George Hrab

George Hrab

George Hrab at TAM9 in 2011
Background information
Born (1971-06-08) June 8, 1971
Belleville, New Jersey
Origin Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Genres Progressive rock, funk
Occupation(s) Musician, songwriter, podcaster, author
Instruments Drums, guitar, bass, piano
Years active 1995–present
Labels Geologic Records
Associated acts Philadelphia Funk Authority, Slau, The Geologic Orchestra, The Blue Turtles
Website GeorgeHrab.com
Notable instruments
Martin Guitars,[1] Tama Drums, Zildjian & Sabian cymbals[2]


George Joseph Hrab (born June 8, 1971 in Belleville, New Jersey) is a drummer, guitarist, composer and podcaster known for performing rock, funk and jazz and for exploring atheist,[3] skeptic and science themes in his work.[4] He has released six albums as a solo artist.

Musical career

Hrab performs in several genres of music, but most often in rock and funk. His lyrics are often witty[5] and his songs often reflect his interest in science and skepticism.[4] Hrab lists Frank Zappa and David Byrne as key influences. "You can shake your ass to it, but it's still really smart and interesting," he says.[6] He has described his style of music with one word: Philosophunk! “I’m a big fan of Frank Zappa, Talking Heads, XTC, the Beatles, and things like that. Those are my influences, but at the same time, I’m a huge fan of Stan Freberg and James Randi and Michael Shermer and those kinda guys. So it’s sort of like philosophy and music… What I do is I coalesce the vapors of the universe.”[7]

Hrab has released six albums since 1997 as an independent musician. One of Hrab's unique approaches as an indie is to customize the packaging of each his albums. One features a tin box, one in a DVD case, etc. "Each one stands out as a piece of art, giving his fans a genuine reason to buy the physical disc as merchandise, not just a music holder."[8][9] Two of his albums have won ADDY Awards for their packaging.[10][11]

Aside from his solo work, Hrab has been a member of many bands of the course of his career, he listed the entire history in one episode of his podcast.[12] The most notable groups are listed below.

Eric Mintel Quartet

In 1998 Hrab was the touring drummer for the Eric Mintel Quartet, and recorded one jazz album with them. The highlight of this tour was when the group played "cool '50s swing" at the Kennedy Center[13] and the White House Christmas party.[2]

Philadelphia Funk Authority

Hrab's "day job" is playing drums for a Philadelphia-area band called the Philadelphia Funk Authority.[8][13] The nine-member band was formed in 1999 and plays corporate, private and club gigs in the region around Philadelphia and also tours nationwide. The group has shared the stage with Elton John and other acts.[14]

Band members

Geologic Orchestra

When performing his own material with a band, Hrab has called the group the Geologic Orchestra.[5] The band is made up of some members of the Philadelphia Funk Authority as well as other musicians, and has played in a seven-piece configuration among others.[13]

Trebuchet

Styrofoam vibraphone model presented to Hrab to commemorate his 2010 Australian tour.

Hrab's sixth independent album Trebuchet was released in June 2010. As a means of promoting the album, he offered the full album to any podcast who wanted to run it, uncut, in their feed. Many podcasts such as Skepticality,[15] American Freethought[16] and We Are Not Delicious[17] took him up on his offer. (See below for background on Hrab's ties to the podcasting community). The album is also available as a conventional CD[18] and digital download.[19][20]

The Styrofoam Tour

From November 26 – December 5, 2010, Hrab embarked on an entirely fan-organized tour of Australia and New Zealand.[21] The tour began with appearances at The Amazing Meeting Australia, a skeptical and freethinker conference co-sponsored by the Australian Skeptics and the James Randi Educational Foundation.[22] In ten days, Hrab traveled to and played in four Australian states, the Australian Capital Territory and the north and south islands of New Zealand.[23]

The tour was named "Styrofoam" after a malapropism created as an inside joke by Kylie Sturgess.[24][25]

The Blue Turtles

In September 2013 Hrab announced the inception of The Blue Turtles, a band formed to cover Sting's first solo album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles.[26] The debut performance was on July 20, 2014 at the Ice House in Bethlehem, PA as a part of the Ice House Tonight concert series.[27][28]

Band members

Occasional Songs for the Periodic Table

On January 23, 2015 Hrab performed Occasional Songs for the Periodic Table as a part of the Ice House Tonight series in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. While Hrab previously performed the album on his podcast,[29] and live in an abbreviated version in Las Vegas, this was the first time the entire concert was performed live. The concert consisted of a song written and performed by Hrab for each of the 118 elements on the Periodic Table.[30]

90144

On the June 12, 2015 episode of the Geologic Podcast, Hrab celebrated his 44th birthday by covering Yes' album 90125 in its entirety.[31] The name 90144 is a reference to Hrab's 44th birthday.

