OTHERSTARPEOPLE
L.A.'s OSP featured members Xander Smith and Jennifer (Precious) Finch, formerly of L7. The group mixed punk, alt-rock, pop and new wave sounds on their 1999 debut album Diamonds In The Belly Of The Dog. OSP teamed up with legendary producer Roy Thomas Baker (Queen/The Cars) for this release and many tracks became featured in film/TV, e.g. Office Space (2001), VH1 Classic Video hour, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed. Other original members included Junko Ito (bass) and Chris Bratton (drums) later replaced by Todd Philips (drums) and Ted Liscinski (bass). OSP disbanded in 2001 due to contractual difficulties with their label.
RICKIE LEE JONES
Xander Smith played double-duty with two-time Grammy winner Rickie Lee Jones starting in 2008, as both a tour manager and multi-instrumentalist on guitar/percussion/vocals. You can hear Smith alongside Jones’ great band on the podcast of their performance at NYC’s Le Poisson Rouge in 2009.
CLUB MAKEUP
From 1999 to 2002, Los Angeles hosted what was the modern day Studio 54 called Club Makeup. For three years the line went around the block at Wilshire Blvd’s famous El Rey Theatre. This dance club was fashioned after traditional Glam Rock (T Rex, Bowie, Queen) and showcased a bombastic, shocking live Midnight rock n’ roll show that featured rock stars, drag queens, performance artists and celebrities. Xander Smith was the musical director, played guitar and worked with an impressive list including Linda Perry, Adam Lambert, the Rocky Horror cast, Hedwig, Ice T, Dee Dee Ramone, Dale Bozzio, CC Deville, Pauley Perrette, Orgy, Alice in Chain’s Jerry Cantrell, the Cult’s Ian Asterbury, and many more.