Interview: Marc Danzeisen
Powerslide's 'Peel' Turns 30 + New Solo Music
If you love hooky alt rock, but want something outside of the same 10 artists that turn up on every ‘90s playlist…I have an obscure treat for you.
Brainchild of songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Marc Danzeisen, Powerslide was a solo project that transformed into a killer LA club band. Their only album, Peel, turns 30 this year and fans of Cheap Trick, The Posies, and Foo Fighters should take notice.
“Always the frustrated songwriter, I was playing drums with Gilby Clarke (GnR, Kills for Thrills, Candy) in ’94. We had been friends since ‘83. I ended up doing drums, percussion, and backing vocals on his debut solo album for Virgin and its subsequent tour,” Danzeisen told me for the interview below.
“We were touring for close to a year, and I was unhappy and unfulfilled creatively 23 hours a day, except for the hour on stage having fun every night. I started writing all the time out of frustration and I was basically doing my own preproduction on the tour, recording my ideas into a micro cassette.”
Finally back in LA, Danzeisen set to work turning those demos into an album.
“When we had a few days off from touring I would jump into my buddy Rick Parker’s ‘Sandbox’ studio. I finally quit Gilby’s band and locked myself in my other buddy’s home studio with limited gear, about three days a week, to record Peel,” he said.
“After I finished 10-12 songs, playing everything myself, I went to Dave Shultz at Digiprep (which closed years ago) to have them mastered. As you can probably tell, it’s super lo-fi. And the recordings needed a proper turd polishing, haha. But I dig the overall results: not too glossy and still a pop-punk edge.”
I connected with Danzeisen by email to discuss Powerslide, his new solo album, various musical projects with his adult children, and to see if there’s any chance he might get the band back together for a 30th anniversary reunion show.
Marc Danzeisen Interview
Can you believe it has been 30 years since you first released the Powerslide album Peel?
Marc Danzeisen: No, I can’t! When I was a kid I always laughed at The Beatles’ ‘When I’m 64.’ Now I’m 64 and it seems surreal.
Thirty years has flown by. Life has kicked me in the ass in so many ways since Powerslide was out playing gigs. I’m happy a core of good folks and power pop fans from LA’s great music scene in the ‘90s remember the band and still mention it in passing, or I’ll see someone post about Powerslide online.
Listening three decades later, the songwriting and performances feel very of that moment in the best possible way. I hear Cheap Trick influences, early Foo Fighters, maybe a little Summercamp/Santa Barbara sound. Who were some of your main influences?
Marc Danzeisen: Well, I would be lying if I said I didn’t love early Cheap Trick. I've been a fan even before their first album in ’77. My go-to music is all over the place genre-wise, but from ‘94-‘96, some artists I was influenced by were early Cheap Trick (always), Radiohead, XTC, ELO, 10cc, Superchunk, Big Star, The Posies, Jellyfish, Wings, and The Cars.
I also need to mention, because you and I have this connection, that I loved what Keith Brown (RIP), Tim Cullen, and the guys were doing with Popsicko. And then there’s Summercamp. Wow. I’m a big fan of heavy guitars and drums and clean melodic vocals with harmony. That’s always a huge deal for me when it comes to a good power pop/rock band. It has to hit hard, with melodies you can remember. You know…punk rock Beatles!
When it was time to put a band together, I needed guys that had my same musical tastes or it wouldn’t work. Chris Skane (guitars), Mark Compstock (bass), and Ken Mundy (drums) were good friends of mine who liked the album and joined me. Chris was the one who thought of Powerslide for our name, due to our skateboarding and BMX past lives.
This was supposed to be a Peel 30th interview, but you've released a lot of great music since then—including the 2022 Powerslide single "LSD." What can you tell us about that one?
Marc Danzeisen: I’ll probably keep releasing solo material, and an occasional Powerslide song. When I shut down Powerslide in ’97-98, I went back to doing session work and played drums on the short-lived Comedy Central show Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush. I was part of the seven member band on the show. When that ended I finally had enough money to get my home studio up and running in 2000, and jumped into recording Absorbent, my first solo album, and, few years later, the Released album.
As for the song itself, without pissing anyone off (I’ll leave out names LOL), ‘LSD’ stands for ‘Lead Singer Disease.’ It’s a song that I know many of my fellow musicians can get behind. Most of my writing tends to be on the sarcastic side.
