Welcome to The Grand Tour, a regular feature where
PHXmusic.com takes you inside practice spaces, tour vans and seedy
apartments occupied by Phoenix-area bands. This week we give you a
look inside the vintage movie-poster adorned practice space of Tempe/Yuma post-punk band Earthmen & Strangers. If you would like your band featured, tweet @PHXmusicdotcom.
Earthmen & Strangers leader Ryan Rousseau isn't much of a talker. Actually, he's known about town for being notoriously demure. Visiting his cozy Tempe abode, it's clear that he's just got other stuff on his mind: the walls are lined with books, records, vintage movie posters and assorted memorabilia. Rousseau's as busy as he is quiet, too. This weekend, he'll reunite with his legendary punk combo The Wongs at the second annual Sundown Showdown, an event held at the Yucca Tap Room which Rousseau curates himself. His main band, Earthmen & Strangers will play as too, and will be debuting two records: a brand new seven inch on Perfectly Round Records and the latest Sailor Jerry music compilation, featuring Earthmen as well as King Khan & BBQ Show, Thomas Function, The Oh-Sees and Mariachi El Bronx.
Smells Like: Clean laundry. Situated just behind the laundry room, the practice space had that just-washed-a-load scent.
Most Cherished Piece of Gear: Certainly the guitars, amps and pedals littered around the practice space were cherished, but how can you beat that Fat Elvis rug on the door? You just can't.
Odds 'n' Ends: The walls were covered in framed odd ball foreign film art, and Southwest-centric oddities.
