Laramie Dean (born January 12, 1971)[1] is an American guitarist.
Laramie Dean | |
|---|---|
 Laramie Dean on stage | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Troy, New York |
| Genres | Punk rock, surf punk, surf |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, guitarist |
| Instrument | Guitar |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Labels | DeFi Records, Dead End Records (DER) |
| Website | laramiedean |
Biography
editDean was born in Troy, New York, and grew up on the Hudson River. In 1995 he moved to Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Dean began playing at the Elvis Room, and recording with Jim Tierny, as well as Joe King a.k.a. Joe Queer of New Hampshire pop punk band The Queers. At his first show at the Elvis Room, Dean met Tamara Collins. Collins gave Dean extensive airplay on her punk rock radio show "No Rules" which aired on New Hampshire's college radio station 91.3 WUNH.
In 1999, Dean released his first 7-inch EP titled "Listen to Laramie Dean ...you can almost smell the rubber burn!" One of the songs on this EP was also featured on the "Food Not Bombs" benefit compilation for Amnesty International, which also included tracks from The Unseen, The Ducky Boys and Anti-Flag.
In June 2007, Dean recorded his only full-length LP, "Laramie Dean Plays Surf Riot!" in Miami Florida, which was released at the Misfits' 30th anniversary tour.
In January 2008, Dean relocated to Los Angeles and made his first L.A. appearance at Largo with his friend, comedian and author Greg Behrendt. Backing Dean was Behrendt's band, The Reigning Monarchs. A month later, Dean toured with Mike Palm and his band Agent Orange.[2]
In July 2010, Dean began his first solo national headlining tour (from San Diego through Seattle and as far east as Ft. Lauderdale), joined with former Aggrolite member Korey "Kingston" Horn (drums), Jeff Bennet (saxophone) and Galaxia Records surf jazz musicians The Mattson 2 (bass/keyboards).[3]
In September 2010, Dean completed a second US tour as a three-piece band beginning in Florida and ending in New Mexico, with "King of the Surf Guitar" Dick Dale's 18-year-old son Jimmy Dale on drums and newcomer Trevor Lucca on bass guitar.[4][5]
January 2011 saw Dean completing just over 400 shows with the aforementioned Agent Orange, touring the US, Canada, Europe and the UK.
In June 2011, Laramie embarked on a rare national tour with Dick Dale himself,[6] beginning with their first appearance together at Tucson's The Hut.[7][8][9] Joined again by Dale's son Jimmy on drums, and Trevor Lucca on bass, Dean's act is rounded out with latest newcomer, Japanese import Hideki Ikeura on trumpet and keys.[10][11]
On October 20, 2012, Dean made a last-minute appearance closing out the first day of the Arizona Taco Festival. Dean was backed by Phoenix retro-surf-instrumental band, The Amazing Coconauts, as drummer Jimmy Dale was missing following a brief run-in with the law. Los Angeles bassist, Danny Servo, performed a few songs standing in for Dean's bassist Lucca, who was also unavailable for the late-notice show.[12][13][14]
In 2013, Dean did another US tour with Jimmy Dale, Trevor Lucca, and Alex Lewis. On this tour, Trevor Lucca's other band, Hardship Anchors were support.[10][15]
On December 11, 2015, Dean screened "Surf 9 From Outer Space," a short film/extended music video at the Trepany House at the Center for Inquiry (CFI) in Los Angeles, CA.[16]
Critical acclaim
editBen Thacker of the Miami New Times wrote that "Laramie Dean, the self-proclaimed surf-punk machine, disciple of surf-guitar god Dick Dale," has a "(louder) brand of classic surf punk," stating that Dean's "virtuosity definitely kept the crowd's attention, while providing a great segue to the main act."[17]
Flavorpill's Jason Jeffers commented that "Surf-punk star Laramie Dean['s] … ripping, growling guitar transports anyone within earshot to 1960s California" and that "Dean has amassed nationwide acclaim."[18]
The Crossfire's Pete Craven commented that "the very dapper Laramie Dean" was "easily one of the highlights" of Agent Orange's European tour date at the legendary Camden Underworld.[19]
Regarding Dean's tour with Dick Dale, TX Underground wrote of Dean's sound at the show of June 8 at Houston's Continental Club: "Authentic reverb heavy Surf music, but with crunchy distortion, and a Punk attitude, it makes the term 'Surf Punk' well warranted."[20] Brian Mahar of St. Petersburg's Patch, reporting on the June 11, 2011, sold out show at the State Theater, calls Dean "a legendary surf guitar player in his own right," noting that Dean booked the entire Dick Dale-Laramie Dean tour without the help of a separate agent.[21]
Discography
editSingles and EPs
edit- Amnesty International:Food Not Bombs Compilation/Limited Edition LP (1998) Impulse Buying Records
- Listen to Laramie Dean ... You can almost smell the rubber burn! 7-inch EP (1999) Dead End Records
- Listen to Laramie Dean ... You can almost smell the rubber burn! (Re-issue) 7-inch EP (2009) DeFi Records
- Laramie Dean is the Creeper! 7-inch Split Single (b/w: The Reigning Monarchs’ Tijuana Snakefight) (2010) DeFi Records
- Laramie Dean Plays Guitar From Outer Space EP (2015) DeFi Records
LP
edit- Laramie Dean plays Surf Riot! LP (2007) DeFi Records
References
edit- ^ "Births". The Troy Daily Record. Troy, New York. July 15, 1971.
