Fitehouse goes national in first self-organized launch

Meet Fitehouse. Together since 1998, the four members of the Baltimore-based rock/pop quartet -- Ellis Baylor (drums, joined 1999), Joshua Cohen (guitar), Gabe Gilligan (vocals) and Edward Plant (bass) -- released their first full-length album this April.

The album, Fitehouse Released, is a veritable labor of love for these men, all of whom have jobs in addition to the band. Fitehouse is part of larger artistic movement that is shifting away from the corporate conglomerate music industry, abandoning the behemoth labels that they believe to be increasingly irrelevant to the development and distribution of music in this digital age.

Instead, Fitehouse and a growing number of fellow revolutionaries do all the work on their own, recording and producing a CD, designing the cover art, promoting the album themselves and distributing it via the Internet and local gigs.

Henceforth, this musical trend confined such bands to only local attention, precluding the sort of superstardom that recording contracts can offer. In a recent bold move, however, Fitehouse aims to take the movement to the next level with the first self-organized nationwide launch. At this, the first phase in their campaign, Fitehouse distributed their album to over 250 alternative newspapers across the country in hopes that media attention will generate radio play. The band is indeed turning heads, with features in publications as far away as the Oregon Daily Emerald.

After listening to the album, I'd put Fitehouse more on the pop side than rock, though there are a couple pretty sweet instrumental features in "Earthquake" and "I'll Be There." At times they have a hint of pop icon Billy Joel, especially in one of my favorites, "Chances."

Fitehouse has mastered the technique of getting stuck in your head. I'm listening to "Soaked" right now and dancing in my seat while I type. They're also pretty diverse, segueing after "Soaked" to a harmonic ballad, "Round Round Round." Near the end of the album, "Hearts Pound" offers a hint of Latin bounce. The lyrics are fun and pretty much angst-free, making for an all-around pleasant listen. In short, these guys have found a winning formula that will likely appeal to a wide audience.

The final song on the album, "Baltimore," has been the driving force behind Fitehouse's local campaign. The band wants their song to be declared the city's Official Rock Anthem by Mayor Martin O'Malley. These Baltimore transplants have developed a real love for the city, and they hope to show the country that "Baltimore's givin' it." I'm not sure exactly what this means, and to be honest, I thought it was the weakest song on the album. The images are clichZd and generally unimaginative, and the construction is cheesy and old school, something my parents would probably love but I have a hard time embracing. However, "Baltimore" does talk about Charm City and the Orioles, and it's certainly better than the old standard, "Baltimore, Our Baltimore." If Cleveland can have its own rock anthem a la Drew Carey, then why not good ol' B'more?

Recently, Fitehouse guitarist and songwriter Joshua Cohen granted an interview with the News-Letter, where we got to talk about the band's vision, music and anthem campaign.

News-Letter: Your album, Fitehouse Released, is part of a new trend to renounce corporate consumerist music. How and why did you become affiliated with this movement?

Joshua Cohen: The movement has been very grass-roots. It's not like Fitehouse got together with a few bands and planned a coup d'Ztat. Rather, developments in the record industry have forced bands like ours into a corner. For years now, five major record companies have held a de facto oligopoly over the distribution of music. In the 1990s, a series of corporate mergers led to industry consolidation and the loss of autonomy for many of the so-called "indie" labels. As a result, most labels have had to answer more directly to their parent media conglomerates and generate predictable revenue streams. Of course, satisfying corporate accountants is not compatible with risk taking, long-term artist development or musical variety.

The situation went critical with the passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Increased deregulation meant that a firm like Clear Channel Communications was able to go from 40 stations to more than 1,200 nationwide! With play lists being centrally programmed, gone are the days when bands could bring their songs to local stations in hopes of generating a regional hit. Faced with no local media outlets and a record industry that is putting its dollars into an ever-diminishing number of similar-sounding acts, bands have been forced to go organic -- make and sell the CDs themselves.

N-L: Do you see this sort of organic recording style -- wherein the band performs, produces and distributes its music on its own -- becoming the norm as artists are faced with an increasingly digital and industry-choked arena?

JC: We are on the cusp of a major revolution. With e-commerce, the record industry's grip on distribution is slipping. Now consider Clear Channel's recent decision to sever ties with "Independent Music Promoters," companies hired by record labels to lobby (i.e. pay) for air time. With this decision, the industry is deprived of one of its major tools for guaranteeing hits. I can foresee a future in which companies like Clear Channel discover that there is good unsigned talent out there and begin scouting directly for new songs. When that happens, it's all over for the record companies.

N-L: Your band seems pretty political on paper, but the album itself is generally apolitical. What is your goal when you write music?

