Launches and Splash-downs with Sputnik
Get a live listen to this happening local band at Hessler Street Fair Sat 5/2 Noon-8PM and Sun 5/23 from Noon-8PM. Hessler Road & Court between Ford and Bellflower Roads, one block north of Euclid & Mayfield in University Circle.
In these days of ultra-lame "reality tv" programs, it can be forcefully argued that being on television is no longer a big deal. Actually, it might turn out to be an embarrassment instead. Even for musicians and bands eager to get their music heard by new audiences, the days of MTV glory are pretty much over; does that irritating institution even play rock videos anymore?
Nonetheless, the quirky marriage between TV and recording artists continue. It's been a long, televised ride from the Beatles playing on the Ed Sulivan Show to Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" at Super Bowl 2004, with everything from The Brady Bunch's recording session episode to Bowie and Bing Crosby dueting Christmas carols in between. Recently, Cleveland band Sputnik got their first shot of explosure on national TV, at least in principle.
Sputnik, a trio comprised of Alan Grandy, Jay Bentoff and Jeff Harmon, make surprisingly tight, melodic, Brit-Pop flavored tuneage for this city where the river once burned. Formed as a "satellite" around other work the guys were all involved with (hence the name), they've been together about seven years. Both Grandy and Bentoff used to perform in the cleverly-monikered Jehovah Waitresses, and Grandy was also part of the popular Eighties outfit The Terrible Parade. The band has had time to develop a very professional, quality sound with some neat harmonies thrown in, and have focused on their studio work over live performances, which hasn't stopped them from opening for Indie sweet-tarts like the Go-Betweens or the always urgent Morphine. Having paid their dues, so to speak, it seemed only fair that their recently-released debut, I, Cosmonaut, would attract some national attention. And it did.
Enter FOX Television's "Wonderfalls," the pantheistic counterpart to WB's "Joan of Arcadia." In the FOX show, the cute female lead character gets promptings, not from an anthropormorphic God-in-disquise, but from curios, souvenirs, gift-rack rabble. And there's a hip soundtrack going on in the background during the show, with Sputnik selected to have one of their songs played! Then the show was cancelled, and Alan and the boys' song never got the chance to be heard by American masses. But we're getting ahead of ourselves.....Mr. Grandy will tell you about it in his own words.
Cool Cleveland: How did it come about that Sputnik was chosen for "Wonder Falls"?
Alan Grandy: The show was asking for song submissions through a company called taxi.com; we submitted and they chose Alienne. (ed. note: a really good choice and a fine pop song! Sputnik should be proud that this tune exists.)
What did you hope would come about due to the song being on the show?
We hoped that people would hear the song, naturally. Also that it would lead to other opportunities...
What kind of feedback were you getting about the upcoming show?
Lots of positive response - people were pretty knocked out about it.
What were you told as to why the show was being cancelled and how'd you feel about the cancellation in terms of the lost opportunity?
The music supervisor for the show was pretty candid from the outset about what it would take for the show to stay on the air--namely ratings and reviews. The reviews were great, the ratings weren't. As far as how we feel about it, it doesn't diminish the fact that our song was chosen - that's definitely a positive. We've also heard that the show might come out on DVD or on another network, we'll see...
Could you talk about the new album a bit in terms of song titles and airplay you have received.
The album has a really nice overall dynamic of sunny (Hello, Newboots, a cover of Love Is All Around) and kinda star-lit vibe(Alienne, Obsession, Leslie's Lonely Day. I thought the artwork by the Heads of State captured it perfectly. So far we've gotten really positive notices and a lot of college radio airplay, especially on WRUW (top ten through January) and WBWC.
Any comments on the state of the music scene in Cleveland? America? The world?
The scene here feels very healthy, artists and venues alike. The world has become smaller in the sense of how people communicate with each other, which is a tremendous advantage for folks who are doing what we're trying to do. The fact that our record is available at a site http://www.cdbaby.com/sputnik or see http://www.cdbaby.com/sputnik that is accessible around the world is a pretty amazing thing if you think about it.
Indeed it is, and a pretty amazing debut CD, all things considered. It's a shame that Sputnik's song won't be heard in a May epsiode of that cancelled TV show, but who knows....there are always reruns, right? In the meantime, people interested in being actual members of a live audience and hearing Sputnik perform should visit the fabled Hessler Street Fair. I, Cosmonaut is also available at local stores like Bent Crayon and My Generation.
Being in a band is tough--lots of obstacles and issues and unexpected developments to deal with. Kudos to Sputnik for perservering like the good audio astronauts they are. Rock on. from Cool Cleveland music correspondent Daiv Whaley (:divend:)