Hangtime

With prominent focus on the negativity and brutality of society, it’s a challenge to form a positive vibe in the music business.  One band has conquered it!  Hangtime is the band to check out if you want to dispose of all the harshness.  Four friends put together this hardcore punk band that hit the streets of Columbus, Ohio, Delaware, Ohio and beyond in the fall of 2004. 

 Since the first live gig at Bernie’s in Columbus, Bryan/Edison (vocals), Kevin (guitar), Jimmy (guitar), Anthony (drums), and Nick (bass) have released a demo and full length album, Make It Happen.  Make It Happen was recorded just a few months ago at Ohio’s Electric Angle Studios with Grant.     

Hangtime just returned home from their first national tour (alongside Dayton, Ohio’s The Pledge) which kicked off in mid-June.  Nick took time out to tell us about the tour while in Georgia.  “Well, for starters we are traveling in a van with no trailer, except Kevin’s cab.  Edison pretty much put the whole tour together.  We are in GA right now, just got down playing at Sector 7g!  We only had to sleep in the van once so far, so that’s pretty nice.  People have been nice enough to let us stay in their house and feed us while we were there.  It’s just the five of us on the open road, and it’s really hard to get from place to place when some shows don’t turn out too good.” 

The band’s influences are innumerable.  Some include Floorpunch, Ten Yard Fight, xLooking Forwardx, and any fast, old style hardcore. Kevin mentioned his current favorites of Set It Straight, Under One Flag, Ceremony, Down To Nothing, and Sinking Ship to name a few.

As far as writing material, Kevin told us:  “Either Jimmy or I just come up with riffs then play them at practice for everyone.  Once we have the guitar parts written for a song, Anthony comes up with the drum tracks and so on.  Our way of writing is pretty simple, and we like it that way.” 

The future looks promising for this tight-knit band.  Kevin said, “We just want to keep doing shows.  If a label shows interest in us, great.  If not, it’s no big deal, we’ll still keep doing what we’ve been doing.” 

Outside of music, Hangtime just hangs out, skateboards, and sport their love of piercings and tattoos. 

At live shows, the dynamic preserving band primarily performs all original music. At a show you might hear the adrenaline pumping “Hangtime Hardcore” and “Respect.”  Hangtime is also working on a solid cover of some Judge songs and a Ten Yard Fight song. 

Using the internet to distribute music is becoming the easiest, cheapest way to be heard.  Kevin told us, “I love downloading.  I think too many artists get caught up in the money aspect and would rather just sell CD’s.  Sure, with downloading you might not make as much money, but is that really the point?!” 

Check out the Hangtime posi’s killer, energetic live shows that will be sure to make you jump up, sing along, and slam dance all night long!  “Keep a positive outlook/ keep a positive attitude/ make positive choices/ and we’ll make a positive change/ HANGTIME HARDCORE!”

Since this interview was conducted, Hangtime has disbanded.

Written By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

Project Defective Unknown

 

 

Project Defective Unknown culminates a sense of style one could only believe to originate in the streets of New York or Detroit.  Who knew LaRue, Ohio could represent old school Wu Tang and Run D.M.C. combined with new school Kottonmouth Kings and ICP.  This rap duo with profound energetic talent graces the underground scene with incredible freestyle raps, catchy choruses, and danceable beats. 

 

In May 2006 two best friends, Thomas Montis (Nite Tha Grrness), 19, and Zac Tennar (SINthetichead3000),28, spent hours in Montis’ professional recording studio to dub tracks, sample, record, loop, warp and edit to perfection.  Montis takes on the roll of Berry Gordy Jr. producing the tracks to create incredible clarity in the ex-Thumpfluid recording studio, set up by Montis’ father.  Montis also records some spots on the tracks with background vocals.  Tennar writes the rhymes and perfects them to a create a smooth vibe reflecting his personal range of influences, including Public Enemy, Lords Of Acid, Mr. Lif and Nine Inch Nails.

 

An online interview with Zac opened the doors to Project Defective Unknown.

Following stories of depressive, drug related memories, we begin:

 

Me: So now you’re 28 and sober, minus a few beers here and there?

Zac:  That’s right.  I used philosophy to rebuild myself and my son Xavier was the seed.

