Donate to Help Nate!

I'm writing this with the sincerest hope that I'll be reaching as many people as possible to help.

If you're familiar with this blog. Chances are you might know Nate Gluck. As a musician he's contributed to acts such as Ensign, Vision, The Fire Still Burns, Strength 691, For the Love of, Manalive, House of Others and more.

If you're familiar with
New Jersey's independent  music scene, been to a show or two in the area over the past three decades. Well, you've probably ran into Nate and noticed he's one of the best people on the planet.
Last night, I learned that Nate has just been diagnosed with stomach cancer. I understand, full well, that Nate has a tough battle ahead of him. And while I feel his personality and positive energy will go a long way. He's still going to need a lot of help. This is where the Hardcore scene and just about anyone can show the true meaning of family, friendship and dedication to a just cause. This is when we ask the Hardcore community to put their money where their mouth is and turn words to action. Every little bit counts and every little bit matters.
Our thoughts, prayers and positive energy goes out to Nate, his family and countless loved ones. Get well soon Nate. James Damion

Click the link below to donate.
http://www.gofundme.com/pma_por_vida

Cicada Radio - Crime Waves EP

On Crime Waves, the bands third release to date. Kearny New Jersey's Cicada Radio continue to grow and evolve musically. The band, featuring brothers Patrick and
Michael Keefe, (Guitar/Vocals) Brandon Barren (Bass) and Josh Bartsch (Drums) have built a foothold in the New Jersey indie scene since 2010.

The EP features six songs that offer rewarding melodies and textures that sweepingly compliment and shape atmospheric, dreamlike vocal landscapes. There's a certain vulnerable urgency about Keefe's voice that makes Cicada Radio feel vital, yet easily accessible. Giving these songs a sense of intimacy while still remaining accessible to the listener. In each of the times I've listened to
Crime Waves. I've found myself drawn to a different song. While Carcosa opens the set with promise. The EP's fourth track Tomorrow is an absolute joy that brings together some of the bands best songwriting qualities.  The closer Mercenaries, which clocks in at a lofty 4:46 is as beautiful as it is boundless.

While the bands name and EP title might remind you of some of the punker leanings of many of the current Jersey acts. Cicada Radio seem to offer so much more. Being that this blog just around the time of Cicada Radio's first release Imposter. I feel as if i've grown up alongside of the band's sound and overall development. Looking back, it's easy to say they've taken a major step forward with each release. James Damion

Get it Here Killing Horse Records

A Night of Releases, Debuts and Celebratory Hugs at the Court Tavern

Due to my hunger and the fact I spent most of the early part of my evening waiting for my food to come out of the kitchen. I managed to miss most of Darryl Norrell's acoustic set. The two or so songs had a laid back and cozy appeal that would have felt a lot more intimate if the crowd assembled had come anywhere close to the stage. Blame it on my empty stomach, but I was starting to picture myself sitting up on stage with the band roasting marsh mellows. Take it any way you want. It seemed a nice way to open the night. Say what you want, butI think that long bench at the back of the room serves as a Lazy-Boy for a lot of people who just aren't quite ready to fully commit to a good time.

Sink Tapes followed and though I had no prior knowledge of the local New Brunswick quartet. I found myself immediately drawn to their melodic and seemingly effortless approach to Indie Rock. Their set quite impressive musically. I felt drawn to
drummer / vocalist Gabe's delicate vocal delivery and easy approach to the drums.
I created an imaginary line a few feet from the stage. Not wanting to disturb the intimate setting their set created. My one regret of the night was not bringing enough cash to properly ransack Sink Tapes merch table. I hope to get the chance again soon. Only time will tell.

Sink Tapes

Considering how much time I've spent lending my ears to Modern Chemistry's
'We'll grow out of this' Review Here
and 'An Introduction' Review Here.
It's hard to imagine this was my first opportunity catch the band live. Lucky I caught them on this particular night, considering this was to be the bands last local show for some time.
Their uplifting energy and spirit moved the laid back and somewhat stand offish crowd away from the bar and the comfort of the bleachers within striking distance of the stage.
Lead singer / guitarist Brendan Hourican grades high in the frontman department. A mix of energy, charisma and the ability to perfectly engage in onstage banter without it sounding forced or phony. The band's set included  songs from both EP's along with a couple of new ones.
Considering Modern Chemistry list 80's
Power Pop band The Outfield as one of their key influences. I shouldn't have been the least bit surprised when they rolled out a cover of the bands sole hit 'Your Love'. Regardless, my jaw dropped so low. I can accurately relay the the floor of the Court Tavern tastes like a combination of rubber and Pabst Blue Ribbon.
It really raised the eyes and ears of the already involved crowd and put a nice ribbon on an excellent set.

Modern Chemistry

Being that it was their very first show. The Sound is Fine landed a pretty sweet spot on the bill. The Wayne, New Jersey natives whose members comprise of two sets of brothers (Reed and Skyler Adler and Evan and Colin Campbell) are no strangers to the New Jersey independent music scene. Reed, Skyler and Evan comprised 3/5 of the now defunct
Nico Blues. Truth be told. I may have never made it out if it were not for Reed personally asking. It's hard to believe it's been over a year since I've seen these guys. The band played a tight set of celebratory Rock n' Roll  that included songs from their debut EP. One so good, I knew the words and hooks to each song before they even plugged in. Life their predecessors The Nico Blues. I can see The Sound is Fine making a big impression on the current New Jersey music scene and beyond. Be sure to check back in Friday for my review of the EP.

