Category Archives: Got Local?

Akron, Cleveland, DIY, Got Local?, The Awesome

Check It Out: Akron’s WhiskerTin Lighting

21 September, 2016 Brian Mc Leave a comment

“Hand Made Crafted Light”

That is what Akron’s WhiskerTin Lighting is all about.

So what is WhiskerTin you ask? Well, two friends from Akron, OH had an idea of making lamps from leftover sheetmetal parts. Each lamp is hand-made by the duo. As each lamp was created, their passion for their creations grew and ideas were formulated. They were reinventing the way people looked at lights.

At first, it was just the hand-made lamps. Don’t get me wrong, these lamps are amazing. I have seen them in person.

Soon they were taking requests and creating one-of-a-kind floor and desk lamps for their customers. Heck, they have even made commercial lights out of Great Lakes Brewing Company keg halves. No seriously, next time you are at GLBC restaurant in Cleveland, head down to the basement and check them out.

They have had booths at many of the craft and vendor shows in the Cleveland / Akron / Canton area this past summer. Novak even sets up a display at the Worship This! merch table, his punk rock band, just for people to see.

With new ideas, the duo decided to up their game and take their brand to a new level. They created t-shirts of their logo and artist renditions that people are buying up left and right and even started making custom lamps for businesses like Melt Bar & Grilled in Akron as well bands like Beach Slang.

These guys are always making lamps. Not even a year into their venture, Aaron Novak and Glenn Miller have taken lamp making to the extreme.

Just when I thought they were already on top of their game, they made an announcement that I could not help but share. Earlier this week, WhiskerTin announced a collaboration with Say-10 Records.

Wait…a lamp company and a record label? What exactly could these two possibly have in common?

This:

How cool is that? Seriously, my jaw dropped when I saw this for the first time.

Say-10 Records also happen to sling skateboards featuring tons of punk rock bands. Novak and Miller have taken custom lamp-making to a new dynamic and turned a skate deck into a ceiling light.

They also shared this photo today of a wall lamp:

They are taking orders now. Hit them up on their website or on Facebook page for more information.

I can not wait to see what these guys come up with next.

Akron, Cleveland, Got Local?, Hardcore, Music, Punk, The Awesome

Harvey Pekar (the band, not the legend)

8 March, 2012 Brian Mc Leave a comment

I love Cleveland and its half-cousin-of a-city Akron. There are a ton of reasons that have kept me here for so long. One of them is the good people who I have surrounded myself in. I know some of the best people in this area and feel privlidged. The other reason I dg Northeast Ohio so music is because of the music scene.

What? Cleveland and Akron have a music scene? You bet your damn ass they do. Lately it has been picking up too.

Sure, it might be a week or two between a solid show, but the local bands in Cleveland and Akron are good, scratch that, they are amazing. Well, at least to me and that is all that should matter. Some of my favorite releases last year were local bands.

Case and point: Harvey Pekar (the band, not the legend)

I love this Cleveland hardcore band so much that I am going to pimp them out to anyone who happened to accidentally read this. Last December this band opened up for my pals Worship This! and killed it. I was an instant fan. With no material released at the time of the show, I was almost bummed all I was able to do was hear them one time. Luckily a few weeks later they uploaded their EP to Bandcamp.

Harvey Pekar mixes up punk rock and hardcore with intelligence if that makes any sense. The lyrics are the kind that make me want to research and the music makes me want to go nuts. Some people might think the breakdowns are a tad excessive on a couple of tracks, but honestly, I think it works. I dig their Thirty Ghosts EP a whole lot, especially “Confronting Flag” and “Begotten of Ian Fleming” (I do like me some James Bond you know…). I look forward to seeing this band play out more and more in 2012 and drop a full-length.

Check them out if you want. Keep it local folks.

