Informational Fan Page

Last Updated 30 July 2014 at 13:43 CDT by Charlie Petitt.

This page is hosted on The Oo Kingdom but is not part of the regular site. It will be updated whenever new information becomes available, so it is effectively a work in progress. ~ Upcoming shows are included under Shows / Appearances, available on the navigation menu and on this page (far below).

Let me introduce to you a new band in town: Pancake Riot. Be careful not to confuse them with the Waffle Uprising, the Muffin Rebellion, the Bagel Revolt, or the French Toast Revolution. This shouldn’t be a problem, since I just made all of those up! Or how about the Granola Insurgence? (thanks to Ken Wagman for that one)

Pancake Riot is an indie acoustic folk-rock band from Janesville, Wisconsin. What makes them interesting is that each member of the band writes their own songs. The band plays nearly all original music, but occasionally they will do a cover song. So far they have played at several area coffee and donut shops, and their outreach is growing. They released their first album, entitled “Yours, Mine, & Ours,” on Bandcamp on 11 April 2014. Physical CDs arrived on 15 April and were made available at The Exclusive Company in Janesville, WI, on 19 April.

The band has gone through numerous changes in recent months; see this Facebook post from 30 June 2014. Currently in a “quiet” period, the band will eventually play again with three or four members (see detail below).

A Little About Each of the Band Members

In addition to the instruments and vocals listed below, often a shaker and/or tambourine is played as well. Candace also plays the ukulele, but so far not with the band.

Danial Monson-Bergum
keyboard, guitar, piano, vocals: Mainly instrumental in organizing the band and steering its direction; the band was actually Dan’s concept to begin with. Many of the meetings and practices, and (so far) all of the recording sessions have been held at his home. Independently, he has released seven EPs on Bandcamp (generally four to six songs each), beginning 12 June 2010. Probably his best-known songs to date are “Hunger Moon,” “The City Tonight,” “Slip Away,” and “Calculations.” Dan has played keyboard with the band since the beginning of April 2014.
Dan has stepped down from the band, unable to continue the frequent shows and traveling; he may still play at local shows in the future. ~ Though the band’s official website declares that Dan has left Pancake Riot, he appears in their Facebook cover photo (along with Kat, Candace, and Robbie), posted on 6 July 2014.
Candace Griffin
guitar, guitanjo, vocals: A quality singer-songwriter herself, Candace has been making music in Wisconsin for nearly ten years. Her voice is clear, soothing, yet powerful; her styles range from folk to alternative pop to country. Her first Bandcamp EP, A Lesson in Keeping Quiet, was released 27 June 2013; another is in the works. Recent songs include “In the Morning,” “Burn the Candles,” “Homecoming” (co-written with Kat) and “Enjoy the Ride.”
Katarina (Kat) Farnsworth
acoustic bass guitar, guitar, harmonica, vocals: With a clear voice and sweet smile, Kat has performed publicly only since 2 October 2013 (at Mocha Moment; set included original song “Suffocating”) but already has a great stage presence and exudes confidence. She has written some great songs for the band but hasn’t formally released any solo work yet. She also helps with promotion and flyers for the band. Recent songs include “2,100 Miles” and “Wisconsin.”
Robbie Haas
guitar, occasional vocals: A handsome, innocent smile and deep, melancholy vocals characterize this young man. His recent self-titled album on PureVolume (under the band name, Elmer and the Ceramic Trees) showcases his songwriting as well as his skills on guitar, bass, and his prowess in recording, mixing, and mastering. His best-known songs are “Drive Away,” “Problem Child,” and “The Letter.”
Angelea Presti
official photographer: She took the photos shown here (except as noted; this photo was taken by Jeff Robichaud). She is also listed as General Manager on the band’s Facebook page.

Formerly in the band, and part of its beginning:

