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Friday, 06 February 2009 19:44 |
By Mike Chaiken, Editions Editor
The Observer - Good Times
The hammer has been pulled for Connecticut’s Joetown. And the hard rockers are getting ready to fire onto the national scene. Joe Delaney, a Wallingford resident and the driving creative and musical force behind the group, explained he’s been working on a slow build for Joetown’s debut album, “Pills and Ammo,” since it was released to press and radio station late last year. Delaney (who named Joetown after the recording studio he operated in Wallingford) said he has been doing, mostly, the weekend warrior thing (performing Saturdays and Sundays, heading back to the day job the rest of the week) in pushing the album. Delaney has performed at select gigs in major markets. He has been doing the occasional festival. And he has done the occasional radio performance. When he called for his interview, Delaney was in California attending the annual NAMM show, where he was taking care of his day gig, selling amplifiers for Bugera. He explained music trade shows also have been part of the formula to push “Pills and Ammo.” He would go to the shows and demonstrate Bugera amplifiers by performing songs from “Pills and Ammo.” The promotion strategy has been working. Delaney said “Pills and Ammo” was the sixth most added record on rock and metal stations during the third week of January. “I’m happy with that,” said Delaney of the album’s accomplishment. Delaney grew up in Connecticut. But he left for the west coast with his then-band.
After that experience ended, he spent some time in California working as a recording engineer. He finally returned to the East, New York City to be exact, with the band American Trash. (“It was a great band with a nice underground following.”) As a Connecticut youth, Delaney said local rock radio stations such as WPLR, WCCC, and the old WHCN had a big influence on him and his musical taste for hard rock. Oldies station WDRC also provided him with a love for the original architects of rock and roll like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and the Rolling Stones. “They were my soundtrack growing up.” Despite a love for music, Delaney said he didn’t really think about being in a rock band when he was younger. However, when he began to write his own music, a future career was born. Joetown is a dream for fans for hard rock. Delaney said the sound of Joetown is shaped by his love for 1970s-era hard rock. He said he’s a huge fan of AC/DC, Deep Purple, and the first few Van Halen albums with singer David Lee Roth. Joetown also has a definite blues flavor. “I play a lot of slide and open tunings (like a lot of the blues guys).” Delaney’s blues influence can be heard loud and clear on the Zeppelinesque “Finger.” He said he loves the British blues sound offered by Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, and, even, Robin Trower from the late 1960s/ early 1970s. He’s also a fan of the contemporary blues styling of the legendary Stevie Ray Vaughn. “I love all that stuff.” Joetown’s music is heavy on the guitar riffs, which shouldn’t be a surprise given Delaney’s influences. But the riff isn’t necessarily king when he puts on his songwriter cap.
When he writes, Delaney said sometimes he starts off with the riff. Other times, he has some lyrics and writes the music around that. As for the songs themselves, Delaney said he prefers words with substance. “Most of the lyrics I write are pretty heartfelt stuff, rooted in life experience,” said Delaney. For the moment, Delaney said Joetown will continue with its select gigs here and there. In the spring, he said the band will, with luck, begin a more intensive tour schedule opening for an established act. He would like the chance to perform gigs as an opening act at Hartford’s Webster Theater and New Haven’s Toads Place. Joetown also will be going international, when they head to Germany. For more information, go to Joetown.com. Comments? Email mchaiken@BristolObserver. com
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