Thursday, September 28,1989
The Battalion
Page 7
grooving beats with strong bass lines
and raw chord progressions played
on acoustic and electric guitars.
In addition to Cessac, For Cryin’
Out Loud consists of Bob Burns on
guitar and Mike Thompson on
drums.
“Our influences are less strictly
musical,” Cessac said. “Everything
we’ve ever listened to whenever
we’re making up a song is some
where, subconciously in you.”
Cessac explained that Monty Py
thon, “The Far Side” and “Saturday
Night Live” are as great an influence
on their material as any music
group.
“We try to add satire,” Cessac said.
“Our lyrics are geared to criticisms
of contemporary society with a hu
morous intent.”
Live performances of the band in
clude many original songs composed
by all three members. Some cover
songs also are played with a humor
ous twist.
“We do an acoustic version of
‘Bang Your Head,’ or we’ll do a
hard-core thrash version of a Tif
fany song,” Cessac said.
“We would like to keep it more of
I a comedy rock show than a rock
show,” he added. “The ultimate at
tempt is to almost lit into a comedy
club as well as a concert hall.”
The quality of the group’s live
performances varies depending on
the crowd, location and how much
alcohol the band has consumed, Ces
sac explained.
“When you go to a show, we
would hope you were sitting around
laughing and having a good time as
opposed to just banging your head,”
he said.
Last year, the group locally re
leased their first tape, “20 songs a
day to a happier, healthier you.”
The sound is reminiscent of the
Violent Femmes, and the lyrics offer
some unique perspectives in such
songs as, “In Another Life I Was a
Squirrel,” “Vanna White and the
Seven Dwarfs” and “I’m in Love with
Judy Jetson.”
According to Cessac, “20 songs to
a happier, healthier you” sold out lo
cally, and some copies were sold in
Austin. Currently, no copies of the
tape are available. However, the
group will soon release a new tape in
early October titled, “It's Raining
Hepcatsand Dogmas.”
“I hope a whole bunch of people
get it because I want them to hear
it," Cessac said. “I want to share (the
songs) with people. The songs are
great.”
He added that the group will per
form together for the rest of the
year to support the new tape, but af
ter graduation in May, the future of
For Cryin’ Out Loud will be in
doubt. The band will be playing at
Kay’s Cabaret in late October.
“Meanwhile,” Cessac said, “We
|should forget the v^gight of the
world and try to carry a tune.”
“It doesn’t always go over real
good, because we experiment so
much. Brian (Kralyevich, bass
player) and I sit down and write
songs together and then we immedi
ately perform them. It allows us to
play a lot, and we’ve developed a
good following because of it.”
Pathetic Sketch formed at the end
of last spring when Pugh and Kra
lyevich recruited drummer Mark
McSwain, a fellow architecture ma
jor. Since then Pathetic Sketch has
been one of Bryan-Coilege Station’s
most active bands, frequenting Dou
ble Dave’s and Kay’s Cabaret.
The band strives for diversity in
its music, combiningjazz, blues, clas
sic rock and modern Bohemian pop.
Pugh and Kralyevich cite Van Mor
rison as a major influence, as well as
Eric Clapton, Eric Johnson and
REM.
“It’s legitimate to say there is a big
influence in our music from bands
of our generation,” Pugh said. “But
Brian and I have both been well
schooled in music, and to typify us as
just an REM band would overgene
ralize our direction.”
Pathetic Sketch released a five-
song demo tape this summer, and
the group is in the process of ex
tending its playing circuit to include
Houston and Austin. Pugh cites the
group’s dissatisfaction with local
support as a major factor for want
ing to play out of town.
“There is a whole mentality here
that people won’t go pay to see a lo
cal band,” he said. “This beer-drink
ing mentality and lack of support
really affects the level of competition
between the dif ferent local groups.”
Kralyevich added, “We just like to
play. The experience is what we’re
after right now, and the support will
hopefully follow wherever we play.”
Star Tavern, but even so we’ll proba
bly end up playing out of town mo
re.”
“Out of town” means Austin and
Houston, where Street Pizza plays
several times a year. The band en
joys both the exposure of playing in
the larger cities, and the lower insur
ance costs.
“Whenever we play anywhere lo
cally we have to pay a real high loan
and insurance price,” he explained.
“We’ve had a lot of problems with
kids breaking our equipment. We’re
still paying for some past damages.”