Acoustic, Akron, Alt Rock, Austin, Cleveland, Country, Festival, Folk, Fun Fun Fun Fest, Garage, Good Times, Got Local?, Hardcore, House Show, Indie, Kent, Listing It Up, Live Shows, Metal, Music, Personal Entry, Pop, Pop Rock, Post-Hardcore, Punk, Review, Rock, SXSW, The Awesome, The Suck

Best Of 2011 According To BHP

27 December, 2011 Brian Mc Leave a comment

Well it would appear that 2011 is coming to an end. With that said, it’s time for a “Best Of…” Broken Headphones 2011 edition.

There were a ton of amazing releases throughout the year as well as live shows that I was able to attend. Below is just a various list of bands that caught my attention, be it a recording or live show, over the past 12 months.

I should add that some of my favorite releases were from local Akron/Cleveland acts. I am not just dropping their names because we are pals or anything, they all worked hard and put out some excellent releases. If you have not heard of any of them, you really should check them out.

I may have missed a band here or there, but the following were the ones that stood out over the rest.

Albums of the Year:

Seahaven – Winter Forever

*Hands down this is one of my favorite albums to drop this year. They just have this indie punk rock sound that is ever so likable – trust me on this. The first time I listened to it, I was hooked. I see big things happening with this band in the near future.

Nothington – Borrowed Time

*This is another album I favored over the rest this year. Catchy lyrics layered over wholesome punk rock is what this album is all about. To make matters even better, they kick ass live. They are coming back to Cleveland next month and I can not wait to see them again. Listening to this band brings me band to the punk rock 90s I grew up on.

All Dinosaurs – Paranoid Indigenous

*So maybe the music was released in 2010, but the LP dropped this past Spring so I consider it a 2011 release. This Cleveland act is beyond fun to listen to plus they put on one of the best live shows ever. They are funny, quote 80s movies and are in it for the fun. It helps they are also all super cool dudes. If you are a Cleveland native, you should already know how amazing this band is.

Dave Hause – Resolutions

*I was a little late checking this album out as it was released in early 2011, but am glad I did not pass it up. Hause (The Loved Ones) is an amazing musician and proves it in this killer solo release. With help from his friends, he put together one hell of a release. Do me a favor, if you like music, listen to this.

Living With Lions – Holy Shit

*Words can not really describe how impressed I was when I heard these guys. All I know is I will have this album playing regularly for a long long time.

Deer Tick – Divine Providence

*The boys in Deer Tick changed it up a bit and put forth a bitching rock album that I really dug.

Dawes – Nothing Is Wrong

*Oh Dawes…you’ve done it again. What a solid release. You guys are on your way to being huge. Keep it up.

Those Darlins – Screws Get Loose

*The girls and Lynwood dropped a impressive follow-up to their debut this year and I adore it. Still kicking around the country-punk attitude, the foursome toyed with a more indie / garage rock sound and did a fine job doing so.

Old Man Markley – Guts n’ Teeth

*This self-proclaimed “New Grass” band was one of the more fun releases I had have the pleasure of checking out this year. I can not wait to see what happens next with these guys and gals.

Banner Pilot – Heart Beats Pacific

*Impressive release by a great punk rock band. They need to play Cleveland soon.

White Wives – Happeners

*This was the surprise release of the year for me. Featuring members of Anti-Flag, this album is far from a pop-punk rock album. On the lines of indie rock, White Wives needs to be heard.

A.A. Bondy – Believers

*This guy really outdid himself. You really have to check it out for yourself to realize why I appreciate it so much. It’s a really beautiful release to listen to.

Bon Iver – Bon Iver

*Not normally something I would listen to, but holy shit – it rules.

The Black Keys – El Camino

*Yeah yeah yeah… The former Akron, OH boys once again put out a release I admit I love. I do not love the fact that the next time they hit Cleveland, they will be playing an arena. It is safe to say they made it big time. Let’s hope they don’t screw it up.

Signals Midwest – Latitudes & Longitudes

*And yet another local act. These guys are a big deal though…to me at least. The dropped a really good record. For serious.

