The Badlees - Harrisburg, PA
Renew - CD Review and Interview with badlee vocalist, Pete Palladino
by Pat Ferris

Sifting through stacks of CDs sent to us, the cream always seems to rise to the top. This was the case last spring, when I first heard of Pete Palladino, the voice behind one of the best success stories for the indie movement; the Pennsylvania roots rockers, The Badlees.

I reviewed Pete's first solo effort Sirens of the Reconnected, seeing the tip of an iceberg that I discovered had already had a major deal with Polygram records with River Songs; selling nearly a quarter million CDs worldwide, and spawning two national top ten radio singles: Fear of Falling and Angeline is Coming Home.

As I researched The Badlees background and music, I realized they were a perfect example of a band going through the major label meat grinder. Being at the mercy of a record label going through it's own survival issues nearly led to the band's self-destruction, with band members pursuing different directions. Ultimately, they each found the chemistry they share as a group is what made their sound unique.

Out of the ashes of a major label aftermath, The Badlees have released a brilliantly produced independent CD, aptly entitled Renew. A five-star CD, Renew is a masterpiece of Americana...roots rock with excellent songwriting, and a welcome addition to my personal CD collection. The official Badlee website is as fantastic as Renew, portraying a multi-dimension to the band far beyond what you see in most band websites.

I hooked up with Badlee frontman and lead vocalist, Pete Palladino for an online interview...

<HotBands> Hi Pete…are you there?

<Badlees> I am!

<HotBands> Let's start with the beginning of The Badlees? Give some sort of summary of the backgrounds of the band members, how you met and when it first started. What was the Pennsylvania live music scene was like in the '80s and how the Badlees influenced the changes that have come.

<Badlees> We met at a recording studio in 1989 or so. We were all in doing different projects at the time and just became friends. We were drinking buddies before we played a note together as the whole band. Back then, the music scene in central PA, where we were based at that point, was a joke as fa5r as original music. It was (and still is) dominated by tribute bands and cover bands. We just decided to do our own thing and for some reason it worked!

<HotBands> We're talking about the Harrisburg area?

<Badlees> Actually Selinsgrove was where we were all living at the time. Harrisburg was our adopted home. None of us were from there just a pretty central and cheap place to live.

<HotBands> There seems to be good support from the Philadelphia area, as far as our website is concerned. What would you say is the reason for the non-support of original music in Pennsylvania?

<Badlees> Who knows? I think it's just apathy over all. There's too much other distraction. Music has become a background for more of the majority than I think it ever was before.

<HotBands> Were all of The Badlees musician's from childhood? What type of background did you have, similarities shared with your band mates, etc? I understand if you don't know everything, but it's cool to get an idea of how The Badlees fiber was originally spun

<Badlees> Well we all come from such drastically different backgrounds and musical tastes, which is why I really believe we have a certain sound that people seem to like.  I grew up on Cheap Trick and Squeeze while Bret (Bret Alexander-guitar, mandolin, vocals) comes from a Dylan and Beatles upbringing. Jeff (Jeff Feltenberger-guitar, vocals) is a real alternative country, Steve Earle kind of guy while Ron (Ron Simasek- drums, percussion) and Paul (Paul Smith-bass, vocals)Have quite eclectic tastes… everything from Zappa to Rundgren, so everybody brings something to the table. The influences are more evident on our side project records.

<HotBands> Bret is the primary songwriter, correct?

<Badlees> We all write songs, but I think The Badlees have become about me (Pete) singing Bret’s songs. It's funny, everybody can really write and sing well but that seems to be the certain recipe that folks latch on to.

<HotBands> So after you met how did The Badlee story develop up to River Songs

<Badlees> River Songs was just the next logical progression of what we were doing. We were really into using the traditional folk instruments like mandolin, accordian and dulcimer in rock and roll. It all came together on River Songs, which was actually our fourth recording as a band.

<HotBands> So your sound progressed to this point over how long of a period? What was going on with your following during this time? How was the music scene in the Pennsylvania area changing during this period?

<Badlees> We started in 1989 with an EP called It Ain't For You. Then we did our first full length called Diamonds in the Coal, in ‘91 and The Unfortunate Result of Spare Time in ‘93. We were starting to actually gather a great following at our live shows. It was amazing to us. Here we were doing our thing in a circuit of cover clubs and it was working. The music scene started to develop a bit more from there. Not totally because of The Badlees, but because original bands saw that we were making work on some level so I think that more bands started writing with intentions of following the lead that was set up to this point.

<HotBands> So the original live music scene in central started to happen around the same time it was in Seattle with Nirvana and Pearl Jam. What happened with River Songs that seemed to push The Badlees over the top?