For any intrigued listeners, Street
Pizza has released a demo tape, a
five-song spectacle that includes
“Devil in My Drawers,” “White Sub
urban Trash,” “Butt Flu,” “Surf’s
Up” and “Sorority Girls. The band is
currently working on material for a
new album and will be playing lo
cally in October.
“Street Pizza is a real different ex
perience,” Allen promised. “We’re a
one-of-a-kind here. It’s either fast
and loud, or we don’t play.”
Agent Orange and the Defoliants
Agent Orange and the Defoliants
is a part}- rock/dance band that
startea three years ago. They play a
combination of original material and
songs by the Rolling Stones, the Ju
dy’s, U2 and others.
The band includes Carl Sepul
veda on bass, keyboards and vocals,
Rob Liccardi on drums, Jon Boyle
on guitar and vocals and Brian Lux
on bass. All five members are either
present or former cadets.
The band has demo tapes avail
able, and they plan to play at the
Parthenon and Kay’s Cabaret this
year.
Pathetic Sketch
According t*o Paul “Stu” Pugh,
[guitarist and vocalist for Pathetic
Sketch, he and his fellow band mem
bers are not afraid to take chances
[when it comes to their music.
“We do a lot of song writing
[where we put forth and try out new
[ideas,” Pugh explained. “We’re defi
nitely an original band, who is very
willing to try our own material.
Street Pizza
Street Pizza is not your everyday
band. If you enjoy your music loud
and obnoxious, though, they might
just be the band for you.
“Pizza has always been loud and
fast, and that part of the band will
never change,” lead singer Doc (alias
Pot Roast) Allen explained. “We may
mellow out in respect to the jokes
and dirty language, but the sound
wall remain loud and fast. Our style
is straightforward — in your face.”
Street Pizza began almost three
years ago w'hen Doc and The Rev.
P.D. (guitarist Dru Wilson) threw a
band together to open for Adrenalin
O.D., a hardcore group from Cali
fornia.
“When A.O.D. came to town there
wasn’t a single band here who was
close to their style,” Allen said. “So
Dru and I got Scott (Dunlap, alias
Scott Rot, drummer) and Bill (Allen,
alias Igerent, bassist) to join us, and
we threw' together eight songs for
the show. When we got paid for it,
we said, ‘Yeah, lets do it again.’ ”
The band has played regularly at
the Parthenon, Eastgate Live, and
the Cow Hop Annex, but with the
closing of Eastgate Live last winter
and the Cow Hop Annex later this
month, Allen fears the band will
have a hard time playing locally.
“The loss of the Cow Hop and
Eastgate really hurt us,” he said.
“Our shows are too wild and offen
sive for the pizza places like Mama’s,
and Kay’s (Cabaret) is kind of small.
We may be able to play at the Texas
Ashburn
The group Ashburn took its name
from a street in College Station
where one of its members grew up.
But Chip Patterson, Ashburn lead
guitarist, said the student quartet
hopes to be traveling more prom
ising roads in the future.
“We’re hoping by next summer to
do some road dates, and get a label
on down the road,” he said. “We
have big plans.”
Ashburn’s other members are
drummer John Klement, bassist
Teddy Swigart and vocalist and
rhythm guitarist Phil Wattenbarger,
all of whom are students.
Half of the band’s material is orig
inal and half is cover, but Patterson
said they hope to go all-original in
the future.
When asked about the group’s
style, he said, “If anything, we like to
call it progressive. We like upbeat,
fast songs.”
The Band With No Sleep
The Band With No Sleep is a
band with no limit to the number of
their musical influences.
Don Overby, guitarist and lead
vocalist, said the group has influ
ences ranging from Elvis Presley to
the Beatles to Prince. Overby said
the group is versatile and generally
play soul, swing and ’60s and ’70s
rock ’n’ roll.
The Band With No Sleep com
monly performs at Cow Hop Annex,
Kay’s Cabaret and Texas Star Tav
ern. T he band will be performing on
Oct. 6 and Oct. 21 at Kay’s and Oct.
14 at the Cow Hop Annex.
Besides Overby, the band consists
of Scott Eddy, guitar and vocals,
Dave Goff on drums and Mark Pol
lard on bass.
When not appearing with The
Band With No Sleep,.,JDon Overby
and Scott Eddy can be found per
forming as a duo.
