10.14.2006 - I am sad to announce that Ken Cooley has decided to leave Jet Black Jane. Here are his words, as posted on his Myspace page:

Hello all,

Due to both professional and personal reasons I have decided to leave Jet Black Jane.
I feel that in order for me to grow as a musician and singer I must leave a band that I truly love.
This is in no way a slight on the remaining members I just need to do what I need to do. In the coming months I will be debuting new music and a new project. Please be patient while the magic happens. I will see you all very soon.

Peace,

Rev

His loss, the third in our group in 2 years, gave me pause to reflect a bit on my own musical history. Some 15 years back, I was in a soul & blues band called The Stingrays. In fact, I co-founded it with a singer/guitar player named Gene Donaldson. Gene had a wealth of experience as a performer, and served as my mentor at a time when I was young and green. He taught me the ins-and-outs of performance--the nuances that I'd never thought of when I'd imagined being on stage. Simple lessons like having my own mic and mic stand (this sounds like common sense, but it's not), having back-up cables, extra fuses and tools for any contingency--all of these were essential lessons for as a fledgling performer. Duct tape is magical.

After a few years, I began to feel a bit constricted by my role in the band. Gene was the star, and I wanted to run my own band as the focal point. I was ready, thanks to Gene. I left The Stingrays (they're still going strong, by the way) and formed my own band, a power trio called Seventh Son. That band lasted for a few years as well, and would not have were it not for Gene's mentoring.

After that band broke up, I became disillusioned with what I considered to be masturbatory wanking--playing lots of long solos and doing the whole "guitar hero" thing. I gave it up and sold my electric guitars. After a couple of years spent playing acoustic music (with The Acoustic Livingroom and Kevin Cleary), I got the electric "itch" again, so I bought a strat and joined The Jaeme Brennan Band. The experience was mixed, but overall a good one for me. After the incarnation folded, I was again ready to be the focal point. I teamed with Jaeme's drummer Jay Wood and formed The Kelvins in 1999.

The Kelvins thrived as an original rock project for 4 years. I created it with a very specific and detailed vision In it, I was the frontman, rhythm guitarist, primary writer, manager, booker and web master. I controlled that band in every detail, in an almost dictatorial fashion. The many hats took their toll on me, but I remain pleased overall with the results. We played some memorable shows, had some great times and made a bit of a splash on the regional scene. One thing that, in retrospect, amazes me about that band is the fact that we never had any personnel changes throughout our run. Our guitar player Mark quit at one point, but we were unable to find a replacement who fit, and he actually returned to the band (thanks Mark). We were like a family in some ways, and I remain grateful to my former mates for the patience and energy that they put in. After that project folded, I wanted to form a rock and roll band that would take advantage of all that I'd learned, and this time I did not want to be the focal point.

Together with drummer Travis LaMothe, I assembled an amazing group that I called Jet Black Jane. For me, it was important that this project be more fun than The Kelvins - more creative and democratic and, well... fun. In order for it to work, I had to relinquish some of the control of the project to my bandmates. This did not come as easily to me as I had imagined it would. I now had not one, but two singers who shared the spotlight, both on stage and in the rehearsal room. Both wanted to contribute creatively, but in what became a creative tug of war, Angela Luna won. Along with my songs (Liverpool, Mama Sutra, etc.) a few of her songs were developed for the band.

This left Ken's songs undeveloped, though we did make some attempts at developing one. There was some drama at the time, but Ken never complained about his songs being overlooked. This is not to say that Ken just sang. Like everyone, he was a part of the creative process. Ken wrote lyrics and melodies, contributed instrumental touches with conga and harmonica, and always had a voice in the organic process of shaping new songs.

Angela left the band. She moved to LA to develop her own original project (which seems to be doing quite well), and left us with the quandary of what direction to go in. We opted to bring in a relpacement for Angela, in the form of Ellen Lalicata. EL came to the group with a musical aesthetic that seemed closer to our vision for the band, and we began to re-tool the songs we'd written to cater to her different style. Ken's songs languished, but he retained the lion's share of the actual lead vocals. As a group, we were aware of this, and sought to even things out by giving EL a few lead vocals in cover songs, and by developing one of her original compositions.

