199: Rod Gator

On Episode 199, I'm joined by Louisiana singer-songwriter Rod Gator, who is releasing his latest album, the radiant For Louisiana, this Friday, September 17. During this conversation, we talk about his Louisiana roots, writing about natural disasters & conflict, hear stories about near-death experiences, recording and collaborating with Adrian Quesada of Black Pumas and Will Walden, and dive into more film and TV talk about Michael Mann, True Detective, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

This episode's presenting partner is Desert Door Texas Sotol, The Blue Light Live, and Charlie Stout Photography.

Interview Transcript

Note: Transcripts aren’t always accurate since they are computer automated and haven’t been edited for spelling, grammar, etc.

Thomas Mooney 0:00

Hey yo, welcome back to New slang. I music journalist Thomas Mooney. And this is Episode 199, where I'm joined by Mr. Rod Gator. I've been lucky enough to have gotten to know rod a little over the past few years. And we've had some really great conversations about cinema and songwriting and regionalism. And really, I think this one that we did right here is no different. It just so happens that we recorded the conversation this time around, we go back to Episode 84. That one right there is with rod as well as from around the time he released pink bill, his last record. And of course, he has a new record coming out this Friday, September 17. The aptly titled for Louisiana Personally, I just love when an artist embraces a place and a people and has that strong appreciation and love for it, and they're willing to share it with the rest of the world flaws in all there's really some grace and beauty within that. And I think any of us really we can relate to that. There's aspects of your home, your home state, your hometown that you absolutely love, and there's things that you just kind of wish would change. Lucky for us. Rod does have the chops and the space to unpack a lot of these difficult but necessary conversations like Springsteen in New Jersey or his bow and Alabama, Faulkner and Mississippi McMurtrie in rural Texas rod is back country, Louisiana, and much like those folks, rods characters are plucked from real life. They're genuine and real, and they have a sense of time in place. Of course, I don't want to characterize this album has just hard times or struggle, there's still those beans of sunlight that show that it's all worth it that the fight for change and reform is the just one. I said it last time with pink bill, but rods really becoming one of the best pulp writers out there. And here on for Louisiana. He further continues to make that claim a valid one. For Louisiana by rod Gator. It's out tomorrow, Friday, September 17. Go order yourself a copy. Today's presenting partner is our pals over at Desert door Texas Soto. If you've been listening to new slang for really any amount of time, you'll know that desert door is one of my all time favorite premium, high quality spirits. If you haven't or aren't sure what exactly a Soto is. I'm going to let you in on a little secret that's going to up the game on your liquor cabinet. For starters, the best reference point that I can point you to is to think about it tequila or Moscow. Do you feel that Western desert that text is ruggedness? Okay, Soto is like that, but a little bit more refined, smooth and fragrant. It intrigues the palate and offers these hints of vanilla and citrus, there's an earthiness that often sends me right back to my trans Pecos some Far West Texas roots. There's plenty to love about desert door. For me, it all starts right there. a close second is just how versatile desert door really is. You can go full highbrow and experiment with concocting a variety of cocktails that call for muddling fresh fruit sprigs of time sticks of cinnamon, it's perfect for that world. If you're a little bit more down home, if you've just rolled up the sleeves of your denim Wrangler button up, it's perfect for that as well. If you're just desiring something that short and sweet, it hits the mark every time does adore is genuine and authentically West Texan. It's inherently West Texan. They harvest Soto plants out in the wild and are knowledgeable conservationists at heart. That's obviously something incredibly important to me. They shine a light on what makes West Texas special and unique and worth preserving and keeping it safe from exploitation. Right now, you can find desert door all over Texas, Colorado, Tennessee, and there's budding numbers in places like New Mexico, Arizona, California and Georgia. Best thing you can do is to check out desert door.com to find where desert door is locally. Again, that's desert door.com this is your first time listening to new slang. Go ahead, hit that subscribe button wherever you listen to podcasts. And speaking of exploring regionalism and music, please go order a copy of my debut book. It's called the Lubbock way, and it will be out really really soon. Right now it's over in the merch store. And also in the merch store. There's plenty of other new slang stuff t shirts and koozies coffee mug shot glasses, stickers and so on. Twitter, Instagram and Facebook are your thing. Well go ahead and follow Newsline on all those as well. Specifically go give Newsline go follow on Twitter. Right now I'm doing a Charlie stout retro print giveaway. I'm giving away three four by six prints that I'm kind of doubling the blue last week. All you have to do is give a follow on a retweet and you're entered into the giveaway and of course all the links that I just mentioned they will be in the show notes. Alright, let's get into the interview. Here is rod Gator.

Obviously, kind of just starting that natural position of natural place of, no, you have this record coming out at the end of the week, you know, this record, you've always had that had the songs that were pointing back to home, about your home of Louisiana, your home state, these rural areas of where you grew up, and but this one right here, of course, you, you embrace it even further. With the name change, you you do that you have the the songs that are written about Louisiana, both the good and the bad, the ugly, how important is it to when you're writing about a place that you love so much, to not just gloss over the the bad parts?

Rod Gator 5:57

I think it's really important. And I feel like it's something like probably couldn't have done like, you know, 567 years ago, I think I had to kind of work at writing and get more confident myself in my writing and get older to really, you know, try to tackle those kind of subjects. You know what I mean? But it's very important, I felt like to show both sides of it, because, you know, there are both sides of it. I love where I grew up. And there's a lot of things I don't know about where I grew up. And I think it's important to showcase both, you know, maybe showcasing the bad, it'll help maybe move things forward, or make people more aware of, you know, the issues that Louisiana faces.

Thomas Mooney 6:46

Yeah, it's To me, it's the same, or it's a similar thing to the way I relate to West Texas, obviously, I love her exes. And, you know, there's plenty of stuff out here that you just, you know, that that makes you mad, you know, or angers you or at the very minimum makes you cringe or iral the because Oh, 100% there's so much stuff that you love about a place. And then there's that part where you know that that's not being showcased on the the tourism commercials, you know, 100% and that's where I feel like, you know, people have to at least be critical of that, for there to be any kind of progress. And, you know, I think you do a whole lot of that tough examination on on here. What? Yeah, you know, you mentioned like, you know, one, like, you didn't necessarily think you could write the songs, you know, five years ago, that you become a better writer. Does that also just come with with more confidence in knowing that? No, I can write about these tough subjects, and you know, that they're not going to be, you know, if there is criticism coming back to me? You know, I'm strong enough to, to take that on or, you know, I don't know, yeah, care about that part.

Rod Gator 8:12

Oh, yeah, definitely, no longer am worried about, you know, offending a certain demographic or whatever, you know, that, that comes with, that comes with doing it for a while too, and just, honestly, just not really caring too much about, you know, if I if I write a song that talks about issues I have with something and someone gets offended by it, you know, that's out of my control. So I think also, not really like worrying about, you know, offending a certain group of people or, you know, getting those aggressive, weird, like, social media posts or comments or whatever, you know, maybe 656 years ago, those things maybe would have affected me or would have made me, you know, uncomfortable or would have made me, you know, second guess ever, you know, putting that kind of material out, but, no, with age and with experience, you just, it's easier to not be affected by any of that, which is, you know, a great feeling. And it doesn't happen overnight, that's for sure.

