Here's a little roundup of upcoming bands oozing from this area's ephemera, and ones you'd most likely otherwise miss at Blowout numero 12. We quizzed 'em for kicks and got back youthful smirks and some irony-rich, sweeter-than-you commentary. Some even listed their ages! —Compiled by Brian Smith
LIES UNKNOWN
MEET THE BAND Enrique "Rico" Sierra (20): drums; Justin Alexander (20): lead vocals, rhythm guitar; Sidney (twentysomething): bass, backing vocals; Jamie Allen (19): lead guitar, backing vocals).
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE Well, we here at MT central believe that Lies Unknown, in all of its tousled, tatty elegance, could be the best new rock 'n' roll band in the Motor City. There, said it. What's great is the band doesn't see it that way — so let 'em stay forever young. The band says you should care because they've a "broad musical background and different musical influences. We like to think a lot of music today lacks substance and we feel we take a lot of time to make sure our music does."
THE HIT TUNE The rats-nest-headed combo says its tune "Let It Take Ahold" is the band's fave to play, so it's their hit. But if you're talking radio, the band says, and we happen to agree, the world-conquering ditty has got to be "Open Water."
REFERENCE POINTS The Trash Brats, the Dead Heroes (the Warning) and Best Idea Ever. New York Dolls, Green Day, Muse, the Beatles, MC5, Teenage Head, Bright Eyes and the Bouncing Souls. Mainly punk and pop-punk, rock 'n' roll bands. However, influenced by all kinds of music.
BAND MANIFESTO The Lies Unknown is about blending "new with old. We are all open-minded individuals with very different musical backgrounds. We'd like to eventually have national recognition through touring and writing the kind of music we love and that has inspired us to play the music we enjoy.
Playing at 10:20 p.m. on Saturday, at Kelly's Bar (2403 Holbrook), with Novado, Cougar the Tiger and Los Vikings del Muerto.
MARCO POLIO AND THE NEW VACCINES
MEET THE BAND Steven Klecksington (24): vocals, noise, words, props-art, drums, keys and "the Imaginatron."; Michael Mars (23): synthesizer, beats, noise, vocals, guitar, drums, and "the Imaginatron." Note: The dudes say they're considering changing their names to "Dimebag" Steve and "Dimebag" Mike. Clever.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE "You shouldn't care about us!"
THE HIT TUNE The band calls its "Dance with Nobility" a "blend of storytelling and spiritual magic that changes your life in a new way every time you hear it." Hear it here: tinyurl.com/4sgr9o
REFERENCE POINTS Black Dice, Daft, Subtle, the Electric Fire Babies, Rogue Satellites ("for being the Superman to our Batman in this Detroit Superfriends") and Gilbert and Sullivan because, they say, "Marco Polio is really meant to be taken as musical theater."
BAND MANIFESTO Yes, we did ask ... "It's our goal to expose those willing to see what's beyond the immediate reality via use of both the Imaginatron, and more conventional instruments. The live sounds we create with our instruments and voices are an attempt to harmonize with everything that has, will, or may exist and pull it into our world for all to see, hear and feel."
Thursday, 10 p.m. at K of C Hall (9632 Conant) with the Silent Years, Deastro and Rogue Satellites.
DIAL TONES
MEET THE BAND Kyle D. (18): Guitar, vocals; Nick Knightmare (20): drums; Muskrat (19): bass; Kyle S. (20): on lead guitar, organ and vocals; "and the dad of the group," Eric Allen (23): guitars, beard and vocals. From "the liver of Michigan: New Baltimore," with the exception Royal Oak's Allen.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE "We are the Youth of Tomorrow," the band chirps. "We will be your doctor. We will be your mailman. We will be your breakfast. We will infiltrate your household. You better like us or we'll get you sick, put worms in your mailbox, and go stale in your pantry. 'Nuff said."
THE HIT TUNE They claim a tie between their "Ghettobird" and "She's an Alien." They say the first song details "peeps in our band who've been arrested for a whole plethora of illegal activities" and the latter "doubles as a showcase to a whore that we all know" and how "some of us in the band have four-to-six brains (on average). To wit: "Twelve arms, 37 legs/Slime spewing from the holes in her face." Jeepers.