Then Travis left the band, eager to pursue his own musical agenda, and his new love, Amy. Trav was an important part of the band's makings - he is very creative and a wiz with arrangement. Losing him was a tough blow, but we decided to replace him and keep at it. Auditions began, and, 3 months later, continue now. Ahhh - now. Now Ken has made the fateful decision to leave the band, and to pursue his own project. He has, of course, led several bands (Masala, The Rev Ken Experience, etc.), but like many of us do, he chafed at the restraints that this band placed upon him creatively.

Perhaps I am somewhat to blame for that. After all, I always sought to flesh-out my compositions, not his. Control over the music remains one area in which I am loath to give up control. I think, though, that Ken also chafed at the restraint of having to share the stage with another front person. This is not a bad thing - not a flaw. It is simply the natural law of musician ego. I chafed at the bonds of my first band because I wanted to be the star. I was happy that Jaeme Brennan's band folded, because I had chafed at the bonds of being his sideman. It is natural. It is inevitable. Now, it is done.

As a band, we have chosen to keep going yet again. This time, we will allow the unit to become a foursome, rather than bring in another singer or player. This will mean that I'll have to sing again, as Ellen's back-up. I was happy to just play guitar (no, really - I just wanted to shut up and play), and look forward to seeing what happens on stage with EL as sole front person. This is not to say that I won't iss ken - I will. We all will. The man has an amazing voice and energy, and I hope that his time with us has served to hone his skills. We'll miss his sense of humor, his enthusiasm and his talent.

I find it an odd thing that this band, so unlike The Kelvins, has become such a revolving door. John and I are now the only original members - 2 out of 5. I've often read about other bands that went through similar evolutionary processes, but never understood how or why it happened. Now I do. As I type this, we are in the final stages of auditions for our new drummer. We'll make our final choice in about a week, and will then go about re-tooling our songs yet again. We should be ready to showcase the new drummer, and the new incarnation of the band, in early December. I'm really just hoping that we have a lot of fun in the process.

Cheers, Greg

09.06.2006 - While we bide our time auditioning drummers, here's a link recommended to me, that might appeal to the poker players in the house:

Askmelanie.com
If you have questions about No Limit Texas Hold'em in casinos in CT, NV or NJ all you have to do is ASKMELANIE I can help you learn the basics so you can confidently walk into any casino or poker room. When you have no one else to ask, you have nothing to lose.

07.31.2006 - Here's an update on all things Jane: First, We will not be playing at the Band Slam, as we were not invited this year, in spite of the fact that Travis won for Best Drummer (Well deserved!!!). This is because of his departure from the band, but we still consider it a victory for JBJ because he won during his tenure with us. Congrats to Trav, and to all of those who won this year!
Next, our search for a new drummer is going well, and a decision is forthcoming within the next 2 weeks. We've listened to some great players so far, and have more coming to audition. This means that we'll be up and running in early September, and have booked accordingly - watch for a few new show announcements soon!
Finally, I want to thank all of those who have been supporting us and our brand of original rock and roll - we intend to keep pushing the boundaries of it and offering you the best possible shows we can. Towards that end, we're working on some new original material and a few new covers that we promise will induce the requisite shit-eating grin come showtime.

06.27.2006 - It is with great sadness that we must announce the imminent departure of our founding drummer and great friend, Travis LaMothe. Trav has had an increasingly hectic schedule with his other project, The Bill Carleton Band, and can no longer serve both groups. He has decided to leave Jet Black Jane so that we can continue to grow creatively without the heavy restraint that his schedule has put on the band. As someone who has been Trav's friend for going on a decade, I'd like to thank him for all of the time, effort, creativity and FUN he has brought to the project from day one. He will be sorely missed in every sense (except sexually, as he's a bit "quick on the draw") (okay, that's purely speculation...). Rock on, Trav.

