I had the opportunity to interview Patti Rothberg and meet her manager and sister. It was a pleasure to meet everyone and get a chance to ask them questions. The interview focuses on Patti’s most recent three albums, and her thoughts about the future direction of her music. By the end of the interview, it is apparent that she knows what direction she would like to take as an artist, and as a fan of her work I’m excited and looking forward to her new music.
Interesting Facts About Patti and Inspiration
1. When Patti first was learning how to drive, she would put the cassette of Janis Joplin’s Pearl in the tiny red Acura stereo, roll all the windows up and copy Janis’ inflections!
2. Dale Bozzio of Missing Persons was one of Patti’s first MTV idols. She wore mirrored jewels on her face, had huge blonde hair with blue streaks, a glass bra, and squeals which defined her otherwise pitch perfect and extremely stylized vocals. This was a true influence on 8-year-old Patti!
Also, “Spring Session M” is an anagram for Missing Persons….Patti always loved words at an early age, and the concept of an anagram was mystifying.
3. Siouxsie Sioux was Patti’s goth idol when she got a little older. About 13 or 14. The thing about Siouxsie is she wailed, she had a distinctive voice, but she was always beautifully in tune, so stylish….and for a performance in summer camp, Patti put eyeliner almost down to her cheeks and did a rare dance to “Christine”.
4. Jim Morrison was (and still remains) to be one of Patti’s favorite crooning poster boys…his keyboard player would grow up to become the producer of a band called “X” which featured two lead singers……John Doe and Exene Cervenka. Exene was the first one Patti saw with dark hair and blonde streaks (even before Joe Perry) and they had a unique sound by his melodic low voice coupled with her atonal punk vocals. Not many know this, but Exene Cervenka was one of Patti’s earliest idols, and the X song “Nausea” was directly responsible for the writing of Patti’s song which appears first on her first album, 1&9… “Flicker”! (although it turned out sounding quite differently)
Patti’s Real Influences
Aside from seeing Pat Benetar’s first MTV song (it was the 2nd song on MTV next to The Buggles)…Pat Benetar was absolutely one of the most influential singers for Patti. She and several of her friends even went to “Catch a Rising Star” on Patti’s 10th birthday where Pat was noticed early in her career. “You Better Run”, “Shadows of the Night” by D.L. Byron and “Fire and Ice” are just some of the go-to karaoke songs that really inspire Patti.
Olivia Newton John- Patti had Olivia’s solo albums as a very little kid, but it wouldn’t be long until she saw the movie that absolutely changed her life…Xanadu when she was only nine in 1981. The idea that she could be a roller-skating geek muse running around inspiring downtrodden artists seemed perfectly viable as a career. When Grease came out Patti was only 6, but saw it sitting on the steps of a crowded theater. Of all the influences on Patti’s singing, it was Olivia and Xanadu that shaped her interests into painting, songwriting and singing…….even acting!.
Juliana Hatfield- A young guy in the Navy who used to follow my band around in a small car he called “Betty”, made a cassette (That’s how long ago this was) for me with a drawing of a squirrel on it that said “Squeak”. It wasn’t otherwise labeled, but I fell in love with all those songs. “Supermodel”, “For The Birds”….I felt like her voice was a friend, while I was surrounded by opportunistic men who only seemed to care about drugs and “getting ahead”. She later recorded Olivia Newton John and The Police (Synchronicity was one of my favorite albums too)…..Kindred spirits.
Liz Phair- Whenever I was rejected by a label or radio station, what I would hear is “We already have ONE Liz Phair”….so I rebelled and didn’t listen to her music for a long time. Then I finally put on “White Chocolate Space Egg”. I totally loved it. While I feel we are different types of artists, I was grateful that I didn’t let other opinions get in the way of someone who became one of my favorite modern female artists to listen to.
Courtney Love “Live Through This” 1994. That was the year I got an art show, a record deal, a manager….everything happened and this was the album I was listening to at the time..
