Written by Judith Blakley
"Clickety McStick Thrower" is not allowed to be the front man with the media anymore. Apparently, he was too forthcoming with my preliminary questions and shocked the rest of the band with the beans he spilled.
Ricky "Ricardo" Riner is the poor unwitting soul that told all the band's secrets. His drum solos are listed on the set list as "Clickety McStick Thrower" because he tends to hit his band mates and audience members with drumsticks on a regular basis. Chris "Ziggy" Ziegler (vocals/bass) says that he hasn't been hit in awhile, but he still flinches from time to time. Ricky said he used Gorilla Snot one time and "it stuck so well it literally took the skin off my hands." Darren "Hyde" Dupuy (guitar) says "he hits everybody and everything around him, the walls and all." Ricky said that "when I hit people the most is when my stick breaks." He actually hits people out in the audience.
Written by Judith Blakley
Imagine coming in first, second and third in a battle of the bands competition. These guys are involved in a little bit of everything, so they made such a feat happen. Society Ills (www.myspace.com/societyills) came in first place, followed by Pink Floyd Sound and rounded with Covalent James. Jordan Miller and Brendan Crow were filling in for some people in the band Pink Floyd Sound and played only that one show. These two are members of Covalent James (www.myspace.com/covalentjames) and happened to play that day as well.
Jordan also plays in the wacky band The Late Cretaceous (www.myspace.com/thelatecretaceous). It's an acoustic band with an actual dinosaur performing.
"Society Ills for Art Camp" was the name of the comic book that Jordan drew a long time ago. He's used "societyills" as his screename and when the band he was in needed a name, that was what they went with.
Written by Judith Blakley
"A spirit came to Josh in a dream and told him he had to form a band with his cousin Jeremy and his female friend Joni. So he proposed the idea to them and it turns out they had the same dream. Oooh. Creepy!" That is how Josh describes how the band Bland was formed in 2001. He goes on to say: "In 2003, they met a Jeremiah Pepper while on the summit of Mt. Everest. They have been rocking ever since!"
As you can guess, interviewing this band was a blast. They have an awesome sense of humor and you find yourself instantly at ease in their friendly presence. They mesh like family, as only long-time friends can.
Written by Judith Blakley
After they blew out my eardrums, the boys, Dad and I were sitting around the kitchen table in Cody's dining room in Skull City, West Virginia. Well, Dad was actually standing up beside the counter chiming in every once in a while because he's so proud of these boys that he cannot contain himself. Mom showed up a little later and once she heard me say "So you're the woman whisperer?" she decided this interview was something she wanted to listen in on. She sat in the living room where she could hear all the juicy tidbits. My student shadower, Kelsey Jenkins, just sat beside me shaking her head off and on.