This leaves Jet Black Jane in need of a new drummer. If you are interested, please email us at: queries@jetblackjane.com

Thanks, Greg Garcia

06.24.2006 - Sweet divine mollusks of providence be praised - we've found another really, really cool club to play. Last night's show at The Whiskey Pub was A W E S O M E . Really, it was cool. The place is roomy and comfortable and has a great vibe. We kicked out an hour long set O' fun, then kicked back and tossed back some drinks to the soothing sounds of Federal Bison. Thanks to everyone who came out - Kathy & Joe (fuck, what was your friend's name?), Doug, Amy, Kat (shit, what was your friends name?), Gina and Jason, Ludent (the omni-present) - those are the names I remember anyway... Thanks also to Steve McQuade for having us there.
We'll be back there soon for a full night of music, as our days of just opening are happily drawing to a close with the creation of a new batch of songs. We'll debut at least two at Sweet Jane's in July, and probably a couple of new covers as well. Watch for some new gig announcements soon!
Cheers, Greg

06.19.2006 - Thanks everyone for voting! See you Friday night..

06.01.2006 - Well, you nominated, and now it's time to vote. That's it--just a few minutes from your hectic day and we may be playing their newly formatted Band Slam at Bushnell Park. Regardless of the outcome, we appreciate all of the nominations you threw down to get us here! - JBJ

04.30.2006 - There is a new bar in town. It is the best bar in Hartford if you like the rock & roll without that musty "Bob Seger" odor or testosterone fumes wafting overhead as the latest Godsmack song pierces your labia (and/or scrotum). It is run by Chris Peters. It is shiny and new and clean and expansive enough to hold your entire retinue comfortably. It is Sweet Jane's, and it is your new favorite bar. Trust me. We played there last night, and many of you fine friends were there sucking down espresso martinis. You were drunk, I noticed--good work! I'll type more about the evening later.
As for the Battle of the Bands, we actually made the finals, but could not compete due to Trav's schedule (he had a gig with Bill Carleton on the night of the event). Our friends Veloray ended up taking the whole thing - congrats kids! We had a dream.

04.23.2006 - Well, we may have made it to the finals at the Battle of the Bands... Who knew? We had a great time despite the very long drive to Danbury, the 5-minute rule on set-up and break-down, the fact that they opened the barbeque pit just as we began to play and the questionable talents of the soundman. The final preliminary round is taking place on Thursday the 27th, and the finals are going down on the next night, so we won't know if we're actually in the finals until Friday morning. Hmph. Oh well, we'll be ready if they want us to throw down (the thousand dollar prize may just have a little something to do with that).
In other news, there really is no other news. Hope to see you all at Sweet Jane's on Saturday night!

04.03.2006 - Can you say "lost cause?" Well, we're entering anyway - a Battle of the Band, that is. Here's the lowdown:

Kappa Chi Alpha Sorority, of Western Connecticut State University, is sponsoring the 4th Annual Battle of the Bands Contest at The Monkey Bar in Danbury, CT.   Part of the proceeds of this event will benefit Dream Come True of Western Connecticut, a non-profit organization granting the dreams and wishes of terminally and chronically ill children in the Western Connecticut area. and the top 3 scoring bands over the 3 weeks will qualify for the Final Round on April 28 thy .   There will be a $1000 cash prize for the winning band.
This event will be 18 and up, and the cost of entry at the door will be $6 per person.

If you're in the area, please come out and support us!

03.04.2006 - Okay, who had fun last night? Raise your hands.
Well, if you were at the Hungry Tiger, I'm thinking you've got 'em up. We sure did (have fun, that is). Thanks to Dave and Aaron and Susan, Pete and Katie and Amy and everyone else who said "Damn you, cold weather! I shall drink and I shall have the ROCK!" Rider totally rocked out after our set, with blazing psychedelic, blues testicularity. Guitarist Ian Wolff (what a rock name...) broke 2 'E' strings, and ended up playing my Epiphone. Brooke was her usual stellar self. Man, that girl can give you chills. I'm really blown away by Rider's sound, their energy and their overall weight class. This is a thin bunch... I felt like I maybe should have offered them some food.
I think that the two biker guys who hung out with Amy all night were:
a) Brothers.
b) tough looking hombres.
c) extras from the bar scene in From Dusk 'Til Dawn.
d) all of the above.
(circle your answer)

