaska recorded one more time with ex-roommate and all around tight bro, Danny DeMaggio on Moog and extra percussion, right before I went to Minneapolis.  This could be considered Kalkaska's last recordings, but you know, never say never.  You can download those recordings right here if you like.

June 2006 tracks:

01) Oh No A Monster

02) Eight Spiders Eyes

03) As You Would Say

04) No Nights (I Bet)

05) Don't Be Lame

06) Fuck The Four A.M.

PANTS!001 Various Artists "ShoopDeeDoop: A Tribute To Motown"

1998: The Beginning.

Fresh out of high school, I was accepted to Kendall College of Art & Design in Grand Rapids, MI. My parents had bought me a car for graduation, a brand new 1998 Ford Escort. While I say "brand new" let me also ad that this car was the bare bones model. The car only had an AM/FM radio, which was a huge pain in the ass when driving the 2.5 hour drive from Detroit to Grand Rapids. It was during this time that I took to listening to the oldies station, which ultimately caused me to hear quite possibly the catchiest song ever written: The Happening by The Supremes.

I guess before this, I only really knew all the major Motown hits that I had taken for granted my entire life. As I was driving I thought in the back of my head that it would be great to put out a compilation of indie bands covering Motown songs. At this point I had only put out zines and cassettes of my friends bands in high school, so starting what I considered to be a more "professional" record label seemed like the next logical step.

Having admiration for labels such as Kill Rock Stars, Teenbeat, and K Records, I naively decided to go for it. I played with some names, the original name of the label being Easy Bake Audio Recording. After deciding that would be a bad idea due to not wanting to get sued by anybody, I toyed with a combination of words and came up with "Audiopants."

Shoopdeedoop was supposed to be Audiopants first release. I spent years putting this thing together. While not all the bands I wanted to be on it ended up pulling through, it was still an amazing exercise for me. Because of this idea I was able to meet many amazing people who I still consider friends and keep in contact with.

Technically, this was Audiopants second release. The MyBrain EP actually came out before this, but I kept Shoopdeedoop as number PANTS!001 for honorary purposes.

Download

Tracks
01) Fonda - Love Child
02) Garlands - Tracks Of My Tears
03) Kloey - I Hear A Symphony
04) Bossanova - Love Hangover
05) Red Shirt Brigade - Same Old Song
06) The Rigmas - You've Really Got A Hold On Me
07) The Running Kind - My World Is Empty Without You
08) The Magic Tennies - You've Made Me So Very Happy
09) Clock Strikes Thirteen - Cruisin
10) The Boys' Star Library - Where Has Our Love Gone
11) Tourister - I Second That Emotion
12) The Pop Project - The Happening
13) Red Pony Clock - Ben

Stephen Cramer's Review
Michigan's Audiopants Recordings released the ambitious Shoop Dee Doop: A Tribute To Motown compilation in 2001. The 13-song disc featured a refreshing mixture of underground bands from all corners of the United States. Each group covered the Motown classic of their choice, resulting in a unique and thrilling tribute disc. Each band put their own signature sound into the songs, starting with Fonda's rousing rendition of The Supremes' "Love Child." New York's Garlands' interject with a mellow and heartfelt version of Smokey Robinson's "Tracks of My Tears," while Minneapolis quartet Kloey shine with their interpretation of The Supreme's "I Hear A Symphony," led by Cindy Iverson's angelic vocals. Diana Ross and The Supremes are covered again on the fourth track, this time by Bossanova on their graceful "Love Hangover." Michigan's Red Shirt Brigade are up next with their playful and inventive cover of "Same Old Song," with Scott Allen on vocals. The band's frantic keyboards and youthful enthusiasm add up to one of the most inspired covers on the disc. The Rigmas follow with The Sights' Eddie Baranek's frantic crooning on a cover of Smokey Robinson's "You Really Got a Hold on Me." The Running Kind, featuring members of Pittsburgh's Tourister, contribute a lo-fi, upbeat, keyboard-based version of The Supreme's "My World Is Empty Without You," and Magic Tennies and Clock Strikes Thirteen offer more variations on Motown classics. New York's Boys Star Library shine on yet another ode to The Supremes, with Jimmy Hughes leading the way with his subtle and tender vocals on "Where Did Our Love Go." Tourister is up next with their cover of Smokey Robinson's "I Second That Emotion." The trio adds their bright and soothing indie pop to the already powerful classic. Detroit's The Pop Project are next, covering The Supremes' "The Happening" with a unique and infectious urgency. Dave Lawson's confident vocals, along with Chris Graves' lively backing vocals, more than does justice to the song that inspired Audiopants owner Ryan Cady to assemble Shoop Dee Doop: A Tribute To Motown in the first place. The disc ends calmly with The Red Pony Clock (&Orchestra)'s gentle and maniacal ode to Michael Jackson's "Ben." As Audiopants' debut release, the disc made an immediate and powerful statement for the daring indie label. The collection not only featured a wealth of exhilarating musical moments; it also introduced a slew of indie pop/rock bands to new audiences.

Audiopants is back? Kinda?

Once upon a time I ran a small record label called Audiopants. I tried to assemble a roster of bands based on community and put out only records that I felt I would truly love and want to listen to.

My dream slowly fell apart due to being sidetracked with school and fucking up a couple releases enough, which caused them to never be released. Now, I'm older and hopefully wiser. I plan on releasing some more records at some point in small vinyl pressings of bands that I still love as people and artists.

What is this blog all about? Well, it is mostly going to be free downloads of previous Audiopants releases that are currently unavailable as well as homemade podcasts of songs and jams that I am currently digging. After all, podcasts are the new breed of mix tape.

So, throw me in your RSS feed and lets be friends forever.