More recently, I've been loving "Genevieve" from your new solo album Danzeisen 3. What was the inspiration for that song?
Marc Danzeisen: Thanks! Simply, I needed a name. I chose Genevieve because it belonged to one of my aunts. I recalled a conversation I had with my only living aunt, Peggy, in which she told me stories about my mom and my aunts’ brownstone apartment in New Jersey. She said that even from 13-15 years old, all three had a plan to get out and live, to escape the tight control and crazy Irish discipline of my grandmother. Genevieve joked about Belize, California, and Tahiti, traveling to exotic places far away from Jersey. Of course, I took some creative license to fluff it out a bit.
Wish I had a better story or clever punchline, but that’s it. Sometimes in songwriting, simple works better than the deep, pseudo-intellectual approach. Musically, I wanted it to be fun and reckless drum- and bass-wise. Tom Petersson and Bun E. Carlos (of Cheap Trick) were in my head at the time.
You also produce music for your daughter, Lana Danzeisen. How does it feel bringing all of your experience to a family project?
Marc Danzeisen: I love working with my kids. Well, they’re not kids anymore, but damn it’s fun. Sometimes it’s a creative argument, but in the end, they get what they’re looking for sonically. [Editor’s note:
just launched a poetry Substack called From Foxheart.]Lana is pitch perfect to a scary level. Love that. She brings a cool energy as our sessions progress. She has good ideas that often have a retro ’80s vibe that melds nicely with her indie-folk-alternative songs. My son Kelsey is also a talented songwriter, artist, and producer.
I’m proud of both of them. I grew up with musician parents, so the tree keeps growing.
Getting back to Powerslide. Any chance we’ll get a reunion show to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Peel?
Marc Danzeisen: Maybe? It’s getting harder and harder to get players motivated, including myself. Life gets in the way for many. Last time I played out as Powerslide, I had my son on drums, Chris McLernon (Saigon Kick) on bass, and Johnny Hawthorne (session player) on guitar. It was for David Bash’s Pop Overthrow series he has annually. I think it was eleven years ago. We played Molly Malones, and my son was 19 at the time. He was upset because the place is 21 and over, so they made him sit in the dressing room for a few hours until our set. It was sad, but he killed it! It’s a trip for me to look back and see my boy on the drums.
Maybe I’ll get the same guys and give it a go this year. Some people have asked, ‘Why not use Chris Skane and Mark Compstock from the original lineup?’ Well, we have not talked since ’98. I can’t tell you why the silence happened. I just shut it all down due to stress and several labels not making their move, and we went in different directions. You know, Spinal Tap stuff.
What's next for you?
Marc Danzeisen: To just stay active and happy. Keep myself motivated as a writer, producer, composer, musician, music lover, and studio owner. Keep releasing music, even though there’s no money in it anymore.
I’m getting more into writing and scoring for trailers, TV, and film. My father was a composer, so I learned orchestrating from him. I’m also writing a book about my life in the music business, the do’s and don’t’s, but I’m also tying in the self-management of ADHD and what it was like growing up in a musical household in Riverside, CA.
I’ve done okay for myself. I've never self-medicated/relied on alcohol or drugs in my life. I can’t imagine how horrible it would have been while touring, or just existing being high 24/7. Some of our friends weren’t so fortunate. It’s sad, and we need to support others in whatever way we can.
Okay, enough preaching, this is about music! Music saves people. It’s been my lithium and the best therapy.
Having Fun Or Dying Young?
February 12, 2024 would have been Popsicko front man Keith Brown’s 55th birthday. Last year I worked with the surviving members of Popsicko and Big Stir Records on a vinyl re-issue of their self-released 1995 album, Off to a Bad Start, coupled with an oral history of the band featuring quotes from members of Foo Fighters, Pennywise, Nerf Herder, Baby Le…
I saw their debut show at The Roxy, great band. Marc was in a band called Ashes in the early 80's with my former husband who sang lead, they took over L.A. with their Duran Duran good looks. Marc was also in the Bullet Boys on Warner Bros. Records and I believe they just did some re-issue.
Thank you for this new to me (and I’m bummed that today was my first listen).🙃 this is “chris bro happy boy” music. Added a bunch to my playlists! 🎸🤘👊