*CAMELFEST MUSIC FESTIVAL OCT. 18-19 TO BENEFIT ROOTS & WINGS
In Celebration of its 20th Anniversary, Dromedary Records Will Bring 8 Bands Together at Asbury Lanes in Asbury Park in Support of Former Foster Youth*

Members of the New Jersey and regional music scene are coming together once again to support young adults who have aged out of the child welfare system in the Garden State, announced Dromedary Records, a Great Meadows-based independent record label. The effort will launch with *Camelfest 2013*, a two-day music festival to be held Friday and Saturday, October 18 and 19, at Asbury Lanes, the legendary venue in New Jersey’s Asbury Park.

Proceeds from Camelfest will benefit Roots & Wings, a nonprofit organization based in Mountain Lakes, N.J. Founded in 1999, Roots & Wings provides safe housing, educational support and practical life skills to youth who have “aged-out” of the child welfare system; for many, services are discontinued at age 18. Roots & Wings assists this high-risk population of disadvantaged young adults, helping them replace dependency with self-sufficiency.

Eight bands will perform during three shows at Camelfest. On Friday night, beginning at 9 p.m., *Wax Darts*, *The Coffin Daggers*, *Cinema Cinema* and *The Everymen* will take the stage. On Saturday night, again beginning at at 9 p.m., the lineup features *Overlake*, *The Brixton Riot*, *The Anderson Council*, and *Stuyvesant*. Admission is $10 per person for each show, with tickets available at the door. Attendees must be 18 to enter, 21 to drink. Asbury Lanes is located at 209 4th Avenue in Asbury Park

“In 20 years of hosting shows, this might be the most exciting lineup we’ve ever offered.” said Dromedary Records owner Al Crisafulli. “It’s a celebration of indie rock in New Jersey, and of 20 years of great music, and we decided this year we’d make it extra loud, just to prove that we’re not too old for this yet.”

In celebration of its 20th anniversary, Dromedary will be releasing From ’93 ‘Til Infinity, a compilation album featuring contemporary indie rock bands performing covers of indie rock songs initially released in Dromedary’s “birth year,” 1993. The compilation, which will be available on CD and digital download, features bands like Stuyvesant, The Anderson Council, and Cinema Cinema performing tracks from legendary artists like Liz Phair, Superchunk and Yo La Tengo. CDs will be available for purchase at the show.

The third annual Camelfest continues the label’s affiliation with Roots & Wings, as Dromedary has contributed to the organization each year since 2011.

“Because Roots & Wings is funded almost entirely by private donations and special events, support from individuals and organizations that work hard to put on events like this one are critical to our sustainability,” explained Kim Spangenberg, executive director of Roots & Wings.

“Often becoming suddenly homeless with no plan for the future, youth who phase out of foster care can find themselves alone with no one to depend on, leaving them at disturbingly high risk for dependence on welfare and unemployment, homelessness, unplanned pregnancy and incarceration,” she added. “Roots & Wings provides these young people the support they need to become successful, contributing members of society. Without the generosity of groups like Dromedary Records and its bands, Roots & Wings could not exist.”

For more information, visit the Dromedary Records website at www.dromedary-records.com or the Camelfest website at www.camelfest.com.

It’s been a year since the release of the stellar debut CD by *The 65’s*, _Strike Hard!_ and the whirlwind of acclaim and recognition that came with it. Since then, in-between gigging hard throughout the Northeast, the band has withstood a multitude of personal and professional hardships, including a lineup change, a devastating house fire, and a number of other issues.

The band has recently entered the studio to record the followup to _Strike Hard!_ and was kind enough to give us a taste of one of their new songs, “Holes Dug Deep.”

Singer/guitarist Joseph O. Pugsley and drummer John Steele took also took some time to answer a few questions. Here goes:

*What’s your impression about the reaction to “Strike Hard!”? In hindsight, are you happy with the record? Are you happy with the response?”*

JP: I’m extremely happy with the reaction to the record. We’ve gotten nothing but positive feedback and all of the reviews were overwhelmingly positive, supportive, and most surprisingly, quite reflective. I was taken aback a bit by some of them as you could tell the reviewers really listened to the record, enjoyed it, and seemed to enjoy writing about it. The compliments on our songwriting were probably the most appreciated and the shows have gotten more crowded as well, which is always a good thing. We worked really hard on this, and it feels really good that people seem to really enjoy it. I think we made a fine record.

JS: It’s funny how it started out and eventually how it ended up, sort of as a “side project” – two different studios over the period of a few years. The thing that took the longest was writing it, but it came together so quickly in the end, it had a great, immediate feel to it, a good spirit, “magic,” if you will.

