I played the bass in a little band called Grey Area (and for nine years prior to that I was in this band called Husker Du , some of you might remember them) it was a long time ago, then I took about fifteen years off from playing.
I opened up a lovely little restaurant in the middle of nowhere with my wife Sarah about three years ago.
About that time I met Dave King, the drummer for the Bad Plus and he had this crazy idea for a band that was going to be a fusion of punk junk jazz avant garde industrial metal noise, and wanted me to be the bass player. Well after fifteen years of not playing I KNEW i was capable of the noise part and I wasn't sure beyond that, I didn't even own an amp at the time. The Bad Plus has been a very busy band since that time, somehow they agreed to play the Grand Opening of my restaurant, and on Fathers Day of 2004 they played a set under a tent in a field with a few friends and a couple of million mosquitos. They then embarked on a world tour that has kept them touring almost constantly (I had the good fortune to see them in Iceland this last March, great gig, great people, if you ever have the opportunity to visit Iceland you owe it to yourself to go), anyway Dave kept saying this band was going to happen, so I bought an amp, nothing fancy just a little combo, and this last February we finally got together.
The result you ask? The Gang Font
, featuring Interloper (see blog)
Punkprogfreefunkmathmetal is more like it, but we can bring the noise too.
Tell me who?
Erik Fratzke (Happy Apple, Zebulon Pike) guitar.
Dave King (The Bad Plus, Happy Apple, Halloween Alaska) drums.
Greg Norton (the Nortons' Restaurant) bass.
Craig Taborn (world renowned avant garde playa) keys.
We went into the studio at the end of December and recorded our debut for Thirsty Ear Records, it hits the stores on March 27th.