Matt Devine - Ventilator, Elevated Lines, Medicine, Permanent Green Light, Possum Dixon
Show notes
Matt Devine in conversation with David Eastaugh
https://ventilatorofficial.bandcamp.com/album/reseda-spleen
https://matt-devine.bandcamp.com/album/a-distant-present
Thirty years after its original release, Reseda Spleen, the 1996 debut album from Los Angeles psychedelic rock project Ventilator, is getting a new lease on life through a reissue from Bar/None Records. Led by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Matt Devine, Ventilator emerged following his departure from Permanent Green Light, the power-pop band he shared with former Three O’Clock frontman Michael Quercio.
Recorded largely in Devine’s North Hollywood apartment using a Tascam 388 eight-track tape recorder, Reseda Spleen blends melodic songwriting with noisy guitars, atmospheric textures, and moments of experimentation. While Devine was the driving creative force behind the project, the album also features contributions from drummer Byron Reynolds (Possum Dixon), lap steel guitarist Jeff Caruana, and Brad Laner of Medicine, who played bass on “Earthquake Song” and mixed “Schadenfreude.” The majority of the album was mixed by Earle Mankey, whose extensive credits include Sparks, the Runaways, and the Beach Boys.