Micky Mercurio

I can't remember- Olly North.Micky started playing out at the Hub, the local Fredonia teen center with his band Young Loud and Snotty when he was about 14. He was the singer, with Kyle Gaszynski and Terry Austin on guitars.His next band, The People's Front, was a punk band with Kyle Gaszynski on guitar, Sean Mackowiak on drums, various people on bass including Eyk Syckle, Joe Largeman, Joe Mercurio and near the end, Dave Fridmann. Micky was the lead vocalist. The People's Front played various shows in Fredonia and Buffalo.They put out a cassette, Speeches of Articulate Poison, in 1985. Maximum Rock n Roll said, "The recording is pretty rough, but that won't stop you from enjoying this. Intelligent lyrics are propelled by tough and loud thrash. Noisy but controlled, with plenty of energy and determination. Good start. (TY)".In 1986, The People's Front were included on a 45 compilation which was put out by Non-Licensed Fun/Mike Huber. As coincidences go, Mike Huber was a boyhood friend of Dave Fridmann's and also played drums for an early incarnation of Mercury Rev called Shady Crady.The People's Front disbanded when Kyle was in a car accident soon after the 45 was released in the Summer of 1986, otherwise known as The Summer of Hell.Micky played solo for awhile as Circa 67. He was often asked to sing with various local bands as a guest spot.In 1988, he joined his brother Joe's band, Magic Skyboat, on bass. This was a great version of the band with Nancy Farina on drums. Joe played guitar. He and Micky sang. The Magic Skyboat played Fredonia and then Buffalo venues when they relocated there in 1989. They recorded a group of songs in 1988 or 1989 with Dave Fridmann while he was a student at SUNY Fredonia.To make more tie-ins, Dave was also recording with Shady Crady, songs which would become the first Mercury Rev record, Yerself Is Steam. Sean Mackowiak from The People's Front and Dave were 2 of the original members of Rev. When Rev played their first show at BJ's in Fredonia, NY in 1991, Jonathan dedicated Frittering to The People's Front which was actually a very touching moment.Micky played in The Magic Skyboat with different lineups including he and his brother until about 1992. He played guitar in a Buffalo band, Dark Marbles, for awhile.In 1993, Micky recorded some songs with Dave Fridmann at his house. Micky played all the parts except one bass line and Jeff Mercel played drums.In 1994, he moved to San Francisco for about a year. He did some recordings while he was there with Jack Shaw. Micky played guitar and sang while Jack played bass, Brendan Schonwetter played guitar, Josh Wheeler played drums and Diana Mangano sang back-ups.In the second half of the 90s, Micky mostly disappeared. He did more recordings at home with Dave. He played a gig at BJ's Fredonia in 1996 with Brian Dudley on guitar, Dave Fridmann on bass, Jeff Mercel on drums and Mary Fridmann singing backups. He recorded again in 1997 with Dave at the newly built Tarbox Road Studios.Many of these people, again ended up working with Mercury Rev. Jeff Mercel became the new drummer after Deserter's Songs was recorded. Jack Shaw ended up road managing and doing live sound. Dudley ended up doing guitar tech. Mary ended up singing on several of their records.Now in 2003, we are seeing more of Micky again. He sang a song with The Pavers opening for Phantom Planet at BJ's on April 25 which was great. As kids, Scott Reynolds (of The Pavers and All) and Micky used to play in a band called The Barn Boys but they only ever played in the barn.In June, a new band was formed, Captain Bringdown and The Buzzkillers. This band is Micky on guitar and singing. Dave Fridmann taking up drums, Mary Fridmann taking up bass and Bill Racine on guitar. Check the news for more about this band.2009 The record is out. A lot of water under the bridge, and other things to. 18. Captain Bringdown and The BuzzkillersDylan Micky loves Bob Dylan more than anything else I think. I met Micky in 1986 and he was a devilish little punk bastard. Everyone loved him though. I assumed that there was certain intention when he played those 10 minute Dylan songs. Ballad of Hollis Brown, etc. I thought he was secretly trying to torture people. I told him this around the time we were starting up our new band. He looked confused and had really never considered this idea before. But it did inspire him to make the joke that would become our band name: “We should be called Captain Bringdown and The Buzzkillers”.Bart Grampa Simpson and Bart were out on the town up to no good and the rest of the family showed up. Bart said “Here comes Captain Bringdown and The Buzzkillers”.Micky In 2003 things had really come to some sort of a pinnacle. Micky who had been in some of my favorite bands ever, couldn't even get a gig at our local place, BJs. I have to say the years hadn't treated Micky well. More suicide attempts than any one person should have to endure. Alcoholism and drug abuse. The people at BJs now had probably only seen our little Micky in his worst moments, blacked out and surly, who knows. He was probably just a scary local guy to them.Mary and Dave I was standing in the shower thinking and came up with a notion. I was pretty bored with myself at 37. Done having kids and love affairs and all the good stuff you can do in life. Looking forwards to death. Time to do something new. So I thought Dave and I should learn some new instruments and back up Micky. I took up bass and Dave has always yearned to play drums. In the past, I could never have been that bold but at the place we were all in this seemed to be possible. Thus Captain Bringdown and the Buzzkillers.Bill A few weeks into it I was talking to Dave's then-assistant at our studio, Bill, and he was happy to be involved in the projects he was, but he was a grown man living in a small town who was used to a little city life. One can get antsy. I said why don't you try playing with us? Well Bill and Dave worked 12 to 12, 7 days a week making records. So band practice had to be at 10 in the morning. Not a morning person in the group.Practice Dave has the most stamina though. He got up, made coffee, drove around waking and picking everyone up and finally we would practice. In our basement at 10 am. About twice a week. Three times max. The neighbor lady called. She was upset because she could hear the bass in her fruit cellar. Ah a new project. Now we had to make the soundproof room. During that time we hauled up to the studio to practice. This would only be possible if there wasn't a band in. So I guess the timing was ok.Bad Timing But is the timing ever ok at 10 am for people like us? Practice was often shambolic. So many coffee spills that we had to get no spill mugs with lids. Micky would show up literally asleep. I was cranky (nickname Surly Bass). Bill showed up one time with no strap or strings on his guitar. There was more arguing in this band than any I had ever been in. Course half of us were married. Micky, Dave and I were so used to each other that I think Bill would often just look on with horror. And Bill was so used to turning his guitar up so loud that we would just look on in horror.Good Times Upside was I was playing bass in a band of bass players. I was playing Micky's and/or his brother's songs. I actually can't really ever get bored of that. I got to play a Magic Skyboat song!And the shows were pretty damn fun. And torture. My first time ever playing bass I had rock boys, Steven Drozd and Harmony Griffin, sitting at my elbow. This was traumatizing but when I forgot where a note was, I could just turn and ask them.We had Waz for emcee. One night a pirate, one night a psychiatrist in a booth giving out pretty interesting advice, another wearing an elephant head and playing the cowbell (quite well I must add). Waz kept me entertained even when we were boring me.We played the long Dylan song, Angelina. We covered Micky's old bands, doing People's Front and Magic Skyboat songs. We did a couple other covers (Velvet Underground and Johhny Cash) but mostly we did Micky's songs.And the better the crowd, the better Micky did. Our last show was in February 2004 as Bill was moving on to the big city. We must've screwed something up and Micky said, “this will be our last song”. The crowd kept hollering for one more. Micky was only joking and of course I took it that they wanted us to only do one more. I guess I was as usual, a perfect Buzzkiller and Micky turned out to be a great Captain.2/1/05