Episode 517: Money Chicha

Hello friends! I hope you're all surviving the end of summer heat and floods. It's crazy out there, right?
I got to see Alice Cooper on Sunday night! I was amazing. I want to thank my friend, AJ Vallejo for inviting me. I had a blast seeing AJ's band, BANG before the Alice show. It was a great night all around. Alice's show is an onslaught of costume changes, snakes, giant frankenstein monsters and heavy metal. Plus, he's super old and still rocking like a champ. it was inspiring.
My Guest for episode 517 is Greg Gonzalez, the bass player from Money Chicha, Brownout and the Grammy winning, Grupo Fantasma! Money Chicha has a fantastic new album out, Echo En Mexico. I've been a fan of Money Chicha for a few years now and I've gotten to see them a few times during their residency at The Continental Club Gallery here in Austin and i'm a big fan. Greg and i have a conversation about balancing, touring and making music with three high-profile bands, growing up in Laredo, teaching composition, making Echo En Mexico, the history of Chicha music, playing with Prince and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know Greg. I sure did. Let's get down!
Ciao! jg

Episode 502: Fair City Fire

hello friends! i hope you're getting ready for the big 4th of july weekend. maybe you're listening to this while you're joining the 43 million americans hitting the road this weekend to celebrate summertime and our nation's birth. if so, safe travels and have fun. i don't have a very "holiday weekend" thing planned. my cousin, jennifer is coming in today, i'm playing an acoustic set tomorrow at the townsend for their first anniversary and maybe i'll hit a bbq or pool party on sunday or monday. either way, i hope enjoy your 4th of july weekend safely to it's fullest. 
my guests for episode 502 are brett winning and brian wolff from austin rock band, fair city fire. their debut album, the simple truth came out in april and you can find where ever you get your music online. i met brett and brian a couple of months ago and i was really blown away by their work ethic and ability to think and act outside the box. for instance, brett and brian make their living playing as a duo 3 to 4 days a week, so they're always working on their music/performance skills which makes fair city fire better. they host a podcast where they invite bands they're sharing a bill with over for some drinks and get to know them. you can find the show along with their music and show calendar at faircityfire.com. i hope you enjoy getting to know these guys. i sure did. let's get down! 
ciao! -jg

Episode 488: John Evans

hello friends! i hope you're al doing well. i had a great weekend of gigs with skyrocket. i got to have mother's day brunch with my girlfriend, her sister and her grandmother on sunday. i ended up taking a 4 hour nap after brunch. i've been digging riding around in my new car. it's working out great! i spent my travel time this weekend listening to the audiobook of "under the big black sun: a personal history of l.a. punk" by john doe with tom desavia and a host of others from the first generation of l.a. punk scene including jane wiedlin and charlotte caffey from the gogo's, mike watt, henry rollins and a bunch more. getting to hear everyone tell their own story makes you feel like you're there. great book. anyway, i'm about to talk to co-author, tom desavia via skype for the show. look for that on friday.
my guest for episode 488 is songwriter/producer/frontman/sideman/band member and one of the coolest most talented guys i know, john evans! his brilliant new album, polyester comes out THIS friday, may 13th. he's also having a couple of release shows this weekend, friday, may 13th at the continental club in austin and saturday, may 14th at raven tower in houston. go to johnevansband.com to find out how to get all of his albums and find out when he'll in a town near you. john came by a few weeks ago and we had a great conversation about picking up the pieces of a shattered heart after losing his daughter, the magic of prince, making polyester, touring with el trio grande, what he does as a producer, the fact that i probably saw his band play "i love rock n roll" when we were in jr high together and much, much more. john is a great hang and a phenomenal talent. i hope enjoy getting to know him as much as i did. let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 481: The Accidentals Return!

hello gang! i hope you're all doing well. i am up super early so that i can get some shit done before i leave town for the weekend with skyrocket. i'll be in houston tomorrow for record store day. i'll be hitting cactus music, sig's lagoon and where ever else my record buying takes me. if you don't know the mom and pop record stores in your town, here's a good resource to find stores participating on record store day! http://www.recordstoreday.com/Venues happy shopping!
my guests for episode 481 are the pride of traverse city mi, insanely talented, extremely sweet, the accidentals! these guys were on the show a year ago during sxsw 2015, well, sxsw 2016 rolled around and we had them back! since they were last here, they've been on the road the whole time. touring the u.s., playing festivals, picking up a gaggle of fans along the way. they're on tour now, just go to moreaccidentals.com to find out when they're coming to a town near you and pick up their album, bittersweet. we have another great conversation about touring, puppy parties, keeping it together as a band by being sweet to each other and much, much more. i hope you enjoy my conversation with the accidentals. i sure did. lets' get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 464: Daniel Thomas Phipps

hello friends! i hope you are recovering from back-to-back holidays, valentine's day and president's day. the office in my apartments is closed for president's day so i guess that's a pretty big one. i hope you all have a great week this week. if you are in the austin or round rock area, skyrocket (the band i'm in) will be playing this weekend around austin. on friday we'll be at hanover's in pflugerville, then saturday, we'll be at the one-2-one bar in sunny south austin! go to skyrockettheband.com for times and directions. my guest for episode 464 is brilliantly talented singer/songwriter/frontman/sideman and good man, daniel thomas phipps! daniel came by a few weeks ago and we sat down, did the podcast then i accidentally deleted it, but he was nice enough to come by and do it again the next day. you might know daniel from his own band, daniel thomas phipps and the kinfolk or you may know him as a sideman with little brave, brandy zdan and most currently, he became a member of emily bell and the talkbacks. anyway, daniel and i have a great conversation about growing up in new braunfels, writing songs, solo vs. band, frontman vs. sideman and much, much more! i hope you enjoy getting to know daniel as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 447: Calliope Musicals