Suzy Quatro- Since “Rock Hard” from the movie Times Square she has been the one catsuit I longed to fill!
The Runaways-…..Who didn’t want to run away and join a rock band! I also love Joan Jett solo, and am devastated to have lost a friend in Alan Merrill who wrote “I love Rock n Roll” originally for his band The Arrows….unfortunately, they lost him from Covid. R.I.P. He was a sweetheart and will remain a pin up in heaven.
Interview May 2021
DAT: Dominic Arts Tribune PR: Patti Rothberg M: Micah (manager/husband) SR: Suzanne Rothberg (Patti’s Sister)
DAT: Hey, how are you?
PR: Good, thank you. First of all, for taking the time to so carefully listen to all of the material. I know that CDs as a medium, they make artist put everything in there. I know there’s a lot of material. So thanks for listening.
DAT: Sure. I’m so happy to be a listener and I feel like I’m a loyal listener now. Ok, well, I’m not going to keep too much of you guy’s time because I know time is money. Time is art too. But I just wanted to jump right into it. Pizza box and Douche. Yeah, very, very big projects and very, very creative. But last night I had an epiphany of sorts. I said, you know what, I really like those two albums, but I kind of need to know what came out before this so that I could understand where you were going with the music. And so, as I understand it, in 2019 you came out with Behind Bars and I previewed the album on iTunes Store. I have to listen to it completely, but I’ve listened to the majority of the tracks on there and my initial response is, ”oh my God”, it is such a good album. After making the record did you know it was going to be that good?
PR: Behind Bars was my last official solo album that I recorded in the studio with the producer that I was working with who then bought a pizza truck, actually a grilled cheese truck. So whatever it is, there’s always pizza in it. But anyway, yeah, he got married and he quit the music business and that was the end of our recording together. So that’s why it has a cohesive sound. Yeah. All those songs were written around the same time, except for the title track, which is 20 years old. It was recorded by the same producer that did Candelabra and Double Standards, which are both kind of like heavier sounding albums. I always dreamed to make sort of like my pop metal album, like Chrissie Hynde meets Aerosmith or Judas Priest meets Ozzy or just all the things that I love thrown together. And obviously I can’t help. I’m a female. But like, I never think of myself as a female artist. You probably heard that before from other female artists, too. Sure. But, you know, when I sing, I think I’m Ozzy. And then I listen back and I’m not. I’m a female Ozzy. So, you know, Behind Bars. Did I know it would be good? I have to admit, I loved that album and because it hit right when I was going to tour for it, but not a huge big world tour, but just, you know, up and down the East Coast or maybe the south a little bit, the limited touring, you know, or like radio touring, because I know a couple of little radio stations around and then Covid-19 happened. That was the end of that. But it’s like you’re one of the few people who have, you know, who have it in the context of someone who might review it and who knows the story. I haven’t even talked. I never talk about Behind Bars. I mean, it’s for sale on my website, like all the other solo albums that are my official Patti Rothberg albums. And I do a lot of collaborations. There’s Dragon meets Phoenix, there’s Ball, but that’s the last Patti Rothberg album since before covid. That’s a long-winded answer. The big and the real answer is yes. I knew it would kick lots of ass.
DAT: You bet it does. That is why the first thing I’m doing when I get off of here is download that album. Is there a way that you prefer your fans to purchase your work or do you prefer them to go to your official website? Or is iTunes ok? Or do you prefer Spotify?
PR: Website? Yeah, I mean, I personally like to own an album and touch it and like open it and read the titles or whatever else. There’s an eBay Store. There’s Amazon. I mean, I if you do it through PayPal, I get the money right away and then you get the products soon enough. So there’s that. So you’re excited. But I mean, as far as just to get a taste of it, there are all streaming and I will never see a dime of it. So, you can try it out before you buy it.
DAT: Oh, I’m buying it!… I did notice that there was some time in between your first album and your next one. Were you touring during that time or were you making other forms of art? Were you doing something creative with your life during that time?
