It’s a fresh fall night, the tail end of September, as the line starts to extend down the block outside The Echo in Los Angeles. There’s a buzz along the wall as patrons turn into fans- strangers talking to one another about new EP’s and constant whines wondering why we haven’t been let inside. Finally, a man predictably dressed in black opens the door and begins slapping wristbands on. The club is empty but before I even get my beer, the floor is filled.

Voxhaul Broadcast does have a way of getting everyone’s toes tapping. The crowd eats up their happy-go-lucky psychedelic melodies with their funk fusions like a stoner dives into a bowl of peanut butter Cap’n Crunch. The native Orange County quartet of David Dennis (guitar/vocals), Phil Munsey (bass), Tony Aguilar (guitar) and Kurt Allen (drums) first came to be in 2004 as Blvd. Since their humble high school beginnings in San Clemente, the group has continuously revolutionized their own music. With each passing year, you can hear new sounds infiltrating their already stellar musical styling. From folk to funk and soul to kazoos, they’re bringing it all to you in one terribly talented and absolutely adorable package.

I doubt half of the crowd knows of the turbulent and triumphant past year the boys of Voxhaul Broadcast have had. First, they released their second EP, Shanty Town, in late 2006 as Blvd. Early 2007 brought a lawsuit over the name and Voxhaul Broadcast took effect, which confused many fans. “Well,” David Dennis starts, “it was kind of funny the way that name came about. We had a bunch of prospective names and one was Foxhole Broadcast. They didn’t like it so jokingly I said, ‘What about Voxhaul Broadcast?’ Our manager liked it because there’s a car called a Vauxhall. It’s not an anagram or anything, just an accident.” Under their new name they released their third EP, Rotten Apples, and began vigorously touring the west coast. Their major city tour started in mid-October, which included a spot at the CMJ Fader Party in New York.  They also begin their residency at the Echo in February.

The show goes over without a hitch and the crowd (including myself) was enthralled with the performance. Energetic, vivacious and more than talented, Voxhaul never ceases to satisfy their fans’ practically insatiable appetite for good hearted tunes to shake their silly hipster asses to.  I was lucky enough to squeeze some time in with David Dennis. He’s the quiet type - you’re not sure what to expect from him. But the interview was as enjoyable as his performance - he has a great sense of humor and kept me entertained with his collection of cartoon-esque voices. He gave me the scoop on where Blvd. came from, where Voxhaul is going, some thoughts on the almighty Beatles and that, hey, he’s lived off of Top Ramen too.  

Marissa Ross: So, tell me a little bit about how Blvd. came to be, with you, Tony, Kurt and Phil?

David Dennis: So, I guess it started off with me and Phil in the beginning, when I was in fourth grade or so, and Phil was the pastor’s son. My dad liked going to church, therefore I had to go to church. I wasn’t playing guitar at this point but I always wanted to play the guitar and my dad said I couldn’t play unless I got good grades. So my mom bought me a guitar for Christmas and I learned how to play on the weekends. Then I wanted to start a band and my dad really liked the pastor, so I started a band with the pastor’s sons and then had their dad break it to him so he couldn’t say no. That’s how I started playing with Phil, the bass player. That was the first connection. Then I sat across from Kurt in science class in seventh grade and that’s where we met. We were sworn enemies though, as a joke. He was like, ‘I like Nirvana.’ and I was like, “Punk rock ‘til death.’

MR: Were you a gutter punk?

DD: No. It was kind of a joke. We were idiots.

MR: So, was Kurt grunge? Did he wear flannel?

Yeah, he did wear flannel when I first met him! This is really funny to remember …Kurt in flannel and me with spiked hair. And that’s how I met Kurt. Kurt played with Tony in seventh grade, who is the guitar player. I played with Kurt separately. Tony got jealous sometimes so then we had to play together so the jealousy wouldn’t run in the hearts of us all. Then I introduced them to Phil and we all played in separate bands for a really long time and occasionally jammed together. Kurt went to school in San Francisco when he was eighteen or nineteen. Tony, Phil and I played with a different drummer for two or three years and that drummer didn’t really work out, We called Kurt in San Francisco and said, ‘Hey, you’ve always said you really want to be in this band, and we really want you in this band.” Kurt always tries to be a hard ass about everything so he said, ‘Well, I don’t want to just be in the band, I want to try out.’ We were saying, ‘You don’t really need to try out we know you’re a good drummer.’ Kurt kind of reminds me of Dwight Schrute from The Office, not in that drastic way, but he’s so serious about everything.  So he tried out, we said you’re in the band, that’s awesome you tried out. He wanted to learn all the old songs and play them with us but we just wanted to write new songs.

MR: So, did he move back from San Francisco just for the band or did he just come back down for…

DD: No, he moved back just for the band.

MR: So, he’s dedicated.

DD: Yeah, we all have a lot invested in it. We’ve all known each other for a long time.

MR: Since grunge and punk rock.

Yes, so if we were actually able to do this for a living it would be the ultimate payoff. There are so many bands out there who are just one guy who plays with a bunch of hired hands. There are not a lot of 'band' bands anymore - kids that grew up and loved the same music. In most cases, two of the guys in the band have known each other for a really long time and they write an album and play all the instruments and then some guy likes the album and hires a couple other guys to play with them. If we all got to play music together, for as long as we’ve been friends and as well as we know each other, it would basically be a lot of fun. Playing music with your childhood friends for a living…

MR: Sounds kind of like The Beatles.