The Sound is Fine

With their new single 'Grandview Terrace' in tow. Local heroes Holy City Zoo closed the night on a high note. The band and personnel have been favorites of mine since the inception of the blog in 2001. Earning a special place in my heart and partial credit for my continual hearing loss. While The New Brunswick noise makers provide the energy and intensity of the areas best Hardcore our. They've grown to become on of the most musically proficient and technically smart band I can think of. Think Rye Coalition meets the Foo Fighters in a dirty New Brunswick basement. I can't think of four more laid back and chill people to hang out with. Interesting, considering the brutal savages they become when plugged in.
It wouldn't be a Holy City Zoo gig if Frank didn't remove his shirt to revel his werewolf lineage. Like Modern Chemistry, they mentioned this would be their last local show in quite a while. They plan on following the new single with an extended lockdown in the studio.
One can only hope the time spent will help produce the bands first full length and big big spot for me on the "Thank List." Only time will tell. James Damion

This was only my second time back since the Church St. landmark reopened and it can't go without saying the new owners have really done a great job with the place. I look forward to more shows, warmer weather and a few games of pool in the near future.

My Return to New Brunswick's Court Tavern

It's hard to believe this was my first trip to the Court Tavern since its reopening.
I couldn't help but immediately recall how devastated I was upon hearing about its closing.
Though the Court was, by no means, something any architectural snob would soil themselves over. It's location served as both the center for a city that's continually produced new and inspiring acts and a middle ground for bands traveling between New York City and Philadelphia. Its resurgence reinstates that vital link.

As I made my way inside I noticed that the room to the left, one that was once cluttered with garbage had been turned into a comfortable lounge area with couches, video games and a foosball table. The bar area seemed cleaner, more welcoming and the walls featured gallery quality music photography and most noticeable was the absence of that old douche bag that would project the misery that was his life on everyone he collected money from on the way downstairs. It was indeed, a welcome return.

If my sixth grade math skills serve me right, this was my fifth time seeing Archie Alone.
The Essex County five piece plays a very impressive blend of Punk and Hardcore with emotional vocals and somewhat Metal tinged guitar leads and riffs. There's really not much
I can say that hasn't already been said. The band opened the night to a very sparse, yet intimate crowd. This was by far the smallest crowd I've seen them play to. From the first note it became more than evident that the size of the crowd, stage and venue bear little consequence on their performance. The band seems to gel just as much with the those in attendance as they do with each other. On this particular night I really felt the spirits in me and tried to move the crowd as close to the stage as possible. Even grabbing the bands unofficial sixth member Ana Dobrian to form a somewhat unofficial wall of death.
One that had me sent to the floor due to my own lack of balance and slight drunkeness. Overall, Archie Alone killed it. Setting the tone for the night and raising the bar pretty high for everyone else.

Archie Alone Band Camp

 It's been a long time since I've seen I Hope You Die, maybe two years. With two touring bands bailing out at the last minute, her own guitarist a no show and an audience whose majority was members of the bands that showed up that night. As Punk Rock as
Shannon Perez might be, her voice and song writing abilities go far beyond that rather confined description. That voice, depending on the emotion and angst of the song itself can range from dark and bluesy to sweet and angelic. Each song delivered with a warmth and emotive spirit that makes those in attendance feel as if they are a part of what she's experiencing at the time. One can only imagine the kind of stress she was under on this particular night. With two of the touring bands dropping off the bill, a sparce attendance and her own guitarist a no show. Others might begin to quickly unravel, a lot of people might falter, but not Shannon. She not only kept it together, she made it feel as if I Hope You Die was intended to be a duo.  I hope to see this band releasing new material and playing more shows.

I Hope You Die Facebook

Long Island's bluesy garage influenced three piece A New Bug were the perfect follow up to
I Hope You Die's style and approach. The bands testosterone fueled
"How You Guys Doing Tonight?" Rock N' Roll swagger led by frontman Eddie Lo on guitar and vox with the mysterious Nick Diaz on bass and the man of a thousand names
Michael Boulanger on drums was very appealing. Reminding me of acts such as
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Strokes and The Hives. They definitely added another layer to the night's diverse bill.

A New Bug Bandcamp

Closing the night was Feeny. The band featuring former/current members of the Far Away Boys (An impressive band I caught at the Court a few years back.) The three piece, who danced and remained front center for each of the bands that went before, took the stage with the same enthusiasm and energy they showed on the dance floor that night. Much like the Far Away Boys, Feeny play some impressive upbeat Pop Punk with just enough punch to keep the pit moving. It was a real pleasure to see how much these kids have grown musically since I last saw them . They've definitely kicked it up a notch. Though I'm personally unsure of The Far Away Boys future...Feeny undoubtedly made an excellent first impression.

Feeny  Facebook

As I was driving home I couldn't help but reflect on all the good times I've had in New Brunswick over the years. From the numerous basement shows to the celebratory nights at the Court Tavern. The town has been good to me musically. I'm hoping to be back there this week for my first basement show in maybe two years. I'm really looking forward to it.
James Damion

Talking to Drummer Tony "Detroit" Scandiffio Part II

In part I of my interview with Tony we talked about his time in the Hardcore bands Hogan's Heroes and O.S. 101. Two bands that had major impact on the 80's and 90's. In part II we talk about the very busy and sometimes confusing life as a musician. Since the first installment of this interview Tony has left I Hope You Die to better focus on his other myriad of projects. Thanks to Tony for filling in all the blanks. I'm hoping our paths will cross sooner than later. James Damion

James: Fast forward a few year where I met you in Denville. You're playing in two bands with mutual friend Shannon Perez. Tell me about
I Hope You Die and Strange Things Done in the Midnight Sun. How would you describe the two and how do they differ?

Tony: I remember you came to a show we had at the Court Tavern prior to the closing and reopening of the new one. We were involved with putting on local shows there for the sake of providing an opportunity for local and touring original bands.
I would say that with Strange Things Done in the Midnight Sun the main thing there is
John Mathews is the lead singer with a male voice being dominant in the forefront of the tunes and the female voice compliments, harmonizes etc.Whereas in I Hope You Die, the obvious difference is the lead vocal is the female voice. They're also dwell in two completely different genre with Strange Things... being Goth Punk and I Hope You die being more Power Pop meets Punk.

James: Has there ever come a time when you arrive early for a practice or a show and ask "Wait, what band am I playing in tonight?"

Tony: That's actually a funny question. For some time I would literally check what day it was. What time it was. Look around the room asking "Wait, what band is this?"
It's happened at practices and shows. (Laughs) It can definitely get confusing, being involved with so many different artists.