Thomas Mooney 9:19

Right, you know, the, one of the big songs on here that, you know, just kind of like really kicks off the record is that August 29. song about Hurricane Katrina? Obviously, like, it's, it's been years since Hurricane Katrina happened, but, you know, were you living down there when that came through? Or were you

Rod Gator 9:41

I was Yeah, I was, uh, I was in 11th grade, I think. And I love it there or 12th grade and yeah, it was a mass mount. We were out of school for like two months and a lot of my people I know lost their homes and we're living in FEMA trailers. You know, when you're a kid, you're sort of, you know, inside while I'm out of school, you know, um, you know, you don't realize it till you get older, and you realize that terrible things that were taking place through the state, especially in New Orleans, you know, with the treatment of a lot of people there, especially the black community and their response time, and it's really just a very tragic and epic failure, you know what I mean?

Thomas Mooney 10:33

Right, that's the Yeah, I wasn't sure if, like, you had already graduated at that point or not. But

Rod Gator 10:40

I really, I was still, I remember,

Thomas Mooney 10:42

like, the media, the news coverage of Hurricane Katrina, just being really obviously slanted, like, there was no compassion or sympathy towards these people towards any person who is out there just lost their home, or had like, you know, temporarily been, had to be evacuated or weren't evacuated from where they were from. And, you know, these were the people who were out there. Stealing, right, they were they weren't survivors stealing, and they were, you know, they were, you know, in just the the entire, I guess, like the way the way these stories were being told, it's like, you know, this is blatant racism.

Rod Gator 11:28

And, you know, man, sadly, a lot has not changed. When you think about the news media last couple years covering the different protests, you know, one, it's, it's a large difference between, you know, certain demographics and the way they cover it and watch this. And what's that? I mean, we all saw the last couple of years, you know, it's a, we still have a long way to go. That's for sure. But, you know, you can just hope things keep moving forward is all Yeah, and do what you can.

Thomas Mooney 12:02

Yeah. Another, I guess, like image that I think a lot of people get when it comes to the hurricane, like a hurricane coming through is you I guess you have a lot of the people who go inland, who were able to like, you know, put up the, the wood on the windows and, and the sandbags and then drive away. Of course, that's not always the set A lot of people, the people we talk that we're just talking about, the lot of people who are poor, aren't able to they don't have that luxury. But, yeah, well, there's also like that community who just kind of like, We're not leaving.

Rod Gator 12:44

Sure, that exists area. What, uh, I feel like

Thomas Mooney 12:47

there's a little bit of that and in the song as well, that,

Rod Gator 12:51

yeah. When you've, they've, you know, people for generations, I've written storms, and a lot of people never leave that just sort of fight it out, you know, that's been going on for generations. They don't like the thought of leaving everything they weren't far behind. You know, it's kind of like, I'm going to go down with the ship I built, you know,

Thomas Mooney 13:15

where was where Where's been like your family as far as like, those lines go.

Rod Gator 13:22

They, we wrote out a decent amount, but Hurricane Katrina, and I think we just headed, you know, West, maybe on the border of Louisiana and Texas. But you know, we wrote out a bunch of them as a kid. But I think I remember Hurricane Katrina and Rita, we didn't stay home. And then when we came back, it was you know, we didn't have electricity for a month. But I definitely remember sleeping for that one. But you know, that's because we had the means we were able to we had the privilege to be able to do that. That's why it's frustrating when, you know, a lot of ignorant people will say things like, well, they could have left that they knew it was common, but, you know, it's hard for them to get into that mindset where a family or a person doesn't have the means to make a move like that, you know?

Thomas Mooney 14:12

Yeah, absolutely. It's a it's like the, you know, like, there's this, obviously, like a hurricane, I guess, like I've never dealt with, you know, any kind of weather like that the only kind of advisories that I was ever under as a kid was you know, the tornado warning and you know, icy roads and like it's gonna be super cold out but then you know, you know, you're not in West Texas, like the snow day would be we sometimes have that snow day where it was only just a couple inches, but it's because people don't know how to drive on. Yes, no. So but sure, you know, it's, I guess in those what my relationship to the talk even bring that up is because, you know, those things are very, very rapid. They happen quickly. And then obviously, they're kind of over pretty quickly. Yeah, true with with the hurricane, it feels like that's one of those things where, since it is slow approaching, in many ways that people get the get the sense that you had time to prepare. Like with the aftermath of it, where there's so much of the having to rebuild. Yeah, I mentioned being out of school for like, two months after Hurricane Katrina. What, uh, like, what's, what is that, like, in those months after where, you know, when not the the, the, the news is kind of already gone. But like, you know, there's still booms and there's still, you know, infrastructure needed to be rebuilt, and they're still needing all the other stuff that's attached to it. What is what's the aftermath? Like?

Rod Gator 16:00

Well, it's basically you know, especially like an open open wound pretty much, that takes a large amount of time to heal, and you hope it you know, heal successfully, because there's a lot of issues that come up and you have people with electricity, it's hot and humid outside, you know, I mean, there's so many issues that come along with no electricity. It's just the problem started to pile on after that. And it's obviously it's very uncomfortable. But you know, where I was at there wasn't there was there was flooding. Yeah, I mean, there were people that lost their houses and one of the FEMA trailers, we were in a trailer. Thankfully, we had a camper with a generator hooked up. So we weren't you know, we had we had something going on there. But it's tough man that's watching all that old footage of like, there's like that great Spike Lee documentary when the Levee Breaks that two part documentary. And it's, it's, it's really tragic to see these like, the images and the destruction. It's kind of like, you know, watching the like, recently with anniversary, Washington, Washington, like 911 footage, it's, it seems like, it's almost like this is like a CGI film or something like that. That kind of destruction, it's just hard to believe that happens. This is definitely Hurricane Katrina has definitely left a permanent scar on not just the Louisiana but you know, the nation as a whole, that's for sure. You hope that we've learned from it and their response time will always be a lot better than it was back then. And you you, you know, you hope you have good leadership when terrible things like that take play.

Thomas Mooney 17:45

Yeah, that's a that's one of those things where, you know, there's been pretty bad, awful things that have happened, natural disasters and terrorism that's happened in this country. We're, like, even just, you know, if we're talking about the pandemic, and it feels like, you know, with different leaders in place, things would have happened a lot better or that like, at least the aftermath would have been handled a lot easier would have been aware of more infrastructure. to, to come in and yeah, it's, uh,

Rod Gator 18:22

that's worst case scenario.

Thomas Mooney 18:24

Yeah, that's the not to necessarily just go so far and the the political world of Trump and stuff, but that's when I had friends who said that what's the worst that could happen if I voted for Trump? Yeah, that's where it was like I was. Well, I mean, I think we ended up it's the, you know, chaos theory if we're gonna go back to talking about Jurassic Park, you know. Exactly. So that's, that's the the things that I, I guess I point back to his stuff like that. But,

Rod Gator 18:57

yeah, it's just Nope. You have good leadership when terrible things like that happen when you don't really realize the importance of good leadership. That's for sure.

