Rex-A-Vision:The Podcast

Rex-A-Vision EP:18 Ben Hines

Today we chat with Ben Hines, sound guy extraordinaire for the Yonder Mountain String Band and all around awesome guy! I've been seeing Yonder for about twenty years but ever since I started photographing and filming the band I've really gotten to appreciate how perfect they sound, night in and night out, and Ben is the man who makes that happen. Beyond his skill at twisting dials and knobs he is also a hilarious and solid guy and always a pleasure to share space with at fests and shows around the world. He explains his gig, shares some silly stories and basically exudes cool throughout the whole show! Dig it!

Rex-A-Vision EP:17 Ben Wright

Ben Wright, banjo player of the Henhouse Prowlers, is a world travelling ambassador of hope and love. He's brought the gift of musical fellowship to Russia, the Baltic States, Africa and beyond. It was a true pleasure to hear his tales and catch up with a person who is a shining example of how to live life for the benefit of the self and the world. Dig it!

Rex-A-Vision EP:16 Beth Judy

Today we talk to Beth Judy, music promoter and Spirit Of The Suwannee mainstay, who is responsible for bringing hundreds of bands, and hundred of thousands of fans to the park for some amazing music, fellowship and magic under the tree canopy's. She tell us all about the upcoming Suwannee Spring Reunion while also giving insight into the upcoming Suwannee Roots Revival and historic events like Springfest and Magnoliafest! Tickets for the Suwannee Spring Reunion are available HERE. Dig it!

Rex-A-Vision EP15: Frank Robbins

This time out on Rex-A-Vision we sit down with Frank Robbins, guitar guru tech for the band moe. and Hall and Oates. While I'm sure he has some fun tales of the eighties pop duo it's his moe. duties we are mostly talking about in this lil chat! Hear the trials and tribulations of a travelling concert making happen weirdo live on tape! Enjoy!

RAV EP:14 Andy Thorn of Leftover Salmon

Rex-A-Vision, the podcast that, like it's host, refuses to die is back baby! After a nine month hiatus for health struggles I'm back covering concerts and festivals and making these little audio snapshots of the people behind the magic of the music scene! Today's guest is banjo wizard Andy Thorn of Leftover Salmon who will be sharing stories of broken legs, forthcoming solo work and even what its like to write songs with Vince Herman! Enjoy!

RAV EP 13: Terry Lapointe

Welcome back to Rex-A-Vision, everybody's 2nd favorite podcast with identity issues. Either we're an interview program or a game show...but either way we're gonna talk to some really cool folks like rock stars, graphic artists, hotel front desk workers who were mad legit...pretty much everyone has a story to tell.

My name is Rex Thomson and I'm a...well...I'm a professional weirdo. Under the catch all name Rex-A-Vision I work as a photographer and videographer I cover the American Music Festival scene from coast to coast, having some fairly idiotic but awesome adventures along the way. Basically I go to festivals, take pictures of bands, film and share them play songs, interview them and the fine folks who make the shows and events happen and the awesome folks who make the up the jam/funk/bluegrass festival scene work. I also do poster designs and logos for bands on the side, make little documentaries and babble on social media. In my headiest moment I think of myself as an artiste with an e and that little inflection thingee...at my worst I just view it as being a media whore.

Anyway, this podcast will feature chats with these awesome folks modeled after a game I play when I am driving from gig to gig. I call it...CROSS COUNTRY QUIZ! As an excuse to bug my literally thousands of friends I think up a few weird questions and call people randomly from my contact list and ask them these random questions and catch up with them as I go. Today we have one of the nicest guys you're ever gonna meet, sound engineer Terry Lapointe! Terry travels with the amazing band Fruition and night after night makes them sound pitch perfect! Your can check out the results of his work HERE on the Internet Archive!him on the line!

Oh, and you can read up on the sad but uplifting work of the Lilian Trippe Foundation HERE

RAV Ep 12: Nick Daniels The III

Welcome back to Rex-A-Vision, everybody's 2nd favorite podcast with identity issues. Either we're an interview program or a game show...but either way we're gonna talk to some really cool folks like rock stars, graphic artists, hotel front desk workers who were mad legit...pretty much everyone has a story to tell.

My name is Rex Thomson and I'm a...well...I'm a professional weirdo. Under the catch all name Rex-A-Vision I work as a photographer and videographer I cover the American Music Festival scene from coast to coast, having some fairly idiotic but awesome adventures along the way. Basically I go to festivals, take pictures of bands, film and share them play songs, interview them and the fine folks who make the shows and events happen and the awesome folks who make the up the jam/funk/bluegrass festival scene work. I also do poster designs and logos for bands on the side, make little documentaries and babble on social media. In my headiest moment I think of myself as an artiste with an e and that little inflection thingee...at my worst I just view it as being a media whore.

Anyway, this podcast will feature chats with these awesome folks modeled after a game I play when I am driving from gig to gig. I call it...CROSS COUNTRY QUIZ! As an excuse to bug my literally thousands of friends I think up a few weird questions and call people randomly from my contact list and ask them these random questions and catch up with them as I go. Today we have one of the FUNKIEST men alive, the bass playing heart of Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, Nick Daniels The III! Let's get him on the line!

Oh, and you can read up on the sad but uplifting work of the Lilian Trippe Foundation HERE

 

RAV EP11: Johnny Vidacovich & Angela Wynn

Thie time out we have a pairn of musicians who also teach the art of music. We start out with kids music camp instructress Angela Wynn who shares the joy of running Lala's Sing-A-Long's fun programs to teach lil ones rhythm and basic music skills. Then, on the opposite end of the teaching spectrum we have a legitimate music legend, New Orleans drumming icon Johnny Vidacovich! The illustrious Mr. V has played every type of music with literally every musician on the planet, has a new album out as part of the Nolatet and is the rhythmic center for the weekly Maple Leaf Bar tradition known as "The Trio" among his many, MANY other projects. It should be a fun one! Enjoy!

RAV 10: Evan D. Warren & David Melamed

For our tenth installment we have a couple of gentlemen who work behind the curtain to make the music scene a brighter place. First up we have noted poster artist Evan Warren to talk about how he got into the biz, how he finds his muse, aliens and southern cooking. Lots of fun. The we will chat with David Melamed,  former editor of Live for Live Music, bassist for the band LoveDeep and closest thing I have in my life to a super scientist! Oh and there's a cool anecdote about just how lucky I can be sometimes! Check out Evan's amazing art at http://www.artsatisfied.co/ and follow Dave's musical experiments at https://www.facebook.com/LoveDeepBand/. Give a listen and ENJOY!

RAV EP9: Taco Olmstead & Cheri Barnhart

On today's episode we start the second "series within a series," this time focusing on concert fanatics. When I first started covering concerts and music festivals about a decade ago I noticed something weird....wherever I would go in the country I would see some of the same faces in the crowd. I know all about traveling to see bands but when you see the same person in Maryland, Florida, Washington State and California you start to wonder what makes them do it. So I did what I do....I struck up a conversation. Now, ten years later I count hundreds of these loonies as my friends and I plan on sharing them and their passions and stories with you! We're gonna start with Taco Olmstead, editor of the webzine The Jamwich, which focuses on the jam & festival scene and Cheri Barnhart, a Michigan music maven who makes the world a brighter place! Dig it!