Tag Archives: love rock revolution

Everything You Wanted to Know About Calvin Johnson and K Records

Mark Baumgarten reads from his book, Love Rock Revolution: K Records and the Rise of Independent Music, at Elliott Bay Book Company on Wednesday, July 18, at 7 p.m. He’ll wrap up his book tour in Olympia, at the Olympia Timberland Library, on July 27.

When Mark Baumgarten edited now-defunct Sound Magazine and indulged my interest in the city’s grunge-era glory, he didn’t seem as especially interested in what had come before. He had the pulse of Northwest folk artists and fresh singer-songwriter types, and knew the up-and-comers in just about every genre. With Love Rock Revolution: K Records and the Rise of Independent Music, he proves he is indeed tuned in to local music history, immersing us in a richly-detailed and accessible portrait of Olympia’s ’80s and ’90s indie scene and its champion, Calvin Johnson.

Johnson, despite the book’s sweeping subtitle, is the real focal point; it makes sense, as K Records was (and still is) his baby. Around 100 pages chronicle his quirky artistic tastes as a teen, his tendency toward various punk sub-genre aesthetics, his tenure as a thrilled Evergreen State College KAOS DJ, and his blossoming relationships with other punk/pop musicians.

Through Baumgarten’s direct, relatable prose, we learn how Johnson’s ear for rough, odd rock and pop led him to start making similar music. How he valued musical spontaneity and simplicity—in himself and others—being far more concerned with the distribution of tunes than technical know-how, note-perfect execution, and production value. He wanted to share every “jangly,” “wobbly,” “playful,” “juvenile” song with anyone who was interested.

Oddly, though, details on Johnson’s character traits and business acumen (and even appearance) are few and far between. While we learn much about his travels and endeavors—and that he doesn’t play guitar well, sings with a deep voice, and is given to fits of dancing—the man himself remains mostly an enigma. (Maybe that’s Baumgarten’s intent; the book lacks photographs, a fact that feels a little like winking oversight, a little like punk itself.) As a result, it’s a bit of a challenge to connect with Johnson’s portrayal and really understand and appreciate his drive and accomplishments.

And he sure has accomplished a lot, as Baumgarten recounts. Where there was no underage music scene, he created one, almost single-handedly. His quick-and-dirty early recordings and cassette distribution methods helped build a community of punk, pop, and unconventional artists and an enthusiastic audience (however small) to evangelize the music.

Johnson’s K Records released work from artists and bands like Mecca Normal, the Go Team, Built to Spill, Modest Mouse, and, of course, Johnson’s own Beat Happening—and inspired numerous others. Like Kurt Cobain, who, it’s told, would have rather been aligned with K than Sub Pop Records. (Would things have gone differently for the band if that had been the case? Johnson recorded numerous albums only to shelve them for a year or more. And he purportedly rejected Nirvana’s early calling-card tape because it came to him through Cobain’s girlfriend.)

It’s this inspiration aspect that truly fascinates: Love Rock explains how K Records and some of its acts (along with contemporary labels Sub Pop and Kill Rock Stars) laid the foundation for the Northwest rock explosion of the early ’90s. In pursuing his desire to simply get music out there, Johnson rubbed shoulders with similarly driven—and admittedly more technically talented—people and bands like Steve Fisk, Mark Lanegan, Mudhoney, and Nirvana. Key crafters of what would be labeled the Seattle Sound (or benefit from that label).

Those artists appreciated Johnson’s desire to make and share music as easily as possible, but (most of) their fates would be far different than the label chief’s. As the world tuned in to Seattle’s “grunge” bands—acts that fused elements of metal, punk, and classic rock into agreeably melodic music—the eclectic K stable continued to fly under the mainstream radar. Even when some of its bands received critical praise from alternative outlets, major success was elusive.

But that doesn’t seem to ever have been in Johnson’s interests. Like Al Larsen, a singer in Eugene, Oregon’s Snakepit when this scene was coalescing—the man who coined the “love rock” label (not Mother Love Bone’s Andrew Wood, whom I’d solely associated the term)—the K chief was in it for a hopeful “transformation of society,” even in the simplest of ways. He’s always just wanted people to play and listen.

Baumgarten’s Love Rock Revolution is proof that people are still doing that, three decades later. Even if the book doesn’t entirely illuminate Calvin Johnson’s character, it presumably does what he’d hope for: simply share how a scrappy, punk-ethos community rose up around his influential label. Like the K Records catalog, the book won’t amaze the masses, but it’ll thrill a deserving niche.

Can the K Records Catalog Save the Mariners Season?

You know the music that comes on to inspire every Mariner batter as they walk to the plate? It hasn’t been working. Mariner hitters have been dreadful at Safeco Field, saddening Mariner fans like me, you, and music journalist Mark Baumgarten. When not suffering through low-scoring Mariner games, Mark has spent the past year-plus writing the story of Calvin Johnson’s K Records, the galvanizing force behind Beck, Modest Mouse, the grunge scene, and the riot grrrl movement. With his book Love Rock Revolution: K Records and the Rise of Independent Music coming out today, I gave Mark this challenge: Pick the K Records songs that will galvanize Mariners hitters and get Safeco rocking. Here are his indisputable picks.

