SPEAKER_00 0:31

So gravity is coming and let's grow with creativity side by side. Music is our Europe podcast for creativity, community, and inspiration delight.

SPEAKER_02 0:44

All right. I am here tonight with um Eddie Gals at Drowning Fish Studio in Port Richmond, Philadelphia. Eddie and I, back in like February, March, we recorded one of his original songs as a way for me to get my feet wet here at Drowning Fish because I am working out of here now and I need to get, you know, work my way around everything. And Eddie also had an original, it's never been in the studio. So we linked up. Drowning fish let us have the time, and we recorded a song and then we mixed and mastered it. So Eddie is a singer-songwriter. He plays weekly lots of covers with sneaking in his originals like all over the place. So that's a little bit about Eddie. And he's with us. How are you feeling?

SPEAKER_03 1:30

I feel great. I'm so excited to be here.

SPEAKER_02 1:32

Good. So I'm just gonna ask you some basic questions and uh we're gonna move it along because we are gonna also have a part two to this, which will be the making of his song Um Your Last Day's Pay. That was released in April, right? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Uh all right. So when when did you start playing?

SPEAKER_03 1:52

Actually, it's uh it's uh interesting. I uh I didn't even uh my two older brothers played music, it was always a part of our family. It was always playing, and it was always a big my dad played the banjo. There was always music playing, there was always people around my kitchen table playing. My brothers played Irish music for 40 years, like so it was always in like around me. But I had I wasn't in like interested in really in playing it, but I mean music was always a part of my life, but um when I Christmas Day on eighth grade I came down and there was a guitar under the tree. I didn't even ask for it, you know, and it was like, what am I gonna do with this? Right. And my mom taught my mom showed me my first chord, and then I added two more, and I just played so I played from eighth grade all through high school. I played at all high school parties and stuff, and then I went right to work in the building trades after high school, and I never played again. I never picked up my guitar again. And I got hurt in 2017, and my son had asked asked for a guitar for Christmas, and I ordered him one, and I started messing around with it, and I was home because I just I had just gotten hurt and I just caught fire. I just I I I was playing Christ 18 hours a day. Like I was playing all the time. I didn't start writing until you know a couple years ago, but I started getting reacclimated with it and playing again. But it was like starting from scratch, you know.

SPEAKER_02 3:10

Yeah. Um, so when did you start like playing out?

SPEAKER_03 3:16

Um probably about a year after I started playing again. And it was some rough sledding in the beginning, man. I mean I had some rough gigs.

SPEAKER_02 3:24

How were you getting them? Like what was that?

SPEAKER_03 3:25

Um I I just I I I went to the guy the guy from Pattywax, you know from Paddywax, um, DJ, he rode with me, man. Like I I kind of knew him through the neighborhood. Um we played football against each other and uh I kind of knew him and he gave me a break, he gave me a shot, and and and I would get a couple Fridays here and there, and and and it was rough, man, and and he stuck with me. And uh I I I always I always you know I always loved him for that and appreciated that because I because I that's where I really got my feet wet. And my brother Frank used to come to watch me play and he would help me, you know, and and I remember I was really getting discouraged and I was really struggling, and um my brother Frankie came up to me, was right in the middle of the set, and he and and he pulled me aside and he was like yelling at me. He was like, You're gonna do it or you're not. Get up on that microphone and p and sing. You're either doing it or you're not doing it. If you ain't gonna do it, get out. That's it. So from that point on, I just figured, you know, I'm gonna, you know, like I'm gonna give this my honestly b my honest best shot, right? I'm gonna take my best shot at it. You know, so that was kind of a turning point for me.

SPEAKER_02 4:36

And when was that? What year?

SPEAKER_03 4:37

That was probably 2018. And oddly enough, my my my brother passed like weeks after that. Like he died right after that. It was like one of the last times we were together. Oh, that's horrible. Yeah.

unknown 4:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:52

But he I guess at least you got that push from.

SPEAKER_03 4:55

Yeah, it was a big push. It was it was that you'll never forget. Yeah, no, and it was at a critical, critical breaking point because I wasn't doing good, you know.