George Hrab at QED 2011; he was MC of the 2-day event

George Hrab’s "The Broad Street Score"

George Hrab Performing The Broad Street Score in New York City on May 12, 2016

On January 24, 2016 Hrab performed a greatest hits concert featuring string Quartet versions of songs from 5 of his albums at the Ice House in Bethlehem PA. During the concert George performed with the Rittenhouse String Quartet. Together they performed arrangements of Hrab’s songs arranged by Veikko Rihu and Slau Halatyn[32][33] On May 12, 2016 Hrab reprised The Broad Street Score at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s, Katie Murphy Amphitheater as part of the annual NECSS conference.[34][35] The show made its international debut on August 24, 2016 in Turku, Finland.[36]

Podcasting

After being featured on the podcast Skepticality[7] Hrab was invited by its hosts to DragonCon in 2006. There he performed and met many podcasters who became interested in featuring his music. He credits this exposure for worldwide interest in his music. "Folks from Australia and Singapore who should have no idea who I am have downloaded songs and bought albums. That is purely due to podcasts," Hrab said.[37]

George Hrab with fans at JREF's The Amazing Meeting July 7, 2009

Around the same time (summer of 2006),[38] Hrab hosted a weekly program called The Geologic Radio Hour on the Lehigh University radio station WLVR. Listed as "free form eclectic" and running at midnight on Tuesdays, it featured spoken word segments and a number of comedy sketches developed by Hrab.[39] (a segment of one of the programs is available on Hrab's website)[40]

Based on the experience of the radio program and the contacts made in podcasting in 2006, and encouraged by his friend and producer Slau, Hrab launched his own podcast in February 2007.[41]

Geologic Podcast

The Geologic Podcast is a weekly podcast consisting of personal stories, comedy sketches, news commentary, music and interviews, starring Hrab. The content often draws from Hrab's musical career, the music industry in general and from topics that relate to skepticism, atheism, rationalism and humanism. The title is a pun on Hrab's first name and his interest in rationalism; the podcast contains "not a hint of geology".[42] New episodes of the program are posted on Thursday or Friday.

The podcast content varies from week to week, but often includes several of a number of recurring segments. Some are Hrab speaking on a particular topic or relating a story, others are comedy sketches in which Hrab plays characters. Occasionally the podcast will take the form of a concert, with Hrab singing and playing guitar.[43][44] Hrab has also conducted interviews with musicians such as Slau[45] and Milton Mermikides,[46] as well as others.[47]

As of August 2016, more than 475 episodes have been produced for the Geologic Podcast.[48]

Segments

George Hrab greets fans at Reason Rally 2016

Other than Hrab's mother and the interviews, nearly all the voices on the program are provided by Hrab.

Other podcasts

Hrab has performed on or has been interviewed by a number of other podcasts, including The Good Atheist,[75] Skepticality,[7][76] The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe,[77][78] Slacker Astronomy,[79] Sessions with Slau,[80] The Rabbit Zone,[81] The Nonsense Podcast,[82] The Skeptic Zone,[83] Point of Inquiry,[84] Inquiry FM,[85] Artist Connection Podcast,[86] The Pseudo Scientists,[87] Maynard's Malaise,[88][89] Cognitive Dissonance,[90] The Story Collider,[91] and InKredulous. [92][93]

Hrab also wrote & recorded the theme song for the 365 Days of Astronomy podcast, FAR.[94] He created and performed in the associated music video.[95]

TEDx Talk

Hrab's TEDx Talk at TEDxLehighRiver September 19, 2015 was titled "Rethinking Doubt: The Value and Achievements of Skepticism."[96][97][98]

Reason Rally 2016

George Hrab on stage at Reason Rally 2016

On June 4, 2016, Hrab served as emcee of the Reason Rally in Washington, DC.[99] On June 5, 2016, Hrab moderated a celebrity panel with Kelly Carlin, John de Lancie, Lawrence Krauss, Paul Provenza, and Dave Rubin at the mini-conference that followed the Reason Rally.[100]

Awards

Controversy

After the release of Hrab's self-published first album [sic], he was sued for invasion of privacy by a former supervisor from his job at Moravian College.[107] She claimed that a short phrase written in Cyrillic script in the liner notes as well as one short track on the album were intended as a disparaging remark directed at her, which embarrassed her in front of her coworkers. Hrab denied the charges and the case went to trial in January 1999. Hrab lost the case and had to pay a small amount of damages, and [sic] was removed from distribution.

