Social media is really good at setting off disingenuous inter-generational beefs, so it’s nice every now and then to see a bridge built. A few years ago, Gen-X Anaheim indie rocker Dusty Starr met Philly producer (and Millennial) Jack Hubbell of Telyscopes via Facebook, leading to a collaboration on Starr’s debut as a solo artist. Together at Hubbell’s home studio, they recorded “So Gone,” Starr’s first single under the name Trixxstar, with their shared affinity for good old fashioned windows-down power pop.
In the 90’s, Starr’s band Chihuahua recorded a major label album that never saw the light of day. More recently, he’s played guitar for Les Biches in L.A., but he’s also found his way to the east coast before; technically, his first Trixxstar release was his remix of Telyscopes’ “Flash Flood” for the 2019 EP Recycled Bath Water, and before that, he sang guest lead vocals on Hubbell’s 2018 cover of “Happy Together” by The Turtles.
On “So Gone,” Hubbell returns the favor by filling in some of the track’s vocal harmonies. The single plays to each of their strengths, but it also rocks the contrast, both in the crunchy peanut butter of Starr’s voice and the smooth grape jelly of Hubbell’s, and in hard-panned guitar tracks, putting jangly electric in one speaker and counterweighting it with grungy, blown-out acoustic in the other. It’s a crisp, catchy tune augmented by Pablo Cabrera (Popolocho, Ultimate Overshare) on drums and Jason Tyler (Colder Planets, Halfcast) on twisted, processed trumpet.
“So Gone” is available to stream and download now. Later this year, be on the lookout for more Trixxtar music and the long-awaited release of the Chihuahua recordings as freshly remastered by Hubbell.
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