SPEAKER_02 5:02

Yeah. So but so then like what so I know now you gig like um quite often. You have a weekly Wednesday, right? Yeah. I feel like you're usually outplaying. Now you play a lot of covers because that's yeah, pays, right? And you throw in some originals, like Wednesday, Thursday, Fridays.

SPEAKER_03 5:20

I feel like I usually play at least one. I mean, sometimes I'm I'm all through the weekend. Like with the summer, hopefully I get down the shore and stuff a little bit. I just came back from there this weekend. I played a place called Mulligan's down there. Um I uh I I I I'm like two, I I play as much as I possibly can, but typically like between two and three times a week, you know. And it took a lot, it takes it's a lot of grinding to get there to where where anybody will tell you. I mean, you know, like what it's like to when you're getting started, getting getting your name out there, and you need people to take notice and help you and and and people looking out, and it's a pretty it's it is a cool community to be a part of.

SPEAKER_02 5:59

Now, what about like learning all the songs? That take a lot of time. Did your brain click quick?

SPEAKER_03 6:05

Well, no. Um when I fell on this job site, I had a traumatic brain injury. So I I have a lot of trouble with remembering things, like every mundane things, like everyday things. And um, so that's actually a problem for me. So I have to do an old school, like I have all my music printed, it's in binders and it's on a music stand, and I have to spot read everything because I can't remember shit. You know what I mean? Yeah, and I can't have it on a tablet going up and down because I don't like freak me out, it's crazy. But it works for me. I do whatever it takes to get it done. Whatever it takes to get it done, whatever.

SPEAKER_02 6:41

Yeah, because it's a lot of songs that people that are that play cover songs.

SPEAKER_03 6:44

Yeah, they say three-hour gig, you need like 40 songs, right?

SPEAKER_02 6:47

Yeah, and then it's like you need to have way more than 40 because you don't know who's gonna be in front of you.

SPEAKER_03 6:51

Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_02 6:52

Like I can't go to I can't go DJ an open format gig with 40 songs and expect they want to hear those 40 songs.

SPEAKER_03 6:58

No way, yeah. That's a huge thing.

SPEAKER_02 7:00

Do you ever learn them on the spot? Like in the middle of the city.

SPEAKER_03 7:02

I mean, I've I've I yeah, that's fine. I've actually done one time I was playing a gig, it was uh Martin Luther King weekend, so it was like Sunday, and I wasn't expecting a big crowd. I thought it was just gonna be like, and I I walked into plays and it was mobbed, you know, and it was all younger kids in there and they were carrying on hot, you know what I mean? And I was I wound up being a really good gig, but I had these two girls, they were great. They came up and they kept asking for songs, and I I I don't know how I did it, but I ripped off Betty Davis' eyes. I never played that song in my life, and I figured it out on the spot. And it sounded terrible, but they thought it was great. So there are times where I, you know, if you have a general idea, I look it up and if I think I can swing it, I try. You know what I mean? If you give an effort, they appreciate that, you know.

SPEAKER_02 7:42

Yeah, yeah. Um, so do you have any like do you have like a really good story of one times playing and like a really uh like crazy story?

SPEAKER_03 7:52

I've had I've had everything go wrong. You could pop bad leader chords, bad mics, broken strings, no replacement strings. I've had to put broken strings.

SPEAKER_02 8:01

You were at my open mic last week and you broke like three strings and then you just left. You just left. They were like, where'd he go? I said, He's gone. He left.

SPEAKER_03 8:09

Yeah, well, you know me enough now. Like a certain point, and I just get he was out.

SPEAKER_02 8:14

Everyone was trying to buy you all those strings because you were being free entertainment for the open mic.

SPEAKER_03 8:19

It's I'm Monday night. I must drum like a barbarian or something. I don't know what it is. I uh it's it's but it's and it's always at the worst times, you know what I mean? It's like I I'll get to the gig and I'll think that I didn't get a pack of strings, and I know I'm gonna break that G str I'm gonna break that G string and it never fails. I break the G string and it's like I've I've put I've put um I was with Ryan Biederman one time. We were down the shore, second song in, and I the string snapped. And I didn't have I couldn't I didn't have any strings. Like I don't know what I was doing down. There were no strings. I put it I put a B string and tuned it to G and played like that all day, all day long. And I and Ryan was with me. I I'll never forget that. That's like oh my god.

