The Absolutely Accurate 100% True Legend of The Very Idea!
Jesus El Pifco was a foreigner and he knew it. Raised by squirrels, he learned to scamper about in the treetops at an early age. When he finally outgrew his aboreal nest, Jesus joined human society on the ground. His squirrel heritage gave him a nervous disposition as an adult, as well as a tendency to scurry up lampposts during moments of stress. However, he also exhibited considerable musical talent and became proficient on guitar (once he learned not to gnaw on the neck).
In 2002, Jesus met Rod Magnum, who had just returned to Minneapolis from a tour of Estonia. The tour had been cut short when all the members of his band, The Magnum Force, quit when they discovered that their pay of 3,000 Estonian krooni was only worth $1.98. Rod had also been surprised to discover that Estonia, despite its name, is not a particularly good place to score dope.
Although Jesus and Rod had little in common and didn't even like each other much, in early 2003 they formed a musical partnership since neither of them had anything better to do. Those early hardscrabble months on the fringes of life have become the stuff of legend. Often subsisting on little more than orange peels and old coffee grounds, the duo forged their musical style, as well as horseshoes on the side.
Band members came and went, including beatnik cello player Hayley Bop and drummer / amateur brain surgeon Curly (who both still occasionally play with the band). By the late summer of 2003, Jesus and Rod were joined by the enigmatic Mel Fontaine, about whom virtually nothing is known.
And at the end of that fateful year, the beautiful, talented, and short Idyll Upino also became a member of The Very Idea! A professional karaoke singer by trade, Idyll was persuaded to try her hand at singing with real people. Her mellifluous voice added a vital component to the band's sound, and her looks improved the band's appearance immensely.
Over the next few years, The Very Idea! developed their unique sound in the face of almost total indifference from the world at large. In 2006, multi-instrumentalist Jonny the Ear and drummer Canman Krupacough joined the band. A refugee from New Hampshire, Jonny is rumored to have Mafia connections but nobody has the nerve to ask. He allegedly carries a violin in his violin case.
The ponytailed Canman stuck it out for about a year but then left on a voyage to Jupiter. He was eventually replaced on drums by the ponytail-challenged Carl LaFong (Capital L, small a, capital F, small o, small n, small g -- LaFong). Although he is also an excellent illustrator, Carl does not draw butter.
Tragically, in August 2008, Jonny the Ear was kidnapped by zombie lawn chairs. No ransom note was ever received. Jonny, we hardly knew ye. And in January 2009, Carl LaFong unexpectedly left in a huff (or possibly a minute and a huff). Luckily, Curly -- TVI!'s once and future drummer -- was persuaded to rejoin the band, at least on an ad hoc basis (hocs are added as necessary).
The Very Idea! released their Halloween-themed debut CD Off Jack in the fall of 2005. Their collection of cover songs, entitled The Very Idea! Covers Up, is expected any minute now. Or not.
Many people ask what are The Very Idea!? Why The Very Idea!? Ugh, The Very Idea!, how did the name arrive? So we will tell you. It came in a vision -- a man appeared in a flaming lightbulb and said unto them "From this day on you are The Very Idea! with an exclamation point." "Thank you, Mister Man," they said, thanking him. And so they are.