"Here's to life!" Fans around the world can be found singing the chorus of the Roger Clyne-penned fan favorite "Mekong" and toasting their glasses in unison to celebrate life through rock-n-roll. But the inspiration for the song dates back to the time Roger went to Taipei, Taiwan, as a college student to teach English during the day and busk with his guitar at night for money.

Today, as Clyne prepares to record his 11th studio album, he continues to transform his life experiences, inspirations, observations and his own muses into timeless music. And whether he's wearing his Converse high tops, boots or sandals, Clyne's blend of punk rock, country-western and mariachi influences have made him, drummer PH Naffah, guitarist Jim Dalton and bassist Nick Scropos - collectively known as Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers - one of America's best live rock-n-roll bands.

Starting with the seminal Tempe quartet, The Refreshments, Clyne and Naffah put the fun in rock during the 90s grunge era with a sense of humor. They also started what would become a trademark sound on all future albums by adding mariachi horns, something Clyne was influenced by while in college studying Cultural Anthropology with an ethnography study of mariachis during a three month immersion stay with a local family in Ensenada, Mexico.

The Refreshments' debut album, "Fizzy, Fuzzy, Big & Buzzy," became a cult classic. It produced the alternative radio hit "Banditos" which also had significant airplay on MTV and earned The Freshies an appearance on The Conan O'Brien Show. Clyne then penned and performed the theme song for the Mike Judge animated TV series, King of Hill. In 2017, Here's to Life: The story of The Refreshments, was released. The feature-length documentary was a hit with fans and critics alike.

Changes within their record label and internal band issues resulted in Clyne and Naffah going on a vision quest of sorts in the Whetstone Mountains near the Clyne Ranch in Southeastern Arizona. It was there that Clyne found inspiration in the rolling hills and the jukeboxes of small town taverns that still played Marty Robbins and Johnny Cash - music he had shed from his youth in favor of bands like Camper Van Beethoven & They Might Be Giants. But after reconnecting with those old country records, Clyne and Naffah wrote and recorded under a new moniker what would become Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers' debut album, "Honky Tonk Union."

The album was the perfect combination of classic rock and twang, and fans immediately connected with it. Their independent release, "Honky Tonk Union," debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's internet sales chart in 1999 prompting a call from a Billboard exec to their Manager demanding, " Who the hell is Roger Clyne and why is he #1 on my chart?!" beating out much better known artists.

RCPM released eight more albums that landed in the top ten of Billboard's Internet Sales Chart, including a No. 1 debut for their third album, "Americano!" - all without the backing of a major record label and while flying under the radar of commercial radio.

In 2019, Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers were inducted into the Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame, joining the likes of fellow Arizona legends Alice Cooper, Buck Owens, Glen Campbell, Stevie Nicks, Linda Ronstadt and Waylon Jennings.

Later that fall, RCPM was invited by a man who, like Roger, also knows a little something about tequila and throwing big parties in Mexico. The band headlined Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo Cantina on the eve of Hagar's weekend birthday celebration.

Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers have curated their own annual music festival, Circus Mexicus, in the sleepy beach town of Puerto Peñasco, Mexico, which draws thousands of fans from around the world. The festival not only has a major impact on the local economy, but charity events hosted by the band and fans alike help raise money for a local orphanage, support local youth sports and help feed shelter animals.

Clyne not only sings about life in the border-lands, he also produces his own ultra-premium spirit, Mexican Moonshine Tequila (soon to be re-named Canción Tequila). Owned by the entire band, it was the official tequila at the Arizona Diamondbacks Chase stadium in 2016, 2017 and 2018. Started in 2011, the award-winning spirit is distributed in multiple states as well as Sonora, Mexico.

Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers have toured all over the US and achieved a faithful following through hard work and great music. They have done this all while being independent, without the safety net of a label or a label's radio promotion department. Dubbed "The Springsteen of the Southwest," by the Asbury Park Press. The band delivers exciting live performances that garner declarations like the one from emcee Jay Peterman of the Seinfeld TV show at Alice Cooper's annual Christmas Pudding event, "Young man, you light that stage a-flame!"

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https://rogerclyneandthepeacemakers.com/

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With most records, it's all about the endpoint; Stephen Ashbrook's latest release is all about the journey. The path to White Balloons took Ashbrook through multiple states-and states of mind. At the time of Ashbrook's last studio album, 2002's American B Sides, the singer-songwriter had been a star of the Tempe, Arizona scene, with sold-out shows, major label attention, and even a request from President Clinton for a personal performance. But Ashbrook had grown restless in his environs, and he traded in the dry desert landscape for the vibrant green of the Pacific Northwest.

Immersing himself in the burgeoning Portland, Oregon music scene, Ashbrook distinguished himself from the town's hordes of indie rockers with a unique blend of pop, rock, country and folk, drawing packed crowds to his weekly residency. He slowed his touring schedule after the post-B Sides birth of his first child and used the time to reflect on the changes in his life, channeling those thoughts into songs like "First Time," a direct response to his son's birth. When demos of the new tracks made their way into the hands of acclaimed producer and songwriter Pete Droge (a member of songwriting supergroup the Thorns), the beginnings of White Balloons were born.

The journey then led Ashbrook to Droge's Puget Sound retreat on Vashon Island, a forested oasis removed from the grind of the music industry Ashbrook had felt pressure to appeal to. Working in collaboration with Droge, Ashbrook opened up the arrangements in a way that allowed the songs to breathe with a new energy. Gone was the straightforwardness of Ashbrook's previous recordings-the rock solos and steady backbeat-replaced instead with a lush, textured sound that mirrored his sylvan settings. For the next few months, Ashbrook would drive north every few weeks, board a ferry, and spend weeks in Droge's Puzzle Tree Studios, taking breaks to explore the expansive property and sometimes camping out in a teepee. Ashbrook and Droge became close friends as the record progressed, and as they grew closer, the record became an imprint of their relationship, the perfect coupling of Ashbrook's introspective folk-inflected songwriting married to Droge's spacey, warm arrangements.

The album's title track showcases the collaboration perfectly, with a steady acoustic guitar blending with swirling electric tracks and atmospheric synths, all supporting Ashbrook's resonant voice. "Barstar" ups the ante as an anthem of Ashbrook's success, chugging keyboards tempered by an echoing vocal that reflects Ashbrook's tempered vision of his younger days, while "21 Young" explodes with a hook that's pure pop perfection.

But it wasn't all easygoing-a polyp on Ashbrook's vocal chords threatened the record's completion by forcing throat surgery and a three-month hiatus for recovery. When it came time to choose the album's opener, another potential throat surgery threatened more than just the record. "Pete vowed he'd drive down to Portland and slit my throat if I didn't open the record with ‘Carelessly,'" says Ashbrook with a laugh. Like every decision made with Droge's support, the resigned rebuke to a heartless lover opens the record with just the right mix of sly sentiment.

And while the journey to make White Balloons-a trek into the northwest wilderness that expanded Ashbrook's artistic sensibilities-felt Odyssean at times in its wanderings and hardships, the record shows that Ashbrook's journey is one any music fan will be happy to join.

website:

http://www.stephenashbrook.com

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http://www.myspace.com/stephenashbrook