Thomas Mooney 19:10

This episode of new slang is brought to you by the blue light live here in Lubbock, Texas. Blue Light has long been the heart and soul of the Lubbock singer songwriter scene, and has been a home away from home for some of Texas Americana, country and rock and roll's finest over the years. Talk with 99.9% of the Songwriters who have come out of Lubbock and the panhandle at large over the past 20 years. And they'll point to just how integral and necessary the blue light is, with live music and touring slowly but surely coming back spots like the blue light or getting back to their usual ways as well. That means music every night of the week. Do you want to see that schedule? Well, I've got a few options for you. One, go to their socials and give them a follow that is at blue light. Live on Twitter, at the blue light live on Instagram. And of course, by just searching the blue light live on Facebook, they're consistently posting that week's lineup of shows, as well as those heavy hitters that ought to be on your calendar that are coming up on the horizon. To check out blue light lubbock.com as well, there, they have the full schedule, the cover charges, time, any of those specials that may be happening while they're go check out their merge page, they have a wide range of hats, koozies, hoodies, sweaters, beanies, jackets, and so much more. You can of course, get all of your merchant age, when you go see your favorite band, take the stage at blue light, just ask the bartender and they will get you all set. Speaking of which, that's another great way of seeing who's playing there, just go to the blue light. It's at 1806 Buddy Holly Avenue here in Lubbock, Texas. And of course, again, that is blue light, loving, calm. I'll throw a link into the show notes to maybe I'll see you there. Okay, let's get back to the show.

Speaking of stuff like that, when it comes to the producer, on this record, this is the second time you've been working with Adrian Adrian casada of black Pumas. And, from what I heard, this is like the first record that was recorded in that new electric Deluxe recorders studio. Yeah, what was a you know, like, obviously, you had success with pink Ville. As working with him, what, uh, you know, it felt it felt like a obviously kind of like a natural you know, team up again, if you will, for this one. Obviously, we're in we were in the middle of a pandemic, during during the recording of all that, though, what, what, uh, I guess, like, what was it that, you know, made sure, or ensured you knowing that like, he, you wanted to work with him again, this time around? And then of course, like, you know, recording in the studio, and what was there any other kind of, you know, yeah, more obstacles, and, and, you know, hoops the added jump through, just to record this time around. Yeah.

Rod Gator 22:26

Well, the fact that it was a pandemic meant that the payments tours were canceled. So obviously, Adrian, and the band had the time available to do the record, you know, otherwise, I'm not sure when we wouldn't have to kind of piece it together over over, you know, probably a pretty large timeframe. But it was just, you know, I had the subject matter figured out, I had a lot of the songs written I had the I had the structure with the interludes and the intro with the Katrina survivors, I had all that mapped out in my head. And so when Adrian and me first met about it, I knew Adrian was the guy to tackle this kind of subject matter. And he was the guy to tackle the sound. And I knew that I knew that he would get it, you know, the intro, the interlude. It's kind of you know, this is kind of a very kind of like, Rap Album structure. And Adrian, he just gets all that he he was a perfect choice for and obviously, will Walden co-producing. I do a lot of CO writing and writing will and it just was a great team. I'm in Durand on the keys. And we got Lauren and Angie singing on the record from the promos. And it was really, it was really a great experience. I mean, there was no hiccups. There was no nothing, I was pretty seamless. Like, we pretty much track the record and about a week, you know, we got a group of people like that it's just the process is real smooth when everyone's on the same page. And everyone's you know, cool. It's a it was a it was a great experience. And also being in that new studio was super cool. You know, it's i like i like the thought of being it being the first record that was recorded there. Yeah, it was a great experience, man, I'm glad it worked out. I'm glad we were able to record it. It's, it's always gonna be a trip looking back on those like, you know, behind the scenes studio photos, and everyone has mask on and what that's gonna be interesting to look back on.

Thomas Mooney 24:41

That's the, you know, you mentioned like the Pumas having like their tour, canceled, postponed, whatever, etc. People being kind of stuck at home. You know, I've I've heard of a few a handful of stories like this where, well you know, I have I had so and so on the record Because now they were also stuck at home. And, you know, I think a lot of records ended up being cut a lot quicker, just this past year, the last 14 months, just because you had all the people that you want it on the record in the same area, and you could get it done in a week or two or whatever the case, huh?

Rod Gator 25:23

Oh, that's true, man, that's definitely true.

Thomas Mooney 25:26

You mentioned how you kind of already had the record mapped out in your head kind of already planned, and knew kind of the structure that you were looking for? How long had you been working on, you know, on that process, as far as you know, not just like the songwriting, but the album making, if you will.

Rod Gator 25:49

I'm not sure how long it was exactly. Probably maybe like a year after the thingo album comes out came out. That's usually whenever I start kind of like, you know, started thinking about the next thing. And I knew I wanted to tackle some different subject matter. And I was listening to a lot of, not of my, a lot of my heroes, and the people I looked up to they, you know, they crossed over into that political realm and wrote a lot of material about that now, like I was saying, I always wanted to, but I just didn't feel like I was ready or had the confidence or was there like writing wise to be able to do it. But usually over the course of like, month, or it's, it's kind of hard to explain, honestly. But I'll just be laying there at night and have some sort of, you know, like, Whoa, what if I have this intro with is like, sort of get some clips out clips of survivors. And then I started thinking about having the interludes always, like records that have interludes, you know, it's kind of like theater a little bit. And so I had an image of like, a young boy stranded on a rooftop after Katrina and the waters rushing around them. And I told that the urine, like, I was like, What do you think that would sound like? And then he sent me the, he wrote the interlude for the storm coming in. So that's a fun process. Yeah. And that's kind of the same thing I do. It will also they're both very, like visual, you know, musicians. And obviously, I'm very visual person. So I kind of pitched this idea to them, like, what would this sound like? Like the, you know, the pink vil intro? You know, like, This puts us in the jungle, they're walking slowly. They're, you know, they're, there's some nervousness in there. What would that sound like? You know, I'm glad I found people like john and will, and Adrian people that kind of, you know, understand where I'm coming from, and they get it, you know, which is, which is, you know, not everyone is down.

Thomas Mooney 27:57

Yeah, like, there's, there's a lot to it, I kind of figured you were this kind of writer anyways, where, you know, I think when we talk about songwriting, a lot of times, we're just talking about, you know, when you picked up the instrument, you play and started writing down the words, but it doesn't really work like that. For a lot of folks, there's like, that period before where you mentioned, you just kind of had your laying there at night, and you're just aren't you just thinking about songs or characters? And, you know, are you writing per se? Not necessarily, but you're like creating? Yeah, I

Rod Gator 28:34

mean, you totally are, yeah, you're definitely like forming the, you know, the ideas there. And, you know, that's what they claim is the hardest part is the initial idea. And I never had a shortage of those. So just after that's formed, you know, then start piecing together whether it's, I'm writing it myself on my guitar keyboard, or if I'm, you know, teaming up with Willard Juran, it always kind of starts that way, just as an idea that randomly pops up. You know, now I've got, you know, my, my video ideas, I just sort of, apparently just never never ended. So it's, it's, yeah, it's interesting, man, I, you know, I feel like I can, I can definitely consider that, you know, writing, that's for sure.

Thomas Mooney 29:29

Yeah, that Well, there's a process the Yeah, the, the character building or the world building is what I can't exactly what what it really is, is the because, you know, obviously, you have a song and you have not necessarily set parameters on what a song can or is, but, you know, five minutes to tell a story or whatever the case is, and exactly, a lot of times I wonder like, you know, doo doo doo artists have 15 minutes, 20 minutes of story. And then that, you know, you end up by cutting it down, you end up like shaving off the parts that aren't necessary. And even if like, some of it may be good, you sometimes end up cutting back just because you know, you're fitting into a song and it's not a short story or something.

