Bright Bright Men of Learning are left to right
Ben Murphy, Johnathan Sage, Marshall Preddy, Jeff Senske, and Chris Kahlich
(Photo by Jordan Graber)

Marshall Preddy isn’t a model rock and roller. He's a nice guy who studied his way through law school, married his sweetheart, started a family, and somewhere in between found the time to assemble the similarly drama-free rockers who make up the rest of Bright Men of Learning.

The band - Preddy (vocals/guitar), Ben Murphy (guitar), Chris Kahlich (guitar), Johnathan Sage (bass), and Jeff Senske (drums) – has never aspired to be anything more than a band that makes personal and well-crafted music for its own sake. They practice all the time, hardly ever play, and insist (despite some recent indications to the contrary) they're "allergic to promotion." The result is that BMOL is one of Houston’s most criminally under-appreciated bands. Preddy’s whisky-soaked phrasing, Murphy and Kahlich’s lovely guitar work, and Sage and Senske’s solid rhythm section combine to form one of the warmest and most inviting sounds in the city.

If you want to hear a band that relies on the strength of its songwriting and a self-assured interaction between players you'll likely want to be at Rudyard’s Friday night, where the band is playing a last-minute show that will also act as a release for its lo-fi three-song EP, Champion Sound.

BMOL: Johnathan Sage & Marshall Preddy29-95: Is the John Sears engineered EP, Champion Sound, a Grey Ghost release (Sears' label) and how was working with John and his portable studio vs. the studio in Austin where you’re recording your new album?

Ben: Though Sears did the recording it's not an official Grey Ghost release. The full-length album has been a much longer and more involved process. There’s been much more debate and deliberation on the album whereas the EP was just a quick, fun, recreational kind thing. We had a blast hangin' out with John that day; we played some upbeat tunes, ate some Tex-Mex, and drank some beers.

Marshall: The full-length is probably the most ambitious thing we've done: 14 tracks, lots of pretty arrangements, special guest players, and keyboards. The EP is the exact opposite: short and dirty.

29-95: Why the long delay? Where the hell have you guys been? And if someone hadn’t canceled a show at Rudz and allowed you to jump in would you guys even bother getting out of the studio?

BMOL's Chris KahlichChris: We sat on this EP for like a month at least so I honestly don’t think we would’ve had the EP out any time soon if Mike Sims didn’t say “Oh, hey, wanna play Friday?”

Ben: The thing about BMOL is this: we're pretty much just 5 regular, average 30-something dudes with mortgages, kids, wives, and jobs so just getting together once a week to play guitars and have a beer or two with our "bros" is really all we need. Shows have always been kind of an afterthought. We’re just thrilled to get in the practice room and make noise.

29-95: The opening to Good Driver Bad Actor has a nice AC/DC kind of feel. Which makes me ask the obvious question - WTF?

Marshall: Since Ben joined the band, he's been turning all my country songs into rock songs. It just happened where the riff I initially wrote sounded like one of those big, dumb AC/DC hooks and Ben sorta took that element and pushed it to its natural extreme.

Chris: You should see how we’ve been rehearsing it. Everyone is doing this open-mouth face and hip thrusting and pointing at each other with our guitars.

Ben: Who doesn't like AC/DC? A person that doesn't like AC/DC is not the kind of person I want to meet.

BMOL's Johnathan Sage
29-95: I couldn’t help but notice your new album is on a polyvinylchloride disk. Why that format?

Ben: Simple: it's cheap and easy.

Chris: Well, since about 57% of its mass is chlorine, polyvinylchloride requires less petroleum than many other polymers. We’re trying to do the right thing.

Ben: Wow. Nerd!

29-95: What can we expect on the upcoming BMOL album? Is there any truth to the rumor that all choruses will feature T-Pain?

Ben: We can neither confirm nor deny these rumors.

Chris: All I’m allowed to say is that there might be a CD in Marshall’s car that says Glitter Mixes.

Marshall: I will admit that auto-tune makes an appearance on nearly every song. We figured there was no way our ring tones would sell otherwise.

29-95: Dad Rock?

Ben: Are you kidding man? Have you ever heard us? Full on dad rock!

Johnathan: You know, Dad Rock, like the songs that you should BUT don’t get to hear on classic rock stations ‘cause they are so full of classic rock

Chris: I snatched so many great records from my dad. Without dads, how would anyone know about ELP’s Tarkus?

Marshall: Even in my early 20s, I would always joke about my songs being "adult contemporary" and I’ve always been pretty clear that I was only half-joking.

29-95: The new BMOL band symbol is pretty awesomely ridiculous. Two questions: What the hell were you thinking and how soon will y’all cash in on all the merch?

Chris: Well T-shirt sales were down, Ramon, so we knew we had to do something. Marshall said “bmol” looks like the devil horn hand sign and then it just kinda happened. I’m just glad the church-centric CD place didn’t deny our order on account of how we were secular devil music.

BMOL's Ben Murphy29-95: In Houston Indie Rock Band years, you guys are probably hitting a median of about 210 years old. What advice can you seasoned veterans impart on your younger peers?

Johnathan: My advice is to just put stuff out; it’s always going to be better than the band who did nothing.

Chris: I would say: “You don’t seriously think you’re going to make it do you? Get a job and pay your space rent!”

29-95: All you guys have day jobs and BMOL has never struck me as a band with any pretensions beyond making good music and the joy of making it. Why make music if you never expect to “make it”?

Ben: It's fun! Playing rock music is just plain fun! Hanging out with your buddies and playing a guitar really loud or banging on a drum is just plain good times.

Chris: Well, I don’t think you can successfully avoid sounding cliché when answering this, but it really is something you just do because it’s in you and it has to get out. One of the awesome side benefits is that I’m in band with a bunch of good friends that are fun to be around.

Johnathan: I am afflicted and will most likely do this forever. Besides, I just love carrying my own gear.

BMOL's Marshall Preddy29-95: If you had to pick one main influence on BMOL’s sound or songwriting style what or who would it be?

Ben: Well I’m sure Marshall would be the first to say he loves Yo La Tengo and classic rock. I know we all have the usual 30-something indie-rock guy interests. Like Marshall has said in the past, we're not trying to reinvent the wheel. There are no delusions in this band that we are any greater than we are. I think we all love a lot of '90s indie rock, old classic rock, and a good deal of current stuff.

Marshall: Apparently, I’m the second to say I love Yo La Tengo and classic rock. In addition, I’d check The Replacements, The Lemonheads, Tom Petty, Wilco, Luna, Spoon, Pavement. and the usual mid-90s suspects. One of the coolest things I noticed a while back is that the dude from The Shins uses a lot of the same chord changes and structures I’ve always used -- to much better effect, obviously.

29-95: What was the best worst BMOL moment ever?

Ben: Every few months we'll have a rehearsal that will devolve into a long dragged out political debate.

Chris: Probably the best worst was a last-second show where we played for no one at Super Happy Fun Land. We didn’t play so great and I was the Prisoner that Halloween so I was wearing this Patrick McGoohan blazer. Just awful!

Johnathan: The best is playing in front of people - anytime, anyplace. The worst is waiting around to play in front of people - anytime, anyplace.

Marshall: Going damn near 8 months without playing a show for no real reason. Glad that's over.

Bright Men of Learning perform Friday at Rudyard’s with The Jonx and Side Arms.