Visual Sound: Issue 21
Mark Mulch
“Sundaze”
Singer/Songwriter/Producer Mark Mulch—from Toms River in Ocean County—is now based in Nashville and putting out good-time totally fun music like “Sundaze” with American Blonde and Trixter/Def Leppard guitar hero Steve Brown.
When still a 20something, Mulch fronted Brigade to hard-rock up and down the NY-NJ circuit. The band broke up just when Atlantic Records came calling. The experience pushed Mulch into the business side of the music business, landing him first in the licensing department of EMI Music Publishing before being Music Supervisor with J. Walter Thompson Advertising. He would go on to work at Jive Records and Creative License, an indie talent agency.
But artists tend to have something in their innards that won’t let go. He formed the rootsy rockin’ Lemongrass Band in Toms River which won WRAT’s “Best Unsigned Band in NJ” and a deal with Marshall Tucker Band’s Ramblin’ Records. Ultimately, though, Mulch moved to Tennessee to start the rather country-rock Mulch Brothers with his friend Nick. EP Dig It Y’all got ‘em on the radio + TV, film and a deal with Savannah Music Group.
After almost ten years of touring, Mulch went solo, producing, arranging composing, recording and tweaking the music of fellow artists, including 27 of his songs released worldwide. His cover of The Band’s “Christmas Must Be Tonight” is on the Sony Music compilation “Christmas Wonderland” alongside Elvis, Dylan and Dolly. Mulch and Steve Brown can be seen in the upcoming documentary, The Jersey Sound, for which Mulch serves as Music Supervisor. markmulchmusic.com
Ice-T
“Colors”
Rapper-Actor-Producer-Composer-Author Ice-T—born Tracy Lauren Marrow 65 years ago in Newark—was raised in Summit, and had five hit gangsta-rap albums before starting the heavy metal band Body Count. “Colors” is from 1988.
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Walter Trout
“Bleed”
Walter Trout, 72, left Ocean City decades ago but you can’t take the Jersey out of the boy. His new album, Broken, won’t be out until March, but here’s “Bleed.”
Skid Row
“Resurrected”
“Resurrected” is the fifth single from Skid Row’s surprisingly supple The Gang’s All Here. The Toms River band has been successfully touring internationally with new singer Erik Gronwall, their fourth frontman since Sebastian Bach. Frank Gryner—who has directed videos for Alice Cooper and Def Leppard—does a great job here from an original concept by bassist Rachel Bolan.