Rod Gator 30:19

Yeah, it's all about right, it's all about raining again, really, like it can kind of it can, it can hurt to have to cut certain things out. But I've learned, you know, from years of doing this, that it's best to leave some of it on the credit room floor, kind of leave some more up to the imagination and whatnot. You know, my gears are always grinding, man, sometimes they grind a little too fast. So I'm always I currently got a home myself in and just sort of focus on what I'm working on, and put all my energy into that one thing, instead of trying to have 10 things on my mind, it's really just all about trying to focus in on, you know, one idea. And, you know, I got, I started from a depression, so that can be that can be, you know, easier said than done. But once I once I zone in on something, you know, like I'm zoning in on, you know, where does the intro or songs or lyrics, you know, it's all about kind of being in the zone is kind of a, it's kind of a mysterious thing, for sure. But it's all about kind of getting getting in the zone and getting your mojo going. And that's when, you know, as I guess they would say, when you're when you're like on one Really?

Thomas Mooney 31:42

Yeah, well, that's the that's so interesting, because I feel, you know, that's one of those things like we, we don't talk about as far as the, the the romanticism of songwriting is getting to that, right there, where, or just creation in general. Because, like, by no means, am I a songwriter, or anything. But while I'm working on something, sometimes it takes forever to just get to that point where I've kind of forgotten that I'm working. And I feel Oh, yeah, there's something to that, where it's such a like, it's like a little, it's a fragile bubble, that someone can just run at any moment. But like, You're, you're deep into it. And that's why like, you know, you have the the signs up, like the please don't know, and please come ring the doorbell or call me or whatever. Because

Rod Gator 32:39

it can ride that wave, man, that wave is like in just the slightest thing will cause you to tip over, but when you're on and it's like, just such a mess. It's like a beautiful feeling. And when you're just in the zone and all this like while three hours have gone by.

Thomas Mooney 32:54

Yeah, well, is there like a song on here? That that you vividly remember kind of having that, that rush that high? were, you know, in the maturity, kind of like, just run that wave? And then like afterwards? Oh, my God, where did the time go by? Yeah,

Rod Gator 33:11

so that song, that song idle hands, it's on the record, aging, we were already recording the studio. And he had this riff that he came up with. He had been telling me about it for a couple months. And so he recorded himself playing the riff. And then he was like, yeah, you know, see if you can come up with some lyrics to it. So that night, you know, I was all upset about the, you know, the the protests that, you know, the George Floyd, things, I was reading people back home, say just all these things have been just on my mind. And so I went out on the porch steps it was it was at night, and I listened to the riff over and over again, I just, you know, I wrote, I wrote it all out, I wrote the whole song out right there. Like, in my tank top kind of like hustle and flow turns Howard style, just frustrated and sitting there on the steps and just, you know, I wrote the whole thing just out there. So then I was pumped up, I came to the studio The next day, and, you know, I just, I laid it down. And it was an amazing feeling. It's like, you know, it's just, and then to see everyone's reaction in the studio, they really, you know, they loved it. They loved the lyrics, they love the kind of melody, our creative freedom course is the feeling that can't be too hot. It makes it all worth it honestly, whenever you because, you know, we can all be so hard on ourselves. And this is a terrible business, but it's the business we're all in. I mean, it's there's, there's no plan B at this point. I mean, I'm fucking 33 years old, what am I going to do? What What am I going to do at this point? So it's just those moments like that you just live for a man in your home. More and more of them, you know, happen. But yeah, writing process is a beautiful thing, especially when everything clicks, and especially when it becomes a therapeutic thing when you all this frustrations and all these things that have been on your mind and then you know, beaten you down, you just sit down and put it all into something. You know, it doesn't really get more therapeutic.

Thomas Mooney 35:24

Yeah, no, absolutely. And you mentioned hustle and flow there, right there. That's like a, you know, that's, I don't know, I feel like one. I guess like, after I watched that, for the first time, I kind of thought that that was gonna be one of these movies we kind of return to or like it was gonna be like, but it's kind of like with with time, it's become super underrated.

Rod Gator 35:50

I'd say it's one of the greatest movie music movies of all time, as far as like the drive and the, you know, quote unquote, hustle that. I mean, the music business is one big hustle. And you have to stay focused. And you know, you have to keep blinders on while you're gone. Like you can't be worried about what other people already on what kind of, you know, what, what other people will put Now what this person's do, and this person success climbing up the ladder a lot faster than you whatever it is. You can't get involved or sucked in all that. And I know it's easier said than done. But you just a lot of artists that I know that you get so wrapped up in that worrying about what other people are doing and you know, just use end up being stagnant. You got to just keep moving forward and focus on yourself. Focus on your work. Focus on your mental health. So you're staying in check. And just work hard and, and you know, long story short, don't be an asshole.

Thomas Mooney 36:52

Yeah, that's the that's a big thing right there. That's the, you know, I think like, you know, obviously we we've all run into people who are assholes in our life. But sure, I think that like to be an asshole in the music industry. You have to be like, the point 00000 1% up on top to, to be like, yeah, that big of an asshole where everyone just kind of gives you the benefit of the doubt, because it just makes everything so much smoother and easier.

Rod Gator 37:28

Yeah, I mean, the only person that ends up looking like an asshole is the alpha. It's like, it's, you know, the sheer amount of shit. People talk online and whatnot. The only person that looks insecure is the person talking to shit. It's like it's a it's a wild thing, man. And you know, when I was younger, I'm sure I fucking engaged in shit talking and talking, you know, all this stuff. And you just hope you grow. You just hope people grow out of it. But yeah, I think that's an I think that's an important thing. Not to just to really focus on yourself and know what everyone else is doing. Because? And who close? Yeah, well, that's the it's a tough business be happy when someone has some breaks? Yeah,

Thomas Mooney 38:17

well, that's what I was. That's the like, the keeping up with the Joneses Joneses aspect of, of, of the music industry. Obviously, with social media like that. That's what in a lot of ways, that's what we ended up making social media about is the is, you know, just showing off all your wins, right. Sure, to quote a clubhouse thing, what what's your win of the day kind of thing. But, you know, I was, like, there's, you know, back in the day when, when there wasn't social media back in the the 50s. And the 60s, when there was just so little news about these artists. I wonder if, like, if there was if people were having the same issues with keeping up with the Joneses, even even if there was, you know, I don't know, you know what I mean? Like, I wonder if

Rod Gator 39:13

Yeah, I guess maybe comparing house sizes or something. But other than that, it's like, everyone was probably just too busy hustling. Everyone was too busy, you know. And also another thing is, people were actually making money on records back then, too.

Thomas Mooney 39:27

Yeah. Well, that's, that's very true. I wonder if it's like all tied to, we always we kind of all think of the every musician back in the 50s 60s and 70s. Is there being this? At least bare minimum? minimum, a little bit of, of mystery to them?

Rod Gator 39:45

You know what I mean? Yeah, that's kind of fun. You can't do that nowadays.