JC: We try to write tunes that are highly melodic, harmonically colorful and stylistically varied. Lyrically they are mostly about self-discovery, growth and redemption. The fact that a band like ours has been forced to radicalize is a testament to how bad things have gotten out there! The record industry has focused all its attention on the youth/teeny bopper market, because it is easily manipulated through marketing and thus lends itself to the generation of predictable revenue streams. It's amazing how the record companies have abandoned such large segments of the population! It's time to take the music back from them.

N-L: What song on the album are you the most proud of and why?

JC: I'm particularly happy with the ballad "Hearts Pound." It's got a great Latin flavor and the vocal parts are really powerful and nicely harmonized. It's a shame, but vocals seem to be an afterthought for a lot of bands these days. Even our song "Earthquake," which is a barrage of heavy distortion and creamy guitar bends, still hits it home with a great vocal part.

N-L: How did your band find its way to Baltimore?

JC: I had been working in Mexico City. At some point I talked Gabe into getting back into music. He flew down and we drove back in my 1973 Dodge Dart, scouting cities along the east coast. Baltimore hadn't been on our list but we stopped in to visit my brother. We had a great time, the cost of living was right and the presence of many colleges and clubs sealed the deal. It was here that we met the bassist Edward Plant (Hopkins alum and rural Pennsylvanian transplant) and the drummer Ellis Baylor, a native Baltimorean.

N-L: What has been your impression of the city?

JC: Baltimore is extremely hip ... it's so real, not plastic or pretentious like some other cities. I love all the different neighborhoods and local flavors. "A bar on every corner and a church on every other corner" -- I mean, this sounds likes a campaign promise!

N-L: Why did you decide to write a rock anthem for Baltimore? Has this song been more of a promotion gimmick for the rest of your work than anything else?

JC: We were listening to some old Journey on vinyl. It was such a big, slightly cheesy, feel-good tune -- we got inspired. The next thing we knew, we were singing about Baltimore givin' it! While it's nothing like any of our other songs, it's definitely fun and catchy. Perhaps our approach was a bit presumptuous -- we sent it to every public official that you can imagine. Still the desire to give something to the city is not insincere. I happen to be pretty active in the community here and am always touting Baltimore as a great place to live.

N-L: How much progress have you made in garnering support for "Baltimore?"

JC: Several prominent politicians have gone on record for the tune, including then-Lt. Governor Townsend and various Fire, Police and Educational Department officials. The Office of Fine Arts even requested 200 copies of the CD to distribute to all city music teachers! Still, it was time to build popular support. 98 Rock actually gave us a half-hour to explain the issues surrounding the debate -- although, at 6 a.m. on Sunday morning, I'm afraid we didn't reach a lot of folks. As such, Ellis and I have taken to appearing at outdoor festivals as the "Anthem Guys" to personally lobby the people.-- they were discussing Baltimore's image, and we wanted to testify. We explained the city could learn a lot from Fitehouse's Rock Anthem campaign as a model of how to use creativity to generate positive press. They were very receptive and invited us to join a future Better Image for Baltimore Committee. We were also approached by the city's cable channel 21 about producing material for them -- look forward to that!

N-L: To me, "Baltimore" feels like it's from a different musical era. What demographic do you aim to please with this song?

JC: Actually I think that's part of its appeal -- if a rock anthem is to last the test of time, it can't be too modern sounding. We were trying to please a wide variety of ages, so it was important that the song be catchy and easily accessible.

N-L: Finally, why should Baltimore choose your song as its rock anthem?

JC: It would be media coup for Baltimore to become the first city with an official rock anthem! It would definitely reinforce our image as a quirky/unique town. While the Municipal Anthem, "Baltimore, Our Baltimore" is a good song, being from 1916, it doesn't lend itself to 10-second snippets at outdoor sporting events! Of course, we can't impose our anthem on the city. We will continue to pound the pavement and pass out CDs. The Anthem Guys are making an appearance at the upcoming Water Front Festival, so we encourage your readers to come out and learn about the movement!

If you would like to learn more about Fitehouse, go to http://www.fitehouse.com, where you'll also find free MP3 files of the songs on their album. The full album may be purchased at the web site and is also available at Record and Tape Traders.

"Baltimore" by Fitehouse

When a big city kid has seen all the bright lights

Makes a change 'cause it's right

Takes his car down to southern shores

Warms him up as he opens the door, thinks he's found the cure

Well darlin' that's me, I'm here, and I'm gonna stay

When you took your love away

I traded it in on Charm City nights

On the rebound in this town, I've found a new fire to light

So if you ask me how it shows, baby I'm lovin' it

And if you ask me how it goes, baby I'm livin' it

And if you ask me how I know, Baltimore's givin' it!

Just a step away from the nations' capital

Would make any city feel insecure

But not when it comes to my Baltimore

Built from the field of the Oriole, with the strength that endures

So baby send my heart back care of Mobtown

I think a new woman's got me now

Love this city gonna settle down

There's no way I'll stray from this new life I've found