The new Cynz album, Little Miss Lost, is a reminder of what’s lost when rock’s forced underground as the only way it can thrive. And it shouldn’t have to be this way. Get this album as that reminder, and to realize that rock is made with loud, noisy guitars, not synths, dance beats, and autotune.

Cyndi Dawson, leader of The Cynz, was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: For all who know your history, there are still those who don’t. Could you give a short history of the band?

Cyndi Dawson: Henry Seiz and myself formed the band in 2010 mostly to do poetry pieces. It morphed into a songwriting project and we found other musicians to play with. When it started taking off we just went with the flow.

AW: Who were you listening to while recording the album?

CD: No one in particular. My musical tastes are in many genres. I love The Distillers, Patti Smith, Jim Carroll as easily as I love Joni Mitchell, Garbage, and a whole lot of punk bands. Social Distortion, Tom Petty…! 

AW: You quote “Eight Miles High” in “Break Me.” Are the Byrds an influence?

CD: That would be Henry’s influence. That’s a part he put in as a nod to them. He’s also widely varied in his tastes in music, but I’d say the 60’s-70’s bands were reasons he became a guitar player!

AW: I hear so few out-and-out rockers on albums these days. Everything seems a lot more mellow. What made you decide to buck the trend?

CD: We have always bucked the trends. Listen to any of our five albums and every one of them has all out rockers. Because we like to rock! But we also appreciate a good pop rock song or ballad so long as it has some rock mixed in. We don’t follow trends. We follow our own sense of what we’d listen to ourselves. What we like.

AW: Your melodies are great. Do you strive to make all your songs melodic?

CD: I think so. We want verses and choruses that are memorable. I always say a song is good if you find yourself singing it while driving or taking a shower!!

AW: Many of these songs are about heartbreak and frustration. Is that the theme of the album, or is the album about something else?

CD: Oh, it very much is about those things. It’s autobiographical with artistic license. It begins with my life at 17, being thrown to the wolves but guarded by angels. I’ve had great love, I’ve had great loss. I think those two things are relatable to most people if you live long enough. When you’re young you handle it with immature choices, often. I sought comfort in ways that were not always good, but I had strong survivor skills. The album concludes in the present and putting "Fall Away" as the last track was apt. “Be free, let go, learn to fall away.”

AW: What do you hope to achieve with this album, besides commercial success? 

CD: Commercial Success - while a wonderful fantasy- it’s not realistic in a rock and roll world of today. If it happened I wouldn’t be disappointed. I buy lottery tickets knowing I probably won’t win, but wouldn’t it be nice? I make records because Henry and I write good songs and the process of turning an idea into a tangible, material manifestation is magical and beautiful. And costly. So we definitely love doing it but it’s the house you love that requires constant upkeep.

AW: Do you have any shows coming up?

CD: We are in Boston this weekend at The Square Root, Saturday night with Muck and The Mires, Mach Bell Experience, and The Hi End. Sunday at The Worthen Attic in Lowell. May 18th we play Live@Drew’s House in Ringwood, NJ, and May 19th we do The Joey Ramone Bday Bash fundraiser in NYC. We are booked solid to the end of 2024! It’s been a great year so far with Jem - Marty Scott and Maureen Daye Pietoso and Bootleg Dan Anklin behind us.

 The Cynz

Little Miss Lost

Jem Records

They don’t make them like this anymore, at least not above ground. It's an out and out rocker, punk rock, which used to be the gold standard for good rock, and now it’s underground and overlooked, and shouldn’t be. It’s too great for that.

These are songs of hard luck and hard times, sung matter-of-factly by Cyndi Dawson, who is a wonderful singer. It’s so lame that such singing is out of style. It shouldn’t be. This is singing for real, with no effects, with grit and soul.

The guitars are cranked up to eleven, by players who know their stuff, like the quote from “Eight Miles High” on the album opener, “Break Me,” or the sitar on “The Only One,” and on their glorious take on Holly And the Italians’ “Tell That Girl To Shut Up.” On “Narrow Hips” Cyndi reveals what she looks for in a guy.

In a better world these songs would be a smash hits, top of the charts, and it’s grating that it won’t be the case. This is one of the best albums this year and deserves every accolade thrown at it. Make this album an aboveground success and use it to kick the indie rock lamestream in the teeth. Show them what real punk rock sounds like and start a new punk rock revolution!

