{"id":89,"date":"2013-04-21T03:07:23","date_gmt":"2013-04-21T03:07:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.wordpress.com\/?p=26"},"modified":"2013-04-21T03:07:23","modified_gmt":"2013-04-21T03:07:23","slug":"an-interview-with-frank-solivan-and-dirty-kitchen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/2013\/04\/21\/an-interview-with-frank-solivan-and-dirty-kitchen\/","title":{"rendered":"An Interview with Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen"},"content":{"rendered":"

$\"photo$ <\/a><\/p>\n

Frank Solivan\u00a0and Dirty Kitchen<\/strong> (L-R): Chris Luquette, Frank Solivan, Danny Booth, and Mike Munford – photo by The McTell Brothers<\/p>\n

This is the first in a series of interviews we’ll be doing with some of our favorite\u00a0musicians.<\/strong> <\/em><\/p>\n

The first subjects of our needling are Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen. They are a renowned bluegrass band out of northern VA. Nominated for the IBMA’s 2012\u00a0Emerging Artist of the Year award,\u00a0they play bluegrass, newgrass, and blues-grass. But we would be remiss to confine\u00a0Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen’s\u00a0music to just these genres. They are, like all the best bands, eclectic and unique.<\/p>\n

Frank is an accomplished chef who often combines his shows with his great food.\u00a0His CD release show, in Washington, DC, \u00a0on April 20 includes a multi-course meal prepared by Frank.<\/p>\n

We met with Frank and his band\u00a0in the green room of Ashland Coffee & Tea (www.AshlandCoffeeandTea.com<\/a>\u00a0) before their\u00a0February\u00a022nd gig.\u00a0That night they announced that they had just signed to Compass Records. Their new album, “On The Edge”, will be released on April\u00a030th. Check out their tour schedule and music on their website,\u00a0 www.dirtykitchenband.com<\/a>. “Like” them on Facebook\u00a0 www.facebook.com\/frank.solivan.and.dirty.kitchen<\/a>, and be sure to\u00a0catch them live sometime.<\/p>\n

Thanks to the entire band: Frank Solivan, Chris Luquette, Mike Munford, and Danny Booth for taking the time to answer our questions.<\/p>\n

Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen talk about getting flashed, The Walking (Almost) Dead, their musical beginnings, \u00a0dream musical collaborations, and the\u00a0“hazards” of being both\u00a0a chef and musician:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Frank Solivan: (to\u00a0his band) OK, watch your mouths, guys.<\/p>\n

Brian: First question: How old were you when you first started playing music?<\/i><\/p>\n

Frank: And who are you asking?<\/p>\n

Brian: Everybody, I guess.<\/p>\n

Frank: I didn\u2019t know a time where I didn\u2019t have any instruments around. My whole family plays music.<\/p>\n

Danny Booth: I played a little keyboard when I was 10, but I really started when I was 11. Playing bass.<\/p>\n

Chris Luquette: Started messin\u2019 around on guitars probably when I was around 10 or so. It\u2019s been about 12 years now.<\/p>\n

Mike Munford: Late bloomer for me, started at 15. Banjo at 15.<\/p>\n

Frank: I guess I kinda started when I was 6, maybe\u2026 When I started playing fiddle and guitar.<\/p>\n

Brian: If you could play with any living musician outside of bluegrass, who would it\u00a0be?<\/i><\/p>\n

Frank: (whistles) Stevie Wonder. That\u2019s the first person that comes to mind. I could probably think of about 20 more.<\/p>\n

Chris: Right away, for whatever reason, I\u2019d say Derek Trucks, man. I\u2019d love to just, like, get right up in Derek Trucks and\u2026 get some of that.<\/p>\n

Brian: He\u2019s a monster.<\/p>\n

Danny: I thought Chris was gonna say Duane Allman.<\/p>\n

Chris: Well, he said \u201cliving musician\u201d.<\/p>\n

Jeff: Yeah, someone you could conceivably play with in real life.<\/p>\n

Danny: John Paul Jones.<\/p>\n

Jeff: He\u2019s alive.<\/p>\n

Mike: Well, that\u2019s an interesting question. I mean, there are certainly people I idolize outside of bluegrass, like Oscar Peterson, who\u2019s a great jazz pianist. Now, I don\u2019t know jazz at all; I can\u2019t see it as a likely combination, but\u2026 you know.<\/p>\n

Brian: What\u2019s the strangest thing that\u2019s ever happened to you onstage?<\/i><\/p>\n

