Chris Valenti Is An Emotional Wreck

I can't believe how many of my musical friends are enjoying the success of a critical stage in their music careers... a factory pressed full-length CD! Chris Valenti marks the latest addition to the ranks with his rightly-titled Emotional Wreck album.

Chris and I go back all the way to the night of April 1st, 2001. It was the occassion of Buddy's second live appearance EVER (McCabe's Guitar Shop, Santa Monica). They host a wonderful singer-songwriter open mic night there, and that's where we met Chris. He had these hilarious songs about relationships-gone-wrong and.... well, guy problems. We exchanged numbers, and then a little over five months later, I asked him to take part in the Buddies For America benefit that Caroline and I organized to raise money for the Red Cross following 9/11. Chris kindly donated a track to the compilation CD we put together and he offered to come out and play a set along with a few folks who, in union, eventually became the beginnings of the Perpetual Intermittent Tour. Since then, Chris was a regular at P.I.T. shows and played a key role in securing the opportunity for Buddy to play the fabulous Sunset Strip in Hollywood!

Now onto the new CD... Emotional Wreck, upon the first spin, is a freakin' riot. This is mainly attributed to the realistic situations that he pokes fun at. To me, that's what made Woody Allen so brilliant. "Passive Aggressive" is a non-stop cascade of one cutting edge quip after another from a guy who has finally had enough. "Boyfriend" sounds great with a full band, and is even funnier in it's evolution. It sort of swings a bit like the Violent Femmes' "Blister In The Sun". Even the ballads are not immune from the "f-bomb", but if you've seen Chris play live, you will TOTALLY understand the needed context. From "Don't Pass Out" to his anthemic "Booty Call", Chris raises our spirits as a result of his continual let-downs. What a guy!

You can pick up your own copy at Emotional Wreck-ords' web site. If you live in the L.A. area (or sometimes travel to N.Y.), odds are you can catch a Chris Valenti show, either solo or with a band. Either way, you'll laugh till you're in tears.