Later, Hrab documented the entire affair (including re-enacting all of the testimony at trial) on his podcast.[108][109] In 2007 the album was re-released with the offending material removed.

Personal life

Hrab is of Ukrainian Catholic[3] descent and was born in New Jersey. His father (also named George Hrab) is a musician who has performed in a band called Tempo since 1959.[110] Hrab has lived in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania[2] since attending Moravian College[3] where he received a Bachelor of Music in 1993.[111] In the summer of 2011, Hrab revealed on his podcast that he is allergic to penicillin.[112]

Discography and other works

With others

Publications

References

  1. Hrab, George (September 9, 2010), "Episode #182, Live From Dragon*Con", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 9, 2010
  2. 1 2 3 "On The Move: George Hrab", Modern Drummer, vol. 23 no. 12, December 1999, OCLC 4660723
  3. 1 2 3 Heller-Labelle, Greg (July 30, 2008), "Hrab: Skeptic 'a geek at heart'", The Bethlehem Press, p. A5
  4. 1 2 Gerbic, Susan (28 July 2016). "A Conversation with George Hrab". CSICOP.org. Archived from the original on 8 November 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  5. 1 2 Wacker, George (November 16, 2006), "Geological Orchestra packs Ice House", The Bethlehem News, p. 13
  6. Salerno, Gabrielle (November 9–15, 2005), "George Hrab: To the (naked) beat of his own drum", Merge, The Morning Call, vol. 1 no. 33, pp. 14–15, retrieved April 21, 2010
  7. 1 2 3 Swoopy; Colanduno, Derek (August 1, 2005), "Ep. #014 – Philosophunk! Interview: George Hrab (Musical Guest)", Skepticality, Skeptic Magazine, retrieved April 12, 2010
  8. 1 2 Chertkow, Randy; Feehan, Jason (2008). The Indie Band Survival Guide: The Complete Manual for the Do-It-Yourself Musician. New York City: St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 147–148, 227. ISBN 978-0-312-37768-7. OCLC 184822902.
  9. Randy Chertkow and Jason Feehan. "Planning Your Album from Beginning to End" (pdf). Disc Makers. p. 13. Retrieved September 9, 2010.
  10. 1 2 Shope, Dan (March 12, 2006), "Bricks and print nerds and the Web", The Morning Call, retrieved March 17, 2011
  11. 1 2 "2011 Greater Lehigh Valley ADDY® Awards Winners", ADDY Awards, retrieved March 17, 2011
  12. Hrab, George (October 2, 2008), "Episode #85", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  13. 1 2 3 Terlesky, John (November 2002), "Drummer digs his own groove with the Geologic Orchestra", Go Guide, The Morning Call
  14. Kalan, Susan (August 12, 2005), "It's funky time with Philadelphia Funk Authority", The Express-Times, p. E-20
  15. "George Hrab's Trebuchet (Full Album)". Skepticality. June 16, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  16. "Podcast Bonus – George Hrab Trebuchet". American Freethought. June 17, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  17. "Bonus Episode: "Trebuchet" by George Hrab". We Are Not Delicious. June 17, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  18. "George Hrab / Trebuchet". CD Baby. June 16, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  19. "Trebuchet by George Hrab". iTunes Music Store. June 16, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  20. "Trebuchet by George Hrab". eMusic.com. June 16, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  21. Emerson, Russell (December 5, 2010), "Sceptic George Hrab Counts His Luck", The Advertiser, News Limited, retrieved December 6, 2010
  22. "TAM Australia: What is TAM?". Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  23. Hrab, George (November 1, 2010). "The Styrofoam Tour". Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  24. "Sturgess, Kylie (June 5, 2009), "Episode #33", The Skeptic Zone". Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  25. "Hrab, George (December 16, 2010), "Episode #194", The Geologic Podcast". Retrieved April 13, 2011.
  26. Hrab, George. "Episode #331". The Geologic Podcast. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  27. McGroggan, Shamus. "George Hrab and Slau Halatyn from The Blue Turtles live on The Blend". WDIY. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  28. Schoof, Dustin. "The Blue Turtles to pay tribute to Sting with Bethlehem concert". Lehigh Valley Live. PennLive LLC. Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  29. Hrab, George. "The Geologic Podcast: Episode #72". Geologic Podcast. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
  30. Moser, John. "George Hrab has a song for everything - literally". The Morning Call. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
  31. Spears, Steve. "George Hrab covers Yes' 90125 album". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