For those of you who saw my tee shirt and wondered, whatthefuck does "Snakes on a Plane" mean?!? Well, this might help: Snakes on a Plane explained. I hope that those of you who read that will go forth into the world and use the term with seeming randomness and brow-raising ambiguity. As for the show, if you liked it, please do two things:
1) Drop us a line! Our Myspace page is a great place to do it.
2) Tell your rock lovin' friends to come out to our next show! We'll have more CDs to give away, and maybe some bumper stickers as well.

01.21.2006 - By the beard of Zeus, we had a great time at Sully's last night! Bill Carleton's band warmed things up nicely with a set of their fine brand of rock, despite having no bass player. Instead, keyboard player Tony Parlapiano played the bass lines on his board (bass pedals, actually). While Tony did an excellent job, he messed with the wrong people. Bass players are a mean and very vindictive sort, and they watch for this kind of thing. The use of keyboards to present bass lines is, of course, a major insult to all bass players; and back-alley stompings along the lines of the those methods employed by Teamsters Union (back in the day) are forthcoming. Sorry Tony - you've been warned. Trav played "iron man" musician (or dirty whore musician...), bashing the drums for both bands - ahhh to be young.

We rolled out a few new bits in the show, including our first stab at an acoustic song. We're definitely going to keep writing those until we've got an acoustic mini-set that we can pull out when we're tired of killing everyone with the practically Nordic proportions of our bombast. We threw down a couple of new covers as well, and I (Greg, or "JT") kinda forgot some bits here and there. I promise I'll practice them, okay?

I'm resisting the urge to thank personally all of the sexy people who showed up at the show and made our night. This resistance hurts my head, but that might be the hangover. Helloooo Advil. Thanks to all of you - hope we were worth the ticket price. Next time, we'll have a few more new songs to roll out, and subsequently will not be taking any breaks. Breaks are kinda for pussies or bands without enough material to keep playing (*ahem*) anyway, and we're generally against them. That's it for now, I'll keep you posted on new shite and see y'all in March!

01.03.2006 - Happy New Year all! We had a GREAT time at The Main Pub on the 30th! Thanks to rane and The Main Pub for having us there, and thanks for all of you who came out and supported us! You all made us feel very welcome and comfortable, and that's not typically the case for the opening band. Also, Craig Struble did another stellar job sitting in on harp - the man is really an amazing player, and will be featured more prominently in some future shows (yep, more solos for him - he deserves 'em)! We'll be back at the Main Pub sometime in the next few months, so keep an eye out.

In the meantime, we're confirmed for a Sully's gig on January 20th with our pal Bill Carleton and his band, which will feature Travis on drums. We'll be taking February off, as Greg's wife is due then (it's a girl, they think...), and then back in action in March with shows at The Hungry Tiger, Main Pub, Cafe Nine, and possibly a Toad's show. When things thaw in the spring, we'll be hitting the road for shows up north and in NYC.

12.28.2005 - Plan on coming early to the Main Pub show on Friday night, as the joint is gonna have a sell-out crowd.
Okay, so we're an original rock & roll band, right? Right. Well, The Hartford Advocate sees it differently, and have put us on the ballot for their annual Snow Slam. If you'd like to vote for us, what the heck, go ahead! CLICK HERE to vote.

Have you got a MySpace site? C'mon, everybody does! Well, now we do. Go to: myspace.com/jetblackjanerock and be our friend...

12.10.2005 - Last night was a great time, but admittedly kinda slow with the snow clogging the streets of Union Place instead of the usual throng of partygoers. We made the best of it, though, and had a damned good time at Up or On the Rocks. We stopped by Agave for a bit O' mexican food before our set, and ran into Dave Mack. Dave is a singer and guitar player who I run into randomly at clubs all over hell and creation. He may possibly have played in every club in New England by now. Thanks to those of you who braved the elements!
Trav performed with rane, and their set was excellent. I thought Trav sounded very Dave Grohl-esque behind them - my how that boy has changed. So we did shots, slapped each other around, did more shots and called it a night at 2am. We're looking forward to the gig on the 30th at the Main Pub, where I believe we'll be a wee bit better fit than Up or On the Rocks.

