Okay, I want you to picture something for a second.
Imagine you're in a band. And not just, you know,
a garage band, but a band that has been through
the absolute ringer. You've toured for 15 years.
You've had the massive radio hits. The ones you
hear in every grocery store. Exactly. And you've
played every stage from, like, Red Rocks to the
Dive Bar down the street. It's the classic rock
and roll journey. It is. But here's the catch.
For years, literally years, you've had this one
specific title in your back pocket. It's like
an inside joke that you were just dying to slap
on an album cover. Right. You want to call it
Those Bastards. It's punchy. It's got attitude.
It's a little bit aggressive. And the label probably
hates it. Oh, for sure. So for whatever reason,
the timing's wrong. It just sits there gathering
dust until 2005. And even then, when they finally
decided to pull the trigger, they didn't go with
the English version. They gave it a little linguistic
twist. They finally let it manifest, but they
went with Bastardo's. And that is the subject
of today's Deep Dive. We are peeling back the
layers on the 2005 studio album by the American
jam band Icons, Blues Traveler. It is a really
fascinating snapshot in time for this band. If
you look at the specs, we're talking about an
album released on September 13, 2005. Okay. It
was recorded deep in the heart of Texas Austin.
to be specific, and released on the Vanguard
label. And I think for a lot of people, when
they hear Blues Traveler, their brain instantly
just like time travels to the mid -90s. The harmonica
vests, the solos. Run around. That whole era
defined them for, you know, the massive mainstream
audience. Right. But Bastardo's is a different
beast entirely. This is their eighth studio album.
They aren't the new kids on the block anymore.
They aren't trying to break onto MTV. So here
is our mission for this deep dive. We aren't
just reviewing an album from 05. We are exploring.
what happens when a veteran outfit known for
that loose improvisational jamming decides to
tighten the screws. We're going to look at what
happens when you take that established jam band
formula and mix it with a very specific and honestly
kind of surprising production choice. It really
is one of the more intriguing pairings in mid
2000s rock history. It's a it's a collision of
styles that on paper. Maybe you shouldn't work.
Okay, let's unpack this immediately because this
is the detail that just jumped out at me the
second I opened up the liner notes. You look
at the produced by credit and it's not a name
you'd typically associate with the jam band scene
or, you know, the HRDE festival crowd. No, not
at all. The album was produced by Jay Bennett.
And for those listening who might not be obsessively
checking the credits on every indie rock album
from the early 2000s, who is Jay Bennett? Why
is that name so significant? Well... Jay Bennett
is a heavyweight, but in a totally different
weight class. He is most famous for being formerly
of the band Wilco. Ah, Wilco. Now, if you know
Wilco, you know they occupy the space of alt
country, indie rock, very critical darling territory.
Think Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. It's deconstructed.
It's sonic experimentation. It's meticulous studio
craft. It's very much headphones music. Exactly.
And that is a very different energy from the
loose improvisational, you know, let the tape
roll and see what happens vibe that people traditionally
associate with Blues Traveler. It feels like
a collision of two different musical philosophies.
You've got the mainstream jam kings meeting the
indie rock architect. Yeah. It's like mixing
oil and water and trying to make a salad dressing.
Precisely. And Bennett didn't just sit behind
the glass and say, do another take. If you look
at the personnel, he's actually in the mix. Oh,
really? He contributed guitar and percussion
to the tracks. So this pairing really sets the
tone for the whole project. It suggests a band
that is looking to... You know, tighten things
up, maybe get a little more experimental with
the studio as an instrument. Instead of just
capturing a live jam. Exactly. So let's place
this in the timeline for the listener just to
give them some grounding. Where does Bastardo's
sit in the grand blues traveler history? It's
right in the thick of their middle era. It follows
their 2003 album, Truth Be Told, and comes before
the 2007 release, Cover Yourself. Okay, so they
are deep into their career here. deep. This isn't
a comeback attempt and it's not a debut. It's
that tricky middle period where a band has to
prove they still have something to say. Right.
They've survived the 90s boom. They've survived
the post 90s hangover. And now they're just being
a band. And it seems like the critics were still
paying attention. We're looking at professional
ratings from some major outlets. Yeah. Rolling
Stone reviewed it. All Music reviewed it. So
even though they were on Vanguard. which is an
independent label, they hadn't totally fallen
off the map. That's a key point. They were maintaining
relevance. Absolutely. Being reviewed by Rolling
Stone in 2005 for a band that peaked commercially
in, what, 1994? That shows that people were still
curious. There was still a question of can they
reinvent themselves or what do they sound like
now? Speaking of what they sound like, let's
get into the music itself. Because the structure
of this album is, well, it's interesting. If
you go to a blues traveler show, you expect like...