James: Though I've listened to the Extras, Inc. countless times. Due to geography,
I've yet to see you live. The band sounds more Rock and Roll than anything you've done.  Tell me about the band.

Tony: The Extras Inc. is a band that formed towards the end of 2003. The man responsible for the songwriting is Pete Jager who plays guitar and sings leads. He also plays bass in an instrumental Surf band called Ultra Torqued. Pete's a straight up great guy who's really easy to get along with. We've been friends since I was in O.S. 101 in the mid 90's. His band Dodgeball and O.S.101 practiced at the same studio in Asbury Park. Another important member of The Extras Inc. is the one and only Jason (Skiz) Skizlak. He's an awesome
bass player whose played in numerous bands such as Old Bat, Montagna, Mouth to Mouth, Bubble Gum, Sir Dove and more. Skiz has even played accordion with Weezer at MSG.

The Extras Inc. fully enjoy the freedom of not being genre specific. It's Rock, it's Punk, it's Folk. It's a whole lot of things. The only cover what we've released thus far. I really think this band can do it all. We even have jams the go all over the place. We even have an audible set up where, if needed, we can switch to plan B in the middle of a set where you wouldn't even recognize us musically. The band is content to exist, period. We're not the most motivated three piece but we bring our 'A' Game wherever we play and fully intend to keep doing so. Musically, it's a healthy work ethic. The only pressure we feel is the pressure we put on ourselves. And that's how we like it.

James: Now I'm hearing about a new band Sir Dove. How would you describe the bands sound and how does differ from the myriad of other projects you're involved in?

Tony: Sir Dove is a band that developed from a bunch of musician friends in
Monmouth County. Skiz (The Extras Inc.) sings, plays guitar and keyboards. Pat Veil, formerly of the Sex Zombies plays acoustic guitar and sings, Ben Ross on bass and vocals recorded and produced our record 'Stay Home'. He's also an amazing drummer , singer and songwriter who also plays in Intense Men, 117 and is involved with Nact Records. The band isn't motivated to change the world. We're just content playing as often as we want.
Our record has done well considering it's limited release. You can listen and download it for free Here. While we may be old, jaded punks that don't feel the need to do all the work for promoters and clubs. We are proud of our art and refuse to let anyone outside the band make the decisions for us. We're not the busiest of bands... But we're okay with that.

James: One of the things that help me to think there is hope for me yet is the fact that you're still skating after all these years? Do you have any favorite spots?

Tony: Skating? Yeah, I love to skate when I have time. My favorite local spot in Sayerville called JFK park. I also love to bowl there.

James: Is there ever a point in the day, week, month or year when Tony "Diesel" takes a break? What's your idea of down time?

Tony: Down time for me is usually well spent. I like to play guitar, garden, go to the beach, a show or simply lay in the hammock out back. Unfortunately I'm too busy to down time these days.

The Extras Inc.
Sir Dove

Filling in the Blanks; An Interview withNew Jersey's Eastern Anchors

Eastern Anchors had just wrapped up a rare Monday night show at Hoboken's Maxwell's.
At the time I was feeling kind of lucky getting to see a band whose recent album
"Drunken Arts and Pure Science" had become a recent favorite by a band I honestly knew little to nothing about. It wasn't until the bands singer/guitarist Walter Verde handed me two CD's from the band Aviso'Hara that the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place.
As I listened "Goodnight Sweetheart" and "Our Lady of the Highway" I thought to myself, "How did I miss this?" I mean I've lived in New Jersey for most of the 21st Century.
What could I have been doing with my life? So with more questions than answers I decided to go right to the source to fill in the blanks and find the answer to just what the hell is this thing they call "Dad Rock"? James Damion

James: Can you fill me in on lineage between Aviso'Hara and Eastern Anchors? What was time frame and evolution between the two bands?

Ken: We had all played in the same scene together for a while, but I think the link originally formed between Aviso Hara and a band I was playing in with Aviso drummer Benny Rodriguez called Clydesdale. We asked Walter to record some demos for us. Soon after we recorded our singer/guitarist Bill wanted to move to a pure vocalist role, so we asked Walt to step in and fill the guitarist spot. Clydesdale broke up about a year later and Walter and I decided to keep things going with a new band, which became Eastern Anchors.

Walter: To piggy back off Ken, it took a few years and lapses in activity till we came to this version of the band.  We were a 4 piece with Dave on second guitar.  Dave left for a while and we became a 3 piece, which is where we switched up our direction and I started using different tunings to make the new material work better with one guitar.  Then our bass player left, but by then Dave was available again, so he came back in on bass.  And that’s how we got here today.

Dave: It's a totally muddled path but somehow we came back together as this rock unit. When Aviso' Hara broke-up I had a band called The Slow Wire and put out two records and toured a little. Then when that fizzled out eventually it made sense to me when I got the rock-bug to look for something else. Not to mention after Aviso broke-up we played a bunch of re-union type shows up until last year with Ken on drums! So in reality it's been the same group for some time. Just different songs in different keys and tunings with years in-between.

James: You've been quite busy writing new music and playing shows. What inspired the rise in activity and creativity?

Walter: Well, we put out a record in October of last year, so the increase in shows was definitely in part to sell Cds.  When we did the record, it was basically everything we were playing live as well, so you start to want to be able to switch up the setlist, which leads to more songs.

Ken: As far as the writing goes, I think we get pretty restless playing the same songs over and over.

Dave: Yes, it's true we go through booking spurts and in turn writing sessions that sometimes manage to be super productive. I'm already thinking of the fall. Right now we're in that writing stage again because somehow we don't have any shows until end of May at Asbury Lanes. So we're taking advantage once a week to build up a "new" catalog of tunes so we can try them out and mix them in the set. We're constantly throwing down ideas at home and then when the time is right and we've done some self editing we bring a tune to practice.  Sometimes it's really just a miracle with our schedules that we can even fit a practice in before a show.

James: In writing songs, do you have a certain approach? What's the building process like?