PR: Well, that’s an excellent question, from basically April 2nd, 1996, when I hit the road for the first time in a tour bus until February, March, when I did my tour, my last huge tour opening for the Black Crows in Europe, because it was only a two-month thing, but that was enough. And then I came back home and I started doing, commissioned portraits and I’m doing a couple now. So in between we’re writing songs. And one thing I did not have is a home recording device of any kind. I didn’t have Pro Tools. But in September of 1997 I went to Maui.
DAT: Nice!
PR: I’d never been anywhere so beautiful. I mean I’ve been to California, which is also quite nice, but I’m in Maui. When I got off the plane and everyone was laughing because I was wearing a leather jacket, I looked at the phones like in Hawaii, which is sort of a foreshadowing because I ended up as Joey Ramone in the tribute band. But yeah, so I’m to make a long story really long before I met who was going to end up being the producer of the first Candelabra Cadabra, which is my second album. And there was still EMI levels of like pocket change lying around, you know, from what that momentum had created from touring and from sales. So I’m like, well, of course I’ll always have money. I’ll make another album, because what do rock stars do? That’s what they did. And I basically went broke, though, and some people think I went for broke on Candelabra Cadabra with this particular producer who at the time I didn’t realize he was benefiting as much from me as I was from him because I stalked him just because of what he was wearing. I wanted to make like a creative record, like I wanted to do something eighties. I wanted to, I’m definitely a child of the eighties. My favorite people living are John and Dale Bosio and Pat Benatar and all these types of female artists, as they say, but when you say oh, I’m listening to a Pat Benatar record, you don’t go, you’re just female.
I mean, yeah, Pat Benatar because she kicks so much ass, you know, she’s female. It doesn’t matter. So that’s what I was going for. I was not looking to be in the new Helen Reddy movement of, you know, stab her ex-boyfriend and call them douche. And that was my intention anyway. Yeah, ok. So I hope I’m being clear. I’m just being kind of colorful about this. So in answer to your question, this guy, because we thought that we had hit the jackpot creatively to work together, he had all kinds of outboard gear. He was a sound engineer from New York City. His name’s Freddie Katz. And I worked with him and he was so meticulous that it would take some producers a few hours. It would take him a few years. So that is why it took such a long time to make Candelabra Cadabra, because he was a perfectionist. He had analog outboard gear. I don’t really know what that is because most people, they record on the phone, like my old friend, he said, oh, I just made a whole album on my phone. We all know about Billy Eilish. She started on her phone. Absolutely. So, you know, it was like the opposite of that, you know, big boards and lots of switches.
Yeah. So, I mean, there is probably some way to because Pizza Box span’s music that I wrote and recorded on different state of the art mediums. It’s very interesting actually because I was trying to sound retro and when that machinery came out it was trying to sound cutting edge, you know. So what you get is somebody who’s not really an engineer trying to figure out how to do Pro Tools. That’s what pizza boxes got.
DAT: Well, it was a success. I think you said it very well. And, you know, it’s funny you mention female artists, because usually when I hear people talk about female artists specifically in the rock genre and they talk about radio, they frequently say that there’s not very many female voices played on the radio on rock radio stations. You can name them on one hand. And I was wondering if you think that’s true and that it’s something that needs to be done about that, that women should be played more on stations who play classic rock, like yourself should be played more and celebrated more.