10 -minute jam. Oh yeah, solos for days. Right.
But you might not get that here. Bennett's influence
seems to lean towards structure. Let's look at
the lead single, Amber Awaits. It dropped in
August 2005, just before the album. And that
song is a total collaboration. You've got Chin
Kinchela, Ted Kinchela, and John Popper all on
the writing credits. Which becomes a theme on
this record. It's very collaborative. But look
at the opening track. It's called You Can't Stop
Thinking About Me. I love the confidence of that
title. It's like, we know you haven't forgotten
us. It's almost a little confrontational, but
in a fun way. It is bold. That one was penned
by Chan Kinchla and Popper. But if we connect
this to the bigger picture of the album's pacing,
I mean, look at the runtimes. This is where the
Wilco factor might be showing up. Oh, yeah. I'm
looking at the track list now. Nail. Three minutes
and six seconds. Rubberneck. Three minutes and
11 seconds. Exactly. Yeah. These are radio -friendly
lengths. They are tight. They get in, make their
point, and get out. Even She Isn't Mine is only
3 .18. They aren't meandering at all. It feels
like Bennett came in and said, okay, guys, trim
the fat. We don't need three minutes of noodling
before the chorus. It creates a sense of urgency.
It does. But, and this is crucial, they didn't
totally abandon their roots. Because you get
to the very end of the album, track 14. The Children
of the Night. And that one clocks in at 6 minutes
and 31 seconds. Okay, so they save the dessert
for last. Right. They save the jam for the closer.
It's almost like a reward for the listener. Here's
the tight produced song structure you need for
the album, but we're going to leave you with
a bit of that expansion you love. It's a smart
balance. It shows they understand the medium
of the album format. I also want to point out...
The shortest track on the album, because the
title just makes me laugh every time I read it,
What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Written by Chan
Kinchelin Popper. And it's only two minutes and
47 seconds long. Huh, yeah. I feel like there's
a joke there. What could possibly go wrong? Well,
apparently not much, because they finish the
song in under three minutes. It creates a lot
of energy. Short songs keep the momentum moving.
It prevents the album from feeling like a slog,
which, let's be honest, can happen with some
jam band studio. albums if they aren't careful.
Keeps the listener on their toes. It's punchy.
We should probably mention a few others just
to give the listener a sense of the variety here.
Sure. You've got Money Back Guarantee which is
a collaboration between Popper and Ben Wilson.
And Nefertiti which is Ted Kinchela and Popper.
Yeah. The writing credits really are spread around.
It's not just the John Popper show. No. Everyone
is contributing to the architecture of these
songs. Well, let's talk about the people making
those sounds, because we keep saying the band,
but in 2005, the lineup is specific. We need
to set the stage for who is actually in the room
in Austin. Right. So at the core, you have the
recognizable faces. John Popper, obviously, on
harmonica and vocals. Can't have Blues Traveler
without that sound. You cannot. It's one of the
most distinctive voices, both human and instrumental
in rock history. It's like Santana's guitar.
You hear one note, you know who it is. Exactly.
Then you've got Chan Kinchela holding down the
guitars. Electric acoustic. And he's even credited
with mandolin on this record. Which adds a nice
little texture there. Brendan Hills on percussion
and drums. And then rounding out the rhythm section,
you have Tad Kinchela on bass. And we can't forget
Ben Wilson on the keyboards. Correct. But what's
fascinating here, and this goes back to the whole
Austin setting, is that the liner notes reveal
a much richer soundscape than just those five
guys. Oh, yeah. This was not a stripped back,
let's record in a garage affair. Yeah. They brought
in reinforcements. Yeah, I saw that. There's
a whole horn section listed. A full horn section.
You have Carlos Sosa on saxophone, Fernando Castillo
on trumpet, and Raul Vallejo on trombone. That
feels very Texas, doesn't it? It feels like a
big soulful room. It does. It adds this layer
of soul and funk that complements the rock elements.
It thickens the sound. There were backing vocals,
too, right? Yeah. Teresa Cole is credited with
backing vocals. So when you listen to Bastardo's.