- ^ "Agent Orange" by Forest Longwood, Weekly Volcano, March 29, 2010
- ^ "California Dreaming: Surf Rock Disciple Laramie Dean Goes the Distance in Pursuit of His Musical Ideal" by Reyan Ali. Folio Weekly, December 22, 2009. Florida USA
- ^ Laramie Dean plays a 'Hella' Surf Riot by Maribel Santoyo, EP Culture Beat. October 3, 2010, El Paso, Texas.[1][permanent dead link]
- ^ Casey Friedman (September 11, 2010). "Laramie Dean 9.10.10 the Blue Note OKC". Archived from the original on December 20, 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ [2] Dick Dale: The Guitar Master is Rocking in the Moment and Having the Time of His Life at 74 Years Young ATL Retro interview, June 10, 2011 "So Jimmy and I mix all these different types of concerts together, but he’s been playing [drums] with Laramie on tour ... They've been doing this for the last couple of years. So Laramie came to me and asked, "Dick, could I please open for you on one of your tours?" Normally I don't do that because I don't get involved with that. It's the agencies and the club owners. They want their own special bands to open for them, and they want a band that plays within a five-mile radius because they have their fans."
- ^ "What's Up: in music "Hanging ten with Dick Dale, king of surf guitar" By Maribel Santoyo, June 2011. El Paso, Texas. "Surf guitar legend Dick Dale is embarking on a 20-date tour with opener and returning protege Laramie Dean"". whatsuppub.com. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011.
- ^ "The Official Dick Dale Homepage: Concert Dates & Diaries". www.dickdale.com. November 15, 2022.
- ^ Crandell, Ben (June 26, 2009). "Aliens on Las Olas!". sun-sentinel.com.
- ^ a b "Official Laramie Dean Surf Punk". laramiedean.com.
- ^ "Interview With Laramie Dean(Agent Orange, Dick Dale, and many more)". TX Punk.
- ^ "EaterAZ: "Arizona Taco Festival this weekend" October 17, 2012". Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2012.
- ^ "The Coconauts - Lyrics are not an option - Arizona Surf Band". www.theamazingcoconauts.com.
- ^ "Sorry, we can't seem to find the page you're looking for". October 16, 2012 – via washingtonpost.com.[dead link]
- ^ Santoyo, Maribel. "Dean & Dale: Protégé and son of Dick Dale head to Tricky". whatsuppub.com.
- ^ "My Ed Wood Surf Rock Hollywood Boulevard Adventure - Los Angeles Magazine". lamag.com. December 15, 2015.
- ^ Miami New Times, Saturday, November 15, 2008. "Agent Orange with Laramie Dean" by Ben Thacker
- ^ "Flavorpill Miami, May 2008, by Jason Jeffers". flavorpill.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2011.
- ^ Caught in the Crossfire, London, April 18, 2009, by Pete Craven
- ^ "Dick Dale w/ Laramie Dean June 8 At Continental Club In Houston". TX Underground.
- ^ The Old Northeast-Downtown St. Pete Patch Archived August 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine "Half-Century Later, Dick Dale's Surf Music Makes Waves in St. Petersburg: Surf's up! At age 74, rocker Dick Dale displayed vigor and excitement for the 1960s surf music he made famous." By Brian Mahar, June 12, 2011.
External links
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