Isaac Evenson
guitar, acoustic bass guitar, guitanjo: The band’s newest member (joined 3 January 2014) says he isn’t much of a singer, though his deep speaking voice is pleasant. But his guitar skills are the bomb: his recent recordings on Bandcamp (Ghosts of Winter and A Hermit’s Melody, both released 4 January 2014) demonstrate this.
Isaac gradually phased out of the band between April and June (he did not play any of the June shows); the frequent shows and traveling proved too demanding for him.
Jeff Robichaud
cajon and cymbal percussion, mandolin
(left band on 25 March 2014): Heavily influenced by modern folk artists such as Ray LaMontagne, Jeff writes songs that are deeply philosophical in nature, with chord progressions ranging from simple to lush. He also does cover songs. For this band, he has done mainly percussion, though he has played guitar or even mandolin. Jeff’s best-known originals are “Stoplights” and “Wax and Wane.”
Jeff changed jobs and began working nights beginning 31 March, and moved to another city in June, so he has left the band (officially), though he may still record some percussion or background vocals for the band. He aims to pursue his own music as well, playing guitar, ukulele, and mandolin, as well as doing some recording.
Mackenzie Benish
guitar, piano, vocals
(left band about 17 January 2014): Though she has been writing and singing her own songs for quite some time, her first publicly released recording was “Somewhat Intriguing,” recorded at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, on 17 May 2013 (a friend shot a video of the song four months earlier, on a breezy winter day, and it was still very good). She has done several shows in the area since then. Another favorite original is “Poets in Our Sleep.”
This photo is taken from Mackenzie’s Bandcamp page; it was the cover photo for “Somewhat Intriguing.”
Charlie Petitt
keyboard, ukulele, vocals
(left band on 17 January 2014): By far the oldest member of the group, the self-proclaimed “Little Mmm Guy” has been writing and singing original songs since 1982. His first solo CD, entitled Umm… was released 22 June 2007 under his own private label, Ummamum Music; more releases are planned for 2014. Charlie’s involvement with the band was limited due to his work schedule, so he decided to drop out. The band has played two of his many songs: “Minnesota Highway” and “All Over.”
This photo, taken by Wendi Petitt on 7 September 2007, was used on the cover of Charlie’s self-titled album, which was a remake of Umm…

How the Band Got Its Name

The band sprang up out of the Open Mic Nights held twice monthly at Mocha Moment, a coffee shop in Janesville, Wisconsin (1121 Center Ave.). The open mic is held on the first and third Wednesdays of the month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Ken Wagman hosts the event and does a tremendous job. As the event grew more and more popular, several of the regular performers began meeting on the “off” Wednesday evenings; Danial Monson-Bergum organized the group. The first meeting, set for 27 March 2013, was canceled because no one could make it; the first actual meeting was in April. Meetings were held at members’ homes, often in Dan’s basement.

The group held an evening “Jam Sesh” on Tuesday, 15 October 2013 at another coffee shop called The Little Bean (at its original location, 2624 E. Milwaukee St.; they have since relocated to 101 E. Milwaukee St. downtown). The session began at 6 p.m. and continued after the shop closed. I was there myself until 8 p.m. but left. The others wrote a new song after that; they played it at the Open Mic at Mocha Moment the following evening during the 8:15 slot, inviting me to join them onstage. I didn’t know the song, but it was easy to learn. It became an instant hit; the song would become known as “Coffee Shop.”

On Tuesday, 12 November 2013, there was a recording session at Danial Monson-Bergum’s house; he wanted to get a “big choir” sound on the final chorus of his song, “The City Tonight.” Having never recorded a group before, it took him a while to get the sound he was after. We sang it twice: once in harmony, then once in unison. We also discussed the future of the group and decided that we are now a band; we would pursue some gigs in the area and eventually more recording.

On the following day (13 November), Danial Monson-Bergum, Mackenzie Benish, and Kat Farnsworth appeared at the studio of the new Janesville Community Radio for a live broadcast of “Discover Janesville.” The station was applying for a low-power broadcast license but so far was doing podcasts online. Representing the new band (so far with no name), the trio played two of their original songs and were interviewed by Yuri Rashkin, the show’s host. Later, they ate lunch with Yuri. The subject of Quotes, a local bar, came up: they were relinquishing their liquor license due to a number of violent incidents that occurred there. “What are they going to do,” Yuri remarked, “go down to the Citrus Cafe and start a pancake riot at two in the morning?” Danial noted that this phrase could make a good band name: Pancake Riot.

The group met at Jeff Robichaud’s apartment for a song share at 6:15 that evening. We spent most of the first part deciding upon a band name: we started with ten choices, voted six of them out, then chose names out of a hat twice to narrow it down to two. Finally, Robbie and Jeff played “Rock, Paper, Scissors” to choose between “Emerald City Showdown” and “Members of a Pancake Riot.” Finally the name was chosen. Kat posted on Facebook: “11.13.13 Members of a Pancake Riot were born at 7:50pm during share group. — with Mackenzie Benish and 5 others.” The name was quickly amended to “Members of the Pancake Riot.” Their Facebook page and Twitter account were created on 14 November 2013 (the following day).

Angelea Presti did the first official photo shoot for the band on 19 January 2014, providing cover and profile photos for their Facebook page.