DD: Yes! Sounds like The Beatles! The best band ever.

MR: The best band ever!

DD: I think The Beatles are one of the best bands of all time, but in reality, they didn’t create a lot of the sounds they used. They just listened to a lot of really great music and topped it all. You can hear the sound of Harry Nilsson in Revolver but The Beatles did it way better. You can hear Arthur Lee and Elvis and you could go on and on but The Beatles did it in a way that was definitely their own, and better than all the other bands that created it. I still respect all those bands that created those sounds, but The Beatles did it better, I’m sorry!

MR: How do you feel about cover songs?

DD: You can’t cover the Beatles. They did it better than you. I never cover The Beatles because I like them so much I feel like I’m being extremely arrogant by even thinking I have something to say that they didn’t already say with their own music. I’m not a huge Fiona Apple fan but her ‘Across the Universe’ was good. It was probably mostly Jon Brion but still that cover was ridiculous.

MR: Well, that’s like I went to see the Love show and I don’t think I would have liked it half as much if George Martin hadn’t done the musical arrangement. I would argue that even The Beatles wouldn’t have been so wonderful without a producer like George Martin, who really influenced how they recorded.

DD: Definitely. The recording is the way you want to portray yourself. Some bands like to record their music live and dirty and some like it really clean and polished…

MR: What would you say your recording style is?

DD: For now, the way we recorded our most recent stuff, it’s basically just trial and error. We didn’t really know what we wanted and in every recording experience you learn more of what you want. In past recording experiences, we always thought it came out too polished or too thought out. The most recent album we just recorded it live, just the way the music is written. Vocals live, everything live. A lot of the time the drummer will record his tracks for five hours, then the bass records his tracks to the drum tracks, then you record the guitars to those two tracks, then the singer stands alone in a room and sings to all the music that’s been recorded all day.

MR: That’s how you guys recorded your first album, right?

DD: Yes and it’s just that I always hate the way I sing and the way everything sounds...well, not hate it because there are songs I’m proud of. I just always hear a lot more potential and I wanted to hear us playing together as a band, with all the kinks in the music, all the things that were fuck-ups but actually listening back you think, ‘That actually works for the song.’ When you record everything separately, even though you’re trying not to, you over-analyze it. When you’re playing together with the band, recording a live take, you’re listening to the sound of the room. You’re listening to the song, everybody together - everyone is reacting off each other. The music is written like that. It’s not written like, ‘Kurt you need to make a drum beat. Phil make some bass line. I’m going to write guitar stuff and sing to it.’ Songs are written so many different ways but most of it is us just playing together, just vibing off each other.

MR: Do you think it helps that you guys have been playing music together for so long for that to work?

DD: I definitely think it helps a ton. Everybody knows each other stylistically in and out, their strengths and weaknesses. It helps too whenever we want to go a different direction with a song, a lot of bands have a problem talking to each other. When you’ve been friends with guys since you were that young, it’s on a brother level. You can offend them and they can get mad at you and storm out. They’ll come back in and everything will be okay again. It isn’t like ‘You want me to sing different? Fuck that. I quit.’ That kind of shit never happens.

MR: Well, that’s good. We’d all be in trouble then. You were telling me about how ragtime influenced your second release…

DD: With the ragtime thing, for me it was kind of like Mungo Jerry and the sixties. It wasn’t real ragtime music, it was sixties’ bands that took ragtime music and messed around with it and made it psychedelic, using kazoos and stuff. That was really inspiring to me…like Lou Reed (sings New York Telephone conversation). Just those songs that are intentionally theatrical and corny sometimes are really fun to listen to. There are songs that shaped me. A song I write might be a result of many songs I’ve listened to before it that inspired me. I usually show the guys the stuff I’m listening to, so they know where I’m coming from.

MR: Where do you see yourselves going now?

DD: It usually starts with me playing the guitar or piano and singing, but I’m trying to take different approaches to writing the songs. Writing lyrics first then writing the melody or writing a song on the bass or playing the drums while writing a song. It sounds kind of weird, I don’t know. I just want to do different things. I did just get a Theremin! (he makes a Theremin noise)

MR: That’s awesome! So, you guys are getting released on ITunes, which is a giant step for your fan base and your accessibility.

DD: Definitely. A lot of times we’re playing at bars and people there don’t have the money to buy the record right there. Just the Internet in general really helps get your music out there. I mean with Myspace, Pitchfork or even Limewire…

MR: With that, how do you feel about downloading music?

DD: There’s been times when I really needed that song that I heard that night and I haven’t had the money and I went on Limewire to get that song. I mean, if someone got us off Limewire, I’d be flattered. That’s like me saying, ‘my music is only for people who can afford my music.’ I know a dollar is not a lot of money but sometimes you’re buying Tina’s burritos and Top Ramen and you’re trying to get by and pay rent. I know how it is. 

For more on Voxhaul Broadcast, check them out at myspace.com/voxhaulbroadcast. Be their friend. You know you want to.

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