Thomas Mooney 39:49

Yeah, like now. It's like, we're, you're just tempted to show off the inside of your life, even though you're not sure The worst parts are like even just the, the mundane, you know, no one's showing me, you know, the the 12 hours of binge watching of insert TV show here on a weekend you know, so it's, it's interesting. Yeah. This episode is in part brought to you by Charlie stout photography, Charlie stout has long been a great buddy of mine. And for as long as I've known him, he's always had a good eye, a good eye for ideas for lines and a song. And notably, an eye for what makes a great photograph. Yes, we're gonna roll with that tried and true cliche about a great photographer, having a good eye. But it's cliche for a reason, more often than not means it's true. Right now, I want y'all to head on over to Charlie stout.com. To get an idea of what I'm talking about. While you're at it, go give him a follow on Instagram and Twitter at Troy stout. Right now he has about 50 photographs for sale on Charlie style.com. With a vast majority of those being landscapes and sky shots of West Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, the American Southwest, if you will, a lot of cacti and clouds, windmills and open roads, sunsets and Stardust, he captures a lot of what I love about West Texas and these dry arid climates. That's mainly that vast emptiness that can really make you feel small, the depth and the way the intensity, it's all in there. Right now he's doing a special on his prints. Each week, he releases a new photo. And for one week, only that photograph is at a special introductory rate, for just $25, you'll get an eight and a half by 11. That's just about half off the regular price 475, you can get a 13 by 19. And for 110, you can get a 17 by 22. After the week, they go back to regular prices, which are still an absolute Still, if you ask me. Also just a pro tip, keep an watchful eye out on his Twitter, he's consistently posting one offs, errors and randoms on there that are for sale that are in the flash sell variety. Again, that is at Charlie stout for Twitter and Instagram, head on over to Charlie stout.com, grab a signed print, buy a record, get yourself some major sounds and some nature shots. Alright, let's get back to the episode. Back to to how, you know on this record, like the song like chicken Hawk. You you've you've talked about, you know, these characters like like in that song in relation to to a song like Westgate, were going to and being put in these these wars in the Middle East. And these conflicts that have lasted, you know, two decades now. Yeah. And really, they've been part of our generation where a lot of you know, poor kids are being sent off the war, or just for like political issues like for political gain, as far as, you know, oil and pressure and all kinds of all that kind of stuff. Yeah, there's there's not been a lot of, I guess there has probably been plenty of plenty of great songs about the last couple of years of the these wars in the Middle East when it comes to, like reckless Kelly, or Stever or anyone like that Springsteen obviously comes to mind. But, you know, I don't know if there's been anyone around our age or younger who have have talked about that some of these characters. Yeah, that's another one of the one of these subjects that aren't necessarily easy to write about. What is what is it to, I guess, kind of a getting kind of that mindset of writing about some characters who are veterans? Yeah. And then also, you know, like, Where's some of that inspiration coming from? Where are you pulling from, I guess?

Rod Gator 44:19

Yeah. Well, you know, my hometown, a lot of guys signed up, guys came up, all fucked up, like those are all things I witnessed, personally, on a personal level. And just also, you know, the ongoing, you know, war, sand that went on for 20 years. We're not pulled out but you know, unwinnable war that went on for far too long, and a lot of people died. And as far as, you know, inspiration, I was just thinking about all the phones that existed in the 60s and 70s. Well, you know, Vietnam War was happening like fortunate Son, and then in the aftermath of those war, you had like Springsteen's born in the USA. And, you know, there hasn't really been that many, you know, songs written about Afghanistan or the modern, you know, things that people were dealing with, and I kind of wanted to, you know, kind of pursue something like that.

Thomas Mooney 45:23

Yeah. Oh, yeah, it's the, you know, no war should be like, considered, you know, a Forgotten War, anything like that. But in American history, we kind of gloss over the Korean War, we kind of gloss over the last, you know, again, last two decades of, of this, these wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war on terror, quote, unquote, where, you know, it just, we're kind of just we kind of gloss over the the collateral damage of these, you know, when men and women are coming back and just kind of, obviously dealing with a lot of issues that that are that weren't necessarily needed them, we didn't need them to go through that stuff, you know. Sure. And it's, it's one of those things where I guess maybe, I'm sure you've felt this pressure to this weird pressure of you know, we were we were kind of we grew up in this era of if you aren't with us or against us, and how do you share support the the truth and not support the war? You know, it's such a weird place to be be told that you know, you can't be

Unknown Speaker 46:44

yeah

Rod Gator 46:48

well, I think there's you know, I think there's nothing more patriotic than wanting your country to be the best he can be like people try to call Springsteen unpatriotic you know, born in USA is an extremely patriotic song. It's he wants to he wants America to be the best that can be you know, you got to there's a lot of things that have to change in order for us to get there but you know, a lot of people like to call criticize, you know, criticizing your country unpatriotic, but I think it's quite the opposite. You know?

Thomas Mooney 47:19

No, I agree with you on that. It's, it goes back to this kind of what you're talking about on the record in general about your home? Yeah, sure. But more state focused and, and regional focused, but if you pull back out a little bit, it's the same thing in my opinion.

Rod Gator 47:38

100%

Thomas Mooney 47:41

Yeah, you've earlier you kind of mentioned some of the more lighthearted characters that you've created in part of, of the rollout of this record. I've shown some to some family and honestly, like my grandmother was laughing ridiculous. Too much at our you outlaw country. And I feel like maybe these characters

Rod Gator 48:10

ad I'm just laying in bed. I'm like, won't be funny. This guy's like, you know, really tough looking guy with the biker jacket and all of a sudden the last shot we pull out and he's just like, in little like, you know, shorts or underwear.

Thomas Mooney 48:24

That one's great. The the 80s dance, the the hate dance montage.

Rod Gator 48:31

Oh, yeah. The Spotify frustration? Well, you know, that's just turning a tragedy into a comedy man. So this,

Thomas Mooney 48:39

yeah,

Rod Gator 48:40

so, therapeutic thing to do.

Thomas Mooney 48:43

I'm gonna put you on the spot right here. I don't know if you have the answer. offhand. But, like, what's your What is your favorite? You know? 80s you know? teenage angsty dance montage from

Rod Gator 48:59

100% I mean, footless is the that is the quintessential angry dance. I mean, it's always referenced. I mean, the guy shows up at the at the abandoned warehouse before you know what he's like swinging on a chain from one side to the other. I mean, it gets so over the top, but I feel like it's like you know, the 80s frustration dance for sure. It's the one

Thomas Mooney 49:21

yeah, that's that's the one that popped in. pops. It pops up for me as well. But I don't know if you had like a I don't know, like an underrated cut. Coming up.

Rod Gator 49:30

I mean, the rocky montage is are awesome too. But that's more of like, you know, he's like doing his thing. He's more like sports oriented. But the best things about montage is the songs because they can be about as ridiculous as they can be. Yeah, the song from that I got from this. This, this bike racing movie called rad is a 80s bike racing movie like BMX bike racing like dirt tracks. called rad so check that out. Oh, I'm gonna go look it up now those hot rod dudes, we're definitely like watching that and like because one of the songs from rad is in hot rod is not the one I use, but it's a different one. But yeah, pretty good.

Thomas Mooney 50:16

The one my favorite stupid montage is from Scarface

Rod Gator 50:21

taking a prime example. He's got a tiger at one point. Yeah.

Thomas Mooney 50:25

It starts out what's so beautiful about that. One is it starts out with them counting the money, so you just hear the money. And then it goes into beautiful, yeah, this

Rod Gator 50:36

is a classroom. Brian dipalma you get those synthesize ABS pump up songs going? Are you capable of anything?

Thomas Mooney 50:44

Yeah, I think last time we talked about Michael Mann. But there's been a couple of podcasts that have probably have sent over to you on the rewatchable about man hunter and I don't know if I sent you the heat one.

Rod Gator 51:02

But classic. Classic.

Thomas Mooney 51:06

I've not sent you the new one. This new one that I was going to tell you about but that is they read they did on rewatchable. One I can't remember who it is what what it's called but like the an early two part episode of Miami Vice.

Rod Gator 51:25

Yeah, he's the Creator.

