Filling You Up With Team Sleep
Photo: Brian Hanks
Packed in like sardines, a crowd of hungry fans rubbed elbows as they impatiently awaited the presence of Sacramento’s Team Sleep on the stage of The Boardwalk. On November 29th, a brisk fall evening, the band started off their current tour at the Orangevale club.
Shrill female voices chanted”CHINO!!” like banshees. Techs prepared the sound system, testing the mic, bass, and guitars systematically. The crowd who waited through a long line, and two opening bands, grew restless. As the pressure mounted the band’s members steadily took their places on stage.
Chino Moreno, Todd Wilkinson, Rick Verrett and Zach Hill, all key members of the incestuous Sacramento scene snatched up their instruments and began in on a droning ethereal intro as the crowd exploded with enthusiasm.
This band has been blowing up the local scene since rumors of “Chino’s side project” danced around us approximately in 2001. Rumors became fact when the band release its self-tilted debut in 2005.
Before their set I was able to sit down with bassist Rick Verret (formerly of Tin Fed).
Rick indulged the band’s intentions with this tour and how far they’re going
“We’re going all the way to Texas,” he started, looking down at his tour laminate.
“It’s just a little thing we’re throwing in to keep everything going. The last time we did this was two years ago.”
They have a whole gamut of new material to offer the starving fans. The plan is for Team Sleep to offer a couple of free EP’s via the internet this next year with a later tour to promote them. Eventually they hope to do a full album, after Moreno’s (vocalist) flagship the Deftones wrap up their next album. With some weeks on and some weeks off the process is slow going.
The band’s first recordings were leaked on the internet. Verrett dispelled some rumors that had been circulating regarding the bands reaction to this.”We weren’t really so bummed out that they were leaked, as they just weren’t finished. They were in the process of still being written. Some of the songs that we’re going to do on the EP are a few of those that we’ve had mastered. There’s the Mike Patton song that he sang on, and a bunch of the new songs as well.”
Photo: Brian Hanks
The first album also featured vocals from singer Rob Crow of the San Diego band Pinback. Verrett let me know that came to be. Because”He’s a friend of Zach’s. With crunch time he came through with a bunch of songs and sang on it. We love his band. He helped us get everything sealed up.”
With almost all the members in other projects, the biggest challenge for the band is getting all the members together to practice and write. However, Verrett explains that they started working on this new material a lot sooner than their first effort.”The last one took five years, and this one has been only the last two.”
Like the mixture of members, Team Sleep is a transfusion of different sounds that come from different backgrounds. When asked what his interpretation of their”style” was, Verrett answered. “I have the hardest time with that. It’s not like it’s un-classifiable by any means. We have a lot of different influences, and we try to bring those in and try to make all of those work. But I guess we’re just an alternative rock band.”
Such a generic term seems moot for such an intense culmination of sounds.
Their set at the Boardwalk was as filling and satiating as a Thanksgiving dinner. Hill’s drumming was animalistic and drew a loud applause after the first song, while Chino’s trademarked etheral vocals rung out over the crowd.
The whole combination of visuals and music was beautifully orchestrated chaos. Their backdrop was a black and white film of women and abstract images, similar to those found on their flyers and Myspace page.
Team Sleep’s future is certain and promises to not let their hungry audience down.
WWW: www.teamsleep.net
Stolen Babies Steal Our Hearts
Photo: Kevin Graft
When was the last time you heard something truly innovative and original? Yeah, that’s what I thought you would say. Sacramento music fans were recently treated to a very unique show, courtesy of Stolen Babies.
The night was quite brisk, and lucky for me the band invited me into the warmth of their touring van to learn more about what makes them who they are. If I had to describe the music they create, I would tell you to close your eyes and picture a traveling carnival freak show crashing into the screen of a twisted little cartoon. Okay, so that made no sense, so I asked Rani, the band’s bassist, to do a better job.
“Ummmm… and that’s a really big ummmm<0×2026>we are a reflection of our influences, what we’ve listened to over the years. More from film than music, things like experimental animation, German expressionism, not so much horror, more fantasy. Stuff that makes you say, ‘what the f@#k?’”
A very interesting analogy, yes, but also very accurate. What kind of audience does Stolen Babies attract?
 Photo: Kevin Graft |
“Our fans are eclectic, creative, intelligent people with a really good conscience,” he stated.