Andrea Weiss

 Paul Collins

In Another World (single)

Jem Records

The latest single from his new album Stand Back And Take A Good Look is a jangly rocker about finding a better world, on both a personal and political level. It’s one of the best songs on the album. You can shimmy around the room to it, or just sit and think about the lyrics. Either way, it’s wonderful, and one to put of repeat, as that’s how good it really is.

Andrea Weiss

 I’m a bit late to the party as, while I liked Weezer, I’d never really heard their albums all the way through. So I dove in, and really liked what I heard. While my favorites on The Blue Album are “Undone – The Sweater Song” and “Say It Ain’t So,” Pinkerton, which got kicked to the curb by the press, features my two favorite Weezer songs, “El Scorcho” and “The Good Life.” It's a very good, underrated album. The Rentals’ “Friends Of P” is sweet, sincere, and fun, as is “Waiting.” That the Los Angeles Geek Rock scene combined these bands’ sound with Nirvana’s is cool. You might think so too.

S.W. Lauden, who played drums in Ridel High, one of the bands on the Generation Blue compilation, and curated and edited the accompanying oral history book, provided a window on a scene that I’m very glad to know about now. He was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: How did the Geek Rock scene start?

S.W. Lauden: “Geek Rock” is one of those terms that has been applied to a variety of artists over the decades, from Frank Zappa and Devo to Descendents and They Might Be Giants – but in the 90s it was most often used to describe Weezer and a slew of bands that took aesthetic and songwriting cues from their self-titled debut album (aka The Blue Album). In Los Angeles, where Weezer formed and got signed to DGC, they (along with The Rentals) inspired a whole scene of bands like Shufflepuck, Ridel High, Nerf Herder, Ozma, and many others throughout the 90s and into the early 2000s. That specific Hollywood Geek Rock scene is really the focus of Generation Blue.

AW: What did the scene get from Weezer?

S.W. Lauden: Quite a lot, actually. You have to remember that Hollywood was still experiencing a Sunset Strip/Hair Metal hangover in the early 90s, so you had a lot of talented musicians trying to figure out what was next. At the same time, funk/punk/hard rock bands like Fishbone, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jane’s Addiction were taking off from the local scene. That was also the same moment when college rock/alternative/grunge/pop punk were all breaking into the mainstream. Wild times.

Weezer combined musical elements from everything that was current at the time (quiet/loud song structure, crunchy guitars, etc.), but mixed it with a classic Beach Boys-y pop songwriting approach and a sort of metal precision. On top of that, they abandoned any classic ideas of what a rock band was supposed to look like (wearing soccer jerseys and glasses on stage, etc.) and wrote lyrics about loving KISS and playing Dungeons & Dragons. A lot of Hollywood musicians found that really freeing and gravitated toward it to make something of their own.

AW: I hear Nirvana in these bands too, which is a great combination. Were the bands listening to them as well?

S.W. Lauden: We were all listening to Nirvana back then, and Rivers Cuomo has often cited them as an inspiration for the direction Weezer took. So, Nirvana’s influence on all of the Generation Blue bands, either directly or indirectly, is pretty undeniable. That said, I always assumed that Nirvana’s quiet/loud dynamics on Nevermind (and specifically “Teen Spirit”) were at least partially inspired by Pixies. And Pixies was the band that Weezer most reminded me of when I first heard The Blue Album – Pixies meets The Beach Boys.

AW: The lyrics for a lot of the bands here deal with heartbreak and frustration. Were they outlining fictional situations or drawing from their own lives?

S.W. Lauden: I honestly have no idea, but in general I assume that most pop songs are works of fiction brought to life by some kernel of personal experience or perspective. We were all in our 20s, playing in bands, and spending most of our free time in beer-soaked rock clubs. Given those conditions, you’d have to assume that at least a few hearts got broken along the way.

AW: Supersport 2000's “Mooks” is a great song about surfing fun. Were they surfers?

S.W. Lauden: It was a long time ago, but if memory serves I think at least one of them did surf. Thematically, though, I like how that track offers a more indie reflection of Weezer’s “Surf Wax America.” On top of that, Supersport 2000 is pivotal in the 90s Hollywood scene, because they were there (at first as Magpie) when Weezer formed and started playing clubs; and most of Supersport 2000 later became Matt Sharp’s band during the Return of the Rentals/ “Friends With P.” era.

AW: “We Opened for Weezer” by Nerf Herder is a wonderful tribute. I'd read in the companion book to the comp Generation Blue that Weezer, especially Rivers, gave a lot back to the scene. Could you say something about that?

S.W. Lauden: I’m glad you pointed that out because it was one of my favorite threads that emerged as I did interviews for the Generation Blue oral history. Many of the musicians I spoke with had a story or two to tell about how members of Weezer helped them out early on.