12.09.2005 - TONIGHT'S SHOW AT UP OR ON THE ROCKS IS ON (UNLESS THEY CHANGE THEIR MINDS...)! We should take the stage at around 10:45 or 11pm, after the "Nillas" and before rane hits it at midnight. Our own phenomenal drummer Trav will be playing the entire set with them - should be very keen. Also, we're tentative for a show at Sully's in January - details coming.

12.05.2005 - Our illustrious drummer Travis got his start as the founding drummer for the regionally legendary band rane. Well, Trav will be celebrating their 10th anniversary with his former mates by playing drums for them on a string of dates during December. We'll be opening two of the shows: December 9th at Up or On the Rocks in Hartford and December 30th at The Main Pub in Manchester CT. Go to rane's website for the complete list of gigs. Also, our singer Ellen is doing some shows with her other current project, The Navels. She's groovy, so go check out her shows! Go to her site or their site to see the gig listings.

12.05.2005 - Personal note: Congratulations to our good friends Pete and Katie Kessel on their wedding! They were married on Friday in Vernon, and I was honoured to be in the wedding party. I had an alcohol-fueled blast and met some great people. Oh, and everyone give the girl in her pajamas a break...

12.01.2005 - Just added: another new show - Friday, March 3rd @ The Hungry Tiger with Rider!
Got a random news item? How about an animated gif to add to the collection? Well, send 'em and if they pass the "Strange and Random test" we'll put 'em up!


To download: click on button, then right-click (Macs click-and-hold) on full-sized image & choose "save as". After download is complete, Hit back button of your browser to return to this page. . .

11.26.2005 - What's your computer's wallpaper look like? Rolling hills and puffy clouds? Blue Spacy crap? Well, now you can have something with infinitely more mojo: Jet Black Jane Wallpaper! Download it FREE!

   >>    >>    >>    >>    >>    >>    >>    >>    

11.24.2005 - We've got 2 new shows coming up - both will be opening slots for Connecticut's legendary band rane, who are celebrating their 10 year anniversary. The shows are: December 9th at Up or On the Rocks in Hartford and December 30th at The Main Pub in Manchester CT. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

11.23.2005 - The Hartford Advocate's Dan Barry has offered his review of our band, and hey, he digs us! CLICK HERE to read his review in Local Motion. Dan, if you're reading this, THANKS! Oh, and how about "Northern Fried Rock"? Maybe "Northern Baked"?

11.19.2005 - I'm hung over, but smiling. Last night at Sully's was enormous fun. We broke in our new singer, Ellen, and she kicked ass as though she'd been there all along. Ken was standing on something or levitating or something, and going off in fantastic Ken fashion. We of the rhythm section were locked together like a machine - just the way I envisioned when I put the band together. Damn. HUGE props and thanks to Craig Struble for his guest appearance on harmonica. He played a mean harp throughout our entire set and blended like a 6th member. This was really every bit the show I wanted it to be, and though I'm typing with a tremendous hangover, I'm loving life.

Also on the bill, Girth had an excellent debut. They bashed out some great rock, with front man Brenden serving up a superlative performance, and drummer Mike Crivalone (you know him, you love him) once again proving himself the liveliest slut in town. After our set, Nikkos and Livid took over the stage and banged out some really cool music. They're a power trio, and reminded me of 311 with their wicked grooves. Man, that Nikkos can sing. I met his parents, who came to cheer their son on and shoot video. They were very gracious and did many shots with us (alright, that part is a lie, but they were really cool). All in all, it was a smashing good time. Thanks to Robin the bartender for her sweetness and Rob Salter for hosting the night. Life is good.

