Dustin Lanker
Encyclopedia
Dustin Ross Lanker is an American keyboardist
, known for his work as a member of the ska
-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies
, a touring member of the ska punk
band the Mad Caddies
and as the singer-songwriter for the piano rock
trio The Visible Men
.
s included on their compilation album Zoot Suit Riot, including the eponymous single
that would later serve as the band's commercial breakthrough. Lanker briefly left the Daddies at the height of their fame in October 1998, being replaced by Johnny Goetchius before returning to the band in February 2000 where he currently remains, supplying backing vocals
in addition to keyboards and piano.
In 1999, Lanker and Daddies bassist Dan Schmid
formed the Eugene
-based piano rock
duo The Visible Men
, where Lanker acted as lead vocalist, songwriter and pianist. Following the Daddies' hiatus in 2000, Lanker and Schmid focused heavily on The Visible Men, recording two albums on Leisure King Productions and extensively touring the western half of the United States before going on hiatus themselves in 2007. The Visible Men played a one-off reunion show in November 2009, though there has been no official announcement as to whether the group will continue recording or performing in the future.
Lanker is also the touring keyboardist for the Californian ska punk
band the Mad Caddies
as well as an occasional collaborator, having lent organ
and partial songwriting credit to the Caddies' 2007 album Keep It Going
. In 2009, Lanker joined Caddies frontman Chuck Robertson
s ska/reggae band Ellwood alongside fellow members of the Caddies. In 2011, it was announced Ellwood had signed to Fat Wreck Chords
and would be releasing their debut album in the summer, to be followed by a US tour.
Among the other bands Lanker has performed with include The Burning Members, 100% Chips, Dan Jones and the Squids, Yeltsin and Mood Area 52. In 1998, Lanker briefly served as a touring keyboardist for the newly-reformed, Neville Staple-fronted incarnation of The Specials
, accompanying the band on the 1998 Warped Tour, alongside the Daddies.
Lanker is the son of the Pulitzer Prize
-winning photographer Brian Lanker
.
for complete list of recordings
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, known for his work as a member of the ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies
Cherry Poppin' Daddies
The Cherry Poppin' Daddies are an American band established in Eugene, Oregon, in 1989. Formed by Steve Perry and Dan Schmid , the band has experienced many membership changes over the years, with only Perry, Schmid and Dana Heitman currently remaining from the original line-up.The Daddies' music...
, a touring member of the ska punk
Ska punk
Ska punk is a fusion music genre that combines ska and punk rock. It achieved its highest level of commercial success in the United States in the late 1990s. Ska-core is a subgenre of ska punk, blending ska with hardcore punk.The characteristics of ska punk vary, due to the fusion of contrasting...
band the Mad Caddies
Mad Caddies
The Mad Caddies are a third wave ska band from Solvang, California. The band formed in 1995 and has released five full-length albums, one live album, and two EPs...
and as the singer-songwriter for the piano rock
Piano rock
Piano rock, sometimes referred to as piano pop, is a style of popular music that is based around the piano—and sometimes piano-related instruments such as keyboards–with piano typically replacing rhythm guitar as the rhythm instrument...
trio The Visible Men
The Visible Men
The Visible Men are an American piano rock band formed in 1999, consisting of Dustin Lanker , Dan Schmid , Jordan Glenn and later Jimi Russel .-Biography:...
.
Career
A pianist since childhood, Lanker joined the Cherry Poppin' Daddies in early 1997 at age 20, first recording on the bonus trackBonus track
In terms of recorded music, a bonus track is a piece of music which has been included on specific releases or reissues of an album. This is most often done as a promotional device, either as an incentive to customers to purchase albums they might otherwise not, or to repurchase albums they already...
s included on their compilation album Zoot Suit Riot, including the eponymous single
Zoot Suit Riot (song)
"Zoot Suit Riot" is a song by American ska-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies. It was written and composed by Steve Perry as a bonus track for the band's all-swing compilation album of the same name, and thus follows a musical style similar to 1940s jump swing."Zoot Suit Riot" is often cited as...
that would later serve as the band's commercial breakthrough. Lanker briefly left the Daddies at the height of their fame in October 1998, being replaced by Johnny Goetchius before returning to the band in February 2000 where he currently remains, supplying backing vocals
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
in addition to keyboards and piano.
In 1999, Lanker and Daddies bassist Dan Schmid
Dan Schmid
Daniel Joseph Schmid is an American musician, known for his work as the bassist for the ska-swing band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, of which he is a co-founder, and the piano rock trio The Visible Men.-Career:...
formed the Eugene
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
-based piano rock
Piano rock
Piano rock, sometimes referred to as piano pop, is a style of popular music that is based around the piano—and sometimes piano-related instruments such as keyboards–with piano typically replacing rhythm guitar as the rhythm instrument...
duo The Visible Men
The Visible Men
The Visible Men are an American piano rock band formed in 1999, consisting of Dustin Lanker , Dan Schmid , Jordan Glenn and later Jimi Russel .-Biography:...
