David Brake & That Damn Band: DavidBrakeThatDamnBand.jpg
What makes David Brake an indefinable act isn't that each song is a jumble of genres. Listening to his 2003 release <i>Lean Mean Texas Machine</i> is like listening to two or three different bands.
David Brake -- vocals, piano, bass, guitar
Jeff Duncan -- fiddle, vocals
Steve Haygood -- guitar, vocals
Troy Nicar -- drums, vocals
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Born in a Bad Mood
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101 Tattoos
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All Mine
Lean Mean Texas Machine, 2003
Spin Around, 2006
A couple of years ago, David Brake decided that he wasn't too old to starve. He had spent eight years performing covers at City Streets' dueling piano bar, and a polyp on his vocal chords was putting his future as a singer in doubt. He decided that if his voice came back, he would dust off his originals and take a few chances.
"It's so easy for me to do a piano gig and make a grand a week," Brake says. "And it's so hard to call venues and have them tell you, `We'll get back to you,' and try to keep a new group working that nobody's ever heard of. I knew it was going to be hard and that's why I didn't do it until now."
The problem, he thinks, is that David Brake & That Damn Band's sound doesn't fit neatly into one genre.
"Producers and booking agents want to be able to categorize everything. 'What are you? Are you black or are you white?' My answer is, 'yeah.' "
Brake credits Anderson Fair, J.P. Hops House in west Houston and Reno's in Webster for taking a chance on a new act in town. Next, he hopes to crack the Continental Club and McGonigel's Mucky Duck.
"I know we would do well at both of those places. We would fit right in (with) the way we mix up blues, rock and country," he says.
What makes Brake an indefinable act isn't that each song is a jumble of genres. Listening to his 2003 release Lean Mean Texas Machine is like listening to two or three bands. Even Five to Closing Time (What Do I Do Now) is a twangy country song that ought to be reverberating throughout Texas' dance halls. 101 Tattoos is a thoughtful piano ballad reminiscent of good Billy Joel or mature Ben Folds. Cowpunks, Angels, and Architects is a fine Americana story song.
Brake's songwriting heroes are as diverse as his tunes: late Beatles; early Billy Joel, Elton John and Bruce Springsteen; Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Steve Earle; Tom Waits.
"I don't care for predictable records," he says. "It should be like a movie. You don't know what the next song is going to do, but it's going to take you somewhere and it's going to be cool."
That Damn Band shows -- which feature Heli Martinez on guitar, Chaz Stuart on drums and Jeff Duncan on fiddle -- are crafted for the venue. If it's a Pat Green crowd, the band will play primarily country songs. A Black Crowes crowd gets a rock set. And then there are the covers Brake plays to pay the bills.
"The higher-paying gigs are usually cover gigs, especially on the piano," he says. "I have a couple thousand songs in my repertoire from doing the dueling pianos gig. There are songs that I'm damn sick of and you'd think everyone is sick of, but they're not. There's always somebody willing to put down money and say, `Man, that's my favorite song,' and it means something to them to hear it played live."
Brake grew up playing and writing music ("something to keep me occupied," he says), learning piano, guitar and bass while moving around the country with his mother, who worked for the Department of Military Affairs.
Accustomed as he was to a nomadic lifestyle, he continued to move from state to state until ending up here more than a decade ago.
"Before Houston, I had never lived anywhere for longer than four years. I like Houston's mix of people, how everybody gets along. I like what that brings to the table musically, which is music soup."
The only job Brake, now in his 30s, has ever had is that of a working musician, which is apparent in his comfortable stage presence.
"I can't imagine not making music; that's all I am, that's what I know. My goal is just to be happy. Maybe I'm not sure what it will take to be happy, but I'm looking and this is how I'm looking: just doing what I believe in for less money."
And in exchange for his sacrifices, there are moments that shine in Brake's quest for an audience.
"Last week a guy at a show asked me to sign his baseball cap. The guy wanted my name on his cap. That meant something to me."
-- Sara Cress | February 3, 2005
Spin Around CD review:
David Brake remains unknown to most Houstonians. He's a fine songwriter, someone who could probably make a good living selling songs in Nashville. But after a nomadic childhood and finding that he likes the musical diversity in Houston, he decided to stay here, playing mostly in suburban bars, where a musician can make a living.
Spin Around, Brake's second album, is a collection of live originals recorded in area clubs. It's a solid album of roots-rock and country songs that reflect dour times.
The rock songs are top-notch. Kayla Blue is the disc's best, least-twangy track featuring a sunshiney chorus and a story of longing. But the bulk of Brake's songwriting is country music. It's not high-flown and overly thoughtful, nor is it bland radio fare; he hits a nice balance of storytelling and truth-telling.
The title track refers to the information overload Americans receive daily, rattling off everything from war to school shootings to media ownership to child predators. "The world will spin you around," Brake growls. He offers no solutions, but that's sort of the point of Brake's music: He's an everyman observing his surroundings. He's not here to save the world.
Things get a little disquieting on Beer Gut, the disc's closer. The song's narrator is a disgusting mess: he's fat and he "ain't much on hygiene." Brake turns up the twang for effect. When he asks the audience to sing along, you hear a group of people with smiles and beer-gut pride. It's a slightly twisted love letter to the people who support him; the hard-working beer drinkers that keep this city afloat.
Put up all the glittering buildings you want, Houston will always be an industry town. And David Brake is its bard.
-- Sara Cress
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