SPEAKER_02 9:04

Whatever you gotta do, you made it work. I've done that a couple times. I made it work. Yeah. Um now had like these bars and these venues. How do you how do you feel about them? Like, are they cool?

SPEAKER_03 9:14

Um, do you wish that do they do a lot to push you or do you there's only a few of them that are really fully committed to live music? Everything's about money, right? You know that. And it's do you have a following? And it's like, like you get them here, I'll keep them here, right? Like, but it doesn't work. I mean, you know, you do your best you can. There's only very few venues that that care. Like, there's people that aren't very good, but they have a million buddies with them that are gonna come in and spend hundreds of dollars, like, and they'll they'll they're they're gonna get the gig before you because they it's about money. Yeah, it's about pack and seat, you know what I mean? So, but there's a couple of venues that are they like you have to be good and you have to be on time, you have to be professional, you have to dress and look right, you know what I mean? And and I've lost gigs like uh for making mistakes and or being late or something happened, and and and I've kept gigs because I learned and and and wore a collared shirt and and uh and acted like a gentleman, you know what I mean? And you know, it's like you can do that. It's the little it's rare, but I can, I can. I've learned through this business. No, but like I I've learned the little things you learn going like when you're when you're playing, like I whether I'm drinking or not, like I always make take care of the bartender, you know what I mean? Like these people are making your life easier, like turning the jukebox off on time, like right away when you get up there and you don't have to beg somebody to turn it's it's just those little tiny things that become so awkward, and it's it's it's tough. It can be tough. So I always make sure I take care of the bartender. Like I've learned the these things through really great people that I've learned along the way, you know, and that I've met along the way that have been huge helps to me. Like, there's a lot of people that really helped me when I first started, and and I'm I'll never forget them. You know what I mean? For that, it's important.

SPEAKER_02 11:04

Do you basically book yourself?

SPEAKER_03 11:05

For the most part, I do.

SPEAKER_02 11:07

And how do you go about that?

SPEAKER_03 11:08

It's just uh persistent emails, messages on Messenger. It it's just constantly following up and because it doesn't take long if if you sit back within a week, two weeks, you look at your schedule and you're a month, you've got an empty month in front of you. And then if you get too close to the month and you don't have nothing booked, they're already filled. Like so it's it's tricky, man. And and it's it's that's a whole learning curve too. It's and it's discouraging. And I mean, I would imagine a lot of people stop playing because of that. And that that are that is that's sad because that are really good musicians, better than me, that have probably quit because of that, and they because they didn't have the time or they didn't have the heart to keep her to keep pushing, you know. And um that's that's a huge part of it, man, is is getting gigs like and playing in empty rooms and it's tough, man.

SPEAKER_02 12:00

It's it's now how do you go about like do they ask for any video or do they ask for any music like any remote?

SPEAKER_03 12:07

I'm finding that more and more now.

SPEAKER_02 12:08

Like yeah, like if they if it's not word of mouth, if they don't know you're gonna write it right, right.

SPEAKER_03 12:12

Yeah, they want they want to make sure you're not a hack. And they're the man Yeah, I I have all my socials are under Eddie Gal's Live, so I just tell them, and I have cards and stuff like that. That's all stuff I've learned to come in prepared. You don't go into a bar and ask for a gig with no cards, right? Yeah, like so you tr you try and look as at the part as best you can. And um, you know, I keep I try to keep everything under one flag and uh on and simple so they can find me, I'm easy to find, and and you know, posting content, you know about that, how important that is, like.

SPEAKER_02 12:40

Now, how do you feel about places that might be like, oh yeah, you can come play uh for exposure?