REFERENCE POINTS The Dial Tones' list is seemingly endless, but lots to cop, no? The Seeds, Amboy Dukes, MC5, Human Eye, Otis Redding, Frustrations, Fortune Records catalog, Sun Records, Rationals, Demon's Claws, Sun Ra, Gories, Tyvek, Brimstone Howl, Thee Makeout Party, Black Lips, Sights, Readies, Hentchmen, Stooges, Coltrane, the Spits, CCR, Gories, Fondas, Clone Defects, Small Faces, Fontana, Love, the Who and Terrible Twos ...
BAND MANIFESTO The Dictators said a long time ago that they live for "cars and girls." Dial Tone chimes in somewhat less poetically with "motorcycles and good times." They also "cry hard, eat hard and play hard. We like to have fun with sports and eat and laugh."
At 11:40 p.m., Thursday at Kelly's Bar (2403 Holbrook) with Flatfoot, Jesus Chainsaw Massacre and the Plantones.
THE PIZAZZ
MEET THE BAND Michael Severance: keyboard, guitar, vocals; Teddy Miller: guitar, tambourine, vocals; Mike Hayes: bass guitar, vocals; Jake Facine: drums, vocals. The band claims they're from over on "Carter Street."
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE After two self-recorded EPs and an LP, the band recently worked with the Go's Bobby Harlow on its first studio record at Tempermill. Also, Endless Latino Records of Olympia Wash., is releasing a 7-inch of their four-track recordings this spring.
THE HIT TUNE "Livin' Like Animals," because, the band claims, it's "about people who live in messy apartments, borrow things and lose them." myspace.com/thepizazzcare
REFERENCE POINTS The Pizazz get 100 style and taste points for calling out Harry Nilsson. The band also digs Guided by Voices, Sparks, Ramones and the Amps.
BAND MANIFESTO "Sing well, be polite." Such nice boys, eh? Hey, isn't that what Harry said before Pussy Cats?
At 11:20 p.m. on Thursday at the Painted Lady (2930 Jacob St.) with the Plain Dealers, Fontana and Boywife.
MAN AT ARMS
MEET THE BAND Eric Gallippo (27): guitar, vocals; Ted Prassinos (30): drums, vocals; Prassinos lives in Cleveland, Gallippo in Ann Arbor
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE Good thinking. "We're friends who like to write and play music together. We also like to talk about TV shows and cultural studies, and while that would be great to do in front of people, we have chosen the medium of music over the talk show."
THE HIT TUNE The bands calls its "Everything is Getting Better/Worse" a hit. "It's got sort of a Devo on jazz-fusion and Black Flag kind of vibe with a call-and-response chorus." The verses might be too long." You can hear it at tinyurl.com/ckrvp9.
REFERENCE POINTS Shellac, Mclusky, the Tony Williams Lifetime.
BAND MANIFESTO We're a little too self-aware for that kind of thing.
At 10:40 p.m. on Friday at Kelly's Bar (2403 Holbrook) with the Hadituptoheres, Stare into the Sun, and Elle and the Fonts.
GARDENS
MEET THE BAND Jeffrey Thomas: guitar, vocals; Vincent Mazzola: bass, vocals; Julian Spradlin: drums. From Woodbridge, Detroit.
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE Because, the band explains, "Why should anyone care about space politics?" Yeah, it's kinda what we were thinkin' too! Go to Holographicresonance.com, or Newdetroitstyle.com for a cleaner, greener understanding.
THE HIT TUNE "Because 'All Is School All Are Teachers' is No. 1 on TRL!," Gardens says. Hear it at tinyurl.com/bu5hl8.
REFERENCE POINTS Sugarcoats, Lee Marvin Computer Arm, Awesome Color, Druid Perfume, Tyvek, Aran Ruth, Human Eye, Danny Kroha, Sisters Lucas, His Name is Alive and the Genders.
BAND MANIFESTO Make the mountain bigger.
At 10 p.m. on Saturday at the K of C Hall (9632 Conant) with the Detroit Cobras, Readies and Magic Shop.