Me:  Who do you study?

Zac: Eastern shit.  Thich Naht Hahn, The Dalia Lama. Anything Zen, Taoism, I Ching.  I mainly lean toward Taoism and Buddhism. 

Me: How do your past experiences influence your writing?

Zac:  What I write comes from a combination of personal, philosophical, and mildly political aspects.  I also find what I write to be good learning material.  I try to spread knowledge a bit, for people who have come from a life of hell much like I have.  I like to show people that one person can indeed bottom out completely, and then rebuild themselves from the inside out.  It’s all about acquiring knowledge and discovering yourself.

Me:  So when did you get into freestyle/ MCing?

Zac:  I used to run with a few black guys and they would always sit around and spit rhymes ‘n shit.  So one day I figured I’d give it a shot.  And when I did, mouths dropped, they was like, “what the fuck, damn nigga!”  So ever since then I knew I was on to something.

Me:  How did you and Grrness meet?

Zac:  We met at a Micki D’s.  We worked the graveyard shift and we’d spit rhymes at each other to pass the time.  Later on we found out that we both lived in the same town.

Me: When you rap do u freestyle over the beats, or write first, then the beats?

Zac:  Sometimes both.  I freestyle a few times prior to writing in order to get the feel down, and after that, it’s like a molding process but with words.

Me:  What’s your future goals with your music?

Zac:  Success!  I have so many ideas and so many songs written that I want turned into songs.  I have the stuff  I do with Grrness, and then solo ideas. 

Me:  So you guys don’t refrain from political correctness and vulgar language?

Zac:  No, we feel that obscenities are sometimes necessary to fully express what it is you wanna say.

Me:  Where do you think the music industry is going now?

Zac: A lot of music seems to be cloning itself.  You see numerous artists doing the same thing.  It sells like a product.  Most music has to meet these certain “requirements” so that it appeals to a young audience. 

 

Project Defective Unknown plans to release an album of music in the future, and maybe get some live gigs going.  Zac plans to do solo work on the side and is currently looking for a band to collaborate with on some tracks.  You can check out P.D.U. on myspace at www.myspace.com/defectiveunknown to hear “Samsara,” “Flawed,” and “Tha Forecast” as well as an in studio.

Since this interview, PDU has disbanded.

Written By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Coypright OOTB

Photography By Elise Groff

Ghengis Green

 

In November 2005, four friends came together to produce a metaphoric everlasting gobstopper form of music–each color transition reflects the psychedelic sounds of Ghengis Green, fit to complement the relaxed environment of drinking a cup of Joe. 

 

The Lewis Center, Ohio quartet produces an experimental attempt to share the qualities of The Flaming Lips, The Beatles, King Crimson, and Beck.  For live shows lead singer/guitarist Ben Ahlteen sports a mirage of colorful outfits including a blue shirt, yellow tie, and yellow pants.  Ben’s soothing vocal style of medium pitched, even tones combines a mix of Elliott Smith on the layering of “Not Going Back” and a rap style in “Out Of Orbit.”  Ahlteen told us he’s influenced primarily by his father and The Beatles.  Ahlteen writes most of the lyrics for the Gheng Bang which is “something that comes from within, and [he] write[s] mostly in school.”

 

 The band’s name is derived from Ghengis Kahn and gangrene.  Ben said, “they’re both about taking over, and that’s what our aim is!”  Chris “Cooter” Cheeseman is the band’s drummer who replaced Ben’s eight-year-old computer manipulated drums.  Chris currently maintains the successive background beats.  Cheeseman is influenced by Pink Floyd, Frank Zappa and “prog-rock.”  Chris, sporting an Austin Powers look, said the writing usually “starts with an acoustic guitar.”   Ian McClain on bass gives credit to Led Zepplin, Radiohead and King Crimson as major influences.  Dustin White brings the distinct sounds of his keyboards.  The hollow spaceship sound mixes well with Ahlteen’s vocals, Cheeseman’s drums, and McClain’s bass grooves.  Dustin gives kudos to Queen and The Beatles. 

 

Outside of music, some take up drawing, watching movies, and the necessities of sleeping and eating when time permits.  Ghengis Green just recorded a well rounded four song demo.  To obtain a copy, contact them on myspace.