The band is completed by Ben who plays keyboards and pounds on a giant metal thing, Gil pounds on the drums, and the lovely Dominique sings, screams, and plays the accordion. Together they put on a performance that is every bit as visual as it is sonic. Rani, Ben, and Gil display fashionably pale faces, like something from a very old cabaret, while Dominique’s face wears a more colorful decor. Picture, if you will, a cross between Minnie Mouse and a psychotic marionette on the loose.
While Dominique was sitting in the back of the van, carefully applying her make-up for the evening’s performance, I asked her where she gets the inspiration for her design.
“It just came naturally,” she explained.”It’s the way I saw my face, with a line drawn around it.”
I know all you aspiring make-up artists are just dying to know what kind of make-up she uses, so I asked.
“Right now I’m using Your Name Cosmetics. It stays on really well,” she said. For Stolen Babies, visuals are a very important part of the whole package. Their CD art, posters, and t-shirts all feature very cool, and slightly dark and twisted art by Crab Scrambly.
“He is very important. We have a very close relationship,” Dominique said of the artist.”He gets it.”
Their latest CD is titled,”There Be Squabbles Ahead!” If you’ve ever been on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland, you’ve heard the talking skull give you that very warning just before you quickly descend into the darkness. The CD takes you on a very similar trip.
As Rani explained,”childhood innocence is hard to recreate once you become jaded.” This statement pretty much sums up the entire Stolen Babies experience. If you take another look at their name, you’ll get it.
Photo: Kevin Graft
Stolen Babies took over the Boardwalk’s stage with a full arsenal of fun, twisted, loud music that truly was an escape from reality, giving the audience a high energy, memorable experience. I overheard one fan describe the music as”dark, heavy, circus music.” If you would like to bring out your inner twisted child, head on over to www.myspace.com/stolenbabiestheban and check them out.
Stolen Babies will be heading off to Europe in February and March before hitting the states again. With a little luck, they’ll be back in our neck of the woods again to invite us into their nightmarish little world.
Fork Tung
Ahead Of The Game
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With the looming release of their first official album and talks of a second music video to be filmed sometime in January local director Jourdan McClure, Fork Tung is positioning themselves for some greatness within the underground scene.
The power of Ross (vocals), Colby (bass), James (drums), and KC (guitar), combine to form a raw fury and diverse musical experience. So I made my way to Bassist Colby’s home for an interview with Fork Tung.
As I entered the house, the band was in the living room flying remote controlled helicopters and full of laughter. I half expected to find a dark atmosphere with skulls and bottled pickled body parts on the shelves. The stereotype was quickly wiped away as we exchanged greetings.
On a crisp California evening, we made our way out back to what Colby referred to as his “Grotto!”
FRINGE: So what’s the deal with Fork Tung, I mean what are you guys trying to do?
KC: We continue to grow, as musicians. The thing I love about our band is you can’t put a finger on us. We can be anything. We appeal to a lot of people. In that we’re hoping to get away by a lot of things. We don’t bulls*&^t.
FRINGE: You have some crossover appeal you’re working, then? Maybe a collaboration with Britney Spears?
ROSS: Yeah, the fat, bald Britney!
FRINGE: So how does the writing process go for you guys?
JAMES: We come in as a group 25% each. It’s very collaborative. We don’t do the whole follow the leader thing.
KC: It’s a collaboration of ideas.
FRINGE: So someone does a riff and then you go from there?
JAMES: We find a foundation and build off of that. There’s a lot within the songs.
FRINGE: Is there anything you want people to walk way with after seeing you, ideas, messages?
COLBY: That not every song sounds the same, we touch upon everything, atmospheric, intense, brutal, heavy, all of it.
Ross. The message is always basic. Real life. World things people would disagree or agree with.
JAMES: We don’t go political or religious, it’s more psychological.
ROSS: I’d like people to take something genuine. We are who we are. We don’t have to dress up, we don’t have characters, we’re just ourselves when we perform.
JAMES: A lot of energy and we want to convey that.
COLBY: A good live band.
FRINGE: What elements do you think it takes to be a successful band?
KC: You have to have passion for it.
FRINGE: There’s band that suck that have passion!
ROSS: True.
KC: You have to be thinking ahead. As for what you said about passion, yeah other bands have passion but it’s what you do with it. I can have all the passion in the world, but if you don’t do anything with it just sit there and say I have passion then what are you doing with it. You’re not doing nothing. We have it. We see a lot of guys just wanting to be the hometown guys. But for us it’s a lot bigger.
FRINGE: Ross? So you left the band for awhile, was it time for reflection?