PR: Ok, well, I think that there is a singular invention that has helped a lot of females break into the business because maybe they’re excellent dancers or maybe they’re really beautiful and maybe they can carry a tune pretty well. It’s called Auto Tune. And I think Auto Tune kind of killed the identity star because you can use it as a tweaker. It’s like if you put auto tune on somebody like Cher, I mean, she actually invented this whole thing, Auto Tune as an effect in her songs. Do you believe you think it’ll take time? It sounds like a little robot and that little chorus part. Yes. Right. So that’s Auto Tune. And, you know, yesterday I listened to the Janis Joplin greatest hits for my birthday. I swear to God. And I always say that if you put Janis Joplin, for example, through Auto Tune, it would sound like cats yelling. It would just be horrible. And so you used to have different kinds of females and they were all on rock radio and it wasn’t even questioned about, like I mean, with the times changing and all that, not to quote Bob Dylan, but, you know, you also have a change of sounds like now everybody wants to sound exactly like everybody else. And so I think because I taught little girls from age six to age like 15, and most of almost all of them were like, I want to do “Ocean Eyes” or I want to sound like Taylor Swift because how do you know any of the other artists? You know, there’s such a huge list of female artists who are rockers. I mean, Suzi Quatro, she made it in England, but never here. I don’t know why she kind of made it on happy days, but like, that didn’t exactly go right.
I don’t know. So, you know, Joan Jett, you know, but she’s almost trying to be like masculine in a way. But, like, I never saw her like that growing up. I just thought, what a badass bit, you know, who’s really cool. And she sounds great. So, of course. And then there’s like the zillions of people under the radar on indie labels. We were just listening to The Ting Tings and you’ve heard of them, but they have a female singer. That’s a whole other kind of voice. You know, we love Juliana Hatfield. She’s somewhere in the middle. So I guess what I’m saying is there are females being played. But as one who went through the process of trying to be successful as a female artist now, it’s been really insane because, I mean, I can do an impersonation of Stevie Nicks, but I mean, no one wants to hear that she’s still alive and kicking and doing Stevie Nicks in Fleetwood Mac. Then I was told that for years I didn’t even listen to her because I was afraid of what she would sound like. Liz Phair, when she started out as an indie darling. She did Exile in Guyville, and because of content, like she was complaining about a guy, you know, then, oh, well, Patti Rothberg says the same thing as this. Very same. So we don’t need two of those. But that is really what I went through. And then when I finally listened to Liz Phair, I heard her second album, which was called White Chocolate Space Egg. And Micah is a or was working as a sort of what you call it, what do you call it, your Musicland job?
M: Oh, I was just doing like managing music stores.
PR: Managing music like Sam Goody, businesses that they had back in the day.
M: I was working for Sankaty in Washington, D.C. when we met.
PR: Right. So I mean they would pitch a single because you can’t digest. I mean that’s why I’m saying praise you because you, you digested all that pizza. And so because you do I really appreciate it. And you know, I have had one single that did really, really well. And so anyone who already knows who I am probably knows that song “Inside” said, oh, ok, so then I listen to the rest of that. But my point is that a lot of people, they hear an artist 20 years after, they’ve already been trying to hit it.
I mean, look at Meredith Brooks. She did the song “Bitch”, because there was a bandwagon of people that hated their boyfriends, for a hundred years. And there was also like plenty of songs. What about Aretha Franklin? You better think about it, right? I mean, you know, that counts. But it wasn’t in the same box of, like, packaging here. This is a female artist who hates you. And Meredith Brooks can do it, too. Look, she’s been at it for 20 years
M: “Inside” is such a great song. It’s getting a renewed revival. We just got it reviewed on a YouTube. That song sounds like it was recorded yesterday. It’s more relevant today. And it just got a glowing review on a big YouTube channel where they’re reviewing the reviews. Artists like the Beatles, Lucier and Patti Songfest blew the host away.
DAT: Yes, Suzanne actually sent me a link to that. I was amazed. And, yeah, it’s amazing what music can do. I mean, you create it at one point, one day, and it may point to something different later on. And it could have a different impact on another person.
PR: And so it’s not really happening inside with the pandemic for a year or so now. It has a whole new application.
DAT: There is a theme in many of your songs about the mind. Are you making music from the mind? Your heart? Are you making it from your soul? Are you making it from muscle memory? Where does the music come from with you?
PR: It always comes from the heart because that’s where it hits you. If you ever are inspired to create music, I mean, it can be a cerebral thing or it could just be like, oh, I heard something catchy. What is that? Did I write that if I didn’t write it, I didn’t write it. Right now it can be an intellectual thing. It can be like, oh, this will be a big hit. But for me it almost never is. It’s almost always like if I feel like writing a song is because I have something I need to purge. It’s like I have something I need to share, like the same way a comedian would be, hey, don’t you just love it when this guy is sitting next to you and blah, blah, blah, like it’s wanting to have a commonality when you have such a unique set of a set of circumstances that are troubling you or, you know, and being like, does this ever happen to you? Because this is happening to me right now and I’m not so sure if I like this or that.
The same is true for artwork.
M: This is what we did for Pete Best.
PR: It’s the drummer almost for the Beatles.
M: It’s being sent to Pete Best in Liverpool.
SR: The one behind me is a Moody Blues painting.
PR: Oh yeah, everybody’s got my art work except for you. You’ve got to get this. I have tons of Moody Blues pictures because for years that was her favorite band. I’ve got Aerosmith behind me. This is actually his favorite band.
M: Growing up they were my favorite band.
DAT: Very cool. So who is your favorite band?
PR: Well, I always think of Missing Persons. I mean, because I discovered that was the first band I remember being a band where I wanted to be part of it and I loved everything about it. I loved the guys were wearing blush. It wasn’t about, you know, today’s thing where it’s like, well, if the guy’s wearing blush, then I can’t serve him in my restaurant. It wasn’t like that. It was like, I’m fabulous. Here’s my hair, I wear lipstick, deal with it. I’m the best guy. And yeah, I was a pig, a Duran Duran fan. Today is the anniversary of Rio with their biggest album coming out. So I know I’m going on and on really fast, but I know you’re flying time.
DAT: So what about more traditional “classic rock” bands like the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. Were you involved in listening to them when you were growing up or were they just kind of like too commercial for you?
M: She loves Zeppelin.
PR: Can you hear him? Yes, I could hear him speaking the truth. I have always loved, I remember in high school specifically when I took the SATs and I came straight home and went in the basement where the turntable was and I put on the doors, “this is the end”. And I just thought about that for a long time. But yeah, let’s all that classic rock stuff, I was totally into it. Acid rock. I mean, I loved specific songs by bands like 10CC. Later I got really into them. But my favorite song for years was “I’m Not in Love”. You know that song, it’s kind of like really they just have all these voices. Yeah. Like I didn’t know what went into it. And so much later, they have whole documentaries on this view if you’re bored, which I doubt you are. But with all the music I just said, you can see I mean, if it’s a great documentary about how they for weeks they created these layered ah, sounds. And then Billy Joel later copied that in the song “Just the Way You are”. It’s grizzly but you got to hear it.
DAT: I’m going to listen for that. I’m definitely going to listen.
PR: So, I mean, these are things that I learned after years of hearing a song and loving it. And then there’s the commonality that’s sort of behind-the-scenes aspect of the song. Like maybe you like the song “She’s Gone” by Hall and Oates. Oh, no, thank you. Is that the one of the songs like “I’m Not in Love” or is it some other one? It’s the same chord progression. Yes, similar to what’s going back and forth. Well, in a sense, I’m like, hey, I love this song. Oh, that’s why. Because they both do the same thing and that’s an intellectualization after the fact. But if a song is hitting you in a certain way, it’s, you know, it’s both. It’s just like your whole spirit behind you.
SR: Who is on the painting behind you?
PR: Yeah, that’s Aerosmith. Actually it’s the Toxic Twins.
M: That’s Steve Tyler.
PR: And that’s Joe Perry. It’s not one of my tighter paintings. I have myself as the BeeGees over here, let me see if you can see it when I turn the case to that.
DAT: Oh, that’s awesome.
PR: Oh, perfect. Staying alive.
SR: Now, that picture was in “Casting Couch” that I filmed. Yeah, that’s right.
PR: A couple of videos and that was one I wanted to show. I think I had just finished that painting, so I wanted to show it. So I’m like, I know I’ll figure out a way to make this fit with this.
DAT: Ok, I only have two more questions and I don’t want to take up too much of your time here, but, Douche, the inspiration I get it. Ok, let me just be honest, I laughed so hard.
PR: Oh, good. I want it.
DAT: From start to finish, I loved it. It really put me in a good mood. It’s kind of changed some things for me because like I will check myself before doing things now. I stop and think about it. I’m like, ok, I’m going to do this. And I’m like, wait, no, no, no. A douche would do that. I’m not going to do that. I’m going to do this. So it’s changed me.
M: I didn’t need the album.
PR: What do you mean by that? I know what to do with you. Yeah. He’s grinning but he’s got the teacher. Yeah.
DAT: Yeah. Listen to your teacher, Micah. That’s right. Because we don’t want to be called a douche or even worse, King of the Douche.
M: I don’t want to be douche part two.
SR: Well, he is the artist and she Is about to show you the new Patti Rothberg merch.
PR: This is Micah’s oldest son, and he played the part of douche. This album cover was made in like five seconds or a couple hours. We just said, hey, man, make a face like a douche bag. And then he got rejected. So because it was copyright problems or something. Yeah, it was it was supposed to be a spoof of a 60s ad because apparently it used to be a turn on for women when a guy would like be at a bar and just like blow smoke in her face, maybe not in your family and not in mine either, but yeah, not so. I don’t know when that happened.
SR: It is available on Red Bubble.
PR: Yes, absolutely. They should have bumper stickers across the United States that say do something. There really should be, you know. Should you, anyway, that’s another thing. I want to do this. Thank you.
DAT: Yes. So it’s looking like they come from personal experience. Did it come from legendary stories of other people you know? How did you come up with Douche?
PR: I mean, Douche is unfortunately a series of true events that are kind of stitched together where your jaw is on the floor, these people are real and they actually are among us. I mean, you know, just ask any woman, because a lot of women are still very hopeful and old fashioned. And the messages that we get, especially from our own parents, is like, find a nice husband who’ll take care of you and then he’ll be faithful and blah, blah, blah. And it’s like, have you ever left the house?
DAT: You guys are not who you think.
PR: That’s the thing. I think of the dating sites as kind of like Auto Tune for douche bags. Whereas it can help you find a harmonious union. Yeah. And also ruin your life for somebody who is such a jerk that they scar you for life. Ok, so basically I wanted it to be almost like a portraiture, a caricature of some of these people who I’ve really met in real life and maybe not even necessarily for longer than one time or in other cases. I thought I was in a relationship and they didn’t. And they never mentioned that, you know, that did happen. So like you’re thinking, one, that there’s a communication gap. It’s like you’re thinking one thing. And another thing I’m thinking, is this person a douche bag or is it me? So this douche bag is supposed to be funny. I’m glad you caught that. The joke with the repeating chorus that goes- “That’s how I knew he was a douche, douche”. That was made up by my like manager, agent, friend, everything person. Gary Barton, who I worked with for years. And he and I would joke about this album. But then I married Micah, who he’s really not a douche. He’s a hardworking, nice person. Thank you, Micah. But I mean, hey, you know, it takes a long road to find like a halfway decent human. And I wanted to chronicle it for you. And for America.
DAT: And I so appreciate it. And I speak on behalf of America. Thank you so much for doing that. But there’s one other question I wanted to ask. I was going I was going to try to get into “Bipolar Barbie”, but I think I’m ok because we’ve all been Bipolar Barbie at some point in our lives. Mental health is such a big thing and people are opening up about it and talking about it. When I heard “Bipolar Barbie” I was like, finally, someone understands that’s so cool, you know? And I didn’t care that it wasn’t Bipolar Ken Doll.