 

Ghengis Green refrains from representing the everyday, ordinary band—refraining from the MTV generational sound.  The local group continues to grow with quality live performances, booking numerous monthly shows since their first show in February, 2006.    Ghengis Green presents the opportunity to support a local outfit that is sure to impress and welcome a fun relaxed outing.  You may get lucky and hear the exceptional live covers of “Mellow Yellow” and “Clint Eastwood.”

Written, Photography By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

Scene Of The Crime

A full throttle force of unstoppable syncopated power bass grooves, face-punching guitar slaps, smashing drum patterns, and energized vocals that could intimidate Chino’s harmonious tones and fracture the deep aggressive pitch of Killswtich’s Howard Jones—these are the sounds which reside in a mass senior citizen home called Marion, Ohio. 

 

Scene Of The Crime represents a new brand of hardcore with a well-experienced, talented five member lineup.  The individual experiences originated in ex-Marion bands Five People and Decliff.  Stan (drums) and Dustin (guitar) belonged to the late Decliff and Omar (bass) along with Kyle (guitar) were two of Five People.  Anthony (vocals) from Newark currently lives in Columbus and fits in tight with S.O.T.C.’s August, 2005 formation. 

 

The origin of the band’s name was put in the hands of Anthony (Alien Robot God).  “It just sounded kinda cool and I love sci-fi and horror films.  It’s about the struggle for mankind, and it fits well.”  The lyrics of “Crucial” display the horror film interest:  “No matter where you run to, we will find you/ the nightmare is real, the realization hits you.” 

 

As a group, Sevendust is a big influence.  Eleven-year experienced drummer Stan admires 36 Crazyfists and Deftones.  Dustin is influenced by Pantera and Killswitch.  Anthony laughed and said he actually likes Coheed and Cambria, even though the rest of the band might disagree!  Anthony added, “The real stuff, the good stuff, is local.  Local stuff is where it’s at.”

 

Despite the impact of national acts on style, S.O.T.C performs all original material.  The band writes and learns together through trial and error.  Dustin said, “every time you turn on the radio it all sounds the same.  You gotta be unique.  We’re true to ourselves, it’s all original.”    

 

Outside of music S.O.T.C.’s Omar jumps on a motorcycle while other members enjoy the solitude of a video game, watching zombie movies, or just kicking back and relaxing.  However, the primary focus resides in the band.  The dedication brings the members together every week to practice and maintain their tight unit to blow it up on stage. 

 

Witnessing a live set will further prove the band’s musical capabilities.  Anthony, sporting a trademark black outfit with a phantom of the opera bandanna shielding his left eye, works up the audience by jumping off stage and touring the venue while maintaining heavy-melodic vocal clarity.  Dustin and Kyle communicate an even structured bouncing- off-each-other guitar effect, while Omar grooves the thick pounding bass riffs.  A non electronic drum machine is powered by Stan with a mutually energized connection.                                    

 

Marion’s Scene Of The Crime will please any fan of talented musicianship.  With a demo recorded at John Schwab studios in Columbus and performing over eight live shows a month, the band is achieving the due rites of passage in time.

Written, Photography By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

 

 www.myspace.com/sotcband

 