ROSS: Yeah, for a short while. But, yeah, I guess for that (reflection). I was bending the bar before it broke. The bar of what we as a group had decided to do. KC and I were both playing guitar. And I guess would bring stuff, maybe predetermined too many times, that’s kind of a fault of mine. I’d like something and I’d want to use it, and then if somebody else didn’t like it, which is going to happen, you can’t have one idea ahead of someone else’s. It’s a band, it’s a group. And I didn’t bend as much as I should have and it just caused problems.
FRINGE: So how did that affect you guys as a band.
COLBY: It sucked, Ross is irreplaceable. KC: It made myself, Colby and James work a little harder. It was a big wake-up call.
JAMES: We gave some people an attempt. We all felt something missing. We thought if we were going to continue as this band we had to get Ross back or we were going to change and it just wouldn’t be the same. So we took a step back and reanalyzed everything.
FRINGE: Were they crying when they called you back?
ROSS: (laughing) No!
KC: I sent him a hug-o-gram.
FRINGE: What do you think of the mainstream music industry?
KC: I think in a nice way it’s switching back to the way it was in the 70’s. It allows people to say I’m going to write what I want to and now I have access to put it out. Ipod and the internet
FRINGE: You’re making my heart warm right now.
KC: It’s the honest truth, man. You reinvent yourself you can be anything. We strive for it.
As with each of their instruments coming through on its own, technically and musically intrepid, I found myself in awe with Fork Tung as individuals; thinking ahead of the curve at a revolution in music that is long over due. Keep your eye on these boys!
A Band Without A Home
Give Em Hell
On a fall day in Pleasant’s Valley, just outside of Vacaville, the sun had reclaimed the skies after a rainy couple of days. Several small birds fluttered around, sending out their calls for the day. Cattle could be heard mooing and grazing in a near by field.
After pulling into the driveway, the serenity of those sounds soon shared the stage with a muffled bass and guitar as chords were bent and beats were slapped. Those sounds were coming from the practice room of Vacaville’s selfdescribed “posi-core” band Give Em Hell.
The practice area ruckus was being created by Daniel Terry, or “Peaches” as he is affectionately referred to, and Bobby Rose on the bass. Drummer Brandon Cherry, whose house they jam at, soon arrived from the adjacent home with cinnamon rolls for the crew.
“Wow, look at this guy,” Terry said, while grabbing the over-sized breakfast treat to help cure his ailing hangover from the show at Pizza Pucks the night before.
Singer Zach Peterson and guitarist Jon Korn would soon arrive, each bringing along a headache which they, too, picked up the prior evening. It wasn’t long before the five began ripping on each other for various questionable decisions while drinking, including, of course, a good urination story.
It’s not long before the group assembled and started shedding layers in anticipation of rocking out for an hour or so in preparation of their show later that day. Soon Peterson starts his controlled screaming, backed up by chants and choruses from the other guys. Peterson explains it as “posicore,” hard-core music with a positive message.
It’s a heavy sound, but clean. The explosiveness of the music is sent through the band as they jump, kick and flail while jamming.
“It’s high energy,” Peterson said. “But we’re not talking about hoes and bitches or being in a gang or anything.”
Like most bands, there were a few versions with some members coming and going, but eventually got it right. Peaches said he was a fan of the band in the past, but was playing in another group.
After seeing a few shows and meeting the other guys, he said it was time for a change and to get serious with Give Em Hell. “I said ‘today’s got to be the day,’” he said. “I couldn’t keep living the lie.”
Peterson said when the current pieces were finally put together, it started to click. “It (came together) really well,” Peterson said. “It feels like a complete band now.”
Starting electronically, the band turned to MySpace for exposure and ended up climbing from 1,000 to 5,000 friends. And recently the band signed a development deal with Sacramento’s Ethos Entertainment. Ethos will now help book shows, promote the band and help with studio time in the future. Peterson said it may be just what they need to put them over the top. “Everything you need to know about, they show us,” Peterson said. “By the looks of us, we’re not good at 9 to 5 jobs. We didn’t know what we were doing.”
The band is steadily picking up shows, which they can be seen driving to in their white van full of friends and fans. Korn said he wished they could play more shows in Vacaville, but the scene just isn’t there.
“We’re a band without a home,” he said. “There’s nowhere to play.”
Paving the high road… Self Against City
The mind is a powerful thing. Music is a powerful thing.
Using music to entice the mind can bring about thoughts that you may have never imagined. This is something the Self Against City will do with their next album. They are something rare to music. The chemistry and dynamics that hold the band together are in a delicate state of harmony. They strive to create, inspire, move and rock. Self Against City has a reputation in Sacramento, but not many people know what they have been through to get where they are today, nor the plans they have for the future.
