Volume 15 – #6 –June 2012

In the beginning (April 1979) Brave Combo didn’t really know what it was doing. But we had two secret weapons. (1) All of us were way into the music and (2) no group of musicians had ever done this before. It wasn’t a joke to us. We were sincerely turned on by the musical possibilities the band’s concept would allow and excited to see how traditionally non-polka environments would react to our rocked-up vibe; to see if people would still think of polka as just a stupid, square, dying music. I was in my 20s, finishing an MFA in drawing and painting, with no sense of direction at all. Since junior high I just figured I would have to find a job someday and try to make enough money to survive. That was my plan. I was happy in art school, until it was coming to an end and then realized I was going to have to make something out of it. My work at the time had evolved from actual painting and drawing to conceptual pieces involving sound and music. Most of them exposed the viewer/listener to an insane barrage of stuff, primarily myriad styles of music from myriad corners of the world. Then the aliens landed and explained to me that a real band was a much better way to make my point. Then Tim, Dave and Lyle appeared out of the dust left by the spaceship. None of us early BC guys were much alike, except for one important thing. We were all into the idea of playing in a band as free as Brave Combo. So, to sum up, our sincerity and our uniqueness empowered us to do whatever we wanted. And since we had no one to compare ourselves to, failure wouldn’t be easy to gauge. Once we started playing outside our regional comfort zone we were always aware that being so non-mainstream might not work in our favor everywhere and were prepared to be hated. Luckily, that rarely happened. The time was right for something like us and it appeared we didn’t care what anyone thought of us. As it turned out, we started making money right from the get-go. People were willing to pay to hear us and gigs magically tumbled our way. We were so adaptable and, again, no one on earth was playing what we were playing, the way we were playing it, so we seemed appropriate for everything; clubs, concerts, dances, parties, store openings, hippie pow-wows, hotel happy hours, late night experimental theater, nudist colony socials, etc. And although we were pretty good, we also had a serious dose of innocence that worked in our favor. Everyone knew we were trying as hard as we could, so the imperfections, due mainly to ignorance, probably made it better, in a way. Whatever, the band has been through thirty- plus years so far and this location in time and space is where we have arrived in the summer of 2012. I bring all of this up because, in a way, I think my attitude in 2012 is the most similar to how I felt in 1979 than any other time between then and now. But for different reasons. In 1979 all we had was the idea and our willingness to embrace it. We didn’t even have a van. Now we have awards and trophies and have been a lot of places and have, over and over, had the joy of discovering the reach of what we’ve done and are regularly acknowledged by famous, trend-setters and important publications. And, although I feel more in the dark than I’ve felt since the beginning, now I have the security of going into the unknown with the safety net of being established, which takes away a lot of pressure but leaves in the fun part of exploring. My courage is certainly enhanced by the things we’ve achieved. The big difference between 1979 and 2012 is that the early optimism has been replaced by a strength that comes more from giving up. Any pie-in-the-sky dream of having a real hit record has been comfortably buried and has, ultimately, become meaningless in the big picture. And that’s totally okay. Twentieth century dreams aren’t the same as twenty-first, anyway. And giving up the typical routes opens up the directions no one is considering, just like the early days. We don’t worry much at all about having to prove ourselves (other than playing the songs well) and that affords us the luxury to think we can play whatever we want. The sense of freedom is like 1979. So, let’s party like it’s 1979.

Speaking of famous trend-setters, our true-believing pencil-wielding buddy, Matt Groening, called a few weeks ago and asked us if we would be interested in recording a couple of things for an upcoming episode of FUTURAMA. We were and we did. Confidentiality agreements keep me from saying anything other than it airs on FOX on AUGUST 1. The songs (one original, one not) sound just like us. Good ol’ Matt. Tell everyone you know to watch!

Speaking of BC supporters, it’s been a year since our friend, A & R giant and Cleveland International Records owner, Steve Popovich. Sr., passed away suddenly and unexpectedly working at his computer. His impact on Brave Combo’s career is immeasurable, and I could write on and on detailing how generous the man was to us, but there’s not enough time or space right now. One thing he always wanted to do was put on an event called POLKA PANDEMONIUM. As I mentioned recently in an interview, I still have a voicemail from Steve that starts out with him screaming “Polka Pandemonium!” He’d been saying it for years. Anyway, his son, Steve Jr., decided the time was right to have the first annual blow-out, with that name, in Cleveland, the Popovich hometown. So it’s happening on Friday, June 29 at The Beachland Ballroom, featuring Brave Combo, Joey Miskulin and the Cleveland All-Stars and Ray Zalokar, founder of 24/7 Polka Heaven Internet Network, will be the master of ceremonies. This will be a tribute to our buddy, but also a celebration of the power of polka. That’s what it’s all about, by the way, not The Hokey Pokey.

Speaking of good friends named Steve leaping from the planet, another one has made the jump. His name was Steve Beck and he had lived in Denton his whole life. Our former drummer, Mitch Marine, and he were motorcycle buddies in the 80s, so he became part of the Brave Combo family many years ago. We had many things in common, but the reason I mention him here is that one of his great passions was music and he knew a lot about certain classical periods. We had many talks and chuckles about stuff like Wagner and Lynard Skynard (obvious connection). Also, he loved his dogs (always dachshunds) as much as I love mine and that’s not an easy bar to reach. Damn, another person to miss. Where does this all end?

Did you hear that we have a new album, called SOUNDS OF THE HOLLOW? Wonder what that title means?

I would like to announce that Brave Combo is planning another one of our lovely, live-streaming, anything-can-happen concerts. We are scheduled to do this sometime in mid-July. That’s plenty of notice! We haven’t had time to do this since we released KIKIRIKI, so since we have that new album mentioned above, we figured, let’s do it again and see if anyone tunes in. Will you? More on this, as it develops. Keep checking the front page of our web site for exact date and time. It will be more fun than a barrel full of smaller barrels, which are each full of firecrackers, full of 100% vegan cheese (no whey).

Okay, we are playing a lot all over and have a new album in tow. All you have to do is show up at a gig, listen to us, maybe dance a little (not required) and buy some CDs. Think you can pull that off?
Good!