hello friends! i hope you're all ready for christmas. i am not... yet. i think i'll be able to knock out most of it today. this time of year gets exhausting, doesn't it? i played a solo show at the townsend last night. it was good. i played with brandon kinder from the rocketboys. he has a new solo side project called the wealthy west. he sent me a link to a new album coming out in a few weeks and it's absolutely gorgeous. look for brandon to be on the show soon. my guests for episode 447 are technicolor psychedelic sextet, calliope musicals! they've just finished up a new album due out in april 2016, time owes you nothing, at the legendary sound city studios in los angeles. (the same studio featured in the dave grohl doc, "sound city".) get the skinny on them at calliopemusicals.com. they've taken their colorfully explosive stage show on the festival circuit this year, playing austin city limits festival, joshua tree festival, utopiafest and more. four members of the six-piece made it in and we had a hilarious conversation about how a band so big and so creative makes it happen like they do. i hope you enjoy getting to know calliope musicals as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 435: The Lonely Wild

hello friends! i hope you're all having a great week. hopefully where ever you are, you're enjoying the cool fall weather that we're enjoying here in austin. so, i had an eventful week... i deleted two podcasts i recorded on tuesday. right after i finished the second one with dan dyer (a podcast i've tried to book for over 4 years BTW), i went to turn off my machine as dan and i chatted and i didn't "save" my interviews and they were deleted. it was that easy. i did it once before in summer of 2012 after i talked to comedian, john tole. anyway, this time i deleted dan dyer's and a band that is on tour from los angeles. luckily, i was able to get the band from l.a. to come by the next morning be fore they left town and looks like dan will be back in next week... i hope. my guests for episode 435 are los angeles indie rock band, the lonely wild! we actually had this conversation twice. yes. they're the band from l.a. who's interview i deleted the day before, but they were nice enough to come by and do it again. anyway, the lonely wild is currently on tour in support of their gorgeous new album, chasing white light. they'll be on tour through november 23rd in the midwest and east coast with indie rockers, young buffalo. go to thelonelywild.com to find out if they're coming to a town near you and find out where to get chasing white light. i want to thank the band for coming by twice and being so cool about everything including me deleting their first podcast. i hope you enjoy getting to know the lonely wild as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 433: Ben Balmer / Honky Tonk Heaven: The Story of The Broken Spoke

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. before we get to my conversation with ben balmer, i have a quick chat with michelle faires, producer of "honky tonk heaven: the story of the broken spoke" a documentary about the legendary texas honky tonk. they've just started editing and they've started a kickstarter campaign to finish up their movie. michelle gives us an insight to the story, but you can check it out and give at kickstarter.com/brokenspokefilm do it!my guest for episode 433 is singer/songwriter, ben balmer! i just happened to see ben a couple of months ago when he opened for aly tadros at a house concert. i was blown away by his songs and his performance, so i asked him to come over for a chat. well, he did and we had a great conversation about his newest album loose lips, sunk ships, bruised hips and boozed lips, touring the u.s. and europe, he played a song live on the show and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know ben as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 427: Moving Panoramas / Honky Tonk Heaven: The Story of the Broken Spoke

hello friends! i hope you're all flying high again! things are going well here at la casa de johnny. i have a great big show for you guys today. before we get to my conversation with moving panoramas, i have a quick chat with michelle faires, producer of "honky tonk heaven: the story of the broken spoke" a documentary about the legendary texas honky tonk. they've just started editing and they've started a kickstarter campaign to finish up their movie. michelle gives us an insight to the story, but you can check it out and give at kickstarter.com/brokenspokefilm do it!my guests for episode 427 are the amazing dreamgaze trio, moving panoramas! their gorgeous new album, one came out earlier this month. you can find one and fin out all about them at movingpanoramas.com leslie and rosie from the band came by a few weeks ago and we had an amazing conversation about leslie's life-changing, traumatic few months, turning heartache and confusion into beautiful art, teaching rosie music and becoming bandmates, fear of numbers, school of rock, shoegaze vs. dreamgaze, the making of one, custom earplugs vs. $1 earplugs and much, much more! leslie's story is harrowing, but what she was able to do musically not only made her feel better but it made the world a more beautiful place and for that i thank her and the rest of the band. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 424: Empire Machines

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. it's my birthday so i don't really know how i am. i'm kinda weirded out by the whole thing, but i'm dealing with it. hey! if you live in austin, my band, skyrocket is playing this friday at the one-2-one bar. we go on at 10. should be a good time. we're playing three shows this week. i'm releasing three podcasts this week. i might be old, but i like to stay busy. my guests for episode 424 are modern rock band, empire machines! their new ep animal skin is available now on bandcamp. they're having a release show this saturday, 10/17 at spider house ballroom. the show is brought to you by our friends at solstice live. so, matt and bruce came by and we had a great conversation about the branch davidians, taking a two year break from playing, recording animal skin, nice music teachers, finding rock and roll in waco, tx and much, much more. bruce and matt are great guys. i hope you enjoy getting to know them as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg