The album features nearly 20 local guest musicians including members of Beau Coup, First Light, I-Tal, Outlaws I & I, 1000 Hours, Open Range Torch Songs, Xtra Crispy and more.
The songs range from “Superfan,” a tune Rich wrote about his college band State of Green, and “Too Many Tacos (an Ode To Mi Pueblo),” a track about the East side Mexican restaurant Mi Pueblo that closed in 2014. Several songs deal with the death of Rich’s parents in 2013 and 2014, and he wrote “Move My Soul” about discovering local bands the Janglers and First Light in 1992. The Janglers played at his high school senior prom, and he heard First Light at a party.
Rich releases the album, which was mixed and mastered locally at Mann Wolf Studios, today on his own Love Muffin Records. The date also happens to be his 43rd birthday.
In addition, Rich plans to turn his basement into a recording studio open to local acts.
“This is sort of the final piece in what I’m really trying to make Love Muffin into,” he says. “I want it to be something that offers recording, graphic design/album design services, radio/press promotion and the yearly LoveMuffinPalooza [benefit] concert. The only things I can’t do professionally are mixing/mastering and duplication.”
In addition, Rich has reissued a 20th anniversary special reprint of his 1997 cassette, Flavor Savor. The original cassette was recorded between 1995 and 1997 at home and college. It’s mostly instrumental, though Rich does sing on two songs.
“I thought it would be cool to release two albums at once,” he says, “sort of a ‘here’s what I sounded like when I was finding myself’ and ‘here’s what I sound like now’ thing.”
The albums will be for sale in Cleveland exclusively at Heights Music Shop on Lee Road. They will also be available online physically and digitally at CDBaby.
This article appears in Feb 15-21, 2017.