On 23 January 2014, Members of the Pancake Riot became the official house band of Discover Janesville on Janesville Community Radio. The broadcasts have been available as podcasts, but an application for a low-power FM station has been submitted to the FCC. If granted, the air frequency would be 103.5 MHz.

On 8 April 2014, the band’s name was officially shortened to simply, Pancake Riot. Their official website link was changed to point to their Tumblr blog at that time.

Discography

Yours, Mine & Ours (57:49)

Released on Bandcamp 11 April 2014 (lyrics available there).
Physical CDs released 19 April 2014 at The Exclusive Company in Janesville, WI.

Coffee Shop (4:17) — Jointly written in a coffee shop (of course) on 15 October 2013.
2,100 (4:00) — Written by Kat Farnsworth and Kelliann Keeler. Original title, “2,100 Miles” was shortened for this album.
Drive Away (4:20) — Written by Robbie Haas; solo version appears on his own album.
Homecoming (5:47) — Co-written by Kat Farnsworth and Candace Griffin; the setting is Christmastime, but the song is good anytime.
Slip Away (4:08) — A bouncy number, written by Dan Monson-Bergum.
Enjoy the Ride (6:04) — A driving country-rock song by Candace Griffin (she never did any of the things mentioned in the song, she notes).
In the Morning (4:35) — Written by Candace Griffin; first appeared on her own EP entitled “A Lesson in Keeping Quiet,” released 27 June 2013.
Ribcage (4:08) — Written by Kat Farnsworth.
Wisconsin (5:54) — A tribute to seasons in Wisconsin, written by Kat Farnsworth.
Got to Get Out (6:18) — Written by Isaac Evenson.
City Tonight (8:12) — This two-part finale consists of an original song by Dan Monson-Bergum, followed by some cool jams by guitarist Isaac Evenson (there’s a silence break from 4:39 to 4:52). — Fun fact: the “big choir” on the final chorus of the title cut includes the voices of some former members, including Mackenzie Benish and Charlie Petitt.

On the Web

Pancake Riot:

Official Website (Tumblr): http://pancakeriot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/memberspancakeriot

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Pancake_Riot (Follow @Pancake_Riot)

Bandcamp: NEW page (11 April 2014): http://pancakeriot.bandcamp.com/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/pancakeriot

Email: thepancakeriot@hotmail.com

Each member (or former member) has a Web presence as well:

Charlie’s official music site: http://www.charliepetitt.com/

Shows / Appearances

(These are in addition to early appearances on “Discover Janesville.”)

2014

June 28: Dunkin Donuts, Janesville, WI, 7:00 p.m.
June 26: Froth House, Madison, WI, 7:00 p.m. (with Beka Killjoe)
June 21: Exclusive Co., Janesville, WI
June 14: The Oasis, Grayslake, IL, 7:00 p.m. (with Sarah Jo, The Apollo Affair, Reckless Endangerment, and Quotation)
April 19: Exclusive Co. (Record Store Day), Janesville, WI
April 16: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI
April 11: Bushel and Peck’s, Beloit, WI
April 10: Open Mic at Lucy’s Loon Lake Coffee & Deli (in Basics Co-op), Janesville, WI
April 5: The Oasis, Grayslake, IL
April 2: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI
March 19: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI
March 15: Open Mic at Friends on the Square, Elkhorn, WI
March 13: Froth House (coffee shop), Madison, WI, joint show with Mackenzie Benish.
March 5: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI (Dan, Candace, and Kat)
February 21: Dunkin’ Donuts (Milton Ave.), Janesville, WI
February 13: Open Mic at Lucy’s Loon Lake Coffee & Deli (in Basics Co-op), Janesville, WI
January 17: Dunkin’ Donuts (Milton Ave.), Janesville, WI (this was Charlie’s last show with the band; we sang “All Over” with only a ukulele)

2013

December 7: Dunkin’ Donuts (Milton Ave.), Janesville, WI
November 20: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI
October 16: Open Mic at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI. Not even officially a band yet at this point. Played “Coffee Shop” at 8:15 p.m. Photo below (courtesy, Diana Rasmussen) is from that event.

Videos (this is not an exhaustive list)

Pancake Riot Session 1 (revised edition, 1/30/2014)
Includes “In the Morning,” “Slip Away,” and “The City Tonight”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cz-NgWbwiI

“Enjoy the Ride” at Exclusive Co., Janesville, WI (19 April 2014)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy5dQn_wi5E

“Drive Away” at Mocha Moment, Janesville, WI (16 April 2014)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=716lmjLIr4I