A Night of Mystery and Good Times in Rogue River

Rocket Maaaaaan!! (and you know it's gonna be a Good Good Time)

TLG @ Cattlemen's in Rogue River, March 15, 2014.

Thanks to Steven Riley for the pics, and to Sarah Walch for that first joke.

The Legendary Goodtimes love going new places and rocking new faces.  Making groovy, soul shakin' tunes is priority #1 for TLG, but hosting a musical throw-down in a different town comes in a very close second.  

On Saturday, Cattlemen's in Rogue River was the scene of the Traveling Sonic Good Time Machine, and just like always, there were surprises waiting for the band.

100 Watt Mind rockin' the motherlovin' house!

The first surprise was one of The Low O's best and brightest stars, 100 Watt Mind, already rockin' the outdoor stage when TLG rolled in.  Always a pleasure to see this hardworking powerhouse do what they do best--melt faces and make booties shake!

"Get down" is a literal term.  This is how it's done.

"I like to play."

The Goodtimes took to the outdoor stage at around 9:30, and payed tribute to The Great Rock Spirit for about 45 minutes.

Then came surprise number two... a "contest."

The exact details of this so-called "contest" remain sketchy.  For the record, Matty and Dave moved their equipment (and themselves) back several yards to make way for an entourage of white-clad ladies (and their bodygaurds).  

What is happening here?  Everyone's expression is priceless, but Mark wins, hands down.

What happened next is sworn to secrecy on social media.  The Legendary Goodtimes--after much creative photoshopping and consideration--can only offer this heavily cropped picture as evidence of this alleged so-called "contest."  Please use your imagination, and enjoy.

Keep it funky.  Uh!

After the suspected alleged so-called "contest," TLG returned to a slightly soggy stage to tear it up for another 45 minutes....

...until it got really cold.  Then came surprise #3.  With the speed of three leopards, The Goodtimes picked up their entire stage setup...

Rock your body!

...and brought it inside the bar!  A funkified dance-off was absolutely necessary.

Rock your soul!

After all the boogie-woogie-all-night-longin', TLG looked at the clock.  1:38 AM.  A new record in stamina for the band.  Truly an Epic Night.  So the band played two more songs, just to make it A Legendary Night.

Funk, yes!

The Goodtimes love Rogue River.  The locals are fun bunch of folks, and appreciative of original music.  Bill and Jinny of Cattlemen's treated the band like family; The Goodtimes parted ways with a promise to return to this excellent Southern Oregon music venue.

You know you want to be there.

Stay tuned!  The Goodtimes are playing with 100 Watt Mind this very Friday the 21st of March @ Howies on Front in Medford!  See you then...

Nothing Says 'Rock n Roll' Like Wall to Wall Taxidermy

This is what an actual legendary good time looks like @ The Trophy Room in Prospect, Oregon.  Thanks to Steven Riley for all the photos!

Last Friday night is a shining example of why The Legendary Goodtimes do what they do.

All the right elements were in place.  Beautiful, sunny Southern Oregon.  Cool local folks who love to get down.  Cold beverages, hot chicken strips, and a dance floor on fire.  A great local band sharing the bill.  Taxidermy.

Well, the night started out like this....

...then this happened...

...which led to this happening...

...which obviously caused this.

Yes, The Goodtimes returned to a favorite stomping ground, The Trophy Room in Prospect, Oregon.  Dave, Matt, and Mark are always pleasantly surprised at how the locals are a bunch of fun loving, good natured people who just want to rock out.

And rock out everyone did.  Totally epic night.

Black Ink Breakdown, breakin' it down!

Purple Ink Breakdown!

Sharing the stage and standing beneath the majestic taxidermy turkeys was one TLG's favorite Southern Oregon bands, Black Ink Breakdown.  The Goodtimes and Black Ink have shared many a bill over the last year, with more to come this season.  The first time these two bands met, TLG was barely off the ground, and BIB was playing short sets of originals with a couple covers mixed in.  On Friday, Black Ink played almost two hours of original songs.  These guys have come a long way, and TLG is always proud to support them.

 Matt Jameson!

 David Moore!

Mark Anderson!  WOOOOO!!!!!

Yep, Southern Oregon knows how to party.  If any pregnancies resulted from Friday night's festivities, The Legendary Goodtimes would just like to say, "You're welcome."

