Hi Dave, thanks for taking the time for Let's Talk Punk can you tell us a little about yourself.

Howdy Punk Globe! I'm a third generation Los Angelino who spent my school years split up between Los Angeles and Orange County. I currently live in Highland Park, CA where my recording studio is located. I grew up skating, playing music and cruising around on old Vespa and Lambretta scooters.


You have been in the Punk Music scene for a while can you tell us about your current and past projects?

For the last 7 years I've been drumming with Agent Orange. Lately I've also been working on a couple recording/jam projects with friends. One is with Casey Royer, John O'Donnovan (Adolescents, Yeasty Boys, Target 13) and Jay Womack (Narcoleptic Youth). Another is with Ray Stevens II (The Faction, Drunk Injuns, Clay Wheels), pro skater Chuck Treece (Mc Rad, Bad Brains), pro skater Sal Barbier and Russian musician Ania Maliakina. Some of the more notable past bands I've been in were The Ghastly Ones (spooky surf and garage punk), Sky Saxon and the Seeds (60's punk and psych) and The Bomboras (high energy surf & garage punk). Last year I had the opportunity to fill in for a few shows playing drums with Guttermouth, that was a blast!


Is your family musical?

Yes, the farthest back for musicians in my family I know of is my great grandfather Benjamin Bloom, who was violinist from Latvia, Russia. In the late 1800's he went AWOL and left Russia to avoid being forced into serving a 20 year term in the Russian army and fled to America. During his escape he crossed several rivers (at one he laid his Stradivarius violin down on the shore before swimming across, he never owned another). He first settled in Boston where he formed a band and eventually met my great grandmother Goldie, who left home to play piano in the band. They eventually moved to Los Angeles where he became one the original members of the LA Philharmonic Orchestra and taught violin, his daughter (my grandmother) Rosalie was an opera singer. My other great grandfather Julius Klein (billed as "The Worlds Greatest Cimbalom Player") played cimbalom, a Hungarian concert hammer dulcimer. He played clubs and appeared in several motion pictures in the 1930's. During the US prohibition (1920-1933), he would perform in clubs in Caliente Mexico, where US citizens would travel down to drink and party. My grandfather Harold Klein was a violinist that performed live and worked as a session musician. My mother has a degree in music from Cal State Dominguez Hills. My older sister Lori played drums in high school and taught me to do drum rolls and a few of the basic rudiments. After high school she stopped playing and that's where I took over.


Were you influenced by old records & tapes? Which ones?

Back when I was a little dude, in our home my mom would play lots of classical music, Beatles and early Rolling Stones records. I would also listen to my dad's 50's rock and roll singles like Bill Haley, Nervous Norvus, The Platters etc. As I got older I would listen to the radio which was also a big influence. The main stations I remember were KMET, KLOS, the Migthy 690 and KROQ. KROQ (before becoming corporate) would playing bands like Agent Orange, Surf Punks, DEVO, X, Elvis Costello, Oingo Boingo, The Clash, B52's, The Jam etc. In my teenage years I was a skate rat growing up in Tustin. My friends and I all listened to bands like Agent Orange, JFA, Bad Religion, The Faction etc. Agent Orange is probably the band that initially got me into surf music, which lead to me playing in a bunch of them. Back then if you told me I would be playing drums in Agent Orange I would never have believed you. Over the years I've listened to so much different stuff I'm sure everything has had some influence on me. Even with recording I'll hear cool production on songs/recordings that will inspire me with a project I'm working on. The first records I bought were The Who's "My Generation" and AC/DC "For Those About To Rock We Salute You".


Which instruments do you play?

I play drums, keyboards, bass, percussion and mess around with guitar a bit. The majority of the bands I've been in I've played drums, in the Ghastly Ones and the Seeds I played keys.

What was the first tune(s) you learned?

Depends on which instrument. On guitar and bass probably "Smoke On The Water" (doesn't everyone start with that one?). Drums I'm not exactly sure. I took band starting in 5th grade so I played a bunch of stuff the teacher picked out. I remember early on I jammed some surf tunes with my neighbor Mark who played guitar, we were playing songs like "Pipeline" and "Miserlou".

How do you feel the music scene has changed in the last 10 years?

From what I've noticed (in last few years) old school punk rock has been making a bit of a come back (not that I thought it ever went away). Everything goes in circles, if you're super busy like me, it's almost impossible to keep track of all that's going on, I just go by what I see on the road and on social media. I have noticed a crop of new bands sprouting up all over the place. It's awesome and inspiring, always great to see kids getting out there keeping rock and roll alive! I realize money's the driving force behind most things and there's more money to be made with DJ nights at clubs over live shows. Nowadays I think the older bands do well with combined and co-headliner shows. We recently played "It's Not Dead Fest", that was awesome, hope we do more like that.


How have you changed?

I'm not as careless or reckless as I used to be. The more seriously I got into recording and owning a home has settled me down a bit, hopefully I'm not too boring of a person now. It's inevitable, as you get older your perception on life changes. I try to keep myself positive, motivated and progressive. Everyone changes to certain degree, if you don't you'll probably turn into a character of yourself.

Where have you toured? any favorite places?