Thomas Mooney 51:27

Yeah. And it's that right there too is I've been telling you I've been like a you Miami Vice that just in the last couple weeks, actually. Because you saw that in the air tonight. montage. That one right? There is such a

Rod Gator 51:40

amazing dude. He calls up his ex wife. He's like, dude, I just need to know that what we had was real. Because he's about to go, you know, in this big shootout where you might not make it out. So it's cruzan called Zacks. That's a classic pillar. I'm glad you're bringing that up because I haven't thought about it in a while.

Thomas Mooney 51:56

Yeah, they're the the camera placement on like the car wheels. And like the hood is awesome. Just rolling down Miami. And then you of course, just casually load in the shotgun. You know?

Rod Gator 52:12

Yeah, that's a great soundtrack by john hammer, Jan hammer. And one of my favorite is crocketts theme, which is a great piece from that show. Like, that soundtrack kicks ass.

Thomas Mooney 52:24

What they were talking about. On that episode was how I get like, this is like the first modern TV show.

Rod Gator 52:33

Because Sure, yeah, but there's really realness and stuff.

Thomas Mooney 52:35

Yeah. And it feels like a movie. You know, there's an Of course that's what because man comes from a movie world. And I think like that's looking for. But there they were even talking about how, you know, like a show like cheers is on a couple years before get started a couple years before and it still has that 70s makeup like that's the that's what early chairs was like, but of course, you know. Miami Vice happened. Yeah, it just the the cultural significance of a of a show like that. Just changes. Yeah. So

Rod Gator 53:15

yeah, so amazing series manner. That soundtrack when I was a kid, I used to Blair. There's another thing I've been thinking about the last couple of days when I found out we were doing this podcast. It's a story that I've never told publicly before. And I felt like he might be the guy to hear it. And release it.

Thomas Mooney 53:43

Yeah, let's hear it.

Rod Gator 53:46

So it has to do with you. Have you seen the parody music video. So we were shooting that was like, what, five years ago something like that. And Kansas City. And it was the scene where we're robbing this Chinese restaurant. We it's three of us. We got the pantyhose on our head and stuff, you know, the yellow jackets. We got these prop guns. I got like a sawed off shotgun prop gun. So we show up to the place. And the director asked the manager who was who was, you know, kind of who worked at the restaurant. He was the only employee there that night. They opened it after hours. So he's like, did you let the police know that we were shooting in this robbery scene? He said yeah, I did it. I took care of it. So we're like cool, you know? So we started shooting this thing you know, and I'm really getting into it. You know, I'm yelling we come in I'm yelling like where's the fucking money? I'm really taking advantage I'm getting to do this site robbery singing this is kind of like a fantasy for me right? So I'm doing that we're doing it and if me and then Dave you please Perry that like tall dude with the tattoos. There was another guy I think his name was Patrick, he was more quiet, you know, on the on the on the set, you know, he was he was into it he was doing a good job but you know he was a little more conservative right? So in the scene when we come in he his job was to watch the door like his character is watching the door to make sure no one's coming. So this is like the fourth or fifth take and I'm Yellin and we're pointing guns at the cash register. And all of a sudden, the new Patrick sees like cops, cops. And so I'm like, Oh, fuck yeah, the students finally like getting into it just getting, like getting into some method level stuff. This guy's finally coming alive in this shot, you know? And he's like, no cops, cops. And I look and there's six police officers pointing their guns at him outside. And so I'm like, Oh, shit. They're like, put the gun down. So he's put the gun down and they just barge in and they're all pointing their guns at me. And they're like, get the fuck down. So I just I lay down and I glance up and I just see all these like, you know, shoes and beaches pouring into this restaurant. And I can hear them just wrestling. Did my buddy David who plays Perry tiller ground and they're the CLA like everybody kicked off. I'm like, holy shit, this is crazy. You know? So they handcuff all three of us. And they put us in these chairs and in the restaurant, you know, lobby we're all sitting and there's like this out of breath. Like, you know, Sheriff q that was running He's like, man, we can't go I don't realize how close y'all came to getting shot. We were gonna come in here and just start shooting and y'all didn't see us all those times waiting on the corner like why y'all were coming in and out? We're like, no now like, you know, the pasture guy was like hyperventilating right. And so they we keep calling him it's a music video right? Like the music video director kept saying this video it's a video and they weren't having it right. And so they take off Davies mask his pantyhose mass. And you know, though, they take off patch the other guy's pantyhose mouth. So they take off my pantyhose masks, and my hair just falls perfectly into my face, kind of like Han Solo or something. I know. Yeah, this is a music video. So this whole thing's taking place. And, you know, they're like, once again, they're like, Oh, you know what, we came so close to come in here and shooting everyone. And I and I had a very Han Solo moment. And I said, I think this is all just a testament to our acting. And thankfully, everyone started laughing. But, you know, after the cops left and everything, we all had this moment where we like got together outside kind of like, you know, I Know What You Did Last Summer. So we were like Bucky never talked about this, like, you know, the director could get, you know, in trouble if we found out people were in danger and but, you know, I feel like it's been like five or six years. And I feel like, I feel like the story is too good not to be told. And I don't think there's gonna be any, you know, professions or anything, but yeah, man, that's a story that I've held on to basically, I can say, I know how it feels to have five guns pointing at you.

Thomas Mooney 58:31

Yeah, that's some like, it's one of those things where obviously there's like a holy shit comical aspect to it. But I mean, that's something that like, one jumpy finger changes the entire

Rod Gator 58:46

Yeah, I mean, if I would have slightly moved up my extremely prop looking sawn off shotgun, they would have blew me to pieces. You know, that would have been kind of a cool way to go out. It's kind of an effing gateway to go out. You know, who ends up looking like assholes as them because they shut up. Clearly a music video shoot when we got were Penny O's on our heads. I don't know. I wonder if anyone's ever Well, I guess someone had to rob the place with pantyhose on their head before but yeah, we're clearly shooting a music video. Yeah, it's crazy, man.

Thomas Mooney 59:19

What I what I kind of go back to is you saying that they were saying you didn't see us on the corner as you guys are going in and out?

Rod Gator 59:27

Yeah, they like that information. like,

Thomas Mooney 59:31

Well, for starters, I mean, like, who robs a place and then goes back in and out like,

Rod Gator 59:35

exactly, dude. That's what I'm saying. It was just like, I was killed by a bunch of incompetent like, Goofy white dude is like this. And you know what else? You know, it was kind of a scary moment for me was the guy that was in front of me, you know, right in front of me pointing the gun at me. He looked scared out of his mind. You know? So that's never a good sign.

Thomas Mooney 1:00:02

No, absolutely. Yeah, the Yeah, that's not a not good. And Davey

Rod Gator 1:00:07

the guy that plays period they put a they put a need to his back and put them on the ground. But he said that's no big deal. That's what cops do every time they arrest me. Cuz he's so tall. They don't even ask questions. They just go straight for it. Yeah, get on down.