EPs of the year:

Luther – Siblings & Sevens

*Folk / Punk / Rock awesomeness. I was caught off guard by this band. They rule. Sadly they had to cancel their Cleveland show after the band was involved in an accident in Chicago. Luckily no one was seriously injured. I can not wait for their full-length to drop.

Harvey Pekar – Thirty Ghosts

*Dear Harvey Pekar (the band), thank you for existing.

Worship This! – Demo

*I normally do not mention bands that I am really good friends with the members, but I adore this band. That’s all I have to say about that.

Two Hand Fools – Believeland

*These guys better get signed in 2012 or else I am going to fight someone. Another Cleveland act with plenty of talent.

Cherry Cola Champions – EP

*I remember the first time I saw these guys live. I was not into them during their first song, and once their second song started, I was blown away. Looking forward to seeing what this duo has up their sleeves next year.

The Awesome:

-Going to SXSW and seeing bands such as The Dead Milkmen, Flatliners, Dead To Me, Eyehategod, and tons others at various venues in Austin, TX earlier this Spring. It was one hell of an experience to see so many bands cramped into such an amazing city. Sadly when you have that many bands, you tend to miss out on some great sets by amazing bands. Regardless, it was just awesome. Plus…I saw Dale Watson play at Ginny’s. That right there made my trip.

-Hanging out with Ninja Gun for a few days. These guys are some of the best dudes I know. They wanted to play shows on the East coast and I was able to lure them to Kent to play a show in September. We all enjoyed hanging out so much that they kicked it for a couple more days where I took them up to Melt for some cheesy deliciousness.

-Getting Dave Hause to play a house show in Akron. After seeing that Dave Hause was not playing a show in the Cleveland area just 2 weeks ago, I threw him the idea of a house show and he and tour mate Cory Branan were totally down with the idea. The result was a show to remember with Hause and Branan trading off songs all night long.

-Hanging out with friends, new and old, at the Inner Sanctum Pier show on the E. 9th pier. More people could have showed up, but regardless, I had a killer time that sunny day and got to watch Pat The Producer turn into a human tomato.

-Hanging out with Rise Against and doing some charity work them at the Malachi House in Cleveland. The guys were super cool to hang with and really did not have that “rock star” attitude built from success. Props to 92.3 for making that happen.

-Making the trip back to Austin, TX early November and attending Fun Fun Fun Fest. I got to see some of my favorite bands all in one weekend including Murder City Devils, Hot Snakes, Hum, Slayer, Eyehategod, The Damned, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, and Russian Circles. This was one of my favorite festivals of all time. It was a festival I had wanted to attend for a a few years now and I decided to go for it. I am so glad I did.

-It’s A Kling Thing House & Girley House. Both houses put on some amazing shows in 2011 with local acts as well as touring bands. Seeing Jeff Rowe over the summer as well as Mixtapes just a month or so ago in a basement is as good as live shows get for this guy.

-Daytrotter’s Barnstormer Tour. What a great evening of music that was. The show was in a freaking barn. Yes, I do not remember much as the beers were going down like water, but I know I had a blast with some pretty special people.

The Suck:

-Ben Weasel’s SXSW blowout. Sadly I was on the other side of town watching Cleveland’s very own Ringworm in a ghetto ass bar. Don’t ask me why I skipped out on seeing Screeching Weasel live, I was under the influence of many ice cold Lone Star beers. Honestly, I am kind of glad I missed Weasel acting like a little girl on stage.

-Danzig’s Fun Fun Fun hissy fit. One of the main reasons I wanted to go to Fun Fun Fun Fest was because the Danzig Legacy was playing it. I was stoked to finally see Danzig sing some Misfits songs with Doyle on stage. Instead I witnessed a diva take the stage late and get their set cut as they played past curfew. I only heard two Misfits songs and left with a bad taste in my mouth. People can think what they want about Danzig and that night. I was in the crowd watching heater being pulled on stage as well as the side of the stage tarped up so that little Glen would not get cold. It was over an hour until the stage met his needs and the dude was fully aware of the curfew. I will say that the two Mistfits songs had me feeling like a kid all over again. Shame I could not witness the entire set that he had planned. Lucky for me Ted Leo did a TV Casualty set the next day and made up for the Danzig drama.

