All the fish stories told on "Rockin' Fish Tales" are true.
Or so says guitarist-songwriter Brian Schram about his new solo release that features a blend of his love for guitar-rock and fishing -- with a song written for every type of fish he catches.
Pardon the bad puns, but the tunes are fresh, catchy and loaded with hooks. It's a really fun disc, likely to have you dancing and flopping around like, well ... a fish out of water.
And while the subject of fishing is unlikely to excite most rockers, the disc of fish-friendly tunes has made some news in the fishing world. Two cuts from the disc are being used as theme songs for TV fishing shows.
"The Next Bite" is being heard on the Versus network's fishing show of the same title, while "Hey, John Gillespie" is being used by "Waters & Woods" a Milwaukee-based program hosted by John Gillespie.
Schram also participated as a guest fisherman on ESPN's "The World's Greatest Fishing Show" with host Mark Zona on an episode that's due to air in January.
The disc is set to hit local stores Nov. 28 and will be available online Monday.
When he's not rocking the rod in the water, Schram rocks the stage as the front man for his band Shram.
The group has just returned from an east coast run with rockers Warrior Soul and is looking forward to releasing its second disc, "Shut Up and Press Play," in the spring.
In the meantime, you can catch Shram on Saturday opening for the Pink Spiders at the Magic Stick in Detroit and Wednesday at Rockstarz in Garden City with fellow rockers Overloaded.
For more: www.shramband.com.
More new music to celebrate: Here's a glance at some locals issuing new discs this week:
Opening are Catfish Mafia and Susan Calloway. Admission is $15 and includes a copy of the disc.
8 p.m. 22920 Woodward, Ferndale. 248-544-3030.
Opening the show are Telecollision, the Die Tryin's and Matt Mollison.
1254 Michigan, Detroit. 313-961-4668. For more: www.myspace.com/monkeyjacket.
Doors open at 8 p.m. Admission is $10 for ages 18 and up and $6 for ages 21 and up.
28949 Joy, Westland. 734-513-5030. For more: www.myspace.com/kardiadetroit.
Get bumped the hard way: Turkey Day Eve should be even more delicious with the double pairing of jammers Bump -- on its annual Thanksgiving Eve romp at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit -- with Detroit rock faves the Hard Lessons.
Bump fans will get a sneak peak at the group's upcoming spring release by way of an enhanced CD that'll be available at the show. It includes the album's first single, "Out of Reach," along with behind-the-scenes footage from the video shoot for the single.
Doors open at 9 p.m. $10 in advance, $15 at the door. For more: www.myspace.com/bumpband.
RACHEL MAY is a member of local bands Broadzilla and Novadriver. Send music news to her at rmay@freepress.com.