Thomas Mooney 1:00:23

Man, that's That's intense. I want to break one more time to talk about our pals over at Desert door and offer up a quick Thomas Mooney, cocktail minute, as I've said probably 100 times by now, by no means, am I a seasoned mixologist or bartender, but these have been some of my desert door go twos. For starters, let's just go with the tried and true range water. pop the top off the topo Chico. Take a good swig. Now pour in some desert door and top it off by throwing in a few lime wedges never fails. This one. It's so simple. It probably doesn't even count. But again, pretty foolproof. do the exact same thing. But get you a Mexican Coca Cola. I guess you can go with a regular one. But you're really cutting yourself short if you don't opt for the Mexican import variety. All right, here's the change up you've been waiting for. Desert door sangria. This one is prime for when you have company coming over and you aren't wanting to just be over there making six different drinks at a time. What you'll need is some desert door. Obviously, a bottle of red wine, honey, boiling water, apple cider, apple cider vinegar, some cinnamon sticks, a couple of apples and some time sprigs. I know that may sound intimidating, but trust me it's worth the prep. And honestly, it's pretty easy. For starters, get you a Punchbowl. Add that honey, those cinnamon sticks and the boiling water together. Now you're going to want to stir that all up and let it cool down for about an hour. So remember, patience is a virtue. Once that's done, add some desert door and stir vigorously. Now add the one the cider and the vinegar and continue stirring until it's equally mixed. Now slice those apples up and toss them in. Put in those time sprigs as well. Now you can pour that over some ice and you have a modified sangria chef's kiss. Anyway, those have been some of my favorite go twos as of light. And remember desert door is as versatile as vodka and more refined, smooth, complex and intriguing than tequila. It's rich and balanced. And whether you decide to keep it simple or want to experiment desert door is that perfect Texas spirit there's plenty more recipes over at Desert door.com as well check out the show notes for a link All right, let's get back to the episode. I think we always have to have at least a little bit of this in here. Last time we talked True Detective season three was not out yeah and so you know that that right there the season three of True Detective we need like five minutes of of that. Were like obviously that that that season right there was so I don't know like it felt it. First off. I love it. But like that one right there, I feel is like been the slow burn as far as like kind of rethinking about things on that season. What were you What are you kind of like your general thoughts of him?

Rod Gator 1:03:41

I enjoyed it. I mean, I enjoyed it. Definitely. You know, I you know, definitely had a similar format to the first season but the acting was great. The writing was cool. You know, it was nice to see you know, Stephen dorff have a have a moment of being able to showcase his acting chops. marisha Lee, obviously an amazing actor. I love that they gave him that Wesley Snipes blade like haircut during the 90s decade. I thought that was pretty sweet. And they had great soundtracks. I mean, the very first, the very end of the very first episode as the making Newbery just checked in. Yeah, that's that. So obviously, you know, we got warranty Vaughn at one point and I was bummed, this is what I was bummed out about. So my buddy Tristan Matthews, he was the executive producer on the show. And he actually gave me as a gift one of the one of the like, straw down clues, gave me one so I own one of those, which is pretty cool. But so the guy who directed the green room, and blue ruin movie. He directs the first episode, any directed part of the second episode, even though he's credited for the second episode, But he was supposed to direct the entire series the same way. Cary Fukunaga did right. And him and that director and Nick fizzle Otto weren't seeing eye to eye and they were bashing heads. And it caused a lot. Oh, they ended up firing a director. And Tristan told me everyone and everyone in the crew is really bummed out. So you know, there's no, there's part of me deep down, that was always bummed out that that didn't work out, because that guy is really a great director. And whenever you start having different direct, I mean, it's the thing about True Detective, especially Season One is how smooth the series flows. Because you got the same director, you got same crew, you got the same everything, you know, but then there's tons of shows that don't do that, like Breaking Bad, the wire, things like that. But all that being said, I did enjoy, I did enjoy the season three for the most part, especially like the very last shot. Anytime you got mahershala and something I mean, you know, this is amazing. And Stephen dorff was amazing in it, too.

Thomas Mooney 1:06:05

Yeah, the there's very, there's something like that first season, of course, it's so singular, to singular vision in many respects. Were season two, I believe. I guess it's probably like eight episodes. And I think there was four directors where each of them got two episodes. And so yeah, if there was like, you know, I'm one of these people who's like, probably a season two apologist. I mean, there's problems with it.

Rod Gator 1:06:33

How am girls amazing? Exactly. It's, it's

Thomas Mooney 1:06:37

a great, I think it's still great TV, but when you're comparing it to season one, that's where people end up having problems with it. But you know, the, what I what I point to is, like the when it comes to the directing, there was not the same payoffs in season one, because like, you know, if you got the same director directing episode one and eight, you had like, offs of like, these certain kind of scenes, or the certain kind of the way the camera was rolling across something that you could go on, oh, shit, that's a callback, though. You know, when this happened, and there was really not that same kind of vibe on season two. And that's where you kind of go, you know, I think season three, though, there was some more of that stuff written back in though, or actually kind of mapped out because obviously, there's some ties to season one. But I kind of feel like one of the one of the things I liked about season three was the, you know, if season one builds up all this like mystery in the boogeyman at the end, you know, the the season three was just kind of like sometimes it's just, it there isn't? Sometimes it's just like, Yeah, not there's not the, you know, there's not a, you know, a giant monster at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes it's just happenstance. And

Rod Gator 1:08:08

I like that, too. Yeah. So it's just as effective for sure. Yeah, cause more.

Thomas Mooney 1:08:17

Yeah, that's the, I can't remember if I threw this theory out there for you on season two. People always talk about how dragging it was. I wonder if that was like, one of the themes of the show. Was that like, you know, it's the life gets in the way. Like, there's just little things that end up like making it where you don't get those clean getaways in that relationship or that comparison to like, No Country for Old Men, where just stuff gets in the way and there's there is no clean getaway. I wonder if that's an aspect of that show that we're just kind of maybe not talking

Rod Gator 1:08:56

like that. So Nathan lotto has a cool, there's a cool movie that I think's underrated, that he wrote when he wrote the novel to Tom Galveston. That's pretty cool. Ben Foster and one of the sanding girls. Yeah, it's pretty good.

Thomas Mooney 1:09:13

Yeah, it's not read Galveston, but I need to pick that up

Rod Gator 1:09:18

strongly for ego. Because he wrote it before to Texas.

Thomas Mooney 1:09:25

Where we're in relation is Is he from compared to you

Rod Gator 1:09:30

this from like Charles, which is pretty close. Like Charles is willing to go ahead and harbor that hurricane this year. There is something like 45 to 50 minutes away from where I grew up. But yeah, it's all that he's wrote this new movie that Jake Gyllenhaal really called the call or is like a 911 dispatcher. Oh, dang. Yeah, I feel that is

Thomas Mooney 1:09:57

about getting caught up with them. I'm not You know been looking on the nail I am on anything the one thing I that I guess he was like a rider on the killer no what I was gonna say was the the magnificent or yeah the magnificent said oh yeah,

Rod Gator 1:10:16

exactly this the same director that's doing that call in movie and I'm not you know that do direct and train day which is great movie but a lot of hitter mass is recent years. So we'll see.

Thomas Mooney 1:10:31

You can tell like that there's clearly like an intensity just by watching like any of the the interviews he's done, you know? And that's like part of the reason why I think like True Detective has been so successful is because of that diversity of like, just the the careful appreciation of every aspect. So we'll see.

Rod Gator 1:10:54

No, you're right.