Fatkid Dodgeball

Making waves on a national level in just a few days is Columbus’ own Fat Kid Dodgeball. The band has recently obtained a new drummer, and their single will be featured on MTV’s series Laguna Beach on 9/13. I had the opportunity to have a phone conversation with the guys on their most recent success.Tell me about Your New Drummer?I played in a band called Red Wanting Blue and I played all around Ohio and the Midwest with those guys. I’ve been playing in bands for the last six years, but just recently came back to Columbus 5 weeks ago. It’s like a whole new scene to me again.What’s your position with MTV 2’s On the Rise?It puts the power in the fan’s hands. We didn’t hear about it until late in the game, but once we got it going, we managed to become number 3, and are currently climbing. What’s your involvement with Rock Me TV?Manager Kim Williams states: Rock ME TV has named Fat Kid Dodgeball as the band to break. Fat Kid Dodgeball is going to be involved in the launch of Rock Me TV. They will be featured on the launch party, as well as headline the tour for the New York, Cleveland and Columbus show dates.Once you break into the mainstream, who are you hoping to play with?All of us have different influences, but I would be interested in playing with Fall Out Boy. While our styles differ, our stage shows and energy are similar quotes Frank. Pott states Foo Fighters. The band would also like to mix with Guns N Roses or Bon Jovi. Not to mention The Simpson Sisters.How long have you been together?FKDB started four years ago. Where did the name come from?That’s always the favorite question. Potts came up with a list of band names and no offense to Potts, but some of them were pretty awful. When I was at OSU one of my roommates hooked up with this girl and he was leaving to go to work and we were all kind of hung over and hanging out when he swung his head around the door and said, “If she wakes up, tell her I’m out like a Fat Kid in Dodgeball.” Outside of the Rock Me TV tour what are your plans?Right now we’re going to do some rehearsing, writing, and booking for winter tours.Is there an album out currently or plans for one?We’re sitting on an album right now. It’s on hold right now with the departure of our drummer. We plan to go to the studio and re record some stuff and hope to put out something this winter.Do you have any thoughts or advice for bands still trying to achieve success?The only thing I can say is just stick with it. It’s hard to keep a band happy and together. Let alone be on the road, write and play the songs. It’s a matter of just wanting it more than anything. After all a bad day with a band is better than spending it in an office, its better than doing anything else. Being in a band is like being married to three people all at once and it’s something you have to work at a lot and you really have to sacrifice yourself to make it work. Is it worth it?Absolutely!What’s the craziest thing that’s happened so far?We did a show in Dayton in December and at about 1:30 in the morning without sleeping we drove straight in the night to New York and we got a flat tire in Pennsylvania and were really cutting it for time. We finally got to New York and an hour before we were scheduled to play, our lead singer lost his voice completely. It was like the domino effect, but we were able to pull it off.

Unfortunately, we don’t have any Guns N Roses groupie stories yet.

Written By Erin Nye, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

KIKDOWN

     From “Sleep,” and “Crashing,” to the prolific “Standing on the Shoulders of Giants,” Kikdown has gone through so much in there short life span as a band. If I told you that in around four years Kikdown has gone through a multitude of drummers, one break up, a few dozen songs, losing all their equipment in a van fire, and still remain amongst the best bands in central Ohio, would you believe me?

     Well strangely enough, it’s very true. Kikdown’s sound is a mix of melodic hardcore and emotionally charged fury. The band has had many influences over the years, such as the Deftones and Glassjaw. But all the members of the band sight the hardcore band Underoath as one of their major influences.

     “Underoath is the one band that truly has driven us in our music” Sherman, the bass player told me. “Underoath has helped influence us because like over the years, they have evolved with their music” is what Vince Collins the drummer told me. I asked the band how their breakup in 2002 helped them as a band, and how it hurt them?

     “The breakup mainly hurt our friendships. Friendships that had been long time things were put on hold” expressed Sherman. He went on to say “All though it hurt us that way, we learned to be friends first and a business second, which made us much tighter as a whole.” “Our sound is not completely new, but it has evolved to help us continue making fresh music. You know music nowadays doesn’t sound like music even 5 or 6 years ago. And we know that to make good music we have to grow and evolve.” The lead singer John Marquis told me.

     Kikdown have done one rough CD before that in my opinion was extremely good, but they are now working on a new CD that is very good as well. The one song I was privileged to hear was the song Standing on the shoulders of Giants. “The song is pretty much an ode to people before us. You know it’s our way of saying thanks to and acknowledging the ones who came before, because without them we wouldn’t be where we are in the world today, standing on their shoulders,” the band explained to me.

     Kikdown have played with quite a few local and regional bands including: Scene of the Crime, Mayivurupa, Citizen 18, 5 People, One Down and national acts like: Propain, Nonpoint, Bobaflex and most recently since their regrouping in September 2005, The Accident Experiment. They continue to work hard and love every second of it. Kikdown has a few shows coming up which you can check on in their myspace. Kikdown is now a four piece band minus their second guitarist from before the breakup. The band consists of Jon Marquis – Vocals, Billy Wilcox – Guitar, Vince Collins – Drums, Sherman – Bass

Written, Photography By Tony Rowe, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

Http://www.myspace.com/kikdownreturns       “When I fall to sleep, I forced to use methods like counting sheep…”

Curse Icon

   The ability to capture an independent, eclectic, resonating sound shared with a complete rock star entourage is difficult to achieve among today’s plethora of sound-alike bands.     