Dave: We're trying to demo everything.
I think we officially have a back-log of songs we're trying to write this summer.

Ken: I think the writing process differs from song to song. Sometimes Walt or Dave will come to practice with a new riff and the song comes together almost instantly. Other    times, we could labor on a riff for months until something comes of it.         

Walter: It varies, sometimes songs come in pretty complete, sometimes we play through a bunch of ideas and see what works. I try not to be too precious about anything because I think we have a sound as this band, so not everything is going to work.  I probably dump more stuff than I keep in this band just because it might not work in the context of a really loud and noisy three piece.  But what ends up an Eastern Anchors song, could only be an Eastern Anchors song.

James: Can you offer a little insight into the CD's title "Drunken Arts and Pure Science? It sounds like an inside joke. Or the secret answer you have to give to get into a club or retrieve your online password.

Walter: It came out of a term that I heard during a city architecture tour, Drunken Architecture.  Then I was thinking about the whole process of writing, recording and finally performing an album.  So, it’s this blend between the science of how it all works, and the drunken art, which is the sense of abandon I think you need to let songs kind of write themselves.  Now that I look at my explanation, it sounds like a bunch of bullshit, doesn’t it?  Ok, it just sounds cool.

James: The album art "Robot in the woods" looks vaguely familiar. What was the idea behind it?

Dave: This is a actual color by numbers painting by our good friend Neil O' Brien. who used to play drums in The Van Pelt and now has a band Ribeye Brothers with Tim from Monster Magnet. Neil also plays in a more experimental group called Wands. I actually won a copy at a benefit auction years ago and when i rediscovered the piece I proposed it to the band as the album art. I think walt came-up with the title as he was ease dropping on a conversation on a train or something.

Ken: We actualIy kicked around a lot of ideas for the album art. But, we all knew as soon as Dave showed us the painting that we should use it as the cover. We also used artwork from Neil O’ Brien for our first CD.

Walter: I just want to add that in addition to Neil’s awesome painting, the rest of the design and layout was done by Stu Wexler at Meat + Potatoes.

James: Can we expect a new record soon?

Walter:  I can’t say how soon, but we’re definitely writing.  I’m finally to the point where I can record the band at home.  We just did a track for a tribute comp to benefit the family of Jason Molina (https://www.facebook.com/songsmolina?fref=ts), which is the first full band track we recorded completely in my house.  Unlike the last record, where we recorded everything we had, I want to demo a lot of songs on our own this time, and then go into the studio to record the actual album. That being said, I plan on making the demos release quality, so that whatever does not make the record can be used for comps, b-sides, etc.

Dave: I would love for us to start tracking in the fall but first we need a big swath of songs to choose from and we're 1/4 of the way there. Which is a good start and we just need to put the blinders on and keep writing. I'm pretty sure we'll have another record out before the Wrens do. We challenged them last year when we heard there was movement in their camp that would get a record out before them. Charles conceded and we won the gentlemen's duel.

James: I had the pleasure of watching the documentary on the band. How did the idea to do the doc come about? Do you think it paints a good picture of the band in general?

Dave: I just had finished doing a web documentary series for Ogilvy & Mather  where I was recently working for the past four years and they asked me to make another piece of original content for the One show awards. So I decided to use some of those resources and all my producing skills i learned over the past couple years and apply it to a story I wanted to tell. So luckily it lined up with the release of our record. So many bands have regular rock videos and in the spirit of documentary film making we wanted toe true about the story and not be all glory. Some of the dark side I left on the cutting room floor and you'll just have to ride in the van with us to hear those stories.
I do have a follow-up planned but we're gonna have to track down all our old drummers and some old band mates to make it happen. Who knows maybe with the next record we'll do part two!

James: Did you have to bribe Jim Testa to say all those nice things about you?

Dave: I've known Jim since 1991 or so. He really does not need too much coaxing; if he has fond memories or at least what his subconscious might not of wiped out. Cool, because our old band certainly had our shitty nights and for some reason those are good memories. He seriously is a pro though. He was saying off camera to me when we were shooting that he had just taken part in a Yo La Tengo documentary and some other one and was not sure if they would ever see the light of day. If it weren't for people like him we would have no idea what it was like as a fan. He wrote about aviso at least a dozen times. He did ignore the first Eastern Anchors record and came through solidly on Drunken Arts like a champ. Although he did see us play he has not been able to catch this version of the band live as of yet but he will.

James: I was living in New York City in the 90's and apart from the occasional Hardcore show or touring band playing Maxwells. New Jersey Rock was pretty much a mystery to me. Can you paint a picture of what the Jersey scene was like then. The bands, the venues, the energy?

Walt:  Wow, early 90’s and late 90’s feel like two different lifetimes for me. Maxwells was always a major spot, and that is where I saw most of the shows that really influenced me.  Well, there and City Gardens in Trenton.  We were mostly associated with New Brunswick, which was great, from the city, to the venues, to the bands and labels that were active at the time, all great.  Then there was the shore scene around the Brighton Bar, where you had Monster Magnet, Godspeed and a ton of other great bands, as well as Heat Blast Records documenting the whole thing (I recommend the Holier than Seattle Comp, if you can find it). Oh yeah, and the Fastlane in Asbury!  I think people might forget how most great indie bands used to actually play in Asbury Park at that time.

James: Tell me about the term "Dad Rock"

Dave: For the record I'm the only dad in the band. Although Ken has cats. It's another way to say we're "experienced".
In term "Dad Rock" made me think of age and playing in bands as we're older and have more responsibilities.

James: Does it get harder to get out and play with the responsibilities of adulthood. Does it make it a little harder to sell and promote your record when you can't play out every week and don't really tour?

Ken: I think it takes a lot more planning in terms of scheduling things like shows and recording time. Even getting together to practice can be a challenge. As far as being able to promote the record goes, I think that using social media and having our record available on sites like "Bandcamp" and "Spotify" helps to make up for the lack of touring.

Dave: I would add to this that our Tumblr site http://easternanchors.tumblr.com has led to new fans and sales as well. It's basically part of our virtual store-front along with twitter and Facebook we use it all when we can to help promote us and our friends.