After-party, baby, yeah!  Matt, Mark, and Mr. Steven Riley.

When the last amp was turned off, the final guitar packed safely away, The Goodtimes found a comfy spot at the bar for a little after hours party.  At some point, there was a walk to the nearby motel and some heavy slumbering, but the details become a bit foggy at this point...

Many thanks to all who attended this splendid evening of music and good times.  Extra special thanks to Taryn and Matt of the Trophy Room, you guys are the greatest!

'Til next time, Goodtimers.

Ol' Mount'n Due CD Release Party, and the Triumphant Return of The Legendary Goodtimes

From left to right:  Everybody who's anybody at the Ol' Mount'n Due CD release party, showing the Southern Oregon music love after The Legendary Goodtime's opening set.  Photo credits: as always, Mr. Steven Riley, unless otherwise noted.

A glorious thing happened last Saturday night.  

After a long winter's nap, the mighty rock n' roll beast awoke from its slumber.  

Holed up in the Band Cave for months, the beast was busy writing new material, overhauling its merch, upgrading and repairing equipment, adding to its wardrobe.... all in preparation for the Springtime, when it would emerge from the Band Cave to rock faces all over Southern Oregon and beyond.

But how can this be right?!  It's only February, still the dead of winter!  Has the beast awoken too early?

Nay!  For it received a text message from Ol' Mount'n Due, requesting a hefty rocking of the faces at their CD release party.  The beast could not refuse, no matter the time of year, for Ol' Mount'n Due has an Awesomeness that cannot be overstated.

Dave, Matt, and Mark, rocking their first live show of 2014.

All hibernating beast metaphors aside, The Legendary Goodtimes are back, baby.

TLG played a blistering 45 minute set, mostly brand new tunes.  After being cooped up for months, the band was excited to get in front of a crowd and feed off their energy once again.  It was a massively satisfying and high energy set.  Matt, Mark, and Dave were very grateful to all their awesome fans that showed up to support them.

Black Ink Breakdown!  Photo credit here goes to Aaron Andersen, drummer of Surviving the Siege.

Delta Halos!  Photo credit goes to Jay Rapp, singer/guitarist of Black Ink Breakdown.

Acousta Noir!

TLG was honored to share the stage with a few excellent acts. Black Ink Breakdown, one of TLG's favorite Southern Oregon bands, played an excellent set that included some new original tunes.  Medford's own Delta Halos (aka Kyle Cregan) laid down the mellow acoustic soul vibe, and Acousta Noir from Roseburg brought a one-man band folk show into the mix.

Ol' Mount'n Due!  Photo credit to Jay of Black Ink.

Let there be no doubt who the star of the evening was:  Ol' Mount'n Due killed it.  KILLED IT.  Everyone in the room was there to support this amazing Medford band and their new album.  The love was definitely in the air, and on the dance floor.  TLG was proud to support one of Southern Oregon's finest, and honored to open the evening.

Stay tuned, because The Legendary Goodtimes have lots of shows coming up (checkout our Reverbnation page for a complete list) and some other surprises as well.  

A Brief History of The Legendary Goodtimes

The Legendary Goodtimes, from left: Matt Jameson, David Moore, Mark Anderson.

Do people read music blogs for obscure history lessons on bands?  I dunno, maybe.

Anyway, waaaaay back in early 2012, Matthew Jameson and David Moore were out of luck.  In Between, their prog-alt-sludge-facegrind-metal band, was defunct.  Their musical brother and drummer Jon took a job in LA, leaving the band with no backbone.  While they auditioned prospective new drummers (and recorded tracks for a brutal 80s pop-metal side project), Matt and Dave were playing with a new idea.  In a nutshell, their idea was this--less chainsaw meets meat grinder style sonic brutality, more groove and soul, but 100% rock n roll.  Music written, played, and listened to while sipping top shelf whiskey.

From left, Dave, Mark, and Matt; when The Goodtimes were brand new, at the old jam spot....

Right on cue, they met a fellow named Mark Anderson through the magic of craigslist.  At that first jam session, the guys played through a few old metal tunes; the feeling was meh.  Been there, done that.  So they tried something different, something a little less melt your face, something a little more rock your soul.

And it was good.

So they went with it, all in.

