Former Charlotte artist pays tribute to friends far and near with free covers collection

While quarantine has left little live entertainment for public consumption, the forced slowdown has given many people time to consume art from home through digital concerts, online events, new singles, videos, albums, and virtual gallery openings.

Charlotte musicians have shared new music as well. (More on that in a moment).

On Friday, former Charlotte musician Andy the Door Bum releases “Even When the Cat Comes,” a digital album of covers by artists he considers friends — many of whom are from Charlotte, or that he met while working at the Milestone Club and Snug Harbor.

Andy (last name Fenstermaker) moved to California five years ago, but if you frequented the Milestone or Snug Harbor between 2005 and 2015, you likely remember him. He could be found out front greeting customers with a wide smile through a nest of wild red curls and beard, performing stripped-down folk noir on stage, or creating performance art costumed in robes, horns, and ghostly black-and-white makeup.

“Even When the Cat Comes” was completed during a 35-day self-quarantine following a tour opening for Ireland’s award-winning Lankum.

“This was the catalyst for getting it done,” Fenstermaker says. “It seems like a good time to offer it up for free. It gives people who are stuck at home something new to listen to and might point people toward other artists that I’m good friends with, and I like their work.”

The album includes songs by North Carolina’s David Childers, his son Robert’s Luciferian Agenda, Benji Hughes, Bo White, and the Emotron, as well as Lankum, Jucifer, Connecticut’s Ceschi, and L.A.’s Big Business, which he knew from his Milestone days.

“We did a show when I moved to Los Angeles,” Fenstermaker says. “They’d never seen what I was doing before and a couple weeks later they asked me to open a six-week tour. I just fell in love with the song on that tour.”

The album begins with Aran Epochal’s “Velmoc Zehu,” which he discovered on tour in Eastern Europe. Originally written in the Czech language, Fenstermaker opted to interpret the original’s sentiment in English instead of doing a straight translation.

“That song is by my friend, who books me in the Czech Republic,” he says. “He translated it for me, but the words didn’t rhyme and it didn’t make as much since. When his father was dying in a hospital, he didn’t recognize anyone. So he wrote this song to his wife to let her know he would always recognize her.”

Fenstermaker, whose father was dying at the time, unknowingly chose a song that resonated with him deeply.

“I picked that one randomly,” he says. “But it made sense. It was about something I was going through at the time.”

He feels personally connected to all the songs, though.

“When you’re an independent artist, those communities become your extended family or your road family,” he says. “That’s where the personal connection lies — in believing in their work and wanting to present it to people and cross-pollinating. That’s how we survive through these communities. I want to bolster that in some way. I’m part of this larger family of people who I admire.”

With that in mind, he changed the old adage “birds of a feather flock together until the cat comes” to “when the cat comes” in a timely tribute.

“The idea (behind the saying) is: Like-minded people stick together until a threat comes, and then they scatter,” he says. “In the arts community, that’s actually when we are more together than ever — when there is an existential threat. These communities are really strong and stick together when times are tough. I’ve seen it time and again.”

Like many, Fenstermaker is currently without income, relying on money he saved to make his next original album to get by. Between tours he builds sets for film and TV — another industry that’s on hold. He hopes quarantine gives everyone a bigger appreciation for the arts.

“A lot of times, creative work gets dismissed or taken for granted,” he says. “Right now, the vast majority of what people are consuming is created work — movies, TV, music or art. That’s what is bringing normalcy to people’s lives in an irregular time. I hope the value of that will be realized a little more because of this.”

Listen: www.andythedoorbum.com will lead to the Bandcamp page with the new album on Friday.

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More new music for your pandemic playlist

In addition to Andy the Door Bum’s new online release, here’s a roundup of other new Charlotte-related music worth checking out.

Temperance League’s “Dust Parade”: The prolific group’s sixth album combines the thoughtful reflection of its last two full-lengths and the garage rock roots of its earlier material with shades of new wave, the Replacements, and Lou Reed for what may be its finest collection yet. Key track: “Flag Pole.”

Elevator Jay’s “Stretch Marks/Pray for Me”: Both an inspirational telling and a reality check, the Amelia Vanderplow-directed clip splits between the indie rapper’s distinctively Southern delivery of lessons learned and the frustratingly all-too-common struggle many black men face.

Blanket Fort’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me/These Days”: Brett Green (formerly of indie outfit Mineral Girls) gives Bonnie Raitt’s hit an electro-shoegaze makeover that’s part “Twin Peaks” and part woozy robot, delivering a more traditional, poignant take on the oft-covered (Nico, Elliot Smith, Gregg Allman) Jackson Browne song.

BitterHearts’ “Any Day Now”: Shot in August (the day before punk guitarist Jonathan Hughes’ life-altering stroke) in his and wife/vocalist Stephanie’s former home and studio, the prophetic track’s spirited message takes on deeper meaning in the wake of Hughes’ survival.

Randy Franklin’s “Old Days”: Written and recorded during quarantine, the Charlotte rock veteran waxes nostalgic amid jangly guitar and bluesy harmonica. It doesn’t matter if he’s longing for pre-COVID-19 outings or playing music at the Double Door in his youth. The sentiment’s the same.

Grumpy’s “Loser”: Raised in Myers Park, but based in Nashville, band leader Mason Schmitt writes clever, confessional power pop on par with contemporaries like Courtney Barnett and Julia Jacklin while echoing the ’90s alt-pop of artists like Juliana Hatfield. Key track: “You Don’t Like Dogs.”

Justin Fedor’s “The Quiet Man”: Inspired by the John Wayne film of the same name (a favorite of his father), Fedor and his band the Denim Denim capture the movie’s American-in-Ireland feel, seamlessly blending aching Celtic strings and orchestral American folk.

Total Brutal’s “Willow”: The first track released from Charlotte native Emily Moore’s new project Total Brutal is a sweet, pop earworm. The daughter of former Double Door soundman and acclaimed guitarist Les Moore, she is now based in L.A. (after touring with Fun. and Borns) and her self-titled EP is out on Bandcamp on June 7.

Four Finger Records’ “Quarantine Sessions Vol. 1” and “Vol. 2 the Covers”: Volume 1 features new material by five of the Charlotte indie label’s artists, including SOLIS, Fortune Teller, the Wilt, and Vess. The second installment features the roster covering each other’s songs with atmospheric, ethereal, and haunting results.

This story was originally published May 21, 2020 at 3:51 PM.