PR: Write the answer song. You could do “Bipolar Ken Doll” on your phone. But I if I have to be Bipolar Barbie, I will. I don’t mind it. I’ll sing for you. Ok, you think she can speak him.
DAT: Ok, ok. One last question. Patti thanks for giving me a snapshot and thank you Micah for sending the audio for the upcoming song “NYC Man”. It sounds really good and I know you’re still working on the track.
M: We still have another version, another mix if you want to hear.
PR: Yeah, we can always send you updates and stuff.
DAT: Yeah, sure. If you want to send it over, I’d be happy to hear it. But also, as far as your next album or your next project, what do you think you’re going to try to get into? Are you going to stick with the with the Behind Bars type of studio album or are you going to surprise with some other creative kind of work?
PR: Well, here’s the thing, I mean, “NYC Man” from the little bit you’ve listened to and Behind Bars or however much I don’t know, in “NYC Man” is sort of like the logical next step or the track that would have fit with that. My dream pop metal album that just never hit those streets because of covid had never been heard. The interesting thing is the bookends of “Inside” to “NYC Man”; “Inside” is the first song I ever did period. And then they made One and Nine around it because of the suit types, they liked it so much and they liked the combination of the producer I was with at that time, Dave Greenberg. And on that they said, we want this only just make a whole album of that. And I was like, how do I do that? I didn’t know anything. I was so green. And then “NYC Man” is me after everything you’ve heard. Yes. All these different things. I’ve tried all these different producers and different years. So it’s your sandwich and “NYC Man”; I think my next is definitely a country project. Really like, well, but not. It’s kind of a spin, it’s a spoofy spin off, right? I’m not doing an official Patti Rothberg album.
M: She’s having fun with some great stories that she wrote.
PR: Basically, I have an alter ego. I don’t know if I should reveal her name yet because we’re just playing with it right now. But I like to sort of make a French braid of like with elements of other albums that I’ve already made, because then I’m a then it’s like, oh, isn’t that Patti Rothberg? But she’s doing kind of a country’s thing. Or I mean, my first album, I was so happy that I was being given this humongous opportunity that I assumed it was the only time it would ever happen. So it was kind of like a wakeup call. I better kind of throw the baby in with the bathwater and just like make it the best, weirdest, most cosmic like kind of country kind of pop, kind of whatever everything album I always wanted to make, because this will probably just end up on the shelf, right, Micah?
M: Yeah, it’s just a concept where we’re having fun with this thing, Trixi. It’s not going to be an official Patti thing. It’s going to be more like an alter ego for Patti to do some fun music because she’s so very talented, in so many genres. And this gives her a chance to just play and write some great songs.
PR: And also we’re moving back east because I’ve spent this entire covid period getting to know him and his three awesome sons. And we live where literally, if you go out the driveway, there’s cows and horses if you go to the other side, it’s just Target and Starbucks. And, you know, I mean, strip malls.
M: Yeah, we’re trying to get a classic rock album.
PR: Right. So it’s going to be kind of like in the vein of “NYC Man”. But even that’s a joke because what that song is about are those people that are like still thinking it’s 1975 and they’re like, they think that they’re all heroin out now but they’re not really, they just have hairspray on wandering around New York City trying to get signed. But they didn’t figure out their D chord yet, this is a real type of human.
M: They didn’t die young like they hoped.
PR: So. Right. They didn’t die young. So they’re past the twenty-seven club and they are in your neighborhood. So that’s “NYC, Man”. Everything I do is kind of a joke, but I mean, it’s serious. I mean, the songs are not, I mean, I’m not Frank Zappa, even though I do love Missing Persons. I told you that. That’s all his band with a Bipolar Barbie in front.
SR: I like your hair!
PR: Thank you. Yeah. This is my I tried to dye my hair blue and I it ended up looking like a Smurf massacre in the tub. So I went with Pink.
SR: I think it’s burgundy like my hair.
