Below, you can read our interview with BYRDZONG and listen to Mixed Dozen. Check out our full music review of Mixed Dozen here.
Q: Great to be speaking with you, Mark! BYRDZONG is a father-son collaboration spanning Chicago & Boston – how does that cross-generational, cross-city dynamic influence the music you make together?
A: First, it was a lot of fun. Tom and I each play several instruments and listen to a wide range of music. This allows us to share songs and chord progressions and other creative ideas. Chicago Blues music was a key driver for a lot of early rock, so Chicago still offers a lot of venues to take that in. The annual Blues Festival is going on this weekend and is a great example of how important music is to the city. Boston is also an important musical center, with our local rock influences coming from Aerosmith, Boston, The Cars and many more local bands.
Q: You named the project after your cockatiel, Sunny, who also serves as your in-house critic. How did that start, and has he ever “rejected” a track that later became a favorite?
A: I often write or play songs in the same room as Sunny and let him out of his birdcage to hang out. He will either sit on your head, knee or shoulder and will start rocking out if he likes the vibe of a song. If he is super quiet, I take that as a sign that the song is not a banger. To date, we have not proved him wrong.
Q: You describe “Mixed Dozen” as a “random walk” across genres – from blues and country to pop and doo-wop. Was that variety intentional from the start, or did the songs simply evolve that way over time?
A: This was intentional. The initial thought was to create something like the Beatles’ White Album – a poster child for a cross-genre project.
Q: How long did “Mixed Dozen” take to record? What was the process like?
A: It took a little over a year. There were some starts and stops with work travel and studio sound engineers and producers periodically going on tour for their own gigs.
Q: What was your first instrument? Do you still have/play it?
A: First instrument was a used Ovation acoustic guitar with a rounded back. I traded that in to buy my first electric – a Black Gibson Les Paul with 3 gold pickups. Don’t have that anymore either but wish I did! I think I sold it to use as a down payment on a car.
Q: Perhaps in some unspecified amount of time, your musical career explodes in the best of ways. What does that look like for you?
A: If extreme fame and fortune comes our way, I would definitely have to splurge and get a pet monkey.
Q: You get to collaborate with anyone of your choosing. Who is it?
A (Tom): Favorite collab artist: Brian Wilson – Brian is god almighty, his harmonies are something to worship. I would love to get funky with his jazzy chord progressions too.
A (Mark): Favorite collab artist: Jeff Lynne – Love his ELO work and overall status as a songwriter, singer and producer. Solid work with producing Tom Petty and his role with theTraveling Wilburys is a great career capstone.
Q: Your favorite album of all time? (Yup, you gotta choose one.)
A (Tom): Favorite album: Abbey Road – The whole album is a banger, every track I would listen through. Great contributions by all four Beatles. The Abbey Road Medley is divine.
A (Mark): Favorite album: Led Zeppelin IV – Stairway to Heaven and a great bunch of supporting songs hold together extremely well.
Q: Your favorite song of all time? (Again, only one!)
A (Tom): Favorite song: Surfer Girl by the Beach Boys.
A (Mark): Favorite song: Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.
Q: What would you like fans to know about you that they’re most likely unaware of?
A: I can bake an impressive banana bread.
Q: Any shout-outs you wanna make?
A: A special shout out to my youngest son Zach. He put the idea in my head for this project and challenged me to keep it going.
Q: Anything else you’d like to add?
A: We are working on multi-genre material for a follow up album and hope to release a sequel sometime next year.
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<< Go to our full music review of: Mixed Dozen by BYRDZONG
Listen to MIXED DOZEN by BYRDZONG:
“Mixed Dozen” premieres on 07/18/2025.