Interview: 5 questions with MIKE JOHNSON

Saturday night I went to see Radical Revolution - a local 80s cover band - at the Crystal Ballroom. That review will appear tomorrow. Tuesday afternoon I chatted with their bass player, Mike Johnson.

Along with RadRev, Johnson plays drums for Journey cover band Stone in Love, bass and vocals in Red Light Romeos, frequently subs in for other bands on drums, and has recently started a new dance band: Slick Richard & the Candy Band. You may also remember him from previous bands like Camaro Hair and the Flurries.

I have also known him for long enough that going to Tower Records and buying cassingles might have been a thing we did together.

The conversation has been edited for clarity and brevity.

How has playing multiple instruments affected your outlook and work?

For one thing, I think I just had ADHD as a kid, and would get decent at one thing and then want to move on. I drummed for ten years, and then when I started my first band I didn't want to be the drummer. I started composing on piano and that became my main thing.  

It makes the gigs fresh because they are always different. I can have two gigs back to back, playing two nights, two different instruments. It is jack of all trades, master of none, but I can play well enough. My calendar is more refreshing. It is "do what you love" but not the same thing every day.

What do you think of the local music scene?

I'm probably the wrong person to ask. The market is a lot more saturated. Back in the day there were six main places to go see music, and now there are all of these little tap rooms. It seems like it was more buzzing back in the 90s.

Also, when Camaro Hair was playing it was before social media, you had to play the smaller gigs and work up. Now you can get a following on Youtube. It's different to come back and know how to be a part of that. Most musicians aren't business guys and don't want to spend their time on that.

What would be helpful for musicians?

It's hard because as the market gets saturated clubs are struggling too, and club owners really have to watch their bottom lines. The thing I would like to see the most is to have the pay level out for streaming. There have been some changes in legislation, but there are so many ways to get music for free that you underpay people. For shows, I haven't seen people rip off musicians like they used to, where they would have you sell a hundred tickets and then they underpay, but I'm not a guy that books. I have the best manager in town (Jason Fellman of J-Fell Presents) and we get treated really well. I've been doing 80s covers as a joke for 20 years; it's funny at this point in my life to be getting paid for it.

You recently completed the Hood to Coast relay; does being a runner help your stage stamina?

I'm not a runner. Well, I run sometimes, but not as much most of those guys. I had to really ramp it up for the relay, and then just exploded and partied. It was super fun and I didn't die.  For singers and breathing, cardio is good.

What are some of the musical goals that you are looking forward to?

I have a million songs that I've written over the years that I haven't had time to record. One solo album in 2009 took four years to make. My goal is to get caught up and put out my backlog of material. The cover bands started playing a lot more, so it takes longer. It's like being a painter with an idea in your head, and just not getting it out. That's my main goal. I found a guy that is great to work with so it should be easier now. We have laid down eight tracks, and I should have a video ready in a few months.

Related links: 

Red Light Romeos: https://www.facebook.com/redlightromeos/ 
Radical Revolution: https://j-fell.com/radicalrevolution/
Stone In Love: https://j-fell.com/stoneinlove/

Also, if you missed it... https://sporkful.blogspot.com/2020/01/talk-to-me.html