Gotta do this: Thanks to all of you who came out: my brother Erik Garcia (who surprised me by driving down from Princeton Mass); my cousin Carrie (or is it Kerry or something? I've never had to spell it...) and her boyfriend Jared; my brother-in-law David and cousin Eric; Scott Wattel; Chris Goggin; John Roderick; Jason Werner; Dan Barry; Christina; Billy Megofna; Jay Bernard and Kevin Scott (of Tao Jones); Kyle; Dave Dougherty; Aaron (Double A) and the cool girl with blonde dreads whose name is too complicated to recall [edit: her name is Chion Wolf!]; and a bunch more of you who will come to me when my head clears... Oh, and thanks to "MermaidCT" - a friend of Ken's who pimped our gig at a fishing messageboard CTFisherman.com.

10.20.2005 - The show at Sully's on November 18th is confirmed with the following lineup: Girth opens at 10pm, Jet Black Jane is second at 11:15, and Livid closes at 12:30.
Livid features Nikkos of the now-defunct Subtle Mischief, while Girth is fronted by Brenden of the former Brownstone (the band actually went by a few names, but that's the one I remember...). I'll be posting photos from the last Sully's show as soon as I find time to scan them.

09.04.2005 - We'll be back at Sully's towards the end of October for more decadent fun, with more new original songs and more cool old-school covers for you to enjoy whilst you debauch. I hope everyone who bought the CD enjoys the music - we pretty much sold out of them, but at a buck a pop, who could resist? If you're just tuning in, please go to the messageboard and drop us a line - we want to know what you think, what you want to hear, where you'd like to see us play, and whatever random, dirty thoughts you're keeping to yourselves ;)

Thanks to our friends in Rider for putting out an AMAZING set of music before ours - they were tough to follow! We hope to do some more shows with Brooke and her fantastic band soon, including our upcoming Sully's show and perhaps a NYC bus trip. For those of you who are not yet initiated, we rent a bus and charge you a bit O' green to ride (and drink) in it as we travel to New York City for a show at one of their fabulous clubs. We play, you drink, and then we night-cap it all the way back to Hartford. Trust me, it's GOOD TIMES.

As some of you heard, our Angela is moving to LA for a while, so the band is going to change a bit. We're sad for the loss, but will continue with our 4 remaining members, and are contemplating adding another singer to the mix in her absence. She'll still be a part of our band, but in a reduced capacity, as she'll be away until December. We're really going to miss her (and I'm sure you will too...), but she's got some great original music of her own that she's trying to get to the masses, and LA is the best place for her to chase that dream.

That's it for now. Again, thanks for the fun, and keep coming back here to the site for updates on our upcoming shows.

Cheers, Greg

08.25.2005 - The demo is done! We should have Mp3s up later today, and a pile of free discs to give out at Sully's on Saturday night (September 3rd - our next show). Come out and snatch one up! The gig falls on Ken's Birthday, so expect a lot of chaos to ensue.

08.04.2005 - Things have been slow here lately, with Angela in LA (Venice, to be exact), Greg coming down with some nasty flu and everyone sort of in a holding pattern. This will be remedied soon enough! The postponed final mixing session at Monster Lab Studio will take place within a week, and Mp3s will appear magically on the site. Rehearsals are resuming, and with them, the writing of more rock & roll fun. Our next gig will take place at Sully's on Saturday, September 3rd, and while Jaeme had to bow out, Rider and Jet Black Jane will offer up a night of fine deviltry.
Also, individual bios of all of the Jet Black Jane members are now up on the Meet The Band page - peruse them!
That's it for now...

06.30.2005 - Okay, it wasn't really a Jet Black Jane review, but Dan Barry of The Hartford Advocate did come out and review Moon Mama Soul Camp, which included 4/5 of JBJ (sans our powerful vocalist Ken Cooley). The review was all good, and can be read HERE. Thanks for the kind words Dan - we'll see you for a Jet Black Jane show this fall! Oh, and I emailed him about his erroneous reporting of Geoff Brown being the drummer (our own Travis LaMothe was on the kit all night), and Dan very graciously apologized, saying that he'd try to get a correction printed. Sex on legs?!?

SAVE CBGB'S!!! Click HERE to sign the petition.

