Dean Fertita | |
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 Fertita performing withQueens Of The Stone Age in 2014. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1970-09-06)September 6, 1970 (age 54) |
| Origin | Royal Oak, Michigan, U.S. |
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Dean Anthony Fertita (born September 6, 1970) is an Americanrock multi-instrumentalist.[1] He is best known as a keyboardist and guitarist of thehard rock bandQueens of the Stone Age, and as the guitarist and keyboardist forthe Dead Weather.
Fertita was the lead singer and guitarist ofthe Waxwings from the band's formation in 1997 to its breakup in 2005. Fertita then moved on to collaborate withBrendan Benson, playing keyboards and guitar on Benson's solo releases and as a touring keyboard player forthe Raconteurs. In 2007, Fertita joinedQueens of the Stone Age to replace the lateNatasha Shneider on keyboards and occasionally guitar on some songs.
In 2015, Fertita collaborated with his Queens of the Stone Age bandmateJosh Homme in recordingIggy Pop's studio album,Post Pop Depression (2016), and in 2019 he joinedthe Raconteurs as asideman in support of their third studio album,Help Us Stranger.
Fertita has released two solo albums to date, with his first being released under the nameHello=Fire in 2009, and his second under the name Tropical Gothclub in 2022.
Fertita was a member of the band Reigndance from 1989–97 and appeared briefly on the first season of MTV'sThe Real World.
In 1997 Fertita formed thepower pop bandThe Waxwings[1] along with bassist Kevin Peyok, drummer James Edmunds and guitarist Dominic Romano. The band's name, as well as the name of their debut record, was derived from the first line of a poem inVladimir Nabokov's novelPale Fire:[2] In 2000 The Waxwings signed with Bobsled Records and began work on their debut album,Low to the Ground, recorded at Terrarium Studios inMinneapolis,Minnesota with Bryan Hanna. The albums was featured in Magnet Magazine's Top 20 albums of 2000–2001.[3] In 2002 the band released their second albumShadows Of... After the band's release party a letter surfaced, in which Bobslead Records head, Bob Salerno, ridiculed the band for what he considered to be a poor live performance. The letter gained notoriety after being posted on the internet entertainment forumthe Velvet Rope.
After the controversy with Salerno the band released their third album – recorded withBrendan Benson –Let's Make Our Descent on Rainbow Quartz Records in 2004.[4] In 2005 the band stated on its official website that work had begun on songs for a fourth studio album.[5] Since then members of the band have been involved with other projects and no information regarding the band's status have been released.
After The Waxwings broke up in 2004, Fertita was recruited byBrendan Benson to playkeyboard on Benson's two-man British acoustic tour[6] Fertita and Benson first met each other via mutual friends in high school, and soon established a working relationship.[7] Fertita cites Benson as a big influence, inspiring him to focus more energy on song writing instead of loud riffs.[7] When Benson formedThe Raconteurs Fertita was recruited to play keyboards and organ on the tour in support of theBroken Boy Soldiers album.[1] Fertita also recordedclavinet parts for the band's second studio albumConsolers of the Lonely in 2008.[8] Benson also produced and made several contributions to Fertita'sdebut solo album.
During the tour with the Raconteurs, Fertita got to know the band'ssound man Hutch, who is also the long time sound man ofQueens of the Stone Age.[9] In 2007, Hutch asked Fertita to join the Queens of the Stone Age as their new keyboardist and additional guitarist, replacing the lateNatasha Shneider. Fertita accepted and along with newly recruited bassistMichael Shuman[10] recorded laterbonus tracks.Era Vulgaris was released on June 12, 2007 and was followed by the Duluth Tour, which was named due to the fact that the band was scheduled to perform in many small towns and cities they had never played before, such asDuluth, Minnesota.[11] On August 16, 2008, Queens of the Stone Age performed a concert in celebration of Natasha Shneider's life at the Henry Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles. They were joined on stage byAlain Johannes,Jack Black,Kyle Gass,Matt Cameron,Brody Dalle,Jesse Hughes,Chris Goss andPJ Harvey, playing a variety of QOTSA and non-QOTSA songs. Proceeds from the concert went to defray the costs associated withNatasha’s illness. In 2009 the members of the band took time off and were involved in a variety of other projects, but reconvened in the summer of 2010 to play a number of shows in support of a reissue ofRated R which was released on August 3. They released a remastered version of theirfirst self-titled album early 2011 which was supported with performances of the album in its entirety.
