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D.C. Flag (Good Charlotte) Signs Lola

Posted by Archive Bot on Tuesday, January 6, 2004 at 12:14 PM

When Benji Madden asked to borrow an acoustic guitar from a friend, he got more than he bargained for. Not only did he wind up with the guitar in his possession, but an entire band to go with it. So goes the story of New York’s Lola Ray, the second band signed to D.C. Flag, the record label founded by Good Charlotte's Benji and Joel Madden. When Benji phoned friend Peter Robinson for a spare guitar to play an impromptu acoustic show, Robinson's friend John Balicanta came along for the ride and managed to hand Benji a demo tape.

The guy must receive dozens of demos every day, Balicanta thought, so when he got a response it made it that much more unbelievable.

"He said he loved it a whole bunch and was really excited," Balicanta recalled. "He was like, 'This is great ... the best thing in a long time. I want to do something.' And then he started talking about D.C. Flag."

Before its D.C. Flag re-release, Lola Ray will replace one song, "Goodnight," with two new ones, "What It Feels Like" and "She's a Tiger," which give the LP more of a live band feel.

"I recorded I Don't Know You by myself, so to me it will always feel like me sitting behind the computer, doing all the instruments," Balicanta said. "The way we play live is more energetic. These new songs were recorded as a band and it just felt right. I want to get that across from now on." (MTV).