It’s been a lot of years since Neil Young’s manager Elliot Roberts contacted Ryan Sexton to see if he could turn some demos into an album. The band Sexton formed for the task became The Customers, and the assuredly punk album, “Green Bottle Thursday,” became the debut release on Young’s then fledgling Vapor Records. There’s been a ton of shows since, and a bunch of songs waiting to be made; the timing just hasn’t been right… until now.
SWEET FATALITY is that album. 10 songs mired in the pathos of failed existences, unrequited pursuits of knowledge, and a hesitant yearning for answers- the underpinnings of everything resting tenuously in the realization that such answers may not exist.
Produced by Kevin Bowe (Etta James/Paul Westerberg), “Sweet Fatality” is a collection of post-punk musings and alternative Americana featuring a swaggering array of artists including Daniel Murphy (Soul Asylum/The Scarlet Goodbye), Terrance J. Fisher (Run Westy Run), Ivan Julian (Richard Hell and the Voidoids), Patricia Lacy (Luther Vandross), and Minneapolis phenoms John Eller, Terry Isachsen, Peter Anderson, Pat Frederick, and Noah Levy among others. The result is an astonishing musical tapestry wound in and around Sexton’s laconic vocals and rhythm guitar.
Meet The Customers
The Customers are a rock band formed in Los Angeles, CA in 1995 by Ryan Sexton. A demo of Sexton’s songs found its way onto the desk of Neil Young’s manager, Elliot Roberts, who was then in the process of launching Young’s fledgling label, Vapor Records. Roberts enquired as to whether a band might be formed to support the songs, and The Customers were born.
After moving back to Minneapolis (Sexton’s hometown) in 2000, The Customers released the five song EP Severybuddyappy which included the college-friendly “Until Now.” A bunch of years passed while Sexton pursued other interests, but writing songs nevertheless. In 2022, he teamed up with renowned Minneapolis producer, Kevin Bowe, to make the forthcoming Customers LP, Sweet Fatality. The album features appearances by Daniel Murphy (Soul Asylum/The Scarlet Goodbye), Terrance J. Fisher (Run Westy Run), Ivan Julian (Richard Hell and the Voidoids), Patricia Lacy (Luther Vandross), and Minneapolis phenoms John Eller, Terry Isachsen, Peter Anderson, Pat Frederick, Ian Prince, and Noah Levy.
The Customers 