SPEAKER_03 12:47

See, now that's tricky. Like I was told when I first started, like, look, there's rules to this thing. Like you don't you don't go play a gig for for 50 bucks or sixty bucks, you don't play a gig for just tips because that that that's no good for the other artist, right? Like, so if you're in there doing something for nothing, they're not gonna pay another guy who who's who's made his who's made his bones, who who paid his dues, and that's worth 250, 300 hours. Like now he's having a hard time getting what he worked for because you're in there doing it for nothing. Like, so I was told from like at open mics from guys who ran open mics that that were very clear to me, like, look, know your worth. You don't have to be ridiculous, but you don't go below this amount. And and and I stuck to that, you know what I mean? And and I and I think I think that's the part where the community's got to stick together and and gotta hold firm on that. Like it's like you don't want to ruin the standard.

SPEAKER_02 13:45

I mean it devalues, so also if another business finds out the right.

SPEAKER_03 13:49

Right, like if they see me playing for tips, how am I gonna ask them for $250, you know what I mean, on a on a Friday or Saturday night? Like you can't justify that. So you have to be careful what your name's attached to and stuff. Like, I've learned all that too. That there's so much to learn.

SPEAKER_02 14:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:02

You know?

SPEAKER_02 14:03

Yeah. Now you're a dad too, right?

SPEAKER_03 14:06

Yeah, I have four kids. Yeah. My oldest just graduated college. I have one that's going into his junior year in college, and one that's going to her senior year in high school, and one that just started high school this year as a freshman, so he's gonna be sophomore. Yeah. And they're huge music buffs too. Like, um, you know, like I'm heavy country influenced, you know what I mean? And and like like backwoods country, like outlaw country, like hick shit, you know what I mean? Like, and I turn my kids on to that and they love it, man. And they uh they're like me, I it's funny because you catch them with their friends and like when they're in a social setting and they got they put a song on the radio and like you see the other kids like you know what I mean? Like, but that's that's my fingerprints on them, you know what I mean? And uh I'm I you know I'm proud of that. That's that's a part of who they are, man. Music's a part of who they are, it was part of who I am, you know.

SPEAKER_02 14:56

Have you um have you always dabbled into songwriting or is this something that's new in Alaska?

SPEAKER_03 15:01

That's that's it was after my injury and and um losing my brother and and my life was headed in a totally different direction than where I'm at now. I mean, when I tell you it was not even on the map, like and um that's where that I I was I through a therapist through through getting hurt, like I was you know told like why don't you try journaling, right? Like just purging, right? Like just getting it out on paper, like and and I and I did, and and and that slowly went from like just rants to um you know organ organized a little better and like maybe and then to poems. I I uh like most all my songs start uh usually are poems, and then I reconfigure them into because I only know about four chords, you know. So it's you know, three chords in the truth. That's why I live by that, baby. It's three chords of the truth. Keep it simple, man. I'm good at that.

SPEAKER_02 16:00

Yeah. So you recently put out um your last days pay in another song. What was that song called?

SPEAKER_03 16:09

Um, peace of mind is another song I that I that my buddy Joey Nightcaster is a phenomenal musician and a great guitar player. Um we actually did that one in his basement with his kids upstairs running around with bare feet on and bare feet on bigger bare feet on and banging on the floor, and he was gonna kill them. And I had them down there. I was like playing with his daughter and we're laughing at he's trying to record the guitar parts. He's like, he's like almost threw me out. But we got like that's kind of like a raw version of that. I that's I mean, I there's two more verses to it. Like, but like I just wanted to push some put something out there. I just felt like I was getting stagnant, you know what I mean? Like, and then I ran into you and I asked you about recording, and then this happened for you, and it was all like the perfect storm. And um, I just felt like I wanted to get I felt like I like this uh urgency to get this some of these originals out, you know. Like I the reason why I started doing originals and I wanted to record them and release them is because I read something somewhere that you should never die with your music inside you, right? Like you're you should always that should always be released out to everyone, right? It's like a mortal sin to leave here without your music heard. Yeah. Right? And um and I went I bet they're gonna do that. Yeah, right. Seriously. Um, but no, my um, but I wanted something um for my kids to remember me by when I'm gone, and I don't have any money, so you know what I mean. I'd like to leave some money, but that's not happening. So I I that's like that's a big reason why I um I try to release you know, like I try to get them out, you know what I mean? Like I have a couple more I'm ready to ready to do. I'm gonna come in here with you and do. But um yeah, that's a big reason. Like it's like uh just something that my kids have that they can that's something that I accomplished, you know what I mean? Even if it's just a minor thing. Yeah. You know.

