Sound Bites: Josh Farrell Wants To Be Sure His Food Rocks.

Will Calls Josh Farrell isn’t the rock star he once dreamed of, but he’s cooked for some of his greatest music heroes, and that’s damn cool.

Welcome to Sound Bites, a new recurring Central Track feature where music and food meet. Here we are going to ask the people who feed Dallas to share the tracks that power their craft in hopes of learning a little more about how one of their senses informs another.

Josh Farrell grew up dreaming of becoming a rock star.

As a child, the chef jammed in his room to a Joan Jett & The Blackhearts tape. His mother took him to concerts. He remembers the holidays in the kitchen of his house, while cooking with the family and dancing to music from the stereo, while his grandma shouted: “Turn up the volume!”

“Music was always there for me growing up,” says Farrell.

So much so that he even went to school for it. However, after studying music and commercial music at Collin College, the chef swapped his guitar for a spatula – at least professionally.

“The cooking seemed to pay the bills more,” he says. “So I got involved.”

Farrell’s culinary career eventually took him to the kitchens of Jasper’s and The Mansion. Today he works as the head chef at the music-themed bar Will Call, which serves (among other things) some of the tastiest wings and cheesesteaks you can find in Deep Ellum or anywhere else in town.

“I remember trying to hire a couple of cooks and this boy came with no experience and was wearing a Deftones shirt,” says Farrell. “Will call owner JR [Muñoz] and I looked over at him – and I said, ‘All right! Well, yes, you are hired. Here is a spatula. I will show you. I’ll show you the way to the chicken wing. ‘”

Yes, it’s safe to say that music plays a huge role in the way Farrell approaches his work in the kitchen.

Suggest some songs the chef has chosen as an integral part of his approach to food, then read our full interview on the intersection of food and music with the man himself below.

Do you remember the first album you bought?
The first album I picked and fell in love with – without being passed on from a parent or whatever – was a Joan Jett & The Blackhearts tape. It was the first one that I hopped up and down – listening to “Crimson and Clover” and, you know, just loving life as a kid. But I didn’t buy it.

The first CD I got was this varied world music CD from the library. I rented it and I think I just kept it. From Tibetan throat singing to African chill music, everything was there. It was very representative of my upbringing and attitude to life. My mother raised me to accept other cultures. She’s a Puerto Rican, lesbian, single mom from New York, and she showed me that whoever you are is fine.

The first album I actually bought was Tenacious D by Tenacious D. I saved my $ 19 or whatever and went to Tower Records in Boston and bought it. I listened to it with my mother and sang along to the songs about Kielbasas and all sorts of other inappropriate things.

What was the first concert you went to?
I was probably 10 years old and my mother took me to Little Richard’s. I think it was one of those “Concerts in the Park” series or something – you know where it’s for a family and it’s free or whatever, and everyone shows up with blankets and Dorito sandwiches. It was somewhere in Boston. I just remember there were lots of people and lots of blankets.

So he goes out on the stage and is like, “Screeeeeeam if you love Little Richard!” and everyone goes crazy. And then he says: “Shut up!” It was amazing. Throughout the concert he said: “Yes! Tutti frutti! ”And then to talk shitty about how much he was screwed and that he made no money with his musical career.

It was like the coolest thing ever, and then he showed you the truth behind what happened to him too. He really got ripped off. He needs a Netflix documentary ASAP.

How has music influenced your kitchen?
Music has always been a part of my life. I’m half Puerto Rican and music is part of everything we do as a family. We love to eat. We love to cook. We love to dance. We love to party. This is how my grandmother and mother raised me. When food is being prepared, music is played. When music is playing, food is being prepared. And when you don’t dance, you eat. Music doesn’t play in the background either. If you go to Thanksgiving with my family, my grandmother will complain, “Why isn’t the music louder?”

If our asses are kicked and I see six or seven tickets coming in, I’ll stop. I won’t call any of the tickets. I get out my phone and change the music to what it’s supposed to be. For example, when we hear something cool, we change it to crazy dubstep stuff or whatever it is.

I have a feeling that there is certain music to go with certain things. Even when I was in the mansion where there is no music, I started singing “Bohemian Rhapsody” or something and getting all the cooks to join me while we push the food out.

What do you like to hear while cooking today?
A little bit of everything. I’m definitely known for listening to really versatile stuff that is fun for the kitchen. Will Call is a music themed bar. The owner, JR, was in a band called Overscene; they were really big in the rock era of the 2000s, during the heyday of Drowning Pool and Ill Niño and the like. He is bound to that. So the place represents this era and our customers too.

It’s the coolest thing because I grew up listening to music, especially rock music. Many people I admired are in my life now. I’ve gotten emotional about it here and there. I’ve been here for two years, but one of my first clients who has become a really good friend is CJ Pierce. He is the guitarist for Drowning Pool. I grew up with them and now I hang out with this guy and he says, “Hey, bring your guitar someday and we’ll jam. Oh, and I love your cauliflower. ”It’s stunning.

Stoney LaRue stopped by the other day. He’s a great country artist and he ran right up to me and said, “Josh! I miss you! Nice to see you! “And I think:” What! How do you miss me? ”

Josh Abbott stopped by and bought all of my duck fat cookies once because he wanted them on his tour bus. And then there’s this guy who’s on 5 Billion and Counting – they’re this amazing rock band. There was this time when I was listening to them in the kitchen and he came in and said, “Dude, are you serious? Are you listening to me? “And I said:” Are you serious? Are you in my kitchen right now? ”

I didn’t become a rock star – but my friends do and they like my food. As long as I see her and hear her music, I’m happy.

What music do you play in Will Call’s dining room and main bar?
JR is definitely very good at reading a room. Whether he chooses the playlist or a DJ for the night, he can see the crowd change and form, and he puts on whatever he needs to relax them or make them hype. He’s really good at that. And we have a great sound system here.

If you could only listen to three albums for the rest of your life, which ones would it be?
Nile from Patrice. I found this guy when I was in Germany when I was 17. I chilled out with some of my German homies and they played this album. It’s one of the few albums that I can really listen to from start to finish. And it’s a nice trip. I would definitely say that it changed my life. It’s so hard to find. I think I could only find it on YouTube, which has made me sick over the years for not being able to pay this guy. I got a burned CD that said, untidily, “Patrice, Nile”. I actually met him on Instagram a few weeks ago – and he hit me back! I nearly cried. It was crazy. I just thought, “Dude, you changed my life!” And I asked him about his Venmo. I told him I would like to send him some money just to support him. I feel like I owe him that.

Tenacious D’s Tenacious D. I can never stop listening to this. I know absolutely every single inappropriate word. Even the little parody things.

The Queen of the Damned soundtrack. I could hear that all the time! Oh my God! When I first saw the film, I had no idea what to expect. Everything was done so well. Back then I was very into vampire rock, dark and dark. I think I was in eighth grade or something. The way it was put together as an album was very well done in terms of the flow.

Cover picture by Clark Cabus.

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