   Curse Icon is everything but that–exceeding the duplication of regurgitated, ordinary music. 

   The band has achieved a status well beyond the extremities of a laid back garage band.  Continued determination and commitment has created this ferocious band.  They have the ability to mesmerize attendees at live shows. Having a chat with the band at their first Columbus, Ohio show furthered the evidence. 

   Looking somewhat intimidating with a gripping black leather top, armbands, bracelets, and black heels, lead female vocalist Kiana smiles with gracious pleasure revealing a charismatic set of teeth that could make Medusa turn to stone. 

    “I actually got my start with ballet and jazz.  Early on I was into pop and R & B.  Then, I was introduced to rock!  I was hooked, and never looked back!” 

    The Floridian rock goddess teamed with drummer Marco and Andy Youngblood during the beginning stages of Curse Icon. 

   Following a rumored record deal in Florida and plans to move to New York and L.A., Kiana and Marco were in desperate search of dedicated, committed musicians. 

     Marco said, “We’ve always had a bigger mindset than local bands.  We always aim to be national.”

     Thus, a number of auditions took place to reconstruct the line-up in a period of six months.

   Guitarist/Vocalist Se7eN responded to an online ad in his home state of North Carolina.   

   “There was nothing going on in North Carolina, and I was looking for something serious, so I tried out over a weekend and got the spot.”  A true commitment was made when Se7eN and his family moved from North Carolina to Cleveland to pursue Curse Icon.     

    Jason from Dayton, Ohio also responded to an ad and got the spot as rhythm guitarist.    

   The last element needed to complete the well-developed soundscape was keyboards. 

   “I was actually going to go without keyboards,” commented Marco.  “The funny thing is, I was looking for a DAT machine to replace the live keyboard sound when Chris called!” 

   The youngest member of the band, Chris, was a composition major and developed an endowed talent with keyboards and classical piano at a ripe age. 

   Marco was pleased with Chris’ ability to learn so quickly.  “He had a past with keyboards, and we worked with him relentlessly.  He learned a lot in a short amount of time.” 

   The solid line-up was set and Curse Icon came to be, calling Cleveland, Ohio home.     

   As an adolescent, Marco was shielded from rock music by his strict Italian mother.  He purchased his first drum set when he was 18, continuing his musicianship he also works as a graphic designer.  Marco is responsible for the Curse Icon cross logo as well as the band’s name.    

   “We started way back trying to find a name, so we originally called ourselves (Marco uses my notebook to draw the symbol) “*@#!” and that resembles a cuss word, which migrated to Cuss Icon, and finally formed into Curse Icon.” 

   Curse Icon released the raw edged paradismal in 2005.  The album displays all the prowess of Curse Icon’s offerings to the world of rock. 

    paradismal was recorded at Power Station Studios in Pompano Beach, FL with engineer Rob Roy.  On the recording, Kiana used a mic and custom-built EQ’s by Toni Bongiovi when he was with Motown Records—this historical mic was used previously by Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Aretha Franklin and many others. 

   Kiana commented, “I was like, ‘wow, I get to use that?!  Cool!”  The mic brought out the full force effectiveness of Kiana’s shivering vocals. 

   Following the interview, Curse Icon prepped for their set at the Billiard Club.  Seeing the band’s live performance further proves their national potential. 

   Live versions of “Falling Away” and “Down” is enough to please any fan of dedicated musicianship.  The power behind Kiana’s vocals (not to mention her sexy salsa moves and use of the entire stage), the aggressiveness of Marco’s drumming, Se7eN’s flawless guitar solos, Jason’s hypnotic stop-time abilities, and Chris’s precise note-for-note call and response clarity create an unstoppable unit that can easily hit the road as a major, national headlining act.

   Displaying the band’s devotion and love to their loyal fan base, Kiana invited attendees on stage for the closing song.

Marco told us, “We’re on the radar of a couple labels.  The only thing is, you need to be really careful about the type of contract you sign, so that you’re not locked up in a bad deal.”  