Walter: Touring isn’t a good option for us, we just do not have that time anymore, but I do think we can and will do some quick weekenders. We just have to make sure that when we do, that it is worth the time. As far as the internet and social media, etc., I do not think it makes up for not touring. But it does offer a ton of possibilities that were not there in the old days. We put this out on our own label, so I see everything that comes through.  I was really surprised by the amount of foreign sales we have, mostly Europe.  I don’t know where that comes from.  Maybe from the Rolling Stone thing helped some, but we were getting them before that.  So, thank you Internets!

Eastern Anchors  Band Site

Upcoming Event Asbury Lanes Show Details

Holy City Zoo - Building a Strong Foundation.

Here's an excerpt from my upcoming interview with New Brunswick's Holy City Zoo. 

The band is set to release a 7 inch EP on Tiny Giants Records. They've worked tirelessly building a reputation as a "Must See" live act. Here they talk about the importance of basement shows, scene and connecting with the crowd.  James Damion

http://holycityzoo.bandcamp.com/

Catching Up with Brian Macko

If you're reading this, and I'm sure you are. 
You most likely know Brian Macko. 
The former frontman for World Indifference and  Voice Or No Voice has been a mainstay on the New York and New Jersey Hardcore scene for ages. Whether he's on stage, in the pit showing his support to his favorite bands during a sing along or at the bar raising his glass to good times and good friends. 
You can count on Macko and his 6'6 frame to be in the middle of it all. In 2010 we lost one of the good guys when Brian and his beautiful wife moved to South Florida is search of opportunity and a better life. 
Brian recently returned north for a visit. 
I was still recovering form surgery and sadly missed out on seeing him when  Supertouch played Kearny Irish.  I did however manage to send him some questions to see just how well  he's adjusted to living in the Florida sun and what he misses most about the Dirty Jerz. Special thanks to Ken Salerno for contributing the amazing shots. I think they more than show off Brian's energy and personality. 
His contribution to the blog is immeasurable.  James Damion


James: You recently made it up to see Supertouch at Kearny Irish. Was that the key reason for your visit?

Brian: Actually, that wasn’t the key reason why I came up to visit, but probably ranked number three on the list. The main reason that I came up to the Jersey and NYC area was to go to one of my childhood friend’s wedding reception. He and his wife live out in Albuquerque New Mexico, so that weekend was the first time that I have seen them since they left two years ago. The second reason that I came up was to see my family, since family has always been a big part of my life while growing up. The one family member that I made it a point to go and pay a visit to was my Aunt Martha. The justification of why that I made it a point to go and see her was just a couple of weeks ago she was admitted into a nursing home/rehabilitation center located down in the Lower East side. She is the only other member in my family that has the same hereditary eye disease that I have. 
This woman has endured such a hard life through countless medical trials and tribulations starting with her vision loss thirty-seven years ago. Now at the age of 60 years old, for she is confined to a wheelchair, and is still legally blind, but still she has that PMA 
(Positive Mental Attitude).

James: Do you have fears about the future, with your own sight and not being able to live as you're already accustomed to? 
If so, How do you look at it and how do you deal with the aspects?                   

Brian: I lost my vision back in 2001 due to a disease called Leber Hereditary Optical Neuropathy (LHON).  My vision has pretty much stayed the same since then,

so I really don’t fear myself losing more vision, and this is because this disease is dormant.
It’s not supposed to progressively get worse, but you never know what life hands you.
I mean I could walk out the door tomorrow and get hit by a car, or get clubbed in the head by a blunt object, and from there I could lose all my vision due to multiple detached retinas.
What I am pretty much saying is that I try to live every day “Day by Day.”
There are a couple of things that I learned after I lost my vision.  I now learned that I judge people for who they are, and not what they look like, and that shit also just comes along with maturity.  I have also realized in my life that there is always someone else out there that has it much worse off than me, so that self pity shit doesn’t apply to me anymore, and this is because I have had this vision impairment for the last ten years.  I mean don’t get me wrong there are days that I get so frustrated that my vision impairment doesn’t allow me to do certain things, but then again I realize that it is not the end of the world.

One of the big positives of living down here in South Florida is there is a place called the Bascon Palmer Eye Institute, and this place is the only place that is doing research on my eye disease.  They are doing a study which includes a battery of eye tests, blood work, and questioning the individual who has the LHON gene.  I got involved in this study last January, and went back for my second visit last July.  I am not getting my hopes up too high thinking that I am going to get my vision back, but I am keeping my fingers crossed.
The one thing that I could say about how this vision impairment has changed my outlook on life is that I have become much more positive, for I mean I use to be a miserable prick when I had my vision, and now I am a much more positive person. 

James: How good was it seeing old friends and band mates, one of which was playing with Supertouch?



Brian: It was amazing to see all my friends. 
I got to chill with Mikey Marmo 

(played bass in 
Voice or no voice) three out of the six days that I was up, so that was mad cool. 
I didn’t get to hang with
Jon Biviano (guitar in Supertouch/Voice or no voice) all that much, but was mad psyched to see him play the shit out of that guitar. There was also another ex-band mate from
World Indifference that actually put on the show and his name is Ed “Ox” Occhipinti
(also owns and tattoos at Jinx Proof Tattoo), and it was really good shooting the shit with him since we really haven’t done that in years. I was extremely stoked to see Alf Bartone
(lead vocals in Ex Number Five/The Fire Still Burns and now
plays bass in Damn This Desert Air), for it was the first time that I caught their whole set, and that shit was mad powerful. Last but certainly not least, getting to see 

Caught in a Trap was definitely a treat, and this is because playing so many shows with those guys, and seeing them play that night brought back so many memories of 
Voice or no Voice. It’s pretty funny that when you look at the Caught in a Trap guys at face value, for you would think here’s a bunch of scary tough guys from Queens, but in actuality they are just a bunch of nice tough guys from Queens that play in an amazing band. 
Overall, the show was a success for me since I got to see many people 

that I haven’t seen in such a long time, so a big thanks goes out to Ox and Scott Mayers for putting on the show.