I love touring, I've done a bazillion laps around the US, several tours in Canada, South America, Japan, Europe, Alaska and Hawaii. This New Years Agent Orange is returning to Australia which will be my first time, I'm super stoked! It's been on my tour bucket list for years now. As far as favorite places it's hard to pick a few. I do like touring Brazil and Japan, Europe's pretty cool especially Spain and Greece. Canada is always a good time, the U.S.A. is probably the easiest to tour in and how rad is it to play shows in Hawaii! I've made so many friends all over the world over the years, I enjoy catching up with people and trying to see something or someplace I haven't experienced before. If you haven't seen THE THING in Benson Arizona, I highly recommend it, well worth the $2 admission!

Who are some of the bands you enjoy listening to?

I like lots of different styles of music and like most people I get burned out after listening to something too much. One of my all time favorite bands is DEVO, I guess that's one band I never get sick of. Some of the bands I like are The Ramones, The Cramps, D.I., The Ventures, Messer Chups, The Adolescents, Minor Threat, Dick Dale, Link Wray, Satans Pilgrims, In The Whale, Guttermouth, Black Sabbath, The Stranglers, The Faction, The Dickies, Pinata Protest, The Jam and The Dead Kennedys. I like a lot of 60's garage, surf and instrumental stuff like Booker T and the MGs. Two songs in particular I've watched live footage of a million times are Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein" and "Hocus Pocus" by Focus, both coincidentally from 1973. Not that I'm a huge prog fan, but those songs are over the top awesomeness.


Do you get nervous before a performance?

Yes, sometimes I still do. It all depends on the show and who's there. Mostly happens at big shows or when family members or close friends attend. It's easier to perform in front of strangers.

What do you most enjoy about being a musician?

Playing music has afforded me opportunities to go out and see the world, make lots of friends and experienced things I wouldn't just by being at home.


What's the most difficult thing about being a musician?

Probably the hardest thing about it is trying to survive and make a living doing it. I won't lie, it's not easy, but I keep on truckin'. To be honest there's times when I get very discouraged and/or frustrated. I always somehow manage to make ends meet but never get ahead, just staying afloat. Over the years I have sacrificed a ton for the sake of playing music whether it's financially or with relationships. It's an art form some people feel they are entitled to for free.

Any other hobbies besides being a musician?

I guess cruisin' around the ol' Vespa would be my main hobbie. For the last 20 something years I've been collecting Tiki stuff and I've been picking up shot glasses on tour, I probably have around 100.

Can you tell us about some of the projects you have done recordings for?

Currently I'm working on two projects in the studio, The Hellflowers debut ep (Los Angeles guitar driven alternative rock) and a new recording with The Droogs (legendary Los Angeles based garage rock band that started in 1972). Recently I had 45 Grave in the studio. We recorded a track "Heat Miser" for the Cleopatra Records "Punk Rock Christmas" comp. Besides recording it, I played keys on it. It was a blast working and hanging with them, they're good peeps! Some of the other artists on the comp are: Iggy Pop, Slaughter and the Dogs, UK Subs, Unwritten Law, The Vibrators, and Anti Nowhere League. Past bands/projects I've worked with are: Agent Orange, The Love Me Nots, The Droogs, In The Whale, Palmyra Delran and Bubble Gun w/guest vocalist Kim Shattuck, The Green Ghosts, The Sirens, The Unclaimed, The Last Wolves, The Cherry Drops, The Aquaholics, The Atom Age, Sepo, Moonchasers, The Sloths, Prost!, The Seriouslys, Unextraordinary Gentlemen, Galactic Romance, Feral Kizzy, The Tammy Olea Band, FroBro and Friends, The Bots, The Thingz, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Insect Surfers, The Darklings, The Odd Squad, The 20 Grand Club, The Secret Samurai, The Ghosts of Searchlight, The Vooduo, The Beat Killers, Ding Dong Devils, The Rough Boys, The Returners, The Spanks, The Hitz, Thee Spectors, The Ghastly Ones and The Headless Hearsemen. Television, film and game credits include music featured in The Adventures of Crash Tucker, The Vampire Diaries - Season 1 DVD, FOX Television's "Raising Hope", "The Academy" 2010, 2009 release of Night Of The Demons, Los Campeones De La Lucha, Starship Troopers, Sponge Bob Squarepants, Board Heads, music featured in Tony Hawk 2 for I Phone, I Was A Teenage Monster Shirt Painter (Von Franco Documentary) and additional sound for Bryan Birge's - Urban Nomads.


How do you balance your music with other obligations - mate, children, job?

I've been married to Judy since 2008. Our child is a 3 year old Korat cat named Tiki Bear. Lately I've been so busy it's been really hard to balance anything. My main sources of incojoumes are playing in the band and working in my studio. When I'm home and if the studio's slow, I help my dad run his travel company where I write blogs, maintain his website and do regular office stuff. I've been very fortunate, my dad's always been super supportive of me. Many of my fellow musician friends are struggling to survive between tours.


What's a side of you the public never sees?

I guess I'm a pretty serious dude on stage, maybe I take performing too seriously, I just try to do my best while performing. At home I try to keep things light and have fun.

How can the readers find you and your music?

www.davekleinrecording.com https://www.facebook.com/DaveKleinProducer instagram: @davekleindrummer

Any shout-outs you would like to give?

Hey to my family, Judy, Janet & Bryan, Mike Palm & Perry Gx, Joe, Adrianna & Hailee, Clint, Shannon & Maddie, Andrew Boyd, Ryan & Andrea, Joaquin Sahagun, Josh White, Cab, Christopher Wade Damerst & Lori Parolari, Martin Krussel, Jeff Watkins, Emily Petit, Chris Shary, Mark Gardner, & Eric Lussier.

Thanks Dave,keep rockin!

Cheers!