-Seeing NOFX over Those Darlins. I regret that decision a lot. Two of my favorite bands played the same night and I had to choose one over the other. The good news was that I got to see and meet Old Man Markley. Sorry Darlins, I will not miss you next time you all hit up Cleveland. Please forgive me.

-Atari Teenage Riot’s Cleveland show getting cancelled. I was stoked to see these guys and was prepared to lose my hearing that night. Hours before the show, their promoter cancelled the show. Needless to say, I was pissed.

-92.3 and 107.3 changing formats. Cleveland is a lost cause with radio now that both those stations were yanked.

Wrapping it up…

2011 ended with a bang for this music lover. Thanks to all my friends from all over who made this year extra special for me. You all know who you are. From letting me crashing on couches to allowing bands to play in their basements you helped make this year what it was. Also to everyone who attended shows with me and shared the same passion I have for music, thanks.

Happy holidays everyone and thanks for taking a part out of your day to visit this site.

Ok 2012, let’s see what you have in store.

Cleveland, Comics, Got Local?

Donate For A Harvey Pekar Cause

11 November, 2011 Brian Mc Leave a comment

Harvey Pekar left this world too soon in July of 2010. Sadly he left nothing more than unfinished works and comics leaving for his widow Joyce Brabner to take control of many things for him including how the Cleveland underground comics icon would be remembered.

Recently she started a campaign for a Harvey Pekar tribute using Kickstarter. In an attempt to raise $30k, a unique tribute sculpture will be created of Pekar and installed at the public library in Cleveland Heights. The sculpture will actually be a desk that she and others want people to sit down and draw or write at. The following was taken from the Kickstarted page:

A way to celebrate comics as art and literature at a Cleveland Heights public library. A literary landmark, a desk that’s always filled with paper and pencils for people to sit and write or draw comics at the same place where Harvey Pekar liked to work.

Mounted on the desk, a sculpted bronze comic book “page.” Stepping out from a panel, Harvey– using his semi celebrity to focus on the creative possibilities of the art form he opened up to so many people. On the reverse, gridded into bronze ruled “panels,” a giant slate storyboard that looksvery much the way Harvey always started his own scripts. (He wrote and drew stick figures, just like Paul Giamatti in that movie.) Plenty of chalk and plenty of encouragement from a library that cherishes comics. At different times each year, a librarian can unlock the middle drawer of the desk and pull out copies of books that Harvey read as a kid that inspired him to write,AMERICAN SPLENDOR scripts, memorabilia and anything else that could inspire library patrons to be creative with comics.

The desk and statue will be mounted next to the library’s “Harvey & Friends Used Bookstore”* and facing the library’s ever growing comics shelves. Every so often a Kickstarter campaign runs over. If that happens, once all the bills are paid, the Estate of Harvey Pekar will use the rest of the money to add to the library’s no-white-gloves, read and enjoy(!) collection.

Donate a lot, or a little. All of it is going for a great cause and idea. I myself am aiming to donate $75 so that I may possibly receive one of Pekar’s vinyls. Having admired the man for years, I think it would be so cool to have something that he might have listened to while writing his stories.

This is just the beginning. Once the tribute has been created, Brabner is collaborating with Cleveland’s Jax Prints to create a 5 year scholarship for comic book writers who have not yet been published.

His legacy will live on. Just wish I could have met the guy once in my life. I actually used to live down the street from him years ago but did not know it until after I moved. He’s one of the reasons that I do what I do. He inspired me to be myself and not care about anything or anyone. I will definitely be partaking in this fundraiser.