James: Were you at all surprised or disappointed about Andy no longer playing with Supertouch?

Brian: Am I surprised that Andy is not playing in Supertouch?  The answer to that one is                  “No comment.”  I am sorry, but I am not going to be the one that explains why Andy is not playing in Supertouch, for that question should be answered by Andy.
Now, you asked if I am disappointed that Andy is no longer playing in Supertouch, and the answer to that one is “Yes.”  I always like to see bands with their original members, and this is because the original members’ flavor is so pure to the original sound.  I mean don’t get me wrong Dean on Bass, and Rich on drums are doing an amazing job, but it is just a totally different dynamic.  Andy is a tremendous drummer, and an incredible person, so I knew it wouldn’t be long before he was playing in another band.  I was lucky enough to see Andy play in the legendary NYHC band Absolution at the Black N Blue Bowl this past year.
He sounded awesome like always, and I can’t wait to hear the new stuff that they recorded. 

James: Should we start expecting more frequent trips up North in the future?

Brian: I really can’t give you a solid answer on that one, and that is because if I am able to attain a job in the very near future, for then I won’t make it up as much as I want to.
I would totally want to make it up as much as possible, but financial restraints are what keep me down here. It’s weird, if I have no job then I have no money and tons of time. If I have a job then I have the money but no time to do anything. So, all I could say is we will take it as it comes.

James: Tell me about the move and what prompted you to move where a lot of people go to die.

Brian: Well, the actual move took place on 10/20/10 at 7:00am in the morning. 
My wife and I got on the road at 7:00am in the morning to head down to Virginia, and this was because we had to check in with Amtrak’s auto train at noon. We arrived on time to check in, and get some food; in addition we were able to rest up a little bit before getting on the train. The train actually left at 4:00 pm, and by 5:30 pm we found ourselves drinking some Sam Adams beers in the lounge car. We were served dinner at 7:00 pm which wasn’t all that good, but it did suffice to fill me up for the time being. Dinner was over for us at 8:00pm, so that pretty much meant that we were headed back to our seats for a ten hour toss and turn type of sleep in these undersized train chairs. These chairs weren’t really that undersized, but for my 6 foot 6 inch ass everything seems to be undersized. The last call for breakfast was at 7:00am, and that is when we decided to get our aching asses down to the dining car. Again, the meal they served was not memorable, but did serve its purpose to fill me up. 

Now, after breakfast we had a little bit of time to rest until we arrived in Sanford Florida at 9:00 am. Once we got off the train and into our car, for we had a bright idea to call our travel agent back in New Jersey. We asked her to book us five days at Disney World since we were only a town away and also because the moving company that we used wouldn’t be down in South Florida for another ten days. We arrived in our Disney resort room a little after 11:00 am, and we were in Magic Kingdom by noon. I am not going to get into great detail about the time spent at Disney World, but let me just tell you when they have the food and wine tasting at Epcot, for it is a fucking blast. 

Our last day at Disney World was spent hitting up some rides and getting some food. 

We left the park at 1:30pm, and probably got on the Florida Turnpike at 2:00pm. 
Our destination was to get to my Uncle’s house in Cooper City by 6:30pm, but we didn’t actually get there until around 8:00 pm. Fast forward 2 months and some change later, for its 1/11/11 and my wife and I purchase a town house a town over from my Uncle’s house.

You asked why I would move down to the place where most people move to just before they die, for the answers are love and money. Financially having a mortgage in New Jersey was draining the both of us, so moving down to South Florida made perfect sense. 
What I mean by this is we were able to buy a place out right without having to get a mortgage, and that alone has relieved a lot of tension. The second reason I mentioned was love. What I mean by this is my wife is a huge fan of  South Florida, so since she loves it down here, for then I will learn to love it too. Don’t get me wrong, I also chose to move down here, because we could have probably gone anywhere in the U.S, but I chose here out of result of having two Uncles down here. Even though I moved away from my home, family and friends, for I still needed to be around some family, so hopefully that explains the justification for the South Florida relocation.

James: What was the adjustment like? We're there any moments of anxiety or moments where you thought, "What the hell have I done?".

Brian: To be completely honest I wake up every day thinking to myself was this the right choice. 

Some days I think that it was, and some days I think it wasn’t. I think that when I get a job and settle into the job, for then I will be a little more adjusted in living down here. 
Right now being unemployed makes me feel like I am in limbo, so once I attain a job then that feeling will fade.  As far as living in a new environment goes, for this place has its pros and cons. Some of the pros are: I live near mad stores, so my blind ass can walk to all of them if I have to. We live only 20 minutes away from the beach, airport, and the down town area.
The transportation service that they have down here for the handicap is pretty damn dependable. Now, the cons are: Things are close, but I would much rather have them closer like they were in New Jersey. Some days the heat is really fucking unbearable, so that keeps my ass indoors as much as possible. Now when it comes to the bus system and the Tri-rail, for they both stop running at around 11:00pm, so if you’re late just a little bit then you are fucked. If you are late a little bit then you have to wait around for the next bus or train at 4:00am, so that shit definitely blows. 

James: What do you miss most since the move?

Brian: I miss my family and friends the most. 

I definitely miss New York City, from going to shows, or just walking around Manhattan. 

I miss the food without a doubt. New York and New Jersey hands down have the best pizza and bagels. Clifton has the best hot dogs at the 
Hot Grill, so whenever I come up for a visit that is the first place I like to hit up.

James: Have you managed to find any music or scene to grab hold of since you've been down there?

