Creating and recreating is
what Rick Denzien’s all about – singer-songwriter, musician, artist, producer,
erstwhile philosopher, tenacious, both lover and fighter …. with songwriting
that has blossomed into "full season" with his new release,
R A D I A T E.
During a time it felt
more like “open season” -- as
if fate was taking potshots
through disappointments, bittersweet rewards, lost dreams, and dumped illusions
–R
A D I A T E
broke through like a faint light at the end of a long, desolate tunnel.
That’s where Rick
Denzien connects. “I basically ride out the every day ups and downs of life
just like everyone else, and while life can suck, it’s also the greatest gift
and the best teacher because it takes us to the raw edges, and that’s where we
can find salvation.”
Respected by all who’ve
heard his music, his accolades remain unlauded on a scale that befits an
artist-songwriter of his caliber. “I can’t complain. I just keep going.
Either I'm insane and will end up in a pauper’s grave, or something will break
so I can at least help pay my kid’s college tuition and lease a tour bus.”
Denzien is no stranger
to the twists and turns of the music industry, which have both enticed and
eluded him. He’s rubbed elbows, worked in the studio, or shared the stage
with a widely diverse group of industry legends and hard hitters, ranging from
Paul Stookey
(Peter Paul Mary) to
Bloodhound Gang;
Phil Keaggy to Cool G Rap;
Wolf Pac to
Anton Fig; and more
recently,
Paul Schaffer, Bunnie Ziegler, Ronnie Crawford (drummer for Lisa Loeb, Anna
Nalic); among many other exceptional artists and musicians such as the
Australian band
FRUiT,
some of whom appear as
guest performers on his
R A D I A T E
CD.
He’s been both teased
and tormented by the taste of success – Denzien’s previous CD release
Exit 21 received strong reviews, a
strong online presence during “the stone age of the Internet,” respectable
airplay and resulting tour, and a brush with the Grammy Award process. But his
indie presence “just didn’t have enough clout to attract the cash and backing
to drive it through.” His sophomore CD,
Laser Writing on the Moon, attracted the majors, but “I made a dumb choice
and turned down an opportunity which in hindsight I’ve smacked myself upside
the head. But I’m over it. Life goes on.”
Denzien has released
his first single from
R A D I A T E,
Tsai (Sigh),
available at
myspace/RickDenzien or RickDenzien.com.
Business plan? “I’m hitting the ground running, and ready to just
keep turning out the songs back to back, get them on the radio, sell them
online, and get out there and play my ass off.”
Will
R A D I A T E
illuminate? Listen, download, and stay tuned.