Remaining true to the music style
of The Band With No Sleep, Overby
and Eddy perform on a simpler
level, featuring guitar and vocals.
They perform songs by Crosy, Stills,
Nash and Young; the Beatles, the
Rolling Stones and their own origi
nal music.
If all this isn’t enough, Overby
performs a solo act as well.
Overby, who performs hits from
the ’60s and ’70s along with original
songs, will be performing on Oct. 4
at Double Dave’s Pizza at Northgate.
Borrowed Tym
Mike Martin, bassist and vocalist
for the quartet Borrowed Tym, said
the band is more than just a hobby to
its members, even though one is an
electrical engineer and another is a
veterinarian.
“We’d like to go a ways with this,”
Martin said.
Perhaps that explains why the
group, whose other members are
drummer and vocalist Cary Biela-
mowicz (the vet), vocalist Tammy
Faulkner and guitarist and vocalist
Steve Oliver (the engineer), is work
ing on composing more original
material for its show, which consists
primarily of cover versions of ’60s
and ’70s classic rock songs.
“We’re working on scheduling
studio time to at least get our origi
nal material on tape,” Martin said.
“We can use that for bookings, and
might be able to attract a label.”
David Boyd
Boyd, a local Christian contempo
rary artist, often performs with Don
Pope. He plays all original material
and has released and album entitled
You Must Know. He can be seen at
Frank’s Bar and Grill and the Hil
ton.
Paul “Stu” Pugh, lead guitarist and vocalist for
Pathetic Sketch, plays a solo during the
Photo by Scott D. Weaver
band’s Sept. 16 performance at Kay’s Cabaret
in the Post Oak Mall.
Not that Foster is money-hungry
— he performs every other Thurs
day at Kay’s Cabaret and doesn’t
charge a cover. In fact, he was the
first musical act ever to perform at
Kay’s.
The senior industrial engineering
major will graduate in December,
but he said that won’t stop him from
performing or from pursuing his
musical goals.
“Everyone has pipe dreams —but,
realistically, I just get a kick out of
playing,” he said. “I hope to be
doing this for the rest of my life.”
The Killtones
The Killtones is a hardrocking,
blues trio that includes Had Binion,
guitar and vocals, Steve Kuhn on
bass and Craig Knight on drums.
They are strongly influenced by Ste
vie Ray Vaughn, Jimi Hendrix and
Cream, all guitar-oriented trios.
The Killtones perform at the Cow
Hop, Parthenon and Kay’s Cabaret.
The Killtones is a purely live band
that just likes to have f un, and, con
trary to rumors, is still active.
Don Pope
Don Pope is a five-year Bryan-
College Station musical veteran and
favorite who combines jazz and
Christian contemporary. He is
usually accompanied by two to six
other performers, appearing at
Frank’s Bar and Grill, the Hilton
and the College Station Jazz Festival.
Pope has released a record, which
is available at Hasting’s, and has an
other release scheduled for
Christmas. He performs a variety of
jazz standards and original Christian
music. He also performs at wed
dings, churches and civic functions.
The Scroocs
A classic rock ’n’ roll band that
specializes in Grateful Dead covers.
The Scroocs has been playing off
and on in College Station since the
early ’80s. Mark “Scrooc” Botke
leads the band on guitar and vocals,
and wall be reuniting the group
soon. The Scroocs can be seen at
Kay’s Cabaret and Mama's Pizza.
Sneaky Pete and the Neon Madmen
“Sneaky” Pete Rizzo was sitting in
the Deluxe burger bar when he
came up with the idea of calling his
band the Neon Madmen.
“We play music mostly from that
era — you know, with the ‘Happy
Days’ feel,” Rizzo said. “The De
students have a lot of energy and
like to see people who enjoy playing.
And we do.”
It seems that Rizzo enjoys playing,
since he also does a solo sing-along
act Wednesdays at the Flying To
mato. The act concentrates on hu
morous songs and is now in its fifth
year.
He also recently had an original
song on the syndicated “Dr. Demen-
to” radio show, from which he gets
some of his performing material. It
was the third time Rizzo had had a
song accepted for the show.
“The Tomato show has been a
great success,” he said. “I can see a
nice, big Aggie tradition starting
with the Wednesday sing-along.”