Brian: There really hasn’t been much luck of finding any type of seen down here, but I really can’t say that I been looking that hard either. There are three clubs/venues that are pretty close to me in Fort Lauderdale. A small club called the Poorhouse caters to the local bands, and is probably comparable in size to Dingbatz in Clifton. The next venue that is stepped up in size is the Culture Room, and you could have touring bands play here, and for example the Misfits are coming through here in a couple of months, but that shit isn’t really the Misfits to me. The third venue is called Revolutions, for I haven’t even seen this place yet, but I know that bands like Thrice are playing here very soon. There is also the Bank Atlantic Center located in Sunrise where I went to see Rush, and that place reminded me of the Meadowlands in Jersey. There is a place that has a lot of promise that is located down in Miami, and is called Churchhills. It’s not a big club at all, for it has a decent size stage, Premier League Soccer on all the flat screens, and a very good selection of beverages. The one knock on this place for me is that it is a little too far for me to get to, especially since I don’t drive due to my blindness.

James: Is there any chance you'll be coming up to play a 

Voice or no Voice reunion show anytime soon?

Brian: I would love to play a reunion show with those guys, but I highly doubt it. That question should definitely be asked to Andy and Biv.
If I had total control over us playing a reunion show, for our asses would definitely be playing a reunion show. I did Joke around with Ox about playing a World indifference reunion show, and he said anything is possible, so maybe you’ll be hearing about that.

James: What are you listening to these days?

Brian: To be completely honest with you I have been listening to my Ipod on shuffle, and sports talk radio (790AM The Ticket ESPN Radio) If I had to give you five bands that I have been listening too since I moved down here, and their albums. This is in no particular order of how they are listed.

Supertouch, their new songs that they put out on Reaper Records, and all their old stuff. I got stuck on a Supertouch kick since out of the 9 months that I have been down here, for I have been up to see them twice.

The Wait, I have been listening a lot to their demo CD with my wife, and that CD reminds me so much of home. That CD is mad catchy, and those guys are the nicest guys around. I use to play mad shows with them when they had Paul on drums, and they were called Endgame. When Paul left the band they wanted to continue playing music, but they wanted to change up their sound, so I told them that I knew a guy named Sergio Spina. Sergio use to play in a band with me and Mikey back in the late 90’s called Deny Victoria. He also played in True Zero, My Favorite Citizen, No love lost, Run like Hell, and Scary Hours, so you could definitely say Sergio is an experienced drummer. I am only telling you this because I would like to think that I had little part in a good band coming together.

Rival Schools new album, Pedals. The new Rival Schools album is fucking amazing. Their first album “United by Fate” was phenomenal, and this album is becoming a close second. The last time this band put out a album was close to ten years ago, and in that year I spent most of my time in South Florida. Why did I spend a lot of time in South Florida during that year was because my girlfriend now wife was living down here. Now, its 2011 and Rival Schools puts out another album, furthermore my ass is back in South Florida, so does this seem coincidental? Hmmmm.

Rush - The Best of Rush. Lately I have been listening to a decent amount of Rush. I guess that kind of seems weird hearing that I am listening to Rush being that I sang in a hardcore band. I guess it has to do with the fact that my brother in law bought tickets for my wife and I to go see Rush while he was down here in late March. I was totally psyched after seeing them perform, and this is because I really wasn’t into them that much, but afterwards I realized that those guys are an amazing bunch of musicians. Listening to them play live totally reminded me of playing with Mikey, Biv and Andy, so that is what made me appreciate them even more.

Sick of it All - Everything. This band will always be playing on my Ipod or my walkman. I’ve been listening to this band since I was 12 years old, and shit is not gonna change any time soon. The first time that I seen this band was September 1993 at City Gardens in Trenton. They headlined that show, for Into Another played an amazing set second, and Rancid kicked the door down to open the show. They ended up putting that show out on Lost N Found Records named “Live in a World Full of Hate”. If you look in the insert you could see me and Mikey with our arms stretched out, and my arm looks like its ten feet long. Now, that was the first time that I’ve seen them, and the most recent time that I caught them was at the 2011 Black N Blue Bowl this past Memorial Day weekend. Almost 18 years later and they are still killing it. That’s why they are built to last.

Getting to Know Shannon Perez

If you live in New Jersey and have even the slightest interest in music chance are you've come across Shannon Perez. Whether it's as the long time clerk at Curmudgeon Records in Edison, Hillsborough or Somerville. The singer/bass player for I Hope You Die and Strange Things Done in the Midnight Sun, Or the Promoter who's put on countless shows, often making a point a giving the younger bands the exposure they desperately need to grow and move forward.

I'm not exactly sure when I met Shannon. It might have been at Naked Raygun's Maxwells show when I kept, accidentally elbowing her while photographing the band. Regardless, I seem to be running into her more and more these days. 
So on  Thursday I headed south to her studio in Woodridge to talk to her about her experiences, contributions and plans for the future.

Here's what she had to say. James Damion

James: Tell me a little bit about this place.


Shannon: We're in my studio. I've been here for about ten years. I knew these guys that were in the band The Mean Mistreaters. Their band used to practice in the room behind us. After they started another band called Dehumanized.
We actually started to hanging out here.
I finally decided to start my own band,
Don Juan Destroyer. Then it became my bands room.

James: How did you come to work at Curmudgeon Records?

Shannon: After High School I moved out of my house and down to NewBrunswick.
It didn't work so I went to live with my Grandparents. Me and my Grandfather are driving down RT 27 to pick up my Grandmother. As we cut across Plainfield Ave. I see this record store with all these Punk Rock posters in the window. I'm screaming "STOP"!!! and my Grandfather, who's the best guy in the world pulls over. So I discovered Curmudgeon and met the owner, Bill. I became a loyal customer and eventually married into the Curmudgeon name. I worked in Edison and Hillsborough. I helped open the Somerville store.
We just closed the doors there in May.

James: What led to the closing?

Shannon: It was a number of things. The owner, Bill, lost his passion. Money wasn't being made. Competing with technology, the internet and not willing to work with iTunes or go on the internet to sell on Ebay. He wanted to deal with people face to face. We opened the store because we wanted to have a place where people would come to buy and talk about music. (A place where people could have a sense of community in music.)
That's what it became in essence. A place where people came to meet. Nowadays people and bands have a Facebook page, a website, a MySpace. The need for an underground record store isn't what it used to be. The need just isn't there. Back then people were looking for something different and that's what Curmudgeon was. It's sad that it had to end but we had a seventeen-year run. I started working there in 1994 when I met Bill. It was just a great experience.
I met so many great people there. People I would eventually start bands with.
I learned to play bass when someone asked me to make them a Bikini Kill mix.
I told him
"You teach me to play bass and I'll make you a tape." That was my start, right there.