    As far as writing, Marco constructs the lyrics and writes in third person to make the content relate to Kiana’s experiences, “it’s primarily based on experiences, random thoughts, and trying to find a hook.  You should see the mass amounts of paper when I’m trying to write and piece it together, and then put it in third person!” 

   The third person approach also opens the door for many interpretations, allowing individual fans to paste together their own relationship to each song.     

    Marco then takes his bandmates and lays down song portions on the computer.  “It’s purely a group effort.” 

   Curse Icon continues to record new material while on tour.

    The band has set themselves up as a determined, dedicated team; ready to represent rock ‘n roll with a unique appeal, no holding back.

    Curse Icon has since departed and the former band members are taking on different projects.

Written By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

CALE: electronic prodigy

    

      Sitting across from me at High Street’s Blue Danube (on dollar burger night) is talent, energy, and creative motivation.  This list of adjectives, better known as a tangible noun, chats about the past, present, and future. 

     Jesse smiles while reflecting on the band that inspired him to create the electronic danceable beats that large Columbus fan bases have come to adore.

     “It was Joy Electric when I was six-years-old.  From there, my Grandpa got me a keyboard and I took piano lessons.”

With seven years of piano lessons under his belt, Cale was ready to record.  In 5^th grade he received his first recording software and began constructing the first album.

     After the waitress took our hamburger orders, Cale told me that he uses a CASIO keyboard he got when he was nine, a micro korg he purchased in the 7^th grade, analog equipment along with a drum machine, and 6 years of production skill to create his unique digital sounds.

     The use of such equipment creates a number of pleasing diversified textures: a free flowing trance sound in “Once We’re In Heaven,” a happy hardcore beat in “People Like You,” and a dark industrial cover of “Snakes Are Scary.”  

     When recording, moments of inspiration are transformed into club beats.

     “A moment comes to me and I just put it down.  My longest song took me about 11 months to finish.  [Other songs] take only two to three hours.”

     Influences include Aphex Twin, The Postal Service, M83, Glenn Davis, and Anna Ranger.

     Cale records in his basement, typically initiating with music, then converting some journal entries, among other ideas, into lyrics.

     Lyrical topics range from love to nature, with sidebars of humor.  Cale creates a harmonic, hypnotic state with calming vocals that flow in unison with the style and song texture, sometimes using props for added distortion.

     “Snow” is powerful enough to embody the mind into transfixing an imaginative realist portrayal of winter.

     After taking the first bite out of our burgers, I ask Cale to explain how Panda became a symbol.

     “It’s become part of the image.  Whenever people see a Panda now, they think of me!  During a Spring Break me and my friend Chad hung out at Easton.  We would always eat at the Panda Express there.  Chad wrote a funny rap and I wrote one about Panda Express (“The Panda Rap”)!  Since then, it’s stuck.  Now I own at least twenty Pandas!”

     Cale went as far as posing with Pandas and wearing make-up, briefly concealing his identity as a furry Panda bear!

     The humorous “Panda Rap Remix” breaks out into a fast-paced dance song with Reznor-like screams of “Save, The, Pandas!” and a brief “Closure” sample. 

     Just receiving his license a few days prior, sixteen-year-old Cale has not only proved his musical capabilities, but also his artistic creation.

     Cale enjoys graffiti stencils and designs all of his albums, t-shirts, and also collaborates with other bands.

     “I’m always playing with music.  I’ve worked in a few side projects like I Am Mute and soon TI-83 Plus.  I’ve done a few band re-mixes.  For some live shows I’ll sing with other bands.”

     Cale is also getting his foot into the college door early by taking senior on-line courses as a junior. 

     “This Fall I’m hoping for a big break.  I would love to eventually tour in the Midwest, but my biggest goal would be to do a tour in Japan!”

     At the age of fourteen Disney contacted Cale for a possible on-air performance, but he was too tall.  The co-creator of MySpace also contacted Cale about an album project, but he was too young. 

     Despite minor set backs and performing over 25-30 shows and just releasing his 4^th more personal album Midnight And Other Beasts (including a re-make of “Snow” collaboration with Allan / Bear and a re-mix of “Green Sky, Blue Grass” by his friend Max), Cale is ready for a breakthrough.

