Knights of Crisis profile picture

Knights of Crisis

About Me


Knights of Crisis plays classic and original American rock and blues. The band formed when a few members met while attending a function at their children's school. What started as an excuse to play some music and drink a few has grown into some serious fun.

Since their bar-band beginnings, Knights of Crisis have now released two CDs of original songs, and played live shows across the mid-west. They have played concerts and festivals with classic rock legends such as Little Feat, Blue Oyster Cult, Rare Earth, the Guess Who, and more.


Disaster Days… the latest musical compilation by down-state Illinois based rockers Knights of Crisis. Or is it?

True, Disaster Days is an audio CD, but in some ways it’s more like a bar room story – like an engaging and memorable drama you’ve probably heard whenever you’ve decided to pull up a stool at your local pub.

Like the best tavern tales, Disaster Days is ready to pull you in on a number of levels. At its most superficial, Disaster Days is a hell of a listen – a jingling, jangling adventure in style and music. There’s more than enough bluesy guitar licks, pounding drumbeats, lush keyboards, smoky vocals and intricate harmonies to keep even the most casual fan interested. And that’s not mentioning the lyrics. The lyrics – when was the last time you worked your way through an album so chock-full of double entendres and heartfelt pleas for love; an album so willing to leap between silliness and sincerity? There are songs here to remind you of Hendrix, Dylan, Neil Young and Jimmy Buffett. And there are songs that are pure Knights of Crisis: songs that are loose and lazy, as crowded and crazy as ever. If it’s clichéd to suggest there’s something here for everyone, then label me a cockeyed optimist. Disaster Days brings out the gushy music fan in me.

For long-time fans, Disaster Days’ songs blend and highlight the members’ personalities. This is a talented bunch of honky-tonk all-stars. Check out the oh-so-Blaney hysteria of “Zamboni Driver,” or Jim’s Dylanesque vocals on “Not Enough To Call”. Who was the first to say that the total is more than the sum of its parts? It doesn’t matter. What’s important is the theory is true; at least for Disaster Days.

And the more you get to know Knights of Crisis, the better you appreciate this mash-up of music and lyrics assembled for your listening enjoyment.

If Disaster Days were simply a rock ‘n’ roll joyride – a kick-up-your-feet experience for those who’ve enjoyed Knights of Crisis shows – it would certainly merit your attention. But on a more basic level, this isn’t just a collection of stories from the tavern; it is, in fact, a morality tale about the tavern, about the people and the experiences they share. Disaster Days may not have been intended as a concept album, but maybe the corner pub in Uptown Normal is so much a part of Knights of Crisis they simply can’t write a song for the bar without it turning into a song about the bar. At any rate, for those willing to give Disaster Days a little time, there’s a fabulous story waiting to emerge. Call it a cross between Zappa’s Joe’s Garage and Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” – a character study that serves as a warning shot across the bow of polite society.

-- Dr. Phil Chidester, Disaster Days liner notes

Check out what the excitement's all about with the latest Knights of Crisis release "Disaster Days" .



My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 03/11/2005
Band Website: http://www.knightsofcrisis.com
Band Members:

The Knights are:

Jim Dougan , bass, guitar, vocals, and harmonica: Jim grew up in the Pacific Northwest, where he was deeply involved in the music scene even as a teenager. For example, he once cooked dinner for the Wilson sisters of "Heart" while working in a Seattle restaurant. Now transplanted to the midwest, Jim's day job involves torturing psychology students and other small animals at Illinois Wesleyan University.

Doug Drilling , guitar and vocals: Doug's bluesy guitar takes him away from his work down on "The Farm".

John Hooker , drums: John is a Central Illinois native who has been lighting up the nightlife scene for about 10 years. In that time, he has filled the drum throne for a number of bands playing everything from Michael Jackson to Metallica. In between Knight jobs, John teaches communication at Illinois State University.