<Badlees> We always started this with the intension of being self sufficient, so we produced our own records, did our own artwork, pressed up our own merchandise, etc. We had sold a nice number of records on our first 3 releases so the stage was set to keep building. Somehow, we managed to sell 10,000 copies of River Songs independently. That's when the majors started to sniff us out. The funny thing was we had sent them the record when it came out and got the same old ‘don’t call us, we’ll call you’ attitude. But 6 months later we had the heads of labels into Harrisburg to see us. It just shows you how silly all of this is.

<HotBands> You didn't just plow ahead with being a band and have people manage you? You seem to have had a business plan of some sort. Would you say this was instrumental in your independent success? I'm sure selling 10,000 CDs independently is what got their attention, but was most of that through local store outlets or at live shows?

<Badlees> We sold most of them at shows but we were smart and set ourselves up as a vendor and sold to stores. All of that was sound-scanned so they could actually check and see if we were just hype or the real thing. The Wall stores were really helpful. They're the FYE stores now.

<HotBands> So you got picked up by a major at that point....what happened then?

<Badlees> We had a choice of 3 offers on the table. We went with an A&M subsidiary. They just wanted to slap their name on it and put it out as is! Pretty cool for an independent record that we did for next to nothing! We started to tour and did so for the next 2 years; everything from opening up for Page and Plant to a stadium tour with Bob Seger and dates with Edwin McCain and Patty Griffin. We met a lot of great folks and discovered that life on the road gets old quick.

<HotBands> What was it on the road that was hardest? Do you remember any key drama? Looking back, was it that dramatic, or were you all just caught up in the moment?

<Badlees> The dramatic part of your day lasts 45 minutes every night. We were just so bored. We were in a van and trailer the whole time, so that blew. I mean parts were great; I got to sing with Gregg Allman, we got to see the country... you know, the romantic side of touring is for the 19 year old kids in bands.

<HotBands> So after the tour, what happened?

<Badlees> After the tours, we headed back to the studio to work on our follow up CD. We were trying to really push ourselves as a band and push the envelope of what we had created. We did a record called Up There Down Here for Polygram, but just as we finished Polygram went through a corporate merger that froze everything. So we sat for 2 years with a finished record waiting. We couldn't (weren’t allowed to) tour, we couldn't do an independent thing. The band almost decided to fold at that point. Finally, we told Polygram to either put the record out or release us, and they opted for the latter. Right after we got dropped, Police drummer Stewart Copeland's brother and manager for The Police, Miles Copeland, put Up There Down Here out on his label, Ark 21, which was just a way for it to see the light of day. We took some time off after that whole fiasco, which is when I did my solo album, The Cellarbirds (Bret, Paul and Ron) did theirs and Jeff did his. We needed to rediscover what it was that we liked about music again. Because I think at that point weall hated this business so much.

<HotBands> How has the Internet changed the band (if at all)?

<Badlees> The internet is a wonderful thing for bands, but it a double-edged sword. You can find anything you want but you have to know what you're looking for. That's why I applaud sites like you folks for doing some of the ‘weeding out’ process. I don't know if the Internet has changed us at all beyond the fact that now we have instant access to our fans and them to us. That breaks down the layers a bit so they feel closer to the artist.

<HotBands> How do you feel about the major labels, and what would you say is their future?

<Badlees> How can an indie label compete with the millions of dollars a major label has to promote a band? The answer is, you can't. The majors have such a stronghold on the market place at this point that it’s a pretty one-sided battle. I think their role will change as time goes on but they're not going to all just fold up shop over-night. As artists become more empowered to produce and promote their own music, the labels will find ways to be needed.

<HotBands> Will the Badlees continue, or are you all pursuing different directions now that you’ve released your latest collaboration, Renew?

<Badlees> The Badlees roll on. We just made a record that we're really proud of so that's a great place to start again. Bret owns his own studio, so we do records at our leisure now. It's a lot more creative place to be.

<HotBands> So the Badlees will continue, but without the majors? If that offer comes along again, will you be willing to give up that control of your destiny for the money? and was the money all that great in the first place?

<Badlees> No, the money is the carrot on the end of the stick. What you don’t' realize is that is your income for the next 2 maybe 3 years of your life. I think we broke it down and figured out that we made about minimum wage while we were signed! Yeah! We'll take a look at any offer that comes around, but we know a whole lot more now and are less likely to just sign our lives away.

<HotBands> What advice do you have for bands just getting started?

<Badlees> Keep writing and learn as much about every aspect of this business as you can. An artist that can understand the whole ball of wax will never fall prey to being dependent on others to make records and create.

<HotBands> What words of inspiration do you want to share with the readers of our website?

<Badlees> May the music continue to inspire! And if not at least keep Lance Bass out of space!

For more information on The BadleesCLICK HERE

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