Local heroes

[PopTodd]

I remember a few of these from my time in college and just out.

Anyone from Chicago or St. Louis remember:

 

The Unconscious - A St. Louis funk/punk band that played just about every other week at The Blue Note in Columbia, MO when I was at Mizzou. They were a ton of fun. But when I found their old tape recently, it really didn't hold up.

 

Plaid Retina - A Champaign, IL prog/punk band that I saw once in a basement in Carbondale, IL. Great musicians, but they didn't make as much of a splash as the Touch & Go bands from Chicago. A victim of geography, I think.

 

The Flavor Channel - A band of Northwestern U. kids back in the early/mid 90's that played out pretty regularly in Chicago, but never developed more than a following of their friends and a small cult. I was a member of that small cult, because these guys were great. Combined surf, punk, skronk, and Roy Orbison-style 50's ballads into a great mix.

 

I would mention Shrimp Boat, but even they are too big for mention in this thread. Keep it small. I mean REALLY small.

[NightOfJoy]

From Dekalb IL in the late 80s/early 90s:

 

Junebug Massacre

 

The Renfields

 

Blatant Dissent

 

Happy Hunting

 

Howard and the White Boys (who I guess have had a certain degree of success)

[brianjeremy]

Jump Little Children - Not necessarily local, but an SC band that played all over the south and wandered out of the south a bit but never reached a major audience. Their song "Cathedrals" was a very minor hit that's been covered a few times by other artists.

[Wild Frank]

Not sure if this counts but there were a band that went to my school called 'Manson'. They had a few hits (wide-open space?) and a couple of pretty big albums in the UK in the late nineties but seem to have disapeered of the radar recently.

[remphish1]

Jump Little Children - Not necessarily local, but an SC band that played all over the south and wandered out of the south a bit but never reached a major audience. Their song "Cathedrals" was a very minor hit that's been covered a few times by other artists.

 

I loved Jump and saw them a handful of times in NYC. I got to hang out with the band a few times too. They were very unique and had a great live show I miss them!

 

As far as local bands I have seen a lot that didn't really make it..

From Good Homes

God Street Wine

Ours

[Ghost of Electricity]

From Dekalb IL in the late 80s/early 90s:

 

 

 

The Renfields

 

 

my brother will he happy to hear this. he's a former member.

 

i think i'll go put on "sounds of romance, sounds of horror" right now.

[jff]

Jump Little Children - Not necessarily local, but an SC band that played all over the south and wandered out of the south a bit but never reached a major audience. Their song "Cathedrals" was a very minor hit that's been covered a few times by other artists.

 

I remember seeing that name in the Atlanta show listings. I don't think I ever saw them, though.

 

My Atlanta favorites circa mid to late '90s were:

 

Flap

Joybang!

Toenut (although they did achieve a brief moment of national/international attention)

Seely

William Carlos Williams

Butterflies

Bob

Gold Sparkle Band

[nettles]

The Rolling Hayseeds and Rich Kaufmann (from the hayseeds) great local alt. country band early 90's, and Kenn Kwedder, everyone should look into Ken for a wealth of great tunes, performances and personality, reporting from philly PA.

[Boots]

 

 

As far as local bands I have seen a lot that didn't really make it..

From Good Homes

God Street Wine

Ours

 

I remember seeing God Street Wine at HORDE in what must have been 96. Don't remember anything about the show, but the name always stuck in my head

[remphish1]

I remember seeing God Street Wine at HORDE in what must have been 96. Don't remember anything about the show, but the name always stuck in my head

 

They were a lot of fun. Had catchy jammy songs. I remember they were on Horde but strangely enough not for the NY/NJ dates?

[dmait]

>From Good Homes

 

I caught 3 or 4 of their shows back in the day. Those were great shows and a couple of decent records.

[Moss]

Not sure if this counts but there were a band that went to my school called 'Manson'. They had a few hits (wide-open space?) and a couple of pretty big albums in the UK in the late nineties but seem to have disapeered of the radar recently.

 

 

I saw those guys open for the Seahorses a long time ago. Pretty sure it's spelled Mansun. There were quite a few people that thought they stole the show but not me. Wide open spaces is a great song but not sure they had many others.

 

I'm still waiting for Rose Hill Drive to make it big.

[Lodestar]

From Victoria, Chet is still my favourite local band. Their singer, Ryan Beattie (also has a side project called Himalayan Bear), has one of the most incredible voices I've ever heard live. He's also in Frog Eyes.

[people are leaving]

The Rolling Hayseeds and Rich Kaufmann (from the hayseeds) great local alt. country band early 90's, and Kenn Kwedder, everyone should look into Ken for a wealth of great tunes, performances and personality, reporting from philly PA.

 

I believe they're from your neck of the woods, but how the hell is Frog Holler doing these days ?

 

I'm fairly certain I own a Rolling Hayseeds disc, I just can't remember what it is.

