There was no reason to complain about the weather last night, it was beautiful and the sun was shining when we started, which was really weird. Jason Walsmith of The Nadas was my co-host for the show, but the night also featured an unplanned guest.
We stopped by Sonic Factory Studio before the show to record a song with Jason; he is pretty familiar with the studio as The Nadas recorded their latest album there, “The Ghosts Inside These Halls”. The plan was to have him play two acoustic songs off the album, but things changed pretty quickly when he realized that Bonne Finken was recording there and would sound great on one of the tracks.
It was pretty amazing to see, aside from Jason almost running her down in the parking lot, the two had never met, and Bonne had yet to hear the song. She picked up on it really quickly and the end result was another surprise moment on Scented Vinyl. It is Jason on guitar and vocals, Bonne singing backup, and Jon Locker with the smooth bass lines. The song is Blue Lights, and you can download it now for free!
Thanks to a couple of minor floods in his basement, Jason has been left with no records. Which left me guessing what he might have had, or would like to hear…the night consisted of quite a bit of country rock, which was fine with both of us.
Here is some of what we played…
James Taylor – Sweet Baby James Wilco – Ghost is Born Iron & Wine w/ Calexico – In The Reins William Elliott Whitmore – Hymns For The Hopeless Rod Stewart – Gasoline Alley The Mountain Goats – Heretic Pride Highwayman – Self-Titled Kings of Leon – Aha, Shake Heartbreak Iggy Pop – The Idiot Tom Waits – Mule Variations
Jason Walsmith has been about the busiest musician in Iowa the past few years; between putting out albums on his own Authentic Records, playing live constantly, and being a dad. He found time to put out one of the best Iowa albums of the year (which might have some competition when Josh Davis’s new album comes out.)
“The Ghosts Inside These Halls” was just released last week and already the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. The Nadas now will be doing what they have always done, that’s take to the road and play as much as possible, starting with SXSW this week and L.A. next. We talked all about the new album, a possible future children's album and more during the interview. You can hear songs from the new album at The Nadas new website www.thenadas.com I should mention that the look of the new site is sweet and was designed by Mandy Miller.