*The band has replaced bassist Cindi Merklee, who has gone on to join Speed the Plough. Tell us about your new bass player.*

JP: Jeff Gashler is an old friend of mine that I played with in a few bands – c.i. infidels, The Dark Brothers, Blackberry Mohawk – he shows up, puts the time in, and plays great, so it was a perfect fit. Dan played all the bass on _Strike Hard!_ anyway; Cindi joined right as we were completing the record and did a bunch of shows with us, but the foundation of the band hasn’t changed at all.

*Last year, in the midst of the launch of _Strike Hard!_, Dan (Smith, bass player) had a devastating house fire. How did that set everybody back? What was lost? Was any recorded music recovered?*

JP: Dan lost everything in his home studio except for maybe a pedal or a mic here or there, and there was a significant amount of structural damage to his house. He was displaced for about six months. Somehow, he was able to remain enthusiastic about the band and continued to play all the shows and everything. There were some songs that were recovered, but since we were in the process of supporting the record and not really recording, there wasn’t much 65’s material to be concerned about. Not like that was a major concern anyway, I mean, a friend’s house got totally fucked and he was displaced, that was the issue. Band stuff is secondary.

JS: I agree, what Dan went through was horrible. 2012 was kind of a rough year on all of us; we were glad to see it go. Thankfully everything that was lost could be replaced and no one was hurt.

*How did the fire impact the band’s plans?*

JP: Like I said, band stuff is secondary to real life, and our main concern was for our friend and being supportive as best we could, so I never really thought about it in that respect. I’m happy to say that he’s back in his house and that his studio is up and running and better than ever, and we’ve been doing overdubs for the new record there. Aside from the fire at Dan’s, it’s actually been a really trying year for all of us. There have been serious relationship issues, family illnesses, and personal health issues as well. We’ve been through a lot, and I feel a lot closer to the guys, as they’ve been very supportive to me with some of the difficult things going on in my life, and I hope they feel the same about my support. You have no choice but to work around the unexpected; you can’t let it dictate the direction you take, you just take the twist and turn and get back on track as soon and as best as possible. Make tweaks if necessary but keep moving. If you stay in the muck too long, it’s on you, man.

*You’ve unveiled a rough mix of a new song, and it kicks ass. Are you in the studio now? What’s the plan? When can we expect to hear new music?*

JP: Thanks, glad you like it. We’re very pleased to unveil this rough mix of “Holes Dug Deep.” It’s a good representation of where the band is headed musically; we’re experimenting yet keeping the song structure intact. We hope everyone enjoys it. We’re in the studio and are really having a blast working on the new stuff. We are in the process of working on a couple of things. Here’s the plan:

We will be releasing a digital-only extended single/EP for the last single from _Strike Hard!_, for a song called “I Got You” very soon on Dromedary – March or most likely April – along with a new video for the song. We’re really excited about this, as it’s our last single from our first record and it’s a very personal song for me, one that a lot of people have said is the best song on the record.

We’re also pleased to be working with Brian Fitzpatrick again for the video. He did a great job with “Walk On Selfishly”:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJXXQt05R64 and I can’t wait to see what we come up with for this one. He’s so talented on the visual end of things, something that’s foreign to me, so it’s really exciting to collaborate with someone of his ilk.

So the EP will be the first opportunity for people to hear new 65’s material. It’ll be a stripped down EP, with mainly acoustic tracks, including some really strong songs by Dan.

We’ve also got seven tracks down for the next full length record, which we plan to release in the fall or early winter, which so far has no acoustic tracks at all. It seems to be ending up a pretty loud, heavy record. So, safe to say there will be a healthy dose of new 65’s stuff out there to digest in the near future.

*What are the band’s plans for live performances to support the EP and the next record?*

JP: We will be performing more shows this time around, including some mini east coast tours to spots we didn’t reach last time – Boston, DC and others – but we’ll also return to spots we’ve already been to. We are making a concerted effort to reach out and do more DIY-type networking with other musicians and bands to collaborate and book strategically, in order to best serve all involved.

It’s this sort of collective effort that I think can really help us as well as other bands on Dromedary, and in the indie/punk scene of NJ to reach out and get more exposure. So if anyone is interested in working with us in any capacity, please feel free to get in touch. As the bands on Dromedary and others that know me are aware, I’m always working on something, putting together shows at different venues, benefits, acoustic gigs, all sorts of things – so we’ll continue, yet expand our approach in the process.

At the end of last month we mentioned that *The 65’s* were back in the studio, working on a few projects. First, we’ll be releasing a digital-only EP, with proceeds going to benefit a charitable organization that we’ll clue you in about soon. You can expect that EP sometime in the spring/summer.

Then, the band is working on the followup to last year’s fantastic LP _Strike Hard!_. Last month we played you a rough mix of “Holes Dug Deep,” a track from that album.

The band has also been gigging around the NJ/NY area, warming up for a rash of summertime shows to support the new record.

