all HAIL me...

and everyone else while you're at it.

We're giving away everything we record these days. After nearly five years of bustin' our brains out in clubs, theaters, parking lots, and most of all, a van, we're focusing less on selling beer in bars, and more on putting our music out. Presently, we're giving away our most recent demo EP's, My Little Psycho and Absolutely Nothing, which were recorded, primarily, at Emercy studio in Toledo, and at Big Sky Studio in Ann Arbor, MI. Two of these songs have been placed in television shows and four have been licensed to an L.A. publisher. Meanwhile, several other publishers have been offering assistance in getting the songs to labels and production entities.

These EP's are a recent attempt to get the band's large catalogue of music on tape...and out to our (rather patient) listeners. After two EP's within a year (and over a thousand giveaways), we'll soon be done with a third. Now...if we can only keep up the pace, we'll finally get a fraction of our songs on tape...and we intend on pressing these and handing them out as well.

This latest recording binge comes after several years of regional band life. For two years, from 1996 to '98, we were signed to Overture Records, an independent label out of Detroit, MI. That relationship spawned our first, and only, full-length CD, Lessons in Monster Making. It met with local success, and was deemed, "undoubtedly one of the best, if not the best disc to come out of a Toledo-based band to date" by the Glasseye. We did what most regional acts do...sold a few thousand CD's from the stage, did radio shows, and primarily played "clubs." We performed a lot...too much really...at venues from New York to Chicago, at music festivals and showcases (Ticket Master Music showcase in Cleveland, the Intel Musicfest in New York, Undercurrents showcase in Cleveland), and opened for many national bands such as: Matthew Sweet, Seven Mary Three, Our Lady Peace, Sloan, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Todd Snyder, Big Wreck, and The Gandharvas, Blue Oyster Cult. We also picked up endorsements from Ernie Ball and Sabian Cymbals.

Before that, we recorded an initial self-titled EP which was distributed on Overture. During this era, the band enjoyed significant college airplay (over 30 stations in Great Lakes region), and even some commercial stations spun some of the music. It had only been about eight months since we had first come together, at the time, as a three-some: John (lead vocals/guitar), Chuck (drums) and Wasim (bass/vocals). It wasn't until after our first full-length CD, in 1997, that our final member, Cleveland, joined as guitar/vocalist. Before that, well, we all dabbled in recording projects and various useless bar bands. Ironically, however, way way before any of this...back in 1980's, when everybody had long hair..., Cleveland, Chuck and John played together in another original project, and later Cleveland and John moonlighted as an acoustic duo in the Toledo area.

Before that...nothing musically significant happened...it was, after all, the 80's. Cleveland was probably playing at bars, Chuck and John (brothers at the time) were fighting over Rush albums and trying to grow their hair, and Wasim was too young to say "bass."

 

 

Important upcoming dates

Date	Venue	Description
November 28, 2008	Frankie's	Pre-CD Release Party