  32. "George Hrab to perform his 'Broad Street Score' in Bethlehem". The Morning Call - mcall.com. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  33. "REVIEW: George Hrab is great in 'Broad Street Score' greatest hits concert". The Morning Call - mcall.com. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  34. "Northeast Conference on Science and Skepticism". reasonable.nyc. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  35. "The Broad Street Score". necss.org. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  36. "The Geologic Podcast Episode #462". Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  37. Morris, Tee; Evo Terra; Williams, Ryan (2008). Expert Podcasting Practices for Dummies. --For dummies. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley Publications. p. 168. ISBN 978-0-470-14926-3. OCLC 243693217.
  38. Geologic Radio Hour ran on WLVR from May 23, 2006 to September 12, 2006.
  39. "WLVR Summer Break 2006 Community Staff Schedule". WLVR 91.3 FM Bethlehem. Archived from the original on July 9, 2006. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
  40. "Geologic Podcast First Run", The Geologic Podcast, January 23, 2007, retrieved September 30, 2012
  41. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hrab, George (February 14, 2007). "A Geologic Valentine: Episode #1". The Geologic Podcast. Retrieved September 30, 2012.
  42. "Geologic Podcast: George Hrab and the Geologic Universe". Geologic Podcast. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  43. Hrab, George (April 3, 2008), "Episode #60", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved June 12, 2010
  44. Hrab, George (June 8, 2010), "Episode #169", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved June 12, 2010
  45. Hrab, George (September 24, 2009), "Episode #133", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved June 12, 2010
  46. Hrab, George (February 18, 2010), "Episode #153", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved June 12, 2010
  47. Hrab, George (July 31, 2008), "Episode #76", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved June 12, 2010
  48. Hrab, George (August 17, 2016), "Episode #475", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved August 25, 2016
  49. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (April 25, 2007), "Episode #11", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  50. 1 2 3 4 Hrab, George (June 6, 2007), "Episode #17", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  51. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (September 12, 2007), "Episode #31", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  52. 1 2 3 4 Hrab, George (October 24, 2007), "Episode #37", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  53. 1 2 3 4 5 Hrab, George (September 24, 2008), "Episode #84", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  54. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (January 8, 2009), "Episode #98", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  55. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (March 5, 2009), "Episode #106", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  56. 1 2 3 4 5 Hrab, George (May 28, 2009), "Episode #117", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  57. 1 2 3 4 Hrab, George (April 9, 2010), "Episode #160", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  58. 1 2 Hrab, George (April 29, 2010), "Episode #163", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved April 30, 2010
  59. 1 2 Hrab, George (April 17, 2008), "Episode #62", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  60. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (March 17, 2010), "Episode #157", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  61. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (July 17, 2008), "Episode #74", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  62. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (September 18, 2008), "Episode #83", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  63. 1 2 3 4 5 Hrab, George (February 28, 2007), "Episode #3", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  64. 1 2 3 4 Hrab, George (February 19, 2009), "Episode #104", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  65. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (March 31, 2010), "Episode #159", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  66. 1 2 3 Hrab, George (April 22, 2010), "Episode #162", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  67. 1 2 Hrab, George (January 6, 2011), "Episode #197", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 6, 2011
  68. Hrab, George (February 21, 2007), "Episode #2", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  69. 1 2 Hrab, George (March 12, 2009), "Episode #107", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 30, 2012
  70. 1 2 Hrab, George (January 13, 2011), "Episode #198", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 6, 2011
  71. Hrab, George (August 25, 2011), "Episode #228", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 6, 2011
  72. Hrab, George (August 13, 2015), "Episode #422", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 7, 2015
