Con Life (Josh Cannata, WPGU Music Director)

New Orleans has a pretty rich history and it really shows with the diversity of music that has come out of the city. Add in a keyboardist from Nashville and you're going to get a pretty awesome sounding band. Meet Generationals.

And we did. Before their Courtyard Cafe show last Thursday Ted and Grant stopped by to discuss their debut album Con Law and just hang out with Nick Jones, Mike Rotsch, and myself. It was a good time. Its a funny thing that many bands really get thrown off by what I see as an easy question: where did the name come from? Their sound seemingly penetrates many generations, so we thought maybe that's where the name originated.

But no. It was a tough question to answer for them. What they came up with after a few minutes of going back and forth was that they really didn't know what they should call themselves back when they started and Generationals kind of just stuck. I think its very fitting.

During the interview the band discussed their experience with recording Con Law in D.C. on tape. While a more common occurrence than most think, the process is fairly difficult. They ran into some difficulty with the motor that spins the tape reels shorting out thus causing the speed to change and altering the sound. There are only a handful of people who still work on this older recording interface, so sending equipment out for a fixin' is the norm. Add that onto a limited supply of the actual tape left, tape manufacturers don't make take (old reels on eBay are a good source), and the process can be pretty frustrating.

But ultimately the sound quality is different from the more modern digital recordings and it definitely is awesome with the finished product.

What's next in terms of new music? Ted and Grant say they plan to once again head to D.C. when they have time to record not one but two releases in 2010, an EP and an LP. And yes, it will be done on tape.

If you're looking to check out some of their music, they played "When They Fight, They Fight" and "Faces in the Dark" on-air. I've also put up "Wildlife Sculpture" and "Nobody Could Change Your Mind" for your listening pleasure. I think you'll love them. Of course, make sure to pick up Con Law out now on Park the Van!