Roots rock quartet Split Rail Fence, led by singer / songwriter guitarist, Ron Rice, have their debut album, This American Dream out on April 17, via Pacific Records. The album is preceded by a trio of singles, “I Know Where This Is Going,” “Sunny San Diego,” and “A Man’s Job Is Never Done.”
Originally from Arizona, Rice spent time in both Tucson and Phoenix before moving to San Diego in 2000. “That’s right—a “Zoni” who has made his way here to stay,” Rice said good-naturedly. “Before coming to San Diego, I spent 8 years of the 90s in Nashville, TN. I believe my time in Nashville is where I “grew up” and really started to have an open mind to different music. I decided to move to San Diego to be closer to family. I always loved San Diego and knew I would end up here someday.”
This American Dream is a studio effort, recorded in Los Angeles and produced by John DiBiase, who also performs on the album, joined by the likes of Offspring drummer Jonah Nimoy, and Body Count drummer Will “Ill Will” Dorsey Jr. Rice has since put together a new lineup of the band for live shows and future projects. Split Rail Fence includes Rice alongside guitarist Carl Froehlich (Unruly Bangs), bassist Sppike Mike Muellenberg (Spice Pistols), and drummer Tim Dowd (Solitary Diamonds).
Though Rice lives in San Diego and recorded the album in Los Angeles, the songs were written in Nashville, where his songwriting partner, Dan Banks resides. “Dan and I would talk on the phone, come up with ideas and hooks, then share notes and voice memos,” Rice explained. “When I signed with Pacific Records, I knew I needed to get serious and look at writing differently. In the past I would write when I felt like it or found the time. This just felt more important.” Rice soon booked an Airbnb in Nashville and flew out. “Dan and I hunkered down and just wrote every day, all day, for close to a week. I walked out of that week with 5 new songs and one heck of a feeling of accomplishment. I couldn’t have been happier.”
How did Rice come up with the band name? “It’s every new band’s nightmare: “What do we call this project?” Three of the four of us were playing under the name A Month of Sundays. I was never happy with the name and never really put much thought into it. Two important things happened: When I started writing with a partner and doing co-writes, I got better. Then we signed with Pacific, and although the members were the same and we still play the old AMOS songs, I knew if I was ever going to rebrand, now was the time. I was talking through my thoughts with Sppike Mike and he said something like, “I’ve had this name in my back pocket for years. I think it might be a good fit: Split Rail Fence.” When he said that, I couldn’t find anything bad about it. It was Americana. It was country. It was just cool.” The name did result in a slight misconception from a few. “People have mentioned they thought we were a fence company, so we added “Music Company” to the end. Hence our logo: Split Rail Fence Music Company,” Rice said.
How would Rice describe Split Rail Fences sound? “I don’t know if I would call what I write “Americana.” I kindly refer to it as roots rock. It’s definitely rock, it surely has a country twang, and you will notice in our live shows we have a punk edge. I wish I was able to play softer, prettier songs—but that’s not who I am,” he said. Rice points to his time in Nashville as they key to his musical growth. “Nashville in the 90s was very different than the tourist town it is today,” he remarked. “Lucinda Williams played weekends at a tiny club downtown. Steve Earle would be at a coffee shop grabbing a cup to go. Todd Snider was playing parking lot shows. I would attend writer showcases at the world famous Bluebird Café. For me it was electrifying and magical. I finally opened my mind to different stuff. The talent in that town can’t be denied” Before Rice moved to Nashville, he considered himself to be a “rock” guy. “I was into heavier industrial, metal, and punk bands. I guess you could say I softened in Nashville, which is why I like to say I “grew up” there, even though it was only 8 years in the 90s while I was in my mid-20s and early 30s.”
Looking back, he considers two records to be vital to his musical development: “Lucinda Williams’ Car Wheels On A Gravel Road and Steve Earle’s I Feel Alright. “We still play covers of songs from both records now and again,” Rice said. “Car Wheels was the first record where, when I listened to it, I felt like I was watching a movie. I could literally see the songs. From there came Whiskeytown, and so on. I haven’t really looked back.
What’s Rice’s favorite thing about playing in Split Rail Fence? “I just love the art of a song, and the people I’ve gotten to work with along the way — Dan Banks, John DiBiase, and the guys in the live band who have supported me for years and really believe in what I’m doing. It’s truly moving to me,” he said. “From the heavy hitters who played on the record, to the fans who listen, I love the fact that people can hear my songs and cry, or hear them and relate in some sort of way.”
He points out that the hook in his song “Sunny SD” is: “It ain’t easy in a million-dollar ghetto, out here on the streets of sunny San Diego.” “If you live in this town and are in the bottom 98%, you know how damn hard it is to make it here, but how we all, somehow, some way, figure it out.” Then there’s the new albums title track, “This American Dream.” “At some point I believe all of us have wanted to run away and start a new life, or just throw in the towel and simply walk away. The fact that I can take those emotions and show them to people and say, “Hey, I get it. I feel that way too.” That means everything to me.”