Dave Raistrick , vocals, guitar, bass, and keyboards: Dave hales from Peoria, Illinois and brings a fresh vision to the band. Coming from a classical guitar background, Dave has traded in his wine and cheese for some beer and a Knight Job!

Brent Simonds, guitar, mandolin, and vocals: Brent hails from Oklahoma. The thought of free beer and funk was too much for this Illinois State University professor of communication to resist. Brent's Americana-style wailin' is a great complement to Doug's bluesy bent.

Brandy Hansen, vocals and percussion: "A female knight?" you may ask. Well, what about Joan of Arc? Our newest Knight is a native of Normal, Illinois. Brandy loves rainbows, music, and speaking Spanish.

Joe Blaney , guitar, bass, vocals "emeritus"; Director of New Markets: Joe still records and plays with Knights of Crisis as often as possible. His duties at Illinois State University and B-104 leave him hungry for rock and roll road trips!


Influences:
Check out the Knights of Crisis video of Darlin Don't Pull That Trigger


Quicktime | Windows Media

more Knights of Crisis on YouTube
Sounds Like:
Little Feat, the Allman Brothers Band, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Grateful Dead, the J. Geils Band, the Doors, the Radiators, Phish, Buddy Guy, Lou Reed

Knights of Crisis music is available on ..


Record Label: DMCI
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

KOC Commercial Wins Award

A commercial for a Knights of Crisis performance at the Copper Top in Bloomington, IL won "Best of Competition (Radio Commercial/PSA)" for the BEA Festival (Broadcast Educators Association.)Produced b...
Posted by on Fri, 06 Feb 2009 14:16:00 GMT

Merry Christmas!

Greetings Friends of the Knights!We hope you're all anticipating a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We certainly are, though we've been laying low live gig-wise. Don't sweat it! We're working on a ...
Posted by on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 00:46:00 GMT

Third KOC CD in the works!

At this time, Knights of Crisis is working on its third CD and is booking only special events for the Spring of 2009. We look forward to seeing our friends at the coolest bars in the midwest soon. In ...
Posted by on Sun, 07 Dec 2008 02:35:00 GMT

August Update

KOC LOSE THEIR KEYS?RETURN TO PUB IIGreetings Friends of the Knights! Well, we're about to kick into a huge mess offun...tempered by some melancholy news. Read on.KOC LOSE THEIR KEYSKeyboardist extrao...
Posted by on Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:41:00 GMT

6/28 Six Strings show to be rescheduled

Hi Friends of the Knights!Well we were planning to tell you all about how we we'll soon be playing both types of music: country AND western... but instead we'll be rescheduling the 6/28 Six Strings sh...
Posted by on Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:43:00 GMT

KOC Video EP

What's a Knights of Crisis show like? Here's a live 8 song video EP shot at the Copper Top in Bloomington, Illinois... ..It's 36 minutes of Knights of Crisis playing these songs:Jammin EhDev...
Posted by on Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:45:00 GMT

Why subscribe to the Crisis-L e-mail list?

Oops...We've been busy and missed putting the last two months updates on our myspace blog. Those did go out to subscribers to the Crisis-L e-mail list.What is Crisis-L? It's the Knight of Crisis elect...
Posted by on Sat, 07 Jun 2008 18:46:00 GMT

March Update

Greetings Friends of the Knights!Loading in the instruments, sound equipment, lights, and fog machines in the dead of winter can be a pain in the arse! But when we get things all set just right, and w...
Posted by on Sat, 29 Mar 2008 13:43:00 GMT

February Update

Greetings Friends of the Knights!COPPER TOPPERWe apologize to those of you who could not find parking and get into the gig at Copper Top in Bloomington, IL, last Saturday night. Sometimes these things...
Posted by on Sat, 02 Feb 2008 12:38:00 GMT

January Update

Well Happy Flippin' New Year, friends of KOC! Our schedule is crammed full... and we need to tell you about a few things for January!PONTIAC, IL... EXIT 197Have we mentioned how much we love playing E...
Posted by on Tue, 15 Jan 2008 07:18:00 GMT