On this episode of LaunchLeft, Rain welcomes Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips of LUNA. They talk about how they first met, how music found them, performing live versus the recording studio, and the volatility of the music industry. Dean shares what’s up next for them, both as a duo and as solo artists. Dean & Britta launch Ryder the Eagle to close the show and we hear about the new single and album “Autotango”. He discusses what led him to write the record and what we can expect to hear from him next. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts today!
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LaunchLeft Podcast hosted by Rain Phoenix is an intentional space for Art and Activism where famed creatives launch new artists. LaunchLeft is an alliance of left-of-center artists, a curated ecosystem that includes a podcast, label and NFT gallery.
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IN THIS EPISODE:
[2:44] How did music find Dean and Britta?
[6:00] Do Dean and Britta write together?
[8:06] Do they ever wish they had chosen a different profession?
[10:09] Dean and Britta share about the shows they have performed.
[13:21] When did Dean and Britta meet?
[15:55] What was the Hooky Wooky Tour?
[19:59] What is up next for Dean and Britta?
[23:49] Do they have the experience of time being too compressed?
[25:45] How do they use social media to promote their music?
[29:33] Do Dean and Britta have any interest in composing for TV or film?
[32:36] Ryder the Eagle joins the podcast and talks about his process of making music.
[34:24] Where is Ryder from?
[37:46] Ryder shares about his music that is being released soon.
[39:47] We hear Ryder’s new song Autotango.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
[22:40] AI can be useful by using it to curate all the information that is at our fingertips that we waste so much time trying to sift through. If you can ask AI the right question, it can curate the information that you want to find online.
[28:32] Social media has benefits for a musician, one being that you can get your music out there affordably and it can be heard all around the world.
[37:25] For Britta, there is a big difference between singing in the studio and singing live for an audience. There is a feeling of being terrified, excited, vulnerable and exposed which gives her a big thrill.
RESOURCE LINKS:
Dean and Britta’s Links
Ryder The Eagle’s Links
BIOGRAPHIES:
Dean and Britta BIO
Dean & Britta are husband and wife team Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips, members of Luna. They have recorded several full-length albums and soundtracks. Their first two albums were produced by Tony Visconti (Bowie, T.Rex): L’Avventura in 2003 and Back Numbers in 2007. Their most recent release is the song “The Cloud is Coming,” which they wrote and performed for the Noah Baumbach film White Noise (they were also actors in the film). They live in Los Angeles.
In addition to making records, Dean & Britta are active scoring films, notably Noah Baumbach’s The Squid & the Whale and Mistress America. They also composed songs and score for 13 Most Beautiful: Songs for Andy Warhol Screen Tests, a project commissioned by the Andy Warhol Museum, and continue to perform this multi-media show live in concert.
Dean Wareham was the singer-songwriter-guitarist behind the Boston band Galaxie 500, who released three albums between 1987 and 1991. After this Dean went on to found NYC guitar band Luna, which released seven studio albums between 1992 and 2005. Luna disbanded in 2005 but reunited in 2015 and continue to perform live. His most recent album (2021) is I Have Nothing to Say to the Mayor of L.A.
Dean is also a published author — his memoir Black Postcards is a Penguin paperback. His most recent book — Hearing Voices — is a collection of selected lyrics, illustrated by artist Ed Templeton.
Britta Phillips joined Luna on bass guitar in 1999, recording two albums with the band. She was formerly a member of the U.K. shoegaze band Belltower. She was also the singing voice of cartoon rocker Jem in the 1980s, and starred with Julia Roberts in Satisfaction, a film about an all-girl rock band. Britta released a solo album, Luck or Magic, in 2016.
Ryder the Eagle BIO
My name is Ryder The Eagle. I was born under the sign of Cancer in the south of France and like the planets predicted, I dedicated the beginning of my life to finding true love. Two EPs, a marriage and a divorce later, I embarked on a "Follymoon", an incandescent kind of a honeymoon where loneliness meets the folly of freedom.
I traveled across the USA on the Greyhound bus, lugging my microphone along sidewalks and crossings, diners, and traffic lights. I spent two years in London crafting my break-up songs and sang them all over the globe supporting Adam Green, Jonathan Bree, and a few others.
I ended up in Mexico City, where I’m currently living. I’m driving an old Chevy Caprice which I don’t have insurance for. My trunk is full of memories from a past that I can’t let go. One day I went to this Scottish town called Plean, unloaded everything, and wrote nine songs about it.
So if you ever need a ride, I’ve got room in the car now - and we can play my first album on the stereo. Can’t wait to meet you.