Mike: The what-est thing?<\/p>\n

Everyone: Strangest!<\/p>\n

Brian: Probably an uncomfortable question\u2026<\/p>\n

Frank: Underwear thrown right in front of me. That\u2019s always really strange.<\/p>\n

Brian: Has that actually happened?<\/p>\n

Frank: Yeah.<\/p>\n

Jeff: Like, multiple times?<\/p>\n

Frank: Mmm-hmm.<\/p>\n

Mike: It was his underwear, though.<\/p>\n

Frank: It was my underwear, that\u2019s the weird thing\u2026no\u2026 But they were big! They were large, women\u2019s underwear. First time it happened to me, it was at Grey Fox when I was playing with the Navy band.<\/p>\n

Danny: Ahhh, this is definitely not the PG version, but, uh\u2026 I got flashed.<\/p>\n

Jeff: I don\u2019t know how many of these answers we can put on our blog.<\/p>\n

Frank: Alright, I actually did get flashed by about 10 women, in Haines, Alaska. That was the coolest, maybe not the weirdest, but the coolest.<\/p>\n

Chris: So, for the clean version, I played a folk festival one time, and we were in the middle of the song, and as soon as the end of our set was over at noon \u2013 we played, like, 11:30 to noon \u2013 at the next show at this stage, there was gonna be this cultural meeting\u2026 they were having a parade of Scandinavian heritage from one side of the park, and Asian heritage from the other side\u2026 And the Chinese heritage came, and there were people dressed as a dragon, they had the big dragon\u2026 There were these guys just, BANGING on drums, and they had no idea that there was a show going on; they were just thinking of the parade. But those drums carry for about 2 miles wherever you are, so we\u2019re in the middle of this song and all of a sudden just, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, you know? And at the time we couldn\u2019t really see \u2018em from stage, so it was kinda like\u2026 \u201cwhat\u2019s going on?\u201d. And then obviously they realized they were way too close to the stage, and there was still a program going on\u2026 So they got quiet again. That was kinda strange to just have all of sudden, like, Chinese New Year\u2019s celebrations happening right as we\u2019re on stage just, full-force.<\/p>\n

Jeff: Someone didn\u2019t plan that very well.<\/p>\n

Frank: What about you, Mike?<\/p>\n

Mike: Not that many strange things, but just one time playing with a local band in Baltimore\u2026 New Grass Revival was gonna play later that afternoon. I look up and Bela (Fleck) is sittin\u2019 at the soundboard, mixing our sound or something, and it\u2019s like\u2026 \u201cWhat is he doing out there? He should be up there with this instrument that I\u2019m playing\u2026 maybe I should be elsewhere, parking cars or something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frank: One more \u2013 this is really weird, uh, when I was-<\/p>\n

Jeff: Is it clean?<\/p>\n

Frank: They\u2019re all clean, dude. Nobody has been muddy or dirty in any of these yet. We haven\u2019t gotten dirty yet. I have dirty ones, and you guys aren\u2019t of age for me to talk about those ones yet.<\/p>\n

So, anyway\u2026 I was just outside of Phoenix, playing with the Navy band\u2026 we were playing at this big bandshell, and 5000 people were supposed to be there, and so we\u2019re setting up\u2026 and they save this area up in the front for older folks to come, and they start trucking them in in these buses from old folk\u2019s homes there. And, you know, we\u2019ve soundchecked for 5000 people; this is a BIG place. And we brought all of our gear out, and so on, and so they sit there\u2026 And the next thing you know we\u2019ve started into our first song, and people that\u00a0couldn\u2019t walk are walking all of a sudden, and they\u2019re like zombies, coming to the stage with their arms extended \u2013 \u201cLOUD. LOOUUD!\u201d \u2013 And, literally, pounding on the stage with their hands \u2013 \u201cTURN IT DOOWWN! TURN IT DOOWWN! IT\u2019S SO LOOUUD!\u201d<\/p>\n

Brian: Like a negative geriatric mosh-pit?<\/p>\n

Frank: Dude, we were totally being, like, attacked by the people that were in wheelchairs, you know? They got wheeled in! They were, like, standing up pounding on the stage yelling at us that we\u2019re so loud.<\/p>\n

Jeff: They were conserving their energy for that moment.<\/p>\n

Frank: That was the weirdest thing, I think. I mean, after the first set, we all went and, like, hid back in the dressing room, and people were pounding on the door \u2013 \u201cI KNOW YOU GUYS ARE IN THERE! YOU NEED TO TURN IT DOWN!\u201d I swear to god, man, I\u2019m not even exaggerating!<\/p>\n

