Brandon Patton
9th Annual Story Song Vox Pop Winner
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Genre: Story Song
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HOMEBASE/COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA
GENRES THAT BEST DESCRIBE YOUR MUSIC: Anti-Folk / Indie Acoustic / Moody Symphonic Indie Rock
ALBUM NOMINATED SONG IS ON: Jukebox Stories: The Official Bootleg
ARTISTS ON THIS TRACK: Brandon Patton
WHERE WAS THIS ALBUM RECORDED? The Tank, New York, New York
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THIS STORY? I describe the sexual exploits of my parents and grandparents.
DESCRIBE THE INSPIRATION FOR THIS TRACK: The sexual exploits of my parents and grandparents.
IS IT BIOGRAPHICAL? To allow myself the option of plausible deniability, in the event someone gets really mad at me, I have to demur on this question.
DO YOU HAVE VERSIONS WITH A DIFFERENT RESOLUTION? No, but there are a couple different lines I sing sometimes in the second verse.
NAME SOME OF YOUR FAVE STORY SONGS & WHY THEY RESONATE: “A Boy Named Sue” by Johnny Cash is one of the all time greatest. It creates a character with depth and motivation with just a few lines. The fight scene is vividly described, and the conclusion of the song is thrilling, almost like a plot twist in a murder mystery. It answers the central question of “why?” and at the same time the song has insight about life, masculinity, society and parenting. It’s rich. Amazing how much is conveyed in just the time of one little song. From the lighter side of things, I’ve also always loved “Parents Just Don’t Understand” by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. The way he acts out the scenarios adds a lot, but the writing makes the whole story pretty vivid, and stays consistently in the voice of the teenage mind. Both these songs are structurally quite well-arranged. You don’t have much time to tell a story in a song. “Boy Named Sue” lays out the situation right at the beginning. And then the conclusion wraps it all up nicely. “Parent’s Just Don’t Understand “ does the same, starting out with “Okay, here’s the situation: my parents went away on a week’s vacation” and then ending with “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” Other great story songs that come to mind: “Norwegian Wood” by the Beatles, which is not a straight forward story as much as the previous songs, but it’s great because of the way it tells the story of an affair without being explicit, which for me captures some of the desire for obfuscation that goes along with having an affair. Also, there are just these descriptions, without a statement of how he feels about it, or an indication about how the listener should feel about it, which gives it depth. “Today You Move” by Trip Shakespeare, “Highway Patrolman” by Bruce Springsteen, “Yellow Lasers” by MC Frontalot (full disclosure, I play bass for Frontalot, but I’ve always been impressed by the structure and the writing in this song) “Hearts and Bones” by Paul Simon and “Sally MacLennane” by The Pogues. “Blinded By The Lights” by The Streets doesn’t exactly tell a story, but it conveys the experience of going to a rave, taking drugs, and getting lost in a chronological fashion, so that the listener is taken along for the ride. That’s more of a storytelling structure than most songs, which describe a specific feeling in a moment in time.
WHY DID YOU SELECT THIS SONG TO SUBMIT TO THE IMAS? I used to use the Musician’s Atlas a decade ago when I was first starting out and trying to book shows. I’ve kept track of Martin’s [Folkman, Founder] enterprise ever since then. I submitted back in 2004 and made it through to Nominee, and even though I didn’t win, it was nice to have the affirmation and the resume item in my press kit.
DID FANS HELP FUND THIS PROJECT? “Mixed-Up Modern Family” was a live recording at a show, so I guess, in a way, yes. They bought tickets! That didn’t exactly cover the CD costs, if you know what I mean.
WHO’S SITTING IN YOUR AUDIENCE? In general, all my fans are enlightened geniuses. The audience for this specific recording was mostly just friends from New York City.
WHAT MAKES YOUR FANS UNIQUE? I have an eclectic blend of fans from my earlier Rock band, Folk music, nerd-core Hip-Hop and theater adventures, and just all the people I’ve met over the years. It really varies from hipster to old fart to proud geek.
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE PLACES TO PLAY? Bryant Lake Bowl in Minneapolis and Harper’s Ferry in Boston. I love the Mercury Lounge in New York City and the Washington State Convention Center, but I’ve only played there as a sideman for Frontalot.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR MOST EXCITING MOMENT TO DATE? I traveled to Glouchestershire in the UK a few years ago and experienced a surreal week that involved almost getting beaten up at a music festival after drunkenly biting a stranger, having my show canceled due to once-in-a-century rainfall that flooded the entire valley, and a hastily thrown together alternate staging of the Truck Music Festival that turned into a raging party backstage and eventually led to naked acapella music in a rock star’s bathroom. I wrote a song about it I intend to release on my Web site. Maybe I will submit it for next year’s Story Song!
WHAT’S IN THE WORKS FOR 2010? Time to start playing more shows and keep my Web site full of new content. I’m posting a new song every month. I’d like to do it more often but I think that would be unrealistic.
FINISH THIS SENTENCE: THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IS…irrelevant.
WHAT IS YOUR DEFINITION OF SUCCESS? Finding a way to… umm… knowing that you’re… umm… getting to a place where you… umm… I’m stumped. Financial stability doing what you love? Maybe success is just the momentary feeling that you have made mostly good decisions, instead of bad ones. Time will tell.
WHAT’S ON YOUR IPOD THAT WOULD SURPRISE YOUR FANS? My eclecticism is no secret. I don’t know. Maybe “Toxic” by Britney Spears. There is a lot of children’s music on my iPod, because I sometimes play bass for Mr. Steve from PBS kids. “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You” is probably the corniest song in my collection, but I only have it because of weddings. “Do I Do “by Stevie Wonder is pretty awful, but I mean, you gotta own Original Musiquarium. I suppose I could delete that song. But he says “Yes, I’ve got some honeysuckle chocolate dipping kisses fill of love!” Classic. Or anything where Prince raps is pretty embarrassing. Also, people who hate Rage Against The Machine are surprised that I like them.
NAME SOME ARTISTS YOU ARE CHAMPIONING: Etienne de Rocher. The National. TV on the Radio. The Dodos. Jamie T. Cat Martino. Goldrush. Of Montreal. Belle Orchestre. The Bird and the Bee. The Rural Alberta Advantage. Sonos. Hello Seahorse! The Drums. Betty Davis (from the 70s.) Here We Go Magic. John Vanderslice. A.C. Newman.