06.27.2005 - Saturday night was a hell of a good coming out party for us! We had a great time, and really appreciate the huge showing by our friends and fans of our past projects. I should mention a few names here, but there are literally too many to either list or remember. We've got photos of the night, and some video as well. We'll have the photos up this week, and maybe a few snippets of the video soon. If you enjoyed the show, please join our mailing list by emailing the band with your address.
Angela is in LA now, so we're on a break until her return, but we've booked September 3rd at Sully's to kick off our fall touring in ernest. Watch the site for more show announcements over the next 2 months.
Our demo is in the final mixing stage, so watch the music & vids page for Mp3s coming within a couple of weeks. We'll be selling (and giving away) CDs of the 4 track EP on the site and at gigs this fall.

06.21.2005 - Happy solstice! You can't be in a band with Ange and not say that. We've got new pics from the studio on the FOTOS page. Tonight we'll be going back into the studio for part one of mixdown. Part two will take place tomorrow, and hopefully we'll be finished with the demo. Swag, swag, swag - lots of swag is now available. Tee shirts, trucker hats, even a freaking clock! Want some? Go HERE and HERE to buy 'em. Hopefully we'll have some free bumperstickers and maybe even demo CDs to giveaway at Saturday's show.
As for gigs, we're setting up a Labor Day weekend show at Sully's - it'll be with Jaeme Brennan's band and (hopefully) Brooke Gengras' (of Lez Zep) band Rider, on Saturday, September 3rd. We'll keep you posted...

05.31.2005 - We won't be playing Sully's this weekend, so our official debut at The Hungry Tiger on the 25th is...well, official. Also, we're finishing up our 4 song demo, so we may have some FREE copies of it to give away at the show.

05.23.2005 - Yesterday we recorded basic tracks for a 4 song demo at Monster Lab Studios in New Britain. With the talents of Matt Zeiner and Ramon Morant at the knobs, we had a great session and got all of our rhythm tracks down. Even the scratch vocals (used for reference) were fantastic, so we'll be keeping some of them. Angela brought a baby bird (I have no idea where she'd been keeping the damned thing) to the session, feeding it with an eyedropper and piquing the interest of the studio's mascot, Max the bulldog.
I'll tell ya, the vibe was unlike any I've experienced in many sessions. The studio is in a warehouse with high ceilings and a wide open space that was perfect for big drum sounds. We recorded everything live, with the guitar amp in the same room as the drums, so we got a real raw rock and roll sound that went perfectly with the style of the music. At the end of the session, Angela (noting the full moon) killed the lights and we recorded a haunting slow blues number called 10 Full Rounds by candle light. I pulled out a violin bow for the guitar part, and we caught the song like magic in one take.
For anyone looking to record, I strongly suggest you give Ray a call (860.977.2082) and book some time at Monster Labs - it's probably the best studio in the area if you're not rich. Look for fotos of the session next week.
In other news, we're waiting for confirmation on a possible Sully's gig on June 4th. It's a 50/50 shot right now, but we'll keep you posted.

04.08.2005 - There hasn't be much to report for a while, but I figured I'd post a few tid bits. We're playing at the Hungry Tiger in Manchester in June, opening for Angela's solo project: Moon Mama Soul Camp. Look for an upcoming date at The Main Pub as well. It looks like East of the river is going to give us more love - odd, since my last band (The Kelvins) never played a single gig east of the river (excepting a couple of early Husky Blues gigs) in 3 years.
In other news, we're putting together some originals that are really fun to play. Angela is writing, Ken is writing, I'm writing, John is writing... and Travis is playing some crazy drums (hey Trav, write!). This band will NOT be like The Kelvins - that's for sure! We will be covering a Kelvins song, but I really don't care to revisit that material for the most part. Speaking of covers, we've been having a great time with some Zeppelin songs. It's great to have singers that can blast out 'Misty Mountain Hop' - and other such songs. We may be bringing a keyboard player for some gigs (Scott Wattel of 'Souled Out' - he's a monster), but the basic lineup has settled at our current 5 pieces. I looked for a keyboard player able and willing to commit for months, but they all make too much money to devote their time to an original project.
Finally, we've got some interesting surprises in store for our audience - some visual treats and some guest stars will make appearances at select shows. It's all a bit frustrating right now, as we've yet to play our first gig and we've been working for so long on our show. Grrrr. Anyhow, it's all come together quite nicely, and we hope to see YOU at our Hungry Tiger gig.