     Finishing up our burgers, we discussed Anime and a few of Cale’s favorite movies: Suicide Club, Snatch, Battle Royale.

     It’s almost that time of year—watch for Cale in his fashionable colorful winter gear and go to a show–dance, have fun!  (Until then, we can only hope for another hilarious online “True Cale Story of Absopure!”)

Written, Photography By Neil Shumate, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright OOTB

The Cinema and counterparts

    The Cinema are the phoenixes of the Marion rock scene, born from the ashes of many popular local bands. The Cinema has come through a tangled path of networking, bands breaking up, and love of each others music.

     I will now do my best to unweave the tangled web of bands that came before the cinema that have carved the path to where we now stand with the band.  

     So the roots of The Cinema started with a band called Spider Fighter in 1996. Spider Fighter was Pop/Punk band which tour with The Atari’s, and Slowrode. That band consisted of three current Cinema members and one other member. Cody Smith, Tyson Smith, Ben Joliff all of The Cinema, and Rich Alexander made up SF. Spider Fighter eventually ran its course around 2001 the band took its second change to a band called Second String Hero. They released on EP on Righteye records, the ep was a split with a band called Middle Name Danger, called “The birthplace of rock”. If your are taking notes you will notice MND comes up later in the story. SSH lasted until about 2003 and toured with bands like Brand New and Rocky Horsemen. So in early 2003 I am told The Cinema is formed. It consisted of the afore mentioned members of SF and SSH (Cody, Tyson, Ben) plus a couple new members. Josh the guitar player from Middle Name Danger was picked, and Carlos from a band called Join’R which played in Marion’s skate park and the members of the cinema were huge fans of. The Cinema did do a tour in 03 without Carlos on vocals, Tyson Smith sang on that tour. So in spring 2004 came an untitled EP which was recorded and released. After that they tour later in 2004 and in 2005 began work on there new CD, Transcontinental. Also on their west coast tour in 04 they met with Volcom Records but were passed over for a band called Valiant 4 instead. Transcontinental is on Secret Society Records.          

     So now comes the second part of the path of The Cinema all the side bands that these guys are a huge part of. I could go into depth about all of them but it would involve a family tree being drawn, so Ill just touch on the major ones. Koufax is a Pop Jazz infusion band from Toledo that Ben and Cody are a part of as touring musicians. Cody, Tyson and Ben also dabbled with a side project after SSH and before The Cinema called Mariner. Cody then also drummed for a band called The Arsons Daughter which was a Punk-core band, after TAD broke up it was continued minus one member to a band called Admiral. Now comes the band that is most tied to The Cinema, Vicious Whiskey.

     Vicious Whiskey consists of Cody Smith (is anyone counting how many bands does this guy drum for again), Ricky French, and Justin Glass. VW was formed in 2004 and recorded a demo in July of that year. Now in the Spring of 2006 they have taken the next step and put together an EP called Red Edges which is available on their myspace. VW almost always plays with The Cinema around here in local shows and is defiantly the most prevalent of Cod’s Side Projects. VW is a kind of different sound than The Cinema, VW contains more melodic rock with some elements of folk and country.

     SO know the real reason your reading this other than to find out the history of The Cinema, to get insight into the band its self and it’s amazing music. The Cinema have come along way through a lot, as you have just read, to form what they think is the best mixture and formula for their music right now. “It’s nice to play with my ‘brothers’ and then the best guitar player I know in Josh and the best singer I know in Carlos” Cody Smith told me.

     I also asked where the name came from and I was told that it pretty much stems from the entire band being movie fans.

     I asked Cody and Ben kind of about there bands philosophy. They both told me “Everyone in The Cinema is The Cinema equally”. “We started this as best friends. and we are just trying to write music we love” Cody threw in. “ You being in other bands just motivates us to make our own music and ourselves better, kind of opens our ears to new ideas and styles” Cody mentioned.

     “With the new record coming out we don’t know what to expect or when the next step is coming, but when it does its exciting. We just hope people enjoy our new record” Cody Smith said about the release of their upcoming CD. “I guess we just want people to hear The Cinema and take it for what it is, a rock band” added Cody.