In 2013, Queens of the Stone Age released...Like Clockwork, their first full album since Fertita joined the band. On the album, Fertita plays piano, guitar,slide guitar,synthesizers,clavinet and provides background vocals. The album was the first Queens album to reach number one on theBillboard 200. It also reached number two on theUK Albums Chart and was nominated for threeGrammy Awards, includingBest Rock Album.
In 2009 Fertita along withJack White on drums,Alison Mosshart on lead vocals, andJack Lawrence on bass formedThe Dead Weather.[12] The group originally only intended to record a7-inch single but plans changed and the band wrote and recorded their debut album in fifteen days.[13] The band's debut album –Horehound – was released July 14, 2009 and was followed by asupporting tour. In October 2009 lead vocalist Mosshart confirmed that a second album was "halfway done".[14] Later, White revealed in an interview that the band is hoping to have 20 to 25 songs ready for their Australian tour in March 2010.[15] It was later confirmed that the first single from the new album –Sea of Cowards – would be called "Die by the Drop" which was released March 30. TheSea of Cowards Tour began on March 19, 2010, is ended on August 3, 2010. It included 42 shows over four legs. On September 25, 2015, the Dead Weather released their third studio albumDodge and Burn.
In June 2010, it was announced that Fertita would fill in on bass playing duties forBrian O'Connor, whilst theEagles of Death Metal bass player undergoes treatment for cancer.[16] Prior to O'Connor's illness Fertita also made a guest appearance playing keyboards during a performance of "Wannabe In L.A". After returning to the Queens of the Stone Age Fertita was replaced byAbby Travis.
In 2009 Fertita released his first solo effort under the moniker Hello=Fire, the album was recorded over a period of a year and a half and was recorded when Fertita along with friends found available time in studios, however, some songs were written as early as 2005 and 2006 while touring withBrendan Benson.[7] The album includes performances by fellowQueens of the Stone Age bandmatesTroy Van Leeuwen,Joey Castillo andMichael Shuman, as well as Brendan Benson and theAfghan Whigs' Michael Horrigan. Theself-titled album was released October 26, 2009 on Schnitzel Records.[17] And the song "Nature of Our Minds" was its first single. Fertita had plans to play a number of concerts in support of the album during the break from Queens of the Stone Age however after joining The Dead Weather the planned live performances were canceled.[7] In 2010, Fertita re-recorded the Waxwings song "Different Plane" for the Novalis radiosurgery "Shaping Cancer Care Around You” national television commercial, currently running in the United States.[18] In 2011 Fertita revealed that he had begun working on a second solo album, but his main focus was to write and record the sixth record with the Queens of the Stone Age.[19]
Fertita recorded guitar and keyboards onPost Pop Depression, written byIggy Pop andJosh Homme, which was released in March 2016. He will tour with them to support the album.[20]
On November 4, 2022 TROPICAL GOTHCLUB – the new project from renowned musician and multi-instrumentalist Dean Fertita -released its self-titled debut LP via Third Man Records at all DSPs and streaming services. “I’m hoping the framework is in place with TROPICAL GOTHCLUB that I can experiment with releasing art and music in the future without following the conventional cycles. My focus has been on other projects the last few years and really, this is no exception. But I unexpectedly found more time than I thought I had and was able to move within the space I was given, veer off course, and speed towards the cliff.”[21]
While playing with The Raconteurs Fertita primarily played aFender Rhodes electric piano and a Korg synthesiser as well as aGibson Hummingbird acoustic guitar. Fertita is also credited for playingclavinet on the band's second album,Consolers of the Lonely. With Queens of the Stone Age Fertita has been seen playing aMoog Little Phatty Synthesizer and aClavia Nord Electro 2 through a set ofPeavey amplifiers.[22] However more recently he has been seen playing aKorg SV-1 and an unidentifiable electric piano as well as the Little Phatty. For guitars, he has used aGibson SG andMaton BB1200 through anAmpeg combo, but was seen playing aYamahahollowbody through aFender Twin Reverb amplifier on their most recent tour. With The Dead Weather, Fertita plays a custom builtGretsch White Falcon originally built for a number of live performances byJack White andAlicia Keys to perform the theme song for theJames Bond filmQuantum of Solace, "Another Way to Die".[23] For keyboards, he uses The Moog Little Phatty, A Wurlitzer Electric Piano, and a vintageKorg CX-3 organ.[24] Fertita'spedalboard includes aDunlop Rotovibe, a white paintedDigiTech Whammy, aVoodoo Lab Tremolo, anElectro-Harmonix nano Bassballs, a white paintedBig Muff, Micro POG, aBoss TU-2 Tuner, and aMXR Micro Amp.[25] For amplification Fertita uses twoFender Twin Reverbs.
In 2009, Fertita married. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
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