Robby Cronholm fronts the band Taxes. They have a new full length and remixes by Danny Seim of Menomena coming in 2014.
What was the food highlight of your year?
Tours and recording sessions have been kind enough to take me north to Portland three times this year. When they do, I never miss an opportunity to eat at Gabriel Rucker’s Le Pigeon. His food strikes such a deep chord (one pun intended) in me. His technique is stellar, his approach unconventional, but his food is always inviting and never pretentious. As we’re all here due to a love of food, let’s get down to the intro, verse, chorus, middle 8, chorus of just one of the nights I spent cozied up to the kitchen at Le Pigeon. (I save my menus. Nerd Alert!)
Razor Clams - casino flavors, bacon glaçage
Foie Gras “Ants on a Log” - olive oil white chocolate ice cream, porcini peanut butter
Beef Cheek Bourguignon
Agnolotti “Cacio E Pepe” - grilled lemon butter, zucchini, peas
Foie Gras Profiteroles
What was the music highlight of your year?
Taylor Swift in Sacramento, The National at Outside Lands, and Pusha T at Mezzanine come to mind. Also, being able to work with Danny Seim from Menomena was the beginning of a beautiful friendship and his input on the record was invaluable.
Was there a moment when food and music came together in a memorable way?
Our insanely talented producer, Ryan Williams, and I had just finished mixing a song for our new record. We hopped in separate cars and headed from the studio in Echo Park to Hollywood to celebrate at Ink. On the drive over I reflected on the songwriting process and was overwhelmed with emotion. The melody in the shower, the right chords, the lyrics from a dream, the hours in the practice space, the collaborative brilliance of my bandmates, the arrangement finally agreed on, the iPhone recordings, the logistics of recording, the hours in the studio, the basics, the overdubs, the first mix, the second, the final, the car as it careens down Sunset Boulevard with its windows down and its system up. By the time I arrived at the restaurant I was weeping. And then, an unforgettable meal prepared by a young, immensely talented chef with a stranglehold on skill and a devil-may-care attitude, Michael Voltaggio. The setlist that night was as follows:
Oysters - half dozen, mignonette ice
Charred Avocado - dungeness crab, almond sponge, smoked oil
Hamachi - artichoke, smoked buttermilk, oaxacan cheese, yuzu
Potato Charcoal - housemade sour cream, black vinegar
Lollipop Kale - lardo, pig ears, togarashi
Lamb Neck - fried egg, yogurt curd, potato, wild herbs
Beef Cheeks - turnips, onion, caramel, beef threads