PR: Yeah, well, It’s in the family we’ll say.
DAT: Well, I love to see the sisterly connection here. This is great.
PR: Yeah, we balance each other out.
DAT: So thank you so much for answering all my questions. I hope I didn’t take up too much of your time.
M: It’s a pleasure. You can talk to us anytime.
PR: Yeah. If you wake up in the middle of the night with the cold sweats and you’re wondering if something you did once was douchy, call me, I’ll let you know.
M: Don’t call in the middle of the night.
PR: You can always text me and I’ll get back to you.
DAT: Ok, thank you. And I will certainly do that. Ok, I’m really excited. I know that you say you’re going to do a country kind of thing.
PR: Well, it’s going to take some time.
DAT: I know it’s going to take a while because I mean you have to new albums. So I mean, you’ve got time to be able to do everything that you want to do, which is really cool. So I’m looking forward to that. So, I don’t know about you guys, but here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to get off of here. I’m downloading Behind Bars so I can hear the whole album because I previewed it and I almost fell out of my chair.
PR: Oh nice, I like that.
DAT: The album is insanely good. So I’m going to do that. And then Suzanne’s got an article she and I write on the website a lot about arts and culture and stuff, so I can’t wait for that. I’m going to read your article next because I got to download the album first.
SR: I’ve got to fix it up a little bit first.
DAT: Ok, so that gives me time to download Behind Bars.
SR: Yeah, I have to fix it.
DAT: Perfect, thank you guys ever so much.
SR: It’s nice to meet you (DAT).
DAT: Yes, it great to finally meet you (SR).
PR: It’s so cool, now you guys are meeting for the first-time sort of
DAT: Yeah, I know it’s always usually through email, but it’s nice.
PR: How you can put it all together in your own way and do whatever you need to say it. But that’s great.
DAT: Yeah, that’s awesome.
PR: Well, I’m going to go listen to Douche now and just refresh my memory. Plenty of our douche bags too. And there are douchebags on Red Bubble. It’s true. Ok.
SR: Buy plenty of her douche bags!
PR: Yes, douche bags are available on Red Bubble.
DAT: In preparation for this interview I listened to Douche, I listened to it a few hours ago.
PR: So it’s fresh.
DAT: It’s very fresh. Even the king of the Douches line. I just love it. Oh my God. Oh, cool. Ok, well, thank you guys so much. And I’m going to stop recording now. I hope you guys have a wonderful day.
PR: Thank you, you too. Enjoy!
DAT: Thank you. And one thing I want to say to everybody here is keep art alive. I know the pandemic is going on, but keep making music. Micra keep managing. Suzanne keep writing.
M: Suzanne is actually our PR person.
DAT: And being a PR person as well.
M: Yes. Because she’s great with that. She is like whip smart about publicity and how to find people.
DAT: Oh I’ve noticed.
M: My sister-in-law is an amazing person.
SR: Oh, thank you Micah!
M: She’s incredible, she’s helped up out a lot.
PR: Thank you Suzanne, and thank you for helping us have this moment.
DAT: Yeah, otherwise we wouldn’t be doing this right now.
PR: Stay Inspired. Bye, guys!
A Truly Inspired Artist
I would like to extend thanks to Suzanne Rothberg who helped me get the opportunity to interview her sister and her manager. The conversation was a little more than 40 minutes, but while recording it time moved very quickly. I was impressed by the knowledge and inspiration of everyone who contributed to the interview. It left me with great inspiration. The greatest inspiration came from talking to Patti about her musical journey, the songs from the past and those being made for the future. She is an extraordinary talent. She can sing and play any genre of music, and she’s also a visual artist. The more of her work that I listen to or observe, the more I learn that sound and aesthetics can have a profound impact. Patti is a truly inspired artist and she has created many projects that we fans can appreciate. Thank you Patti for being the artist that you are.
Additional Content
An Interview with Patti Rothberg by Radmila Djurica