SPEAKER_02 18:06

Yeah. Alright, yeah. So peace of mind, cool, you record in the basement. It sounds all right. I think it has a good vibe.

SPEAKER_03 18:11

Yeah, yeah. That song actually came to me in the shower, like in like that was like one of those real quick songs that just popped into my head. And I got out of the shower and I sat down like and I and I wrote it in like five minutes. And um I played around with it with different chords and stuff like that, and then I s I sent it. I usually my my routine usually is I'll write write something, and I mean, I I have a book of lyrics and hooks and and just thoughts and poems and and and it's good because sometimes like when I when I need a chorus or when I need like I'll go back and uh find something that was written months ago that's just written there, you know what I mean? I was like, oh that fits, you know. Like so I played around with this for months and then I finally I sent it to my buddy Joe, and he was like, No, you're wrong. This is how I hear it. And he he was the one who nailed it down and and got it. Yeah, it definitely caught catches a vibe. Yeah, it's like it's simple to the point, and it's like he he's got some really filthy like leads and slide guitar, like just really nasty shit on there. It's really good.

SPEAKER_02 19:12

Yeah, yeah, it sounds great. So, yeah, so la your last day's pay, uh, then Eddie hit me up, um, or maybe I he hit me up to record, and then I basically said, Hey, I'm looking for you know someone to work with me while I learn my way around the studio. And so he came in and did that, and we recorded and mixed and mastered your last day's pay here at Drowning Fish. And what we are going to do now is we're gonna make a part two, and we are going to go through um, you know, his songwriting process, like what kind of inspired the song, how deep he wants to go, and then you know, us recording it here at the studio and the mics and the process of all that. But before we do that, um I do I'm just gonna ask the last question that I always ask on this podcast, which is how is music your hero?

SPEAKER_03 20:02

Music saved my life. Saved my life. Um after my accident, I had a couple tragic things happen to me. Like my my marriage ended after 20 years. I lost my brother. Um there was litigation involved in my accident that didn't go the way that it should have gone, and that was devastating to my family. And I found myself starting over again after 20 years of working and working towards something, and I found myself alone starting over again, and I was in a dark, dark place, and it just it just caught fire, you know, and and it was a way to express myself and a way to to get it. And when you're struggling with depression and anxiety, and if you don't have an outlet, like that's that that's a recipe for disaster, and and I really never realized that until this my life stopped on the dime and turned directions like that. So it saved my life. Yeah. It really did, that's the truth. Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. And like when you're what like you say, you you play covers, right? Like, oh, you're playing covers, but like there's a certain amount of respect that goes for that. Like, if you can't come correct, like I'm not getting up there and singing Marvin Gay unless I can come correct, right? If I know if my voice saying if there's a third day on a turnaround three-day turnaround, I'm not singing Chris Stapleton and I'm not singing Marvin Gay, or because if you can't come correct with that, that that's somebody else's material. Like that, like you should take that seriously. Like, there should be some kind of responsibility there. Like, even if you're in a little dive bar in Philly and you're singing a song that and nobody's gonna know about it, it should be paid its respect. Somebody wrote that, that's somebody's material, and it and it should be sung with respect, right? And if you can't do it right, I don't think you should do it, right? And I would think a lot of serious gig and musicians would say the same thing, right? Yeah, they're not just covers, that's somebody's material and should be should be treated with respect.

SPEAKER_02 21:58

Yeah, you know, yeah, yeah, that's a good point. So, um, all right, so we're gonna wrap this one up and then we are going to get working on part two. That sounds good.

SPEAKER_01 22:08

Cool until next time. Keep creating, keep connecting, and keep building together. Remember, we're in this together, so let's keep each other shining alive.