With 23 days left, so far just over $17k has been raised. Where that is a nice chunk of change, there is still a ways to go. If you consider yourself a Cleveland native or even a comic fan, do your part.

Bad Times, Cleveland, Got Local?, Music, The Suck

CBS Radio Kicks Cleveland’s Music Lovers In The Pants By Yanking Radio 92.3 From FM Radio

2 September, 2011 Brian Mc Leave a comment

I figured I might as well talk about the 92.3 change while I had a moment. I know that many of my friends are all sorts of excited for the sports radio station to take over. Honestly I would be happy too if I were into sports as much as they are.

I guess I look at the change a little differently and not even because I think Cleveland needs to have crappy music like Paramore and My Chemical Romance played along with even worse music like Audioslave and Staind. Oh, dare I mention Sublime??? (It was not that bad, they played the hits of Bad Religion, Rise Against, and Rancid too sometimes…)

The rumors are true. 92.3 is now called The Fan. Its Cleveland’s first sports radio station. Rejoice!!!

The logo looks….well…you decide:

Seriously, how many people that you know actually have HD radio? I know I don’t know anyone who has one of those, and if they did, they never told me because it just is not anything worth mentioning about. I honestly think that not many people are going to listen to the iPod on shuffle, I mean, HD-2 92.3.

Yes, HD-2 will still play music, list shows, and keep listeners informed, but it is not going to be the same. I have no desire at all to even jump onto the HD station’s website and stream music. Done. Maybe me recall the time I bought a portable XM radio player thinking it was a good idea.

92.3 has been around for as long as I can remember and it was always music related until now. There was 92 RQCK, Jammin 92.3, 92.3 The Beat when I was younger, and then the more memorable 92.3 Extreme Radio, K-Rock, and of course Radio 92.3.

I know that not everyone out there was a fan of Radio 92.3. A lot of the music they played was not really my thing and sometimes repeated one too many times, but every once in a while they would throw a gem in there. They took the liberty to cater to as many people as they could, and that is no easy task. They kept the community informed on what was going on and even threw together some awesome shows. One in particular was the impressive Kuyahoga Fest that K-Rock threw together years back at Blossom.

There were a couple people who worked for the FM station I felt owe a shout out to. Not only were they entirely too cool to me, but they also supported this dinky little website of mine.

Nard, the man behind the curtain, really gave it his all when it came to that station. Not just inside the studio, but also during promotions and events. It’s tough to please one person, but he managed to keep the attention of all of the surrounding communities of Cleveland that set their dials to 92.3.

The regular Sunday night locally focused Inner Sanctum, featuring Pat The Producer and Matt Wardlaw, just celebrated 18 years as a continual program only to have to find a new home. Luckily WNWV 107.3 FM Cleveland was quick to pick them up and they will not even skip a beat sharing the local music scene with Cleveland every Sunday. There’s some good news for some good people who I have had the pleasure to call friends for a few years now. If you have not checked out Inner Sanctum yet, you should. They play a lot of good quality tunage by some amazing local talent.

Will there be a new radio station to jump in and take over? Is the HD-2 92.3 going to stick around, or will CBS ax that too? Does it matter really anymore? How many people really listen to radio these days as much as they did 10 years ago? I know I do not.

The fact of the matter is that Cleveland has lost another alternative rock station and good people have lost their jobs because of it. Where as I did not listen to the station daily, I did have the pleasure of making friendships with many of the staff that CBS released. Regardless of how shitty some of that music was on that radio station at times, the people I knew there were incredible and I am happy I was able to network with many of them.

Good luck to everyone from 92.3 that CBS took a giant Cleveland steamer on. Thanks for all you have done for me (and the rest of the city for that matter) with music. I am sure you will have no problem finding something else soon. I have no problem if you all collaborate and decided to make a radio station that played all punk rock and Clutch. In fact, I would totally be ok with that.

RIP Radio 92.3…