FREE MP3 Muckrakers 10th anniversary remix

Many of you who know me because of the Sound Theology or Public Library albums may not have heard about a garagey little songwriting/ recording project I participated in called The Muckrakers back in the mid-90s.

The band was comprised of Todd Berg, David Casimir, and myself, all of us having met one another in middle school back in our hometown of Ishpeming, MI. Later in our post-school years we began writing songs together by sending cassette 4-track tapes back and forth to one another through the mail. Our collaboration began in 1995, and by 1997 we had an album's worth of material. In May of 1997 the three of us convened at my then-home/studio in Chicagoland to record our debut album, May. One year later, in May of 1998, the CD was released on Salt Lady Records. This Summer marks the 10 year anniversary of the one-and-only Muckrakers album, which has managed to find a small but loyal cult following over the past decade. The Muckrakers never performed live, and despite some nice reviews in the press and online (read the Muckrakers press coverage here), we vanished from the musical map after our album was released.

Last year (when this photo was taken) Dave and I were reminiscing about the great fun and rocking music that was generated by that one strange little album, so in honor of our 10 year anniversary we decided to musically commemorate the event. Feeling like it was time for the world to hear an all-new Muckrakers song, we unearthed an original Muckrakers "idea tape" sent out by our masterful lead-guitarist Todd way back in 1995, and we dumped some of Todd's awesome and unheard riffs into Dave's computer. Using Todd's monster electric guitar and drum ideas, Dave and I added additional guitars, bass, and vocals, and completed a song called "Idea One," the first new Muckrakers song since 1997! We were thrilled with the result....listen for yourself at the Muckrakers MySpace page. I'll blog more about "Idea One" on another day.

A month or so ago, Dave and I got together again at his studio in Wisconsin and remixed a song that appeared on the Muckrakers May album. The song "Box of Nails" became quite a favorite of Muckrakers fans, so we did our best to fix some of the lo-fi flaws that plagued the album version, and are now proud to offer up the 10th Anniversary Remix of the song here as a FREE downloadable MP3! CLICK HERE to visit my Audio Page and scroll down the page to find the song.

BOX OF NAILS: Behind the Music.

If I remember correctly, this was one of the last songs we wrote. The Muckrakers songs were started by someone, and passed along to the others for completion. Some ideas began with Todd ("Prometheus," "The Arson Song"); some began with Dave ("One Night in the Month of May," "City in Bloom"); and some began with me ("Helvetica," "...and You in Cloudless Heaven"). The songwriting process of "Box of Nails" began with Dave's guitar, followed by Todd's bass, and when the demo tape got to me, I finished the song by adding lyrics and vocals. I remember writing the lyrics on my own in their entirety, and when the Muckrakers songwriting tape arrived in my mailbox, I was very pleased to hear a song where my lyrics fit perfectly. When we gathered in Chicago to record the album version, all the rhythm tracks were recorded live with Dave on guitar, Todd on bass, and me on drums. We overdubbed the singing and accordion, etc. afterwards. This is certainly one of the more "pop"-oriented songs on the Muckrakers album...to me it sounds like R.E.M. in the Lifes Rich Pageant era.

The lyrics are inspired a bit by my Dad, who builds houses for fun. The lyrical images are also connected to the growth of new buildings and businesses springing up along US-41, the highway the runs through Ishpeming, MI. When Dave, Todd, and I were in school, the highway was pretty much undeveloped. After high school graduation they built a McDonald's there, and since then the development has exploded.

We've still got a few hundred Muckrakers CD to liquidate, so we're selling 'em for only $5 (including shipping)!! CLICK HERE to order the album that the All Music Guide calls "gloriously raw...crafted in the true rock and roll spirit!" Perfect for those music fans who wonder what it would be like if They Might Be Giants, Rush, Nirvana, and the Violent Femmes teamed up.

Here are the lyrics, so you can sing along.

BOX OF NAILS

box of nails, bucket of hinges
always a building to fill up some space
lions and rivers needing a ceiling
take it all under advisement to place

nothing is worse than a windowless wall
saving the workers some time
print the letters and promise forever
follow a number a dime
a box of nails

box of nails with silver and steel
developing ground in the heart of the land
figures to add are written on paper
hope that the houses can shiver and stand

nothing is worse than a windowless wall
saving the workers some time
print the letters and promise forever
follow a number a dime
a box of nails

box of nails on every acre
nearly a series of points on a line
turning the earth on winter and water
every map has a perfect design

nothing is worse than a windowless wall
saving the workers some time
print the letters and promise forever
follow a number a dime
a box of nails