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Brendan Benson makes the most of his second chance - 08/31/03
 
BY PAULINE M. MILLARD
Associated Press Writer
 
brendan bensonNEW YORK (AP) _ Brendan Benson will say over and over he doesn't like to tour.
 
In a different city every day this summer, he was always tired. As soon as he tried to sit down and actually play the guitar, someone interrupted him. Usually to do an interview.
 
But the constant change of stages and audiences has helped Benson, 32, find his way back onto the musical map after it seemed like his musical career was lost.
 
In 1996, Benson was signed to Virgin records and released his debut album, One Mississippi, which got good reviews. But it sold less than 10,000 copies, and he was dropped from the label.
 
Deflated, Benson moved from Southern California back to his native Detroit. He bought a house with his remaining savings and set up a small recording studio in his dining room.
 
Slowly, he started writing and recording songs again, playing most of the instruments himself. By 2001 he had an album, Lapalco, a mix of mellow guitar melodies and catchy, surfer-inspired pop tunes.
 
About the same time, Isaac Green had started his own record label, Star Time International, and was looking for acts. One day he received a copy of Lapalco at his Brooklyn office with nothing more attached to it than a note reading, "This record needs a home — b.b."
 
Green signed him, released Lapalco in 2002 and sent Benson out on tour. The partnership turned out to be kismet, as Benson stayed on the road promoting his album and, in a smaller sense, the new Star Time label.
 
"We kind of grew up together," Green says. The label has since signed acts such as the Walkmen, the French Kicks and Northern State. This summer Green sent Benson and his band, the Wellfed Boys, across most of Europe.
 
"I'm getting more of a sense of gratification being on a small label now," Benson said recently by phone while between being shuffled from tour bus to venue. "I'm getting the opportunity to see things grow and see what a difference touring makes."
 
"I never used to like touring," he said. "But I'm getting a lot better at playing live and have gained a lot of confidence on this tour."
 
Benson and the Wellfed Boys have a new extended play release, Metarie,but it's Lapalco that has created real buzz. The MTV show Advance Warningrecently picked Benson as one of its 10 artists to watch, and Entertainment Weekly called the album "a hook heavy display of pliable pop smarts."
 
"'Lapalco' is one of those albums that you put on and just leave on. You listen to it and it just makes you feel better," said David Swanson, the lead singer of Detroit-based Whirlwind Heat.
 
Swanson's band recorded their album Do Rabbits Wonder at Benson's spacious, uncluttered home in Detroit. The two acts also toured together when they opened for The White Stripes last year.
 
The Whirlwind Heat band members said when they worked with Benson they were impressed not only with his own music, but his dedication to trying new approaches to recording, including using vintage 1960s equipment.
 
"He makes very honest music," said Heat drummer Brad Holland. "He comes up with great melodies and background vocals all on his own."
 
Green says that even though Benson's work has been compared to the Beatles by critics, commercial radio will probably overlook it since it doesn't fit into any one format.
 
Regardless of the format, people are paying attention. But Benson is trying to stay focused on his next record and concentrate on making his living as a working musician.
 
"Maybe it's a defense mechanism, but I pay attention to any good press for about 10 minutes and then move on," he says. "I just write what sounds good from song to song and record to record."