Ichiro
“Bewitched” by Beat Happening, from Jamboree (1988)
[:00 – :10]
I know that Ichiro likes the club hits. For a while he was bumping that Flo Rida song. More recently he has been grinding his spikes into the dirt to LMFAO’s “Sexy and I Know It.” “Bewitched” is the ultimate K party jam from the label’s cornerstone band. It’s a little grittier than those slick pop tracks, and its beat is much more primitive, but maybe a little d.i.y. can help the the M’s “first-ballot Hall-of-Famer” manufacture a few RBI’s.

Michael Saunders
“Birds vs. Worms” by Modest Mouse, from Sad Sappy Sucker (2001)
[:07 – :17]
On this moderately upbeat track, songwriter Isaac Brock contemplates self-pity as a catchy guitar line whiles away. Like Brock, Michael Saunders has always seemed burdened by a great existential weight. Unlike Brock, Saunders tends to keep his emotions bottled up, only sometimes exploding by violently throwing his batting helmet to the ground, post-strikeout. Deep within his intensity there is a sadness. So let’s play him on with the music of a kindred spirit. You are not alone, Michael.

Jesus Montero
“C is the Heavenly Option” by Heavenly (featuring Calvin Johnson), from De Jardin de Heavenly (1992)
[2:35-2:45]
The subject matter of this song–lead singer Amelia Fletcher and Calvin contemplating what to do with their disappointing significant others–has nothing to do with baseball. But its titular chorus might help motivate Montero to get in front of those passed balls and ward off recent draft pick Mike Zunino on his way to becoming the power-hitting franchise catcher the Mariners had hoped he would become when they acquired him from the Yankees in the offseason. Plus, I hear manager Eric Wedge loves a little shimmying twee pop and it would be nice to see him smile every once in a while.

Dustin Ackley
“#1 USA” by Love as Laughter, from #1 USA (1998)
[3:26-3:36]
I have long been a proponent of Ackley dropping Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ode-to-humility “Simple Man” as his warm-up music. Yes, you are a simple man, Dustin, and we love you for it. But you are a professional ballplayer, sir, and that requires a little swagger. This track from K’s best-ever melodic garage rock group is dripping with infectious riffs, hand-claps and tons of slump-busting attitude. I mean, look at the title, man!
(there’s no full version of this song online; there is a sample here.)

Justin Smoak
“It’s All In Your Mind” by Beck, from the One Foot in the Grave outtakes (1995)
[:20-:30]
Yeah, this song is super depressing, but honestly so is Justin Smoak. He was supposed to be a great steal from our division rival Rangers. But every time he comes up to bat, I just know that he’s going to pop up to shallow left. I don’t know what his current walk-up song is, but it’s not working. Why not give a lo-fi indie rock gem a try? There could be worse things to hear, as you’re preparing to hit that damned ball, than Beck’s languid voice repeating, “It’s all in your mind.”
(this version is a rerecording from Beck’s 2002 album Sea Change)

Kyle Seager
“Virginia Reel Around the Fountain” by Halo Benders
[:00-:10]
This is my favorite song in the K catalog, a performance of epic proportions filled with guitarist Doug Martch’s meandering guitar parts and pinched tenor, contrasted with Calvin Johnson’s sonorous, monotone baritone. I am bestowing it upon Seager, currently my favorite player on my fantasy baseball team, in hopes that it will inspire him as it has inspired me. If it doesn’t, I’m going to have to start Pedro Alvarez in his place.

Franklin Gutierrez
“Free Again” by Teenage Fanclub, from “Free Again”/”Bad Seeds” 7” (1992)
[:07-:17]
A boisterous cover of Alex Chilton’s classic pop track from 1970, “Free Again” returns over and over to the joyful refrain: “I’m free again, to do what I want.” I have to imagine that that is exactly how Guti feels every time the injury-prone center fielder is fortunate enough to step into the batter’s box. Sure, he will eventually be stabbed in the shoulder by an errant broken bat and locked up in rehab, but for now, he’s free!

Miguel Olivo
“The Glow pt. 2” by the Microphones, from The Glow, Pt. 2 (2001)*
[:00-:10]
This song is a masterpiece of indie rock. It is discordant, melodic, hard-hitting and nuanced; the most sophisticated piece of music ever to appear on K. It is also fraught with trepidation and hope, somewhat unpredictable but always engaged, and never taking itself too seriously while delivering till the end. These are the attributes the team need in its leadership. Olivo is the closest thing the Mariners have to a veteran leader (in the field), so he will be the one walking out as the rattles, rumbles, and buzzes that kick off the song fill Safeco with electricity.

Brendan Ryan
“Connect 5” by KARP, from Suplex (1995)*
[:00-:10]
One of the few actual sports songs in the K catalog, “Connect 5” is about a roller derby great named Bobby Fever, “the master blaster from the past” who is a lot like our spunky shortstop. “A pirouette to please his fans,” sings Chris “Slayer” Smith. “He’s pumpin those adrenal glands.” Ryan will step into the batters box just as the song’s plaintive guitar line gives way to a bombastic beat and a grungy guitar riff worthy of whatever creative facial hair is festooning his mug at the time.

Felix Hernandez (National League parks only)
“What Was Me” by Calvin Johnson, from What Was Me (2002)*
[:30-:40]
On the face of it, this song—a strummy acoustic number—is a bit of a downer. But it is a perfect fit for Felix, a ballad for the king of K’s from the king of K. “When I’m done you’ll find an Illiad, believed in every heart and known in every head,” Calvin sings. “And that will be me.”

*These songs are available on Love Rock Revolution: A Book Soundtrack, available for free from K Records until July 17.