  73. Hrab, George (August 27, 2015), "Episode #424", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 7, 2015
  74. Hrab, George (September 4, 2015), "Episode #425", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved September 7, 2015
  75. The Good Atheist
  76. Swoopy; Colanduno, Derek (September 25, 2007), "Ep. #061 – Skeptics Invade A SciFi Convention", Skepticality, Skeptic Magazine, retrieved August 5, 2009
  77. Novella, Steven (July 23, 2008), "Podcast 157 – July 23, 2008", The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe, New England Skeptical Society, retrieved April 12, 2010
  78. Novella, Steven (March 25, 2010), "Podcast 245 – March 25, 2010", The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe, New England Skeptical Society, retrieved April 12, 2010
  79. "Interview: George Hrab", Slacker Astronomy, January 25, 2009, retrieved April 12, 2010
  80. Slau (January 30, 2009), "NAMM with George Hrab", Sessions with Slau: Behind the Scenes in a Recording Studio, retrieved April 22, 2010
  81. Rabbit, Dave (May 27, 2009), "George Hrab VRZ 15 Video Rabbit Zone Artist Interview", The Rabbit Zone Podcast, retrieved April 22, 2010
  82. Nonsense Podcast Episode 010, Nonsense Podcast: Demystifying the Nonsense People Believe, September 16, 2009, retrieved April 23, 2010
  83. Saunders, Richard (September 25, 2009), "The Skeptic Zone LIVE 2009", The Skeptic Zone, Australian Skeptics, 49, retrieved April 23, 2010
  84. Stollznow, Karen (May 14, 2010), "George Hrab – Soundtrack to Skepticism", Point of Inquiry, Center for Inquiry, retrieved May 20, 2010
  85. CFI Indiana (July 13, 2010), "Does the media affect our perception? (featuring George Hrab!)", Inquiry FM, retrieved July 15, 2010
  86. "Episode 006 – George Hrab", Artist Connection Podcast, July 30, 2011, retrieved November 1, 2011
  87. Young Australian Skeptics (October 13, 2011), The Pseudo Scientists: Episode #32, retrieved November 1, 2011
  88. Maynard's Malaise
  89. Maynard (August 15, 2012), George Hrab @ TAM 2012 Las Vegas, retrieved November 2, 2012,
  90. "Cognitive Dissonance – Episode 53". Retrieved December 14, 2012.
  91. "The Story Collider – George Hrab: Grandeur of the Museum". Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  92. "InKredulous: Episode #016". Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  93. "InKredulous: Episode #028". Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  94. "Podcast: Hello World!". 365 Days of Astronomy. November 6, 2008. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  95. "This stuff is far!". 365 Days of Astronomy. February 16, 2009. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
  96. Rethinking Doubt: The Value and Achievements of Skepticism
  97. "TEDxLehighRiver shares TED phenomenon with the Lehigh Valley". The Morning Call. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
  98. "Rethinking Doubt: The Value and Achievements of Skepticism". The Skeptics Society. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
  99. "Reason Rally Speakers & Entertainers". The Reason Rally Coalition. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  100. "No Praying, No Doughnuts: Celebrity Panel at the Mini-Con". Center for Inquiry. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  101. "2006 ADDY® Award Winners", ADDY Awards, retrieved March 17, 2011
  102. "2007 Winners & Finalists", Parsec Awards, retrieved April 22, 2010
  103. Winners – PPA 5 – Fall '08, Podcast Peer Awards, retrieved April 23, 2010
  104. Schoof, Dustin (December 2, 2008), "Lehigh Valley Music Award winners", Exposed, The Express-Times, retrieved April 22, 2010
  105. "Philadelphia Funk Authority won 1st place for Best Music in the 2010 "Best of the Philly HOT LIST" Contest". CityVoter.com. September 24, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  106. "Best Music in the 2011 "Philly HOT LIST" Contest". CityVoter.com. August 26, 2011. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
  107. LAURI RICE-MAUE (January 23, 1998). "Song Defames Her, Moravian College Staffer Says * An Assistant Dean Sues Lyricist, Asking Damages And End To Sale of Cd Cut.". The Morning Call. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
  108. Hrab, George (November 28, 2007), "Episode #42", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved April 30, 2010
  109. Hrab, George (December 5, 2007), "Episode #43", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved April 30, 2010
  110. "Obituaries: Ireney Kowal, popular leader of Tempo Orchestra, 55", The Ukrainian Weekly, LXV (33), August 17, 1997, retrieved September 4, 2010
  111. "Music Alumni". Moravian College Music Department. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
  112. Hrab, George (July 28, 2011), "Episode #224", The Geologic Podcast, retrieved July 29, 2011
  113. Ika (Media notes) (in Ukrainian). Ika. Belleville, NJ: Digital Force. 1995. (Hrab played drums & bass)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to George Hrab.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.