There’s no doubt that Rivers Cuomo and Matt Sharp helped their close friends Adam Orth and Justin Fisher in Shufflepuck, introducing them to club bookers and adding them to a couple of high-profile shows. Adam Marsland gives Rivers a lot of credit for helping him conceptualize a direction for his band Cockeyed Ghost. Weezer had my band Ridel High open a handful of West Coast shows during the Pinkerton era when A&M Records was thinking about signing us, and I’m pretty sure that helped seal the deal. The Nerf Herder-Weezer connection is perfectly (and hilariously!) chronicled in “We Opened For Weezer,” and I already mentioned the Supersport 2000-Rentals connection.

Ozma is probably the band that most directly benefited from Weezer’s support. They were still teens when their guitarist handed Rivers a copy of their first album at Warped Tour. That led to them opening for their idols on two California shows, later followed by a couple of full-blown national tours. That early support gave them a platform to become the phenomenal band they are. Ozma’s entire catalog is well worth exploration.

As Rod Cervera of Supersport 2000/The Rentals says toward the end of the Generation Blue oral history: “The Weezer story is kind of a unique story for the LA music scene. It’s a small camp of people...it’s always been a pretty tight-knit thing."

AW: What do you hope people take away from the comp and book?

S.W. Lauden: If they were there or were aware of this Hollywood scene back then, I hope it brings back some great memories and fills in a few blanks. If they weren’t there and this is all new to them, I hope they enjoy these stories and music as much as we did putting it all together. It really was an incredible scene.

 Various Artists

Generation Blue

Big Stir

What happens when you put Nirvana and Weezer together? You get Hollywood’s Geek Rock scene of the late 90s and early Aughts. It should’ve had more reach than it did. This was a great scene that never got its due.

I’d already heard one of the bands on this comp, Nerf Herder, with their single “Van Halen,” which is a total goof on said band, a great song and video. They’re also known for the theme music to Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Their contribution here, “We Opened For Weezer,” is sweet, funny, tough, rocking, and geeky. It’s a wonderful tribute and emblematic of the bands on this comp--nerds rocking out AKA Nerd Core--and doing a great job of it.

There’s also a song about Nirvana here, Cockeyed Ghost’s “Keep The Sun (Demo),” that quotes “Come As You Are” (“man I swear I don’t have a gun”), then, at the end, adds “and I’d kill myself if thought it’d be fun.” That bitter, angry, backhanded tribute to Kurt, is like a lot of the lyrics here, dealing with heartbreak and frustration, like Shufflepuck’s “Where The Hell Is She.” When they do have fun, like on Chopper One’s “Touch My Fuzz” it’s ironic.

For all that was going on in the 90s and aughts, it’s sad and not fair that this scene was overlooked, so here’s your chance to remedy that. But be quick about it! It’s a limited edition, with an oral history of the scene included. If you can get this comp, it’s more than worth your while, to hear what might have been for a great scene.

Andrea Weiss

 I have the good fortune of a great radio station to listen to, the non-com AAA station for Philly, WXPN. It was there I heard The Beat and the original version of "Hanging On The Telephone" by The Nerves. If you’ve never heard it, it’s worth seeking out on You Tube. It’s different than what Blondie did with it, and I like it. L7 covered it in 1995. I like their version too. It complements both the original and Blondie's version.

Paul Collins, as you’ll read here, is one of the best known members of the Beat, as was Peter Case. Pauls was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: For any who don't know who you are, could you give a short history of your career in music? Who are your influences?

Paul Collins: My first band was The Nerves back in 1974, that's the band that created "Hanging On The Telephone." Then I had a band with Peter Case, The Breakaways. They were short-lived and finally got a record released 30 years later on Alive Records. Then I started The Beat probably my biggest band. We were on Columbia Records and managed by the late great Bill Graham. We toured all over the US and Europe and that established me pretty much worldwide. After two albums we lost our contract and from then on I was a DIY artist. I released a lot of records as Paul Collins Beat and then as Paul Collins. I also toured constantly, sometimes with a band and sometimes just with my acoustic guitar.

I lived in Spain on two different occasions, in the 80s and in the 2000's. I have been here in New York since 2008, and I have been releasing records all along, first with Alive Records in California, and my most recent record is with Jem Records, who I also released To Beat or Not To Beat in 1982. My influences are from all the great rock and roll and pop music from the late 50s and 60s. I listened to WABC and WNEW while I was growing up here in Long Island and New Jersey.