Brian: That\u2019s pretty intimidating. (pause)<\/p>\n

(B): What instrument do feel yourselves most proficient at?<\/i><\/p>\n

Frank: Anymore, mandolin, I guess. Once it was fiddle.<\/p>\n

Jeff: You\u2019ve shifted?<\/p>\n

Frank: Yeah, well, the fiddle takes so much energy and time and dedication, which I don\u2019t have anymore\u2026 I mean, it\u2019s an instrument you\u2019ve gotta play everyday.<\/p>\n

Danny: Bass. I like to play guitar, but\u2026 I suck.<\/p>\n

Chris: Yeah, we all\u2026 emphasis definitely is we all play lots of different instruments, but I think we\u2019re all pretty much\u2026<\/p>\n

Frank: Drawn to what we\u2019re playing, yeah\u2026<\/p>\n

Chris: \u2026Kind of are playing our first instrument.<\/p>\n

Mike: That goes for me, for sure. I play guitar, too, but my banjo\u2019s stronger.<\/p>\n

Chris: You haven\u2019t heard Munford play jew\u2019s harp yet, so\u2026<\/p>\n

Frank: Or fiddle!<\/p>\n

Jeff: I\u2019ve always been confused whether it was called jew\u2019s harp or jaw harp.<\/p>\n

Mike: Jaw harp is really, uh\u2026<\/p>\n

Frank: (imitating hick accent) Play that jaw harp! Play that old jaw harp!<\/p>\n

Jeff: I\u2019ve heard it said two different ways, and I\u2019ve always been uncomfortable saying \u201cjew\u2019s harp\u201d. Wasn\u2019t sure if it was gonna be insulting to somebody\u2026<\/p>\n

Chris: In this day and age, it could be, I guess.<\/p>\n

Mike: It\u2019s not quite PC, but it\u2019s true.<\/p>\n

Brian (to Frank): How does being a chef affect your music and vice-versa?<\/i><\/p>\n

Frank: Well, when I cut my finger\u2026 that really affects my music. And then when I eat before a show, that really affects my singing\u2026 in a negative way, especially the burping into the microphone\u2026<\/p>\n

Chris: \u201cHow ya\u2019ll\u2013burp\u2013doin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Frank: \u2026I mean, the name of the band is Dirty Kitchen, you know? I try to project that I love food, which I do.<\/p>\n

Jeff: Don\u2019t we all?
\nFrank: Right, but I mean in more of a, like, epicurean kind of way, you know?… It can mean a few different things, but anymore it means mostly being epicurious to\u2026 really into food. There\u2019s a podcast you can check out, called \u201cThe Epicurious”.<\/p>\n

Jeff: Interesting.<\/p>\n

Frank: Yeah, it relates to food, these days. As opposed to the, uh, Greek, uh, whatever it is\u2026 god, or whatever. (laughs)<\/p>\n

Brian: Greek god of food?<\/p>\n

Frank: I don\u2019t know if that\u2019s it\u2026<\/p>\n

Jeff: Is there one?<\/p>\n

Frank: I can\u2019t remember any of the other\u2026<\/p>\n

Chris: (answering Jeff) Oh, yeah.<\/p>\n

Frank: Actually, let\u2019s look it up real quick! (whips out iphone)\u2026 Well, there\u2019s epicurious.com\u2026\u201depicurious defined\u201d\u2026\u201da person who lives in the constant pursuit of great food, drink, debauchery, and open-minded…\u201d yadda, yadda, yadda\u2026<\/p>\n

Danny: \u201cThe pursuit of debauchery\u201d. (everyone laughs)<\/p>\n

Frank: I like that part\u2026<\/p>\n

Mike: The endless pursuit\u2026<\/p>\n

Frank: The endless pursuit of debauchery! (throws two devil horns in the air) YEEAAHH!<\/p>\n

J&B: Thank you, guys!<\/p>\n

Frank and the band: Thank you! It was fun.<\/p>\n

(Note from McTell Brothers:After the interview,\u00a0we looked up the etymology of the word “epicurean”, and this is what we found: The word epicurean is derived from the Greek philosopher Epicurus (341 – 270 B.C.).<\/p>\n

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Frank Solivan\u00a0and Dirty Kitchen (L-R): Chris Luquette, Frank Solivan, Danny Booth, and Mike Munford – photo by The McTell Brothers This is the first in a series of interviews we’ll be doing with some of our favorite\u00a0musicians. The first subjects … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[7],"class_list":["post-89","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-interviews-with-musicians","tag-frank-solivan-and-dirty-kitchen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mctellbrothers.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}