Starvin’ Marvin and The Dexitrims
Starvin’ Marvin and The Dexi
trims is not a diet plan.
Guitarist Jeff Stevens proclaimed
the group to be “the most versatile
band in town.” The group performs
a variety of music including country,
Top 40 and rock ’n' roll. Stevens said
the band’s central influence is the
Allman Brothers.
The group will not be a\
cians connected with the College Sta
tion live music scene.
Myatt says he and band members
Lee Martin, bassist and vocalist, and
Hank Allen, drummer and vocalist,
all are 30 or older, and all have been
musicians for at least 20 years.
“We hardly ever rehearse — it just
comes naturally now,” he said. “I
guess that’s why we have so much
fun.”
Myatt also thinks the Twister au
dience enjoys themselves — as the
band specializes in danceable classic
rock from the ’60s, ’70s and early
’80s.
“We really like to think of our
selves as a dance band,” he said. “It’s
hard to come see us and stay seated.”
White Bread
White Bread drummer Jim Ham-
mitt said the band's main priority
now is to rebuild the following it
earned by playing around town last
spring.
“We didn’t play any summer da
tes,” Hammitt said. “Now we just
want people to know we’re back
around.”
T hose used to the White Bread of
spring may be surprised to hear of
for the next month because they are the recent addition of vocalist Nancy
currently recording their first al- Louise Pratt to the lineup of vocalist
We hardly ever rehearse — it just comes
naturally now. I guess that’s why we have so much
fun.”
— Wade Myatt,
The Texas Twisters
Photo by Frederick D.Joe
Street Pizza vocalist Doc “Pot Roast” Allen
Pat Foster
Acoustic guitarist Pat Foster likes
the freedom of being a solo artist.
“I like not having to w-orry about
internal debate,” he said. “It’s easier
to practice solo — I try to learn two
or three songs a week.
“But I also like not having to split
any proceeds.”
luxe’s neon reminded me of that,
and I decided that neon had to be in
the name.”
The four-year-old group now in
cludes lead guitarist and vocalist
John Ward, bassist and vocalist Mark
Pollard and drummer and vocalist
Hank Allen.
Their style definitely keeps that
good-times feeling of their name.
’It s our way of letting loose and
having a good time,” Rizzo said, “li
seems to rub off on our audience
bum.
The band’s members are Jeff Ste
vens, lead and rhythmn guitar and
lead vocals, Tom Spence, lead and
rhythmn guitar and vocals, Kevin
Duff, bass guitar and vocals and
Brad Taplin, drums and vocals.
Sundown
Sundown offers Bryan-Coilege
Station a blend of folk, blues and
contemporary music.
Tim Williams, guitarist, said Lyle
Lovett, Bob Wills and James Taylor
are some of the band’s major influ
ences.
Sundown can commonly be found
at the Excalibre Club or the Bistro.
Currently, the band will be ap
pearing on Thursday through Sat
urday nights for the next month at
the Excalibre Club.
Members are Tim Williams, gui
tar, harmonica and vocals; Rick
Ford, guitar and vocals; Richard
Kriehn, guitar, bass, mandolin and
fiddle and Teri Downing, guitar,
keyboards and vocals.
The Texas Twisters
Wade Myatt, lead vocalist anti
lead guitarist of the Texas Twisters,
-said he thinks the members of his
band are probably the oldest musi-
and rhythm guitarist Eric Flaherty,
lead guitarist Steve Harrington and
bassist Kenny McAllister.
But Hammitt called Pratt’s mem
bership a “refreshing” addition to
the band’s southern rock/Austin
progressive sound (he cited the Reiv
ers as a large influence), which is
composed entirely of original
material penned by Flaherty.
How has Pratt adjusted to mem
bership in an otherwise all-male
band, especiallv considering the
guys’ traoitional after-practice dis
cussions, which Hammitt described
as “male oriented?”
“She usually just leaves,” Hammitt
said.
X-it
X-it is a group that strives for an
off-the-wall, progressive sound. The
band performs a lot of songs by the
Cure, New Order, REM and Led
Zeppelin. X-it also has a demo tape
available, and they perform at
Sneakers, the Zephyr Club and at
parties.
The band has been together for a
year and a half and features David
Loving on guitar, Russ Friesz on
bass, David Swartzbach on vocals,
Ken Scott on keyboards and Mark
Seid on drums.