Til then, however, we’re proud to present you with a video reminder of the band’s debut album: “Are You Sick of Me Yet?”

And no, we definitely are not.

Check it out:

Cinema Cinema has released a video for the “50 Ft. Queenie” single, and it premiered this afternoon on Blurt Online.

You can see it “there”:http://blurtonline.com/news/video-premiere-cinema-cinema-does-pj-harveys-50-foot-queenie/ or you can see it here:

The “50 Ft. Queenie” single has already gotten some great press. “Speak Into My Good Eye”:http://speakimge.com/cinema-cinema-dropped-new-single-covered-pj-harveys-50ft-queenie/ says the band “dresses the tune in a cloak of sinister tidings, opening with a distorted noise introduction akin to _Bleach_-era Nirvana, complete with squealing textures of a physically tortured fret-board and manipulation of its six strings…”

Meanwhile, “United By Rocket Science”:http://unitedbyrocketscience.blogspot.com/2013/06/family-matters-with-brooklyns-cinema.html sings the band’s praises here, complete with an interview with Ev and Paul, in advance of their kickass show with Black Flag at the Northside Festival in Brooklyn last weekend.

You can pick up the single from us directly, “right here”:http://dromedaryrecords.bandcamp.com/releases

Check Out *Cinema Cinema*’s cover of PJ Harvey’s “50 Ft. Queenie,” from their debut Dromedary 7″.

Then, check out the band this weekend when they play Brooklyn’s Northside Festival along with a reunited Black Flag.

Not a bad week for monstrous avant-punk.

“50 Ft. Queenie” is the first blast from _From ’93 ‘Til Infinity_, the upcoming Dromedary 20th Anniversary compilation that features 16 bands covering indie rock classics from 1993 (our birth year). The Cinema Cinema track was appropriately massive, and with killer artwork by Lauren Kelley, we couldn’t help but put together a beautiful vinyl package (our first actual _record_ since 1994, though we insist on using the term for every release).

While the record is available on digital download from all the usual suspects (and in every format known to man on our own website), we heartily recommend buying the 7″ directly from us – it includes a free download, and you can choose the limited-edition white vinyl, or any of three high-quality mixed-color copies (in purple, pink, or gray). Or buy one of each! The records are all pressed on high-quality 150-gram vinyl.

Enjoy!

Last week it became national news that the great Maxwell’s would be “shutting its doors”:http://www.nj.com/entertainment/music/index.ssf/2013/06/maxwells_a_hoboken_rock_instit.html for good on July 31.

We are not part of the institution that is Maxwell’s. Not in the way that the club’s outstanding staff are, or the Hoboken regulars that are there nightly, or the great indie bands that were launched from the club, like the Feelies, the Trypes, Yo La Tengo, Tiny Lights, Yung Wu, Speed the Plough, Human Switchboard, the Cucumbers, The Bongos, The Individuals, and so many others.

At the same time, we have also called Maxwell’s “home,” for nearly all of our 20 years. The thrill of seeing a Melting Hopefuls or Footstone show there in the early 90s is no different than the thrill of seeing Stuyvesant or The Mommyheads play there today. That they opened their doors to us for two Camelfest events, and allowed us to do shows pretty much whenever we asked is not a testament to us, it’s a testament to *them* – how cool and accepting they always were of local music and local labels. Over the years, literally _thousands_ of New Jersey bands have owed Maxwell’s a debt, as have thousands more touring bands who came into town hungry and were treated to the venue’s famous free meal, accepting environment, and warm fans.

There was never a time I went to Maxwell’s and found the environment to be tense. I never saw a fight there. The friendly staff was easily the nicest and most accommodating of any club in the area, and the room, despite being legendary, never had any airs about it. The menu was always excellent.

I don’t pretend to be someone on the “inside” with Maxwell’s; I’m just a fan who goes there for burgers and beer, just like everyone else. All it’s been is my favorite place to go hang out and see consistently great music for most of my adult life.

The best thing about Maxwell’s, to me, was that everyone was treated with respect, whether it be a well-known, national act; a small, touring band from out of town; or one of the many local bands that made the place home over the years. Every band got a good, free meal, professional treatment from the staff, a solid mix, and a nice chunk of the door. Everyone there was always supportive, and treated us like our show was important. As a supporter of original music in New Jersey, there has been no cooler venue.

Over the last 20 years or so, I’ve seen some of my favorite bands play on that stage, and I’ve also been amazingly fortunate enough that they’ve let Dromedary bands and our friends play there pretty frequently. As wrecked as I am over this, I can’t do anything but thank the club and its staff, most importantly Todd, Karl, Andy and Carson for being so amazing, and of course Steve Fallon as well. Thank you all so much for creating such a special place, for supporting our bands and friends, and for being such an inspiration.

We will all miss Maxwell’s terribly.

-Al/Dromedary