In honor of their unique Chapter of the Legend of a Really Good Time (see yesterday's post), the band was reborn as The Legendary Goodtimes, totally committed to playing old school rock n' roll with some subtle modern flair.  Music that moves your body (and doesn't destroy your ear drums or vocal chords) and lifts your soul (The Legendary Goodtimes do love getting lifted up).

TLGT @ Flabby Road Studio in Medford, Oregon.

Within six months, TLGT had enough songs to record a full length album.  Feeling strongly about the material they'd written, the band issued a grand challenge:  play the album live to analog tape.  Though they would overdub vocals later, the music would all be live, recorded to two tracks.  Yes, only two.  A stereo left and right of the master mix.  No tracking out parts, no easy edits, no post mixing.  No deleting--tape is permanent stuff, not like hard drive space.  You get one sound, and a limited amount of tape, and very little post-production control.  It's risky.  Most bands lean towards tracking out every part and having full control while mixing.  The Legendary Goodtimes (or TLGT, if you will) did exactly the opposite.

The debut album.

The risk paid off.  The record sounds, in the humble opinion of The Legendary Goodtimes, raw and dynamic, like old rock n roll played on a turntable.  Very different from the ultra compressed, endlessly processed and maximized, cut and paste style digital recording that is all over modern airwaves.  This record came out warm and smooth, with little bite, like good bourbon. (Much of that credit goes to the amazing work of Mark Thomas Johnson of Bluejay Audio, whose engineering of the record included operating some rare and amazing analog hardware).

The band was very pleased.

Just a handful of the Goodtimes' 2013 flyers, design courtesy of Matt Jameson, TLGT's resident graphic artist and marketing professional.

The Legendary Goodtimes spent most of 2013 playing shows around Southern Oregon, sharing a bill with dozens of bands, including Gypsyhawk, Curtis Salgado, Jive Coulis, 100 Watt Mind, Dryseason, Tallboy, Ol' Mount n' Due, Diemonds, The Seaons, Black Ink Breakdown, The Hollowbodies...

There were rawkin' bar shows, quiet acoustic gigs, a charity event, a private party, a brewery, Last Band Standing, a couple festivals.  Sometimes the band packed up and drove for ten minutes to get to the gig; sometimes it was four hours and an overnight stay.  Everywhere TLGT took their music, the energy was high, the band met new friends and shared libations with old friends, and a Really Good Time was had by all.

Brave Sir Steven Riley is a total badass in hot pink.

Somewhere along the crazy ride, the band picked up a "fourth" member, one Mr. Steven Riley.  Originally hired to do photography for a few recording sessions, Steven found a place in the band at practice sessions and live shows alike, and proved himself indispensable.  Though his Legendary Deeds are many, he's usually credited as the band photographer, and indeed he can be found at every Goodtimes show, camera in hand.  If you are looking at a picture of The Legendary Goodtimes, chances are 97% of the time, Steven gets the photo credit.

With a very successful first year behind them, the band took a well deserved winter break.  It was time reflect on the year's good fortune and fun, to write new songs, to upgrade The Legendary Goodtimes in every way they could.  Most of all, to prepare for Springtime, when they will venture forth once more  to spread their music across the land, always in search of a Really Good Time.

That brings us to the present, where the Legend is still unfolding every week...

The Legend of a Really Good Time

The Legendary Goodtimes

at 2013 Last Band Standing in Medford, Oregon.

Once upon a time, a ragtag band of musicians decided to write their own stuff and just go for it.  

With only their instruments and the meager handful of coins the band members pooled, they would traverse the land, offering song and dance.  In return, sometimes they were richly rewarded; sometimes they were left penniless for their efforts.  The band faced many obstacles and foes, but they never gave up trying to spread their music to lands far off.  

They never quit because they believed in The Legend of a Really Good Time.

The Legend is old as the hills, passed down for many generations.  Like all legends, The Legend of a Really Good Time changes over time and with many tellings.  It is impossible to tell the entire story, and even summarizing it is no simple task.  Some even believe it is a myth.  

Listen now and hear me later:  BELIEVE.  

The Legend is true!

This blog is about one band from Southern Oregon, and their quest to add another Chapter to this Mighty Legend of Olde.

If ye care to skip all this storytellin' and get down to the music, or maybe you're more the social media type, check us out on Facebook and elsewhere:

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