Watch this: Youtube music/food competition show 'Bands and Burgers'

Also new music from Charlie Steady, HillBlocksView and New Old Man.

“Bands and Burgers” is a show with levels on levels.

On it’s face, it’s a showcase for local music. Hosts Angel L. and Ethan Stutsman invite bands (and a few rappers) over for an interview and live concert in their home studio.

The segments are then intercut with Angel and Ethan dressed up and doing low-budget sketch comedy commercials for products like Dixon Cider (penis pun totally intended).

There are also special “celebrity” guest appearances (Riff Raff shows up in Episode 4. Gwar Manager Sleezy P. Martini is on Episode 5).

That’s the “bands” part of the name.

“Burgers” refers to the food part of the show, because this is also a bit of a Youtube cooking program, with Angel and Ethan squaring off in the kitchen to make a meal of the guest’s choosing.

It’s called “Burger and Bands” (likely for the theme song possibilities), but the pair has made spaghetti (or the sauce at least), tri-tip and gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches among other delicacies (such as they are).

“We both enjoy food. So, we decided to add the cookoff to let the bands/guests decide who makes the better interpretation of the dish,” Angel says.

“We always planned on filming comedy since we first became roommates. We didn't have the budget or the equipment to film/record anything of high quality, but we still recorded videos to make ourselves laugh,” he says.

Before “Band and Burgers” the pair did “live jam” videos for Ethan’s band Beyond California and filmed a podcast and several comedy sketches that never aired.

“Basically, they were all a bit too, controversial, lol.”

So far, “Bands and Burgers” has released six episodes on its Youtube channel, with new episodes dropping on the 10th of each month.

December’s episode features Reminitions.

The pair is working on a live event that would pull all of the featured bands together on stage for a night. They’re still working to secure a venue able to hold everyone if anyone is reading this and can help.

Eventually, they’d like to have a legitimate production company and provide other content; maybe a sketch show or short film.

“Who knows, maybe we will eventually open a Bands And Burgers food truck,” Angel says, with an “Lol.”

New music: Charlie Steady, HillBlocksView, New Old Man

Charlie Steady is the solo project from songwriter, producer and multi instrumentalist Seth Craig, who, on Friday released a single off an upcoming second album, slated for released in 2022.

Released as an A and B side, “Unfulfilled Genius of Martin Street” and “Greyhound,” “were started with the idea of making the type of record that got me initially excited to make music,” Craig says.

“From the art rock records of the late ’60s like The Beatles Sgt. Pepper and The Beach Boys Pet Sounds to late ’90s/early 2000s indie albums like Neutral Milk Hotel’s ‘In the
Aeroplane over the Sea,’ and Sufjan Stevens ‘Illinois.’ Albums that were big on concept.”

The songs are out now across platforms.

Also released Friday was a new single from HillBlockView.

With “Effulgence,” the Fresno four-piece has unleased a well-crafted and well-produced piece of pop rock that seems radio ready, with its soaring vocals and pop-punk harmonies and that soft drift into piano interlude that explodes back into what is a pretty catchy (and totally uplifting) chorus.

Side note: The band also had a track featured in the indie-horror flick “Camp Terror,” which got a red-carpet premier in Fresno this month.

Shameless self promotion alert: On Tuesday, New Old Man (the solo project from yours truly) released “Nights Like These b​/​w Sweat out the Panic.” It’s the third single done in collaboration with Todd Williams/Victim of Propaganda and sound engineer/producer Robby Olsen.

Side note 2: Robby and I (and drummer Mike Atwood) also released a new track under the moniker Weapons of Fear. It’s a cover of Golden Earring’s 1982 song “Twilight Zone” and it’s a killer piece of post-punk interpretation (I am biased obviously).

That’s it for this week. Remember you can now hear me on the Homegrown Show Sundays at 8 p.m. on New Rock 104.1 FM. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com