     I also spoke with lead Singer Carlos Pena over the phone from his home in San Francisco, about some of the bands metaphorical lyrics. “The lyrics I write are taken from personal politics to life struggles in kind of a third party metaphorical perception.”

     The band also mentioned a lot of their influences range for many different things from bands like Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, Genesis, and Janes Addiction for Carlos to Indie Dance Instrumentals for Tyson, yet the others like a lot of bands like Cave In, Mock Orange, and Super Drag.

     A few songs to check out by The Cinema are Vertical Hole, A list of Things, and Strick on Box.

     You can check out The Cinema for Mechandise and CD’s at http://www.myspace.com/thecinema and also check out all the

aforementioned bands at their myspaces.

Admiral – http://www.myspace.com/admiralmusic

The Arsons Daughter – http://www.myspace.com/thearsonsdaughter

Mariner – http://www.myspace.com/marinermusic

Vicious Whiskey – http://www.myspace.com/viciouswhiskey

Koufax – http://www.myspace.com/koufax

     The Cinema would like to thank their parents for all there love help and support. And Vicious Whiskey would like to give a special thanks to Patrick Carrie of Limbeck and Spacey Casey Prestwood of Drag the River/Hot Rod Curcuit.

Written and Photography By Tony Rowe, Out Of The Blue Publications, Copyright, 2007

WeeWaffleCastle

           

 “Wait, wait are we talking George Michael singer/songwriter or…?” drummer Nate Sill said tenderly, barely registering on my tape recorder.

            “Oh, we’re going straight Wham on this one. ‘Wake me up before you go-go.’” That got a hearty laugh out of the band.

            And that’s just one expectation from Wee Waffle Castle: a good time.

            Don’t get me wrong, the guys write intelligent music and perform terrifically – I’ll be honest, they blew away all of my previous expectations. Maybe because it was the list of hefty influences they gave me (“Red Hot Chili Peppers, Incubus and The Mars Volta”) or because they’re named after a Little Tykes toy (“John calls me up and says, ‘I have a name for a band: Wee Waffle Castle’ and I was like ‘Cool, dude’”). Their song titles do not correlate – with anything – in the slightest (“It was way stupid. It was originally called ‘The Hunt for Red October.’”). But hey, what’s in a name anyway? 

            The important thing is the music and I couldn’t get over how nonchalant they were about discussing it. Confident, yet nonchalant. They’ve given their music the fairly-deemed moniker “psychafunkaternative,” but I thought it was so much more than that – with pop hooks, ethnic renderings and jams that would make Trey Anastasio conceited.

            “We try to keep it interesting…a lot of times we’ll just have two things; one of us will write something, someone else will write something and we’ll jam it together until it sounds good,” said guitarist Isaiah Sparling.

            “We just kinda write whatever we feel like writing,” adds laid back Jon Allen.   

           

“Does anybody wanna have a dance party?” singer Brayden Volk says into the squelching microphone (although I can’t be too sure it was him; his russet spider web of hair covers his entire face.) The audience agreed and the band explained that someone would be chosen as dance king – or queen – of the night. They explode into one of their popular numbers and the skip-bob boogie commences. Volk asks, “is that all you got?” and declares the bassist’s brother the champ “because he always wins the dance party.”

            As the set rolled on, they jammed on rock riffs and lanky, picked-out melodies. One in particular, “Perestroika,” is reminiscent of angular works in the vein of Franz Ferdinand or Talking Heads, but I really don’t think you can just drop some names and completely encapsulate the music. The songs are separately unique, yet I can very much see them together on one album (any ideas of self production?). To see them live is the true summary, complete with space age guitar effects, psychedelic jams and damn-near-perfect vocals. Despite the PA system acting up, the sound was lush and full; Volk’s microphone even cut out a few times but that didn’t stop him from using his lungs.

            Wee Waffle Castle also has some big goals in mind for the future. They’ll be recording a new CD in the spring and one of their songs will possibly be featured on the Illumina Records compilation Rock for Life, an album to raise awareness for drunk driving.

            “That is our dream, to quit school. We’ll take any opportunity we’re given,” Sparling says. I’d have to say with my exposure to the band, there should be plenty.

Written and Photography By Nicholas Messer, Copyright OOTB Publications, 2007