James: You mentioned the sense of community and people communicating face to face. You also had a run when you had bands performing In Stores.

Shannon: Curmudgeon originally had some shows at the Court Tavern through Mike Polilli
of Buzzkill. They would promote the store a lot. They also had some parties at McCormicks back in the early days when they first opened. We started our In Stores in Hillsborough because it was such a huge shop. We started contacting labels about showcasing bands. Mike and Bill booked a lot of those appearances. It wasn't just one person.
There were so many people involved. There were Hardcore BBQ's, Static Radio played all the time.


James: The thing that really stands out in both of your bands is your ability to just flat out sing. When did you discover your voice?

Shannon: My Mom was a singer/songwriter and played guitar. She sang a lot of Folk.
She taught me and my twin sister how to sing. We would sing stupid kid songs like
"You are my sunshine". It just grew from there. Your family has you singing on Easter and they've got you singing at church. My Mom eventually started shifting from Dylan and Beatles stuff to more Christian focused Folk which became a pretty rough period for me.
So from the ages of five to twelve I hit a pretty rough patch. By twelve I had stopped going to church.


James: When did you pick up the bass?

Shannon: I started working at Curmudgeon and I was meeting all these awesome bands.
They'd come in and talk about themselves,
their bands, the girls and all these awesome shows they were playing. It made me feel left out.
This guy Steve Petras from Bernie's Fix, I.D.K. and The Lawn Darts would come in and talk about music. He asked me to make him a Mix Tape.
He told me if I made him a Bikini Kill video he'd give me some bass lessons. He gave me only two lessons and I had already written two songs. Then two songs became ten songs within a week. He was all excited, "We have to start a band!" That's when we started Don Juan Destroyer.
I had played music all my life. (The Baritone,
The Clarinet, (Drums in the Marching Band.)
But when it came to something like the Bass.
I was a late bloomer. My boyfriend at the time and his partner at the store (Curmudgeon) always made fun of me. They'd laugh "Come on, you'll never start a band." "You're too fucked up." It lit a fire under me. It got me inspired.
Even if it wasn't Hardcore or Punk Rock. Regardless of whether they were going to like it or not. I was going to do it. I sing from my heart and I write from my soul. I write about things that hurt me and influence me. Things that have made me happy. People that have inspired me. That's what my song writing's about. If people enjoy it, cool. If people don't, I guess that's cool too. There are people who really like it. That makes me pretty stoked. I can do a few things really well. Singing is one of them.

James: You're in two bands now. I Hope You Die and

Strange Things Done In The Midnight Sun. What are some of

the differences and similarities between the two.

Shannon: I was in Don Juan Destroyer for a long time. When we broke up I was really having a hard time finding a new band. I had done some things that just didn't work out.

In Strange Things Done I'm not the lead singer. I'm the backup vocalist and bass player.

John Matthews takes the reigns with the band. Where as, 'I Hope You Die' is my thing.

They're my songs and collaborations with people I really respect. We're serious about writing a good song and getting it out there.

James: You had mentioned a Tour and CD.

Shannon: I'm putting out a six song live CD with one studio track recorded by Eric Bennet and Marissa Paternoster (Screaming Females) at Hunt Studio by long time ago.

It was mastered by Charles Chaussinand. I was hoping to have a new release available in 2011 but it might turn out to be later than that. So in order to get the ball rolling and get something out there I'll be releasing this in the time being. I mastered it myself and it sounds great. We haven't booked the tour yet but Pat Clark (Mirrors and Wires, Degenerics,

I Hope You Die) is helping me with getting it together. I've done a few jaunts with bands before but I've never gone booked a full tour.

James: I wanted to talk to you about promoting and putting on shows. How did you get your start?

Shannon: I started doing shows just out of my love for music. I was a little Riot Grrrl who was in love with Bikini Kill. (I had seen them live at The Bank with all these other amazing bands.) When the band broke up and Kathleen Hannah started Le Tigre I was desperate to see them. They played their first Jersey show at a place called The Melody. This was also the first real show I had put on. It was an amazing rush. Seeing all those amazing bands playing together that night and hooking up after to work together. That was back in 1995 and I've been doing it ever since. I started doing shows at The Court Tavern. I booked some Hardcore shows where I had bands like No Redeeming Social Value. I had done a couple of the A.O.D. reunions. I was totally responsible for Detentions reunion at the Court Tavern with A.O.D.

James: You've also done a lot to promote bands that are just coming up.

Shannon: I've had a chance to meet a lot of people through Curmudgeon. People coming up and starting bands. Bands that are just looking for a place to play. Every band had to start somewhere. I didn't have any one giving me a break when I started out. There was the late Chris Barry of the Aquarian who used to put us up at a place called The Broadway Central. He would let Don Juan Destroyer and The Ergs play all the time. People like that who give young bands a break. Look what it did for The Ergs. Bands like Static Radio started like that.

James: How would you describe yourself and your personality?

Shannon: I'd like to think I'm a nice person.

I'm a bleeding heart and I'm always looking to help people. At the same time I don't like to be fucked with. I don't like people messing with my friends or family. Nobodies perfect and there's always inner turmoil. Sometimes I lack confidence and can over compensate by being overly aggressive.

The booze factor on some nights can make things pretty rough. I'm not one to back down from a fight and I always try to stand up for the good guy.

I've made mistakes but no one's perfect.

No one stays in love forever and there are always going to be people who are going to try to keep you down.

I have a lot of good friends and I've got some enemies. We've all had those times when we're crying and hating ourselves. While we've all had those times when we've been on top of the world. We're the best person ever and everyone's lucky to know us. Then there's times when I feel I don't matter at all and I don't matter to anybody.

Like it wouldn't matter if we were here or not.

I owe it all to Vic Castello for teaching me how to love again.

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