About Casa Del Sol

Years ago, singer-songwriter, producer, and guitarist Mad Johnny Modell made a bold decision to not focus on the family’s business as NFL team owners. Instead, he chased his dream of being a musician. When Modell found himself a single dad raising his two kids alone, he pivoted, and through savvy and sheer willpower, succeeded as a multi-faceted music industry professional.

Today, Modell is back playing music. He’s doing it with some dear friends who also happen to wield some pretty impressive pro-musician credentials. This band of brothers calls themselves Casa Del Sol, and its mission with its 1960s and 1970s-inspired cinematic and socially-conscious psych-rock is to shed light in dark times. The proudly San Francisco, California-based band is now releasing its debut album, Strange Angels. 

“I was the black sheep of the family. I went to California as a freaky guitar player much to my parents’ consternation, but they ended up proud that I made a living in this crazy business,” Modell shares. He continues: “These days I feel inspired to bring love, connection, and make people feel good through music. The best art is always made in times of turmoil.” 

Members of Casa Del Sol have deep roots in the Southern California studio scene, but the band’s music is steeped in San Francisco’s richly diverse musical heritage. At its core, the quartet is a song-oriented band specializing in telepathic interplay with moments of soaring improvisation and dramatic narrational arrangements. The four-piece group’s freewheeling but distinctive aesthetic encompasses strains of psychedelia, soul, rock, blues, jazz, folk, and world music. 

Joining Modell in Casa Del Sol is his best friend of 30 years, legendary drummer Wally Ingram (Sheryl Crow, Crowded House, Eric Burdon, Stockholm Syndrome, Bob Weir and Phil Lesh, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt). The band is rounded out by Modell’s buddies, bassist Mike DiPirro (Free Peoples, Albany Project, Bill Kreutzmann) and keyboardist Mighty Dave Pellicciaro (Jackmormons, Materialized). Although Modell is the band’s singer and songwriter, Casa Del Sol is a band in the truest sense.  “All three of these guys are certified geniuses, and we really create something special all together,” he says.

Modell was born in Los Angeles, but his birth father died when he was very young. He and his brother were adopted by his mother’s second husband, the legendary NFL team owner Art Modell. The elder Modell owned the Cleveland Browns franchise for 35 years before he made history relocating the team to Baltimore where it became the Baltimore Ravens—one of the most successful NFL franchises in history. Modell joined his family in launching the Ravens, and spent twelve bi-coastal years helping manage the family business while simultaneously running his music and media company. In 2007 Modell produced the first ever 3D concert film with Irish rock band U2 called U23D.

Modell forged his own path in life working in the music industry. His career path away from playing in bands was a necessity when Modell had a family, and later found himself a single dad. Thirty years later—after his kids had gone off to college— Modell returned to playing music with his dear friends.

Casa Del Sol is part of a greater community of music fans and music biz professionals Modell has lovably dubbed the “Strange Angels.” He named a song and the album after this vibrant community. The culture surrounding Casa Del Sol, and its music recalls the golden era when music was religion, and listening to records was a sacred event.

Strange Angels is a “turn on, tune in, drop out” album-oriented offering meant to be experienced in one sitting. A feeling of awe courses through the psych-folk track, “Love In a Time of War,” a song lavished with Modell’s sweetly weary vocals, rock n’ roll gospel organ, passages of lyrical lead guitar, and nuanced rhythm section interplay. It is a song about the birth of Modell’s first son, but the lyrics about witnessing beauty in a painful world remain resonant.

When Modell’s wife, Beverly, asked him to write a song for her, Modell responded with a vampire love song, “Adorable Corruptor.” The song oozes playful eerie ambience with its spooky spoken “children of the night” intro, its auto-tuned wolf cries, and its bluesy underpinnings. “Her love brings out the adolescent in me,” Modell laughs mischievously. “She’s my adorable corruptor.” 

The symphonic ballad of loss, “Leaves and Trees,” features one of the album’s most poetic and poignant lyric moments. Modell sings: I will miss you every day/Especially when leaves start to fall/One day someone’s gonna’ miss me too/Just like I long for your call/That will always be the cost of love/Or there wouldn’t be any love at all. The soulful “These Roads” captures Modell’s first time in Ireland, connecting to his heritage with beat-poet romanticism. The album concludes with the achingly beautiful title track performed with just voice and acoustic guitar.

These days, Modell is bursting with creativity. He has 6 albums of songs ready to record. Looking back on it all, Modell says pensively: “It’s been a long ride and I am very lucky. The love, faith, and encouragement from my wife, my family, and my band have been everything to me.”