Self Against City is signed to Drive- Thru records. Sometimes people assume that being on a label like that means that their band business is all taken care of by other people. That they went out and played to hundreds of people everywhere they went. This is not really the case. The band themselves are very involved in the business of being a band, from shows to press. Just like most touring bands, they played bad shows along with the good. Even at the bad shows they were able to make the best of it, meeting interesting people and living life everywhere they went. They took the tour experiences and a short stint living in Arizona for a month between tours and soaked it up. Processing the instances and making them their own, learning from people and taking mental notes on the nature of people.
Self Against City formed at the Sacramento rehersal spot, House of Hits in 2004. Normally this wouldn’t be an important fact, but it is because they have come back to this spot. It is where they find themselves practicing for hours on end, writing song after song, developing a universally appealing sound, until their next venture. Self Against City’s journey has taken them across the U.S. multiple times, up and down both coasts and even as far as the U.K.
Before leaving for their tours, the band had already musically and lyrically progressed past what their debut CD, “Telling Secrets To Strangers” was. The CD was actually done for almost a year before it was put out. This made it kind of hard to play songs that they didn’t necessarily feel the same way about as when they wrote them. While on the road, they witnessed hundreds of bands playing music that seemed meshed together. Other bands focused more on girls and booze than the quality of their music and messages. Self Against City saw that and decided that is not what they wanted to do. They would be determined to do something more.
Every person in the band has a hand in the songs that Self Against City writes. They have a union of energy that is put into each song. The creation itself is very natural and spontaneous. Somehow, the music and the songs just come out. That is what makes Self Against City different from other bands, their dynamics and energy.
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If you are ever in the room with the band, you can tell that between them, they have a deeper understanding and caring for each other than most people. Most bands should have that kind of relationship with each other. Self Against City has no problem confronting each other with issues and working through them. It makes their bond that much stronger. That’s something that more bands should work on. Self Against City’s new music is a little more moody than the last CD and the messages are a little bit deeper. The music will continue to evolve, develop and change over time. You’ll be able to listen to their first EP, Take It How You Want It, and then listen to the new songs and tell that they have grown as a band.
Music has the power to move and change people, and Self Against City hopes that is what they’ll do. Wait, no, they don’t hope. They know.
Supaphat Hasn’t Lost Speed
From the ashes of Nothing, Supaphat was spawn. In 1999 vocalist Eric Schley and drummer Slade Anderson started to piece together the group. With Vince Mellone (on guitars) and Jeff Dyer (on bass) both of Mama’s Gravy joining the band in 2004, and the eventual addition of Derek Torres”Dj Grand” as Turntablist the line-up was complete. After almost 10 years of shows and one recording, the band is looking forward to some attention with their newest effort.
At first listen their new and second album Lose Myself, is reminiscent of 90’s band Living Colour, whom they say is an”interesting comparison” as they are an influence. Certain grooves on the album invoke old school Fishbone and upbeats like Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Equal parts Funk, Hip-Hop accented by a dash of rock and metal, Supaphat’s sound is unique to the current Sacramento scene. They label themselves Groove Rock.”For the most part we’re a rock band. We have a lot of Rage style guitar riffs, and (Schley) sings very soulfully,” explained Anderson. With five members and some guest sounds of saxophone, female backup vocals, and the occasional keyboards, their groovy rock is full and multi-ethnical.
With this individuality comes a challenge for finding their”niche” within Sacramento.”We appeal more to the older crowd, with our classic rock type sound. Younger kids probably aren’t as interested,” confessed Mellone.
They have the ability to play shows with rock bands, funk bands, and hip hop bands alike, but with a contrasting difference they’ve had difficulty breaking through.
Getting shows and grabbing the audience seems easier for the group in the Bay Area. Maybe the Bay Area <0×2018>s audience is more accepting to their brand of Groove Rock.
The band drew their name from a cartoon-esque superhero style mascot donning an orange afro and Stunna shades.
Supaphat’s Lose Myself is available online at Amazon.com and CDbaby, as well as the band’s own site at myspace.com/supaphat. With this CD finished they’re currently writing new material and booking a handful of shows through Nor-Cal.