[Degenerex]

I'll go with Local H

 

They had a huge single "Bound For The Floor" but that was about it. I still stand by the fact that they are one of the most underrated bands of all time and put on one of the most intense live shows I've ever seen.

[NightOfJoy]

my brother will he happy to hear this. he's a former member.

 

i think i'll go put on "sounds of romance, sounds of horror" right now.

 

Very cool, I remember seeing them a whole bunch of times.

[cryptique]

Kalamazoo, Michigan had a thriving and interesting music scene in the '90s.

 

Rollinghead were, to me, the cream of that crop. They released three CDs, including a live album (how many local bands put out live albums?). Their last album came out in 1994. Copies of two of their CDs can still be found pretty easily online, and there's even some streaming audio samples at Amazon and AllMusicGuide.

 

Last month they held a reunion show in the outdoor beer garden at Bell's Eccentric Café in Kalamazoo (the home base of the people who make Oberon) and there were hundreds of people there. It was like going back in time, and the band sounded great despite only a few rehearsals.

 

Three former members of Rollinghead formed a band called Dead River Drag later in the '90s, who put out a CD of their own and were every bit as good. Both bands' live shows were amazing, and both attracted some major-label interest but no contract ever materialized.

[Basil II]

"Black Happy" made quite splash in Spokane,WA...a music scene that is pathetically ane

mic....back in the early nineties.....

 

they were funky ska types with a full horn section...

 

 

-Robert

[twigboyjoe]

I saw those guys open for the Seahorses a long time ago. Pretty sure it's spelled Mansun. There were quite a few people that thought they stole the show but not me. Wide open spaces is a great song but not sure they had many others.

 

I'm still waiting for Rose Hill Drive to make it big.

 

Mansun....I got a coupla singles by them (Taxloss & Wide Open Space) and loved em but never delved further. They have just re-released Six...apparently a prog classic, hmm!

 

Rose Hill Drive?? Where you from? I live in Sutton and Rose Hill is just down the road (actually spent a few years there!), they from round that way per chance?

 

Now Grand Drive is a band that shoulda made it bigger! I loved this band and still do, reckon quite a few here would to...led by brothers Julian & Danny Wilson, who has since gone on to release a great solo album (under the name Danny George Wilson), and now fronts Danny & The Champions Of The World who I see quite regularly now in Brixton...great band / collective - sometimes 3 of em, sometime 15 depending on who's around. Highly recommended!

 

Finally, always falling fondly and regrettably into this category are Lowgold. Produced a fine debut before record label (Nude) went bust, landing them in big finicial shit, followed up with equally fine 2nd & 3rd records, and a b-sides / rarities collection. Sure more will follow but think any opportunities to break any further have sadly passed.

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

Shake Russell and Dana Cooper Band --- A really, really nice Americana band before there was Americana. Shake's songs have been recorded by some country artists, but this BAND should have hit it big.

 

Ten Hands --- Killer Live band that never caught a break. Band out of the North Texas State jazz world. Kinda like Frank Zappa meets the Kirkwood Brothers

 

Sorta --- These guys were on their way to something really big, but a key band member was killed. (Weird demise...Carter Albrecht died after being shot during a psychotic reaction to the prescriptin drug Chantix). Danny Balis of the band has a really good traditional country album out now that harkens back to the days before Nashville sold its soul (check him out on itunes).

[LouisvilleGreg]

Louisville had an absolutely ridiculous collection of good to great punk, hardcore and indie bands in the late 80's early 90's. A few even had some level of moderate national success. There were multiple local, independent record stores that carried the bands demo tapes and 7"s. There were alse several local-only record labels that thrived by releasesing local favorites. My favorites of that era were: Endpoint, Kinghorse, OUT., Undermine, Crain, Ennui, Dybbuk, Rodan, Evergreen, Slint, Cherub Scourge, Squirrel Bait, Sunspring and Bodeco. Freakwater also have their origins as a Louisville band.

[Moss]

Rose Hill Drive?? Where you from? I live in Sutton and Rose Hill is just down the road (actually spent a few years there!), they from round that way per chance?

 

 

Rose Hill Drive is from Boulder Colorado as am I. Where is Sutton?Wait a minute...are we even talking the same country?

[Ghost of Electricity]

Freakwater also have their origins as a Louisville band.

I do likes me some Freakwater.

[The High Heat]

Hobex

 

 

They were a band from the Triangle area of NC (Raleigh/Durham) that toured and made records for 11 years. They finally gave up on "making it" a couple of years ago. Now they only perform as a band a few times a year at certain festivals, but no longer record together. The leader, Greg Humphreys, has gone solo and has made a record and tours. Hobex seemlessly blended different genres/sounds and had a nice little groove going on. I have a couple of their cds, "Back in the 90's" being my favorite.

[remphish1]

I will add Firewater to the list. They have a big following in Europe or so I hear but out of the NYC area they are widely unknown!