Cameron McGill And What Army

Cameron McGill is a pop-fectionist. What should be needless to say, is that this has nothing to do with aesthetic, marketing or sales. Be it McGill solo or with his Chicago-based band What Army, the music doesn’t just take center stage, it’s the only thing meaningful thing on the stage.

McGill’s music is the new smooth voice of the Midwest. People like Bright Eyes, Devandra Banhart, Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s, Jentri Colello and Madison’s whole alt-country scene plus so many more have started or taken on this quest of giving our green plains an audible, distinct, interesting and unique musical pulse. McGill’s place in this line up is on the radio.

Read More...

Canned Heat

They were the Scotch-and-Marlboro Blues voice of the Summer Of Love. Canned Heat’s story endures with their cross-generational appeal as the dynamic blues band that played the theme song to Woodstock and backed up John Lee Hooker. From Woodstock and the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival to Hell’s Angels club tours to festivals and bike rallies, drummer and founding member Adolfo “Fito” De La Parra has re-formed Canned Heat a dozen times with reoccurring members, blues legends, and new faces. He has been touring constantly and releasing new records for 37 years, and is currently promoting the new album Friends In The Can. Fito spoke with Maximum Ink about the new line up, his autobiography Living The Blues, and pushing forward in the mission of delivering boogie music to people who will listen.

In 1969, Canned Heat manager Skip Taylor was booking the band nightly on opposite coasts. “We were [sleeping] in the cargo area of the planes between gigs,” said Fito, “I was sleeping on the floor of the airplane hangar while the helicopters were taking off.” They had to commandeer a helicopter from a news crew to get to the festival. “Fuck you, we’re going to MAKE the news!!” Bear was quoted in Living The Blues. He then hurled the reporter through the door, “We are The Canned Heat. It is more important that we get there than you, so we’re taking this helicopter!” When finally in the air, Taylor shot off a random photo of the crowd as they flew onto the grounds. Later, it became the cover of Ravi Shankar’s Woodstock album. The roadies made it through the sea of people and met the band with their gear as they landed. Later while on LSD, Taylor negotiated an on-site contract for royalties and film rights, and stole a limo for their gig in Atlantic City the next night. Going Up The Country was forever after the theme song for Woodstock. “We’re more infamous than famous,” said Fito, “But we really don’t care.”

Read More...

Captured! By Robots

Captured! By Robots, just home momentarily from a National two-month spring tour will be hitting the road again in June 2005 for a long over due tour of Canada with limited dates in the US. The “Greatest Hits” set will feature songs from both “The Ten Commandments and Get Fit with...” along with songs from Captured! Alive. These summer dates will be the only time in the foreseeable future to catch these songs again live.

Captured! By Robots recently recorded the follow up to the DVD/CD release “Captured! Alive.” This new release is a double CD entitled “The Ten Commandments / Get Fit with...” This release was recorded in the studio and contains two bonus 10 minute MPEGs – one clip from each of the past two tours, both filmed at the Green Door in Oklahoma City OK. “The Ten Commandments / Get Fit with...” chronicles the past two themed tours, The Ten Commandments CD was the set performed on the 2003 Fall Tour, and the Get Fit with.... CD is the set from the most recent 2004 Fall tour. Each CD will feature ten of Jbot’s favorite songs from each set. Due to acts of God, ie: manufacturing issues the release due out in April 2005, has not been available on tour or in stores but is now available.

Read More...

Carbellion

American Heavy Rock, it’s the title of southeastern Wisconsin band, Carbellion’s first EP and according to lead singer, Cameron Kellenberger, the most apt description of their music. “Thematically, a lot of the songs are pro-United States, American culture”, he says, “heavy rock is a tag we put that just kinda stuck.”

Formed from the ashes of Milwaukee metal stalwarts, the Carbon Parlor and Whiskey Rebellion, Carbellion is a mash-up of the two former band’s names. But Cameron likes to tell unsuspecting fans that it’s a Spanish ghost-ship, a matador-killing Mexican bull, or a Civil War soldier. Carbellion has already played many of the Midwest’s biggest cities in support of bands like Corrosion of Conformity, Clutch (who the band feels are musical brothers-in-arms), and Alabama Thunderpussy.

Read More...

Cealed Kasket

By all accounts, Cealed Kasket puts on one heck of a show.  There are swords, beer, wenches and a self-proclaimed, 553-year-old wizard named Sarsicus, led by the ringleader and vocalist Mortal Death in an effort to entertain the youth of America. The band’s latest album, “Penetration,” was released this past July on Reckless Records. 

The band will appear at Maximum Ink’s Halloween Spooktacular on October 27th, so we thought it fitting to warn…err, inform concert-goers in the Madison area just what they might expect from these medieval metal rockers.  It seems that the traditional sex, drugs and rock and roll is on the menu, and Cealed Kasket knows how to deliver the goods.  After sitting down to chat with Mortal Death, the best warning?  Be afraid…be very afraid.

Read More...

Chad Smith’s Bombastic Meatbats

Red Hot Chili Peppers’ drummer, Chad Smith, doesn’t take vacations, he makes records. With the funk-rockers on hiatus, Smith has not only recorded and released a record with supergroup, Chickenfoot (with Montrose vocalist, Sammy Hagar, Van Halen’s Michael Anthony and guitar maestro Joe Satriani) but is releasing an instrumental record this month with CHAD SMITH’S BOMBASTIC MEATBATS called appropriately Meet The Meatbats. While in Boston on tour with Chickenfoot, Chad took a few minutes to talk about the new release and their upcoming Japanese tour.

First of all, part of the reason Smith used his name as the title of the band wasn’t his idea. “It’s not in any way my band”, he laughs, “that’s in name only. We were doing a tour of Japan and only the promoter thought it would help sell tickets. I said I was okay with it if it helps out. If you’re a Chili Peppers fan or a Chickenfoot fan, I hope you like it.” The band started when Smith, Ed Roth and Jeff Kolman were playing as the backing musicians for Glenn Hughes, former vocalist of Deep Purple. Smith says, “We would just jam if Glenn was late for practice. One day I thought we should record some of the tracks and have fun.” That was in January of 2008 and they were joined by Kevin Chown on bass in the recording studio. The sessions went well, as Smith recalls, “We made this record and were really proud of it and we’ve already finished recording another record!”

Read More...

Children 18:3

Children 18:3 are a dream come true for nearly any general fan of music. The music is easy to swallow but exciting and stands up listen after listen. They are, however, a critic’s nightmare.

This Minnesotan three piece shamelessly (and rightfully so) defines themselves with elements of pop, punk, rock and aesthetics that can be so polarizing it’s kind of a wonder they have the massive fan base they do.

If a Children 18:3 newbie doesn’t run when they hear “Christian Rock” they might when they see the band’s long haired, greasy, mascara’ed front man. Or, if they don’t turn the other cheek when comparisons to Alkaline Trio turn up they might turn the page when they hear this trio is a band of siblings.

Read More...