Jalen: An Artist Of Many Ventures
By Sheri Broussard A young black man dressed in loose fitting blue jeans and a faded brown t-shirt sits in the corner of a busy food court in the middle of the large San Francisco downtown mall. As he tilts to the side, slightly slouching in his chair, he notices a beautiful black woman. His light brown eyes narrow as he takes a closer look and the lines of his dark red lips curve into a slight smile. The curl of his black eyelashes sweep over his face as he moves and slowly rises out of his seat and walks over to her. With a hand on her hip and an arched eyebrow she eyes him warily as he extends his hand to her. “Excuse me; I was wondering if you might be interested in helping me with a project. You are a beautiful woman and I’d like to show your beauty by filming the soles of your feet.” Curtis Smith, otherwise known as “Jalen,” has been filming the soles of beautiful women in a neverending effort to produce his film “Beautiful Irony.” “The idea is to take the dirtiest, smelly part of a beautiful woman and show the irony of true beauty,” says Smith. Folding her arms over her chest, the woman stares back at Smith with an unresponsive glare in her eyes. “I know what you are thinking: “another guy hitting on me, right?” Smith challenges as the woman nods in agreement. “Believe me I been there and done that and all I’m asking is for you to sit back, relax, put up your feet,” he says as she begins to lighten her glowering eyes and calm down. Fear and rejection are two things that do not hinder the many creative talents of Smith. “The only competition I’ll ever have is myself,” he says as he inquisitively strokes his chin, “Fear is what gives other people power over you, if you show that you are not afraid, they don’t know what to do.” Smith has been living in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco, reputed as one of the city’s most dangerous neighborhoods. It’s filled with murder, drugs and a large homeless population. Living on a notorious “crack block,” he sees a crack deal every day and sells his CDs on the very next block. “These are my people and this is my neighborhood. The whole reason I’m out here doing what I’m doing is to open doors for people who struggle or have struggled,” he says. Growing up with a single mother and between disadvantaged communities in California and the South, Smith has always sought a way out. His love of classic early Hip Hop artists like Public Enemy, NWA and Tupac inspired Smith to begin to write about his own struggles. Under his production company, Goldstein, Smith has released a mix tape called “Raw.” His flow of lyrics are poetic and thoughtful compared to that of current rap music. “What the mainstream lacks is personality,” Smith says, “You see, I had personality before I was a rapper.” Smith’s individuality has led him through many trials in his young life. He attended the historical all-black university, Morehouse, in Atlanta, Georgia, for three years and the Academy of Art in San Francisco. He has held jobs in corporate finance making $80,000 a year and traveled around the world only to find that at the age of 25 he wanted more than what has been offered to him. Smith believes that he has been called upon to do something greater with his creative talents and “Beautiful Irony” is only the beginning. Smith holds his hand out to the woman again and looks back at her “It will only take a couple of minutes,” he says with a smile as she looks at him doubtfully. “All right, but my feet are dirty and nasty and I need a pedicure,” she says in a sarcastic tone and twists her lips into grimaced frown. He smiles back at her and takes her hand. “I wouldn’t want it any other way.” For more information on Jalen’s many ventures, visit myspace.com/plainraw.
Single Holidays
Mom said, “Oh honey just bring some dinner rolls, you know, the sweet ones, and maybe a bottle of wine or some beer. Grandma likes blush wine. That’s it. Come around 3 and plan to stay, okay?”
Dinner rolls, pre-made and pre-packaged, an $8 bottle of white zin, and my extra-generous contribution, a fresh bottle of Crown Royal, icy cold from my freezer and only two shots taken from the top the night before, my night cap on Thanksgiving eve.
Although the Crown was a welcomed gesture, especially from my excitable dad who eagerly removed the 750 ml. of Jack Daniels to the bottom shelf, I just couldn’t help feeling remotely selfish, partly lazy, and entirely single. The brown paper bag filled with pre-made dinner rolls and holiday liquor pretty much stigmatized me as the woman who remains the grown child invited to another marvelous holiday dinner hosted by my parents, the greatest team of cooks suburbia’s ever seen. The thought of ever trying to pull something off of the same magnitude gives anxiety a whole new meaning. How are all 10, traditional dishes served piping hot at the same time?!
I poured a stiff drink, kissed my relatives, shared some chitchat, and nestled in lonely comfort on the living room couch, watching the Dallas Cowboys kill the New York Jets. In that moment I promised myself (again) that for Christmas, I swear to God I will make Jell-O or bean dip or maybe even go wild and bake some cookies. But it was a short-lived complex assaulting my ego, as I forced myself to remember that holidays are for enjoying family, food, love, life and everything in between.