03.07.2005 - Still waiting on Rob from Sully's to give us a date. We'd like to debut there, as it's always been a great venue for live original music. Email them and tell them to please BOOK US! Angela is currently in Mexico learning Spanish - Ange, ya could have just taken a class! We've got 7 originals in the works, 3 are complete. We're contemplating a little tour in LA this summer, with stops at The Roxy, Viper Room, Whisky - all of the usual suspects. If you live out there, fear not, we'll keep you posted! That's it for now... G

02.16.2005 - That March gig has been CANCELED due to a scheduling snafu. We're currently working on a multi-band show for April at Sully's with the Jaeme Brennan Band and Easy from NYC, featuring singer Brooke Gengras of Lez Zeppelin.

01.29.2005 - We've got a tentative booking for our first show, but no date to announce just yet, only the Month of March. The show, if it comes off, will be an opener for The Jaeme Brennan Band at Ultimate Billiards in Berlin. We hope the gig comes together, and will keep you posted.

01.01.2005 - Well, here it is, and here we are! It's been a long, surreal experience for me personally. Leaving The Kelvins behind was really tough after 4 years of hard work and one finished album that never got pressed. The good news is that I hooked up with some fantastic musicians...
They are: Travis LaMothe - originally founding drummer of
rane, most recently with Angry Beautiful and That 70's Band. | "Rev" Ken Cooley - a singer extrordináire and a whole lot more, he founded the band Masala | John Philbin - a prolific bass player whose most recent gig has been with Jimmy Hat | Angela Grano - regionally renowned singer of Jamie Strange,, Moon Mama Soul Camp and others...      Here we come. 

 

 

Cool Movie Alert!!!

The Big Bad Swim is an ensemble comedy-drama about a group of people who meet at an adult education swim class. Male and female, old and young, rich and poor, the one thing they have in common is a fear of water and their desire to overcome that fear and learn how to swim.

This film was created by Connecticut's own Ishai Setton (a pal of Ken's) and deserves our support! It includes a stellar cast and features our own Mohegan Sun casino (and a stripper). For info, check out it's website at: learnhowtoswim.com


illustration by Gabrial Polonski


Do the chickens have large talons? The Napoleon Dynamite Soundboard. For all the quotes you know you need.


The rising star above has eclipsed the legendary William Hung as the up-and-coming mega crooner. His debut video is available for viewing HERE. Oh, and like, 37 more videos of him are there too...
Don't worry about sweet William, though. Not only is he HUGE in Germany (having eclipsed David Hasslehoff on the charts for 13 straight weeks), but Hung's consolation prize is, of course, Winona Ryder (on 6-month lease with option).

Thanks to our own Ellen for discovering this monster talent! The sad irony is that she introduced me to the man who is destined to take both her and Ken's place in the band.


I collected some random animations that amused me. Thanks to my friends at The Velvet Rope for providing some of the fun. If this grows anymore, I'll have to create a new page to accommodate it... Who needs more cowbell?



Oh, Trav. Giving the finger is so 2004. Here's what's on his mind.

Travis LaMothe's Exciting new shite:
*Our show on the 18th at Sully's
*Our new singer Ellen
*Long walks off short piers.
*Not breaking things
*Aaron's Chris Walken impression
*Watching Greg doing the punt returner pose (Will he?)
*New Jet Black Jane tunes and figurines
*Awareness

Cheers TRAV.

This car is completely saran-wrapped. I stumbled upon it in the parking garage at Central. I'll let the image speak for itself.


If this is true, I can only hope that UCONN Professor finishes building that time machine.



For those of you who are just plain tired of having to type out "AAARRRR!" or "Avast!" Here's the ultimate computer accessory.

 

Here's an item sure to be on the christmas lists of thousand of little burgeoning rock stars. And on sale at every Guitar Center...