Rocking

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THE SHORT STORY

When I was in the eighth grade my friend Colin Gawel talked me into buying a bass guitar. The two of us formed Watershed, the band I’ve played bass and sung in for twenty-five years.  I’ve also appeared on albums by The Fags, Mexico 70, Dead Schembechlers, Hurst, and X-rated Cowboys, among others. I’ve produced albums for Twin Cam and The Bottoms. You can listen to/buy Watershed records at I-Tunes and Rhapsody. If you go that route, I suggest starting with The More It Hurts, The More It Works.

For the long story see my memoir, Hitless Wonder.

In the meantime, here’s a Watershed primer:

THE BIO

Eight full-length albums and a thousand live shows into their storied career, Columbus, Ohio’s Watershed have done damn near everything there is to do in rock and roll. After dropping out of college, they recorded two albums for Epic Records, then they stuffed themselves into a Ford Econoline, and they’ve been living off beer and beef jerky ever since. They’ve humped their amps through the doors at CBGB ten times. They’ve played the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip. The Metro in Chicago. The Rat in Boston. They’ve shared the stage with Wilco, Ben Folds, Soul Asylum, The Damnwells, Cheap Trick, The Smithereens, Tommy Stinson, Seven Mary Three, Insane Clown Posse (no shit), and long list of has-beens and wannabes. Their catchy, three-minute rock gems have been featured on MTV’s Laguna Beach, Gene Simmons Family Jewels, and Date my Mom, and they’ve been in rotation on radio stations from South Carolina to Seattle.

On tape Watershed sounds like a (gasp) rock band. That may sound trite, but these days rock bands—real rock bands, the kind that play Les Pauls and Marshalls, not MacBooks—are hard to come by. As Amplifier Magazine’s Tom Semoli writes, a Watershed show is “akin to the manner in which the Replacements and the Faces once bravely blurred the fine line between mayhem and total professionalism.” Their sets inevitably end with half the band flat on their backs and tangled in their instrument cables, the stage littered with guitars and cymbal stands and empty beer bottles.

In the Midwest Watershed shows are legendary. But Watershed hasn’t stuck it out for twenty-five years to be “legendary” any more than Cool Hand Luke downed all those eggs because he was hungry for breakfast. No, Watershed takes the stages of musty clubs, belting their songs like their lives depend on it because they are one of the last rock bands standing. And that’s what rock bands do.

THE DISCOGRAPHY

Full Lengths

  • Brick & Mortar. B-Minus Records/Curry House Records. 2012.
  • Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust II. Idol Records. 2007
  • The Fifth of July. Idol Records. 2005
  • The More It Hurts, The More It Works. Idol Records/Carney Records. 2002
  • Star Vehicle ’98. Thunder Creek Records. 1998
  • Star Vehicle. Thunder Creek Records. 1997
  • Twister. Epic Records. 1995
  • Twister & Other Low Budget Storms. B Minus Records. 1993
  • The Carpet Cliff. Palas Records. 1991

EPs

  • Extended Player. B Minus Records. 2020.
  • Still Love X-mas. B Minus Records. 1998
  • Watershed/Hoarse. Idol Records. 1997
  • Three Chords and a Cloud of Dust. Epic Records. 1994
  • Watershed. Bravo Records. 1991
  • ’89 (The Wire). B Minus Records. 1989
  • First Time Around (The Wire). B Minus Records. 1987

CD Singles

  • 5th of July: Single & Video. Idol Records. 2006
  • The Single Series: Volume Three. B Minus Records. 2004
  • The Single Series: Volume Two. B Minus Records. 2001
  • The Single Series: Volume One. B Minus Records. 2001
  • Black Concert T-Shirt. Thunder Creek Records. 1998
  • Star Vehicle. Thunder Creek Records. 1998
  • How Do You Feel. Epic Records. 1995

Digital Singles

Cassingles

  • How Do You Feel b/w Twister. Epic Records. 1995
  • Three Track Sampler. Palas Records. 1992

Wax Singles

  • Twister b/w Atlantic City. B Minus Records. 1993
  • How Do You Feel b/w Give It Away. B Minus Records. 1991
  • Rise b/w Love Passes Underground. Bravo Records. 1990

Compilations

  • Columbusmusic.com Spring Showcase. 2002
  • Andyman’s Fab Five (CD 101 Radio). 2001
  • The Gift. 2001
  • Live from the Community Fest. 1998
  • The Album Network’s Rock Tune Up 180. 1998
  • The Geo Virtual Test Drive. 1995
  • Audio Byways. 1995
  • CMJ New Music (May). 1994
  • Just Wing It (WCBE Radio). 1992
  • Fist Full of Chaos. 1991

Television

  • Gene Simmons Family Jewels (Episode: “Sophie’s Sweet 16”)
  • Laguna Beach (Episode: “314”)
  • Date My Mom (Episode: “314,” “316,” “339”)
  • Ranked (Episode: “Bromances”)
  • Rob and Big (Episode: “202 – Time Travel,” “204”)
  • Next (Episode: “BB Lesbian Prom”)
  • Passports to Great Weekends (Episode: “Myrtle Beach”)
  • Underdog to Wonderdog (Episode: “Joshua”)
  • Teen Cribs (Episode: “240”)
  • Scott Baio is 45 and Single (Episode: “101”)
  • Flipping Out (Episode: “203”)
  • Fashion Television – Canada (Episode: “18V,” “26V”)
  • The Dudesons – Finland (Episodes: A bunch of Finnish words I can’t spell and don’t understand, e.g. “Seuraa Talvijohtajaa”)
  • The Travel Channel’s Extreme Fast Food, Adrenaline Rushes, Miami Hotspots, Playtime, Vegas, and Superstructures.
  • The Alli Show (Episode: “Skills and Thrills: Alli’s All-Star Moments”)
  • Dude, What Would Happen (Episode: “108” and “111”)
  • DiscoverOhio Tourism Commercial. “Ohio: Too Much Fun for One Day.”
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