A new rock collaboration has arrived. The Sideshows brings together acclaimed songwriter Rich Ragany, legendary bassist and guitarist Sami Yaffa, and powerhouse drummer Simon Maxwell for a thrilling debut single. Their first release features two tracks—Side A: ‘Brand New’ and Side B: ‘The Start’—recorded at Yaffa’s Red Mud Studios in Mallorca, Spain. Written by Ragany and composed by Ragany, Yaffa, and Maxwell, both songs showcase the trio’s raw chemistry and love for anthemic rock ‘n’ roll. The sessions were engineered by Puter and Yaffa, produced by Yaffa and Ragany, mixed by Andy Brook, and mastered by Graeme Lynch.
Yaffa shared the story behind the project, recalling his first meeting with Ragany in early 2000s New York City: “Rags was a newcomer to the Lower East Side’s music scene, talked a mile a minute, and poured me a couple of free drinks on Jesse’s tab at Niagara Bar.” Years later, when Ragany dropped by a Michael Monroe gig in Birmingham, the two reconnected over a shared creative spark. “I told him I’d been building a small recording studio in my backyard in Mallorca, Spain and said, ‘Why don’t you come down and we knock a few out and see how the studio sounds?’”
With Simon Maxwell behind the kit, the trio recorded with the studio doors open to the Spanish countryside. “We knocked these two songs out in a couple of days, each session followed by a long dinner…and lots of stories,” said Yaffa. “I think this is a beginning of something, I don’t know what, yet, but something. Stay tuned, and in the meantime enjoy these two great rock ’n’ roll songs.”