I just wonder when I will have the guts and the desire to host my own holiday dinner. I’d really like to own a house first to be able to accommodate a large group, so I still have three to five years there. Whew. Or are you supposed to be married and have kids, too, to make it really official? Gimme five-seven years on that one. Or are these the lamest excuses I can come up with?!
As I get older I’m starting to become very aware of my fellow single and fabulous friends preparing holiday meals for their families, regardless of having immediate families of their own. One girl friend of mine did all the shopping, then brought everything with her on a drive out of state to cook the entire meal for her grandparents and relatives. She offered! Amazing!
The truth is, the kitchen is a terrifying place for a woman like me. It’s the bus I always missed. Growing up, spending time learning how to cook with my mom was second to going to church, (nothing against my mom). I was the high-on-life little girl, holding the football for my dad as he punted a long one across the street into my neighbor’s yard on Thanksgiving morning. I’m a killer host for a cocktail party or really any party involving just alcohol and snacks. I’ll make sure to get you drunk and keep you laughing and we might even make out, but please…you don’t want me serving anything that came from the place known as the kitchen. I know I would burn the pre-made rolls.
It’s not the easiest place being single during the holidays. There’re unusual feelings of guilt and regret and an insane amount of thankfulness for the ones in my life that subliminally make me feel appreciated. Sometimes the bar is closed when it’s usually open and shopping for a hot, Guess purse gets set aside for shopping for Christmas presents for others. The nights are cold and sweaters aren’t sexy and having a man to snuggle seems that much more important.
But what the hell am I supposed to do? I can’t morph into Martha Stewart for two months of the year just to impress people and make me feel better about myself! I am who I am and I am as fabulous as they come. I can only adjust as my maturity allows and, until then…enjoy the Crown Royal.
Life Outside
For Creature Feature, Every Day Is Halloween
By Brandon Caylor
If Jack Skellington, Sally, Oogie Boogie, and all the other residents of Halloweentown had iPods, you can bet that they would all be listening to Creature Feature, California’s new spooky sensation. Nobody can rock the graveyard quite like they can. Creature Feature recently abandoned their tombs to share their love of all things creepy with the living. Lucky for us, Sacramento was one of their stops in their quest for world domination. I first encountered keyboardist Erik X inside the Boardwalk. I tried to ask him some questions, but I didn’t get anywhere, as Erik was not allowed to speak. I would have to wait until the rest of his fiendish mates returned from Starbucks, where they were apparently sipping on a very strong Guatemalan Blend, you know, the kind with the thick sludge at the bottom, just the way they like it, nice and chewy. It wasn’t long before singer/guitarist Curtis RX and new drummer Kevin finally appeared, nice and freshly caffeinated. I first asked Curtis why Erik was not allowed to speak. “Nobody can understand him,” he explained. “He gets bad cases of verbal diarrhea, and nothing will shut him up.” Creature Featured recently released their first CD, The Greatest Show Unearthed, which features some monstrously marvelous rockin’ tunes. This is music inspired by all things dark and spooky, but all done in a fun, Tim Burton sort of way. The band has developed a large following rather quickly. How did that happen? Photo: Kevin Graft “Mostly through word of mouth,” Curtis said, “a lot of it being through our friends, horror message boards, magazines, and MySpace. We’re also going to new places on this tour, so we’re meeting new people every day.” Speaking of the tour, I was curious as to what type of stage show to expect. “This tour is all about the musicianship,” Curtis explained, “to see what we can pull off with three people.” What these three did onstage was rock their undead butts off. In fact, they rocked so hard that Curtis found himself with bloody fingers by the third song. “This is real,” he said, “not that fake Karo syrup stuff!” Kevin M. on drums really added some good thumpin’ energy to the songs, giving them that needed kick in the gut. You could tell that this band really meant business. After the show, the band stuck around for a while to chat with their new fans and sign some autographs. Then it was off in search of a nice, late-night meal. “We like those types of places that stay open all night long,” Curtis said. “But not Denny’s. They’re just disgusting. Their food tastes like a homeless man showering in your mouth.” The band is taking the month of December off the road, and will work on putting together some videos for a DVD. Once that’s done, they will be hoppin’ into the hearse, hitting the road, and spreading their infectious disease once again. They promised to be back in our neck of the woods again early next year. Until then, pick up a copy of The Greatest Show Unearthed. If you start growing extra hair on your back and you find yourself howling at the moon for no apparent reason, don’t blame the band. It’s probably just that thick Guatemalan Blend of coffee. Either that or you’re just plain weird.
