To start off a series of interviews with people in the Middletown area, I decided to stay close to campus and interview Rob, who works at the Red and Black Café. His favorite sandwich is the tomato panini. He is also a huge fan of The Furors, a band that is playing live at the Café on Saturday Feb. 14.
KATHARINE HALL: How long have you worked here?
ROB DEROSA: I was at Atticus before, so it was a year in October, so about a year and a half altogether on the Wesleyan campus.
KH: And what did you do before that?
RD: I owned a deli. It was a family business for 35 years of my life, my father and me.
KH: And where was that?
RD: Meriden.
KH: Can you tell me about The Furors, what project you are working on, and also how you got involved in music?
RD: Well, I’ve been involved in music for the last 30 years of my life; managing bands and I have a small label. The third release on that label was a tribute to The Furors. 38 Connecticut bands each played a song that was written by The Furors and recorded it in their own style.
KH: And what’s the name of your label?
RD: The label is ThinManMusic.
KH: So what is the event next Saturday?
RD: The Furors are going to play an acoustic set here at the Café from 2-4 p.m. The Café is bringing it in, but I picked them out to be the first one. Later we are going to pick some Wesleyan students to play acoustic performances. We wanted to kick it off with someone who had a CD, and they play them on the radio station.
KH: Tell me why you like The Furors.
RD: The Furors have intelligent lyrics, with triple entendres. When they play electric that’s over a cacophony of noise because it is a drummer and a guitarist, but when they play acoustic it’s rather enchanting because they use all kinds of toy percussion and stuff.
KH: Are they local?
RD: They’re from New Haven.
KH: And the bands on the CD who played tributes to them?
RD: They play in the New Haven area. Some of whom are famous in other countries. They have recording deals but they were from New Haven. And others who just play around the New England states.
KH: And are you working on any projects now?
RD: The Furors next CD of their own will come out on my label in probably a couple months. And we’re recording a CD by The Manchurians who are the original band of my label. And they are semi-famous because they sell songs to famous people.
KH: Like who?
RD: B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Johnny Winter…blues kind of stuff.
KH: And so you grew up in Meriden?
RD: Yes, I did although I didn’t always live there. I spent a couple years in Amsterdam and in Florida.
KH: What were you doing in Amsterdam?
RD: Everything that they allowed me to do.
KH: Good answer.
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