You aren't hearing a sparse record. You're hearing
a big, full, layered production. And Bennett
himself is on there playing. Right. He's adding
percussion, guitar, so he's adding texture on
top of all that. So you have the horns, you have
the backing vocals, you have the Wilco producer
layering in guitars. It sounds like they were
really trying to fill the room. I think they
were trying to create a sonic environment that
justified listening to the album, you know, as
something distinct from the live show. And that's
a hard thing for jam bands to do. So we've got
this big sound. We've got a fancy producer. We've
got this confident title. How did it actually
do? Did the world embrace Bastardos? Well, this
raises an important question about how we measure
success for a band in their second decade. Sure.
Commercially, it peaked at number 49 on the U
.S. Independent Albums Billboard chart. Number
49 on the Independent chart. Okay. Let's be real
for a second. That is not exactly setting the
world on fire. No, and it's a far cry from the
multi -platinum days of 4 in 1994 when they were
dominating MTV. But context is everything here.
The fact that they are charting on the independent
albums chart signifies a shift in their position
in the industry. Because they were on Vanguard
Records now. Exactly. They moved from the major
label machine to Vanguard. They're operating
as a legacy act that sustains itself through
touring and a dedicated fan base rather than
chasing top 40 radio play. It's a different business
model, essentially. It is. They aren't trying
to be the biggest band in the world anymore.
They're trying to be the best version of Blues
Traveler for the people who already care. And
hitting the charts at all eight albums in is
a respectable showing for an independent release.
I'd say so. Now, you mentioned they are a touring
machine, and we really can't talk about Blues
Traveler without talking about the live experience.
And interestingly, Bastardo's has a direct extension
into their live catalog. It does. Almost a year
later, on August 29, 2006, they released an EP
called Bastardo's En Vivo. Which, if my high
school Spanish serves me correctly. Translates
to Bastards Live. You got it. They really committed
to the branding. They did. It's a collection
of live recordings of songs from the Bastardo's
album. But there is one track on there that is...
Well, it's just perfect for them. It's one of
those things where you see the title and you
just nod your head. Oh, I know what you're talking
about. The cover song. The Devil Went Down to
Georgia. The Charlie Daniels Band classic. Of
course. It's the ultimate showcase for a band
that features a virtuoso harmonica player. It's
so logical, it's almost funny. You just replaced
the fiddle duel with a harmonica duel. Essentially,
yes. It fits their Southern rock, high -energy
aesthetic perfectly. And including it on the
live EP accompanying this album kind of ties
that whole Austin, Texas, Southern vibe together
with their jam band identity. It's a fun little
Easter egg for the fans who bought into the Vistardos
era. I love that. Like, here's our serious studio
album with the Wilco producer where we carefully
crafted three minute pop songs. And here's us
tearing the roof off with a Charlie Daniels cover.
It shows they didn't lose their sense of fun.
And that's a crucial part of their longevity,
right? You have to take the music seriously,
but you can't take yourself too seriously. It's
a balance. So as we start to wrap this up, what
does this all mean? We've got an album with a
funny name, a serious producer, tight songs and
a horn section. I think Bastardos stands as a
really pivotal middle chapter. If you look at
the discography provided in our sources, this
band has been going since their self -titled
debut in 1990 all the way up to Hurry Up and
Hang Around in 2018. That is a massive span of
time. It is. Nearly three decades. A lifetime
in the music industry. And Bastardos sits right
there in the middle of the 2000s. It shows a
band that was willing to experiment. They didn't
just keep making the same album over and over.
They brought in Jay Bennett. They played with
song structures. They added horns. It proves
that they were still artistic. curious. And they
finally got to use the name they wanted. That
too. It's a moment of creative satisfaction,
I'm sure. It's like scratching an itch they'd
had for 10 years. It's a cool snapshot. It's
not the album everyone knows. It's not the one
with Hook on it. But it sounds like an album
that fans really appreciate for that diversity.
It's a little bit of a hidden gem. Absolutely.
It adds texture to their legacy. It proves they
weren't just a one -trick pony from the 90s.
Here is a final thought for you to shoo on, listener.
We talked about how they waited years to use
the name Those Bastards. or Bastardoes. Names
have power, right? They set an expectation. If
they had named their 1994 smash hit album Bastardoes,
would it have been as big? Would it have sold
millions of copies at Walmart with a name like
that? That is a fascinating what if. Or was this
title specifically waiting for this moment, a
moment where they were gritty, independent, and
maybe feeling a little bit like the outlaws of
the music industry? I think the attitude of the
title definitely matches the us -against -the
-world vibe of an independent release. Something
to think about next time you're scrolling through
your music library. That's it for this deep dive
into Blues Traveler's Mustardos. Thanks for listening.
Keep listening and keep questioning. Catch you
next time.