AW: I like your Americana/power pop a lot. What made you decide to change direction from your earlier work?

PC: My work is really all based on trying to write what I consider a good song. As you try to write songs for a long time you start to drift all over the stylistic map, so to speak, of all the different types of music you have grown up with. For me that’s everything from Hank Williams and Ray Charles to The Beatles and The Stones.

AW:  I also like how mature your lyrics are. Do they reflect your mindset now?

PC: It's all about the song for me. Some songs that you might think reflect me now were actually written many years ago. For example, "That’s When I Think of You" is one of my earliest compositions, written in San Francisco around 1975.

AW: Is “Liverpool” a true story? Is it about the city (which is nice commentary about it) or just a state of mind? 

PC: I spent three crazy days in Liverpool with my host Andy from Pink Moon Records. It's a true story about my impressions of being there in the rain and going from pub to pub every night!

AW: The anti-nostalgia of “We Can’t Go Back” is great, but is it also a political statement? 

PC: Songs take on different meanings as time goes by. Originally it was about when we relocated form Spain to America in 1987. When we got to California after being gone for four years we saw how different everything had become. Then, in time, it also reflects the feeling of not being able to go back to the life we had before everything in the world changed.

AW: Do you plan to tour? 

PC: No it's too arduous for me now. I will do isolated shows but no long tours.

AW:  What would you tell someone just starting out in music?

PC: Practice, practice, practice and if you believe in yourself don't give up. It’s a very hard profession, you have to really love it.I have the good fortune of a great radio station to listen to, the non-com AAA station for Philly, WXPN. It was there I heard The Beat and the original version of "Hanging On The Telephone" by The Nerves. If you’ve never heard it, it’s worth seeking out on You Tube. It’s different than what Blondie did with it, and I like it. L7 covered it in 1995. I like their version too. It complements both the original and Blondie's version.

Paul Collins, as you’ll read here, is one of the best known members of the Beat, as was Peter Case. Pauls was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

Andrea Weiss: For any who don't know who you are, could you give a short history of your career in music? Who are your influences?

Paul Collins: My first band was The Nerves back in 1974, that's the band that created "Hanging On The Telephone." Then I had a band with Peter Case, The Breakaways. They were short-lived and finally got a record released 30 years later on Alive Records. Then I started The Beat probably my biggest band. We were on Columbia Records and managed by the late great Bill Graham. We toured all over the US and Europe and that established me pretty much worldwide. After two albums we lost our contract and from then on I was a DIY artist. I released a lot of records as Paul Collins Beat and then as Paul Collins. I also toured constantly, sometimes with a band and sometimes just with my acoustic guitar.

I lived in Spain on two different occasions, in the 80s and in the 2000's. I have been here in New York since 2008, and I have been releasing records all along, first with Alive Records in California, and my most recent record is with Jem Records, who I also released To Beat or Not To Beat in 1982. My influences are from all the great rock and roll and pop music from the late 50s and 60s. I listened to WABC and WNEW while I was growing up here in Long Island and New Jersey.

AW: I like your Americana/power pop a lot. What made you decide to change direction from your earlier work?

PC: My work is really all based on trying to write what I consider a good song. As you try to write songs for a long time you start to drift all over the stylistic map, so to speak, of all the different types of music you have grown up with. For me that’s everything from Hank Williams and Ray Charles to The Beatles and The Stones.

AW:  I also like how mature your lyrics are. Do they reflect your mindset now?

PC: It's all about the song for me. Some songs that you might think reflect me now were actually written many years ago. For example, "That’s When I Think of You" is one of my earliest compositions, written in San Francisco around 1975.

AW: Is “Liverpool” a true story? Is it about the city (which is nice commentary about it) or just a state of mind? 

PC: I spent three crazy days in Liverpool with my host Andy from Pink Moon Records. It's a true story about my impressions of being there in the rain and going from pub to pub every night!

AW: The anti-nostalgia of “We Can’t Go Back” is great, but is it also a political statement? 

PC: Songs take on different meanings as time goes by. Originally it was about when we relocated form Spain to America in 1987. When we got to California after being gone for four years we saw how different everything had become. Then, in time, it also reflects the feeling of not being able to go back to the life we had before everything in the world changed.

AW: Do you plan to tour? 

PC: No it's too arduous for me now. I will do isolated shows but no long tours.

AW:  What would you tell someone just starting out in music?

PC: Practice, practice, practice and if you believe in yourself don't give up. It’s a very hard profession, you have to really love it.