Thomas Mooney 1:10:55

The has there any has there been any other film or? Or TV that you've

Rod Gator 1:11:02

did? I've just been oh my i just you know, I come and go to my be movie. fandom just kicks in hardcore. I've been watching so much random stuff. And you know, I kind of fluctuate so much. I've been watching the spike lee documentary series even putting out every Sunday that's really amazing about New York City. I randomly watched john waters his hairspray from the 80s with Ricki Lake. Super fuckin Awesome. Cool political commentary, cool songs. You know, so I went down and john waters rabbit hole that I went through, you know, always come back to David Lynch, for some for you know, I used to read up on all these guys just read up on what they were doing. When they were my age. I read up on how they got their start. What was their first movie? Okay, David Lynch was 33 when he put out a raise your head, okay. I'm just like, I just consume all this information. Because it's also like, inspiring to me, you know? Yeah, that's the inspired inspiration. Put some wind into yourself. You know,

Thomas Mooney 1:12:12

yeah, the specifically whenever the age thing comes up, because that's a big one for me, too. You know, I always point back to Terry Allen, luck on everything. He put that out at 35. And that's always been Yeah, it's like, well, there's, there's time to do something, you know, there's always time. There is, you know, yeah. There's, there's time to, to be able to do something amazing, you know, so

Rod Gator 1:12:43

you hone your skills. You focus on yourself, like I was saying, you know, it's just kind of Don't be so hard on yourself and focus on yourself, focus on your craft, or whatever you want to call it. Yeah, I started, I started the pandemic as a very, you know, serious singer songwriter. And I came out of it as like, a weird Roger Corman type character, you really never know what's gonna happen. I really never know how things are gonna, you know. And it's, it's kind of crazy that I basically had to change my name to feel more like myself. You know, no longer trying to be a serious singer, songwriter guy. I mean, I take myself seriously, but it was a lot of other other aspects to me. You know, that how much I love film and not always be a fear, kid at heart, you know? So, making all these videos and getting back in touch with that know, when I was a teenager, that's all I did was make my own movies and do my own stuff and getting in touch with that, again, that's just been such a therapeutic and fun thing. And then seeing people's reactions, people getting invested in the celiac storylines and coming up with Yeah, I posted on Facebook, which you know, is a pretty predominantly, you know, conservative outlet. I posted Hey, please, everyone get vaccinated, and someone posted. Hey, why don't you stick to finding rod Gator as an RA Gator was being hostage? And I was like, instead of being pissed off, I was like, Well, you know, they're invested in my little storyline, I

Thomas Mooney 1:14:27

guess. Yeah. It's It is funny, like, there's this, obviously with all that, but you've all you've been one of these guys you just mentioned. You know, the music video aspect. You've always heard her cinematic music videos. That's true. And of course you got this new one with August 29. That's very, very heavy and deep and cinematic. It's

Rod Gator 1:14:57

100,000 views

Thomas Mooney 1:15:01

Yeah, what was a? Wouldn't when it comes to like a set like that, you know, for music video? What's the kind of like the preparation? I don't know, I've never obviously,

Rod Gator 1:15:09

well, that guy, the director, he had to work with the budget we had, you know, we didn't have a budget. And so he built that floated and set himself, he spent two weeks out on that location. And he built a small room that you can flood with water kneehigh, I mean, the guy who built it all himself, Josh for dosco. And I'm glad that he was we were able to use him because he was doing all these criminals for me for free. Because we like doing them. But also, you know, there wasn't a budget for like, when I did that Friday 13th promo thing or when I did that snake plissken, or that shiny thing that was all jar. So it was nice to get them on the official music video where he was actually like, paid. And I believed in him because I worked with him so much. And I'm you know, I'm a fan of what he does. So I'm glad that videos getting love like it is because he deserves it. He's a great director and cinematographer. So, but yeah, it's important for people to know he built that set all by himself.

Thomas Mooney 1:16:11

Yeah, that's, that's, that's amazing. It's all those little things like, I mean, that's obviously a huge thing. But it's all those things like that, that I you know, the prop building aspects of, of cinema or of music videos, and just videos in general. Those are the underrated that we never, we don't ever think about those people.

Rod Gator 1:16:36

Joe, Bob Briggs has a Texas Monthly article all about Toby Hooper and the making of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I mean, it's it's very long essay, and it's really amazing, I'd recommend people reading. The thing is he goes by john Blum and and he goes by his actual name, but his har host Joe Bob Berg, and it's inspiring to read about this, like young filmmaker from Austin, like casting these actors and actresses from UT. And you know, really, like, kind of working on the fly and building the sets for a small crew. And, you know, it's an exchange about maskers now known as a hard classic, so, and just a classic movie in general. Yeah, but it's just strange to read about these kind of things where people just really passion and talent was feeling it more than any kind of budget was

Thomas Mooney 1:17:31

Yeah, specifically with Texas Chainsaw Massacre, though. Like the The Origins The the heart of that movie is kind of like that's like an art movie. You know, people totally our house to horror but man like that's like an art film. At its core. It is.

Rod Gator 1:17:52

It is.

Thomas Mooney 1:17:53

It's also it's also one of those movies that like, the lore behind it, the you know, the just the the including of based on real events as

Rod Gator 1:18:06

Yeah, again inspired it. Yeah, endings creepy as as far as psycho 10 times remaster songs.

Thomas Mooney 1:18:15

Yeah. Well, that's what I was going to get to is like, trying to explain to one of my cousins specifically, like no, this never happened. Like there isn't like a barbecue place in Texas that

Rod Gator 1:18:28

all I know. It all happened is I haven't watched it like remake my high school friends. We were like who's sick? Can you believe that? happened?

Thomas Mooney 1:18:36

Well, that's the, you know, trying to explain to Well, that's like my cousin who's, you know, like 31 now, as some kids you're still holding on to like, I have her like turned into like a teenage girl again. just mentioned the school get some barbecue and where is where it is in course supposed to take place. I can't think of the town. But

Rod Gator 1:19:03

I go to the gas station all the time. You know, I'm I've got the I visit the gas the original gas station all the time. It's really cool. And I got all this car room memorabilia in there. And they they really read the Chainsaw Massacre. So it's in Bastrop. Yeah. They got this epic bench they made where they like carved all those like people's names in the way of the movie and all sorts of cool. I got a replica of the van from the first movie.

Thomas Mooney 1:19:38

Yeah, that's a that's now method going. It's almost all the way so

Rod Gator 1:19:45

yeah, the gas station Bastrop Texas. And they have barbecue there so it doesn't matter. They do. I'm just gonna do pizza. Yeah, that's probably where it came from. I'm always

using the recover a lot shred and fired if I was sitting here and I saw this on a podcast as well. And this was what I listened to I realized oh shit you guys went on a crazy ride we got political we went down political stuff social commentary, I thought about when I almost got killed by a bunch of cops and near death experience on a video shoot. debunk True Detective then we started talking about Chainsaw Massacre. We've been through a little Michael Mann and they're forgetting ledger I mean, this IV pump I

Thomas Mooney 1:20:40

was exactly i mean that's I'm gonna take that clip right there. And that's just going to be the intro. That's gonna write about this. This is the stuff we covered. Michael

Rod Gator 1:20:55

measure dude near death experience. That was crazy. I was keeping optimistic my mouth off in my head.

Thomas Mooney 1:21:11

Alright, that is it for this one had a wonderful time talking with rod. As you can tell we kind of went all over the place near the end. Sometimes that just happens. But yeah, go order for Louisiana by rod Gator out Friday, September 17. Be sure to check out our pals over at Desert door the blue light live and Charlie stock photography. Go order the Lubbock way. Visit the merch store and yourself in the Charlie stout print giveaway over on Twitter. And most importantly, subscribe to new slang and tell all your friends about it. And yeah, I'll see you all next week for more episodes of Newsline

Transcribed by https://otter.ai