, where Lanker acted as lead vocalist, songwriter and pianist. Following the Daddies' hiatus in 2000, Lanker and Schmid focused heavily on The Visible Men, recording two albums on Leisure King Productions and extensively touring the western half of the United States before going on hiatus themselves in 2007. The Visible Men played a one-off reunion show in November 2009, though there has been no official announcement as to whether the group will continue recording or performing in the future.
Lanker is also the touring keyboardist for the Californian ska punk
Ska punk
Ska punk is a fusion music genre that combines ska and punk rock. It achieved its highest level of commercial success in the United States in the late 1990s. Ska-core is a subgenre of ska punk, blending ska with hardcore punk.The characteristics of ska punk vary, due to the fusion of contrasting...
band the Mad Caddies
Mad Caddies
The Mad Caddies are a third wave ska band from Solvang, California. The band formed in 1995 and has released five full-length albums, one live album, and two EPs...
as well as an occasional collaborator, having lent organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
and partial songwriting credit to the Caddies' 2007 album Keep It Going
Keep It Going
Keep It Going is the fifth full length studio album by California ska punk band Mad Caddies, released on May 1, 2007.Keep It Going features production work from Grammy award winning producer Wayne Jobson and a guest appearance from reggae legend Duckie Simpson on a cover of Delroy Wilson’s...
. In 2009, Lanker joined Caddies frontman Chuck Robertson
Chuck Robertson
Chuck Robertson is the lead singer of the ska punk band Mad Caddies. He was born in Solvang, California and has been in the band since its formation in 1995. Since 1993 he has been collaborating with fellow band member Sascha Lazor.-External links:*...
s ska/reggae band Ellwood alongside fellow members of the Caddies. In 2011, it was announced Ellwood had signed to Fat Wreck Chords
Fat Wreck Chords
Fat Wreck Chords is a San Francisco, California based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by Fat Mike and his ex-wife, Erin, in 1990....
and would be releasing their debut album in the summer, to be followed by a US tour.
Among the other bands Lanker has performed with include The Burning Members, 100% Chips, Dan Jones and the Squids, Yeltsin and Mood Area 52. In 1998, Lanker briefly served as a touring keyboardist for the newly-reformed, Neville Staple-fronted incarnation of The Specials
The Specials
The Specials are an English 2 Tone ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry, England. Their music combines a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude", and had a "more focused and informed political and social stance" than other ska groups...
, accompanying the band on the 1998 Warped Tour, alongside the Daddies.
Lanker is the son of the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning photographer Brian Lanker
Brian Lanker
Brian Lanker was an American photographer. He won the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography for a black-and-white photo essay on childbirth for The Topeka Capital-Journal, including the photograph "Moment of Life". Lanker died at his home in Eugene, Oregon on March 13, 2011 after a brief...
.
Cherry Poppin' Daddies
See: Cherry Poppin' Daddies discographyCherry Poppin' Daddies discography
The discography of the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, a Eugene, Oregon-based ska-swing band, includes five studio albums, four singles, two compilation albums, three demos and three music videos, among other recordings....
for complete list of recordings
- Soul CaddySoul CaddySoul Caddy is the fourth studio album, fifth chronologically, by American band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, released on October 3, 2000 by Mojo Records.-Album overview:...
(2000) - keyboards (on tracks 1 -3, 8 - 9) - SusquehannaSusquehanna (album)Susquehanna is the fifth studio album by American band the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, released on Space Age Bachelor Pad Records in February 2008, and later re-issued on Rock Ridge Music in September 2009....
(2008) - keyboards, vocals
The Visible Men
- In Socks ModeIn Socks ModeIn Socks Mode is the debut album by American band The Visible Men, released in 2002 on Leisure King Productions.-Overview:The instrumentation of In Socks Mode could be considered minimalist: most of the songs consist solely of piano and bass guitar, with slightly more than half of the tracks...
(2002) - vocals, keyboards - Love:30Love:30Love:30 is the second studio album by American piano rock band The Visible Men, released in 2005 on Leisure King Productions.-Overview:In contrast to the minimalist approach heard on In Socks Mode, Love:30 is rooted more in psychedelic eclecticism, featuring a richer keyboard-driven sound and the...
(2005) - vocals, keyboards
Miscellaneous
- One Man Submarine (2003) - Dan Jones - keyboards, stylophone
- Keep It GoingKeep It GoingKeep It Going is the fifth full length studio album by California ska punk band Mad Caddies, released on May 1, 2007.Keep It Going features production work from Grammy award winning producer Wayne Jobson and a guest appearance from reggae legend Duckie Simpson on a cover of Delroy Wilson’s...
(2007) - Mad CaddiesMad CaddiesThe Mad Caddies are a third wave ska band from Solvang, California. The band formed in 1995 and has released five full-length albums, one live album, and two EPs...
- organ