Sounding the 805
Drumroll please . . . meet the new kid on the block
By Chris Mastrovito 06/11/2009
On any given weekend, one can find evidence of a thriving, diverse, innovative and honest music scene in Ventura County. I’m a local person with a hopeless love of all kinds of music and less than 20 bucks to spend for the whole weekend. Here’s what I recently found on the ground.
Members of Shades of Day peeled themselves away from recording a new album Friday to pound out an incredible two-hour set at Bombay Bar & Grill for the late-night downtown crowd and packs of adoring female fans. Glam rockers All Seeing Eyes had to pull out of the gig last minute, leaving Shades of Day free to, as Drummer Rick O Shay put it, “really get the juices flowing,” and their sound — combining elements of blues, classic ’70s rock, alternative and country in perfect measure — certainly has the juices part covered. The anticipated sophomore release is now in its early stages of recording and mixing, and is on track to drop by late summer to early fall. Their next live appearance will be June 20, when they will rock the flat-track motorcycle races at Seaside Park by day and no doubt pack the Good Bar on Main Street by night, where singer Brendan James will also perform as B Willing.
It’s one year down for Megasound Studios, the rehearsal space and recording haven for many of Ventura County’s young bands. They carried on the celebratory mayhem all day Saturday with grinning teenagers and adults alike covered in stage blood, live metal-inspired paintings by local artist Ray Cowell and an unstoppable 12-band showcase of the incredible talent that has driven the operation for the past year. On hand to unleash a barrage of metal intensity were brutal deathmetal mainstays Carnal Deity, Port Hueneme grinders Graveslut (former members of The Black Hand), and several other local acts of the metal and extreme music persuasion, including the effortless, melodic deathmetal/blackmetal of the teenage Midnight Requiem. Fans of Scandinavian-style symphonic blackmetal should make the drive to the Whisky in L.A. in July, when Midnight Requiem will open for New York heavies Abigail Williams.
The second release by Tall Tales and the Silver Lining (members of Franklin for Short), called The Understanding, inspired a large gathering at the Art Barn, mellowing out properly with performances by Seth Pettersen, Deepak Super and indie-folk trio Land ’n’ Sea. The Understanding is a coherently fluid balance of acoustic-guitar-driven, jazz-influenced Americana, samba beats, floating, finger-picked melodies and affectionate, inspired lyricism. Pick this one up.
Meanwhile, Ojai psych-rock masters Hindu Kush have just finished their debut record, Travel Well on Flower Records, the Ojai label of Grammy-winning producer Greg Penny (Elton John, KD Lang). Their quest for a licensing deal has already sparked the interest of major labels, including Interscope Records, and let’s keep our fingers crossed for some live local shows in the near future.
Chris is a rabid local music fan who spends more collective hours sifting through CDs and vinyl at Salzer's Records than he does sleeping. He has played in several local thrash, punk and hardcore bands and enjoys an eclectic mix of auditory stimuli.
By day, he’s a working stiff, by night he's a show crasher, scene invader and scribe of the 805. If you have a tip for him — drop him a line.
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